The dim glow of the early morning sunrise filled the apartment, as Mary Bartow slipped her jet-black heels on. The crisp morning air wandered through the large, open windows, carrying the scent of pine and gingerbread. With her heels clicking against the hardwood floor, she cast on last look around her penthouse, furnished with the most popular modern furniture, yet it still felt nothing like a home; that was decorated to the brim with Christmas decor.
Determined to push aside her thoughts of Christmas, Mary slung her leather briefcase over her shoulder, grabbed her light-brown Trench coat, and stepped into the hallway. The muted lights made it harder to wake up. She stepped into the sleek elevator, the doors closing with a soft whoosh behind her. seamlessly falling to the next floor.
As the elevator door opened to the next stop, Mary saw a father, impeccably dressed in a suit, stood beside his daughter, with a My Little Mule backpack slung over her shoulders. As the duo stepped in the elevator, their shared smiles reflected a quiet understanding. The little girl's eyes sparkled with curiosity, taking in the polished buttons and shiny surfaces.
Mary remembered a time when her dad would lift her up onto his shoulders to put the star on the tree. She swiped the memory out of her head, how could she face her dad after yelling at him about moving to the city.
After that she kept looking down, why was Christmas trying to invade her life this year?? What about last year, where there were much fewer cases to worry about. Once the elevator reached a halt at the lobby, she bolted out. 'No more thoughts of Christmas' Mary thought, as she bust her way through the doors, running straight to work.
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"Is work always this long?" Mary asked her coworker while leaning in her chair.
"It feels like an eternity" another one of her coworkers' chimed in across the room.
"One more day!" chimed in another coworker, and hopelessness filled the room once more.
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By the time work was over, Mary just wanted to flop down in her bed and die. Not only was the case she was working on a divorce case, but it was also a cheating case as well. The wife said she caught her husband sleeping with another woman on Christmas last year while her and the children were out looking at Christmas-lights. They had come home a bit early and there it was, surprisingly they hadn't noticed her, and for the past year she's been saving money and evidence to use against him in court. Talk about sad, and she's held it together for the whole time; for her kids.
Mary collected all her papers and left, stopping by a coffee shop on the way home to give her the power to work through the night again.
As Mary sat her stuff down her phone went off, she quickly sat the rest of her things down and picked up her phone. The caller ID revealed to be "mom," and with a sigh, she answered.
Her mom's voice jingled on the phone the second she picked up, " Hello, sweetie! How was work? I hope it was amazing!" she said, quickly. Her mom sighed as she continued, " Mary, sweetie, please come home for Christmas" she pleaded.
Though all their conversations felt rushed, Mary still felt meaningful, had her mom not felt the same way? Christmas was in a week! How could she finish her case and travel all the way back to her hometown!
Trying to maintain a professional composure, Mary hesitated, " Look, I'm trying my best! The cases and deadlines - you must understand! Christmas is just a waste of time anyways!" She may have said the last part because everyone in the shop seemed to look at her.
"Try to be more cheerful! You're always upset about one thing and trying to rush life! Trust me, that's not how you want to live!" Her mom yelled back; this was the first time she'd heard mom yell in a long time. "When I was in my 20s, I was falling in love every other night! And you don't even have a boyfriend!"
'Okay, so maybe there was no point in arguing on the last part, no man is good enough for an amazing person like me, but-.' Mary thought, her mind flying with ideas on how to skip another family gathering, in only a few moments Mary was able to come up with the perfect idea.
"Yeah! You know what, I'll come home for the holidays! Drop all my work and come see you and dad!" Mary said, trying to seem as cheerful as possible.
"Huh, wait... REALLY?" her mom screamed over the phone, " that seems too easy, you're being sarcastic, right?"
"Nope, I'm being 100% truthful!" maybe more like 72%, " You're right! I work too hard! Time for a break, work's been feeling long anyways!" Mary exclaimed.
"This seems hard to believe, well I'll see you in a few days!" in the background she could hear her mom telling dad the news, then saying goodbye.
'Hopefully her mom wouldn't tell the whole town about her homecoming,' Mary thought as she walked home. This was going to be a long Christmas.
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This is heavily inspired by hallmark christmas movies . Since this is my first story so it'll probably be super bad, just to keep in mind! But hopefully it will get better once the romance part start's to kick in! For now it's just a boring intro. No it will not be a heavy romance, but more than just a kiss (unlike the hallmark movies!)
I'm writing this story for my friends, so all the chapters might change every once and a while. New chapters will come out every week (hopefully)!
Tell me what you think :D
word count 889
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The Sweetest Christmas
RomanceIn the bustling city, Mary finds herself too busy for the holidays. But then she comes up with a plan to make both her and her mom happy. When she returns to her Christmas-obsessed hometown, she encounters her childhood enemy, Carson.
