It was only 5 PM, but the sound of fireworks already assaulted everyone’s hearing. Even on the last night of the year, Alice sat on her desk with messy hair and a pen in hand, concentrated on her book. Making her parents proud meant she got no winter break, and so, while they were getting ready to go out to the company’s dinner party, Alice ran late until she finished that last chapter. The books she read was one from the recommended reading list her professor gave them on the previous semester. The dress she’d be using -- a beautiful, clearly expensive dark blue dress -- hanged on the mirror, just waiting for her to slip in it.

A light knocking on the door caught her attention but she didn’t look away from the book.

“Alice, we need to leave soon, sweetie,” her mother’s voice was muffled by the door, but sounded just as soft as usual.

“I know, mom, I’m almost done. Just need five more minutes,” she answered, turning the page.

And indeed five minutes later she was getting undressed and hopping in the shower. At six she was ready and all of them left the apartment, the women’s high heels echoing in the marble floor of the hallway while they made their way to the elevator and then to the car. A soft buzz came from the girl’s purse and she checked her phone.

Penny ^{Today at 6:11 PM}
r u on ur way

“You’re not going to be on your phone all night, sweetie,” her mom’s voice came from the front seat. It wasn’t a question.

“Carla, please. She knows better,” her father chipped in before Alice could reply. “Either way, the Simons are going to be there, she’ll have company.”

“I know, Kurt. I just don’t want people to think she has no manners.”

Resisting the urge to shake her head, she smiled softly through the rear-view mirror. “You’ve taught me better than that, mom.”

You ^{Today at 6:13 PM}
yeah we’re almost there

Penny ^{Today at 6:13 PM}
k hurry up nick is killing me with his filrting
flirting*

You ^{Today at 6:14 PM}
oh please, you know you like it

Penny ^{Today at 6:14 PM}
i never said i didnt ;)
jesse is asking bout u btw

She frowned at her phone’s screen and put it back in her purse before turning her eyes outside. Going up the hill to the huge house where her father’s boss lived, she could see all the fireworks and their reflexes on the water. It was truly the best spot to watch the turn of the year and the beautiful show, and it was even better that her best friend would be there. But so would he.

Penny was the daughter of one her father’s co-workers, and they’d known each other for as long as either could remember. The dark-haired girl was a year older, but that never stopped them from bonding. The Simons and Portwoods had been friends for many years before their daughters had been born; the girls attended the same school and inevitably got close since their parents spent so much time together. Penny’s mom, Martha, and Alice’s were also best friends since college. It was a great relief for Alice that Penny had a similar upbringing -- even if she felt sorry for that too --, and that only made their bond stronger. Gary and Martha Simon were likewise strict parents, always worried about appearances and having the perfect daughter. Alice liked to joke about how they would both have a heart attack if they ever saw the way Penny typed on her text messages.

A few minutes later Kurt parked the car next to the other ones on the path to the house. Getting out of the car, she crossed her arms on an attempt to keep her thick coat tightened around her, but the cold breeze still stabbed her legs like ice knives. Thankfully a couple minutes later they were entering the huge house and were greeted by warmth, which drew a relieved sigh from Alice. She knew that house very well by now but was still impressed by the architecture and beautiful decoration every time she set foot in it. The three-story house was modernly built, having been fully renovated only three years earlier. The front lobby's ceiling was as high as the third floor and, during the day, brightly lit by sunlight that came in through the indoor garden's glass walls; the green from the garden contrasted beautifully with the white walls, light grey natural stone floor, and light colored furniture. The decoration, however, was mostly composed of seemingly random items that, when distributed on the space, brought color and symmetry in a way that looked meant to be. Some of the items were expensive pieces, like luxury vases or paintings, while some of them were vintages salvaged from a long forgotten thrift shop. It didn't matter much to her that the decoration had been the work of a professional rather than the taste of the owner's; she still liked it.

After the obligatory greetings that lasted an eternity, she was finally able to escape to the glass-walled balcony, where Penny, Nick, Jesse and some of the other younger employees were hanging out. On her way there she hang her coat somewhere and found a glass of champagne, which she sat on the coffee table before taking a seat next to her friend on the couch. For the next few hours they all drank and laughed and had a pleasant time; every now and then she caught Penny and Nick exchanging glances with each other, which made her smile in a complicit way.

"You do know your father wouldn't be very pleased if he knew you're flirting with one of his co-workers, right?" She whispered in her friend's ear.

"Excuse you, Ms. Hypocrite," Penny answered, arching a brow with an amused smiled, "Are you seriously pretending to me like you don't do the same?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she said, ignoring the warmth that immediately spread on her cheeks and taking a sip on her glass.

"Uh-huh. Sure... So you wouldn't mind if I flirted with Jesse, right?"

Alice couldn't see her reaction, but it must've been a good one, she thought, as her friend started laughing right after.

"Don't worry. You two look great together."

"Stop that. You know we can't."

"All I know is that your dad doesn't need to know," she shrugged.

"I can't do that, Penny," her voice sounded almost sad.

"I know. You're daddy's girl."

"And you act like you're not."

"No. I act like I am," she blinked an eye at her friend in secrecy. Indeed, if Penny's parents knew all their daughter had done, they'd write her out of their will. "Come one, don't be like that, it's n--"

"ONE MINUTE!", someone shouted from inside the house. Penny got up excitedly and grabbed Alice's hand, pulling her from the couch to the front of the balcony. A few seconds later Jesse was standing next to her with a smile on his face. She looked up at him and smiled back, perhaps not as cheerfully as she wished she could. He was a handsome guy, only a few years older, and they'd been getting closer over the past few months. It saddened her to know her father wouldn't approve of them being together.

"Hey, you," he said, raising a hand to adjust her glasses on the bridge of her nose.

"Hey, yourself."

They looked at each other until the final countdown started.

10

She turned her gaze at the horizon.

9

Nothing to be seen but the dark distance and the calm waves softly lit by moon light.

8

She took the last sip of her champagne.

7

Something brushed against her arm.

6

Looking ahead, she paid no attention to the water.

5

Warm fingers traced down her arm.

4

Gently touched the inside of her wrist.

3

Caressed the palm of her hand.

2

Untill finally intertwining their fingers together.

1

Alice looked up at Jesse again.

"Happy New Year," he said, leaning over to kiss her cheek.

She didn't hear the noise, the joyful shouting around them, neither did she see the fireworks exploding in the sky in a miriad of colors and shapes only to fade into nothingness. No, the only thing she did was smile at him while holding his hand tightly.

"Happy New Year, Jesse."