The Perfect Gift?

The Perfect Gift?
w/c 1011

Donna couldn’t wait for Christmas morning. She hadn’t been this excited since she was eight years old and had asked Santa for a new bike.

She had not been disappointed! Running downstairs on the frosty morning, she pushed open the living room door. There, under the tree was the exact bike she had seen in the shop window. Her shrieks of joy had woken her parents, who joined their tearful daughter under the tree.

Yes, that had been the best Christmas ever. But, this Christmas promised to be even better. It was her first in the new flat and also her first with Simon.

Simon was very special. He treat Donna like a princess. He was kind and thoughtful, he had an amazing sense of humour, he’d even got Donna’s mother wrapped around his little finger!

For the last month Simon had been promising Donna something special for Christmas. She had tried and tried to get him to give her at least a hint as to what it my be but Simon had kept his secret.  All he would say was that it was something she had been asking for.

This was not a lot of help! Donna was an avid window shopper and was constantly pointing things out that she would like. She had seen a beautiful watch in the jewellers, a music centre in the electrical store, shoes,  numerous tops, skirts, trousers and the most amazing checked jacket!

On Christmas Eve, Donna tried once more. Snuggled up on the sofa, a soppy movie on TV and a glass of whiskey cream in hand, she looked into Simon’s gentle, blue eyes.

“Is there no way I can persuade you to tell me what you have bought me? The suspense is nearly killing me. Plleeeease tell me”
Simon grinned his lopsided grin. His left eye crinkled slightly more than his right. Donna thought this was particularly cute.

Simon bent his head and kissed her on the nose.

“Nope, not a thing! Don’t worry, you won’t have long to wait! Let me see, only another seven hours.”

Donna’s excitement thrilled him. He’d never met anyone who was as impatient as her. Her childlike enthusiasm convinced him even more that the gift he had bought her would be ideal. He was nearly as excited about it as Donna was!

“Seven hours!” shrieked Donna. “Seven hours? But it will be midnight in two, and then it’s officially Christmas!”

Laughing, Simon tussled Donna’s hair. “Everyone knows Santa doesn’t come until you are fast asleep!”

Having no choice in the matter, Donna pouted before finishing her drink in one gulp.

“Right, well if that’s the case, my mum always said  that the sooner I went to sleep, the sooner Santa would come, and the sooner I go to bed, the sooner I’ll go to sleep. So, I am going to bed.”

Donna spun on her heels, and stuck her tongue out at Simon.

Christmas morning dawned bright and sunny. Donna, yawned and stretched before turning to a slumbering Simon.

“Wake up! It’s CHRISTMAS!”

“Morning baby. Happy Christmas. What time is it?”

“It’s pressie time silly! Come on! Get up!”

Unable to resist Donna’s demands any longer, he followed her downstairs.

Under the tree, a huge pile of gaudily wrapped presents of all shapes and sizes sat waiting to be ripped open.

Diving in, Donna gradually worked her way through the mini mountain, sharing out the gifts.

Donna had read each and every tag before opening her presents and now sat in the centre of a pile of crumpled, discarded wrapping paper, a selection of perfumes, chocolates, Compact discs, make-up, tops, a pretty necklace and some novelty slippers.

With no more presents left to open, Donna was more than a little perturbed. She hadn’t opened one from Simon. She had made sure she knew which present came from whom and there was definitely not one from Simon. Had he forgotten to put it under the tree? Or maybe, it was too big, or better still, too small, to put under the tree!

“Simon honey. I don’t mean to be rude, but, I haven’t found the present from you.”

“That’s because I wanted you to open it last!”

Fighting his way through the wrapping and being careful not to tread on any of their presents, Simon strode over to the TV cabinet. Reaching behind it, he pulled out a large box covered in shiny gold paper.

Donna’s eyes widened.

“Happy Christmas darling. I just know you’ll love it!”

Donna’s jaw dropped as the paper fell away to reveal what Simon had bought her. She was truly speechless!

“Oh darling! I knew you’d love it! It is the one you’d seen and wanted so much isn’t it?”

“It’s…It’s…” Donna just could not find the words.

Luckily, Simon mistook the tears that were welling in her eyes for tears of joy.

Taking the half opened parcel from her hands, Simon shook the contents free of the last remnants of gold paper.

“It’s an Antony Worrell-Thompson wok! It’s got all the tools and a huge recipe book! I knew you’d be surprised!”

Surprised! That was the understatement of the century!

Somehow she told Simon that yes, it was the one she had seen and no, she most certainly would never have guessed in a million years that this was what he had bought her.

Donna scrambled to her feet and ran to the bathroom where the tears fell unchecked.

“A wok? What in God’s name was he thinking?” she asked her reflection. All that excitement and anticipation for a bloody wok! She’d never forgive him! If he thought that she was going to be bowled over by a bloody wok, he really did not know her at all! The worst of it was, it would have cost a fortune! Stupid, stupid man!

She pulled herself together before emerging from the bathroom. A blazing row followed, the outcome of which saw Donna spending the rest of the holidays alone. The wok had followed Simon through the door!

Most definitely NOT the perfect Christmas present!