Christmas Countdown 2017 : The Day

Previous story : Christmas Countdown : D-2

"I'm so sorry, Sir but the flight for New York to Sydney are all booked," said one of the travel manager. It was 7.30 in the evening, and I was just in rush. I needed to go home.

"I would give you everything just to get that damn ticket. Please, I need to go home real soon," I pleased her. The travel manager looked at me with such a pity smile, but she just couldn't help.

"I wish I could help you in this special night, but all the tickets to Sydney are all booked until new year," she said again.

"How about other flights to other cities in Australia?" I asked but she just shooked his head. She said sorry for few times, and I left this travel agency afterwards. I wore my thick jacket again I ran home. That place was the last travel agency I visited after some before. I gave up, and I decided to shelter on the nearest coffee shop just to warm up my body. 

I bought hot chocolate, and I decided to drink it in the corner of the cafe. It was only a small cafe, but it was enough to warm up myself. 

It was day minus one before Christmas. It was Christmas eve, and I should have been there in my hometown with Mom and Dad. I promised them to come back home, but I broke that promise. I was so dumb, I forgot to buy tickets, and I remembered it 2 day before Christmas. Damn it, how could I forget about that?

The day after Alicia was angry to me, and after the last class of my semester, I was in total confusion. I tried to finish my task well cause I didn't want to get a bad score remembering my scholarship could've been taken away by the sponsor if I got the bad one. I was also busy working to get more income for myself. It was even kind of hard for me to manage my time to do my task and working. Moreover, Alicia was never talking to me anymore after that. I knew she was busy, but I never knew that such a thing could make her that angry.

Alicia was a really nice girl, yeah sometimes she was annoying. I also knew that she was very ambitious especially to reach her dream, and I promised her to always support her through ups and downs. I also remembered she promised me the same thing. I'm sure enough that I was always there for her when she cried, and then when I needed her to cheer me up, boom, she ended my phone call.

I slurped my hot chocolate again. I opened my phone with a disappointed feeling. I wanted to contact Mom and Dad, telling them that I couldn't be there on Christmas, but I wanted to make them sure that I really loved them. I wanted to text them until suddenly I got a text from Alicia.

"I got to talk to you, Logan. I need to meet you real soon on the railway station right now."

I was shocked, my heart popped. I ran on the way to railway station as fast as I can. I was happy and confused at the same time knowing finally Alicia tried to talk to me, but why did she ask me to go to railway station?

I arrived on the railway station and I called Alicia. She didn't answer my phone call but I could see her right on the waiting room. I could also hear the last call for train to California. I ran toward her, and I could see her looking at me.

"What did you want to say?" I asked and realized that it was just like a movie.

"I'm sorry, Logan but I gotta go back home to California because of several reasons I can't tell," she said. I was shocked to death. 

"What?"

"I just want to thank you for every little things we did, but I really need to go back right now. I'm so sorry, Logan. I do love you, but I gotta go."

I remembered crying, and my heart still popped. I couldn't believe what was happening next.

The air was getting colder. I could hear several Christmas songs playing in that railway station. I could also hear the really last call for train to California, and I believed it was Alicia's.

I hugged her, and she hugged me. I never thought that it would be the last time I saw her. I didn't know what to do, and I didn't understand why I didn't try to avoid her going.

I just let her go.

And she left away.

It was one day before Christmas when the snow fell so hard and Christmas lights were sparkling everywhere. I could feel a hole inside me - no family, no girlfriend, and nothing left.

I never thought that in the beautiful life I had right now, I got to spend my Christmas Day with nothing left in me. 

***

Christmas Countdown is the author's seried-stories that written annualy every christmas since 2015. Has been abandoned since 2017, the author decided to repost it on her blog in order to keep it organized, both for the author and the audiences (if any).
The original story was published on author's line post on December 25, 2017.

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