Synopsis:They say that New Years is a time for a fresh start, a new time in people’s lives, a time for new experiences. That whole new experiences thing took on a whole new meaning a few years ago at a New Years party I will never forget.

As I walked down the stairs, I felt like every eye in the house was on me. As I struggled to make my walk look feminine, the swaying of my skirt and the clicking of my heels just further reminded me of the situation I was in. I wasn’t sure exactly what to do next. How does a girl usually act in a party like this? I was relieved when Hannah grabbed me and led me over to the drinks table. She whispered in my ear, “Just act natural. You’re too stiff! Just be yourself girl!”

Be natural, be natural. OK, I grabbed myself a Cherry Coke and headed for the food. I don’t know how most people do their New Years Party, but Hannah and her Mom go all out. They invite everyone over and there’s usually a potluck dinner. So, I went ahead and tried to balance my plate and cup, while I served myself food. I knew enough not to try to pig out on the food. A girl’s got to keep her figure and all that.

Still, balancing my plate, silverware, and cup while trying to stay balanced on my heels was a little too much for me. I was just about to spill something when a pair of hands snatched my plate and cup away from me. I stumbled forward onto a body and my hands found a strong pair of pecs. Whoa! I looked up and stared into the deepest pair of green eyes I’d ever seen!

“Hey there beautiful! Let me take that for you.”

OK, I’ll admit it; I blushed a little. I followed this boy to a table where he placed my food next to his. I was a little worried about how to sit down without showing what was under my skirt, but my mysterious rescuer quickly pulled the chair away from the table and motioned for me to sit down. I remembered how Hannah usually sat on our dates so I sat while making sure to tuck my skirt under me. I was careful to sit with my knees together in order to sell the illusion. My concentration was broken when my new friend leaned towards me and started talking.

“So, what’s your name, delicate?”

“El…Wait! Did you just quote a MADTV sketch?”

“Maybe a little,” he responded with a wink. “It’s supposed to make you laugh. Worked on every other girl. Heck, my last girlfriend loved it so much that when I used that line she practically begged me to ask her out. The name’s Joey Davis, what’s yours?”

“Eli…za. Beth. Elizabeth.”

“Well Eli Za Beth. It’s nice to meet you. Is the Eli short for anything or did your parents like having a daughter whose first name sounded like a nickname for her full name?”

“Hey now!” I leaned over and punched his arm. Damn! This guy had some solid shoulder muscles, too! “Can I help it if I get flustered by such a ladies man?”

“Touché my friend, touché.”

We, or I should say he, started talking about sports. He was all excited about the L.A Lakers last game and how amazing they were. I never really cared for basketball and I kept getting distracted by how amazingly cute this guy’s features were. His brown hair was styled perfectly, his teeth were perfect, and his smile was radiant. If I didn’t have a girlfriend, and if I were into guys, Joey’s looks would have melted my heart.

I’m not afraid to say stuff like that; I’m secure in my manhood! I’d often said that a guy could admire another guy’s looks without being gay. I mean I think I could be proof of that. It’s not like people think girls are automatically lesbian just because they can recognize beauty in other girls, right? Anyway, his talk of the Lakers soon turned to talk of his own basketball team. I guess he was the star guard or something like that.

Once again, my daydreaming was interrupted by Hannah sitting down next to me. She glared at me for a sec, then at Joey. Finally she spoke, “So, I see you’ve met my ex.”

“Wait, Elizabeth is your ex? I thought that was me?”

“Shut up, Joey. Elizabeth, may I talk to you for a sec?”

“Careful Lizzy. She’s going to warn you about all the dangers of being a 'Joey Davis’ girl'!”

Hannah pulled me over to the side. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“What? What’d I do?”

“You might look like a girl, but remember that I’m your girlfriend, stop flirting with Joey!”

“I’m not! I’m barely listening to what he’s saying!”

She sighed. “Alright, look. Joey’s a nice guy. He wouldn’t be here if he wasn’t. We’ve been friends for years and we still are. The thing with him is that as nice as he is, if he thinks you’re into him, he can be a real jerk. He’ll try to pressure you into crossing lines that you won’t want to cross.”

“He seems like a nice enough guy to me, a bit full of himself but overall he’s not bad.”

“Oh and you’re the expert on boys now?”

“I do happen to be one.”

“Point taken, just be careful. You might be an expert on dealing with boys, but a boy who wants to have sex with you is a different story altogether.”

“I’ll be careful. And thanks for looking out for me,” I hugged her and we headed back to the table.

“So, I guess you gave her the rundown on the great Joey Davis, huh?”

“More or less, Joey, more or less.”

We spent the rest of the meal in silence. I was glad that Hannah was there to divert attention. Plus, I could watch her and pick up little tips on how girls do things. Eventually we finished eating and Hannah excused herself to go see if her mom needed any help.

“So Elizabeth….”

“Yes?”

“We’re done eating and I’m having fun just hanging out with you, why don’t we go upstairs and watch a movie?”

“Sure why not? Lead the way, Mr. Davis!”

Hannah’s room usually gets converted into a movie room for people who aren’t interested in dancing, karaoke, or watching the Times Square bash on TV. Her room pretty much becomes the hangout place for anyone under the age of 20.

Turns out that someone had turned on Lady and the Tramp, so Joey staked out a place for the two of us to sit. We were kinda squished together on the couch facing the TV, but the cozy environment felt great!

As we settled down to watch the movie, Joey put his arm around my shoulder. I should have protested, but it honestly felt so good to have a strong arm protecting me from the world. I laid my head on his chest and the two of us watched the movie that way. His hand found mine and we sat in the darkness. It was so serene and calm just to be sitting there all safe and secure.

I was getting caught up in the movie and the moment when I suddenly realized that Joey was moaning to himself. I looked down and discovered that Joey had moved my hand so it was resting on the bulge in his pants and I had been absentmindedly stroking it! He kissed my hair then whispered in my ear, “Why don’t we take this somewhere where you can give that the attention it deserves?”

I was horrified! “No, who do you think I am!” I whispered back, “You think I’m some kind of slut?”

“I dunno but you’re certainly enjoying giving me some pleasure, how bout I just let you enjoy yourself more?”

“Did you do all this just cause you thought I’d give you sex?”

“Not just because of it. But c’mon, I’m a teenage boy, I expect certain things when a girl I just met curls up with me during a movie.”

I stood up. “You Jerk!” I yelled. I slapped him across the face and ran sobbing from the room.

I sat there sobbing in the bathroom till I heard a knock on the door.

“Elizabeth? Are you in there?”

I opened the door and let Hannah in. I tried to tell her what had happened, but she just shushed me. I collapsed into her arms, sobbing all the while. We kinda stood there for a bit, Hannah was just rocking me back and forth and it was really comforting. Finally I pulled away.

“I’m sorry Hannah. I’m not really acting like a supportive boyfriend right now. I’m being more of a burden to you then anything else.”

“Nonsense! You’re my girl today and I’m your girl always. I can’t be your girl if I don’t have your back, right? C’mon, let me introduce you to some of my friends.”

She cleaned up my face, redid my makeup and led me to her mom’s bedroom where about five girls were either sitting or lying on the bed and chatting pleasantly.

“Elizabeth, these are my friends. Grace, Joanna, Kelsey, Laura, and Caitlin. Girls, this is my friend Elizabeth. We met at summer camp and I kept bugging her to come to this.”

“Hey Elizabeth! The girls chorused together then giggled. I smiled and laughed as well and settled right in. The talk was pretty interesting. We talked about school, then parents, then celebrities, then boys, and around and around till I lost track of where the conversation was and how we’d gotten there.

At around 11:P.M. I excused myself, saying that I wanted to get a drink. I went downstairs and the party was in full swing. There were about 30 adults just laughing and dancing. I wandered towards the kitchen, grabbed myself a ginger ale and sat down in front of the TV. I kinda just wanted to be alone with my thoughts for a while.

This was all moving much too fast for me. I was startled when someone came and sat down on the chair a seat away from me. He didn’t say much, just stared at the TV. I glanced over. He was a tall African-American who looked about my age. He had about average length hair and was wearing an Atlanta Falcons T-shirt and a pair of blue jeans. The T-shirt was tight against his chest revealing an impressive set of muscles. This guy definitely played either football or basketball! He finally glanced over and noticed me looking him over. He smiled and held out his hand.

“Hi! I don’t think we’ve met. My name’s Louis.”

“Hi” I stammered back, “my name’s Elizabeth.”

He glanced over at the room full of dancing adults. “Tired of dancing?”

“Actually,” I laughed, “I haven’t danced at all. I’m not much of a dancer.”

“It’s not that bad once you get used to it.”

We took to chatting. Turns out that Louis was actually in ballet. We started talking about the difficulties of being a male in a female dominated profession. Louis definitely was teased a lot, but he took it in stride. He was actually very nice and polite. We talked some more and then finally he stood up and grabbed my arms.

“Alright, let’s go.”

“Go where?” I was a little wary since my last time going with a guy to do something was less than enjoyable.

“You may not be much of a dancer but you’ve never danced with me! We’re going out on that dance floor!”

I giggled a little as he pulled me to my feet and led me over to where everyone was dancing. Louis stood facing me and then he put his right hand on my shoulderblade and held out his left. I took his left hand and put my right hand on his shoulder. My hands looked so dainty and feminine, the pink hue on my nails contrasting with the dark color of his skin.

My hands looked almost delicate when he held them and he was careful not to squeeze them too hard. Someone started playing 'Michelle' by the Beetles and we were off. I wasn’t sure what to do, but Louis just told me to follow his lead. He was a good leader and it wasn’t hard to do. I had a great time swaying in his arms, giggling when I missed a step, and singing along to the various songs.

Dancing in heels is not an easy experience and I’m much more impressed with girls who manage to pull it off. Still, I had Louis to help steady me and that was all I really needed to keep going. Finally at close to midnight, somebody started playing Auld Lang Syne.

Louis asked a whispered permission then pulled me closer. I leaned my head onto his shoulder and his hand started to wander south of my shoulder blade. We both looked up as someone turned the TV up just as the countdown began. 5….4…3…2…1…Happy New Year!

I looked up at Louis. “Happy New Year Louis,” I whispered.

He looked down at me. “Happy New Year Elizabeth.” And just like that he kissed me! I wish I could describe what that was like! All I know was as his lips met mine; my hands grabbed him pulling him down towards me. I don’t know how long we stood like that, but he started to pull away. I wasn’t ready to let him go, the rush of happiness I had felt wouldn’t let me! I reached up on my tiptoe and this time my lips met his. His tongue pushed it’s way inside my mouth in a way that was exhilarating and invigorating. I felt nothing but his embrace, and yet, I could sense things going on around me. Somewhere I could hear a camera going off, I could feel one foot leaving the floor in a curl. All I knew was that I wanted more of him!

Finally, after what seemed like both seconds and lifetimes later, he broke away. He looked at me, his brown eyes shining and he repeated his statement. “Happy New Year Elizabeth.”

After all the hullaballoo of people congratulating each other then heading out the door, Hannah grabbed me. She half pushed me and half dragged me up to her room where she slammed me onto her bed for the first time that year. Our lips met and then she pulled away.

“You were so busy kissing Louis that I never got to wish you a Happy New Year!”

“Hannah I…”

“Hey don’t apologize! Louis is an awesome guy. If I wasn’t dating you I’d snatch him up in a heartbeat! I did take pictures if you want to relieve the moment. Hey and if you get married your first meeting and first kiss are well documented!”

“Are you mad at me for that?”

“Mad? No. Confused? Hell Yes!”

“Hannah, I don’t know what to tell you. I love you! But what I felt when I was kissing Louis it was different. It was love but not the same kind of love that I have for you.”

“Sweetheart, just shut up and kiss me. We can try to work through the sexual orientation lecture in the morning!”

Epilogue:I obeyed my girlfriend and we spent a wonderful night together. I don’t need to tell you what we did; I think you could probably figure it out. Still that was the beginning of something new in our lives. I’d like to tell you that Elizabeth never made another reappearance but truth be told she became a regular part of my life. Still, Hannah loved Elizabeth and Eli and it gave us one more area where we could relate. I look back on that night with fondness; it was truly a time where I ushered in a new phase in my life.

Thank you all for reading! This part was hard for me to write since it's unlike what I've done before so I hope you all like it! I tried to leave the ending open for continuation as I'm not sure I'm completely done with these characters. Still this particular story is complete and it's my first finished story here! As always comments, kudos, and criticism is appreciated!
P.S Oh and if anyone can think of any themes/elements that would be applicable but I'm not using for this story, let me know. Thanks!-Bethany