Happy New Year everyone!
So um, the second half of this chapter was written while I was really tired and it probably doesn't make any sense but anyway, Enjoy!
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While we pressed and held various buttons on our game controllers, neither of us realised that the colour of the sky was fading from an orangey grey, to midnight blue. In fact, it wasn't until when Jay peeped through the door to notify us that dinner was being served, that we actually dropped our controllers and took in our surroundings.
I glanced outside Louis' frosty fogged up window to see pitch black, with a few glistening stars here and there. Just when I was about to turn back towards Louis, I caught sight of a single snowflake, delicately fluttering past the pane of glass, before resting on the sill and melting away.
I turn back to Louis, who was currently winding up the wires over the controllers so that they can neatly fit in a small box labelled 'Controllers'. The handwriting on the label appeared too feminine to belong to Louis, and judging by the state of his room, I didn't think he was very organised, so I guessed that Jay must've created the box for him. He placed the second controller in the box before our gazes turned mutual.
"Right, well, we should head downstairs then." he said.
His voice wasn't as bubbly as it was when we had first met, but I suspected it was because I beat him in Fifa 5-3. He was upset about it, me being a seemingly innocent girl and all, but he kept coming up with excuses, like 'I went easy on you because I wasn't expecting you to be that good' or 'I swear they make it so Manchester United automatically play better than any other team, regardless of the skill the other player has.' The former offended me a little but I didn't say anything, instead, let a breezy laugh escape my lips.
Louis headed towards the door and pulled back the plain piece of wood, revealing an empty hallway.
"After you." he said and gestured me towards the open doorway.
I tried to play along by attempting to do a curtsey, but it didn't really have a full effect, as I wasn’t wearing a skirt or a dress. Out in the open it was cold. This part of the house mustn’t’ve been heated. I wrapped my arms around my torso as I paced down the stairs, Louis following close behind. It was much warmer downstairs, and the most likely reason behind it was the fact that there were six to seven people located there, and all the body heat plus the heater created a warm atmosphere.
The lounge was deserted. The only signs of life were a T.V, left on the New Year's Special programme and a magazine left open at the horoscopes section. But in the next room it was bursting with life. Six people were sat at a long narrow table while Jay entered the room, wearing two oven mitts as she carried a dish of what seemed to be lasagne, and placed it on the table.
There were three empty seats; one was by itself and placed next to mum, so I imagined it must’ve belonged to Jay, the other two were facing opposite each other at the end of the table. The two vacant seats were right next to the burning fireplace, which would crackle every few seconds. Louis and I took our seats and began serving components of Jay's mini feast onto our plates. I glanced at the clock that's hanging just above the fire place. 7.50 it read. There were roughly four more hours left before it was officially 2010.
It’s funny how years work. 2010 seemed like such a big number now, but by this time next year we would all have gotten used to 2010 and 2011 would appear as such a large number.
In all honesty, I wasn't expecting to spend New Year's Eve with a bunch of people I hardly knew. The gang back home were all going to meet up at Leigh's, as we usually would. Leigh knew a lot of people through activities she did, so whenever she threw a party a ton of people would always make an appearance.
That was usually the way the gang met their boyfriends, through Leigh's parties. Well, all except me. Not to sound conceited, but it wasn't because I was ugly or anything, guys did approach me, it was the fact that whenever they attempted to flirt with me I would push them away.
Louis stabbed his fork into the crispy layer of lasagne and cut through it with his knife. I decided I would make a start on my plate too. The food was delicious. I went back for seconds. And thirds.
When everyone's plate had been cleared, we all kind of sat at the table awkwardly, muttering small complements regarding the food, expecting someone to strike up a conversation. No one did for about half a minute so Jay and mum saw it as the perfect opportunity to gather everyone's plates and scrub them in the sink. When mum collected my plate she glanced at Louis, then back at me before giving me a sly wink. I narrowed my eyes at her before she disappeared off into the kitchen. Did I find Louis attractive? Yes. But look at him; of course he had a girlfriend.
My attention was bought back to Louis as a small yawn had just escaped his lips. He started to stretch his arms out over the back of his head. I noticed that by doing this, his navy blue knitted jumper was rising, revealing a small section of his stomach. To be honest, I thought it was very attractive, and found myself inconspicuously staring at his tanned stretch of skin. He rose off his seat.
"Jessica, c'mon," he nodded his head in the direction of the stairs. I scooted out of my chair and followed him up the stairs and into his room "We still have over three hours before the big moment, so what do you want to do? Fifa rematch? Watch some movies, perhaps?"
I thought for a brief moment "How about we...get to know each other better." I suggested. I guess the reason behind it was because I wanted discover more things we had in common, prove to him that we could be great friends.
"Ok, well, where do we start?" he said and took a seat in one of the beanbags. I took a seat in the other one. For the first time in my life, I was the one that was starting the conversation. Not the other person, me. And to be truthful, it felt kind of good, like I had control over the topic of conversation.
"I want to know, what do you do other than football?" I asked, crossing my legs.
"Other than football?" he repeated and I nodded "Um, well, I like to sing. I post covers on YouTube every so often." he explained, shrugging like it was a minor detail.
“Really? I'd like to hear them!” I said enthusiastically, leaning forward with eagerness.
"Ok, I'll just boot up my computer." I noticed a small desk in the corner of his room. On it sat a white desktop monitor. He walked over to his desk and pressed the 'On' button on the computer that's located under the table. He beckoned me over.
When the internet had finally loaded, he pressed the play button, and the sound of his unique, soothing voice filled my ears as he sung 'Look After You' by The Fray, which he had mentioned to be his favourite song earlier this evening. I listened to his stunning vocals as the never changing plain red screen stayed stationary. ‘Feel free to comment!!!’, it read in white text. He watched me with an expectant and nervous expression when the video came to a close.
"Wow," was all I could saw "That was...amazing!" I breathed
"You really think so?" he asked as he closed the YouTube tab and squatted down to shut off his computer. My god, he has a nice arse. I nodded in response. "So what about you? What are your hobbies?"
That was the problem. I didn't really have any. "Um, well, I like to read, but nothing other than that."
"You ever thought about writing your own book?" he asked, guiding me back to the beanbags.
"Yeah, but I don’t think I ever will. It would probably turn out shit." I said.
"Don’t say that, I'm sure it wouldn't" I gave him a smile. "So, any skills? Anything you’re really good at?" he prompted. I scanned my brain, but again that was the problem. I didn't have any skills. I slowly started to shake my head. Louis noticed this "You have to be good at something.”
"Honestly, I'm not good at anything" I admitted. Louis gave me a stare that pressured me to admit a skill of mine, so I searched my brain again. I thought of something, but I wasn’t entirely certain it could be classified as a skill, as I wasn’t sure if I was any good. "Well, I sketch in my free time."
"That's cool. You'll have to show me your drawings sometime."
Sometime. Did 'Sometime' mean that we would see each other again, after New Year's is over? "And," I began "I sometimes sing as well. But the only person I've performed in front of is my mum. She says I'm good, but she kind of has to say that, doesn't she?"
"Well that's all about to change," he started.
"What?" I asked, confused.
"Sing." he ordered. I shook my head reluctantly. I wasn’t prepared to sing in front of Louis, someone I'd only known for a few hours "Go on, sing."
"Louis I—"
"I want to hear you." he interrupted my protest. I shook my head firmly "How will you ever know if you're good if you don't show people?" he asked. I thought about his words. He was making a lot of sense. If I didn't express myself, no one would ever know of my talents. "Look, if you don't want to sing, that's fine."
A wave of confidence washed over me. "No, I'll sing. Uh, Wonderwall by Oasis, yeah?" I said quickly. I then cleared my throat and unravelled my navy blue scarf before singing the lyrics
"Today is gonna be the day that they're gonna throw it back to you. By know you should've somehow realised what you gotta do. I don't believe that anybody, feels the way I do about you now." I took a breath and noticed that Louis was beaming. I felt a smile creeping up on my own lips "Back beat, the word is on the street that the fire in your heart is out. I'm sure you've heard it all before but you've never really had a doubt. I don't believe that anybody, fells the way I do, about you know.”
Louis suddenly joined in for the pre-chorus "And all the roads we have to walk are winding. And all the lights that lead us there are blinding. There are so many things I would like to say to you but I don't know how," Our voices harmonised well together, to be truthful.
"Because maybe, you're gonna be the one that saves me. Because after all, you're my Wonderwall." We both finished off the chorus, smiling.
"You're really good." he praised "Like, seriously, you should join the choir or audition for the school musical or something."
"I'm not that good."
"You are." he insisted, eyes solemn.
A silence followed. I glanced at the small alarm clock perched on Louis' bed-side table. 9.00. Only three more hours.
"How about that Fifa rematch?" he asked
"Yeah, just after I use the bathroom."
"Ok, there's one downstairs, next to the kitchen." he informed me before I left, shut ting the door tightly behind me.
I walked down the stairs and thought of all the events that had just occurred in Louis small bedroom. I had not only gained the confidence to begin a conversation with him, but I'd also sung in front of him. Plus, he said I was good, and that I should join the choir or audition for the musical. It felt pleasing to know that someone actually thinks you have talent and potential. And, you know, isn’t your own mother.
I reached the bathroom door but just as I was about to twist the knob, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned around to find my mother, standing there. She nodded her head towards the kitchen, signalling me to follow her. I did so. I leaned against an island bench while my mother dried off all the cleaned dishes with a purple tea towel.
"So, how's Louis?" she asked with a smirk on her face. One of the things I disliked about my mother was the fact that she thought she was the 'cool mum'.
"He's a potential friend." I answered, discovering the real meaning behind her question.
"Nothing more?"
"No. I mean, look at him. He probably has a girlfriend. And he would never have interest in a girl like me?"
"Don't be so pessimistic." she said as she placed a dried plate onto the counter "You're beautiful." She gave me a kiss on the forehead, and with that, I left.
I returned to the bathroom and did my business in peace before pacing up the stairs. Outside Louis' room I could hear the Fifa game soundtrack. He must've already booted up the console in my absence. I opened the door to find that the screen was stationary on the 'Pick Teams' menu. It said that Player 1 was Manchester United and it was Player 2's turn to pick their team.
"Manchester United is not automatically better than any other team!" I whined as I picked up my controller.
"Prove it." he stated, and I was left with nothing to say, because the only proof was common sense. But that wouldn't convince him.
* * *
"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one, HAPPY NEW YEAR!" we all chanted as we sat around the television. A spectacular display of the London fireworks began on the screen as everyone went around hugging each other. After all exchanges were finished, we sat back down and watched the presentation of vibrant sparks dancing through the pitch black sky.
The display came to a close and it crossed back to the two presenters, discussing how amazing the fireworks were. A silence spread across the lounge as the special event programme came to an end. It seemed about the right time for everyone to say goodbye and depart to their own houses when suddenly, one of the twins spoke rather loudly.
"Did you hear that?" she asked
"What?" various other people wondered
Then, the sound of a firework going off was heard. It was so loud that it could've been launched from just outside the house.
"Let's go see!" said the same twin. Jay picked her up in her arms and carried her outside. Surprisingly, no one else followed.
Louis stood up from the patchwork arm chair he was seated on and glanced at me. He nodded his head to the backdoor and I followed him outside to watch the local fireworks with him.
The display had nothing on London, but the fact that they were close made it equally as special. They weren't multi coloured, just yellow, and they left the sky with clouds of smoke that polluted the air. But other than that, they were incredible.
The twin yawned and Jay took he back inside, probably to tuck her into bed, as it was already midnight. It left Louis and I alone.
Louis sat down on a patch of grass and patted the area next to him. I planted myself there and wrapped my arms around my knees as I watched the presentation continue.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" he commented, eyes reflecting the blazing yellow light perfectly
"Yeah." I said in agreement
I sensed his gaze on me and turned to meet his eyes. They were locked on me, and suddenly closer than I remembered them to be a few seconds ago. He was advancing, and I was too caught up in the sound of the up close, real life fireworks to even process what was happening. Suddenly, it all became clear when he bit his lip, asking. I caught on and gave him a small smile, and then his eyes were fluttering closed, lips puckering and hand moving up to hold my cheek in place. He was almost there, about to kiss me, until—
"Jessica," my mum interrupted, emerging from the back door with her hand bag underneath her shoulder. I jerked away, praying that my mum hadn’t seen us caught up in each other like that. "Time to leave."
I stood up from my position on the lawn. Louis followed my actions, so I was face to face with him.
"I guess this is goodbye then." I said to him, wishing my sentence was false.
"Yeah," he stuck his hands in his pockets and gave me a warm smile, almost acting as if the almost kiss never happened. "See ya round at school, ok?"
I nodded. Mum was waiting by the car, waiting for me to finish up. I waved Louis one last goodbye for the night before tearing myself away, opening the car door and siting in the passenger seat. My mum started the ignition and the car was brought to life. As mum started to drive down the street I spied Louis, still standing on the lawn, one hand still stuck in his pocket, the other waving me goodbye.
It wasn't until we pulled up at my house that I realised I had left my navy blue scarf in Louis' bedroom.
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