Snippets of Time

1. A Chaotic Christmas

Four bloody weeks I spent on this gift. Four. Bloody. Weeks. I really hoped my best friend liked this gift that I've spent so long making and put so much of my effort into.

I put the neatly wrapped present on my desk and let sleep envelop me into darkness. Tomorrow is going to be wonderful. Because tomorrow is Christmas.

Crash! I shot up from my bed and checked the time. It was midnight. I furrowed my eyebrows and wondered what that loud bang was coming from downstairs. It was probably my little brother doing something daft but I had to be sure. I crept downstairs, avoiding the creaky floorboard, and peeked through the living room door.

It was Santa!

I couldn't believe my eyes! What was Santa doing in my living room? Wait a minute, how does Santa even exist? I shook my head; this couldn't really be Santa and I knew exactly how to prove it. I slipped back upstairs and retrieved a brown package. It contained a brand new tracking device that I had never used before and now was the perfect time to use this brilliant little device.

I crawled back downstairs and crept up behind Santa. Before he could even realise, I stuck the device inside his hat which he had taken off whilst devouring his mince pies and I crept back upstairs.

I smiled. Mission complete.

***

"Merry Christmas!" I exclaimed as I handed the gift to my best friend Maria.

"Thank you, Alyssa!" she replied whilst taking my gift.

She gave it a little rattle and said, "I wonder what it is!"

"Open it."

She hastily tore open the sparkly, pink wrapping paper and removed the present from the box. A little clown sprung out and starting bobbing forwards and backwards. Her face suddenly turned as white as snow and she stifled a gasp.

"I—I love it," she stuttered whilst inhaling sharply but I could tell something was wrong. "I've always wanted a Jack in the box." She smiled but it wasn't genuine.

"I've got to go to um... do stuff," Maria muttered quickly. "Bye."

Something wasn't quite right with Maria. She didn't seem particularly pleased with the gift, almost like it was haunting her. I had to find out what was going on.

I crept after her and watched as she turned the corner towards the children's home. Her knuckles were white as she gripped the Jack in the box tightly, almost as if she wanted to squeeze the life out of it. I watched from the window in astonishment as she entered the children's home and handed my beautiful present to the Reception desk, muttered a few words and walked out.

How could she? After everything I did to make that present perfect? Hours of cutting, weaving, sticking, knitting and attaching gone down the drain in a matter of seconds. How could she?

Tears pooled in my eyes and a strong emotion began stirring inside of me. It wasn't sadness. It wasn't grief. It was rage. Boiling, furious rage.

I snatched my phone out of my pocket and opened up the tracking device app to see the location of Santa. He wasn't far actually. Just a few streets away. But wasn't his home supposed to be in the North Pole? I didn't have time to worry about that as I'd already raced off in the direction of his location.

***

"Ah, I see," Santa said. "So basically, what you're saying is, you spent a really long time making this gift for her and she gave it away and now you're really angry and you want to kill her but you need adult supervision to do that because children aren't allowed to kill people themselves. Is that right?"