The Time We Had A Second New Year
"Are you sure you don't want to come?" Alice asks, her voice becoming a little whiney.
"No Alice. To be honest, since Christmas, Edward and I have been working non-stop. I kind of just want to hang out here with him this evening" I tell her gently.
I watch as my friend look a little disappointed before she nods.
"But, we can hang out tomorrow if you want?" I suggest.
"Yeah?" She smiles.
"Yeah. Make sure you video the fireworks, then you can show me" I tell her with a smile.
"Okay, deal" She grins before disappearing out of my room to get ready.
It's been that weird week between Christmas and New Year and to be honest, I'm exhausted. Edward and I had a great time visiting his parents for the holidays and it was so nice seeing my dad and us all being together, but it was kind of full-on. I don't think I've ever eaten, drunk or talked so much in my life. I was kind of pleased when we got back and I could just sit in silence for a couple of hours.
Then, we'd both been back at work and work was manic. I'm sure the entire city seems to get injured or needs treatment for some ailment or other between Christmas and New Year. Edward has been stuck at the hospital until the small hours every night and when he does get back, either to his apartment or mine, he crashes and sleeps until he has to drag himself out of bed to go and do it again.
In terms of my job, it's been pretty full-on too. We always have a load of book releases in the lead-up to Christmas, the idea being that they will make great gifts for people but, that inevitably means that we have to deal with fallout come New Year. Then, there are the New Year's new releases to plan and market and churn out, let alone the management of all the existing publications we already have on our books. I feel like my feet haven't touched the ground since I've been home.
But tonight, it's New Year's Eve and Edward has the evening off, or at least what's left of the evening by the time he gets here and it's just going to be him and me. We're going to eat pizza and watch a movie and chill out together before sleeping in for the first time in weeks.
Alice, Jasper, Emmett and Rose are still going to head out to watch the fireworks in the square and Alice in particular really wanted Edward and me to go, but I just don't feel up for it tonight. Plus, I kind of want to celebrate alone with Edward. It's hard to believe that it was a year ago that he ran halfway across town to meet me. I can't help but smile at the memory.
"Okay, I'm off," Alice says, reappearing in my doorway wearing her coat. "Are you sure I can't tempt you out?" She asks.
"Positive" I nod, giving her a small smile. "Have a lovely time" I tell her.
She nods before giving me a little wave and heading out the door to meet Jasper at Emmett and Rose's for dinner. As soon as I hear the front door close behind her, I let out a little sigh, flopping back onto my bed. I close my eyes for a second, just revelling in the peace and quiet of the apartment.
A few minutes later, I sit up and head into the living room, deciding to text Edward and see how his shift is going. I grab my phone and open a new message before typing.
Hey. How's your night going? - B
I know he doesn't always reply immediately so I head into the kitchen, opening the fridge and grabbing the half-finished bottle of wine. I pour myself a glass before walking back into the living room and flopping down on the couch. I'm just taking a sip of the amber liquid when my phone buzzes.
Hey. It's okay. Remarkably not too busy tonight. I think I should be back in a couple of hours - E
I smile a little, pleased that things aren't too hectic and that he might be back at a reasonable time for once.
Great. Pizza and wine are waiting for you when you get here - B
Love you - E
I smile at the message.
Love you too - B
I decide that if I have a couple of hours to kill I may as well watch some TV so I grab the remote, switch Netflix on and eventually settle on some shitty reality show. I don't normally watch this kind of thing but it means I don't need to concentrate and with my brain frazzled enough as it is, it sounds kind of perfect.
After a couple of hours, I find I'm becoming heavily addicted to the show and all its drama when suddenly, my phone buzzes again.
Hey. I'm leaving now. See you in twenty - E
I grin before placing my empty wine glass down on the coffee table and heading into the kitchen, turning on the oven. I grab the two pizza boxes from the fridge, reading the instructions on the back of the packaging before checking that the second bottle of wine I placed in the fridge is cold, as well as the sneaky dessert I purchased.
I've just finished laying the table when I hear a knock on the door and run to answer it. I throw it open, revealing Edward dressed in jeans, a thick sweater and a warm coat, his hair covered in rapidly melting snow.
"Hey baby" He grins, walking into the apartment and wrapping one arm around my waist, kissing me softly.
I sigh against his lips, loving the feel of his mouth on mine and not realising how much I'd missed him until now.
"Hey," I smile when he pulls away. "How was your day?" I ask.
"It was okay. Not too bad actually." He sighs.
"You hungry?" I ask.
"Starving!" He groans making me giggle.
"Well, this pizza is just about done" I reply, lifting the two pizzas out of the oven and resting them on top of the stove.
"It smells so good," He says, shrugging his coat off and shaking his hair like a wet dog.
I cut up the two pizzas before placing them in the centre of the table. I grab the bottle of wine from the fridge and pop the cork before pouring two generous glasses and sitting down opposite Edward.
"Urgh, it's so nice to be home" Edward moans, picking up his wine glass and taking a long sip.
I glance up at him, noticing the slip of the tongue. It's happened more and more recently, Edward referring to my apartment as home and me referring to his in the same way. I guess we've spent so much time at both places, that the lines kind of blur.
"It's nice to have you back at a normal time" I grin.
"I know, I'm sorry baby. I know it's been really hard the last week and I've kind of slept and left" He says, looking genuinely guilty.
"Baby, it's your job. I get it" I shrug.
I really do. I've known for years the crazy hours he works, always turning up to events at the last second or a couple of hours late. It's not like I didn't know what I was getting into.
"I know but still..." He shrugs.
"I get you now, that's what matters" I reassure him, taking his hand in mine.
He gives me a small smile, squeezing my hand back before we both tuck into our food. The pizza is good and Edward wasn't lying when he said he was hungry, practically inhaling his food in about five minutes. I chuckle when I'm only halfway through my pizza and he's placing his knife and fork down.
"Sorry" He chuckles, swallowing his last bite. I just roll my eyes at him.
We talk about everything and nothing, drinking our wine and just catching up on the last few days. It's nice and exactly what I needed tonight.
Eventually, when we've both finished our food, I clear the table, placing everything in the dishwasher before grabbing the dessert I picked up from the fridge and following Edward into the living room. He tops up both our glasses of wine before I open the box on the coffee table.
"Ooo, are they those brownies from Nuova Luna?" He asks, seeing the chocolatey goodness in front of him.
"Yep. I picked them up on my way home" I grin.
He grins back at me before I hand him a fork and place the box between us, sharing the dessert. I turn the TV back on and we scroll through the various movie options before settling on a rom-com we'd both seen many years ago but couldn't quite remember.
As the movie plays and the dessert gets eaten, I can't help but think how nice the evening is. I glance over at Edward and he's got a small smile on his face.
"What are you smiling about over there?" I ask. He looks at me in surprise before shrugging a little.
"I was thinking about this time last year," He says.
"Oh yeah, what about it?" I ask, turning to face him and tucking my legs underneath myself.
"I was thinking about how quickly things can change. This time last year I was still at the hospital and I was worried I wasn't going to be able to make it to the fireworks with you." He says, his eyes going a little wistful. "I remember being so mad that I had to work late and all I could think about was getting to you. I was so fucking nervous I'd fuck everything up. That I'd be late or miss the evening completely and you'd think you weren't important." He tells me.
"I remember Brenda and Suzanne telling me that if I wanted to make it on time I need to have my 'rom-com moment'" He says chuckling, tilting his head towards the TV in the corner. "I ran through that city as if my life depended on it. I thought I'd burst a lung by the time I got to you" He says, laughing at the memory.
I laugh too, remembering how dishevelled he'd looked when he'd arrived. How he was panting and bent over, trying to get the cramp out of his legs.
"But you made it" I whisper.
"But I made it" He nods, his eyes meeting mine.
"Remember when it took you two weeks to ask me out on a proper date?" I say, giggling slightly. Edward laughs at me, sipping his wine.
"Hey! It was a big thing!" He argues, his eyes filled with humour.
"I was starting to think you didn't want to go" I giggle. "And then you were all cute and awkward when we got to the restaurant" I smile, remembering Edward blushing and stumbling over his words.
"I was so fucking nervous," He says honestly. "I thought I was going to throw up in the car ride over here".
I laugh at him rolling my eyes.
"It was only me, silly," I say, nudging his arm with mine.
"Yeah, it was you. You've always been important Bella" He says honestly. We stare at each other for a moment, sharing a soft smile before Edward's eyes turn flirty. "Anyway, I think that date went pretty well considering you gave me a handjob the next time we hung out" He winks.
I laugh loudly in surprise before shoving his arm and hearing him laugh.
"And you had to lie to Jasper about your pants!" I giggle.
"Oh my god, that was so awkward. He wanted to see them too. He thought that I'd spilt red wine on them or something and I had to lie to get him to drop the subject!" Edward laughs.
"What did you say in the end?" I ask.
"I think I told him it was juice" He shrugs, scrubbing a hand over his face.
"It was in a way," I say laughing at him. He chuckles with me, rolling his eyes.
"Shut up it was embarrassing" He chuckles.
"It can't have been that embarrassing because you asked me to be your girlfriend shortly after that" I tease. He gives me a soft look before smiling.
"Actually, I think I assumed you were my girlfriend shortly after that. I didn't realise I had to formally invite you to the position" He replies.
"Oh god, I remember your face when you said that. You looked so scared" I say, giggling at the memory.
"I was! I'd never had a girlfriend before. I didn't want to fuck it up" He argues.
"Well, you didn't" I reassure him, holding the hand that's resting on his thigh. He absentmindedly strokes his thumb along my knuckles, sipping his wine.
"We hadn't even had sex then" He comments.
"We'd had a lot of sex then!" I argue.
"You know what I mean" He replies, rolling his eyes. "We hadn't done it since the whole Tanya debacle".
"No, but we did it a lot after that," I say, feeling my cheeks warm at the memory of it all.
"Yeah" He sighs, his eyes going a little glazed.
We're quiet for a moment before Edward suddenly chuckles.
"What?" I ask him.
"I was just remembering your face when my dad nearly walked in on us making out on my bed the first time we went to visit them" He chuckles.
"Oh god," I groan, covering my face with my hands.
"Hey, you don't get to react like that!" He argues, pulling my hands away from my face. "You bamboozled me into having full-on sex with you at your Dad's house!"
"I did not bamboozle you!" I argue.
"Did too" He says, sticking his chin in the air in defiance.
"How did I bamboozle you?" I ask.
"You were being all sexy and flirty and you tried to touch my dick at the diner and then you outright stroked it in bed," He says, shrugging a little.
"You could have resisted!" I tell him.
We stare at each other in silence for a moment.
"Whatever" He replies, making me laugh.
"Yeah, you just have no willpower" I comment.
"I do have willpower. I resisted you when you were sick!" He points out.
"Oh yeah, you managed to hold yourself back from the vomiting woman. Very big of you indeed" I reply sarcastically, rolling my eyes at him.
"What? You were still hot, even throwing up into the toilet" He shrugs. I look at him like he's crazy.
"How was I hot?" I ask.
"You were naked," He says like it's fucking obvious, "I could see your ass, you know I love your ass."
I do know that but still, I can't help but laugh at him.
"Didn't resist me on your birthday though, did you?" I tease. His eyes turn dark and glazed before he clears his throat a little.
"Fuck, I could have been on my deathbed and been unable to resist you that night" He admits. "Do you still have that lingerie?" He asks.
"Yeah" I nod.
"You should wear it one day and let me take it off you this time" He nods seriously. I chuckle at him, rolling my eyes.
"I love you," I say quietly after a moment.
"I love you too" He replies with a soft smile.
"We've had some good times haven't we" I smile.
"Yeah." He nods. "And we're only getting started" He winks.
I grin at him, sipping my wine and playing with his fingers. We stay like that for a while before I notice my phone reading eleven thirty.
"Hey, wanna watch the news? It's almost midnight?" I tell him.
"Sure" He nods, grabbing the remote and flicking on the local news.
We watch footage of the square, covered in lights and hanging stars, the announcers talking about what the new year will have in store for everyone.
"I wonder if we'll see Allie and everyone" I murmur.
We both scan the footage of the crowd before suddenly seeing a flash of platinum blonde hair.
"There!" Edward cries, pointing at the screen.
There stands Rose, Emmett, Jasper and Alice. They're talking to each other before realising they're on camera and waving and jumping enthusiastically. We both laugh before the footage changes to the stage.
"Who's playing tonight?" I ask Edward.
Every year, the city normally gets an up-and-coming local band to play at the New Year festivities.
"I don't know. I think they're called Breaking Dawn or something" He shrugs.
We hear cheers from the crowd before a girl group comes out and sings an upbeat pop song. It's kind of catchy.
"They're not bad," I say. Edward just shrugs.
They perform a couple more songs before the announcers appear back on screen and say that the countdown to midnight will start in five minutes.
"Oo not long now!" I say, smiling at Edward. "What do you wish for this year?" I ask.
"Hmm...I guess I want more of what I've got." He says with a grin.
"Me too" I nod.
We stare at each other for a long minute before Edward suddenly places his glass down on the coffee table and stands.
"Where are you going?" I ask.
"Come on," He says, taking my glass from me and pulling me up from the couch.
"But it's going to be midnight in like..three minutes!" I say.
"I know, come on," He says, pulling me along and into my room.
He leaves the door open before his mouth suddenly crashes to mine in a heated kiss. I can't help but moan against his lips, feeling his tongue swipe along my bottom lip asking for entrance. Our tongues tangle together as his hands quickly go to the bottom of my sweater, pulling it up my body.
I lift my arms, helping him take it off before he drops it to the floor, reaching behind him and yanking his sweater and t-shirt off in one movement. His mouth returns to mine before his fingers pop the button of my pants and shove them down my legs until I can step out of them.
I do the same time him, leaving us both in our underwear before Edward pushes me to lie down on the bed. I scoot up against the pillows, Edward crawling towards me with a grin on his face.
"Why now?" I ask breathlessly before his lips meet mine again.
"Because you're supposed to be with the one you love at midnight" He answers simply, breaking the kiss and sliding his hand behind my back, undoing my bra with a flick of his wrist.
"I think you're meant to kiss them" I moan as he drops his mouth to my nipple, sucking gently. "You know, a peck on the lips as the clock strikes twelve," I tell him.
Edward chuckles, pulling my panties down my legs and throwing them behind him before wriggling out of his boxers and leaning over the grab a condom.
"So? We've never done things by half," He says, fixing the condom to himself and lying back between my legs.
He pushes into me slowly and I moan at the feeling of him stretching me. He starts a steady rhythm, his mouth moving against mine, his arms caging me under him on the mattress. I can hear the TV in the background, the organisers saying that we have one minute to go.
"Urgh...fuck" I moan, wrapping my legs around his hips and pulling him closer.
"I love you" He grunts, his forehead resting against mine so that we're eye to eye.
"I love you too" I pant, moaning quietly at the feel of him.
"You're the best part of the year. The best part of everything" He tells me breathlessly.
"You too" I nod, feeling Edward pick up the pace a little, making me moan.
"Thirty seconds!" I hear the TV shout in the background.
"Thirty seconds baby" He grins, continuing to move leisurely over my body. I can't help but giggle breathlessly, my eyes rolling into the back of my head as he tilts his hips just right.
TEN
NINE
"Eight" He whispers, thrusting in time with the countdown. "Seven...six...five...four..."
I moan out a laugh, hearing him chuckling breathlessly above me as he brings us closer to the edge.
"Three...two..." He grunts, "One..."
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
We hear the TV cheer in the background as Edward moves his arms to cradle my head against his neck.
"Happy new year baby" He grunts before fucking me harder, making me moan incoherently.
"Urgh...shit...yes..." I moan, feeling myself getting closer to the precipice.
"Oh fuck...yeah...I can feel you" He groans into my neck, increasing the pace of his hips even more.
I'm right on the edge when he grinds his pelvis against my clit and I cry out, falling into bliss. My back arches and my eyes squeeze closed as I cum hard, shaking underneath him before feeling him shudder and groan above me.
We lie there for a while, eventually coming down from our highs, occasionally shuddering or whimpering. When Edward's able to, he lifts his head from my neck and grins down at me.
"Happy new year" He whispers, his eyes shining in the dark.
"Happy new year" I giggle, kissing him softly.
He chuckles against my lips before pulling out of me and rolling onto his back, disposing of the condom. I shuffle closer to him, cuddling into his side, sighing as he strokes my hair with one hand.
"I love you," I tell him.
"I love you so much" He replies.
"Really?" I ask, looking up at him. He grins at me.
"Yes. I love you more than anything, everything" He says sincerely.
"Same" I grin.
"Now come to sleep and in the morning, we can do that again," He says, rolling onto his side and burying his face in my neck.
I giggle at him, rolling my eyes but cuddling into him deeper. I lie there for a while, listening to Edward's breathing even out before my own eyes start to droop. I hear the occasional singing voice outside the window as some happy reveller makes their way home. I think about all the things this new year could bring and wonder where we'll be in twelve months' time. As I gaze at the man lying next to me, the man I love, my best friend I can't help but smile.
Whatever is in store, I can't wait to do it all with him.