Happy New Year, Darling!

I saw the Christmas tree lit in our living room window, which meant that my husband beat me home. That explains why he spent the last hour blowing up my phone. As soon as I got the door closed behind me my purse slipped off my shoulder and about collapsed. Arms slid around my waist and I fell back into the chest of my awaiting husband, “Are you okay, darling?”

“I’m alright, I just had a really long day.” I turned in his arms to address him more directly when I noticed that he was in a tuxedo. “OH NO,” I gasped.

“What?” He bent a little so he could search my eyes. Involuntary tears were welling up and I wanted to kick myself.

“I missed the benefit!” The Broadway New Year’s Benefit Ball is the one event a year that I always accompany him. “I am so sorry.” Due to my fatigued state and honest remorse, the tears broke their dam leaving hot trails down my cheeks.

“Oh no, babe, you’re okay,” he tried to reassure me. I grabbed his wrist to get a good look at his watch and noticed it was only 10 p.m. and the benefit usually lasted until midnight of New Year’s Eve. He hooked his finger under my chin and forced me to look at him. “You said that you had an emergency at the diner. I came home early so I could spend the evening with you.” He looked me over as if he were trying to find any scrapes or bruises, but when he focused in on my eyes I knew he found what he was looking for. “How long have you had that headache?”

His eyes were so brilliant compared to the glassy-eyed look I probably sported. I smirked, and wrapped my arms around his neck, “I hate that you can tell so quickly.”

“Five years of marriage, baby. Now, how long?”

“Since Noon.”

“Medication?”

“Didn’t think about it until it was too late.” He didn’t hesitate and began walking me toward the stairs. I caught a glimpse of something on the coffee table.

“What—”

“Not important right this second.” He interrupted. “We are going to get you into something comfortable and then we are going to get you some meds.” I just obeyed as we took the stairs.

Laying on our bed was a set of red and green plaid pajamas. The top was set on my side of the bed with a pair of shorts, and the bottom sat on his side with a grey Harvard t-shirt. I giggled, “You have a whole night planned for us, don’t you?”

“Not if you aren’t up to it,” he reassured me. He kissed my head before disappearing into the bathroom. There is no way I am missing our New Year’s kiss. I moved to my pajamas and began slipping into them. Peeling away the grim of today’s disaster felt incredibly lifting, even my head felt a bit better. He appeared with a shot of water and medicine. He stopped short as he took in my outfit. I had slipped on my lace tank top and opened a button or two to show off. The shorts were my gray pajama bottoms that I normally wear but thanks to the cut of the top they were barely peeking out from underneath. 

I could see the love radiating from his eyes, but I still saw the question of concern. I nodded with a bright smile, “I am sure.”

He handed me the cup and pills, then proceeded to get dress himself. His costume change took a tad longer because he was dealing with a tux and all of the accessories that come with it, so I made myself comfortable on the bed and enjoyed the show. He told me about the party and passed on everyone’s love and sadness at my absence. Once he was done redressing he joined me on the bed.

He sighed as he turned to me with a grin, “Are you sure you don’t want to just stay right here and get an early start on sleep?”

“And miss the lovely evening that it looks like you had planned? No way!” I leaned in to kiss his nose. “Now lead the way, sir.”

He growled but obeyed. He came around the bed to help me up and led me down the stairs. The living room had been slightly rearranged. The coffee table was tilted so that it was facing both the already lit fireplace and the tree, and on top of it was a large array of candy and frosting and two pre-built gingerbread houses. The couch was pushed back a bit and the cushions were arranged on the floor for us. He deposited me in front of one of the houses, then quickly turned the light off and the holiday music on.

“Liam,” I whispered. “This is a beautiful idea.”

He blushed, “I can’t take all the credit. Your gingerbread house last year gave me the idea, and I wanted to do one with you. So I thought, what not make it a new tradition for us?”

“I love it!” I pulled him in for a quick kiss. Once I focused back on the decorations the groggy wheels of my brain began to move and I could feel the headache start to subside a bit. He chuckled, I must look focused. 

“I am going to get us some drinks,” he announced. “You go ahead and get started.”

He wasn’t gone long, or maybe he was… I didn’t really pay attention. Once he sat in front of his house he became just as determined. There were a couple of moments when we would remember the other was there and would try to playfully sabotage, but when that ended up with me having to redo my roof patterns twice we called a truce and settled for knee brushes and the occasional shoulder push. 

About an hour into our decorating I caught him looking at his watch. The clock above the fireplace read 11:50 p.m. He set a timer on his phone and went back to his house. It made me smile, knowing that my husband didn’t want to miss our midnight kiss any more than I did, but he had set the timer for five minutes prior to the stroke of midnight. Five minutes went by a lot faster than either of us had anticipated. His phone alarm rang and he jumped to his feet. 

He took a second to change the song and came back to me. The intro began and I knew immediately what was about to happen. “May I have this dance?”

“You may,” I grabbed his hand so he could help me to my feet. The song was one of my favorites: an instrumental version of What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve? Liam pulled me into his arms and began to sway. I closed my eyes and just followed the rhythm my husband set. All the anger and frustration from the day melted away with each step. My tension and pain dissipated when Liam joined in with the lyrics. My world felt safe and warm, nothing would ruin a moment like this.

The clock began to strike midnight and I looked into Liam’s loving eyes, and whispered, “Happy New Year, Darling.”

He pulled me in for the perfect searing midnight kiss.

Until Next Time,

Peace Out Lovers!