Thank you for the reviews! This chapters a long one but its a good one! (hopefully)

This chapter marks the first mention of Alex's new friend, Ellie Nash! (I always thought they should have been the best of friends on the show.)

This is a Allie chapter (Alex and Ellie – friendship, merging into the lovely Jalex (lurve!) at the end! Yay!)

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing!

Chapter Eight: Happy New Year

December 2001 into January 2002
Alex: 13
Jay: 14

Alex had always figured Christmas was the most important event to fall in December.

She was wrong. December 31st through January 1st, otherwise known as New Years.

Christmas had come and gone like the disappointing flash in the pan it always was. But Alex was unaware of the revelations New Years would bring. There was to be a huge get together at the trailer park for New Years. The place was decked out with the same mediocre, crappy decorations from Christmas. A huge tent had been placed right in the middle, where the picnic tables usually were. Inside was DJ decks, tables for sitting at and a currently empty trestle table for the food. Alex wasn't looking forward to it at all.

She spent the morning and afternoon of New Years Eve hanging out with Ellie. Ellie was in her grade at school, and she was a bit of an oddball. Her red hair was punkish and crazy. Crimped, half up half down, chunks spiked, you get the picture. She dressed weird. Off the shoulder shirts, fishnet tights, bulky black shoes. Her bold make up followed the same pattern. But she and Alex got on like a house on fire. No-one ever expected that.

Alex and Ellie had been friends for a good few months, but only recently had they became close. Alex needed someone as a replacement for Jay's company. At first, that's what Ellie had been, and only that, but now she was becoming a true friend. They were both messed up in the head, and the more they shared the more they found out they'd been through so much of the same shit. Ellie's mom was an alcoholic. Her dad was away ten months of the year fighting for the country in Afghanistan. Her mom's drunken negligence was almost a mirror of Emily's child upbringing skills. Ellie had never told anyone any of this stuff before, they were her deepest darkest secrets. But somehow she felt Alex deserved to know she understood how Emily and whatever boyfriend she had that week treated Alex like crap. Emily had no idea on how to raise kids. Alex was a mistake, and by the time Emily discovered she was pregnant, it was too late to abort. It was quite an amazing feat that Alex hadn't been born with some nasty disease or illness, the drinking Emily did during her pregnancy.

Despite Ellie spilling her guts to Alex about her disastrous home life, there was one thing that Ellie was not willing to share with her new friend just yet. Something that no-one but she knew about. As a method of coping with the stress, Ellie cut her wrists. She had been doing so for nearly six months and she had no intention of stopping. It was such a release for her; the pain, the adrenaline, the rush. As the blade pierced her skin and blood sprung up in its course, she felt a little bit better. At school, she wore long wrist cuffs that covered her scars. She flicked an elastic band round her wrist. She kept it hidden, did it in secret. It would be enough to give the game away.

- - - -

Alex and Ellie spent the beginning part of the morning sat at the ravine sharing a cigarette. Jay had left her with a 20 deck and she had two left, discluding the current one. She had to be careful and resourceful now.

"Oh, say Ellie, do you wanna stay for this New Years thing tonight?" Alex asked, exhaling smoke and savoring the taste in her lungs and throat.

Ellie took a moment before replying. She thought forward to what her mom would be doing as the clock struck midnight in a little over thirteen hours from now. Passed out drunk on the couch.

"Sure, sounds good."

Portland International Airport was a scary place to be alone in. Luckily, the wait between being dropped off and getting on the plane wasn't too bad. In Ontario, the trains from Mississauga to Toronto ran every half an hour.

Mid-afternoon, Alex and Ellie started getting ready for the shindig that was soon approaching. Ellie scragged her fiery red hair into bunches on the top of her head. That seemed simple, and Alex wondered what they were gonna do for three hours, until Ellie turned around brandishing the hair crimper's. Slowly but surely, she began to iron kinks into her hair, strand by strand. Alex let out a small laugh, and decided to focus on her make up more than her hair. She'd mastered eyeliner and mascara really well for a thirteen year old. The faint echo of Nathaniel telling her make up made her look like a skank kicked around in her head and she coated her lashes thickly, but she let it pass her by. He was gone and thankfully hadn't been back. She didn't have to answer to him; if she wanted to wear lots of make up and smoke cigarettes then she would.

She smoothed over her olive skin with foundation, applied lashings of black mascara and coated her full lips with clear gloss. She smacked her lips together in the mirror and made a kissing motion.

Ellie looked at her sideways and laughed at her. Ellie didn't get it. She was dating this guy Marco in her grade, Alex didn't think much of the little squirt. Seriously, Alex was just thirteen years old and she was already taller than him. He was in eighth grade just like her, as well!

Ellie's make up was as different to Alex as her clothes were. She had bright red lipstick on, black eyeliner, black eyeshadow and black mascara.

"Jesus, El, could ya fit any more black around your eyes?" Alex asked in disbelief as Ellie put yet another coat of black eyeliner around her eyes.

Alex and Ellie stepped out half an hour later all ready to party. Alex wore a pink and orange stripe tank top and black khaki's with her usual Adidas running shoes. Ellie was a long streak of black and red. Clumpy, heavy black shoes, red fishnets, a red tartan skirt, black and red top and a spiked choker collar round her neck. Her hands were covered in rings and colored plastic bracelets laced their way up her long, skinny arms.

"Ready to rock this joint?" Alex smiled devilishly as they made their way through the crowds of people.

It was getting dark, the temperature had dropped and when he breathed out, condensation billowed in the form of cloudy air. He was past the phase on the train where he was hoping he was headed in the right direction. He knew where he was going now. He had at least two more miles to walk before he reached Toronto, then getting to the trailer park took about ten minutes. He just hoped to God that Alex was in. Coming all this way for her not to be there would be a real kick in the balls.

A man approaching him wearing a leather coat with long straggly greasy hair and his pockets stuffed deep in his pockets was approaching. He subconsciously cautioned up as he got closer. He put his head down and picked up the pace. The man passed him by, wafting the familiar fumes of whiskey. That smell took him back to his dad coming in every night from the bar, stinking of whiskey and cigar smoke, to beat his mom senseless, and kick him until he had no energy left to fight back.

Alex and Ellie arrived at the party and immediately had a Smirnoff Ice thrust in their hands. Alex sipped cautiously. She'd never had a very positive attitude toward alcohol, and she probably never would. Although they were the same, Ellie swigged from her bottle as if her life depended on it. It blew Alex's mind how different people had different ways of dealing with the same issues.

"Well, this music is whack!" Ellie mused, shouting to Alex over the heavy techno beat that was ripping out of the speakers.

"Whatever, El!" Alex screamed back. "You can crawl back into your hole next year!" Alex was malicious, but she did it in a friendly way. If that made any sense.

Upon his nine-thirty arrival in Mississauga, he then had to wait 45 minutes for the train. The cold air blew through the station as he sat alone under the arrival/departure boards. After twenty two minutes of sheer boredom, he lit up a cigarette. This was his only one. He savored every last drag.

Alex and Ellie sat together alone. The majority of people here were older teenagers, like eighteen or nineteen, or adults. The only kids slightly near to them in age was a kid two years younger than Alex and Ellie, called Lucas Valieri and his sister Anastasia. They were both Lakehurst kids, so Alex automatically distanced herself from them as a result of this.

Ellie drummed her fingers on the table surface. Seven empty Smirnoff Ice bottles were scattered on the table. If they were neat Vodka not Smirnoff laced with sugar and flavors, Alex would've sworn her mom was in the vicinity.

"I'm officially bored! Can we go?" Ellie whined.

"No!" Alex looked behind her to the time being projected onto the wall of the tent. "It's not even ten! We've gotta stay til midnight! We crashed this party, we can't be the party poopers than leave before midnight!"

"Ugh, fine!" Ellie took another glug of her drink and looked around, Alex noticed her eyes drooping and looking heavy.

Midnight was soon approaching. Thirty three minutes and it would be 2002. Alex took this last half hour to reflect on what 2001 had bought her. Nothing but bad memories, she thought to herself. Death, destruction and Jay being taken away from her. Apart from the amazing kiss they'd shared just before he'd upped and left for Portland, nothing stood out in her memory as being a moment worth remembering.

"I need the toilet!" Ellie shook Alex's arm, snapping her out of her daydream.

- - - - -

Alex walked Ellie – literally walked her, five Smirnoff Ices had taken it out of her – to her house so Ellie could use the bathroom. Alex stood outside and waited. She scanned the area. The tall trees dipped their fronds down so low, they wavered in the cool evening breeze, and the movement kinda

freaked Alex out. She looked over toward the gates and thought she was a figure stood there. She blinked again and the figure seemingly had disappeared.

- - - - -

"Let's go back to the party!" Ellie ordered enthusiastically as she came bounding out of the bathroom toward the door. Alex had never seen her look so enthused about anything.

He stood at the gates of the trailer park and heard the heavy bass beats pumping out into the night sky. He never expected that the trailer park people would actually make the effort to celebrate in style for once. But this year New Years was being welcomed with open arms. By most.

It was gut wrenchingly difficult for Jay to be back here. He hadn't been around these parts since his mom died, and it was like her ghost was haunting him as he saw every corner and every lane that his mom had once occupied. It was just like before, except now he was on his own. A ward of the state. No mom, no dad. The only family were in America.

His feet felt heavy, like he had lead weights attached to his sneakers. The small rucksack he had his bits and pieces in was growing heavy on his back. He wanted to go in, but he'd suddenly come across very nervous. And that was a new experience. Jay Hogart never got nervous. He'd lived through years of abuse, but he never got scared. But now, faced with the daunting task of returning to the place where he'd lost it all, he'd become rooted to the ground.

He grabbed the gate and jumped over. He couldn't get in anymore, his keys had been handed over when he moved to Oregon. He was in. Step one was over. Now to actually walk toward the merrymaking.

Back from their bathroom break, they had just nine minutes until the countdown.

"Oh, it's almost time!" Ellie slurred drunkenly. Alex was kinda embarrassed to be seen with the lightweight drunk.

"Yeah, it sure is!" Alex enthused falsely. She wasn't looking forward to this at all.

- - - - - -

He'd made it to the party just in time for the countdown. By the time he'd plucked up enough courage to let himself in, he heard the countdown to New Years begin.

10... 9... 8... 7...

Jay grabbed the tarpaulin material across and let himself into the event. By the time he'd done this, the countdown was already at 4.

3... 2...

He scanned the surroundings, recognizing almost all the faces from his past. It had only been a matter of weeks since he left, but he felt like an intruder already. He started to panic. There was no-one here he knew, not a soul he could go to.

- - - - -

"What the hell?!" Alex said to herself, quiet enough that Ellie didn't hear her over the booming countdown. "It can't be him!"

She jumped off her seat and stood up on the chair to get a better view over all the tall heads. She looked toward the doorway. Dark clothing, backward cap, stunning eyes... broad grin. It was definitely him!

She dived off the chair and battled her way through the throngs of people to get to the door. "Jay?"

His grin broadened and he took her into his arms and held her tight.

1... Happy New Year!!

As the clock reached 00.00 hours and it became January 1st 2002, Alex was tangled up in a warm embrace with Jay. She was unsure what Ellie was doing. She didn't care. It was a bad thing to admit, but she was beyond caring. He held her so tightly, she felt she could remain in his arms for forever and a day and still not have enough of him. He placed a kiss upon her lips and Alex felt herself melting away inside. This kiss blew all the others ones out of the park.

As he pulled away, the clock had become 00.01.18, a whole one minute and eighteen seconds for the most amazing kiss so far of her life. Granted it was only the third one ever, but regardless... she didn't care.

He hugged her again and this time he literally swept her off her feet. He spun her around and carried her outside. "We can talk here. Plus, the lights are kinda nice."

"I can't believe you're back." Alex said quietly. She was sure this was a dream or a mirage or some similar suckfest.

"I came back to see you."

Wow! That was super long! Took me three days to complete! Please review, and enjoy!