Until We Meet Again

December 20th 1998

Jordan scouted the arrivals’ area for her parents. The cold feeling on her stomach made her smile and her smile grew bigger once she saw them.

“Mom, dad!” She walked in their direction as fast as she could, dragging all her luggage along with her.

They exchanged hugs, their voices laced with excitement for her arrival, flooding her with questions and news.

“We’ve decided to have Christmas in our house this year,” her father stated, freeing her hands from the heavy luggage.

“We figured you would want to stay home and spend some time with your friends… and Gerard.” The way her mother lifted her brows at her, the edge of her mouth curling into a smirk, made Jordan uncomfortable. It almost looked like she was insinuating that she and Gerard were more than friends.

“Thanks mom,” she replied anyway.

The drive home was filled with conversation. She looked at her watch once her father parked the car in the driveway, knowing that Gerard wouldn’t get home from college until a couple of hours later. After two months of phone calls, all she wanted was just to see him.

Jordan was unpacking her things when she heard the doorbell ring from her bedroom. Her mother was about to answer the door, but the loud stomps of Jordan’s feet running down the stairs made her smile and retreat to the kitchen.

“Gee!” She threw herself again him once the door was open, her hair colliding with his face and making him close his eyes.

“Hey Jo.” He smoothed her hair away from his face. Jordan smiled against his neck. She liked the nicknames that had given each other. Gee and Jo. They looked cute together.

“Come on in,” She gestured him and closed the door behind them. “So how have things been around here?” Jordan asked as they went upstairs to her bedroom.

“Oh you know… the same boring usual.” Gerard stopped at her bedroom door, his eyes widening at the abnormal mess her bedroom had turned into. “What the hell happened in here?”

Jordan laughed. “I was just finishing unpacking.”

Gerard had to jump through articles of clothing, books, makeup and other items so that he could reach her bed and sit on the edge of it.

“And how’s Mikey?” She grabbed a pile of clothes and stuffed them into a drawer. “Is he still dating Sam?”

“Huh, no. They broke up shortly after she went to college.”

“Oh that’s… I didn’t know that.” She had been neglecting her friend ever since she’d gone away. “I guess I should call her.”

“How about you?” Gerard watched her disappear with a pile of dirty clothing, only to return a second later.

“We talk on the phone pretty much every day, Gee. You already know what I’ve been doing in London.” Jordan picked pile of books from the ground and dropped them on the desk with a loud thud. “Oh, I’ve been looking for jobs, as you know, and I’ll probably start working when I get back to London.”

“Just make sure you don’t overwhelm yourself with too much stuff.” He stared at another pile of books she placed on her desk. “You seem like you already have your hands full just with college.”

“I know, but I really need to help my parents. The partial scholarship only pays for my tuition fees; I need to help them with the other expenses.”

He nodded. His fingers fidgeted on his knee as he watched Jordan walk from one side of her room to the other. “Hey Jordan, listen,” he started.

“Yeah?” Jordan stopped and blew her hair from her face.

Gerard got up. “A few friends of mine are throwing a new year’s party, nothing fancy, but I thought that maybe you would like to come with me.” He didn’t know why he was feeling nervous for inviting her, it’s not like it would be the first time they would go on a date. Wait. Did he just say date? Were the other times dates? They were just friends and they were just having fun, so that wouldn’t be a date, right?

He stuffed his hands inside his pockets, waiting for an answer.

“Sounds like fun!” She flashed him a smile, quickly returning to the task of tidying up her bedroom.

December 31st 1998

“Hey Mikey boy!” Jordan hugged him once he opened the door. “Are you ladies ready for the party?” She did a silly pose and waved at Gerard once he appeared behind his brother. She had parked her car in front of their house and the three of them left for the party in Gerard’s car.

The drive was longer than she thought it would, as they ended up leaving Belleville and driving into Jersey City. A few minutes later they stopped in front of a bigger than usual house, with a perfectly landscaped garden and an already long row of cars in front of it.

“Whose house is this?” Jordan asked, but Mikey simply shrugged.

“We don’t know,” Gerard spoke like it was the most natural thing to say. “You know how this works; a friend invites some friends, who end up inviting other friends and so on.”

“I see…” Something in her mind told her that they pretty much crashing into that party.

The faint sound of music could be heard once they stepped out of the car, but there was no one outside. Gerard fixed his jacket and simply opened the front door, being greeted by the loud music, the chatter and noises of a full house and the warmth that came from inside of it.

Mikey waved at some guys, quickly disappearing from their sight and Gerard gestured Jordan to follow him, as he mingled with the people at the party.

“Matt’s here.” Gerard looked past Jordan, toward the other end of the crowded room, as he handed her a drink. “I want you to meet him.”

“Hey, Matt!” He called. A dark haired guy quickly turned around, waving at him once he realized who had called him.

Gerard introduced them to each other, once Matt approached them. He had already talked about him on several occasions; Jordan already knew that he was the drummer of a local band, which made her even happier to meet him.

A couple of hours and a few drinks later, Jordan had gotten used to that environment, now engaging conversation with several people Gerard had introduced her to. As midnight approached, the house seemed to get more and more crowded.

“I’m going outside for some air!” Jordan had to scream for Gerard to hear her. He nodded and followed her.

“Sweet, a pool. Your friend should have invited us during summer.” Jordan closed her jacket tighter against her body, the cold air making her breathe out smoke as she talked.

They sat on a bench that was too cold for her liking, since she was wearing a short dress, but she didn’t complain. She missed spending time alone with Gerard. London was a place she was supposed to love, but while she had been there all she had thought about was home, and how much she had loved the summer they had spend together.

She leaned her head against his shoulder, sharing the silence in comfort, but soon the fireworks started. A wave of screams and cheers and even louder music came from inside the house.

“Oh, I guess it’s already midnight!” Jordan quickly lifted her head from his shoulder and looked at him, her dark red lips showing a wide smile. “Happy New Year, Gee!”

“Happy New Year, Jo.” He couldn’t stop staring into her eyes. They were so green and full of life, shinning as the fireworks decorated the sky. He didn’t think about what he was doing, but suddenly, he placed a hand on each side of her face and kissed her lips. And without even realizing it, Jordan was kissing him back. But then she did.

She quickly opened her eyes and broke from the kiss, a frown now on her lips. She could see the confusion sweep his features and then the guilt in his eyes.

“I’m sorry.” He released a sigh, pushing his hair away from his face. “I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

But it had. “No, I’m the one who should be sorry.” This was all her fault. She liked him; they shared a connection she had never shared with anyone else before, but nothing more than friendship could come from their relationship.

She had promised herself that nothing would come between her and her future in London, her future career as a writer and her plans to move permanently there. She had never told anyone about it, not even Gerard, but she intended to keep on living in England even after graduating from college.

So how could something more than friendship ever work between them? They would have the ocean separating them, and just like she was not willing on quitting her dreams, she didn’t want him to give up from his as well.

“I shouldn’t have lead you on. "Jordan stared at her feet.

“No, it’s not your fault.” He rested his hand on her knee. The concerned look on her face made him regret that action. “Seriously, I don’t know what happened. I get it, we’re friends.” He forced a smile, but she didn’t look at him.

“Can we go home now?” She got up and so did he.

“Of course we can.”