Forget Yesterday

“So you’re all set for tonight then?”

Rian nodded at Alex, placing the last of the expensive china in the lockable cabinet.

“Yeah, I’m all sorted for the party. I just can’t believe you’re ditching me on New Year’s Eve!” Rian pouted playfully.

Alex rolled his eyes but smiled.

“It’s only for a few hours. Besides, how can I say no to Jack when he asked so nicely?” Alex said simply.

“Did he ask during sex?” Rian asked dryly.

Alex inhaled sharply, eyes widening.

“W-We haven’t even kissed yet!” Alex spluttered.

Now it was Rian’s turn to look shocked.

“You haven’t?” Rian frowned.

“No. I was kinda hoping…maybe…tonight?” Alex admitted, blushing slightly.

“Ahh, of course. The cliché midnight kiss at the fireworks show,” Rian teased.

Alex punched him in the arm, blushing a little more.

“Shut up. At least it would be more memorable than a sloppy drunken kiss in an alleyway,” Alex retorted.

“Hey, Vinny wasn’t that drunk. Maybe I was, but it still counts,” Rian said, unashamed.

“Whatever. Now that I’ve met Emma and she ‘approves’ of me, maybe this thing between me and Jack can actually become a relationship,” Alex muttered.

“It will, I know it. Vinny said that Jack’s never had Emma react to a potential boyfriend like this before, so that’s a good sign,” Rian said firmly.

“I hope so. I did make her some big promises when I was introduced,” Alex sighed.

~

“Are you the pwetty Awex man from before?” Emma asked, looking up at Alex from her beanbag chair.

Alex blushed slightly but nodded, sitting awkwardly next to Jack on the sofa.

“Yes, that’s me,” Alex said politely.

“Are you going to run away again?” Emma pouted, “Daddy said it wasn’t because of me but I know it was,”

Alex felt his mouth go dry, his eyes widening. Jack just inhaled sharply.

“Emma, what have I told you about thinking before you speak?” Jack snapped.

Emma’s face crumpled a little.

“S-Sorry. I didn’t mean to. I just didn’t want you to be upset again, Daddy. I wanted to make sure pwetty Awex man wouldn’t leave again,” Emma said softly.

Alex felt a flare of guilt, and placed his hand gently over Jack’s to let him know it was okay.

“I’m not going anywhere, I promise. The only reason I’d ever leave would be if your Dad said so,” Alex said firmly.

Emma’s face lit up in hope, letting Alex know he’d said the right thing.

“And you wouldn’t leave otherwise?” Emma asked, smiling.

“No, I wouldn’t,” Alex replied, shaking his head.

Alex looked up at Jack, who was biting his bottom lip. He swallowed heavily and looked back at the 5 year old, who was just smiling like it was her birthday and Christmas all at once.

“I really like your Dad, Emma. So I plan to be here for a very long time,”

When Emma’s smile turned into a full-on beam, Alex knew that this had been a good idea.

~

One hour before Jack was due to pick Alex up, Alex was still trying to decide what to wear. He’d only just had his shower and was standing stark naked in front of his mirror. He held out two shirts in front of him, biting his bottom lip as he tried to decide what shirt Jack would like most. Pale blue or dark green?

“I’d go with the pale blue. It’ll match the new scarf and hat that ‘Emma’ got you,”

Alex grinned at Rian in the doorway, not caring that he was butt naked in front of his best friend. They’d lived together for years – they’d both seen each other naked more times than they cared to remember, both drunk and sober.

“But she’s with her mom tonight,” Alex pointed out.

“There will be photos?” Rian prompted.

Ah. Good point.

“Pale blue it is,” Alex chuckled, remembering the odd exchange of gifts between him, Jack and Emma.

~

“Look, Emma, Alex brought a gift for you!” Jack said cheerfully.

“You got me a gift?” Emma asked, surprised.

“Every little girl deserves something special for Christmas,” Alex said with a shrug.

In all honesty, he was scared shitless. How the hell was he supposed to know what a 5 year old girl would want for Christmas?!

“It’s a tiara, Daddy! A real princess tiara! Oh you have to put it on me! Please!” Emma begged, clutching Jack’s jeans.

“Okay, okay!” Jack laughed, unattaching the plastic headgear from the packaging.

As soon as the tiara was on her head, Emma squealed and ran to the bathroom to get a better look.

“Thank you for buying her that. You didn’t have to,” Jack said softly.

Alex just shrugged. Sure, it cost more than he’d like to acknowledge for a small piece of shiny plastic, but it was the thought that counted, right?

“I wanted to,” Alex said with a shrug.

Before Jack could reply, Emma ran back in the room, arms waving excitedly.

“Now we can give you my present,” Emma grinned.

“She picked, I paid,” Jack coughed.

Alex just laughed and took the bag that Emma passed him, gently opening it. Inside was a soft-looking scarf and hat, both in plain pale blue. They look expensive, far more than any scarf or hat Alex had ever owned before. And they were beautiful.

“Daddy always says his favourite colour is pale blue and I think you should have something in his favourite colour so he can look at you wearing it and smile,” Emma rambled.

Alex looked up at Jack to see him blushing, and just laughed.

~

“You look amazing, by the way. Pale blue really does suit you,” Jack said warmly, pulling out of his parking space in front of Alex’s apartment building.

“At least you can look at me and smile now,” Alex teased.

Jack blushed slightly but smiled anyway, reaching his hand over the centre console to hold Alex’s hand. They rode mainly in a comfortable silence, avoiding most of the traffic because they’d aimed to arrive early to the show. Alex got them free entry to the grounds because he’d done a last minute piercing to the girlfriend of one of the security guards earlier that day and the man said he’d do this as a favour.

Whatever. As long as it made Alex look good in front of Jack.

“The fireworks display starts in an hour – do you want to get a drink and find somewhere good to sit?” Jack suggested.

“You can’t drink – you’re driving,” Alex frowned.

Surely Jack couldn’t be one of those assholes who drank and drove?

“I meant hot chocolate from that stand over there, but if you want alcohol…” Jack frowned.

Oh. Now Alex felt bad for jumping to conclusions. He should know by now that Jack isn’t like that.

“No, hot chocolate is absolutely fine. Um, how about you get us two hot chocolates and I’ll get us two hotdogs?” Alex offered.

There was no way he was letting Jack pay for everything. Again.

“Sounds good to me,” Jack nodded.

*

2 hours later, it was drawing close to midnight, and the fireworks show was almost over. Jack had found them a spot underneath a large tree, so they could lean against it while they sat on the blanket Jack had brought. Jack had his arm around Alex’s shoulder and Alex was snuggled into his side, happy for the warmth.

“Fuck, that’s beautiful,” Alex gasped, eyes following the bright burst of colours.

“Yeah, you are,” Jack mumbled.

“Excuse me?” Alex mused.

“Nothing,” Jack said quickly, blushing.

“You’re such a cheeseball,” Alex snickered.

Jack just blushed a little more, making Alex smile. It felt nice not to be the one embarrassed for once. As the fireworks paused, Alex grinned. This was the moment he’d been waiting for. Despite how fast his heart was beating, and that his hands were slightly clammy, this was what he'd been hoping for all day. It had been three weeks of constant dates now, and he wanted his kiss. He wanted to take him and Jack to the next level and he was going to take his chance.

If Jack could be cliché, so could he, right?

“AND NOW THE MOMENT YOU’VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR – THE NEW YEAR’S COUNTDOWN!”

Everyone cheered, including Jack and Alex.

10

9

8

7

6

Alex inhaled sharply and leant a little closer to Jack.

5

“Are you really doing what I think you’re doing?” Jack whispered.

4

“Yeah, I am. But not if you don’t want me to,” Alex said worriedly.

3

“Oh I want,” Jack murmured.

2

Alex just grinned.

1

Jack grinned back.

“HAPPY NEW YEAR!”

Jack leant the rest of the way and pressed their lips together firmly. Alex made a soft noise of surprise, but found himself clutching at Jack’s jacket, kissing Jack back just as slowly, just as sweetly. Alex’s head swirled slightly as Jack’s scent filled his nose, surrounding him in the best way possible. Never had a kiss stopped time around him or made him feel electric before. This was…perfect.

After a few more seconds, Alex had to break the kiss, desperately needing to breathe. Jack just grinned at him, a hand rising to cup his cheeks as their foreheads rested together.

“Wow,” Alex giggled.

“Definitely worth the wait,” Jack nodded.

Alex took the chance to kiss Jack again, not having had enough of Jack’s soft lips, kissing him briefly but firmly, leaving Jack’s eyes wide as he pulled away.

“So what now?” Jack asked breathlessly.

“We drive back to mine, take one photo in our winter gear for Emma on Rian’s camera, take a few photos with Rian, Vinny, Zack and Matt so it looks like we were at the party, and then we grab a bottle of whiskey and go up to my room, locking the door so it’s just the two of us, and drink and kiss until we fall asleep,” Alex rambled, leaning backwards but still holding onto Jack’s coat.

“You’ve thought this out, huh?” Jack teased.

“I’m improvising,” Alex grinned.

“Then what are we waiting for?” Jack laughed.