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"I figured you'd be out here," Kronii said, stepping through the sliding doors onto the balcony, bringing with her the ambiance of a party in progress. "We're about to do the countdown."
Mumei turned and smiled at her. "Okay! I'll join you in a second, just need some air."
"Nah, I’ll join you, it’s getting a bit much for me in there too." Kronii shrugged, closing the door behind her, muffling the party before walking up and leaning on the railing by her side. "So, what’s up, you drink too much already?"
"I'm not that much of a lightweight!" Mumei chuckled, playfully hitting Kronii in the arm. "I'm just… thinking, you know?"
Her words trailed off, smile faded and eyes unfocused, staring off into the middle distance. It was an expression Kronii had seen her make before, when she was trapped in her own memories.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Kronii asked, placing a hand on her arm & bringing her back to the present.
"I don’t know… It’s silly." Mumei shook her head. "I just, I felt so alone this time last year. I had Bae and the others but they were basically strangers…"
It was more than that though, more than she could put into words. She was a person without a past, without a family, without a purpose. She had barely even felt like a person at all back then, more like a ghost wandering through a world that had forgotten her just as much as she had forgotten it.
"I get that." Kronii nodded. "I was alone too last new year. Sana was long gone, Fauna was a world away, I couldn’t even bring myself to stream because it felt too sad."
It wasn’t just a platitude, Kronii really did get it. She’d felt just as isolated and alone back then, withdrawn to the point that simply talking to new people would cause her massive anxiety, living in a big house haunted by the happiness she had once had.
"Mhm…" Mumei hummed, letting her head drop onto Kronii's shoulder. "But now there's so many people here I need to come out in the cold to hear myself think."
"Right? What a year, huh?" Kronii sighed, mirroring the gesture so her head rested gently on Mumei's. "But maybe it’s a good thing right? A distraction from the bad memories and a chance to make new, better ones."
"Yeah…" Mumei said, her voice just above a whisper. "I hope I remember this next new year instead."
"Me too." Kronii replied in kind. "My life has improved so much this year and I owe it all to you."
Mumei shook her head. "You don't give yourself enough credit. You found me, remember?"
"Sure, but…"
"But nothing!" Mumei interjected.
"I think Bae would disagree with us both. The way that she tells it she was the puppet master behind it all." Kronii laughed, her breath turning to steam in the cold night air.
"I’m fine letting her take the credit." Mumei chuckled.
"Yeah," Kronii nodded. "Me too."
For a moment they just stood there, looking up at the clear night sky, it's stars out in force. Kronii’s hand quietly made it’s way onto Mumei’s, linking fingers and squeezing.
"It's almost been a year for us too, huh?" Mumei mused, squeezing back, eyes still on the breathtaking night sky.
"Nineteen days until the anniversary of when we met, our actual anniversary is another 30 days after that." Kronii said with her trademark accuracy, a trait that Mumei had long since stopped remarking upon as she realised it was just a part of what made Kronii her.
"What do people even do on anniversaries?" Mumei asked, now looking at Kronii.
"I don't know," Kronii shrugged. "Marvel at the passing of time I guess? Look forward to the next one? Get drunk and sappy and romantic?"
"That sounds a lot like what we're doing now though."
"I guess it does." Kronii scratched at her cheek. "Well, I mean, what is new year's eve if not an anniversary of last year's new year's eve?"
"What a bizarre holiday." Mumei chuckled, pulling away a little, so she could look at Kronii but keeping her hand linked with her girlfriend’s.
Kronii looked at her and smiled. "It really is."
Mumei opened her mouth to speak but, at that moment, as if on cue, the sky exploded with the light and sound of what felt like a hundred fireworks.
"Guess we missed the countdown after all." Mumei laughed, though her eyes had not shifted from Kronii, nor had Kronii’s from her.
"I guess so. Happy New Year, Mumei."
"Happy New Year, Kronii."
They stepped closer to each other, lips gently finding each other as the second round of fireworks exploded all around them.
This year, they thought, might just be alright.