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Bettie and Théodore had been talking for a few months now. They spent Christmas Eve at Théo’s apartment, and he baked cookies from scratch, much to Bettie’s surprise.
“You know how to bake from scratch?”
“Yes! I have been doing it for years. Do you want to help me make them?”
“Of course!”
Then on Christmas morning, Bettie cooked them a hearty breakfast.
“You hardly had anything in there but I managed to whip something up!”
“Oh it looks delicious! Perhaps I should keep you as my chef.”
She giggled and after that they spent the rest of the day sipping on wine they weren’t supposed to have while opening each other’s presents. Théo mentioned an upcoming New Years party and invited Bettie to tag along with him and she eagerly accepted.
When she went through all the clothes she had packed she realized it was probably time to get going. After a hesitant goodbye she went back to her dorm for the rest of the week until then.
Then came the hard part, deciding what to wear to the party. She ransacked her closet trying to find something festive enough. Did she want to be flashy? Or more subtle? Her roommate was no help either.
“Who’s all going? Where is it going to be?”
All good questions that she didn’t think to ask. Sitting on the bed she stressed even more at the fact that Théo was coming in less than an hour. She sighed and decided she would put on her dangerously short black dress and kitten heels. Would he judge her outfit? There was no time to change. She rushed to do her hair up into a presentable updo. Too fancy? Welp. She put on some red lipstick before hurriedly putting on some mascara. There was a knock at the door and she smoothed over any wrinkles nervously before answering it.
Damn. Head to toe, hair slicked back to a little ponytail and a curl that fell effortlessly framing his face. He had on a sleek black blazer with a white button up underneath that was tucked neatly in his trousers.
“Hey, you look great!” She smiled.
“You as well,” he smiled back and offered his hand. “Are you ready?”
“Let me get my clutch,” she came back quickly and took his hand.
When they got there they realized they were both very overdressed.
“Are you guys dressed for an interview?” The host laughed as he let them inside.
Théo rolled his eyes muttering something about looking presentable. Bettie on the other hand, quickly took down her bun and shook her curls, “good?”
Théo stared for a moment longer than he meant to. Her hair was frizzy and lazily framed her face. She certainly did look more casual and he chuckled before nodding his head.
A red solo cup found its way in each of their hands and they didn’t question it. Théo spotted his friend group and he guided them over there. Bettie noticed the “mountain” of a man first, how could she not? That had to be his German friend Nancy was talking about. She honestly found him intimidating with how stoic he was. It seriously had to be a European thing because Théo always looked pissed whenever he rested his face. It was a stark contrast to the dude standing next to him who had a much more approachable smile. He wasn’t necessarily short but next to that guy everyone got dwarfed.
“This is Bettie!”
Their eyes lit up simultaneously in recognition and it was like a switch had been flipped for the first guy.
“Hello! I am Albrecht! I have heard good things about you!” His voice did NOT match him whatsoever but it was charming nonetheless.
“Nice to meet you too!” She shook his hand before turning her attention to the other man, “and you are?”
“Oh you can call me Tommy! And yeah we’ve heard a whole lot about you. I mean he talks about you nonstop like he’s practically- oof!” He got interrupted by an elbow to his side from Théo.
He laughed nervously, “he is very drunk! Do not listen to him!”
They talk with Théo’s friends for a bit. Telling funny stories that had happened throughout their time of knowing each other. As the night inched on Bettie eventually excused herself to the restroom. The party had been getting too loud so she ended up slipping outside for a bit to catch some air. It seemed like everything about this city was louder than back at home. But the sky always gave her solace through the fact that it connected every place in the world. Didn’t matter what part you were seeing because the sky was still the sky just a few hundred miles North.
Inside, couples started huddling together off in their own little corners. Théo looked at his watch and noted that there were only 10 minutes left until midnight. At this realization he quickly noticed Bettie’s absence. How long had she been gone in the bathroom? He scanned the room carefully and saw the bathroom door was wide open. Excusing himself from his group he decided to go look for her, after all he had to keep up his New Year’s kiss tradition. When he stepped outside he saw her looking up at the sky. She looked stunning in the moonlight, almost like she had been the one illuminating the night instead.
Not knowing what to say he figured a simple truth would do, “I was looking for you.”
She jumped, getting caught off guard before looking over her shoulder. “Oh! Hey, sorry about that. Got too noisy for me,” she chuckled.
“Yeah. I understand,” he paused, considering something. “Are you cold?”
She quirked an eyebrow, “why? You wanna gimme your jacket?”
“Yes.”
She laughed at his straightforwardness, “Alright then.”
He wrapped his coat around her shoulders carefully. “So you were looking at the sky?”
“Yeah. It’s real calming you know?” She turned to him fully now holding the fabric tightly, “it don’t compare to Texas though.”
“You will have to show me one day.”
She nodded before a thought crossed her mind, “hey what time is it?”
“11:58,” he’d have to ask soon. The thought made his palms sweat. It should be like all the other times. No big deal. But it felt different this time, less hollow, something tangible, something consequential.
“Almost a new year already. It felt like this one just started yesterday!”
“Yeah. Time moves very quickly. Especially when you are having fun!” He added the last part nervously.
“Mhm!” She leaned in closer eying his watch.
From inside the house people had already started counting down.
“Ten!” They looked each other in the eyes.
“Nine!” He took a step closer.
“Eight!” She quickly closed the distance between their lips, countdown be damned!
His eyes widened in surprise but he pulled her closer. It was like they’d started their own internal firework show. She wrapped her arms around his neck getting lost in the kiss. All those months finally paid off.
By the time they pulled apart everyone had already finished popping open the champagne and shouting happy new years. They stared at each other.
“Wow,” was all he could manage and she laughed.
“Come on let’s get some champagne before they drink it all!”
She led him back inside by the hand and he squeezed hers gently, following without fuss. This was definitely different. And so far it was a change for the better.