19 comments/ 24866 views/ 9 favorites The Last Christmas Present By: CambriaRose This is my 2013 Holiday contest entry. I hope you enjoy it, and don't forget to vote! A special thank you goes to Kitty9Tail for editing. *** Brylyn Hawthorne was determined to make Christmas the best one ever. It would definitely be a tall order, but it had to be done. She would plaster a fake smile on her face even if she did not feel very festive. Her plan was to decorate a real tree, bake sugar cookies, and hang so many Christmas lights that the place could be seen for a mile. She thought she had done a good job of following that plan, too. Here it was Christmas Eve, and she had finished all her goals. She stood on a stepstool and hung a string of lights across the window valance, lowering sections of the lights to create a scalloped effect. Brylyn stepped down and looked at it while biting her lip. She couldn't tell if it was decent enough. "It's crooked." Ryan, her boyfriend, commented from behind her. She looked at him where he lay and stuck her tongue out at him playfully. "I'm aware." "I'm just teasing you." He said with a slight twinkle in his golden brown eyes. "They look nice, but the scenery is much nicer." Brylyn smiled at him and rolled her eyes. She climbed back up onto the stool to fix the section of lights that hung too low. After it was all level, she folded the stool up and put it in the small closet in the room. "There. What do you think?" She swiped her hands across her blue jeans to clean off the dust that was clinging to them. "It looks like a Christmas catalogue threw up in here." The room was decorated from ceiling to floor. Colored strip lights ran around the room, drawing festive shapes like bells and candy canes. She had hung giant paper ornaments on the remaining bare walls. She even managed to get a small two foot tall pine tree and had that all decorated too. Brylyn watched Ryan's eyes as they moved from decoration to decoration. Maybe he was right and she had overdone it. Her brow knit together at the thought. Perhaps the lights were a little too excessive. "I love it." He smiled up at her. "Thank you." She walked over to his bed and kissed him atop his head. "You're welcome." It was hard to believe that it had almost been a year since their life had been turned upside down. It seemed like it had been much longer than that. Brylyn could remember each detail, like it had been some sort of slow nightmare she couldn't escape from. She had been lying on the couch idly flipping through TV stations trying to find something to watch. Her phone rang with a number she didn't recognize. It was Ryan's mother, Anna. She was so distraught it was hard to understand her at first. Then the words 'motorcycle' and 'accident' hit her like a ton of bricks. "I told him not to take it this morning!" She wailed to Anna. "I said it was not a good idea. He told me that the roads were clear and not to worry so much." At the time, she blamed herself for not being more insistent on him taking her car. It wasn't until Ryan was able to talk that they got all the facts. He had been wearing a helmet, a saving grace. Brylyn had been firm with him and said if he didn't wear it she would slash his bike tires. It had only taken three replacement tires for him to figure out she was serious. He had not hit ice like they had originally thought. The doctors learned that he had been dizzy, barely able to see through a sea of darkness fogging his vision. His balance was altered, he leaned too far to the left and the motorcycle dropped to the ground on its side. He was doing thirty miles per hour and was torn up from sliding across the asphalt. Less than a week later, doctors discovered the cause of his spell on a CT scan. He had a massive tumor in his brain. His doctors ordered him to take an aggressive round of treatment to try to prevent it from growing farther. The doctor delivered the second blow to them; it was located in a spot in his brain that was inoperable. Brylyn stood by him as the months passed by. She was there when the last of his curly brown hair disappeared. She was there when he was in so much pain that he could not move without making horrible, heart-wrenching sounds. She sat with him and wiped his face off with a cool rag as he lay on the bathroom floor night after night. One night after a hard afternoon of reactions to the chemotherapy, Brylyn helped Ryan climb into bed. He told her he was cold and she set about piling blankets on him. She tucked him in gently and then crawled in beside him. She turned off the lights and snuggled close to him to share her body heat. "You should find someone else." Brylyn snapped up and turned the light on, blinding them both. "No!" "You don't deserve this. You deserve someone healthy who isn't depending on you twenty-four seven and making your life miserable." His sad eyes looked up at her. "Someone who isn't going to di-" "Don't you even say that. You are not going to die!" She cut him off, nearly yelling at him. "I won't let you." He let out a short depressed laugh. "There isn't anything you can do to stop it, Bry. We both know it. I'm trying to help make it easier for you. You shouldn't be stuck with cancer-boy weighing you down." "Do you think I could easily forget about you, just like that?" She fumed. He'd struck a nerve. "Do you think it would be so easy to leave you to fend for yourself? If you think I am going to walk out the door, you have another thing coming. I am not going anywhere." Ryan's pale skin took on a rose-tinted glow. Perhaps he thought she'd just quietly do as he asked. She had never yelled at him in the six years they had been dating. He fell silent at a loss for words. Brylyn lay back down and turned the lights off. Tears stung her eyes and silently streamed down her face and on to her pillow. How could he think she would leave like that? "Bry," Ryan hesitated before continuing. "I saw you crying in the car when you left this morning. You should be happy with your partner, not sad. You want a family. I can't give you that family. I can't even say I would be there if by some chance we did have a family. It isn't fair to you to have to live wondering when you'll wake up and be alone." She rolled to face him, her own brown eyes locking on to his in the dark. "None of that matters. I am not going anywhere. I am not walking away from you." To his credit, he never talked like that to her again. The second worst day of their life was the day that the doctors found that the treatment was not working. They began trying all sorts of alternative treatment methods, but nothing seemed to help. The balding physician wrung his hands and, as gently as he could, told them to enjoy what time they had left together. There was no reason to cause Ryan to be sick anymore in hopes of a cure; there wasn't going to be one. Without the harsh toxins in his body, for a while Ryan felt almost normal. He had more energy and some days even had quite an appetite. His skin had more color to it and his hair started to fuzz. Brylyn kidded with him the day she saw one teeny tiny bit of fuzz where his eyebrows used to be. She rubbed it, but it didn't come off. They celebrated the one eyebrow hair that night like Ryan had won a medal in hair growing. Brylyn started to notice things shortly after. His speech was slurred sometimes, his balance was off, he slept a lot and he often forgot things. At first he forgot silly little things like where he set his phone or the TV remote. Then one day she walked in from her job as a grocery clerk and he flipped out, demanding to know who she was. They had told them eventually he might have memory problems, but not that he'd completely forget her. It was always scary and unpredictable when it happened. Even though he had lost a lot of weight and strength, he was still stronger than her. Over the past couple months, Ryan's health had deteriorated. The hospital suggested a hospice care provider and with their help, the apartment bedroom was turned into a 'death chamber' as Ryan put it. It had all of the medical equipment for the hospice nurse to check in on him daily. The nurse was specially trained to help care for dying people who wish to live the remaining days of their lives at home rather than a hospital. Unfortunately, he had recently fallen down a flight of stairs and bashed his head into a concrete wall. The doctor wanted to keep an eye on him for a while to be sure there was no swelling in his brain. It meant that Christmas was being spent in a hospital bed. "Earth to Bry!" Ryan snapped her out of her trance. "What goes on in that head of yours?" "Just was thinking." She smiled at him. "I'm glad you like the room." He reached for her hand, giving it a slight squeeze. "What were you thinking about?" She sighed and sat on the hospital bed beside him. "I was thinking about everything that has happened in the last year." His eyes flashed concern. He had told her before that he did not like when she thought about things like that. She always did the 'what if' thing. What if they would have gone to the doctor before his accident? What if he hadn't stopped the chemo? What if she'd been more adamant about getting to the doctor for a checkup regularly? A slight knock on the door interrupted their thoughts. The door creaked open and Ryan's twin brother, Steve, walked in with an armload of presents. When Brylyn had first met Ryan, he had neglected to tell her he was an identical twin. She had struck up a conversation one day with Steve unaware, and when Ryan walked in she didn't know what to think. The boys laughed for hours at her as she hadn't spent enough time with Ryan to know which of them he was. Steve was like a healthy version of Ryan. He was tall, thin, with similar golden eyes. He was different than his brother, though. Where Ryan preferred one girl, Steve was a ladies' man. Brylyn never knew who he'd show up with. "Mom had me bring you some of the presents from under the tree at her house. She'll be up later to see you." Steve told him as he set the presents on a chair. "I don't know what she got you, but I think it's a bunch of bricks." "Almost like the time she stuffed rocks into the box to fool you." Ryan laughed. He looked at Brylyn. "Mom caught Steve peeking in all the presents, so she put rocks in the boxes. He thought Santa was mad at him for doing it." "Of all the times you forget things, why couldn't that be one of them?" Steve cringed. Ryan shrugged and yawned. Brylyn was surprised he had stayed awake for a while. Usually he couldn't stay lucid for anything more than a half hour. "Well anyway, I should get going back to the house and let you rest." Steve walked towards the door. "I'll see you later." "Later." Ryan yawned again. He reached up and grabbed Brylyn. "Come here, you." She lay beside him in the hospital bed as he wrapped an arm around her. He kissed the back of her head and nuzzled his face against her hair. He fell asleep almost instantaneously. Brylyn lay there quietly enjoying the room while being close to Ryan. Soon, she found herself rather sleepy and drifted off to dreamland with him by her side. A few hours later she awoke when someone came in the room. It was Mrs. Danner carrying a plate of what looked to be freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. Brylyn got up off the bed and rubbed her tired eyes. Ryan stirred and stretched. "Hey, Mom." Brylyn looked down at her crumpled clothing. "I am going to run home and take a shower so you can visit with your mom." "Alright sweetheart." Ryan sat up and kissed her goodbye. "Be careful driving home in the snow." *** After Brylyn was changed into fresh clothing, she grabbed a sandwich, chips, and a soda. It wasn't exactly a turkey dinner, but it would do. She wolfed the food down, unaware she had been hungry. When she arrived back at the hospital, the metal door to Ryan's room was slightly ajar. Brylyn was about to enter it, but she heard his mother talking to him and did not want to interrupt them. "She's a great girl, Ryan." Anna told him. "I really like her. You couldn't have picked a better girlfriend." "I love her, too." He confirmed. "I do feel guilty about what all she's gone through because of me." "She does it because she loves you. You aren't making her stay, she's choosing to stay on her own." Ryan coughed several times and groaned. "I think I'm starting to get a cold." Brylyn frowned. For a normal person, a cold was nothing. For someone with hardly any immune system to fight the bacteria, it could be deadly. She would have to speak to his doctor about it the next time she saw him. She decided to walk into the room since they seemed to be done with their discussion. "Hey," Ryan smiled at her. "We were just talking about you." She shrugged off her coat and settled into the chair beside his bed. "Nothing too bad, I hope." Anna smiled warmly at her. She walked over to Ryan and touched his shoulder lightly. "I am going to leave you two alone. I will be back tomorrow morning to bring you the other presents and to spend Christmas with you." "Thanks, Mom. See you tomorrow." He waved as she left the room. "Goodbye Mrs. Danner." Ryan looked up at Brylyn and motioned her to come over to him. He tugged on the collar of her shirt until she was leaning in front of him. He grinned and gave her a light kiss. She kissed him back, wondering what had caused him to be that affectionate. He lay back against the pillows. "I have a confession." "You didn't kiss a nurse or something, did you?" She asked in reference to the mistletoe she hung over the bed. She was teasing him. He laughed and wiggled his fuzz eyebrows. "No, but had I remembered that you hung that over the bed I would have totally kissed that hot nurse that showed up while you were gone." Brylyn feigned being hurt. "Well, in that case I guess you don't need me anymore. I will just take all of my decorations and go." "You are funny, you know that?" He grinned and kissed her again. She eyed him suspiciously. "Why are you so lovey dovey?" She swore he blushed. "The presents Steve brought aren't for me. They are for you. I gave him a list of things to get, and Mom wrapped it. I didn't think you'd want his idea of paper towels as wrapping paper on them. I want you to get the box in the red paper." Brylyn was slightly shocked. She didn't expect him to get her anything. "I didn't bring your presents, they are at home. We should wait until tomorrow to open them." "Bry, just get the red present." He insisted. She did as he asked, grabbing a large box covered in red paper with Christmas bell designs on it. She held it pensively in her lap. "Well, open it and tell me what you think." Ryan prodded, nudging her. She carefully peeled the tape off. She loosened all the tape before taking the paper off and neatly folding it. "Come on, just rip it already." She knew it irritated him that she was meticulous when it came to opening presents. She undid the tape holding the box closed. She didn't have any idea what it could be. As she opened the box, she saw tissue paper. Ryan grew tired of her taking so long to open it. He reached over and pulled the tissue paper out of the box before she had a chance to fold it into neat little squares. She gave him a sarcastic look and then returned her gaze to the box. Inside was some sort of white material. She pulled it out and was shocked to see it was a pure white dress. She looked at it and then at Ryan questioningly. "What is this?" "Look in the box." He motioned to the box. At the bottom was a little white box. It looked like a jeweler's ring box. Her eyebrows shot into her hairline as she retrieved it. Before she could open it, Ryan snatched it away. "I'll take that, thank you." She was confused. She looked to him for an explanation. "Ryan, what is going on?" He smiled at her. "I know this isn't exactly the most romantic place or anything, but here goes nothing." He opened the box and showed it to her. It held a small gold ring with a diamond setting. Her hand flew to her mouth. It was beautiful. "Brylyn, would you do me the honor of marrying me? Be forewarned if you say no, I will be playing the cancer card." He added. "Oh my god, Ryan. Yes!" She shrieked and held out her hand. As soon as the ring was on her finger she went crazy. She stood up, squealed and danced around in a circle. She felt the happiest she had been in a long time. Ryan looked at her like she had dipped into his morphine drip. "There was a second part to that." She stopped her little dance and looked at him. "What do you mean?" "Well," He seemed to be having trouble saying it. "I, uh, well, you see I meant tonight." "What?" "Yeah, I meant would you marry me tonight." He admitted looking sheepish. "There is a pastor waiting in the chapel, provided you said yes." "Ryan! The dress is beautiful. What would you wear?" Thoughts slammed through her as she processed what was happening. They had been together almost eight years. She had thought he was against getting married because he feared he would hurt her even more so when he passed away. She was excited and nervous all at the same time. "I have a tuxedo I can wear so my bare ass doesn't hang out in the pictures. I can't give you a big wedding, and I know it's last minute." His eyes saddened. "But it's all I could do right now." "It's not a big deal. Yes, I will marry you. Tonight." She beamed down at him. *** "You may now kiss the bride." The pastor motioned, smiling at the couple. Ryan looked down into Brylyn's eyes and leaned forward to seal their new marriage. He kissed her lightly and the smiled down at her. She looked up into his eyes, seeing nothing but love shining back at her. She helped him into a wheelchair, knowing that he would be tired from the few hours of excitement. She pushed him back to his room and helped him out of the tux. A nurse came in to check on him and help get him situated. He coughed and yawned. "I'm sorry that I am sleepy. I promise I'm excited." Brylyn lay down with him after she had changed out of the gorgeous dress. "I know you are. It's alright, you rest up." She kissed his forehead. Mrs. Brylyn Danner, she kind of liked the new name. Even though it hadn't been a traditional ceremony, it was certainly one to remember. It would always be a special day in her life. She fell asleep with a happy smile on her face. Brylyn was awakened by someone messing with the hem of her shirt. She opened her eyes to find someone had turned off the room's lights, leaving the Christmas lights as their only way to see. A cold finger traced across her warm stomach. She rolled over slightly to see Ryan staring at her with desire in his eyes. She wondered why he was looking at her like that. The chemo had pretty much decimated his sex drive. Lately, he hadn't had enough energy to be able to do much of anything, let alone get sexually excited. "Ryan?" She questioned. "What is a wedding night without consummating it?" He said in a low voice she had long forgotten he used when he was turned on. Concern etched itself on her face. "Are you sure it'd be okay? Won't it set the alarms off?" She motioned to the EKG pads stuck on his chest. "I don't think the nurses would question what a newlywed couple would be doing in here." He chuckled, an evil little grin on his face. His hand slid up the smooth skin of her stomach as she held her breath. It had been so long since he had touched her this way. His hand closed over her breast, and she let out a content sigh. Her hand rose to cover his. "If you are sure." She glanced back at him one last time. He squeezed her breast as the reply instead of saying anything. He leaned into the back of her and laid light kisses on her neck. She groaned and reclined back into his touch. The Last Christmas Present Brylyn rolled to face him, giving him a shy smile. They had slept with each other for years, but something about a wife sleeping with her new husband made it all seem new and exciting. She ran her hands up and down his arms and chest, avoiding any leads that were attached to him. He angled forward and began kissing her gently on her lips. He ran his fingers through her hair as he deepened their kiss. Their tongues mingled, causing tingles to run through Brylyn to her core. She loved this man. She broke the kiss, gently pushing Ryan onto his back. She reached down and ran her hands across the boxers he wore. He groaned and laid back into the pillows. "Are you okay?" She stopped, alarmed. "Don't stop, Bry." He reached down and replaced her hand where it had been. She resumed her massage on his groin until he was half hard. She pulled the boxers down his hips, leaving them resting around his knees. Her hands wrapped around his penis, gently stroking it. She used one hand to continue her stroking, and used the other to cup and fondle his balls. He moaned and clenched his eyes shut. She couldn't say why she did it, maybe it had to do with the fact that this night may be the last time they would ever have sex. She suddenly leaned down and for the first time in their relationship she took his hard member into her mouth. "Bry!" Ryan groaned in surprise, his hands flying to hold her head. She began lightly sucking on him, while moving up and down. She had never done it before, so it took her a moment to gain enough knowledge to do it properly. Ryan guided her, breathing hard and thrashing about as she went. "Stop, Bry." He gasped. "Come here!" She crawled up to him and he kissed her fiercely and whispered, "My god Woman, you are trying to kill me." His hand delved into her pants and underneath her panties. He fingered her slit, running his hand up and down her pussy before dipping his index finger into her wetness. It was her turn to moan as he teased her nether parts. He circled his hand around her sensitive clit, causing her to produce even more lubrication for them. Ryan nipped at her neck, using his free hand to massage a breast. Brylyn pulled away from him to take her pants and underwear off. She hoped like hell the doctors or nurses wouldn't come waltzing in; they hadn't come in yet. In the back of her mind, she wondered if he'd told them they were going to sleep together. She clambered over him and straddled him. She reached down and gently rubbed his penis a few times. "You ready?" She questioned breathlessly. He nodded as she sank down on to him. They both moaned in unison. Brylyn didn't dare move, afraid of hurting Ryan. She glanced down, watching his face in the Christmas lights glow. His eyes were wide with desire, and full of love for her. It was a perfect moment. She leaned down, careful not to put her weight on him fully. She intertwined her fingers with his and began slowly raising and lowering herself. When he didn't break into a million pieces, she picked up her pace. She slid across him, pushing forward to angle his hard penis on her clitoris. Ryan grabbed her, roughly dragging her on to his chest. He hugged her so tight she thought her head was going to pop off at any time. "I love you, Bry. So much." He began thrusting up into her with all the strength he could muster up. It didn't take long before he grew tired and had to let go. He froze as it hit him, she could feel his semen jetting out of him and into her. It went on for what felt like forever, until he relaxed and looked up at her. "Who are you?" He said with a strange look on his face. Brylyn's eyes grew as big as saucers in horror. She climbed off him and quickly reached for her pants. "I'm just kidding Bry." He grinned at her with a yawn. "I'm sleepy." "You brat!" She glared at him as she put her pants back on. "That wasn't funny." "Sure it was, now come here my Christmas present and sleep with me." He promptly fell asleep. 'Like a typical man.' She thought. She climbed in bed with him, resting her head against his chest. His lungs sounded wheezy to her. She would have to let the nurse know in the morning. For the time being, she was content to lie in her husband's arms for the night. *** It had been a week since they had spent Christmas in the hospital. Against Brylyn's wishes, Ryan insisted on returning home. His cough had worsened, he wheezed audibly when he breathed. The doctors had confirmed he had caught a cold, and had prescribed him heavy antibiotics. His body seemed to be losing its will to fight. Brylyn was scared to death of losing him. She tried not to show that to him, telling him he would be okay. He wasn't going to be okay, there wasn't anything she could do to help him. All she could do was be there for him. It scared her that the hospice nurse had quietly moved in to be available to help day or night. "Bry, I'm scared." Ryan grasped her hand one night during a particularly hard coughing fit. "Don't be. Everything will be okay." She soothed, knowing she was lying. "You just have to kick this cold." "I don't want to die." He choked as tears fell down his face. "Everything will be okay." Tears blurred her own vision. She reached over and wiped his tears away. As she did, she noticed he seemed to be rather cold. "You'll be okay. Just hush and try to rest." Brylyn crawled into bed with him and hugged him tightly to her. She simply held him while he cried himself to sleep. She extricated herself from his arms, alerting the nurse to his lack of body heat. She took a hot shower, letting her cries be drowned out by the rush of water. She came back into their bedroom to find Ryan peacefully sleeping on the bed. She sat in the chair and watched him sleep. He looked so peaceful when he wasn't awake. His face relaxed, the tight lines disappearing. After a while, she too fell asleep. *** A few days had passed and Ryan continued to show signs of not being able to fight the bacteria in his body. He was sleeping all the time. He was delirious when he was awake. Brylyn watched him day and night, afraid one breath might be his last. She found herself holding her breath when he did. One morning, he was making horrible moaning noises. Brylyn moved closer to him, reaching out to let him know she was there. He looked at her for what seemed like forever. Something was wrong; she could see it in his eyes. Before she could ask, he gasped one last breath and then the heart monitor began its terrible wail. Brylyn screamed for the nurse to come in. "Do something!" She yelled, watching the nurse feel for a pulse. "Please, Ryan! Wake up. Don't do this." She pleaded with him, knowing in her heart that he was not going to wake up. "Please." "I'm sorry." The nurse turned to her with sad green eyes. "No! Save him." She shrieked. She didn't know how to do CPR but she could try. She tried to get closer to him to try, but the worker stopped her by grabbing her in a hug. "He's gone, Brylyn. I am sorry." She said in a voice that sounded tired and old. It occurred to Brylyn that she had seen this before. It was part of her job, to make the patient comfortable until they passed away. She slumped against the nurse in defeat as the tears streamed down her face. "I told him he'd be okay." She chanted over and over through her sobs. "Dear, let me call the hospital and then we'll get you something warm to drink." The nurse gently nudged her towards the door. "I told him he'd be okay." Epilogue: Nine months later "It's a healthy boy!" A bouncy nurse squeezed her hand. "Aren't you so lucky? He's adorable!" They wrapped the baby boy up and laid him on her chest. Her heart swelled with pride and love when she saw not only did the screaming bundle have a brown dusting of hair, but his eyes were golden brown. Brylyn had gone through so much in the last nine months after Ryan's death. Her family had feared for her safety, after a few botched suicide attempts and had her committed to a psychiatric hospital. She didn't want to live without Ryan. It didn't seem fair to her. Wherever he was, she wanted to be too. She started feeling weird and after a few tests, she learned that she was pregnant. It was to her and the entire Danner family's shock. The doctors had said the tradeoff for chemo was that it would be very unlikely to have any children afterwards. Not only was this baby boy a miracle baby, he looked like his father. He had saved her life, and he was a piece of Ryan she could hold forever. Brylyn gazed down at her newborn son, knowing that he had one proud daddy in Heaven. "Do you know what name you are going to use?" The nurse asked smiling at the new mom and baby. For the first time since Ryan had passed away, Brylyn smiled. "Yes, Bryan. His father was a great man named Ryan, so I thought since he's part of us both I'd combine our names. It may be kind of cheesy." "Not at all!" She assured her. "I bet if his daddy could see how adorable this little guy is, he'd be one happy dad." Her smiled widened and she let out a short laugh as the baby let out a huge belch. "He sure would be, the boy is just like him!"