Doesn't the ABA require that schools take the higher score?
It requires that schools report the higher score. Generally, it indisputably looks bad if you did worse on the retake. How severely that affects admission chances depends on the school and a whole load of other circumstances.
What other circumstances? And any advice as to what I should do?
I'm considering taking it again but I really don't want to. Neither of my scores fell within my average while taking practice tests, so I feel they're not reflective, but I don't want to do worse, and I don't want to apply in December because I feel a later application will hurt me. How high would I have to get in December for it to counteract the bad score in Oct, and the late application?