Oscar's Lonely Christmas

Chapter Seven

Everyone woke early on Christmas Day. Hannah and Zak were desperate to open their stockings, and Mum and Dad had to start cooking the Christmas lunch. Gran was coming, and their other grandma and grandad, and Uncle Mark and his family – Hannah and Zak’s three little cousins. Dad had bought an enormous turkey. Oscar was sitting by the oven looking hopeful – it smelled so good!

Hannah was really looking forward to seeing her cousins again, but she was worried about Oscar. Jamie, Tara and Phoebe were all quite young – Phoebe was only two like Zak – and they weren’t really used to dogs. Hannah had a horrible feeling they would be chasing round trying to hug Oscar all day, and he wasn’t going to like it.

Luckily, Oscar loved his Christmas present from her, a really big chewy bone, and that distracted him for a little while, even when Uncle Mark and all the children arrived. But then they spotted Oscar lying on his cushion.

“Hello, doggie!” Phoebe squealed.

“Oooohh!” Tara cried excitedly. “Can I play with him?” Tara didn’t even wait for an answer, she ran straight at Oscar, and sat down on his cushion next to him.

Oscar jumped back in horrified surprise. One minute he’d been happily chewing his lovely new bone, and the next minute somebody was trying to grab it off him! He looked up at Hannah pleadingly, begging her to rescue him.

“Tara, Oscar’s cushion is his special place,” Hannah started to explain. “He doesn’t like other people sitting on it.”

Tara’s face went sulky. “Don’t boss me about!” she told Hannah crossly.

“I’m not,” Hannah sighed. She gave Oscar a gentle pat, and he clambered off his cushion and scuttled out into the hallway.

Everywhere Oscar went that morning Auntie Jess kept glancing nervously at him, or one of the cousins was grabbing at him. And then Uncle Mark accidentally kicked him when he was sitting under the table hoping for a treat during Christmas lunch. Oscar dashed out from under the table with a howl, and Hannah scooped him up and cuddled him.

“You’re having a bad day, aren’t you, Oscar?” she murmured. “Poor sweetie. Mum, can I give Oscar a little bit of turkey? Please? Just to cheer him up?”

Mum looked doubtful, but then she said, “Oh, I suppose as a Christmas treat. But in his food bowl in the kitchen, Hannah, so he doesn’t think he’s being fed from the table.”

Hannah nodded and tried not to look guilty. She quite often slipped Oscar bits of food under the table. She knew she shouldn’t, but he had such good eyes for begging with.

The turkey was the best bit of the day for Oscar. It was delicious, and he forgot about the noisy, grabby children while he was wolfing it down. But as soon as the Christmas lunch was finished, he saw Jamie slipping down from his chair and reaching out to stroke him. Oscar made a dash for it out of the living room, where Mum and Dad had set up a folding table for lunch.

Out in the hallway he made for his hiding place under the stairs, wriggling right to the back under a pile of coats.

“Where’s your dog gone?” Jamie asked Hannah.

Hannah crossed her fingers behind her back. “I don’t know,” she told him. She didn’t actually; it wasn’t a total lie. But she very much suspected he was hiding under the stairs.

Dad called Jamie to come back into the living room, telling everyone that a really good film was about to start, and the little boy ran off. Hannah gave a relieved sigh. If she helped Mum finish off clearing the table and everyone else was watching the film, perhaps she could sneak off and give Oscar a cuddle on his own – without any cousins or little brothers wanting to join in.

Oscar lay there in the dark, remembering the taste of the turkey, and wishing Hannah was there. But he didn’t dare come out of his hiding place to find her.

Hannah carried the last of the empty pudding bowls into the kitchen, and piled them up next to all the other plates. “I’m just going to check on Oscar,” she told her mum.

“Oh yes,” Mum said. “He’s not really enjoying all these people, is he? Do you want to stay in here with him for a bit? I don’t think he’ll want to go in the living room.”

“Won’t Auntie Jess and Granny and Gran and everyone think I’m being rude?” Hannah asked.

Mum laughed. “I think they’re all going to fall asleep watching this film, Hannah, everyone’s so full of food. It’ll be fine.”

“Thanks, Mum.” Hannah hugged her.

Her mum hugged her back, but then let go quickly. “Oh no! What’s Zak screaming about?” And she hurried off to the living room to sort it out.

Hannah sighed. Zak again, just when she’d been having a nice moment with Mum. She padded out into the hallway, spotting Mum cuddling a still-wailing Zak. Jamie and Tara were moaning that they couldn’t hear the film, and Phoebe looked like she might join in the howling.

Hannah squeezed herself into the alcove under the stairs, and giggled as a chilly little nose dabbed at her hand. “You’ve got the right idea, Oscar,” she murmured. “It’s a nightmare out there!”

Oscar nuzzled her gratefully, feeling sure that she would protect him from the other children. He climbed into her lap and huffed out a satisfied little yawn. He was safe now Hannah was with him.

Hannah stroked him thoughtfully. “It’s a bit squished for me under here, Oscar.” She sighed. “But I really don’t want to go and watch that film with all the others.” She could still hear Zak moaning, and Mum was sounding as though she was losing patience. Then Hannah brightened, a smile curving her lips. “Let’s go for a walk, Oscar! A special Christmas walk.”

Oscar scrambled down from her lap, his tail wagging. He knew what walk meant, and he definitely approved of the idea.

“Let’s go and ask Mum.” Hannah hauled herself out of the gap under the stairs.

But when she peeped round the living-room door, with Oscar peeping round her legs in turn, Zak’s moans had progressed into a full-blown wobbly. Mum and Dad strode past her – Dad carrying Zak, and Mum looking embarrassed and cross. It wasn’t the time to go asking about walks.

But Oscar was looking up at her so hopefully. Hannah frowned. “I know. We’ll leave a note for Mum on the kitchen table. I’m sure it’ll be OK.”

She fetched Oscar’s lead, and wrapped herself in her warmest things, putting on an extra pair of socks before stepping into her wellies. The snow was quite thick out there.

The living-room door was part open and she could see Gran was asleep on the sofa, with little Phoebe asleep on her. Hannah didn’t want to wake them, or disturb the others watching the film. She wrote a quick note, promising to be back soon, and left it on the kitchen table. With a sudden excited smile, she took a couple of carrots from the vegetable basket. Then she and Oscar slipped quietly out of the front door.

A few minutes later, Mum came down after settling Zak for a sleep. She fetched the mince pies out of the living room, just in case Oscar tried to nibble them, and put down the plate on the kitchen table. Right on top of Hannah’s note.