Christmas was fun. We built snowmen, played snowball wars, sled down hills, opened presents, went shopping, drank hot cocoa, watched movies, ate delicious meals, and bonded. Roxie invited Kendall over for several of our events. Each is better than the next. We even went skating! It was so fun!

Owen and Lexie didn't dare set foot on the ice, for they were scared of getting a 'concussion' but thought it'd be fun to watch us get the so said concussions on the sidelines instead. Donnie didn't want to take part either, but Roxie practically pulled him in with her after stuffing his feet into a pair of skates probably too small for him. His feet ached for several days.

Kendall offered to teach me how to skate, so I decided to take him up on his offer since I've wanted to learn how to skate ever since I was little. I fell here and there a few times but survived. On the plus side, I got to spend time with him. We laughed and made bad jokes the whole time. I feel like we've gotten closer. Everything is so surreal.

. . .

"Thank God! One more day till New Year. We have to go shop for some cool outfits, Vi," Roxie exclaims. We're standing by our lockers getting our books.

"Why would we need new outfits? We're not going to a party, Roxie," I state. She positions her hands on her hips.

"Don't you get it? New year, new outfit, new everything." She laughs, and I join her. "It doesn't matter if we're not invited to the New Year's party at Times Square, girl." I shake my head and sigh at her craziness.

"Okay, fine, but I'm picking our outfits this time," I state. I shut my locker and head straight for class.

"No offense, but you have mediocre taste in fashion, Vi," she voices. I turn around and roll my eyes inevitably.

"Yes, but you have the most wonderful eye for fashion." I sit in my seat.

"Ahh...verbal irony I see." She sighs. "I don't know what you mean. The outfits I pick are deliciously cute." She smirks.

"You mean devilishly sexy, which makes us look like prostitutes, Roxanne," I voice, opening my textbook.

"That's so offensive, Violet." She pouts.

"Ugh, I'm sorry. It's just, I feel like you're showing too much of yourself through short clothes. I don't like it when you do that. I don't want any pervert to kidnap you because you look hot. I didn't mean to hurt you," I apologize.

Before she can answer, our teacher comes in. She tears a piece of paper from her book and scribbles something down then passes it to me. Written on it is the following: 'You're forgiven, Violet. I understand you're trying to protect me. I love you, girl <3.' I nod and smile at her.

Time goes by and lunchtime arrives. All of us are seated together, and Roxie is giving us gossip. "Did you hear? Francine and Dave broke up because she found him cheating with two other girls named Tasha and Giselle. The guy was always sickening. He moves from one chic to the next as if they're dessert." She gulps down her soda and slams her hand on the table. I eat a portion of my macaroni and cheese before I speak up.

"Guys are just dogs, but a few cannot define all." I smile faintly.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." She shrugs. "There are only so many guys like Kendall over here." She smirks. My hand, holding a spoonful of macaroni and cheese, stops midway to my mouth. I shove it in my mouth and swallow as I blush. She covers up her snicker and stands up to throw away the garbage on her tray then returns it to the cafeteria staff.

"I want to ask you something, Violet." I turn my attention to Kendall, who is picking at his food.

"What is it?" Seeing his face with furrowed brows gives me a nervous feeling.

"You see...there's that New Year's party at Times Square. My family has attended it every year..." He puts his spoon down and runs his hands through his luscious hair.

"What about it?" I ask obliviously.

"I want to ask if...you'd like to be my date to the party..." he finally blurts out.

"YES! OF COURSE! Can I go too?" Roxie shrieks in excitement as she sits down in glee. When did she come back?

"What?! No!" I blurt out.

"No?..." he asks, disappointed.

"No. Yes. Wait!..." I close my eyes and breathe. "Let me get this straight. You want me to be your date to the New Year's party?" I ask nervously, and he nods.

"Unless you don't want to? I won't force you if you don't want to," he reassures. Roxie is watching our conversation like it's some movie scene. I brainstorm reasons. Why does he want me to be his date? Does he want me to pretend to be his girlfriend so that girls wouldn't crowd him? I mean, he would never like me right? I want to ask him so bad, but it'd be rude to think he has some ulterior motive when maybe he doesn't. All three of us are silent and waiting for my response.

"I'd be honored to be your date to the New Year's party, Kendall," I finally speak up. It won't hurt to attend. I mean, it's a once-in-a-lifetime event for Roxie and me. She better thank me later. As soon as he hears my answer, his whole face lights up, and he takes my hand in his, catching me by surprise.

"Thank you so much, Violet! I don't know what I would've done if you had said no." He smiles warmly, still holding my hand. What would he have done? I blush and slowly loosen my hand from his gentle grip.

"Okay, now that this heartwarming moment is over. Can I go as her guest or your guest?" Roxie asks impatiently.

"Of course. You're my friend, Roxanne," he replies.

"Yes! Good thing we decided to go shopping after school, Vi!" she squeals.

"Oh...I bought you a dress, Violet. It's been delivered to your house I think," he adds in.

"What? You didn't have to! Kendall...I don't want you wasting money on me. I could've bought my own dress." I frown.

"So, you won't wear it?" he asks sadly.

"Well...I guess since you already bought it..." I sigh. "I'll wear it. Thank you, Kendall." I smile.

"Lucky! I want my Donnie to buy me a dress." Roxie pouts.

"If you want, I can get you one to your liking," he says.

"No. Don't use any more of your money. I'm buying clothes for her," I say. "I owe her anyways." I look at her sternly. He nods and the bell rings.

. . .

"Here, try these on." I hand a few outfits to Roxie and push her into the dressing room without hesitation.

"But these don't fit my style," she whines.

"I don't care. Now wear them and let me see how you look," I state. After a few minutes, she comes out with a sad pout on her face, and I laugh heartily. "You look wonderful! Stop frowning. At least I'm not your mother making you wear grandma clothes. We're also going because I accepted Kendall's request, so you should be thanking me," I add in.

"Ugh, I hate you." She frowns but still tries to look pleased with the outfit for my sake.

"Try the other ones, and we'll see which one is better," I say. She changes into her third outfit when I get a message from Kendall.

Ken: I forgot to tell you that your family is welcome to go as well.

Me: Thank you. Owen is going to freak out. Lol.

Ken: Yes, I'm sure he will. :)

I put my phone away and wait expectantly for Roxie's next outfit. "Are you going to come out, or are you going to stay in there?" I sigh. Finally, she pushes the curtain away to reveal an outfit I didn't pick.

She is wearing a black blazer over a white button-up shirt with glitter green shorts and black stockings paired with black pointed heels. "What is that? I certainly did not choose that. Did you sneak that in while I was texting?" I gasp.

"Oh, calm down. I think it's great!" She flashes a smile and spins around happily.

"Uh, no, no, no, no. You're not wearing that to the party. Everybody there is going to look elegant and sophisticated, and you're the only one who is going to look like you snuck into the party drunk." I cross my arms across my chest.

"Jeez! That's harsh," she states.

"I'm sorry but go change into the next outfit I chose for you." I push her into the dressing room and close the curtain shut. A few minutes later, she walks out with what I think is the perfect outfit for her. She is wearing a silky white, long-sleeved shirt that has a glitter gold collar with a glitter gold skirt and black stockings with gold strap heels. Then, to finish the look, I grab a small black purse with a gold chain and give it to her. "OH. MY. GOODNESS! Yes, that's the outfit!" I applaud my taste in fashion and smile.

"I don't know, Vi. It's not my kind of style." She frowns.

"What do you mean? It's definitely your style. The skirt is still short like how you like it, but it's not too short and the shirt makes you look more elegant. Killed two birds with one stone. Come on, let's go pay for the outfit." I smile proudly and walk to the register.

"I guess this will do. Just to make you happy," she comments.

"Thank you, sweetie," I reply.

. . .

"Guess what, Owen?" I set my bag down on a kitchen stool. Owen is laying on the couch with his phone in his face.

"What?" he asks lazily.

"We're invited to the New Year's party," I say lamely. "But since you're not showing enthusiasm for it, I guess you're not excited to go so might as well not go." I sigh loudly on purpose.

"Wait, did you just say New Year's party?!" He climbs over the sofa and looks at me.

"Yes, I did. Kendall invited us. You going or not?" I ask.

"Of course! I'm going to shove it in my friends' faces. Looks like we get some perks from you being his friend," he exclaims.

"Hey! That's not why I became his friend. Where's Aunt Carrie?" I ask, noticing she's not in the living room.

"Oh, she went into her room. She was going on about some package that arrived," he replies.

"Wait, a package? Did she open it?" I ask frantically, knowing it was from Kendall.

"I think so. She took it with her." He shrugs. Just then, she pops her head out of her room.

"Oh my god! You would not believe what Kendall sent you." She smiles broadly.

"I think I do. Where is it?" I ask. She slowly saunters into the room with my dress on her body.

"What do you think? Do I look beautiful?" she asks, twirling around.

"Seriously? Aunt Carrie, don't stretch out my dress. Take it off," I demand.

"Ugh, fine." She pouts. "What is this dress for anyways?" she asks.

"The New Year's party we're going to," I inform her.

"What?! I better go choose a dress for it then!" She hurries into her room.

The next day, I wear my beautiful, sparkly, gold dress, the gold-colored shoes I wore for the Thanksgiving dinner, and put makeup on. I style my hair with a curling iron to give it bigger curls, and I wear a pair of gold-colored earrings shaped like stretched-out triangles to match the dress.

Owen is wearing our father's old, black tux, Lexie is wearing a white cocktail dress, and Aunt Carrie is wearing a blue maxi dress.

"Y'all ready to go yet?" Roxie asks impatiently.

"Yes, yes. Let's go," Aunt Carrie replies. As soon as we open the door, a familiar limousine is waiting outside. The chauffeur walks out and holds the door for us.

"Mr. Williams has asked me to escort you and your family to the party, Ms. Peres," he says, smiling. I can never get used to this. Roxie and Lexie rush into the limousine as if their life depended on it. I just remembered that this is their first time experiencing it. The three of us laugh as we slip into the vehicle.

. . .

Two men open the grand doors of the entrance for us as we arrive at the party. Everybody is conversing inside the ballroom. Everything looks amazing from the ceiling to the floor. Fabric is hung across above our heads and the black marble floor is reflecting the shining light of the crystal chandelier in the middle of the ceiling.

In the corner of my eye, I spot Mrs. Williams with her husband talking with a group of nicely dressed people, who look like conglomerates. She is wearing a long dress with a gem patterned, gold top and white bottom with a slit on the side. Her husband is wearing a grey suit that makes him look very stylish.

"Violet!" Kendall embraces me gently then greets Aunt Carrie, Owen, Lexie, and Roxie. "I'm so glad you guys could make it." He smiles warmly. He is wearing a gold-colored suit.

"The pleasure is ours," Owen speaks up.

"Please, walk around and enjoy the party," Kendall voices.

. . .

My family and I have been walking around and tasting food for hours, but finally, it's almost midnight. I'm on the balcony getting some fresh air. "Getting some air?" Kendall stands next to me.

"Yeah, you too?" I ask, looking at the colorfully lit buildings and streets below.

"Nah, I was just looking for you," he replies.

"Oh, okay," I quietly say. Suddenly, a strong gust of ice-cold wind hits my bare skin, making me shiver. Kendall must've noticed because he takes off his suit jacket and lays it over my shoulders. "Thanks..." I hold it close to me.

"I want to tell you something, Violet," he speaks up, breaking the silence. I turn to look at him and nod to signal I'm ready to hear what he has to say. "This might be kind of shocking to you, but...at first when you came to Preston High, I saw a meek girl struggling to deal with the fact that her parents were gone..." he says, looking at the moon. "But months passed, and I started to see a change with your personality. You seem stronger and happier but still a little diffident. The more I saw you smiling, the more I felt happier. Whenever I saw you, my heart would beat nonstop." He stops and looks at me. "Silly, huh?" He chuckles a little.

I feel speechless. A million thoughts running through my head. Is this really happening? Does he have feelings for me? I don't know what to think. Seeing that I have nothing to say, he continues. "I think...I like you...Violet. Not as a friend but more than that." He holds my hand. In the background, I can hear people counting down to the New Year inside.

'10...9...8...'

"I want to know if you feel the same way about me, Violet. If you don't, we can just be friends." He looks at me, waiting for my answer earnestly. I think back to our times together throughout the few months we've known each other. All the times we laughed and were happy.

'...7...6...5'

If this is real, I'd regret it if I say no. But what if this is fake? No, he would never do that. I look at his eyes, and in there I see something. A longing, sadness, expectancy. Do I have to doubt anymore? I know he'll make me happy. Hasn't he always?

'4...3...'

"I like you too, Kendall," I finally answer, smiling, and his eyes go wide.

'2...1...'

He pulls me into a gentle kiss, electrifying every nerve in my body.

'Happy New Year!!!!!'

Fireworks are booming in the background as we unlock our lips and rest our foreheads against each other. "Happy New Year, Violet," he whispers.

"Happy New Year, Kendall," I whisper back. This feels like a dream, but I know it's real. To think that three months ago we were just classmates. My New Year's resolution might be to be the person Kendall loves. A better version of me. The Violet Peres who is happy, lively, and less timid. 

Happy New Year, guys!!!!! I am about the cheesiest person when it comes to romance so sorry to those who hate it if this chapter's ending was super cheesy. For others, I hope this ending has met your expectations. Don't think it's over yet though, there's still more to come.