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John shone the torch at the many boxes stacked in the attic. Marie had insisted that it was time for the Christmas decorations to be brought down, and had become uncharacteristically tearful when he had suggested that they should leave it until the weekend. He straddled the beams, cursing the fact that there were only boards to stand on in the part of the attic furthest from the hatch. As he reached the first of the solid boards he breathed a sigh of relief, until he was confronted by a sudden darkness. He knocked the torch with his fist and it came back to life, but far weaker than before. A second tap reversed the effect and took away the light completely.
“Marie!” he called out.
After a few moments he heard the sound of feet on the stepladder.
“What is it darling?”
“The torch, the batteries have gone. Do we have any more?”
“I can’t remember but you can’t come back to get them in the dark, you’ll fall through the ceiling! I’ll get the lantern and set it up this end, so that you’ll be able to see your way back.”
Whilst he had been cautiously crossing the beams he had worked up a sweat, but now that he was stationary his temperature began to fall. As he rubbed his hands up and down his arms, wondering what was taking so long, he felt something cold brush past the back of his neck.
“Marie!” he called in shock.
“Yes darling?”
“The lantern!”
“Oh, that’s what I was doing. Sorry, I got side-tracked.”
Soon enough Marie had the lantern set in place, and John began ferrying boxes over to the hatch for her to take down.
“I think that’s the lot John, we’ve got the tree, the decorations, the tinsel, the lights and the wrapping paper, I can’t think of anything else.”
“You sure? There’s another box that was sitting in that group.”
“Bring it down then, it could be some spare cards, or more baubles, or something.”
John made his way back across the beams and held the box down for Marie to take, but she wasn’t waiting for him on the steps. Instead she had decided to open one of the boxes and was going through all of the old decorations.
As John held the box over the hatch his arms began to tremble. The tips of his fingers began to go numb, and he felt the box slipping from his grasp.
“Marie, quick!” called John as he tried to adjust his grip. As Marie took it from him he was relieved to feel the warmth return to his fingers. He dropped onto the steps and climbed down, dusting himself off once he reached the bottom. He collapsed the steps and placed them in the garage.
Whilst Marie was busying herself with Christmas memories John took the opportunity to take it easy, flexing his fingers and feeling the tips as he made his way into the living room to catch a few minutes of the football.
The whistle blew for half-time, and John figured that he’d been gone long enough. He popped his head back into the hallway and called “what was in that other box then?”
“What box?”
”The one you didn’t think we had?”
“I don’t know, why don’t you come and have a look?”
Marie’s answer had surprised him, she wasn’t usually one to forget such things, so he decided he should take a look for himself. She had moved on to the tinsel and had draped a couple of pieces around her neck as she sat humming carols and holding various decorations up to the light.
John was no longer sure which box was the one he had last brought down from the attic, so took one at random and pulled off the tape that had kept it sealed. He pulled the flaps open to see dozens of baubles in all of the different colour variations that Marie had selected over the years. Nobody would ever forget the year that she decided that black baubles were the way to go. John cast this box aside as it contained nothing more exciting that the prospect of another frustrating day trying to make the tree look perfect, and given Marie’s current changeable nature it was going to be tough.
John pulled another box towards himself and as a cold chill shot up his arm he was certain it was the one. As he removed the tape and opened the flaps he reeled back as a musty smell overcame him. He coughed before getting up to fetch a glass of water to help clear his throat. The smell stuck with him, and he found it somehow familiar. It reminded him of somewhere he had visited many times years ago, but he could not place it.
He returned to the hall see Marie peering into the box. “Whatever have you found here John?” she asked as she reached in. “Hey look, it’s a present! But why wouldn’t we have opened it?”
”Perhaps it isn’t ours. Maybe it was something that was left up there by the couple that used to live here, and they just forgot about it?”
“No John, surely we would have found it before and look, it has our name and address on it. Why did we never open it?”
“Who is it from, is there a tag?”
“There’s a return address on a sticker, no name though. 18 Harvest Drive, recognise it?”
As Marie uttered the address John felt the cold breeze on the back of his neck again. Goose-pimples rose on his arms and the colour drained from his cheeks. The musty smell filled his nostrils once more and as he closed his eyes he saw her wrinkled face.
“Nanna Belle.” he whispered as memories of his grandmother flooded his memory.
“Well we must have forgotten to open it one year.”
“But she’s been dead for over five years.”
“Yes John, but we get so many presents, with you from such a big family, we must have just overlooked it.”
“No Marie, you don’t understand. She’s been dead five years, we’ve only lived here for two, remember? How would she know our address before we moved here, before she died?”
“Well maybe it’s not from her. Perhaps someone else put one of her old address labels on the package when they sent it. Why don’t we just open it, and take a look?”
John tugged at the loose corner of the wrapping paper with trepidation, tearing it away to reveal another box, on the side of which was a card.
“Open it!” urged Marie.
John’s hands were shaking as he pulled the card away from the box. He struggled to open the envelope and slowly pulled out the card to see a picture of a family enjoying the warm glow of an open fire. “Merry Christmas” was written across the top in gold letters. After looking at the happy scene for a moment John opened the card.
“What does it say?” asked Marie.
“To John and Marie, I wish you the merriest of Christmases, congratulations, Nanna Belle”
As he spoke the words he saw Marie’s jaw drop, clearly startled and surprised by the words written on the card.
“Congratulations? What can she mean?” he puzzled “she always did have a funny turn of phrase though, didn’t she? I guess you were right, it’s just a box that got forgotten about before. I might as well open the box and see what it was she sent us.”
“No John, wait,” said Marie, placing her hands on top of the box.
“Don’t be daft,” replied John “you were the one that wanted it open a minute ago.”
He pulled the box from beneath her hands. She had been so indecisive in the last couple of days that he figured that she’d only change her mind back anyway. He tore away the sticky-tape and the box sprung open. A smile spread across his face as he saw what was inside.
“She’d knitted me a jumper!” John said as he pulled it out of the box and held it up against his chest.
“Looks like there’s something in here for you too Marie, one to match to make us a pair.”
“Wait John, there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you” interrupted Marie as he tossed the jumper over to her.
“Hang on, there’s more” said John as he reached back into the box.
Marie watched his hand as it slowly emerged from the box, clenching another jumper, this one much smaller. A smile spread across his face as he went in again, pulling out a tiny hat and a pair of booties.
“You’re pregnant?” asked John as he placed the knitwear down and reached over to give her a hug.
“If it’s a girl, can we call her Belle?”
“Marie!” he called out.
After a few moments he heard the sound of feet on the stepladder.
“What is it darling?”
“The torch, the batteries have gone. Do we have any more?”
“I can’t remember but you can’t come back to get them in the dark, you’ll fall through the ceiling! I’ll get the lantern and set it up this end, so that you’ll be able to see your way back.”
Whilst he had been cautiously crossing the beams he had worked up a sweat, but now that he was stationary his temperature began to fall. As he rubbed his hands up and down his arms, wondering what was taking so long, he felt something cold brush past the back of his neck.
“Marie!” he called in shock.
“Yes darling?”
“The lantern!”
“Oh, that’s what I was doing. Sorry, I got side-tracked.”
Soon enough Marie had the lantern set in place, and John began ferrying boxes over to the hatch for her to take down.
“I think that’s the lot John, we’ve got the tree, the decorations, the tinsel, the lights and the wrapping paper, I can’t think of anything else.”
“You sure? There’s another box that was sitting in that group.”
“Bring it down then, it could be some spare cards, or more baubles, or something.”
John made his way back across the beams and held the box down for Marie to take, but she wasn’t waiting for him on the steps. Instead she had decided to open one of the boxes and was going through all of the old decorations.
As John held the box over the hatch his arms began to tremble. The tips of his fingers began to go numb, and he felt the box slipping from his grasp.
“Marie, quick!” called John as he tried to adjust his grip. As Marie took it from him he was relieved to feel the warmth return to his fingers. He dropped onto the steps and climbed down, dusting himself off once he reached the bottom. He collapsed the steps and placed them in the garage.
Whilst Marie was busying herself with Christmas memories John took the opportunity to take it easy, flexing his fingers and feeling the tips as he made his way into the living room to catch a few minutes of the football.
The whistle blew for half-time, and John figured that he’d been gone long enough. He popped his head back into the hallway and called “what was in that other box then?”
“What box?”
”The one you didn’t think we had?”
“I don’t know, why don’t you come and have a look?”
Marie’s answer had surprised him, she wasn’t usually one to forget such things, so he decided he should take a look for himself. She had moved on to the tinsel and had draped a couple of pieces around her neck as she sat humming carols and holding various decorations up to the light.
John was no longer sure which box was the one he had last brought down from the attic, so took one at random and pulled off the tape that had kept it sealed. He pulled the flaps open to see dozens of baubles in all of the different colour variations that Marie had selected over the years. Nobody would ever forget the year that she decided that black baubles were the way to go. John cast this box aside as it contained nothing more exciting that the prospect of another frustrating day trying to make the tree look perfect, and given Marie’s current changeable nature it was going to be tough.
John pulled another box towards himself and as a cold chill shot up his arm he was certain it was the one. As he removed the tape and opened the flaps he reeled back as a musty smell overcame him. He coughed before getting up to fetch a glass of water to help clear his throat. The smell stuck with him, and he found it somehow familiar. It reminded him of somewhere he had visited many times years ago, but he could not place it.
He returned to the hall see Marie peering into the box. “Whatever have you found here John?” she asked as she reached in. “Hey look, it’s a present! But why wouldn’t we have opened it?”
”Perhaps it isn’t ours. Maybe it was something that was left up there by the couple that used to live here, and they just forgot about it?”
“No John, surely we would have found it before and look, it has our name and address on it. Why did we never open it?”
“Who is it from, is there a tag?”
“There’s a return address on a sticker, no name though. 18 Harvest Drive, recognise it?”
As Marie uttered the address John felt the cold breeze on the back of his neck again. Goose-pimples rose on his arms and the colour drained from his cheeks. The musty smell filled his nostrils once more and as he closed his eyes he saw her wrinkled face.
“Nanna Belle.” he whispered as memories of his grandmother flooded his memory.
“Well we must have forgotten to open it one year.”
“But she’s been dead for over five years.”
“Yes John, but we get so many presents, with you from such a big family, we must have just overlooked it.”
“No Marie, you don’t understand. She’s been dead five years, we’ve only lived here for two, remember? How would she know our address before we moved here, before she died?”
“Well maybe it’s not from her. Perhaps someone else put one of her old address labels on the package when they sent it. Why don’t we just open it, and take a look?”
John tugged at the loose corner of the wrapping paper with trepidation, tearing it away to reveal another box, on the side of which was a card.
“Open it!” urged Marie.
John’s hands were shaking as he pulled the card away from the box. He struggled to open the envelope and slowly pulled out the card to see a picture of a family enjoying the warm glow of an open fire. “Merry Christmas” was written across the top in gold letters. After looking at the happy scene for a moment John opened the card.
“What does it say?” asked Marie.
“To John and Marie, I wish you the merriest of Christmases, congratulations, Nanna Belle”
As he spoke the words he saw Marie’s jaw drop, clearly startled and surprised by the words written on the card.
“Congratulations? What can she mean?” he puzzled “she always did have a funny turn of phrase though, didn’t she? I guess you were right, it’s just a box that got forgotten about before. I might as well open the box and see what it was she sent us.”
“No John, wait,” said Marie, placing her hands on top of the box.
“Don’t be daft,” replied John “you were the one that wanted it open a minute ago.”
He pulled the box from beneath her hands. She had been so indecisive in the last couple of days that he figured that she’d only change her mind back anyway. He tore away the sticky-tape and the box sprung open. A smile spread across his face as he saw what was inside.
“She’d knitted me a jumper!” John said as he pulled it out of the box and held it up against his chest.
“Looks like there’s something in here for you too Marie, one to match to make us a pair.”
“Wait John, there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you” interrupted Marie as he tossed the jumper over to her.
“Hang on, there’s more” said John as he reached back into the box.
Marie watched his hand as it slowly emerged from the box, clenching another jumper, this one much smaller. A smile spread across his face as he went in again, pulling out a tiny hat and a pair of booties.
“You’re pregnant?” asked John as he placed the knitwear down and reached over to give her a hug.
“If it’s a girl, can we call her Belle?”
Nice one for Christmas :-)
A few little niggling bits that werent needed or should be left out, for example when they denote the package may be for a previous tenant of the house they mention their name and address on it so it must be for them, however if it was for a previous tenant the address would be the same too!
On the whole it was very enjoyable and a nice read in time for christmas.
On the whole it was very enjoyable and a nice read in time for christmas.
Not one of your best, but still good. So Nanna Belle haunts the house then? Scary stuff. Nice Christmas/Halloween mixture.
John shone the torch at the many boxes stacked in the attic. Marie had insisted that it was time for the Christmas decorations to be brought down, and had become uncharacteristically tearful when he had suggested that they should leave it until the weekend. He straddled the beams, cursing the fact that there were only boards to stand on in the part of the attic furthest from the hatch. As he reached the first of the solid boards he breathed a sigh of relief, until he was confronted by a sudden darkness. He knocked the torch with his fist and it came back to life, but far weaker than before. A second tap reversed the effect and took away the light completely.
“Marie!” he called out.
After a few moments he heard the sound of feet on the stepladder.
“What is it darling?”
“The torch, the batteries have gone. Do we have any more?”
“I can’t remember but you can’t come back to get them in the dark, you’ll fall through the ceiling! I’ll get the lantern and set it up this end, so that you’ll be able to see your way back.”
Whilst he had been cautiously crossing the beams he had worked up a sweat, but now that he was stationary his temperature began to fall. As he rubbed his hands up and down his arms, wondering what was taking so long, he felt something cold brush past the back of his neck.
“Marie!” he called in shock.
“Yes darling?”
“The lantern!”
“Oh, that’s what I was doing. Sorry, I got side-tracked.”
Soon enough Marie had the lantern set in place, and John began ferrying boxes over to the hatch for her to take down.
“I think that’s the lot John, we’ve got the tree, the decorations, the tinsel, the lights and the wrapping paper, I can’t think of anything else.”
“You sure? There’s another box that was sitting in that group.”
“Bring it down then, it could be some spare cards, or more baubles, or something.”
John made his way back across the beams and held the box down for Marie to take, but she wasn’t waiting for him on the steps. Instead she had decided to open one of the boxes and was going through all of the old decorations.
As John held the box over the hatch his arms began to tremble. The tips of his fingers began to go numb, and he felt the box slipping from his grasp.
“Marie, quick!” called John as he tried to adjust his grip. As Marie took it from him he was relieved to feel the warmth return to his fingers. He dropped onto the steps and climbed down, dusting himself off once he reached the bottom. He collapsed the steps and placed them in the garage.
Whilst Marie was busying herself with Christmas memories John took the opportunity to take it easy, flexing his fingers and feeling the tips as he made his way into the living room to catch a few minutes of the football.
The whistle blew for half-time, and John figured that he’d been gone long enough. He popped his head back into the hallway and called “what was in that other box then?”
“What box?”
”The one you didn’t think we had?”
“I don’t know, why don’t you come and have a look?”
Marie’s answer had surprised him, she wasn’t usually one to forget such things, so he decided he should take a look for himself. She had moved on to the tinsel and had draped a couple of pieces around her neck as she sat humming carols and holding various decorations up to the light.
John was no longer sure which box was the one he had last brought down from the attic, so took one at random and pulled off the tape that had kept it sealed. He pulled the flaps open to see dozens of baubles in all of the different colour variations that Marie had selected over the years. Nobody would ever forget the year that she decided that black baubles were the way to go. John cast this box aside as it contained nothing more exciting that the prospect of another frustrating day trying to make the tree look perfect, and given Marie’s current changeable nature it was going to be tough.
John pulled another box towards himself and as a cold chill shot up his arm he was certain it was the one. As he removed the tape and opened the flaps he reeled back as a musty smell overcame him. He coughed before getting up to fetch a glass of water to help clear his throat. The smell stuck with him, and he found it somehow familiar. It reminded him of somewhere he had visited many times years ago, but he could not place it.
He returned to the hall see Marie peering into the box. “Whatever have you found here John?” she asked as she reached in. “Hey look, it’s a present! But why wouldn’t we have opened it?”
”Perhaps it isn’t ours. Maybe it was something that was left up there by the couple that used to live here, and they just forgot about it?”
“No John, surely we would have found it before and look, it has our name and address on it. Why did we never open it?”
“Who is it from, is there a tag?”
“There’s a return address on a sticker, no name though. 18 Harvest Drive, recognise it?”
As Marie uttered the address John felt the cold breeze on the back of his neck again. Goose-pimples rose on his arms and the colour drained from his cheeks. The musty smell filled his nostrils once more and as he closed his eyes he saw her wrinkled face.
“Nanna Belle.” he whispered as memories of his grandmother flooded his memory.
“Well we must have forgotten to open it one year.”
“But she’s been dead for over five years.”
“Yes John, but we get so many presents, with you from such a big family, we must have just overlooked it.”
“No Marie, you don’t understand. She’s been dead five years, we’ve only lived here for two, remember? How would she know our address before we moved here, before she died?”
“Well maybe it’s not from her. Perhaps someone else put one of her old address labels on the package when they sent it. Why don’t we just open it, and take a look?”
John tugged at the loose corner of the wrapping paper with trepidation, tearing it away to reveal another box, on the side of which was a card.
“Open it!” urged Marie.
John’s hands were shaking as he pulled the card away from the box. He struggled to open the envelope and slowly pulled out the card to see a picture of a family enjoying the warm glow of an open fire. “Merry Christmas” was written across the top in gold letters. After looking at the happy scene for a moment John opened the card.
“What does it say?” asked Marie.
“To John and Marie, I wish you the merriest of Christmases, congratulations, Nanna Belle”
As he spoke the words he saw Marie’s jaw drop, clearly startled and surprised by the words written on the card.
“Congratulations? What can she mean?” he puzzled “she always did have a funny turn of phrase though, didn’t she? I guess you were right, it’s just a box that got forgotten about before. I might as well open the box and see what it was she sent us.”
“No John, wait,” said Marie, placing her hands on top of the box.
“Don’t be daft,” replied John “you were the one that wanted it open a minute ago.”
He pulled the box from beneath her hands. She had been so indecisive in the last couple of days that he figured that she’d only change her mind back anyway. He tore away the sticky-tape and the box sprung open. A smile spread across his face as he saw what was inside.
“She’d knitted me a jumper!” John said as he pulled it out of the box and held it up against his chest.
“Looks like there’s something in here for you too Marie, one to match to make us a pair.”
“Wait John, there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you” interrupted Marie as he tossed the jumper over to her.
“Hang on, there’s more” said John as he reached back into the box.
Marie watched his hand as it slowly emerged from the box, clenching another jumper, this one much smaller. A smile spread across his face as he went in again, pulling out a tiny hat and a pair of booties.
“You’re pregnant?” asked John as he placed the knitwear down and reached over to give her a hug.
“If it’s a girl, can we call her Belle?”
“Marie!” he called out.
After a few moments he heard the sound of feet on the stepladder.
“What is it darling?”
“The torch, the batteries have gone. Do we have any more?”
“I can’t remember but you can’t come back to get them in the dark, you’ll fall through the ceiling! I’ll get the lantern and set it up this end, so that you’ll be able to see your way back.”
Whilst he had been cautiously crossing the beams he had worked up a sweat, but now that he was stationary his temperature began to fall. As he rubbed his hands up and down his arms, wondering what was taking so long, he felt something cold brush past the back of his neck.
“Marie!” he called in shock.
“Yes darling?”
“The lantern!”
“Oh, that’s what I was doing. Sorry, I got side-tracked.”
Soon enough Marie had the lantern set in place, and John began ferrying boxes over to the hatch for her to take down.
“I think that’s the lot John, we’ve got the tree, the decorations, the tinsel, the lights and the wrapping paper, I can’t think of anything else.”
“You sure? There’s another box that was sitting in that group.”
“Bring it down then, it could be some spare cards, or more baubles, or something.”
John made his way back across the beams and held the box down for Marie to take, but she wasn’t waiting for him on the steps. Instead she had decided to open one of the boxes and was going through all of the old decorations.
As John held the box over the hatch his arms began to tremble. The tips of his fingers began to go numb, and he felt the box slipping from his grasp.
“Marie, quick!” called John as he tried to adjust his grip. As Marie took it from him he was relieved to feel the warmth return to his fingers. He dropped onto the steps and climbed down, dusting himself off once he reached the bottom. He collapsed the steps and placed them in the garage.
Whilst Marie was busying herself with Christmas memories John took the opportunity to take it easy, flexing his fingers and feeling the tips as he made his way into the living room to catch a few minutes of the football.
The whistle blew for half-time, and John figured that he’d been gone long enough. He popped his head back into the hallway and called “what was in that other box then?”
“What box?”
”The one you didn’t think we had?”
“I don’t know, why don’t you come and have a look?”
Marie’s answer had surprised him, she wasn’t usually one to forget such things, so he decided he should take a look for himself. She had moved on to the tinsel and had draped a couple of pieces around her neck as she sat humming carols and holding various decorations up to the light.
John was no longer sure which box was the one he had last brought down from the attic, so took one at random and pulled off the tape that had kept it sealed. He pulled the flaps open to see dozens of baubles in all of the different colour variations that Marie had selected over the years. Nobody would ever forget the year that she decided that black baubles were the way to go. John cast this box aside as it contained nothing more exciting that the prospect of another frustrating day trying to make the tree look perfect, and given Marie’s current changeable nature it was going to be tough.
John pulled another box towards himself and as a cold chill shot up his arm he was certain it was the one. As he removed the tape and opened the flaps he reeled back as a musty smell overcame him. He coughed before getting up to fetch a glass of water to help clear his throat. The smell stuck with him, and he found it somehow familiar. It reminded him of somewhere he had visited many times years ago, but he could not place it.
He returned to the hall see Marie peering into the box. “Whatever have you found here John?” she asked as she reached in. “Hey look, it’s a present! But why wouldn’t we have opened it?”
”Perhaps it isn’t ours. Maybe it was something that was left up there by the couple that used to live here, and they just forgot about it?”
“No John, surely we would have found it before and look, it has our name and address on it. Why did we never open it?”
“Who is it from, is there a tag?”
“There’s a return address on a sticker, no name though. 18 Harvest Drive, recognise it?”
As Marie uttered the address John felt the cold breeze on the back of his neck again. Goose-pimples rose on his arms and the colour drained from his cheeks. The musty smell filled his nostrils once more and as he closed his eyes he saw her wrinkled face.
“Nanna Belle.” he whispered as memories of his grandmother flooded his memory.
“Well we must have forgotten to open it one year.”
“But she’s been dead for over five years.”
“Yes John, but we get so many presents, with you from such a big family, we must have just overlooked it.”
“No Marie, you don’t understand. She’s been dead five years, we’ve only lived here for two, remember? How would she know our address before we moved here, before she died?”
“Well maybe it’s not from her. Perhaps someone else put one of her old address labels on the package when they sent it. Why don’t we just open it, and take a look?”
John tugged at the loose corner of the wrapping paper with trepidation, tearing it away to reveal another box, on the side of which was a card.
“Open it!” urged Marie.
John’s hands were shaking as he pulled the card away from the box. He struggled to open the envelope and slowly pulled out the card to see a picture of a family enjoying the warm glow of an open fire. “Merry Christmas” was written across the top in gold letters. After looking at the happy scene for a moment John opened the card.
“What does it say?” asked Marie.
“To John and Marie, I wish you the merriest of Christmases, congratulations, Nanna Belle”
As he spoke the words he saw Marie’s jaw drop, clearly startled and surprised by the words written on the card.
“Congratulations? What can she mean?” he puzzled “she always did have a funny turn of phrase though, didn’t she? I guess you were right, it’s just a box that got forgotten about before. I might as well open the box and see what it was she sent us.”
“No John, wait,” said Marie, placing her hands on top of the box.
“Don’t be daft,” replied John “you were the one that wanted it open a minute ago.”
He pulled the box from beneath her hands. She had been so indecisive in the last couple of days that he figured that she’d only change her mind back anyway. He tore away the sticky-tape and the box sprung open. A smile spread across his face as he saw what was inside.
“She’d knitted me a jumper!” John said as he pulled it out of the box and held it up against his chest.
“Looks like there’s something in here for you too Marie, one to match to make us a pair.”
“Wait John, there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you” interrupted Marie as he tossed the jumper over to her.
“Hang on, there’s more” said John as he reached back into the box.
Marie watched his hand as it slowly emerged from the box, clenching another jumper, this one much smaller. A smile spread across his face as he went in again, pulling out a tiny hat and a pair of booties.
“You’re pregnant?” asked John as he placed the knitwear down and reached over to give her a hug.
“If it’s a girl, can we call her Belle?”