Mary and Tom were 60 years old. They lived high atop a snowy mountain in the pine forests, in their lovely log cabin. “Me and you. Just us two”, read the signboard at their front door. Their daughter Allie lived a few towns away, married to Kevin.
Allie, their sweet angel, was due to give birth to another angel in just a few days. Mary & Tom were busy preparing their bags to leave in a day’s time. Some food, some gifts and a lot of love was what they were bringing to Allie and Kevin. They were happy parents. Their daughter was married to her high-school sweetheart. Just like their own little story.
In a world like ours, it is hard to find a lover and a best friend in one person. And very few times, someone lucky comes along to make another one lucky too. Allie had this chance with Kevin. He was her other half, the love of her life, the best friend she ever had. He was her “person”, for everything. The go-to man for happy, sad and tough days. Life was good for them. They lived for each other, with each other and would not know how to go on without each other.
So on went Mary and Tom to Little Creek to their daughter and son-in-law. She gave birth to a lovely angel, and they named her Millie. She had a twinkle in her eyes, a magical smile and cooed lightly at her mother’s side. Mary and Tom took turns with Kevin at the hospital; one day he stays, another day they stay. Both parties needed their rest, and this was the best arrangement for the week that she had to be in there for final checkups.
Frightful, a cold Friday morning. Mary and Tom had taken Millie outside the hospital. Allie had to be taken for her tests right before being discharged, and Millie’s little baby bag was packed and kept in the car. Kevin was in the hospital with Allie, by her side through her tests. Mary and Tom were by their truck; playing with Millie, snowflakes on her nose. This was when they heard it. Shots fired inside the hospital. A madman was on the loose; avenging his wife’s death that was caused by a disease that the hospital couldn’t cure. One after the other. They lunged away from the truck and ran towards the main gate.
However, the police had already been informed and no one was allowed to enter the premises. They were losing their children, and there was nothing they could do about it. Tears, heartbreak and sadness overcame them. The loss of a child is like no other. It is unmatched. The pain is unbearable. It isn’t something that can be understood by anyone. They returned to their house on the mountain with Millie. They had to begin all over again with broken hearts. It hurt them to look at Millie; the child because of whom they were in that hospital. They blamed her birth for the death of their daughter.
But the twinkling eyes had other plans. They were about to captivate Mary and Tom and turn this blame into love, only love. She cooed on a frosty morning, and Mary and Tom rushed to the room, to see if all was well. She looked up at them, and smiled lightly. Her eyes twinkled a sea blue; just like Allie’s. Tom sat on the floor and wept; Mary held him and held back her heavy tears. They wept and wept and wept together. It felt like life was taken away from them. But, they hadn’t realised that life was also given to them. Life was about to change; start anew for them. Millie was 4 months old now, and needed all the attention they could muster for her.
“It’s like going back decades. Our little Allie is now little Millie. We are going to raise her like our own daughter. Our angel. The magic of our lives. The collateral beauty of our lives.”, Tom decided at breakfast.
Written By Anisha Masand
Part 2 of the story on 11th Dec ’20.
Week 49, December ’20
