It was a dark and stormy night... that left with with the arrival of the morning light as the clouds appeared to pull away and back out to sea... to the dark, deep ocean where they supposedly came from...
Palashs notes:
Sofia was still sleeping heavily when I woke up this morning. I hadn't slept to well as the noise from the wind and the rain had made me a little anxious, and at one point during the night I heard some banging noise, so I went for a walk around the house to make sure everything was ok.
Though it was nice and sunny out, the air was crisp and cold, and I found Yumi on the porch having emerged from her hiding spot under the chair in the living room, so I played with her for a bit.
It looked like our cars had survived the night without as much as a scratch, which was good, though our christmas lights have probably seen some better days, but.. they're an easily replacable item, so no big loss...
The ground was wet and soggy from the rain as I walked towards the gate to our backyard and swimming pool. It was partially open though we usually leave it closed, and some of our garden furniture had somehow piled up in a corner. I suppose that would explain the banging noise that I heard. Apart from the glass on the lamp that was broken, they looked like they were still useable, once moved back to their original spot. We probably should have put the garden furniture inside before the storm came, but there was so much else on our minds, with my father in the hospital and Sofia being worried about the new baby and not trusting that one doctor..
Narrators notes:
On the other side of the country, on its eastern coastline, in the old fishing village Sprottenham, Gaute was still napping after he had returned from taking his childhood friend Selma Vaddelmyr to the hospital where she had just given birth to a beatiful little girl called Rebecca.
---
His stepdaughter, Bodil, was already up to enjoy a piece of birthday cake that was left over from her younger brother Orinders birthday party just last month.
Gaute woke up from his short slumber and ran downstars to have breakfast, still feeling the adrenaline rush from witnessing his friend giving birth, and the anxiety about the unsettling message he received from his mother-in-law just the other night... He wasn't looking forward to giving Leya the news about her father being in the hospital... He gave a quick glance towards Orinder that was sleeping safe and sound in his crib...
The TV in the living room was still broken from last night, so Bodil couldn't watch her favorite kids show this morning, but as most kids, she has a pretty vivid imagination, so give her a few toys and she will keep herself busy. ;)
While Gaute was making breakfast he thought about the strange dream he had just a few nights ago.. was it just a coincidence, or was there something more behind it? Now in retrospect the dream seemed almost prophetic in nature... except it wasn't his own father that was at the hospital, it was Leyas... and who was that strange woman from the dream that kept calling him "The undertaker"? And why did she call him such a thing.. because just the following night he had taken on more or less the opposite role kind of, by taking Selma to the hospital so she could give birth..
While Gaute and Bodil was downstairs, Leya woke up to change Orinders diaper. Orinder was happy and carefree, he didn't know much about the world yet.. all he knew was his safe home, mom, dad and his older sister and all of their friends that had come over to pamper him for his first birthday celebration.
..but the world would get larger for the young boy already later this day. Once Gaute had delivered the news to Leya about her father, he would get to go on his first trip out of home, out of town and on a plane right across the country to where his grandparents live...
Leya got an unsettling feeling when she sat down at the dining table to eat leftover cake for breakfast as well...
Something was up. Something was wrong somewhere. Gaute was still preparing his breakfast in the kitchen, so he hadn't gotten to talk to her yet.
Once he sat down to eat, Leya started the conversation. "I have a bad feeling" she said "I don't know why, but just now I got the thought that.. mom was at the theatre watching the orchestra rehearse a song she had written for a play when someone said the unspeakable by talking about The Scottish Lady..."
Gaute, not being much of a man of culture nor particularly superstitious, usually, didn't catch that reference that The Scottish Lady refers to Lady MacBeth, and that speaking her name out loud in a theatre, unless performing or rehearsing the actual play, would allegedly lead to a curse...
"I'm sure the conductor has it all under control" he said, but Leya wasn't really convinced. She didn't actually believe that it would lead to a curse, but the feeling that something was up was still there. Gaute hadn't gotten much sleep, so it actually took him a while to connect the dots between his strange dream, the message he had gotten from Laranya just yesterday and Leyas concern at the breakfast table...
It wasn't until after they had done the dishes he came to it, and told her about Deepak having a stroke and being rushed to the hospital last night...
Leyas response was immediate. They had to travel to see her dad! She didn't say it, but she was really fearing for the worst now. Was his time soon over? She hoped not, of course. It would be terrible if her father would pass now, just before christmas and everything..
Leya: Get dressed and pack your bags Bodil. We're going to visit your grandparents!
Bodil: What? Now, mom? So soon?
Leya: Yes, your grandpa is.. is at the hospital, but..
Bodil: What happened? Why is grandpa at the hospital? Has he been in an accident?
Leya: Yes, uh.. grandpa had a little accident and fell in the bathroom, but he.. he will be alright.. now pack your bags, we're going soon..
Bodil: Ok, mom...
While Bodil packed her bags and Leya ordered the plane tickets, Gaute made sure to pack theirs and get Orinder ready, and then it was time to go...
They arrived at the Bewickton downtown hotel just above Dreas Salon and Tattoo just a few hours later. It was more practical to go for this hotel this time, Leya had thought, as it wasn't to far away from the hospital, and much closer to her mom's home, too.
They quickly checked in and left their bags at the hotel room, before getting in a rental car that just like before completely matched their own and driving up to Leyas parents house...
Leya always got a little emotional everytime she visited her childhood home, and especially in these times...
After she had rang the doorbell, she could her her mother calling them in from the kitchen window upstairs. In any other situation, Laranya would have walked downstairs to meet them, but just this day, she felt her legs was a little heavier than usual and wouldn't want to walk around to much...
Leya and Bodil was happy to hear their mom and grandmothers voice calling them up to the kitchen, before going upstairs..
Laranya: Oh my daughter, it's so good to see you.. it's been a rough couple of days..
Leya: It's good to see you to, mom.. how is dad? Is he ok?
Laranya: Oh, he's doing.. fine, given the circumstances.. It all happened so fast.. but the hospital responded very quickly and sent an ambulance.. and I think the doctors did a really good job.. They got him back, and I today he is already going to start physiotherapy..
Laranya: I called the hospital this morning and they said we can come and visit him later this afternoon when he is done with his physiotherapy and had gotten some rest... if all goes well, he might be out of the hospital just in time for christmas..
Leya:That's good to hear.. I just hope he'll be able to paint again, just like before..
Laranya: I should think so.. just from seeing how quickly he recovered at the hospital.. I really think it's amazing what the doctors are capable of doing..
It looked like this could be a good christmas after all, and Bodil was finding herself right at home playing the Queen ruling her court at her grandparents dining table.. (She's just missing her paper crown that she lost when the family moved out of the house they shared with Solvej and her family.)
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