Life, The Way It Is.

The Gift

          On the corner of the street a mound of snow had been collected and shaped into a snowman. Every house in the city was decorated. Mistletoe grew on almost every tree in sight. The driveways were jammed with cars of relatives or friends and the ones which weren't belonged to those who had fled off to somewhere they called home. The air carried with it the aroma of cakes, delicacies and happiness. The town depicted the perfect picture of joy. The warmth of Christmas blending perfectly with the cold of December.
            She turned a corner and her small yet comfortable house came into view. Her own little solace from the world. She walked down the street defensively against the cold, yet slowly, admiring the somewhat beauty of a distraught town expressing happiness. Snow fell on her head and shoulders, soft and light. Her steps, filled with leisure, not an ounce of hurry in them. After all, why should she hurry? The only thing she planned to do was either watch television or read and maybe visit a friend or two (if you could call them friends) tomorrow and then her life would be back to normal, monotonous again. That is where her Christmas would end. No cakes, no gifts, just her solitude and her.
          Or that's what she thought for when she reached her front porch, she came across the most peculiar sight. On top of the steps, right in front of the door, packed in red paper was a gift. Finished with a neat ribbon bow and a black gift tag that read her name.
           She pulled at the gift tag, turned it over and found mere two words written in a neat cursive writing which made her stomach churn - "with love".
           Anticipation tugged at her. She sat on the steps with the box on her lap, unwrapping it slowly, guessing with every tug, the contents of the box. On opening the lid the stench of blood and rotten flesh hit her. She sat there petrified and filled with disgust.
Inside the box, still oozing blood, lay a pig's heart with a knife pierced through the middle. A blood-curling scream escaped her and echoed in the neighbourhood, making the neighbours come rushing through their doors. But to her all was still and silent. She stared at the box with horror- filled eyes. Her collected mind now a frenzy. But she couldn't do anything now for her fate was fixed. She had received the gift........

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