Pretty soon Christmas became no more than a memory as the New Year came along. Annie and I decided to go into the city to hang out. I’d spent every single one of the last four New Year’s Eves at Times Square, but Annie assured me that the fireworks in London were going to be at least as good.
The train was packed, but by the time we got into the city I was thinking she might be right. The mood was jubilant, thousands of people packed the streets. We grabbed some drinks, since no one seemed to really care that there was drinking in public unless they got out of hand, and started to party with some random strangers in a park along the side of the Thames until the party really got going.
Eventually, after a few drinks, Annie and I sat down and started chatting.
“So any big new resolutions?” I asked Annie as she nursed a beer.
“Definitely. Same as always. Lose some weight, go to the gym, finally get a boyfriend. You?”
“Nah. Nothing for me. I’m not really the resolution type.”
“That’s good. I always make them, but I never keep them. Still, you should try and find a guy here. I know you want to go back to New York when you’re finished studying, but that’s years away. Have some fun until then!”
“I’m not opposed to guys, Annie. I just… haven’t found the right one.”
“Come on, when was the last time you had sex?”
“Uh, like a month ago?”
“Seriously? And you didn’t tell me? Who was it?”
My face immediately went beet red. Ugh, why did you have to tell her that?
“Just some guy. I don’t even remember his name.”
Annie howled with laughter. “Amazing! I didn’t think you had it in you. I’m so proud of you, Julianne Reeves.”
I couldn’t help but smile back. Thank God she’d believed the lie. I didn’t want to tell her it was with Jack, since I had no idea how she’d react. It was so taboo, having sex with your brother! Even I wasn’t sure I was ok with what I’d done.
“Anyway, you don’t need to lose weight, or get a boyfriend, but if you need a gym buddy I should probably start going with you too.”
“Deal, we should go after class if we have any of the same ones next semester. Then that way we can’t get out of it.”
“For sure. My mom will be so proud. She always tells me I can stand to lose a few pounds.”
“Oh, mine’s the opposite. She’s all like “you’re gorgeous the way you are.””
Annie waved away my compliment.
“Still, I always feel like a giant fatty, especially just after Christmas. I’m going to have the best beach body this summer.”
“Good plan,” I replied, and we clinked beers in a toast.
Suddenly, a single firework went off in the sky. Ten minute warning!
Annie and I got up and made our way through the crowd to where we could get a better view. Directly across the water from us was the London Eye and Big Ben, where Annie said most of the action was going to be.
Sure enough, a few minutes later the fireworks started. Small at first, then culminating in a giant cacophony of colors, they definitely at least matched the ones in New York. It wasn’t the ball dropping at Times Square at midnight, but oh boy was it impressive.
Every color of the rainbow and then some was represented. Waterfalls, giant bursts, star shapes, even a circle of fire in the middle of the London Eye. When the grand finale finally hit, with at least hundreds of fireworks all going off at once, I thought I was going to go deaf, but I couldn’t look away. It was amazing.
Then, it was all over, and the New Year had started. I wondered what it had in store for me as Annie and I made our way back to the train, to catch one of the special late night ones back towards Oxford. Michael was going to meet me at my station, and I knew Annie had a ride home as well.
“This year is going to be crazy,” Annie told me as we stood on the train with the hundreds of others all heading back in the same direction. “I can feel it.”
Little did she know just how right she was.