Something subtle shifted in the room. Not dramatic. Not loud. Just a quiet tension that hadn’t been there before.
I felt it settle between us.
So I told myself I was imagining things.
I told myself to let it go.
Christmas Morning Arrives
Christmas morning arrived wrapped in familiar comfort.
The living room glowed softly with twinkling lights. The smell of cinnamon rolls filled the house. Lila insisted we all wear matching red flannel pajamas covered in tiny reindeer.
Greg complained about them, but he wore them anyway, smiling for her sake.
We sat together on the floor, passing presents around in our usual rhythm.
Lila squealed over every gift, even socks. “Santa knows I like fuzzy ones,” she announced proudly.
Greg handed me a silver bracelet I had circled in a catalog months earlier and forgotten about. I gave him the noise-canceling headphones he’d been talking about for weeks.
Almost.
The Gift That Changed the Room
Then Greg reached for the cream-colored box.
I noticed his hands immediately.
They were shaking.
Not just a little. Enough that he had to steady himself before lifting it. He tried to hide it, but after twelve years of marriage, I knew his tells.
Lila leaned forward, curious, assuming it was something fun.
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