When There Was Me and You

CHAPTER ONE |:| WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

The reunion always seem a bit formal, but still has a home vibe. Maybe it's because I've been celebrating with my mom for years. Parents would always bring their kids to the party and leave them to the playground so they won't get bored with adult topics. I used to be one of those kids, but not anymore.

People around my age stay on the bar side and our conversations stay pretty PG, to be honest. I pull my cardigan closer to me for warmth, feeling the coolness already after staying in here for half an hour.

"Massie?" The voice makes my heart beats faster in anticipation and I start to feel excited. A smile breaks out my face and I look around me to find the owner of the voice.

"Chrissy!" I hug my high school best friend because it has been ages since we last saw each other.

"Wow, why, how, when, where, like, huh?" My mind is struggling to find appropriate words and Chrissy laughs at my surprise.

"How are you?" Chrissy's voice fills my ears like bells and it makes me realize how much I missed her voice and her laughter.

"Well, same, still surviving college, you?" I have to refrain from over-excitement so I calm down a bit.

"I've had a few ups and downs here and there, but I'm still here, am I not?" Chrissy twirls once and we both laugh as she bounces her curls.

"Well, you've changed a lot I see, what's with the new hairstyle?" I say curiously and touch her hair.

From far away I probably look like a stalker and serial killer by touching her hair and smiling way too big and laughing way too loud, but that's pretty normal for us because we haven't seen each other in a while and I realize that a lot of things have changed.

It takes probably ten minutes of catching up and busy talking to each other before I notice that someone stands beside Chrissy.

"Babe, I was looking for you," another familiar sound rings in my ears and my smile drops slowly as I keep my eyes on Chrissy.

I refrain from asking her how they became a couple. Chrissy and I stopped communicating after eight months of college because we are both busy and hectic with schedules.

She turns to the guy and pecks him before they talk. They exchange a few words before turning their attention to me-well, Chrissy's attention to me.

"Babe, you didn't tell me that Massie was going to be here," Chrissy says and rolls her eyes as he puts her hands around his arms. My eyes finally rises slowly to his face, and I then realize that he has been avoiding looking at me the whole time, too.

"Well, we do meet here every Christmas, because my mom is Kate's high school best friend," Christian explains to her.

The way he says my mom's name brings back memories -- when he would shout her name when he arrived at my house, when he would thank her for feeding us chocolate chip cookies, when he would call the house phone and my mom would answer it, when he would apologize for making so much mess in my room-so many when's.

Thud thud, thud thud.

"Anyway, you guys never told me how you met each other." Chrissy's statement caught me by surprise. Yes, we haven't really told her how we met just because it never really crossed our minds. My mind is still on the way the couple in front of me is now holding hands and my brain is not working really well.

"We met here actually because our mothers dragged us to this party around eleven years ago?" I say, now looking at Christian with a small smile, remembering how we met.

"Eleven years and a day ago," Christian corrects me. For the first time in years, he looks me in the eyes and smiles. For that second, I felt my heart stopped beating. That smile. Those dimples.