A Mother's Gift

It's Christmas Eve, and all the kids are excited for Santa to bring them their presents. And to see if Santa left them any cookies.... But, Christmas isn't just for the kids, it's for the parents as well. Nothing brings more happiness to a mother and father than the smile and laughter of their child. Many parents would give their very soul, just to have a kid that was happy and loved.

It's around 5pm, and the sun is already behind the trees, when you hear a knock on your door. You get up from your chair to see who it was. A girl stood on the doorstep, soaked from head to toe, and her shoes caked in snow. She looked up to you with shining, blue eyes.

"Daddy...I'm cold."

You smile and hug your daughter tightly. "You seem soaked to the bone. Come on," you lead her inside the house and up the stairs, "Let's get you nice and warm".

You help her undress, and get her inside the hot bathtub. After a while, she came downstairs, her blue pajamas clinging to her wet skin. Your wife fixes her some hot coca, you tell her stories about Santa Clause, and the three of you watch "The Snowman" on the television.

Eventually, your daughter falls asleep on the couch, and you bring her to bed: her small body being held tightly in your arms. She slept nice and quietly with mom, and you go to your room to get some shut eye before "Santa" comes to the house.

Hours passed, and night drolled on sleepily. You awake immediately with a tug on the covers. Shocked and half asleep, you quickly raise your head and look to the bedside. Your daughter was standing there, pillow in her right hand, rubbing her eyes with her left one.

"Daddy...I can't sleep....Can I sleep with you?"

You look at the time: 12:06am. You look back at her with sleep in your eyes. "What about Mommy hun?"

"Mommy took up the bed, and she kept making noises." she moaned tiredly.

You laugh at the idea of your wife snoring. "Okay sweetie, you can sleep here tonight." She climbed in your bed, and you slowly begin to fall asleep again. It seemed like your daughter kept moving for a bit, but she eventually stopped and fell asleep.

An hour passed, and you awake with a jolt. Something was wrong. You looked around your side of the bed; nothing was different. Except....You know something was different and wrong in your room.

You feel your daughter move around on her side of the bed. Sounds like she is getting up to go to the bathroom. Your eyes widened with fear from realization.

You don't have a daughter.

It's Christmas eve, and a knock was heard on the door

"Mommy....I'm cold..."