DECEMBER 3rd, 2011. 2:51 P.M.
(2 YEARS LATER)
I smiled as I listened to the soft pitter patter of the snow that hit my windows. I don’t think anyone was expecting snow like this at all; but it was a great feeling. Just as I was making myself a steaming cup of hot chocolate, my phone went off. I quickly ran over to retrieve it, and put it up to my ear. “Hello?” I heard a shuffle on the other end for a few seconds, and then I heard my friend Gabe come on. “Alex! Okay…you have to come outside.” I chuckled and pressed the ‘start’ button on my microwave. “Are you kidding? It’s like…below fifty degrees out there.” I heard a splat sound like someone had got hit by a snowball. “So? I’m having fun outside! Come on Alex, I brought one of my greatest friends along. I told them you were interested to meet them.” My eyes widened, and the microwave went off, which almost made me drop the phone. I pulled out the piping hot cup and set it on the counter. “Gabe, you’re so unpredictable sometimes! Do I really have to go?” I heard him laugh. “Yeah, you do. Put on a hooded jacket and a pair of shoes or I’ll be forced to drag you out of your house. I want to see you outside in less than ten minutes!” Before I could say anything else, I heard the line click off. I quickly chugged the hot chocolate – almost burning my tongue, found my black hoodie, put on a pair of dark grey converse, and scrambled out the door. By the time I got to his house, Gabe was building a snow force shield of some kind. I laughed, and he gave me a thumbs up. “Great! You made it,” I gave him a half smile. “I guess so, yeah.” He ducked as a snowball came in his direction. “HA! You missed.” He then glanced over at me. “Alex, come over here. I have someone I would like you to meet.” I shoved my hands in my hoodie pocket and casually walked over to him. He then motioned for someone to come over to where we were standing. I turned my head and that’s when my whole world went upside down. I saw her walking in my direction, and it seemed as if everything had gone blank around me; it was just her that made my heart race. She smiled, and that made me want to just surrender – it was to die for. She finally reached over to where I was and turned to face me. “You must be Alex, right? I’m Blaze, but my real name is Blair. It’s just a nickname.” At that moment, I felt like I was about to melt like butter under the hot sun. Her voice was so interesting, and gentle, like pure silk. I finally managed to choke a few words out and escape from my hypnotic state she seemed to put me in. “Yeah. It’s nice to meet you.” She held out a hand for me. I put my hand in hers and shook it slowly. Gabe had a confused expression on his face. “Alex, are you okay?” I started to blush a little, but I turned to face Gabe before she could see. “What are you talking about? I’m fine.” He raised an eyebrow, disbelieving me. “Sure. You look like one of those guys who have seen love at first sight. What’s up with that?” I bit my bottom lip, trying to hold in my breath. I looked up into his hazel eyes and crossed my arms. “Gabe, it’s nothing. Let it go.” He rolled his eyes and sighed. “Whatever.” I stole a quick glance back up at Blaze who was staring at me with full intention. She made me feel alive again…and possibly head over heels. I said my goodbyes and made my way into my house. About fifteen minutes after I had left, Gabe had texted me.
TO : ALEX
FROM : GABE
I’m starting 2 suspect something. U like Blaze, don’t u? (:
I closed my phone and set it on the table next to me. No Gabe. I don’t just ‘like’ her. I think I’m in love with her. I smiled as I thought aloud to myself.

DECEMBER 17th, 2011. 8:23 P.M.
It was yet another freezing, cold snowy day. It had been two weeks ever since I’ve seen Gabe and Blaze. I wanted to hang out with them, but every time I tried contacting them, they never answered. I wasn’t going to sit around at home forever, now was I? I put on a white hoodie, black skinny jeans, and shoved on my dark purple converse. I walked out my door with a smile on my face, because I knew that if I came over now, they would be totally shocked. When I finally reached Gabe’s house, I walked up the steep steps that lead to his door. When I got there, I heard what sounded like laughing. I was too busy listening to the noise inside that I didn’t even notice that the door was cracked an inch or two. I gently pushed the door open and made a silent entrance. The noise I was hearing was coming from down the hall somewhere. I turned my head in the direction, and slowly made my way over. When I reached the end of the hallway, a door was slightly cracked just like the front door. I squinted my eyes to get a better look. I made out two people on a bed. I recognized Gabe, of course. Then I looked up. Blaze was there, too. She was sitting next to him, smiling. He asked her something. “Should we tell Alex about us?” Tell me about what? My heart started racing. She sighed. “I don’t know. Maybe soon? He doesn’t know anything.” Know what? What was this about, anyways? He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and she locked fingers with his. “I think we should. If we want to make our relationship work, we have to tell him sometime.” Relationship? I was getting confused. Was he talking about a best friend relationship, or something more? She half smiled. “I guess we could. If we’re going to be boyfriend and girlfriend.” That’s when my heart sank. They were in love that whole time, weren’t they? I can’t believe I actually fell for her. Gabe was in love with her. As tears started forming, I made my way back outside, making sure to slowly and gently close the door. I walked down the sidewalk, head hanging low, and trying to cover up on what a mess I was. When I reached my house, I didn’t bother to say anything. I went up into my room, shut the door, and sat against the hard wall. I put my head in my knees and just sat there, heartbroken and numb once again, just like how I felt two years ago.
Knock, knock.
I lifted my head and listened. It was probably Gabe and Blaze, only to rub their l so called ‘relationship’ in my face.

Knock, knock, knock. “Alex! It’s me, Gabe. I need to talk to you.”
I didn’t bother to get up. They had already caused me enough pain. Can’t they see I’m ignoring them and pretending not to be home?

Silence.
Finally they stopped. I got up and went downstairs to see if they were gone. I looked through the peep hole and no one was there. Good. I backed away from the door and sat on my stairs. A couple of tears slid down my cheek. I looked away from everything, putting my head down, wanting to erase that moment out of my head. I closed my eyes, letting darkness fill my mind.

DECEMBER 21st, 2011. 11:56 P.M.
I couldn’t sleep that night. I kept having that image of Gabe and Blaze, waking up multiple times because to me it was a complete nightmare that seemed to be locked up forever. I lay in my boring, old bed and just think. Thinking about when I was happy, full of life, and hopeful. Look at me now – dull, silent, and uptight; a mess. I threw the covers off of me and sat on the edge of my bed. I looked over at my alarm clock. I had time to talk a short walk perhaps, only to clear my mind and hopefully get some rest. I grabbed a pen and my journal just in case I felt like writing something down. I put on my skinny jeans, converse, and a random hoodie jacket. I walked down the stairs and opened the front door, letting the cool air blow all my worries away.
It felt like I was walking for at least a few hours. I looked around me…everything black and grey, like the night had swallowed all the colors until morning returned. I took a sharp right turn and into a random alley. I kept walking until I reached somewhere quiet and safe, where no one would be able to see me. Before I knew it, I had come across an old cemetery. I sheepishly opened the rusted metal gates and walked inside. There were a ton of gravestones here, but I didn’t mind. The eerie scene made me feel welcomed and inspired. I sat on dead grass and leaned on a cracked gravestone. I opened my journal and stared at the blank page in front of me. What was I going to write? I had no idea since I wasn’t feeling very complete anyways. I closed my journal and plunked it down beside me. Everything I do always turns into a huge mess, and I’m the one who always tends to clean it up. I wish my life would change. No more pain. No more anger. I want to change, but it seems difficult, so I just let it go. After about five minutes of sitting there, thinking to myself, I feel the cold splash of raindrops. I look at the sky above me until it starts to rain even harder. I stand up and stare at the area around me. I then decide to just walk home and leave everything behind. I stand up on my feet, and look down beside me, where my journal is completely soaked. I shake my head, turning away from it. I pulled my hood up and stuffed my hands in my pocket.
When I had gotten home that night, I realized I had two missed calls from Gabe. I thought about listening to them, but yet I decided to just ignore it. I casually walked up my steep stairs and flopped down on my bed. I fell asleep instantly.

I woke up the next morning to find out that I had fallen asleep without realizing it. I yawned, stretched, and got up out of bed. I slowly walked down my stairs and into my kitchen. The phone button was blinking. Again, messages from Gabe. I sighed and pushed the play button.
“Alex, are you home? Anyways, call me when you get this message. We need to talk as soon as possible.”
I automatically pushed the delete button. Then I pushed next.
“Alex? It’s Blaze. Gabe is letting me call you off of his phone. I know it’s been a while since I’ve seen you but, it’s important. Please call back soon.”
Instead of pushing the delete button, I kept replaying the message over and over. Her voice amazed me. But it also brought back to when she was talking to Gabe about their relationship. I decided to keep the message because that’s the only voice I wanted to hear.

DECEMBER 31st, 2011. 10:45 P.M.
It’s New Years Eve, and like always I’m home alone. My Parents are out of town; and I have the whole house to myself. I turned on my TV and watched my favorite show. I was about to make some popcorn, but my phone rang. I checked the caller ID. Gabe. I rolled my eyes and answered it anyways. “Hey Gabe.” I heard people talking in the background. Must be a New Year’s party. He sounded excited like he hadn’t seen me in years. “Alex! You finally answered! I’m having a party at my place tonight. Want to come?” I was about to say no, but I thought it through. If Gabe and Blaze wanted to be a couple, I would try to ignore it. Instantly I said yes. “That sounds fun. I’ll be over in a few.” I hung up and pressed stop on the microwave. I turned off my TV and ran up the stairs. I got changed into a Green Day shirt, grey skinny jeans, and white converse with a dark red hoodie. I fled through the door and made my way over to Gabe’s house. Was Blaze going to be there, too? Possibly. I shook my head to forget about her. When I arrived, Gabe opened the door for me. “You made it! How’s it going? I haven’t seen you in so long!” I faked a smile. “It’s been fine. I’ve been busy.” He laughed and let me in. When I entered, there was a ton of people there…mostly students from school. I walked around for a while until I recognized someone. I took a closer look at them. My eyes widened. It was Blaze talking to a few of her friends. Gabe tapped me on the shoulder. “You might want to go talk to Blaze. She needs to tell you something.” I nodded my head yes and walked over to her. Her head turned and she saw me standing there. “Alex! Wow…when did you get here?” I shrugged my shoulders. “Just now. I want to apologize for not contacting you. I was really busy.” She smiled. “Oh, it’s fine. How are you so far?” I shoved my hands in my pocket. “I’m great. So Gabe told me you needed to talk to me about something?” She put down the drink she was holding and turned to me. “Yes, I do. Follow me.” I followed her up the stairs and into a quiet empty room. I sat on the bed and she closed the door. She sat down next to me. “Okay, I don’t really know how to explain this to you,” she started. I raised up a hand. “Let me guess, you’re dating Gabe?” Her expression changed. “What? No…I’m not dating Gabe. Where did you get that from?” I panicked. Should I tell her about sneaking into Gabe’s house? I was going to confess either way. I opened my mouth to speak. “Well, it’s kind of a long story. You see, I was on my way to Gabe’s house and saw that his door was open. I walked in and heard you talking. You said something like you were going to make your relationship work. So I left.” Her eyes looked away from mine. “Alex, you shouldn’t have heard that. I’m really sorry, okay? But we’re not together. I was practicing.” My stomach caught butterflies. “Practicing for what?” She lifted her head up and faced me. “As much as I want to tell you, I just can’t. I’m already struggling.” I scooted closer to her. “You can tell me, you know. It would only be between us.” She half smiled. “I know, but…I’m trying to confess something here. It’s not as easy as it looks.” Then my whole face lit up. “Blaze, you like me, don’t you?” She turned around so I was looking at her back. “Something like that. But I can tell you think Gabe likes me.” I got up and stood in front of her. She had a tear running down her cheek. “Blaze, it’s okay. I’m not going to hurt you.” She turned her head. “How can I trust you?” I lifted her chin up so her eyes were looking into mine. “Blaze, let me explain. Ever since I saw you that day when Gabe introduced me, I thought I was going to literally go head over heels for you. You were amazing to me that day.” She smiled, and that made me relax. “You really mean it?” I nodded my head and put my hand on her cheek. “I honestly mean it. When I overheard you talking, my heart sank. I couldn’t stand it. But things took a twist for me tonight.” She put her hand on top of mine. I smiled and pulled her into a hug. My eye caught a glance over at the clock. 11:59. One minute until the new year. I released the hug and leaned forward. She was nervous at first, but then she let me come closer. I gently touched her lips with mine, and when I did, I heard cheering and people yelling “Happy New Year!”. Blaze and I laughed, and hugged each other once more. I interlocked our fingers together. I leaned closer to her ear and whispered. “Happy New Year, Blaze.” She giggled and kissed my cheek. I took her hand in mine, and went back downstairs to join the party.