Happy New Year

A Story by Soultail

See the world. Live. His last words echoed in my mind. I opened my eyes. I had the dream again. I couldn’t get over it. He left over three years ago, when I was just seventeen. I had thought, back then, that I had been in love. I honestly thought he was the love of my life. I shook my head.

“Mmmm. Babe, What’s wrong?” My boyfriend, Nate, asked, turning his head to look sleepily at me. I smiled at him, turning my head to him.

“Nothing. Just a bad dream.” I whispered back. He turned so he was on his side, and pulled me closer to him. I snuggled up into him, seeking the warmth, but unable to ever get warm. I sighed, wrapping my arms around him.

“Go back to sleep, babe.” He whispered, kissing the top of my head. I nodded, closing my eyes.

“Good night.”

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN MY FLIGHT IS CANCELLED?!!” I yelled at the innocent lady behind the desk at the gate.

“Just that, Miss. Your flight is cancelled, due to the snow storm. I am sorry.” And with that she went back to her computer. I growled, stalking over to one of the chairs, and plopped down into it. I dug out my phone, and pressed Nate’s number angrily into the keypad.

“Hello?”

“Hey. I’m not going to make it home for New Year’s.” I said, leaning back into the chair. I heard his intake of breath.

“Babe? Why not?” He asked.

“The stupid snow storm. All the flights to New York are cancelled, as well as half of the East Coast.” I said, looking up at the lights of the airport. He sighed.

“Damn. I’m so sorry, babe. What are you going to do?”

“I guess I’m going to find someplace to stay till the storm is over, and they transfer my flight.” I said, sitting up and looking around me.

“Okay. Good luck. I’m going to save you that kiss.” He said. I could almost hear his smile. I smiled.

“Yeah, I’ll save you mine, too. I love you.” I said. He chuckled.

“Love you too.” And he hung up. I took the phone away from my ear, looking at it. I stood, grabbing my bag, and made my way down to the baggage claim, where they were now dumping all the suitcases of the cancelled flights. I wormed my way through the sea of people, bumping into a fair few. I made it to the conveyor, immediately spotting my bag. I shot my hand out, grabbing it, and hauling it off. I lost my balance, tumbling back into someone’s chest.

“I’m sorry!” I immediately apologized, turning around to look at the person who I had fell into. And froze.

“Clair?”

“Khol?” I was speechless. The guy I had been dreaming about for years, standing in front of me. He smiled, running a hand through his dark ash hair.

“Hey.” He seemed kind of nervous. I just looked at him

“Hey.” I said, after what felt like a thousand minutes. He rubbed his lips together. I just kept watching him, suddenly cautious.

“How’ve you been?” He asked. I shrugged.

“I’ve been okay.” Was all I said. He nodded. I glanced behind me at the suitcases revolving on the conveyor. I looked back at him, smiling slightly.

“I’ll get out of your way.” I said, stepping aside. He seemed troubled by my action.

“Hey, um, would you like to, uh, get a cup of coffee with me? Not as a date of course!” He stammered. My eyes widened. I slowly nodded.

“Uh, sure.” I mumbled. A small smile crossed his lips.

“Thanks. Just let me get my bag.” He darted past me, swiftly and skillfully pulling a black suitcase off the conveyor, and plopped it down next to mine. I raised my eyebrows.

“What?” He asked. I shrugged.

“You did that--- very gracefully.” I admitted. He smiled, clearly glad that I had complimented him.

“Thanks. Come on, I know this great place in here.” He said, and began to meld into the crowd of people that surrounded us. I followed him, losing sight of him a couple of times. Watching him, it brought back memories, most painful. It still hurt to think of him. The way the sunlight would cross his sleeping features as I snuggled up into him, cherishing the few moments we had till my parents realized that I wasn’t at my friend’s house. The way he threw his head back laughing when I had my blonde moments. The way he would flick his hair out of his green eyes. My heart skipped a beat thinking about it. Maybe I wasn’t over him, but he did leave me. It didn’t matter now. I had Nate. Khol paused when he realized I had fallen behind.

“Come on, Clair! We don’t have all the time in the world.” He called, a spark of laughter lighting up his eyes. He used to say that to me all the time. I grumbled, just like I did back then.

“Just because I’m not as fast as you, doesn’t mean you can rush me, you know!” I scolded as I came up to him. He smiled.

“As you wish, grandma.” He said, giving me a mocking bow. I smiled, placing my hands on my hips. Oh, how I missed our little sarcastic banters.

“Now, don’t mock me, young man. Or I will smack you upside the head.” I said, in my best old lady impression. He laughed, throwing his head back.

“I’ve missed you, rock star.” He said, using one of my many old nicknames. I smiled. I slipped my arm through his, unthinking, and started walking with him. He led us to a small and dimly lit café in the middle of the airport. I looked at it.

“It seems---cozy.” I said, smiling. He always took me to strange places that were always new. When we were together- I stopped thinking. I didn’t want to rehash my feelings. He led us inside, to a small table. I let go of his arm and my suitcase, sitting it next to me. I sat, picking up the well-worn menu.

“So, Clair. How is life? Any new adventures you’ve had?” He asked, completely ignoring the menu and leaning on his elbows. He rested his chin on his hands, and gave me a smile. I glanced up, before glancing down at the pie section of the menu.

“Not really. After you left, I lived with my parents till I was old enough to leave. I went to college, and now live in New York City with my boyfriend.” I said. He nodded, leaning back. I glanced at him, curious.

“Aren’t you going to look at the menu?” I asked.

“Nope.” He said, popping the word. I raised my eyebrows. I shouldn’t be surprised.

“So. New York, huh? A big change from the small town Colorado girl I knew.” He said, looking me straight in the eye. That’s the thing about Khol. He was mister reality. He never not pointed out the elephant in the room, and he was a big believer in eye contact. I was surprised he didn’t comment on the boyfriend bit.

“Yeah. It’s not that bad, actually. Very---busy.” I said. He nodded.

“And you have a boyfriend.” He stated. This was it. My cards were on the table.

“Yeah.”

“And you live with him.”

“Yup.” He just nodded, pursing his lips. I leaned toward him.

“And what about you? What have you been up to since you left me in the dust?” I asked. He flinched. I might not be as straight forward as him, but I wasn’t afraid to use my words.

“Nothing much. I moved across the country. I was about to go visit an old friend of mine for New Years. She lives in New York, too.” He said. I raised my eyebrows.

“An old friend?” I asked. He nodded.

“Yeah, from my child hood. I wanted to thank her for inviting me to her wedding.” He said, a challenge in his voice. I just sat back, nodding.

“We are just a couple of non-fun people, aren’t we?” I asked. He smiled.

“I guess. Or, we just haven’t found the right adventure yet.” He said. I shrugged.

“I don’t know about that. Maybe we just haven’t found the right people to share in an adventure.” I said. He smiled.

“That’s what I always liked about you, Clair. You always understood me.” He said.

“Why did you leave?” The question took us both off guard. I just blurted it out, not thinking about it. He went quiet.

“What do you mean?” He asked. I glared at him.

“You know what I mean. Why did you leave? I was just about to turn eighteen. You were my whole world. Why did you leave me behind?” I asked. I didn’t know where all this was coming from. I guess I was just sick of the dreams. I had to know why. I had to know, I had to have an explanation.

“Clair.”

“Answer me, damnit!” I said, my voice raising slightly.

“It was almost four years ago!” He snapped back. The waitress, who had finally noticed us, backed up. I didn’t blame her.

“I don’t care. I’ve lost sleep, wondering why you left. I stopped everything. My parents were going to send me off to my grandma in freaking ITALY! WHY DID YOU LEAVE?” I yelled, standing up. The chair made a screeching noise as it protested to my sudden movements.

“You were a minor! Your parents hated me! What do you want to hear?” He snapped, standing up as well. I ran my fingers through my hair.

“THE TRUTH FOR ONCE!”

“FINE! YOU WANT THE TRUTH??? I CHEATED ON YOU! WITH SOMEONE THAT WAS MY AGE!!! YOU HAPPY NOW?” He yelled at me. I froze. He-what?

“What?” I asked. He took a couple of deep breaths.

“I left you for someone who was my age.” He said at last. I glanced down, this new realization hitting me. I shook my head. I couldn’t do this. I stepped back from the table, grabbing my suitcases handle. He sighed.

“What are you doing?” He asked, clearly annoyed.

“I’m leaving. I got what I wanted. I found my place in your world.” I said, and walked away before he could react. I didn’t look back.

I ran up to Nate, grinning.

“Hey, babe!” He said, wrapping me up in his embrace. He was warm, the warmth reaching me. I wrapped my arms around him.

“I missed you.” He whispered into my hair. I laughed. He pulled back. I could see Khol in the corner of my eye, watching us. But I didn’t care. Not anymore.

“I missed you too. I saved you your kiss.” I answered, smiling up at him. And, for the first time, I could actually say that I loved him. Nate was my world now. I knew, as he leaned down, and pressed our lips together for the first time in the New Year.

“Happy New Year, babe.”