Zed pressed his lips to my forehead and I felt taken aback. I'd asked him to kiss me and he'd wanted to wait until I asked. So why on earth had he just kissed my forehead and not my lips? My cheeks flushed and I wanted the ground to swallow me whole. I looked down, embarrassed, but Zed's finger lifted my chin so that I had to look at him.

'Believe me, I really want to kiss you.' He said, his eyes sincere. 'But you and I have had a lot to drink... hell, I'm surprised I've stopped myself from giving in. I'm better at restraining myself than I thought.' He caressed my cheek, gently. 'Ask me again when we're both sober.'

'Dude, have you seen the time?!' Nate interrupted us and I blinked, stepping away from Zed and putting some space between us. 'It's midnight! The teen disco finished like half an hour ago.'

'Ah, shit.' Zed cursed and I realised he was blushing, possibly because of the moment Nate had interrupted. He turned back to face me. 'We'd better go.'

We hurried as quick as we could, back through the thick snow. It wasn't easy and it made my legs even more tired than they already were from hitting the slopes earlier that day. When we arrived back at the chalet, thankfully there was no sign of Karla or Saul. We crept in, said our goodnights and headed straight to bed.

A knock on the door woke us the next day and I groaned, rolling over. Boy did my legs ache from the previous day. There was another knock and I squinted as Karla walked in, a stressed look on her face. 'Good morning.' She said, sounding equally stressed.

'It's too early.' Lucy mumbled from under her pillow and I lobbed mine and her to make myself feel better.

'It's ten o'clock girls. I'm sorry to wake you but the party planner is here and wants to start sorting out decorations.'

'Party planner?' I rubbed my eyes and realised I'd not taken off my make-up. Oops.

'For my party this evening.' She smiled although it was clear she was still stressed out. And that was why. A lot of important clients were attending the party, so Zed had told me, and we were expected to attend too. It struck me suddenly; she wanted us out so that she could rearrange the furniture and make everything perfect. Of course.

I nudged Lucy. 'Come on, let's get up.'

'I don't want to snowboard today.' She mumbled.

'The boys were going to take you to the waterpark I think.' Karla smiled.

Waterpark? The idea was chilling as I cleaned myself up and made myself presentable. I slipped on my warm black skinny jeans and a baggy blue wool jumper, enjoying the cosiness it gave me, and I tied my hair up, trying to ignore the headache brewing. I was hungover and I needed caffiene and possibly some paracetmol. I walked into the kitchen and grabbed a croissant, eating it carefully over the plate so that I didn't make a mess on the recently polished floor. Lucy appeared shortly after and grabbed a cereal, almost pouring orange juice into the bowl.

'How am I so tired?' She whispered as Karla and Saul spoke to a lady in a suit across the room from us.

'Please tell me your head hurts too?' I whispered as I sipped my coffee.

'Majorly, although you're the one that downed whiskey. Paracetmol?' She winced.

'In my bag.' I was also the one that asked Zed to kiss me too. I cringed at the memory of it. How mortifying. Clearly I couldn't be trusted around drink.

'Ready to go?' Zed called as he walked into the room, seeming surprisingly cheery considering the amount that he had to drink last night. But then maybe he'd had a lot of coffee or was just used to it?

'Yep.' Lucy grabbed her coat and pulled it on, grabbing her bag packed for swimming too. I hurried to keep up, eating my croissant as we headed out of the door, leaving Mr and Mrs Benedict to prepare for their fancy party.

Thankfully Aqua, the waterpark, was indoors, apart from a small heated pool and water rapids which seemed to travel through the snow, steam coming off of it. The waterpark itself was in a giant room similar to a conservatory with large, glass windows over-looking the snow-covered tree tops outside and the valley below. It had a somewhat tropical theme with bouldered areas and palm trees dotted around the various pools. There were several jacuzzis dotted around, nestled in amongst the fake rocks, and there was a large pool for swimming. There was a rock-climbing wall next to the water with ropes, so that you could climb or swing and then throw yourself into the deep, blue water. Then there were the slides; a racing set of slides lined up next to each other, a few tube slides and The Slidewinder, a slide for two people in inflatable rings, where you travelled down a halfpipe. We spent four hours at the waterpark in total, racing each other on the slides (Lucy and I trying not to lose our bikinis) and I was quite enjoying eyeing-up Zed Benedict's muscular biceps and slight six-pack. Then there was the chilled time in the jacuzzis overlooking the beautiful snowy view and my failed attempts at climbing the climbing wall.

After we'd showered, dried and dressed, we met in the lobby area and headed to a cafe nearby for lunch. We ordered bread and soup, perfect on the cold day.

'So did you enjoy the waterpark?' Zed asked as I sipped a much-needed hot chocolate. I was going to end up fat on their thick, creamy hot chocolates by the time we got home.

'Yeah it was good.' Lucy nodded. She broke her bread into pieces and dipped it carefully into the soup. My phone buzzed in my pocket and I felt guilty when I realised I hadn't checked it all day. There were loads of Instagram likes of the photo of Lucy and I sat in the hot tub on our first night, grinning, and then I saw the 3 missed calls from Marcus. And the text.

I've made a horrible mistake, please can we talk? Things aren't the same without you xx

I stiffened and Zed glanced up at me, obviously realising.

What is it? He asked, our own private conversation.

Nothing. I lied and I smiled at him, but I knew he hadn't bought it.

We finished our lunch and Nate whisked Lucy off for a date as it was still too early to go back to the house. That was fine by me. Lucy had made sure I hadn't been a gooseberry and she'd made sure I hadn't been stuck by myself too long with Zed, but I was starting to feel guilty about it because it meant she and Nate hadn't spent much time just the two of them. I slipped my gloves back on and glanced at Zed as snow fell lightly over us. It was pretty magical.

'So are you going to tell me what's going on?' Zed asked, his brown eyes staring into mine again when we were left alone. A few teenagers passed us laughing and two girls glanced at him as if recognising who he was. So far, in my winter gear, I was coming across as a normal teenage girl. Thank goodness.

'I'm fine.' I replied, using another smile to cover the anxiety I was experiencing over Marcus trying to get in contact. My phone buzzed again so, frustrately, I turned it off.

'Aren't you going to get that?'

'It's not important.'

His eyes moved over my face and he let out a sigh in frustration. 'Well we can't go home yet because I'm sure my mother is still running around in panic. I guess you're stuck with me for a few more hours.' He gave a small smile. 'How's your ice-skating?'

'Couldn't tell you.' I said, feeling the heat in my cheeks.

His eyes widened in disbelief. 'You've never been?'

'With my coordination, are you surprised?' I gave a small smile.

'Well then, there's definitely something we've got to change.'

The ice rink wasn't far from the chairlift and was surrounded by a barrier, stopping people from skating off onto the snow. There was a large, sparkling Christmas tree in the middle and music played as a few people skated across the ice, some dancing like figure skaters. It made me nervous. They all looked like confident skaters, even the girl on the ice who must have been about ten. Zed paid for us both, despite my arguing, and we put on our skates, tying them securely over the thick socks we were both wearing. I stood up and wobbled on the blade.

'Maybe this isn't such a good idea.' I said to Zed as he led the way to the rink, once again like a pro.

He stepped out onto the ice and held out his hands for me. 'Just trust me.' He said with his signature lopsided smile.

'Trust? That's deadly, isn't it?' I teased and he rolled his eyes. I took his hands and he pulled me onto the ice, making me squeal as I skidded into him.

'Steady!' He laughed as I face-planted his chest. 'Or is this just a ploy to get close to me?'

'Mmm you wish.' It was my turn to roll my eyes. I pushed back from him and he led me over to the side.

'Have you ever been rollerblading?' He asked as I held onto the plastic barrier for safety.

'Nope.'

'Ah, they're quite similar.' He moved me away from the side and I tensed. 'You need to keep your body loose and relaxed otherwise it's a lot harder to skate. Just watch me.' He whizzed off in a quick lap, moving perfectly, gliding across the ice. I groaned. Was there anything Zed Benedict wasn't good at? Really?

'Show off.' I teased.

'If you think that was showing off, you've not seen anything yet.' He grinned. 'Okay, a bit like with snowboarding, you have to bend your knees and even though you'll want to lean back, don't because you'll fall on your bum and this ice isn't quite as comfy as the snow. Try to keep leaning forwards.'

'Is this a ploy to get a better shot of my bum?'

'I've seen plenty of good views of your bum today.' His cocky smile returned and I blushed. Had he been staring at my bum at the waterpark? He'd been pretty subtle about it if he had. 'Okay, are you ready?'

I watched as the ten-year-old girl fell to the ground. 'I don't think so.'

'I won't let you go.' He held his gloved hands out for me again. 'I promise.' I glanced up at his warm brown eyes as his cocky smile became a friendly one, a cute one that I was really starting to like. It wasn't Seven Minutes in Heaven Zed. Sure, he still wore his signature leather jacket and black skinny jeans, but this Zed was actually caring and funny. He was a nice guy, a gentleman. Even if he didn't want to admit it. I took his hands and he smiled down at me, starting to skate backwards, but holding onto me. 'Move your legs.' He chuckled. 'I can't just pull you around all afternoon.' I started to move my legs, gliding and then he pulled me to him, stopping. I crashed into his chest, not that I minded. He didn't smell of cigarettes that day. Just aftershave and shower gel. It was a good smell. 'Okay, now we're going to try a lap.' My eyes widened and he caught a snowflake as it landed on my cheek. Even with gloves on, the sweet gesture sent fireworks across my skin and I wanted just to pull him towards me and kiss him.

I realised he was waiting for an answer and I took a deep breath to slow the pace of my heart. 'A lap sounds good.'

Surprisingly I'd managed not to fall over my whole time skating, but that was mainly because I'd clung onto Zed for dear life. And he'd kept his promise; he hadn't let go. We beat Lucy and Nate back to the house, so I ducked into my bedroom to turn on my phone in private as Zed helped his dad move some furniture for the party. I turned it back on to see one more missed call from Marcus since I'd turned the phone off two hours ago. I put it on the bedside table as I repainted my chipped nails to match the dress I was wearing and then my phone buzzed again. I hesitated, but knew I had to answer it otherwise it was going to continue ringing over and over again.

'Yes?'

'Sky, it's me.' Marcus said, his voice only just clear enough to make out what he was saying.

'I guessed by the missed calls.' I replied, adding a sparkly coat to the top of my pale pink nails. I tucked the phone between my shoulder and ear as I spoke, but then it fell so I settled for putting it on speakerphone.

'I made an awful mistake, Sky. I know we're both busy but I want to make time for you... for us because well... I love you. I knew I did but then I spoke to Phillip and I just realised how much. He said I'd hurt you and that hurt me. I didn't want to hurt you.'

'But you did.' My eyes brimmed with tears.

'It was wrong of me to expect you to love me so soon, Sky. It's still early days and I'm sure you will feel the same, one day, I just have to give you that chance to feel the way I do about you... the goosebumps when we touch... the fireworks when we kiss.'

I blinked as realisation dawned. Goosebumps when we touch? I'd not felt those with Marcus. Sure I'd felt loved and a little giddy, but there hadn't been goosebumps and the fireworks had long fizzled out. I swallowed. What could I say? I hadn't thought about him since the Christmas party and even then it had only been anger. 'Look, Mark, I'm on holiday in the alps at the moment...'

'With Zed.' His voice sounded hurt.

'And Lucy.' I added in, although I wasn't sure why. So what if I was away with Zed? Was it his business?

'He's not good for you, Sky. He's a player, a womaniser, your stereotype bad boy. He'll never treat you the way I can, he'll hurt you.'

'Like you did?' My voice was quiet and I sounded young, of that much I was aware. A single tear fell and I sucked in a deep breath to calm myself down. The door opened and Lucy stepped in, glancing at the phone. 'I'm on holiday and I'm having a great time.' I told Marcus. 'I'll call you when I'm back.' And then I hung up.

Lucy sank onto the bed opposite me as I finished painting my nails and started to blow them dry. She cocked her head to the side. 'There's a lot you're telling me, isn't there?'

I bit my lip as I glanced up to meet her eyes. 'Yeah I guess I need to fill you in.'

'I knew there was something going on between you and Zed!' She slapped her thighs dramatically as she spoke and I shot her a questionnable look. 'You're a rubbish liar, Sky. Terrible. Shocking.'

'Thanks.' I said, drily.

'I can't believe you didn't tell me sooner. I'm supposed to be your best friend!'

'Sorry.' I apologised, feeling guilty. 'I just thought you'd think I was a slut or something.'

'A slut? Did I miss something? You've not slept with anyone, have you?' She chuckled, shaking her head. 'Sky, you're my friend, I'm not here to judge you. I'm hear to be eyes and ears when needed. And now I'm going to be a mouth. Don't contact Mark until we're back in England and if you're even considering taking him back then everything with Zed needs to stop, right now. No more mushy looks, which you can't deny as Nate and I have seen them, and no more flirting.'

'Flirting?!' I widened my eyes.

She tutted at me. 'You might not realise it, my dear, but you are a terrible flirt. In fact, you both are. But seriously, are you considering taking Mark back because that's going to change the rest of this holiday?'

I wrinkled my nose. 'No. He dumped me and ran off with his pretty, skinny-minnie ex. I'm not dealing with that again.'

'Good, I'd be the same.' She smiled at me. 'In which case you're onto your second important question; do you or do you not like Zed Benedict? And don't you dare lie to me.' I didn't say anything, but my cheeks did the talking by burning red. 'Well, I guess that answers that one then.' She pulled out her make-up bag. 'I guess then we're onto part 3; operation win Zed's heart.'

I'd brought two cocktail dresses with me and the ballgown that I planned on wearing to the incredibly fancy black tie NYE ball a few days later, so my wardrobe for Karla's party was limited. Lucy liked the black dress but in the end I'd chosen the red as I remembered Zed liked that colour on me; he had told me more than once, in amongst compliments. The red dress was strapless with a sweetheart neckline and a tight bodice, flowing out at the waist into a circle skirt with netting underneath for extra volume. It fell just above my knees and looked perfect with the black court shoes I'd packed to wear. We'd left my hair curly and down, only pinning back a few strands like had been done for the Christmas party and my make-up was enough to make my eyes pop. Lucy added a little bit of lippy too, just a shade darker than my natural colour to make my lips more plump. She wasn't very subtle at the best of times. She wore a sequinned bodycon dress with three-quarter sleeves which fell just above the knee and made her an instant glamourpuss. Her hair was down with a few curls, thanks to her curling tongs, and she'd applied the 50s make-up that she loved wearing to parties, as I now knew.

Music turned on in the living room and Lucy raised her eyebrows. 'It must be party time, shall we?'

I laughed at her formality as she held her arm out for me as my brother did when we were at swanky parties together. 'Let's just link arms, okay?' We linked our arms together and stepped out into the chalet, which had been completely rearranged. The dining table had been covered with a tablecloth and candles were decorated around it from its position closer to the wall. The kitchen was filled with buffet food, wine and champagne. The living room sofas had been completely opened up to give more floor space and a jazz band were set up by the door, playing music as guests chatted and kissed each other's cheeks.

'You look wonderful!' Karla cooed, appearing in front of us. She hugged Lucy and I and then turned to greet a guest in a suit who had just walked through the door.

'I feel like I'm back at the palace.' I blinked as a few guests looked my way, staring at me. They knew who I was, clearly.

'Only without the tiara.' Lucy nudged me in the side. 'Do we have to go and be sociable? Because most of these people are like my dad's age.'

'I guess we have to try.' I glanced over and spotted a guy and two girls about our age, chatting in the corner with their glasses of wine. I didn't want any alcohol. The thought just made me feel queasy after the previous night. I led Lucy into the middle of the room and two middle-aged guys greeted me with a bow, greeting me formally. For the first time I didn't mind. I felt in control.

'Drink?' A waitress offered us both a drink as we escaped after greeting a few people. Where were Nate and Zed anyway? They could have saved us from the awkwardness.

'Lucy!' A blonde girl with platinum, straight hair, which was almost down to the waist, waved at my friend and hurried over in her tight designer LBD. She walked over to us and I shot my friend a puzzled look, before wondering why I was surprised that she knew someone at the party. She'd known Nate for 10 years and the Benedicts for about 7 of those. Of course she knew people from their friendship circle. The blonde girl kissed my friend on both cheeks. 'You've lost weight!' She gushed. 'You look incredible.' I blinked at my friend. I'm sure she always looked incredible.

'Thanks Amy.' Lucy gave a small smile and turned to me. 'Amy, this is-'

'Her Royal Highness Princess Sky.' Amy interrupted and smiled down at me. 'Lovely to meet you.'

'And you.' I said, politely, trying not to stare at her lash extensions too much. At least I assumed they were lash extensions.

'So how do you know the Benedicts?' Amy asked me as Lucy sipped her lemonade beside me. Her wary look told me that she and Amy were hardly best friends.

'I go to school with Zed and Yves.' I replied, casually, as Zed walked into the room in tight-fitted navy formal trousers, smart brown shoes and a denim-coloured blue shirt. I bit my lip as he smiled at me. He looked good. His shirt was rolled up at the sleeves, showing his muscular arms and the outline of his muscular chest was clear through the fitted shirt too.

'I've know Zed since we were babies. Our mothers are best friends.' Amy continued in her Essex accent. Zed reached us and she pulled him into a smothering hug, kissing his cheek. 'Oh Z, it's been way too long!'

'Hey, Amz.' He replied, casually, stepping out of the hug. His eyes flicked to mine and then back to Amy. 'How are you?'

'Much better now I've seen you! How long have you been in Morzine? We could have grabbed dinner or caught a movie together.'

Of course, she must have been an ex. It was clear from the way she fluttered her eyelashes at him. She was sickeningly pretty and I suddenly felt like my red dress was a binliner. I glanced at Lucy for help, but she was busy giggling at something Nate had said. Eek.

'Since the 23rd.' Zed replied with a shrug. 'I've been pretty busy though.'

'Well what about tomorrow?' Amy suggested. 'It'll be nice to spend some time just the two of us before the New Year's ball... I'm looking forward to continuing our midnight kiss tradition.'

My stomach sank and I felt bile rise in my throat. Their midnight kiss tradition? Of course. Savannah and now this Amy girl too; Lucy had been right about Zed being a player, hadn't she? With his smooth-talking and good looks he'd almost had me too. The conversation between he and Amy continued and I disappeared onto the balcony, wrapped in my warm coat. The cold air nipped at my legs but I didn't care. I just needed some fresh air.

I looked out at Morzine below, down the hill, at its twinkling glory. Lights travelled up to the tops of the mountains where there were hotels and restaurants with a view. A few lights moved across the mountain side and I knew they were cars travelling along tracks in the completely silent valley. I let out a breath I didn't even know I'd been holding and the steam danced in front of me, obscuring my view of the valley. I hummed along to Fly Me to the Moon, which was being sang by the jazz band next year.

'Hey.' Zed's voice made me jump but I didn't turn to face him. Instead I continued to watch the valley that reminded me of something from a Christmas card. He appeared beside me, leaning against the railings. 'Sorry.'

'About what?'

'Amy.' His fingers moved gently across my coat sleeves.

'Let me guess, another ex?' I raised my eyebrows and he winced.

'We grew up together.' He said as if it was some sort of explanation. 'But it's definitely over.'

'It doesn't sound like it's over. New Year's tradition? When were you going to tell me?'

'It's an old tradition.' He frowned. 'I wasn't going to kiss her. Things are different this year.'

'But are they, Zed?' I glanced over at him now.

'Of course.' He reached for my hand, but I moved it away. 'Because now I've met my soulfinder.'

'Your mom and dad... are they each other's soulfinder?' I asked, wondering what the answer was to that question. It had been playing on my mind the past few days.

He nodded, a smile playing on my lips. 'Yeah. They're one of the lucky ones.'

'Lucky ones?'

'Not every savant finds their soulfinder in their lifetime. It's a pretty rare occurance.' His eyes softened as they met mine and I saw a pinky aura around him; it couldn't be love, could it?

'I'm not sure I believe it all.' I told him. 'It's pretty far-fetched.'

'You can see emotions, right?' He ran a hand through his hair and I wanted to do the same but stopped myself. 'Am I lying?'

My eyes flicked over at him and the aura that still surrounded him like a weird shadow or outline. 'No.'

'See.' He patted his coat pocket and stuck his hand inside. 'I've still not given you your Christmas present. I was waiting for the right moment but I guess that didn't come.' He pulled out a royal blue jewellery box and held it out to me.

'You didn't have to get me anything.' I replied, my heart hammering against my chest.

'I wanted to.' He gave a small smile. 'I know I don't have the best track record when it comes to girls and I know for you that must be difficult, but I want you to know I'm serious. I'm not going to hurt you, I promise.'

'Don't make promises that can't be kept or you'll be just as bad as Marcus.'

His eyes softened again and he took my hand, placing the box in it. 'I'm not going to hurt you like he did. You deserve better than that.' His eyes flicked to look at the box, expectantly, and then back up to my face. He wanted me to open it. I carefully opened the box and found myself looking at a delicate silver chain with a tiny circle pendant on it. The circle had a star cut out and compass directions engraved into it. 'To remind you that you can always find me.' He smiled. 'I know it sounds really cheesey and ick, I'm not into that stuff so it's somewhat ironic I guess.'

'It's lovely, thank you.' And I meant it. 'Can you help me put it on?'

He looked surprised but nodded, taking the necklace carefully out of the box and standing himself behind me. He gently pushed my hair to the side and I felt his breath tickle my neck as he fastened the chain carefully around it. My heart thudded as his fingers gently stroked the chain and my skin around it, sending goosebumps down my spine. He placed a gentle kiss against my cheek and then I couldn't take it anymore.

Kiss me. I said as his breath and lips gently grazed my ear. He placed a hand on my waist and turned me to face him, his other hand in my hair, pushing my head gently towards his. I closed my eyes, ready for his lips on mine and his nose brushed mine.

'Sky!' Lucy's voice interrupted and I groaned inwardly as I opened my eyes. She came out of the door and blushed when she saw what she'd interrupted. 'Ah, sorry. Zed, your dad's looking for you and Sky, I was worried where you'd got off to but I guess things were okay after all...'

Zed released me and gave me a small smile. I'll catch you later. He disappeared back into the building.

I turned to face my best friend and glared. 'Way to interrupt a moment.'