2010
"Are you guarding the drinks?" a voice asks from behind me. I turn sheepishly around and see the most handsome face possible: pale skin, high cheekbones, sparkling verdant eyes, and a wild mop of coppery hair.
"I'm just … lingering," I finally spit out. Taking a sip from my own glass, I step aside, and the man moves to make a drink for himself. "I don't really know anyone here except for the girl who invited me, so I'm people watching."
He nods and looks out over the crowd. "Who invited you?"
"Jessica."
"Ah, the girlfriend. I work with Mike," he says with a smile.
"The boyfriend," I say with a nod. "Jess won't shut up about him. What's he like? I literally met him for like five minutes when I showed up."
He laughs. "He's all right. I mean, he's a good guy, and he's mad for Jessica, so I guess that's a good thing, right?"
We stand in silence for a few moments, watching people mingle together, when finally he turns to me. "Edward, Edward Cullen." He offers his hand, and I shake it politely and introduce myself.
"Bella Swan."
"So, you really don't know anyone else here?" Edward asks as we cruise down the buffet line and grab some snacks.
"I know a few people from work, but I just started a few weeks ago, and I think Jessica just invited me to be polite." Shrugging, I pop a chocolate-covered pretzel into my mouth. "Don't you know anyone here? Shouldn't you be mingling?"
"I know everyone here, and that's the problem." He winks at me over a spiral ham. "You, on the other hand, I don't know."
We spend the next few hours chatting about everything and nothing, and when we both disclose that we're from the same small town, we're both a little shook.
"What year did you graduate?" I ask in disbelief. "I was class of 2002."
"I was class of 1999," Edward says with a smile. "You either were still in junior high or you were a freshman."
"I was a freshman." I shake my head. "This is so bizarre."
We meander into the crowd, and Edward introduces me to people as if I'm an old friend instead of an almost complete stranger. Laughing, dancing, and talking to other partygoers has lifted my holiday spirits, and I'm happy to be out tonight.
Before I know it, the countdown begins, and the crowd begins to jostle themselves around the TV in the living room to watch Ryan Seacrest finish the countdown to a new year. I find myself back near the drinks and food and alone.
10
9
8
"There you are. I was looking for you," Edward says as he approaches my side.
6
5
"I've never understood the New Year's Eve tradition," I say casually.
"This one?"
1
"Happy New Year!"
Edward grabs me gently and pulls me close. I take a deep breath, and before I know it, his lips have landed on mine for a quick and innocent kiss.
Before he can pull away, all I can feel is fire between us. Like electricity building up.
"Yeah, that's the one."
2014
"Do my eyes deceive me? Is that Bella Swan?" I hear Edward's voice behind me, and my smile widens as I turn from Jessica.
"In the flesh," I say as I greet him with a hug. We've been at the same New Year's Eve party for the past four years now, and while I'm closer with the rest of the guests, it's always especially nice to see Edward.
"I think the last time I saw you was the engagement party," he says as he stops to make a drink.
In March of this year, Mike finally proposed to Jessica, and they threw a cute engagement party where we both attended. We've been Facebook friends for a couple of years now, but really only see each other on New Year's Eve.
"It's good to see you," I say as we move over to a couple of chairs and sit down. "Where's what's her name? Don't tell me … Irina?"
"You got it! Irina and I broke up like three months ago," he says with a small smile. "Remember when Jessica finally posted a bunch of photos from the past parties? There was always a picture of us kissing at midnight. Irina didn't like that very much."
"That's too bad. But I don't think there's one from every year."
Edward pulls out his phone and pulls up the Facebook app. "There's one from 2010 until last year. We end up kissing every year at midnight." He's swiping through photos, and I almost can't believe my eyes, except it's right there in front of me.
"Well, this makes this year a little awkward," I say with a laugh. "Hey, Demetri!" A tall, broad-shouldered man approaches us and smiles. "Edward, this is Demetri, my date tonight."
Edward stands with a smile and shakes his hand. "Well, I'll keep my distance at midnight." We all laugh, and Demetri tells me there's a game of pool going on in the garage and he's going to join.
"Is he nice?" Edward asks once we're alone in the crowded room again.
"He's really nice, but it's not serious."
The hours pass and we eat, drink, and mingle with our friends. I see my date every once in a while as the pool game has gotten competitive, and he's winning. As the final moments approach, I get a little nervous that Demetri won't show up for midnight, and I tell Edward that at least I have him.
"He'll show up. Who wouldn't want to kiss you at midnight?" he says with a smile, and I laugh.
"So far, it's only been you," I point out, and we both laugh.
"Let's make a deal: any year we end up at this party alone, we kiss at midnight." Edward looks at me earnestly, and I can't help but smile and agree. As the countdown begins, I run out to the garage and look for Demetri, but he's nowhere to be seen. Racing back inside the house, I can't see him anywhere, and Edward standing alone in the corner is the only thing that sticks out to me.
As the crowd screams one, I leap into Edward's arms and kiss him deeply.
If we're going to have this deal, we better make it good.
2017
EPOV
Mike and Jessica finally got married, and Bella and I were paired up as bridesmaid and groomsman, respectively. It was a beautiful, albeit short ceremony because the reception was taking place during the last hours of the year in December.
Leave it to Mike and Jess to stick with a theme.
I'm in line at the bar when I feel a tap on my shoulder, and when I turn around, Bella is smiling up at me.
"Some party, huh?"
"They really outdid themselves this time," I say as I let her cut me in line. "Next thing you know, there'll be kids running around the New Year's party."
She laughs. "Isn't that how it's supposed to be? Changing of the tides as we grow older and whatnot?"
"I guess so." I gaze down at her and really look at her. "So, when are you going to settle down?"
"Whenever I find the right person, I guess. What about you?"
I move a stray lock of hair away from her face and smile. "Just waiting for the right woman to come along."
We get our drinks and end up dancing, talking, and drinking for the rest of the night. We've always been a little flirty on New Year's Eve, but tonight is different. Maybe it's the cliche of the wedding or that we've been tiptoeing around a mutual attraction for years, but something clicks, and we grab each other's hands and make our way out of the ballroom ten minutes before midnight.
"I've never done this before," I tell her as we ride up the elevator together.
"Done what?" she asks with a cocked eyebrow. "Ridden in an elevator?" When I don't respond, she laughs. "I've never had sex at a wedding either, but I like you, Edward. I think I liked you that first year, back in 2010."
"I like you too." Bella leads me to her room and opens the door. When we step inside, I gently push her against the back of the door. "I don't want to screw this up."
"Then don't."
With fervor, I strip us out of our clothes as quickly as possible and groan when I see that Bella is wearing only scraps of lace under her dress.
"On or off?" I ask as I trail my fingertips down to her hips.
"Off, Edward. All of it."
I pick her up and lightly toss her onto her bed where she giggles, and when I pounce, I look over to the clock and say, "Happy New Year, Bella," and consume her mouth and lips with my own.
Our kiss has never been this deep or this real, but it feels right; we spend hours ringing in the new year.
The next six months are difficult and awkward as Bella and I try to navigate the dating world together. We're vastly different people with different interests, lives, jobs, and schedules. She's a social butterfly, and I'm mostly a homebody. She works a strict nine to five, Monday through Friday, and I telecommute from home at least three days a week and make my own hours the rest of the time.
However, all that being said, we were determined to make things work. We both really liked the differences; it gave us plenty to talk about, and we didn't argue over them. We met more of each other's friends, and we even met each other's parents. Things were going really surprisingly well until they weren't.
"I got offered the opportunity to move up in the company, and I think it would be foolish not to take it," Bella says.
I'm sitting across from her in our favorite hole in the wall taco shop, just staring at her and trying to process what she's just said.
"It, uh, sounds like a great opportunity for you," I finally choke out. She reaches across the booth and grabs my hand. "I'm not making this decision lightly, and I wanted to talk to you about it." She smiles sadly. "Edward, I'd have to move to the East Coast."
I knew her company's home office was in Massachusetts, and I saw the writing on the wall when she said she was offered the promotion. "What about us?"
"I don't want us to break up," she says hopefully. "I feel like we finally figured out our groove. I'd probably be gone a year before I could transfer back here. We could do long distance, right?"
"Of course we could. Long weekends, holidays." I squeeze her hand. "We can figure it out. I'm really proud of you. You deserve this."
"Thank you, Edward." She pauses as if she were going to say something else. "I love you."
"I love you too," I say with a laugh. "I think I've wanted to say that for the past three months, but I was too scared!"
"Me too!"
We finish eating and head back to Bella's place where she drafts a formal letter to her boss accepting the promotion, and we begin going through her things to consolidate a bit before she moves. She tells me it will be a quick process so I can prepare myself, but I'm already thinking of taking some time off to help her settle in.
We'll figure it out together.
2018
BPOV
The last year has been rough on Edward and me. The distance and time difference have been the biggest challenges, but it's also been hard with Edward and me both having demanding jobs. His is slightly more lenient on hours, so in the beginning, it was easy for him to get away for a long weekend, but as time passed, it became more and more difficult for us to see each other in person.
Facetime and Skype are one thing, but when you haven't seen your boyfriend in almost a year, things start to feel like they're unraveling fast. We saw each other for New Year's last year. We spent the holiday back with our friends where we found out that Jessica was pregnant, and a few other people were engaged.
Now, Mike and Jessica have had their daughter, Lauren, and I went home for two weddings this year, so I'm just about maxed out on vacation time. Edward, on the other hand, had stopped telecommuting and has been working in his office Monday through Friday for the past six months, trying to meet some ungodly deadline.
This is the first year that we won't be at Mike and Jessica's for New Year's Eve. It's the first year we won't be together in eight years.
I won't have it.
I'm cashing out some vacation days and flying out to see my boyfriend, come hell or high water. I've already booked my flight, and with a layover in Denver, I should be there with plenty of time to spare before midnight.
When I reach Boston Logan and get past security, I call Edward. "I can't believe we're missing each other this year," I say trying to hide my snicker.
"Uh, yeah. Me too. I miss you, babe."
"Are you okay? What are you doing?" I can hear him moving around and shuffling.
"I'm actually folding clothes. Big exciting plans for me tonight."
"You could still go to Mike and Jessica's," I offer. I don't want him to go, but Jessica has promised to text me if he shows up there.
"Eh, maybe. What are you gonna do tonight?"
"I'm probably going to bed early. I have a meeting with my boss about my transfer on Friday," I remind him.
"That's right. I almost forgot. I'm so excited, sweetheart!"
I hear the boarding call for my flight and cringe when I think it might have gone through the phone, but when Edward doesn't say anything, I tell him my Chinese take-out has arrived and I should go.
"I love you. I'll try to talk to you at midnight?"
"I'll try to stay awake. I love you, too."
"Ladies and gentlemen, as we make our descent into Denver the time is currently 5:25 PM and the weather is 37 degrees and snowing. We've been advised by the tower to alert you to possible delays on the ground due to inclement weather. We appreciate you flying with us and Happy New Year."
I'm panicking slightly as I deboard the plane. Weather delays could mean that I don't make it in time for New Year's to see Edward. When I get to my next gate, I can see a line of people waiting to talk to the gate rep, and I already know I'm not going to get good news.
While I'm waiting, I call Edward, but it goes straight to voicemail. I leave him a message and ask him to call me as soon as he can.
"Flight 1023 has been delayed due to inclement weather. For rebooking, please see the gate agent."
Luckily, I'm first in line and get the opportunity to talk to the agent first.
"What are my options?"
"Well, we can rebook you on a later flight, but it doesn't look like anyone will be leaving tonight. We're also offering to put passengers up in a hotel and a meal voucher," she tells me plainly.
"Like, what percentage of it doesn't look likely?"
"I'd say 98%."
"I'll take the room and the voucher, please." I give her all my info, and as I'm walking away, my phone buzzes in my hand.
"Edward." I sigh.
"Oh, babe." He sounds so frustrated. "What's up?"
"I'm thinking about renting a car," I tell him as I pass a display sign for Hertz.
"What? Why?"
"Don't be mad, but I was trying to come and surprise you for New Year's, and I'm stuck at my layover airport. There's a big snow storm in Denver right now." I sigh and hold back my tears.
"I couldn't be mad at you if I tried, but I have to ask … which concourse are you on?"
"Two, I think. Why?"
"Walk toward one. There's something you should see."
I stay on the phone with him, and I have to stop and ask for directions along the way because Denver is a massive airport, but I'm finally approaching the area where all three concourses meet.
"What am I looking for?" I ask as I wheel myself around with my carry-on suitcase.
"Me."
"What?"
"I was trying to surprise you too, but I got stuck here because of the weather. I'm at your six."
I stop dead in my tracks and turn around. There he is with his wild hair, his beautiful green eyes, those chiseled cheekbones, and that skin so pale it almost sparkles. We walk toward each other, and I can feel the wetness on my cheeks.
"How … why … how did we both end up doing this?" I ask with a laugh.
"We love each other, and we both wanted our midnight kiss," he says as he draws me close and presses his forehead to mine. "I've missed you."
"Me too."
Just before the countdown begins, we're in the hotel bar with a small crowd of people when Edward grabs my hand and slips an engagement ring onto my finger.
"If you say yes, we may never miss another midnight kiss," he says with a hopeful smile.
I nod and throw my arms around his neck. "Yes!"
As the countdown winds down to one, we ring in the New Year with a promise and a midnight kiss.
A/N: I know that I said "Love Is All You Knead" would be my last fic of the year, but surprise! I hope you enjoy this little one shot. Big shout out to Alice's White Rabbit nd maplestyle for beta and prereading. Big thanks to Sunshine1220 for being my cheerleader. Happy New Year!