• It was October 31st, 1958, the day of Halloween. A young thirteen- year old girl was out shopping at a local convenient store, buying some fruit for her parents who were both at work.
    The girl was picking out some apples. She placed three in a brown basket, looking around warily at all the strangers who walked by. She did not like shopping alone. She slowly and stiffly walked up to the front register and placed the basket on the desk, and reached into her pocket in the front of her tacky hand made sweatshirt that her grandmother had woven. While taking out a wrinkled five dollar bill, she caught a glimpse of the candy rack sitting at the bottom of the counter. There she saw a bucket of individually wrapped starbursts.
    "If only I could have one... "She thought. "ALL the kids will be having candy tonight."
    The girl, however, only had enough money for the apples. That's all her mom gave her.
    "No candy today." She thought dissappointedly
    The truth was, the girl had never had a single piece of candy in her life. Her parents were poor and never had the money to spend on things that they could live without.
    The girl thought... "What if I just took one? Just this once."
    The girl handed the clerk the crushed five dollar bill. She picked up her basket, and just before she passed the counter snatched a starburst in her fist.
    "You bring that right back here!" the clerk snapped. He stomped around the counter and towards the girl.
    Frightened, the girl burst through the door. She bolted down the parking lot, carelessly charging into the street. Honks and screams from drivers rattled through the air. Cars skidded to a stop.
    She fumbled up the hill, running through the woods. She finally reached her yard. She ran through the back door, slamming it behind her. She made sure to lock the front door, and closed all the windows.
    The girl plopped down on the couch, letting out a breath of relief. She opened her hand, casting her eyes on the pretty pink wrapped up square taffy. She slowlly, piece by piece, began to unwrap it. With her left hand she placed the candy in her mouth. Then she began to chew.
    Instantly her taste buds tingled. Her mouth watered with this delicious strawberry flavor. She chewed, indulging, while clenching the wrapper in her right hand. She swallowed, feeling the delicious candy slip down her throat.
    The girl sat back in her chair, completely satisfied with her very first candy experience. She stared at the wrapper again, in disbelief that something so small could taste so good! Then something happened.
    The girl sat up, startled by sudden weird feeling in her throat. She coughed. Her throat was closing up. She grunted, trying to clear her throat, but no luck. Suddenly she began to wheeze. She dropped to her hands and knees onto the floor.
    "What's going on?" The girl thought. She searched in her mind for an answer, beginning to panic. Then she got it, something she learned in school.
    "I'm allergic!" she screamed.
    The girl scrambled onto her feet. She clumsily ran towards the desk at the other end of the room, lit by a single candle mounted on a small metal pedestal. Her eyes were watering, she couldn't see clear, she was feeling weak. She threw her arm around on the surface of the desk, squinting to try to find the phone that was always on the desk. She found it, grabbing it and recklessly bumping the table. The candle fell over.
    Through her blood shot eyes, the girl saw the blurry candle tumble onto the rug, igniting it on fire.
    She ran for the back door, panting for air. She ran out towards the shed out back. On her way, she tripped and fell into the tall unkempt grass. The phone landed on the ground.
    "Get up! Get it!" She tried to tell herself. But she no longer held the strength. No matter how much she tried, it was no use. She could no longer breathe.
    The girl turned her head staring back at the house through her blurry eyes, that was now visibly on fire.
    With that, she faded... She died that night.

    .....

    The girl's parents had been called by some local neighbors who had seen the burning house. The parents immediately headed to the house.
    The fire was put out, but it took too long. The house was ruined. The girl, however, was found when an investigator searched the property. She was found lying in the grass. Her skin was covered in third degree burns, parts of her skin fully gone. All that was left was her body, and the pink starburst wrapper found in her right hand. The parents had decided to keep her name confidential, even after learning about the crime she had committed. If only she has never taken that starburst.