16 Nights of Jingle

CHAPTER 1

"Stay tuned children, the festive season has finally arrived and it might just be your last."

10 DECEMBER
9:25AM

SEXTON, BRINCHWOOD

It had been a long, lonely life pervaded with despair and loneliness for her;
  Nubia Weinhurst, a seventeen-year-old outcast generally shunned by society and most family members.
  It had rained non-stop with roaring thunderstorms for most of yesterday evening. Nubia's nine-year-old sister, Amarie, was wrestling so she could try fall asleep in Nubia's comforting arms, who had already dozed off reading East of Hope, aloud. A seven hundred and ninety-six paged fantasy novel by their favourite and most famed Australian author known for writing children's books, E.R. McCubbin. Nubia, Amarie and Leslie, their mother, didn't have much ever since the divorce, but they kept holding on to life, because someday it would be better than they'd ever imagine. As the rain poured and the storms grew louder, Amarie hastily grabbed the comforter and pulled it over her head, shutting her eyes instantly. The book dropped hard onto Nubia's now numb face, who quickly awoken. Nubia gently pulled the comforter away from Amarie's head before signaling her to look up at the luminous stars hanging right above them, on the ceiling. The stars always seemingly calmed them both, because they represented the love and strong bond the sisters have with each other.
  "I've got a surprise." Nubia softly remarked as she got out of bed and walked toward her wardrobe. She slid the doors open, stood on the tips of her toes and grabbed an old crate on the top shelf. After seconds of struggling, she managed to put it on top of the soft maroon carpet as she sat down. Amarie hopped out of bed and placed herself on Nubia's opposite side, "What are you doing with the crate?" Amarie anxiously asked, "You'll see." Nubia replied with a huge smile on her face. Nubia carefully grabbed two family heirloom antiques; A music box and a cylinder-shaped night light, then carefully placed them on the floor. She stood up, placed the crate back in its rightful space and shut the wardrobe doors. "No." Amarie shockingly verbalized her thoughts, "Yep." Nubia excitingly replied as she pulled her bedside table, placing it in the centre of the room. She placed the music box on her bed and the night light on top of the bedside table. "You know what to do-", Nubia concluded, signaling Amarie to open the music box. "-and, 3... 2... 1... now!", Nubia called out. Amarie opened the music box and Nubia turned the night light on, both in synchronize. The sisters joined hands and began slowly dancing to music as the night light illuminated the cylinder's shapes onto the four walls. The storms suddenly ended, as the sisters carried on dancing.

"Nubia! Amarie! Come down, breakfast is ready!" Leslie called out, but to no avail. She then finished setting up breakfast and went up into the sisters' attic bedroom. She found the place in a huge mess, "Wake up!" She shouted, waking the birds outside up, "Breakfast is ready."
  The sisters rushed downstairs, and sat down at the dining table. "Wow!" Amarie exclaimed before excusing herself to turn the television on. "Uh mom. This is great and all, I have never had this much food in one meal before, but are you sure you can afford to buy new groceries?" Nubia quietly asked Leslie, who in turn replied, "Baby, of course, we are celebrating.", "Celebrating what?" Nubia anxiously awaited, but got nothing except for a smile and wink.
  Amarie switched through all the television networks until landing on her favourite animated programme, The Jungle Shorts, and rushed back to the table.
  After praying, Amarie stood on her chair and sang, Bleep-blop-Bleep, a nursery rhyme Leslie had taught the sisters, before sitting back down. The family enjoyed everything on the table, from the bread to the cheese and eventually the eggs.
  "Amarie what are you planning for Christmas?" Leslie asked, "The biggest surprise of them all, and it's just for my lovely, sweet sister." Amarie replied. "Okay..." Leslie remarked with a huge smile, "... and you Nubia? What are you cooking up in that beautiful mind of yours?". "Oh, so her mind is beautiful but mine isn't..." Amarie sarcastically interrupted Leslie, "Both of your minds are beautiful." Leslie concluded. "I mean it's only right!" Amarie exclaimed, flipping her hair back. Following an awkward silence, "Uh, actually, I don't think I'm doing anything, except staying in my room." Nubia softly spoke, "Why not?" Leslie asked, worried more so now, than ever, "Mom just let it go!" Nubia teared up a little, "No. Listen to me, everything is going to be okay. Despite everything feeling overwhelmingly clustered and claustrophobic, trust me when I say that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and rest assured, everything will be okay." Leslie reassured her.
  Nubia stood up from her chair, "When?! Huh. Because I would love more than anything to see the world through your eyes. Tell me why I should trust in anything you say, when you don't even have the answers."
  Leslie reaches out for Nubia's hands but Nubia flicks them away from her. She then says, "Because we have faith in Go--", "No mom! You can't keep saying everything is going to be okay when you don't know what it's like to be me. Have you ever walked down the streets with people shouting obscenities at you or just by having been bullied and teased for almost your whole entire life you feel it's normal and a daily routine you can't miss, ever! Have you?" As a way to calm herself, Nubia clenched her fists so hard, she got prints of her fingernails on her palms. Leslie scoffed and rhetorically answered, "Like I don't know how that feels.", "Oh, do you know?" Nubia replied. "Yes, that is the entire reason, why I am doing all of this. For you, for me, for us." Leslie calmed herself. "No mom, that is not why, that is a lie you keep preaching to yourself and you know it. You do that and everything else so that the outside world and our family don't think the worst about your parenting skills or even the way you raise your daughters--" Nubia finally spoke what she had been feeling inside, which in a way kind of relieved her from all of the pain and trauma inside that pierced through her like a sharp blade every time she shut her eyes, "Let me just ask you one question mom, just one, and please answer me with utter honesty. Have our whole entire family members, excluding the people in this room right now, shunned you? Have you ever felt like an imposter in your own body? Have you ever thought about ending your life because the whole world treats you like shit? Have you?".
  Leslie, now speechless, didn't know what to do or say, except to just sit down and think about her past and actions. Was Nubia right about her?
  Full of tears, Nubia stormed out of the front door, slamming it behind her and sat on the nearby hammock to calm down.

18:25PM

After hours of painfully crying, and feeling truly sorry and utterly shameful of herself, Nubia got up from the swinging hammock and placed her bare feet on the cold, wet, green grass, and made a tough decision which was likely to strongly affect her.
  As the day's dusk beautifuly unfolded, Nubia stepped back into the house, shutting the door behind her, only to be met by her mother on the stairs. She swallowed her pride and said, "I'm sorry about earlier. You know for behaving in a bad manner and slamming the door." Nubia apologized as she sat beside her mother.
  "No, no and no." Leslie sluggishly replied.
  "I'm sorry, what?" Nubia asked, now confused. 
  "Your questions earlier. No I haven't experienced any of what you're feeling or going through, but please bare with me, I'm honestly trying to figure out the whole situation." Leslie explained herself,
  "I know mom, and I sure haven't been making things easier, have I?" Nubia softly confided in Leslie, as they both chuckled,
  "I'm still going to support you and be on your side, and at times when we fight and argue so much, that it feels like a neverending loop of misery and struggle, just know that I love you with all of my heart, even in my heart of hearts." Leslie reassured Nubia, who in turn replied, "Yes, I know what you mean." She then waited a bit before stating, "Also, you know that it is impossible to have a heart of hearts, right?"
  Leslie and Nubia stood up and embraced each other with a hug.
  "Anyone would be lucky to meet and get to know the real you, Nubia Weinhurst." Leslie confided in her, "Also I ne--, I want, I want you to know that our mistakes and past don't make or define us as a whole, but what we choose and constantly learn from them, do. It doesn't matter how many times you fall and bleed out to the extend of feeling numb and hopeless, you need to get up and show those sons and daughters of bitches that no one touches you and leaves unharmed."
  "Thanks mom."
  "You're welcome sweetheart."
   "Now did you make any food, I'm kind of hungry, like a lot!" Nubia exclamed,
  "Uh-huh, I knew you'd want food." Leslie replied as the pair went into the kitchen.
  "Amarie? Why are you eating ice-cream and chips this late?" Nubia asked as all three laughed into the night.