CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO: Happy New Year

"Be right back, guys," I say, walking down the hall to my room. Lizzie, Corrin, and a few of my other friends are at our apartment for New Year's Eve. It's almost midnight, and I want to take a picture right when the ball drops. I scrounge around my desk for my camera, which is apparently buried under an entire semester's worth of paper. Just as I find it, my computer dings.

"What in the..." I say, turning to check it. It's a Skype call from Jerome.

Hmm. Okay. This is kind of a weird time, but whatever. I answer it, expecting the unexpected.

"JEROME SHE PICKED UP," Mitch yells. I wince and turn down my volume.

"Hi Mitch," I say, laughing slightly. Jerome stumbles in wearing a pair of 2015 glasses.

"Hey Jerome," I say.

"HAPPY NEW YEAR'S!" they shout.

"Happy New Year," I reply, smiling. "You guys are hella drunk right now, aren't you?"

"HELL YEAH!" They shout together. I wince again.

"Y'all motherfuckers are loud," I say.

"Sorry," Mitch whispers. Jerome suddenly looks very distressed, grabbing Mitch's shirt.

"Dood. DOOD. I gotta go find Louise. It's almost midnight, I gotta kiss her," he says. He stumbles out of the room into the semidark beyond.

"Don't impale her with your nose," I say just a few seconds too late. Mitch laughs overly hard.

"That was funny," he says.

"Funny enough that you'd piss your pants?" I ask, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah," he says.

"Well, you did, so…"

"No I didn't."

"Mitch, look at your pants," I say, eyeing the dark spot on his jeans and laughing.

"Oh. Well, fuck me."

"Someone will, I guarantee it," I say. I hear Lizzie calling my name from the living room.

"Be right there!" I call back. I turn my attention back to the computer. "Hey, be careful tonight, okay? Don't do anything stu- OH FOR THE LOVE OF PANCAKES, MITCH!"

"What?" he says from the corner, where he is partway through taking off his pants.

"WHAT THE FLYING FUCK ARE YOU DOING?"

"I peed myself, so I'm changing my pants. Jerome keeps extra pants in here."

"You're just… I… okay. Whatever. Be careful. Have fun. I gotta go."

"But-"

"Kiss Ashley. Kiss Jerome. Kiss everyone but don't get diseases. LOVE YOU BYE," I say, ending the call before he can react. I grab my camera and run out to the living room just in time to snap a picture of everybody else kissing someone as fireworks go off on the TV. Corrin wanders out of the bathroom a few seconds later.

"Happy New Year," he says, punching me playfully.

"Happy New Year," I reply, kicking him back weakly. I lean against the wall and try to ignore the feelings of loneliness threatening to replace my holiday enthusiasm.

-oO0Oo-

*MITCH'S POV*

I don't remember much about New Year's Eve. The few things that do come back are kinda hazy. I remember hugging Ashley a lot and just being really glad that she was there. I remember wanting to kiss her at midnight and then chickening out. I also remember calling Lily a few minutes before to wish her a happy New Year. That's actually the last thing I remember before I woke up this afternoon on Jerome's bedroom floor. In his pants.

I really hope I didn't do anything I'll regret.

I wander out to the kitchen, stepping over various passed-out people. I scrounge around the cabinets, trying to find cereal.

"Ohhhh yes," I say when I finally find the right one. "Come to papa."

"Found what you're looking for?" a voice says from behind me. I jump, startled.

"Yeah," I say, grabbing a box and turning around. "Want some?" I say, shaking the box in Ashley's direction.

"Nah, I'm good," she says. "Already ate like an entire package of Oreos."

I laugh. Her accent is so fricking cute.

"Breakfast of Champions," I say, finding a bowl.

"Breakfast of Champions," she repeats. I turn around and grab the milk from the fridge.

"So I have to ask," I say, turning back and shutting the door. Ashley's eyes flick up like she was caught checking out my ass and I repress a smile. She stops biting her lip and asks me what.

"Did I do anything too reckless last night?" I ask. She laughs.

"Well, if you count tying your pants to a broom and waving them like a piss-stained flag as reckless, then yes," she says, giggling. I facepalm.

"I really did that?" I ask, looking at her through my fingers.

"No. But you did drag your pants very conspicuously through the living room about half an hour after midnight."

"I am so sorry you had to see that," I say, my cheeks heating up.

"I'm not. It was funny." We lapse into silence, me eating my cereal and her staring out the window. I get about halfway through the bowl before she talks again.

"Louise put the smackdown on Jerome last night," she says.

"Really? Why?"

"He was getting a little friendly in front of everyone."

"Oh. That makes sense." Louise isn't real big on PDA.

"Like, really friendly," she says.

"Oh. Oh," I say. I'd forgotten how Jerome acts when he's drunk. "Kinda glad I don't remember that." I really hope I didn't do anything either. I know I'm not the smartest when I'm drunk, either.

"I almost put the smackdown on you, actually," she says. I can feel the blood draining from my face. I have a feeling that I screwed up big time.

"What did I do?" I ask.

"You were getting really loud and like, shouting things at people," she says. I let out the breath I didn't realize I was holding.

"Oh thank God. I was worried it was something else."

"Like what?" she asks, looking at me innocently.

"Nothing," I say. I put my bowl in the sink.

Nothing at all.

A/N TIME! (DON'T KILL ME PLZ): Hey guys! QD here with a super-late update. I am so, so sorry about the lateness of this update. I promise I won't let it go this long again without warning you guys first. That being said, I do have somewhat of an excuse. My school just got out on June 10th, so I kind of took the week after that to just relax (and watch Supernatural, but that's not important). Also, I left the Sunday after for Florida for a week. I actually typed this chapter while there, but I didn't want to post it from down there because of crappy internet and storage reasons and stuff. Additionally, I was totally wrong about June 11th being the 6-month anniversary. It's actually July 11th. I'm just bad at counting. HOWEVER; I am preparing something special for the 6-month anniversary. You guys are gonna love it, I promise! Anyway, here's the facts!

-Something getting buried on my desk is a real threat. I am a neat freak about everything but my room, locker, and other everyday workspaces.

-FOR THE LOVE OF PANCAKES. I like pancakes.

-The whole 'not having someone to kiss at midnight' thing is something that would definitely happen to me. Livin' that single pringle life.

-I am not a lover of PDA. Unless it's hugging. Then I will hug everyone forever.

And the fictions:

-I would not be able to consume an entire box of Oreos like Ashley says she does. I really wouldn't.

-The person I based Corrin off of has a girlfriend, and would therefore have someone to kiss at midnight. Unlike single pringle over here.

I think that about covers it! Thank you guys so much for all of your reading/reviewing/etc. I can't say it enough; you beautiful individuals are my inspiration. Y'all are why I keep doing what I'm doing. The amount of views you have given me is absolutely mind-blowing, and all I can give you in return is a chapter and a thank you (and my special six-month project' but that's not important right now). Much luv and internet hugs!

-Quiet Defiance

PS - I set up a Twitter account so that you guys can be always in the know on where I'm at as far as updates go. Follow me at gracefulhappens! If you forget, I put it in my bio as well :)

PPS - Possible Merome one-shots coming up in the future ;)