Ringing in the New Year

This is it. I'm going to spend the beginning of another year forgotten in the corner. A soft sigh escaped me as I closed my eyes and rested my head against the wall. Wasn't this supposed to be fun? Everyone was laughing and chatting it up with people they would probably never talk to again. The ball would drop in no time, and another year would come to a close. Maybe this will be my year; a new school, new people, and I'm not drowning in debt after the first trimester.

Cheering, and the unanimous chanting of 'drink' started up from the general direction of the kitchen, announcing the arrival of another keg. My friends had ditched me hours ago, way more enthusiastic about their first college party than I could ever be. Even Annie had cracked a smile as we left the dorms. A dull ache had settled in my temples about an hour ago, and now that the music had shifted from the top forty to some weird mix of rock and techno, the urge to leave consumed me. Fatigue weighted down my limbs, and opening my eyes after blinking was becoming too much of a chore. A quick glance at my phone showed there was only a half an hour more until the new year. If I leave now, I can make it back and get changed just in time.

Abandoning my cup of warm soda on the windowsill, I took a moment to pull my sleeves over my hands, and braced myself for the onslaught of the frigid air outside. Aside from the frat house and a few, scattered lampposts, the only light came from the partially hidden moon and stars suspended overhead. Even after the few months I had been here, the view still managed to take my breath away. Lights from the city had always blocked out what little skyline there was. On a good night you could maybe see a piece of the moon, and there was no way you'd see this many stars.

The wind carried an icy bite with it, hinting at a storm that had been promised for weeks. A day to unwind with a book and some hot chocolate before classes started again was just what I needed. I turned around on instinct when a deep voice called out to me from behind. "Watch out for my telescope."

"Your what?" My foot brushed against something and I moved in the opposite direction, not wanting to step on anything. On the ground in front of me, I could make out some vague shapes, but nothing definite.

A flashlight clicked on, nearly blinding me as the shorted man repeated, "the telescope; it's not mine."

I covered my face with my hand and blinked a few times, seeing spots. Sure enough, there was a telescope set up on a tripod a few feet away, along with a blanket and a thermos I had unintentionally knocked over. "Sorry, I couldn't see it."

He rolled his eyes and moved around me to drop the flashlight on his crumpled blanket. The man moved his thermos into arms reach and got settled on the grass before turning off the flashlight again. Darkness enveloped me once again, and I had to wait for my eyes to adjust before I could even think about moving again. Just as I turned to leave, he asked, "How come you're not at the party? I thought all the stragglers were there."

I shrugged, despite him not being able to see me. "I'm not much of a party person. College parties are the same as high school ones, except the drinking is legal."

His hand thudded against the frozen ground as he wordlessly invited me to sit next to him. He offered me the now open thermos once I was settled, "it might be cold." The steam rising off the liquid sloshing around inside said otherwise. My glasses fogged up as I took a few small sips of tea, thankful for the newfound warmth flowing through me. "Thanks."

He screwed the lid back on while I pulled my glasses off clean the lenses. "What's your major?"

After I replaced my glasses, the world was restored to it's original clarity. "Junior, Art major."

"Freshman, Communications major, I'm minoring in Robotics."

In the silence that followed I thought he had been coming up with some sort of snarky comment. Most of the time someone told me I should just switch majors. There's a lot more money in robotics, they'd say. But the thought of having to spend the rest of my days tinkering with metal parts and coding made me cringe. "That's got to be a pain in the ass."

"Why do you say that?"

"The glasses? Getting special lenses had to be a pain. The girl I borrowed this from," He paused to nudge the tripod with his foot before continuing, redirecting his gaze skyward, "is as blind as a bat. I can't see a damn thing out of it if I don't change the lense."

"Bats actually have great eyesight but since…" I stopped myself short and cleared my throat to alleviate some of my embarrassment. My knowledge of useless trivia strikes again. I suppressed a sigh and rested my chin on my knees. "I'm far sighted so it's not too bad."

"You already pledge?"

I quickly shook my head, wincing at the thought. "My friends tried, but after seeing hell week, I don't think I would have made it. I'm going to fend for myself."

He chuckled as if I had said something funny, then complimented, "Cute and smart. You should stumble across me some time."

Yanking my sleeves further over my hands, I choked out a quiet 'thanks'. I couldn't remember the last time a guy had called me cute without it sounding creepy. As much as some of the guys around here went around bashing on each other for sounding 'gay' a lot of them really wanted to see me in a dress. I blew warm air into my covered and moved to stand. My fingers were starting to go numb, and I could hardly feel the tip of my nose.

Before I had the chance to stand, he hastily threw the blanket over my shoulder. "Better?"

"Yeah, thanks. What about you?"

He ignored my question, but showed no signs of pulling away when I inched closer and threw the other end of the quilt over his left shoulder. My arm brushed against his in our small cocoon. I could just barely make out the puffs of smoke his shallow breath formed in the cold air. My heart pounded in my chest when I rested my head on his shoulder. This was the closest I had been to someone I wasn't friends with since the 8th grade. Excitement flowed through me, while at the same time I didn't want to press my luck. As long as he didn't decide to run off, I wouldn't have to spend New Years alone anymore.

My eyes drifted shut, and I thought nothing of the man beside me shifting around until he had my hands clasped in-between his own. "Youre freezing."

I nodded slightly, feeling myself already starting to drift away. "It's going to snow."

"What do you mean going to?" My phone vibrated in my pocket, accompanied by his beeping watch. I picked my head up again to see small snowflakes just beginning to drift through the sky, just in time for the new year. One of his hands moved to the side of my face, and gently brushed his lips against mine. My breath hitched in my throat after he had pulled away, the sudden lack of his closeness sending a shiver down my spine. "Happy New Year."

I nodded weakly, feeling a bit lightheaded. The moment I had waited for, and began dreading, and it was with a complete strange. Why did I put it off for so long? That was nice. His soft laughter dragged me out of my thoughts. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing, Virgin."

"What's wrong with that!"

I started to pull away from his, but a faint smile stopped me and he turned his body toward me with a nonchalant shrug. "Who knows?" I let him bundle me into his chest, enjoying the feeling of his fingers running through my hair. " Cold air swirled around my now exposed neck, but it was soon replaced with his breath as he whispered, "Ask me again in a couple years."

"You mean you're…?" I tilted my head up in a vain attempt to get a better look at his face.

I felt his lips on my hair before he commented, "At least I've kissed someone. What rock have you been hiding under?"

His tone was less harsh that I would have expected, given the topic at hand, and it caught me off guard. Usually I was just teased for my lack of experience in this certain area. "No rock, I just have… standards."

I wasn't surprised he had seen through my bluff, it was weak excuse even by my standards. He pressed my back against his chest and slipped his hands into mine again. "Is there room for one more under that rock? It's a damn shame you've been kissed by a stranger on new years."

"I'm Armin."

Another shiver ran through me as his teeth grazed my ear. "Levi."

Freeing my hand from his, I rested it along his neck and pulled his face closer to mine. "Now you aren't a stranger."