Christmas Eve

Holly and Greg’s first Christmas together was supposed to be so special but it turned out very differently

Photo by Josh Hild on Unsplash

Giant snowflakes drifted down from the leaden sky as Holly drove through the heavy traffic, an eerie light playing tricks on her as she watched, mesmerized by the fluttering flakes as they floated down and settled on the road ahead of her. It was absolutely magical and she felt like she was inside an enormous snow globe.

It was Christmas Eve and shoppers wrapped in thick woolly hats and scarves were scurrying along, laden with bags, boxes, and Christmas cheer. She had never felt happier. She was driving home to her husband, Greg, to spend their first Christmas together in their new home and she had just collected his gift. He would be thrilled with it, she knew. All she had to do was get home safely.

Both sets of parents had taken some convincing that she and Greg wanted to spend their first Christmas together as man and wife alone, just the two of them, but they had had to agree to meet up on Boxing Day for a big family gathering hosted by Pat, Greg’s Mum, who had earned the nickname of Mary Berry because of her amazing culinary and hostessing skills.

Chris Rea’s ‘Driving Home for Christmas’ was playing on the car radio and it seemed the perfect song as Holly manoeuvered the car carefully through the heavy traffic, which had come to a grinding halt. She checked her phone quickly: no missed calls and no messages. Good. She knew that Greg was working late this evening and that fitted in perfectly with her plans. She had never been so excited about Christmas. This one was going to be extra special.

The traffic started moving slowly and she was aware that the roads were slippery as the snow quickly turned to slush. She pulled up at an intersection and waited as the lights turned from amber to red. Traffic seemed to be going in every direction; she hated this junction at the best of times but tonight, it seemed more chaotic than ever. The lights ahead of her changed from red to amber and then green. She put the car into gear and drove off, singing along with Chris Rea, ‘I sing this song, to pass the time away. Driving in my car. Driving home for Christmas.’

As she reached the brow of the hill, out of nowhere, a car came flying toward her. She screamed and slammed her foot down to avoid an impact but the car was travelling at such speed, it caught the back of her car spinning it round and round. There was a deafening bang, the sound of metal on metal, and grinding noises. The car juddered as she desperately tried to gain control of the steering. Then silence as she finally came to a stop.

A loud whimpering sound from the back of the car broke into her dazed thoughts just before she passed out.

Greg laid another log on the open fire and warmed up some mulled wine. Holly would be home soon and he wanted everything to be perfect. He was surprised that she wasn’t home by now, but it was Christmas Eve when everybody goes crazy, grabbing last-minute gifts and goodies to put on already groaning shelves. He put some Christmas music on and turned the lights down low. When the doorbell rang, he thought she must have mislaid her key or knowing Holly, was so laden down with thoughtful gifts and last-minute treats that she was unable to rummage in her bag for the key to their new house.

When he opened the door, a policeman was standing where he expected to see his beautiful, happy, smiling wife.

“Mr. Dodd?”

“Yes.”

“Can I come inside?” he asked, his voice breaking. He took off his hat and tucked it under his arm.

Greg stepped to one side and let the man in.

“I’m afraid I have some bad news. Your wife has been involved in a road traffic accident and we found your dog in the back of her car.”

“What? Oh my God! How is she? Is she OK? We don’t have a dog.” The shocked look on the handsome young man’s face touched the policeman and he asked him to sit down before he fell down. He knew how shock could affect some people knocking them clean off their feet sometimes.

Standing over Greg in a fatherly way, he put his hand on his shoulder. “Your wife was taken by air ambulance to the General Hospital. I think you had better get over there right away. Come on. I’ll drive you.”

Greg grabbed his coat and the front door key and was about to leave when the policeman kindly suggested that he turn the music off, make sure the fire was safe and turn all the lights out. “You’d be surprised how many….” he began and then thought better of sharing the shocking news of fires started by Christmas tree lights. “Let’s get you to your wife.”

When they arrived, the policeman made inquiries at the front desk and was informed that Holly was in the Intensive Care Unit. Greg felt like the bottom of his world had dropped out and he was losing grip on reality. How could this be happening? He had to see her.

“Can I speak to a doctor or somebody who knows what’s happening? I need to see my wife” he said, his voice rising as he spoke to the elderly receptionist. The policeman had done his best and had had to leave. He pressed a piece of paper into Greg’s hand with the name and telephone number of a local vet where his pet was being checked over.

After what seemed like an interminable wait, Greg was shown into a small side room in the ICU ward. A doctor in green scrubs and black Crocs ushered him inside.

‘Your wife sustained some serious injuries, Mr. Dodd, but she is stable now so we are hoping for the best, but I must warn you that it’s not looking good.’ The surgeon’s voice faded into the background as Greg processed the heartbreaking news.

“When can I see her?” he asked urgently.

“A nurse will come and find you in a few minutes, once we’ve settled your wife onto the ward and made her comfortable.”

Greg thanked the surgeon, shaking his hand, and sat back down, a turmoil of emotions running through him. He dropped his head into his hands and prayed that Holly would pull through. When he was finally shown through to see her, he was shocked at what he saw. His beautiful wife lay motionless with her eyes closed and wires and tubes snaked in and around her body. A monitor by the bed was bleeping and a drip was being fed into her. She looked so delicate. Like a porcelain doll.

“Hey!” he said, taking her hand gently, being careful not to dislodge a plastic tube attached to the back of her hand with some white tape.

There was no response. Greg cried. His entire world was falling apart right before him and the woman he loved more than anything in the world was hanging on to life by a thread. The monitor she was hooked up to beeped steadily.

Christmas was put on hold. No turkey roasted, no crackers pulled, no silly hats around the table as folks read out inanely bad jokes. The family rallied around taking it in turns to have Pepe, the Springer Spaniel pup. Greg kept vigil holding Holly’s hand on one side of the bed while her Mum sat on the other opposite him. Neither had slept for days and everybody had lost track of time.

Holly’s Mum’s phone pinged and she took it tiredly from her bag. “Ah, look, Greg. Pepe likes the snow.” She handed her phone to him across the bed where her daughter’s lifeless and motionless body lay and tapped the screen for the video to play.

Greg smiled half-heartedly as the puppy he hadn’t yet met yelped and dug his snout into the snow, running around in frenzied circles yapping excitedly and wagging his tail, thrilled to be outside playing in the snow.

He handed the phone back to his mother-in-law who played the video again, more for a distraction than anything else.

‘Jan! Look! Did you see that? Her eyes flickered.’

Holly’s Mum dropped the phone and took her daughter’s hand in hers, lifting it gently from the bed where it lay limp and lifeless. She squeezed it gently once. Holly squeezed back. Then she squeezed it twice. Two squeezes back.

‘One for yes, two for no. Holly, can you hear me?’

Tears streamed down Janet’s face as her daughter squeezed her hand once. Firmly this time.

‘Oh Holly! Thank God! I love you so much,’ Greg managed to croak out in between strangled sobs.

Holly opened her eyes and in that moment, Greg knew that she was going to make it.

Janet left the couple alone to find a nurse. This was turning from the worst Christmas into the best Christmas ever.

Happy Christmas to you all and to my American friends, especially Jeannie, Kara, Jerry and Nick - keep safe and warm. To my British friends, in particular, Rachel, Mandy, Linda, Sandie and my lovely golfing partner, Karen, have a wonderful Christmas break.

This story was first published on Medium but I have adapted it slightly, hopefully improving on the first version.