"Dude Looks Like a Lady"

Chapter 21 Happy New Year (Crystal POV)

Chapter 21

Happy New Year

~ Crystal

Edinburgh was a labyrinth, especially in the dark. I kept calling out his name but nobody replied. Everyone was either at the gardens or in their flats having a new years bash. I wasn’t that far from the gardens and I had been running which meant Red had to be nearby too, unless he went in the other direction. I ran past an Odeon and past streets and streets of looming Victorian buildings just to end up at a meadow. My muscles ached, my heels especially, my lungs stung with each frosty breath I took and all I could do was cry over the biggest pain of all. Red where are you?

I could hear Biffy Clyro playing in the distance, a new song by the sound of it. I weakly glided over in a daze; something about the untouched snowy ground drew me in. Then it started snowing thick, hard snowflakes that fell from the sky and clung to my hair, my dress, everything. I took of my heel and gently lowered my throbbing feet one and a time onto the thick layer of snow. I gasped at the cold that sent a layer of goosebumps over my skin but the coolness of it eased the pain, well, one pain.

That’s when I saw them. Foot prints, in the snow. I looked up to where they led to, through the few bare trees scattered around I could see a figure with a weird shadow on his back that from that distance looked like it could be a giant bottle. It has to be...

I quickly took in one deep breath, dropped my heel and ran as quick as I could, ‘Red!’ I called, ‘Red!’

I got close enough so I could just make out one side of his face from the moonlight. He looked surprised to see me there and I couldn’t help noticing the stream of tears flowing down his cheek. If this is breaking your heart as much as mine, why are you doing this, Red?

‘Don’t go…’ I cried, clenching my fists and trying to brave through the cold air. My whole body was shaking.

He looked down at my bare feet then back to my face with a scared expression on his face, each word he spoke turned to fog in front of him, ‘Chris, you’ll freeze out here!’

‘I don’t care.’ I trembled, ‘Don’t go.’

He squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head, ‘Chris, I can’t do this! Being there with you- you read the note didn’t you!?’ He turned to walk away again.

‘Yeah and it was bullshit!’ I screamed. He froze and turned back to face me, looking completely confused, ‘I did love Ray. I loved him so much.’ I nodded, trying to fight back the tears, ‘But if he was still here… And I had the choice between the two of you-‘ I took a step forward but there was still a great distance between us, ‘Red- it’d be you- you every time.’ I could see him swallow down what I just said, ‘Ray wrote that song for me but I don’t think he was singing about me becoming a rock star or whatever… because that was my ambition… My fairytale, my dream… That’s you…’ I could see him struggling to find words to speak with and I couldn’t hold them back any longer, the tears came pouring out, ‘Red! I love you!’

The silence swallowed up my words but the feeling was still there. I could feel it, he could feel. I heard silence in the distance at first… Then I could hear Edinburgh- No. The whole of Scotland- no- the whole of Britain counting down to New Year. Red stared at me and I waited and waited for what felt like eternity for him to just say anything- anything at all. But he didn’t use words to say it.

‘Five.’ They chanted, Red slid his bass off his shoulder. ‘Four.’ He let it fall into the snow. ‘Three.’ He opened up his arms. ‘Two.’ He smiled through his tears. ‘One.’ I ran as fast as I could into his arms. ‘Zero.’ My dream came true.

I clung to him, his arms around my waist lifting my cold feet from the snow and our lips intertwined. Snow fell around us, but the kiss melted away both our tears and emptiness. I could see colours flash behind my closed eyes, hearing the fireworks whistle and wail through the sky and bang as the explosions scattered new constellations in the sky for a moment. I didn’t open my eyes to look at them though; I had all the fireworks I could ever need right then.

He pulled back from me and whispered with a smile, ‘Happy New Year.’

I shyly giggled and beamed back at him, ‘Happy New Year.’

He hoisted me whole body up into my arms and begun to spin around, we laughed in a wild wave of ecstasy and I forced another kiss on him just to beg him to stop. He slowly came to a stop and returned the kiss, again and again and again.

                                                 If 2012 was the end of the world, I didn’t notice.

                                              Cause I woke up in the arms of the man that I love.

(Writer's Note: I apologise that it's short and overflowing with cheese >.< but it's a happy en- Well actually there is one chapter left to write, I think you'll enjoy it ^ ^ So I'll get on and write that before time runs out for WA!!!! XO anyway, hope you enjoyed! And here is my 2nd most favourite song in the whole wide world at the side, thought it'd go well with this chapter ^ ^)