The Way Things Change 2

Chapter 13

It was almost midnight. These last two hours had flown by. We had been talking about everything and nothing. Not too serious, but the conversation was flowing. It was so easy and fun to talk to him. Once in a while one of Matt's friends came by to introduce themselves. They were all flirty and eyeing me up and down, making me squirm. I still thought this dress was too revealing. But if one of them got too close, Matt would tell them to back off. It was nice that he was there to protect me.

"We should probably get inside. You know, celebrate with the others." I suggested. We hadn't really been partying and since it was almost midnight there would be some major celebration.

"Nah, I kind of like it out here. I like the view." He answered. Yeah, the view was amazing. But when I turned to look at him, he wasn't looking over the city. His gaze was on me. Our eyes locked, just for a second, before I turned my eyes away. It gave me this weird feeling in my stomach. I really didn't know what it was.

"But we should probably go in though. When the clock strikes 12 you know. And I should probably find Melanie and Brody. I did actually come with them."

"If that's what you want to, then come on." He stood up and went out of my eyesight. I was just about to get up when I was grabbed by the waist and pulled me to my feet. I was so surprised that I let out a scream. And the way he just picked me up, like I didn't weigh a thing. I heard him chuckling when I tried to get my heart rate steady again. It really scared me.

He put his arm around my waist and we made our way back to the party. It was buzzing. Everybody was dancing, drinking, laughing, having fun. It looked like an amazing party. And Mel had been right. I had never seen anything like this before. And now I realized how isolated we had been. I was really sober compared to everyone here.

"Hey man, where have you been all night?" Someone spoke near us. I couldn't see who it was.

"Hey Alex. I've been busy."

"I can see that." Then the hottie came in in sight. He was even better looking in real life. Damn. "Hey gorgeous, I'm Alex."

"I know." I was kind of fangirling. I couldn't think straight. I just stood there looking at him.

"So are you gonna tell me your name, or are you just gonna admire my good looks? Or maybe you would like a picture."

"Oh sorry." I felt my face heat up. "I don't know where my manner are. Sorry. I'm Kate." We shook hands. I couldn't believe I was meeting him.

"Well nice to meet you Kate. I hope-"

"Honey, it's like 5 minutes left, we need to gather everyone, turn the music down, give them all champagne-"

"Calm down babe. We'll fix it." Dianna was freaking out. She wanted everything to be perfect. And then Alex stepped in to calm her. Like the perfect boyfriend. They were a cute couple. Really. And then they left again, leaving Matt and I alone again. His arm was still around me. And I liked it. But I was looking for my friends, and I couldn't find them in this crowded room.

"You want me to lift you so you can see?" Matt whispered in my ear.

"No, if I don't find them now, I'll just find them after. I don't think I'll be able to get through the room anyway." My face was so close to his, otherwise he wouldn't be able to hear me over the music, it was still blazing. I really didn't know what was going on, but I felt weird. The waiter came by, giving everyone a glass of champagne. It was all about to go down.

"10... 9... 8... 7... 6..." It was almost a new year, and I could feel it was gonna be a good year. A better year. "5... 4... 3..." I took a cleansing deep breath. "2... 1... HAPPY NEW YEAR!"