A little boy was very sad after his classmates made fun of him for the inexpensive Halloween costume his father made for him. Things took a turn when the school principal showed up wearing the same costume.
Levi loved his small home and his parents, Carol and Darren. They were not rich, but they always supported each other, which he appreciated. One day, after coming home from school, Levi was upset with his parents.
How could he not be upset? It was Halloween, the time for trick-or-treating, and there was a costume contest at school, but Levi’s parents didn’t have enough money to buy him a new costume.
His classmates would be dressed as Superman, Batman, or one of the Avengers, while he would have to use his old costume!
“Honey, please understand,” Carol said. “You know, Dad and I are trying our best to save this house. We need to save money for the mortgage.”
“Do you not love me, Mom?” Levi asked sadly. “I don’t want the house. I want a new costume. You love the house, not me!”
Carol sighed. “It’s not like that, honey. Mommy and Daddy love you the most! We love you more than anything!”
“No!” he screamed in tears. “You are lying! You don’t love me! You love the house!”
With that, Levi ran to his room in tears and didn’t come out for dinner. No parent wants to see their child sad; even Carol didn’t. But did she have a choice? Not really.
They were deep in loans, and their small shop only brought in just enough to get by. Seeing Levi sad bothered her, so she talked about it with Darren over dinner.
“He’s sad, honey,” she said. “Can we get him a new costume? If not, I’ll find a part-time job.”
“Don’t stress yourself out,” Darren said. “You already have too much to do. I’ve got an idea…”
Two days later, while Levi was eating dinner alone in his room, still upset about the costume, Darren walked in with a big parcel in his hands.
“Can I come in, little boy?” he asked at the door.
“No, you can’t,” Levi said without looking up from his plate.
“Even if I say I got you a new costume?” Darren asked. “I thought you’d be excited.”
“Did you?” Levi looked at the parcel and smiled. “Is that a new outfit? Really?”
“Yes, it is!” said Darren. “Now, can we have a little apology for Mommy because you yelled at her a few days ago? She was so worried about you.”
Levi was so excited to see his new costume that he dashed out of his room and hugged Carol. “You and Daddy love me! Not the house! I’m so sorry, Mom! Let’s see my new costume together!” He took her hands and ran so fast that she almost tripped.
Then came the big moment. When Levi opened the parcel and saw the costume inside, he was in tears.
“Is that a robot?” he asked. “Dad, Mom, I love robots!”
“We know you do, little boy,” said Carol. “Do you like it? Daddy made it for you!”
“I love it, Mom and Dad!” exclaimed Levi, wiping his tears. “I love it so much! And I love you both! Thank you!”
Levi was thrilled. He adored the robot costume Darren had made from cardboard and duct tape. It wasn’t expensive, but it was filled with love and his dad’s hard work.
But on the day of the costume event, Levi was crying because of the teasing. He felt sad because his classmates were making fun of him.
“Look, Levi is wearing a piece of colored cardboard!” a boy laughed. “He couldn’t even buy a new costume!”
“Don’t say that, Tony!” Levi protested, trying not to cry. “My dad worked hard on this! He watched videos and put so much effort into it!”
“Oh, did he?” another kid chuckled with his friends. “Well, that outfit makes you look like a loser! I bet your dad’s a loser too!”
The kids were so mean that Levi started crying. When his name was called, he didn’t go on stage and instead cried backstage.
Soon, the show ended, and everyone got to show off their costumes except Levi.
“I’m so sorry, Dad…” he sniffled. “I didn’t even take part in the competition! I wasted your hard work! I’m sorry…”
Suddenly, Levi heard a loud gasp. He looked at the stage and couldn’t believe his eyes. The school principal, Mr. Frederick, was on the stage, dressed as a robot! It was red, while Levi wore a blue costume.
“Where is my fellow robot? Levi, where are you?” he called from the stage.
“Mr. Frederick?” Levi exclaimed as he stepped onto the stage. “You have the same costume as me!”
“Call me Captain Red!” he said with a smile. “Agent Blue, that’s a nice suit! It took a lot of time to make!”
“You look cool, Captain Red!” Levi smiled, forgetting his worries. “My dad made me this suit! I just love it!”
“That’s wonderful, Agent Blue! I’ll ask your dad to make me a suit next time! I saw some kids didn’t appreciate your costume, so I thought, why not show them they are wrong? You know what? I love your outfit! You’re lucky! Your dad puts love into it, which is more important than just spending money on costumes…”
That day, Levi won the competition. His costume stood out among all the Supermans, Batmans, Avengers, and Disney princesses, and he smiled widely as he lifted the trophy with Captain Red!
At that moment, the group of mean kids came over to Levi and apologized. “We are sorry, Levi!” they said together. “Your costume was awesome!”
Levi felt happy that the other kids liked his costume. He shared the big basket of candies he had won as part of the prize with them and said, “It’s okay! I’m not sad anymore. Let’s not be mean to others, okay? Mommy and Daddy say we should love each other!”
“That’s absolutely right, Levi,” Mr. Frederick said gently. “Always remember, kids, we need to support each other and encourage the good in this world. Never put others down! That’s what Captain Red and Agent Blue believe in!” he added with a wink, and all the kids happily nodded while enjoying their Halloween candies.
