A rewrite of a festive short story I wrote a few years ago, featuring characters from my Cedarbee Island series (…that I still need to finish editing).
Snow crunched underfoot as Marissa set off up the lane towards home. She looked up at the snow covered branches of the trees that lined the lane as a gust of wind sent a flurry of snow down to the ground. Getting her keys from her bag when she reached the cottage, Marissa unlocked the front door and went inside.
The sound of her phone filled the hallway as she kicked off her shoes by the door. She grabbed it from her bag and checked who was calling before answering.
“Have you left the office yet?” It was Trish.
“Just got home.”
“I’m on my way now,” Trish said on her way to her car, “honestly it’s been non-stop this afternoon, I wasn’t sure when I was going to be able to get away before six.”
Having begun working at a property in the local town some years ago, Trish had started there the same time as Leon and now they both co-managed the place. Gina owned it now but she pretty much left them to it, most of the time.
When Trish arrived home, she took her coat off in the hallway and hung it up by the stairs, “what time did you say we’d be over on the island?”
“About half six,” Marissa was in the kitchen, getting out the container full of small iced cakes that Trish had baked the previous evening, ready to take with them.
“That gives us a couple of hours to get the tree decorated, if we’re still doing that before we go?” Trish joined Marissa in the kitchen, “you know Leon found out I’ve been baking, said he wanted one of those saved for tomorrow.”
“Okay, I’ll keep a couple back.” Marissa got out another container to put them in, “yes to the tree though, let’s go and get it out now?” She stuffed a cake in her mouth before leaving the kitchen, giving Trish a look like what as she passed her in the hallway.
There was a stack of boxes in one corner of the attic, some of which housed the Christmas decorations. The larger, longer box next to it contained the tree. Marissa prised the string off of either end of the box, the minute it sensed freedom, the box sprang open.
“Where’s the stand?” Trish asked.
“I…” Marissa looked around her, “it could be in that box over there, it never fits back in this one.”
Trish went to the box, “no there’s not even Christmas stuff in here.”
Marissa started to carry a piece of the tree back towards the stairs, “what’s in there?”
“It looks like a box of books.”
“I forgot I even had them up here, to be honest I’ve not looked through much of this stuff since I moved in.”
“I think it’s over here,” Trish found the stand wedged between a couple of other boxes, on top of another box with a larger Christmas decoration in it. She pulled it free and they headed back down the stairs, Marissa followed her back down.
Once the tree was up Trish went back up to get the lights, they were in the box nearest where the tree had been, the box underneath it was full of small Christmas decorations and baubles. She decided to come back for them after and instead balanced a pile of tinsel in her arms with the lights. She set off back down the second set of stairs when the tinsel decided to break free and cascaded over the banister onto the floor below, “oh…”
“What’s happened?” Marissa came out into the hallway from the lounge, seeing the tinsel everywhere, “I mean… I guess that’s a new way to decorate, no need to hang it up, it’s decorated the stairs itself.”
Trish laughed, “it tried to make a break for it and succeeded.”
They took it in turns to add ornaments to the tree before finishing up and adding other small decorations around the room. Marissa was picking up one of the now empty boxes when she noticed the time on the clock on the mantelpiece, “we’d better get ready, we’ve got to leave soon.”
*
Marissa pulled the door shut behind her, wrapping her jacket around her as her breath showed in the cold evening air.
Trish drove them down to where the small ferry left from, it was already there, waiting to leave so they were able to get straight on it. When they got over to Cedarbee Bay they drove up to the house. Autumn greeted them at the door.
“So how many people are you expecting?” Marissa asked as they went inside, handing her the container of cakes.
“You brought them,” Autumn said, “well apart from me, you and Trish there’s Paisley and Travis who are already here, Rosemary, Gerald, Es,” she listed of the names of people she’d become close to from the island. She’d also invited Sophie, Greg and Natalie.
Paisley came in from the other room, “hey, Marissa, Trish.”
“Hi.”
“Place looks great doesn’t it?”
“It really does,” Marissa agreed.
The fireplace was facing them as they entered the lounge, to the left of it stood a tree around five foot high, decorated in glittering lights and various baubles and ornaments that twinkled against the lights that surrounded them. To the left of that there was a run of bookshelves, half filled with books, the sofas were to the right.
Autumn reappeared after a few moments with a few more people in tow, as Rosemary from the inn, Gerald her husband who ran the local library, Esmerelda who often helped out at the inn and a few others who lived on the island joined them in the lounge.
“I thought Sophie and Greg were coming over with you two actually” Autumn said.
“No she said she was going to get the next ferry,” Marissa said. Sophie and Marissa worked together in the business they owned over on the other island. Greg was Sophie’s husband.
“Do they know their way up here?” Paisley asked.
“I told her to message me when they get here, I’ll drive down to meet them, I think Natalie is coming over with them as well,” Natalie was their assistant at the office. Marissa checked her phone for messages, she was about to put it away again as one popped up on the screen from Sophie.
‘We’re here, which way is it?? I remember something about a lane at the beach down the other end of the town‘
‘Be easier if I come down and meet you, is Nat with you?‘
‘Yeah she came over with us, okay see you in a bit xx‘
“That was Sophie, I’ll be back soon,” Marissa said to Trish and the others then left the house to drive back down to pick them up.
People were mingling around chatting together when Marissa returned, “oh good you’re back,” Autumn said when she saw Marissa, she said hi to the others, “we’re about to get the food out,” Autumn looked around for Paisley, “Pais, come and help me in the kitchen will you?”
“I’ve got the sandwiches here, the ones from the cafe,” Sophie proffered a tray of sandwiches she’d picked up on their way over.
“Sure,” Paisley said in response to Autumn, then to Sophie, “great, thanks Sophie,” Paisley took them and went to help Autumn get the other plates of food out she’d stored in the fridge earlier.
As the evening wore on, Rosemary brought out the dice and cards for the game her and Esmerelda had brought over. They’d made it up some years ago and Autumn had got into playing it after arriving on the island. Marissa had even joined them for a game when she’d been up at the inn one evening.
“Oh is this the game you were telling me about, when I was on the phone to you that night?” Trish asked Marissa, intrigued, it had sounded a lot of fun.
“That’s it,” Marissa said.
“So how many people want to play?” Autumn sat down by a coffee table in the centre of the room. Out of everyone left, they all wanted to join in.
Sophie checked the time on her phone, “just one game for me and Greg though, we’ll need to leave soon if we’re going to get the ferry back tonight.”
“Okay, let’s pick teams,” Paisley looked around the room.
Autumn quickly explained the rules of the game for anyone who hadn’t played before.
A few of them played until it was quite late, Rosemary, Esmerelda and Gerald having already left, at least one of them needed to be up at the inn in the morning since they had guests staying there now.
“Oh come on five points and I’d be in the lead,” Autumn exclaimed, it was Marissa’s turn next. She rolled the dice and ended up with another ten points.
“Okay, rematch,” Autumn said as they reached the end of the game, “no way can you win a third time in a row.”
~
If you enjoyed this, why not check out the other festive short story I shared on here a couple of years ago featuring characters from my other story (that again, is still in progress), Christmas At A Cabin – A Mystery In Space Short Story.
For those who celebrate it, I hope you all have a lovely Christmas, or if not a great rest of the week!
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