The Very Best Costume

(I work in a bookstore in a mall. On Halloween, almost every store has an employee hand out candy to kids as they walk around. It is a fun concept, and this is my second year passing out the candy. I even have my own system. Little kids, or anyone in an awesome, homemade costume gets the good treats — the PB cups and chocolate bars and such. People trick-or-treating with infants or smarta** teenagers who didn’t even make an effort — yeah, yeah, you’re a serial killer and they look like normal people; I get it — get the gum and cheaper candy. The night has just started, and a mother approaches with her two kids: a boy around nine years old and a girl around six. The girl is something cute, a princess I believe. I recognize the boy’s costume because I am a nerd, but I also see that the boy looks pretty bummed out when they come toward me.)

Me: “Cool costumes! But why so sad?”

Boy: *sadly* “No one knows who I am. They think I’m a baseball player.”

Me: “Baseball player?! Little dude, you are wearing a red vest, you have six Pokéballs on your belt, and a stuffed Pikachu holding onto the back of your car. You are the one and only Ash Ketchum, who is the very best, like no one ever was!”

(The boy just broke out with the widest smile. The mother looked grateful, and I made sure that Pokémon trainer and his princess sister both got a handful of my best candy.)