"You donât make a big deal of it," Mary had explained as he had unwrapped the box, "but you love music and, wellâŠI saw you drooling over this record player a few weeks ago andâŠoh hell â Itâs too much, isnât it? I went too big? I just knew youâd like it andâ"Â
John had cut her off with a gentle kiss. âItâs amazing and I love it. YOUâRE amazing. Of course, now Iâm going to have to go start trolling the vintage vinyl shops and get a respectable collection up and running again.âÂ
"Oh! Wait! I have a start for you. I know itâs a little silly butâŠitâs Christmas. And a man in the store said I shouldnât get you a record player and nothing to play on it, and he suggested that this would be festive, but would allow you to choose your own collection." Sheâd handed him an unwrapped sleeve adorned with a semi-tasteful pile of holiday frippery and looping gold cursive text proclaiming the record full of âHoliday Favorites" and that they were "On Violin!" Most likely, the store over-ordered and was instructing every employee to push the record on unsuspecting customers.
Heâd smiled and kissed her cheek. âItâs lovely. Truly. Itâll make the flat positively cheery. Perhaps even jolly.â
Theyâd giggled and sipped tea together while the first few flakes of an unexpected Christmas snowstorm fell and it wasnât until after Mary had left to meet with her sister for an early lunch that heâd remembered the record. It seemed as though it might be a nice accompaniment to his dinner preparations.Â
The first few strains of Silent Night had caught him off guard for a moment. Just hearing the echoing sighs of a violin inside 221b after so much time wasâŠstartling. Heâd smiled sadly and then shaken himself back into the present. And once he got over the initial shock, the music really was quite nice. Actually cheery.Â
Until a quiet, haunting solo version of Iâll Be Home For Christmas poured out of the speakers. Heâd sunk down in his armchair and just listened for the length of the song, tea forgotten next to him. When it ended, heâd remained sitting for the next two songs, fighting prickles at the corners of his eyes.Â
Mary returned a few hours later, as he was pulling together the last minute details for dinner.Â
"John, I tell you, we havenât had a storm like this in YEARS, and for Christmas no lessâŠ" Her voice grew muffled as she struggled out the many layers of protection she was wearing against the weather. "Rather charming I suppose, though. Dinner smells amazing, love." As she walked through the living room, she noticed the record on the turntable. "So you filled the place with holiday cheer this afternoon, did you?"Â
John glanced over, confused for a moment, and saw what she was looking at. He cleared his throat. âYesâŠit was. ActuallyâŠquite good. I enjoyed it. Youâll have to thank the man at the shop for me. It wasâŠjust the thing.âÂ
Mary didnât even look back at him as she absently rearranged a few small items on the mantle. âOh, he wasnât an employee,â she said off-hand. âJust some bloke. Tall.âÂ
âââââââââââââââââââââââ-
In which I faff about with perspective and lighting in ways that surely are not in the least bit accurate to the laws of physics.Â