Christmas Horror

Part 1

Jessica looked on in despair as the Christmas tree fell with a resounding crash to the living room floor. The sound of ornaments smashing and baubles breaking only added insult to injury as the fairy lights flickered and failed. What little solace was found in the fact that the flat screen television was left intact, still playing a black and white film as if nothing had happened.

Emerging from the branches and looking perplexed and proud was Cookie the cat. He surveyed his work and turned to Jessica expectantly.

"Well, I hope you're happy." Jessica said through gritted teeth.

Cookie merely gave a long meow and scurried out the room under Jessica's legs. By this point the rest of the Davis family had entered the room, each gasping in turn (except for Matt, who had to supress a desperate urge to laugh out loud).

All eyes turned to Jessica, who was standing less than a foot from where the top of the tree had fallen, the gold star that rested on top pointing directly at her like an accusing finger. Jessica looked at the tree, then to her family, her blue eyes still wide with shock.

"I can explain-" she began.

Whatever her explanation had been, it was swiftly silenced.

"So when I asked you to watch the cat and make sure it didn't get into the tree in case it caused havoc, you heard the complete opposite?!" Jessica's dad thundered.

"Seriously, Jess, what the hell were you doing?!" her mum added, arms folded and head shaking with disapproval.

"I was watching the cat! I tried to stop him, I swear!" Jessica said desperately.

Matt stepped further into the room and bent down, trying to grab the tree and prop it back up.

"Matt, stop that at once, there's broken glass!" Mrs Davis warned her son.

Flicking back his long brown hair, Matt made a face and backed away. From the stairs came the meow of Cookie, making Jessica want to find him and boot him out the house.

"Dad, I can fix-"

Mr Davis held his hand up, cutting Jessica off.

"Just find that damn cat and put him away, ok??"

"But I-"

"NOW, Jessica!!" her mum shouted.

Swallowing, Jessica slowly vacated the room in shame, all eyes on her. When she made her way up the stairs to find the black cat, she lingered briefly on the bannister when she heard her name.

"Seriously, it's like she doesn't even care. Does Jessica even-"

"Anthony, please, not now." her mum's voice was full of ice, an indication that she was very, very angry.

"Guys, it's really not a big deal..." she heard Matt say.

"Matt, just go and get a dustpan and broom, ok?" his dad ordered.

Matt emerged from the living room, wiping pine needles from his blue jeans onto the hallway floor. As he wound his earphones around his slim mp3 player, he looked up and saw Jessica lingering on the stairs. He gave her a quick smile and disappeared into the kitchen.

Jessica sighed heavily. The first year of college had been far from ideal what with a sheer lack of friends, she had hoped that her family might offer some comfort. It seemed this wasn't the case though.

So much for Christmas spirit, she thought.

Her mobile in her jeans pocket suddenly began to vibrate. Pulling it out, she read the screen. It was her boyfriend Ethan, no doubt checking in to make sure she was having a nice day. Jessica decided to screen the call and wandered upstairs. On top of the laundry hamper sat the cat culprit, looking sleepy. Feeling malicious, Jessica roughly grabbed him and carried him downstairs. Cookie protested and tried to scratch her but this was a routine that had been performed many times in the past.

"Don't expect any hugs tonight." Jessica said to him bitterly.

She dumped the cat in the utility room and swiftly shut the door, preventing any further escapes and subsequent disasters. As she opened the fridge door for a drink, her phone buzzed again. Jessica answered it reluctantly.

"Jess, you free right now?"

Jessica paused to think. Stay at home with a family hating on me or walk to Ethan's no doubt to watch him play videogames.

"Yes, I am, but I-"

"Get here as soon as you can, ok? I have something I HAVE to show you." Ethan said, excitedly.

Jessica rolled her eyes.

"Ethan, this isn't going to be like the time you said you bought new socks and I turned round to find you wearing just one sock and NOTHING ELSE?"

"C'mon, you thought it was funny!"

A small smile crept onto Jessica's face. To Ethan's credit, he did manage to cheer her up in his own bizarre ways. She took a swig from a cold bottle of water and cleared her throat.

"Ok, sure, what-"

"My house in five minutes, as fast as you can!" he said.

The line went dead. Jess stared at her phone screen in confusion and pocketed her mobile. She went into the hallway and ventured into the cloakroom, grabbing her brown coat and matching black wool hat and scarf.

Jessica peeked into the living room as she made her way by. The tree was back up and looked ok. Two smashed ornaments and some sparkling shards from baubles lay on top of the fireplace. The tv was still showing the old movie, however the sound had been muted, giving the impression of a silent movie.

"I can help if you like." Jess offered hopefully.

Dark eyes turned on her and caused Jessica to shrink back. Then her dad's eyes seemed to hold a bit of sympathy.

"It's fine, thank you." he mumbled. Her mum nodded but said nothing. Matt had disappeared, no doubt in her bedroom and on his laptop.

"I'm just popping over to Ethan's for a bit, I hope that's ok?" she asked.

She part expected all hell to break loose, for an argument to erupt between them. This didn't happen, though.

"Call us when you get there and be back for tea." her dad said. picking up a broken branch from the carpet and throwing it in the vicinity of an almost-empty bin bag.

"Thanks, I will...and I'm sorry."

A few short nods confirmed forgiveness and eased Jess' heart. Tightening her scarf, Jess grabbed her small satchel bag and made her way out the house, locking the door behind her.

On her doorstep she admired the Christmas lights that decorated the archway in their house entrance. It offered a warm white glow that helped restore her happiness a bit. Smiling, Jessica tucked her hands into her coat pockets and set off on her way.

This Christmas WILL be the best ever, she thought, even if it kills me!