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New Year’s Eve. My Birthday. A day I was dreading, a day I didn’t care for, a day I never thought I would see again, a day I am now looking forward to.
Through all of today, I couldn’t shake these thoughts from my head, of how much of a hurricane this past month or so has been. What a way to spend my first day without external chaos since we got back. Bringing two new people into the house isn’t easy, especially when one of them is a ghost who hasn’t been in human society for 200 hundred years. But I can’t complain, because that ghost is my girlfriend, resting quietly by my side, keeping me grounded, even though life is slowing down. I love Abigail, and she soon speaks up.
“We don’t need any special fancy outfits for tonight, right Madison?”
“No, sweetheart. Just wear what you like! Or at least one of the few outfits we got for you in a hurry a few days ago.”
“What will you be wearing? And what about Tara? I know Morgan will wear one of her goofy shirts. What did you call them? Flannel?”
“Oh come on, Abigail! The flannel looks good on Morgan! As for Tara, she’ll be wearing one of her Taranormal shirts, without a doubt. She wears those everywhere. Expect to see her wearing it at her wedding.”
Abigail giggles at that. A very cute response that’s pleasant and lovable. I didn’t even know I wanted a partner who giggled and laughed and smiled in response to everything, but here we are.
Abigail perks up again, heading for the closet. “Is it okay if I surprise you with my outfit? It won’t be anything too spectacular, but I know I’ll impress you if you give me the chance.”
I laugh in response. “Of course you can, Abigail! Go ahead, I’ll be out in the living room, since we’ll be going soon, alright?” I’m fine with what I’m wearing now. It’s a basic outfit that’s nothing special, but I don’t mind, since Abigail likes it and Tara won’t be able to remark about it once she passes out after downing drink number 2.
“Jeez Mads. It’s your birthday, your very first with Abby, and that’s what you’re wearing?” It seems like Tara heard my thoughts and got revenge for my internal remarks. As predicted, she’s got a Taranormal tee on, a thin coat, tennis shoes, and slightly disheveled hair as her standout look for the night. Tara’s attire is always consistent. If only everything about her was, but I guess that’s why I’m her professional babysitter.
“You look great, Maddie,” Morgan chimes in, as if correcting for an error Tara made. Tara puts on a dumb and almost guilty grin and flashes finger guns to apologize. Morgan isn’t wearing anything that I expected. She has her hair back in a single ponytail, a gray T-shirt with a cute design, and bell-bottom jeans. I forgot Tara and Morgan went on a far more extensive visit to get new clothes. “Where’s Abigail?”
“She’s getting changed. Says she wants to surprise me, although I’m fairly confident I know all the possible clothing combinations she could reasonably bring out.”
“If she’s anything like Morgan, I’m betting that she’ll still surprise you, Mads,” Tara replies, with a typical confidence she has when she makes statements that always turn out to be false. I mean, Abigail and Morgan are related, but I don’t think having unpredictable clothing choices carries over for 200 years.
As if on cue, I hear the door to our bedroom open, and I’m expecting to see Abigail, gorgeous and radiant, come on out, and…
…Well she is exactly that, but I'm stunned. Tara was right. She did surprise me.
“Well, how do I look?”
Where do I begin? I was never one to be so stunned by my partner that I was left speechless, but with Abigail, it’s happened countless times. But I find articulate words eventually.
“You look beautiful, Abigail. And that’s an understatement.” She’s wearing a beautiful flowy skirt with leggings underneath, a smaller coat jacket that I’m fairly certain was mine from like 5 years ago, and she has one of my fake flower hairpieces in, which completes the look perfectly. “I’m so glad I never got rid of that jacket for some reason, because it’s yours now.”
“Did Mads tell you to go all out in terms of style for our drinking contest tonight? Or is she bringing you to the style contest, because if so, you’re no match for Morgan!” Thanks for the input, Tara. I turn back to see Morgan give her a light kiss, and go over to Abigail so I can give her one too.
“We aren’t having a drinking contest, dork. And who knows, maybe Abigail is hiding a secret strategy to beat you by finding out how to survive past 2 drinks.”
“Maybe tonight’ll be a good time to teach her how to survive 10,” Morgan adds.
“You’re both insane, you know that?”
“Yes.” Of course Tara responds instantly, garnering chuckles from the others. I swear, one day she will get what she deserves, but I have to figure out what that is first.
“Well then, shall we get going? I think we have everything, and Tara’s as mentally prepared for this dumb contest as she can possibly be.”
“Yes, let’s!” Abigail responds, which is more than enough confirmation to head to the bus. We make our way to the bar quickly enough, but not before Tara can let all her followers on social media know that she will be posting while drunk until New Year’s morning. Great start.
“Do your posts being ‘non-canon’ really matter when all your posts are unhinged, anyway?” I hear Morgan ask.
“Yes it does. I wouldn’t want my career ruined because I got a little too carried away posting after kicking ass in the contest!” I audibly sigh, and see Tara grin at me from across the aisle.
“But having your career be ruined by a demon in the middle of a forest is a desirable way?” I respond.
Another grin filled with mischief. “Mayhaps.” Oh boy, we truly are in it for the long haul tonight, aren’t we? She even has a girlfriend now, so hopefully the drunk ‘thirstposting’ isn’t about fictional demons or whatever. “And here we are, gang,” she adds as we pull into the stop, a block away from the bar.
——
“Alright, before the new year hits, what are your resolutions?” Tara is leading the charge for this drinking contest, which I’ve just accepted is inevitable at this point. After all, that’s what happens with everything involving her. I don’t point out the obvious that neither of us are ever ones to hold onto resolutions, especially not Tara Bryck of all people. The amount a drop of alcohol enters her body, she’ll forget about it like clockwork.
“Resolutions?” Abigail asks very sincerely. Kind of forgot she had no clue, although I’m not an expert on the history of New Year’s or how it worked 200 years ago.
“Oh! It’s where you make a promise to do something next year, or be a better person, or something.”
“You don’t seem like the type to make those, if I’m being honest here.” Wow. I was not expecting Abigail to make a shot like that.
“That’s where the ‘or something’ comes in!” Tara’s smile doesn’t falter.
“Whatever the ‘or something’ is, I doubt it lasts past a week,” Morgan adds. That strikes Tara down fast. I guess if I don’t voice my opinion, Morgan will without hesitation. I smile at her, signaling that I respect it.
“I- uh… I can if you w-want me too!” Real smooth, Tara.
“Well, I’ll go first, since I’m confident I can hold onto mine longer than Tara,” Abigail says. “Since my outfit was so stunning for Madison, I want to try expanding my fashion style to become the undisputed fashion queen of the house!” If I was the sole juror, she would already be up there and then some, but it’s a cute goal nonetheless.
“I’ll be happy to assist you if needed, sweetie.”
“Thank you, Madison. I’ll be sure to honor you. Perhaps like this.” She says with a quick peck on the lips.
“Well thanks for starting us off, Abby! I’m sure Maddie will be a great help, although she’s not going to fashion school.” I neglect to tell her that fashion is a pretty important part of films, but I’m sure that information is wobbling somewhere around in her head. “As for me, welllll…” Tara puts on her overly fake and loud announcer voice, “I hope to turn Taranormal into a show that’s bigger, better, and even spookier than ever before!” She gets loud enough so that two girls sitting close by, one with amber hair and the other with gold hair, look over in a sort of shock. Even for a bar, they probably weren’t expecting our red haired dork to be as loud as she is.
I lower my voice to a whisper to try to give her the same idea. “Hey, you do realize that with all the footage we got and all the stories we have, that’s basically guaranteed, right?”
Morgan perks up first, saying “You expect her to take on a hard challenge?”
“Hey! It’s gonna take more than just showing footage of a mystical spirit to transform Taranormal!”
Morgan replies instantly yet again. “It’s gonna take your beautiful, perfect, talented girlfriend’s help, along with a little bit of your own effort?”
“Y-yeah! In fact, that was e-exactly what I was gonna say.” Tara’s confidence never takes a hit from our admittedly relentless attacks on her, even now with 3 of us instead of just me. She turns toward Morgan and preemptively flashes finger guns before asking the obvious: “What about you, Morgan? Aside from being a beautiful girlfriend and even better girlkisser, what’s your goal for next year?” Tara should really learn to not use dumb internet lingo in person, but I digress. It’s New Year’s Eve, and she has been on Tumblr too much in her life to shake it off.
“Well, for one I plan on cutting my hair-”
“That’s tomorrow, right? You’re getting your hair cut tomorrow, and it’s gonna look perfect, right?” Tara interjects.
“Yes. For the first time in ages, it’s going to be short, and it’s going to be styled in a way that we love.” Tara leans over to hug Morgan, reaffirming her choice and her wish. It’s cute, and for Morgan, it must be healing, after all the years she went through with Evelyn. “I also plan on getting a better and longer workout routine, learning the ins and outs of video production, and yes, finding adequate time to spend with the one and only Tara Bryck.” Tara perks up from her ongoing hug to kiss Morgan on the cheek. I know Tara’s looking forward to that one as well, and who can blame her? She deserves it, just as Morgan does. And I’m glad that I have Abigail by my side, too.
“What about you, Maddie, what resolutions do you have in store for us, our birthday girl movie nerd-”
“Film nerd.” I sigh, remember a few of the countless times I’ve had to correct Tara.
“So you admit that you’re a nerd?” My sigh turns into a grumble, and Morgan laughs a little while Abigail squeezes closer to me a little. I’m surprised I’ve put up with Tara for so long, but I guess that’s what a regrettable shared high-school goth phase does to someone.
“Anyways, My resolutions for this year are to get back on track and continue college and do well, while not stressing myself so much and getting a point of me hating it again. Taranormal was a pretty massive detour, but I’m confident I can restart my life again.” Tara is making an over-annoyed face at me, which I knew would come with calling Taranormal a detour. Hilariously, those were similar words I used when I told her I was gonna be leaving for the first time, but now, they don’t feel bitter. “And Tara, I just want to say I’m glad we can move on and live our separate lives, while still being close. It means a lot that you’ve stuck by me, and I’m glad I have someone like you who I can say is my best friend.”
“Thank you, Mads. It means a lot to me too. I’m glad you and Abby didn’t disappear on us in the end, because I don’t know what I would have been like.” Oddly sincere for Tara, but she breaks it up with a laugh. “And I don’t want to know either because it would probably involve a lot of crying!” Morgan nods in agreement, squeezing Tara’s hand. I squeeze Abigail’s hand and she leans in to kiss me. Cute as always.
“Hey, Maddie? Does Tara normally sing happy birthday to you? Because I think it would be nice, at least this time.” Morgan’s request surprises me, and Abigail perks up.
“There’s a song for birthdays now?”
“Oh right! We probably should sing it so that you know what it is, sweetie.”
Tara rolls her eyes, but Morgan asks her to lead the singing. Neither Tara nor I have great singing voices, although hers is leagues better on account of mine being abhorrent. That reminds me that Abigail has a fantastic singing voice, and will love this.
“Just follow along with us, alright? It’s simple, and you are already the best vocalist of us all.
“Got it! I’ll sing loud enough so it’ll drown out Tara’s voice!” Abigail exclaims mischievously
“Hey! Maddie’s is worse!” Tara retorts, but then prepares to lead the ensemble, possibly realizing that I won’t be singing. “Alright, Dream Team, 3, 2, 1…
Happy Birthday To You!
Happy Birthday To You!
Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday!
Happy Birthday To You!
Abigail catches on quickly, and leads the three to the end flawlessly. Or should I say four, because out of the corner of my eye I notice the gold-haired girl start singing halfway through, with a delicate and calm voice, while her amber-haired companion smiles on.
“Thank you, Tara, Morgan, and especially you, sweetheart.”
“Awww. No need to be so kind. But thank you, dear. I’ll practice my singing even more, I promise.”
“Still never getting Mads to sing, though.” Leave it to Tara to livingly break up a moment between us. But in this case I have to agree with her.
“Hmph. We’ll see about that! I’m nothing if not tenacious.” Abigail responds. She has a point, but I too am adamant that my singing would most likely be deemed offensive by everyone.
“Let’s see if that tenacity carries over into the famed Tara vs. Morgan vs. Abby vs. Maddie Drinking Contest!!!!!”
“I’m not participating,” I say perhaps a bit too bluntly.
“Oh, come on Mads!” Tara complains.
“Look I’m sorry, you guys can have your fun, but I don’t feel like it.”
Abigail is at my side, looking into my eyes. Hers are beautiful as always. “Madison, I think you should, just for tonight. We have so much time, and tonight we can celebrate. Not just your birthday or the new year, but for making it through months or years or centuries of hardship.” Maybe she realizes how absurd it sounds, but it’s genuine and convincing. And I don’t really want to disappoint Tara on the last day of our rockiest year yet. I want to set this next year, with so much promise, hope, love, joy, and new possibilities on a good start. It also helps that Tara already has 4 drinks out in front of us. Good thinking, I suppose.
“Well, I guess I will. Happy New Year, everyone,” I say, taking Abigail's hand in my own and using my other hand to lift my glass up. “Cheers, to the Dream Team, or whatever,” I chuckle a little. I love all four of us and what we’ve accomplished, and I already love what we will accomplish in the next year.
“CHEERS!!!” Tara jumps out of her seat and some of the drink spills out, but she definitely does not care.
“It’s the first time I’ve ever been able to say this happily, but… Cheers to a New Year!” Morgan says solemnly. We all can hardly imagine what she went through, but this will be a good milestone for moving forward.
“Cheers to all! And especially to you, Madison!” Abigail chimes in. This is the first time she’s really been able to say that in 200 years. I see a lot of myself in her, finally being able to move forward.
“Alright. Get ready. On go. 3, 2, 1, GOOOOOO!” Tara starts the competition loudly, and she is the one to down the first drink in the matter of a literal instant. Gone like magic. I will never understand her dark powers, even after seeing actual dark powers. Maybe that’s why she’ll always be such a close friend. Morgan drinks in a more measured manner, and Abigail does too. Maybe family ties do explain their random similarities. As for me, I don’t intend on fully competing. I’m drinking slowly, and enjoying it all. Who knows if Tara will pass out again, or if I will. But I’m glad to be here. With them. My greatest love. My bestest friends. I smile with a sort of contentment I haven’t felt in a long time.
After all, we have so much time. Happy New Year, everyone.