New Year's Kiss

New Year’s Eve. An event that comes every year. It seemed like everyone was having a party. I thought about not going to anyone’s party. But then my sister told me she needed me at her party.

"Why?" I asked.

"Because when the ball drops at midnight everyone kisses."

"So why do you need me?"

"Because. We have 5 couples, and one single person."

"So?"

"So, all the couples will kiss at midnight. Except the one person who will be alone."

"Oh I get it. You want me to come just to kiss some stranger at midnight."

"Exactly. Please." I figured she was going to twist my arm. So finally, I sighed. "Fine. I’ll be there."

So here I am. Standing at my sister’s door, about to ring the doorbell. I have no idea what’s going to happen tonight. Before I could ring the bell, my sister flung open the door. "Robin! So glad you made it."

"I promised I would come."

"I know, but I thought you might chicken out." Soon she was introducing everyone around. Everyone seemed to be in a couple. "So where’s this stranger I am supposed to meet?"

"Over here," my sister said. "Robin meet Jackie. Jackie, Robin."

"Nice to meet you," we said. I looked Jackie up and down. I liked what I was seeing. But I wasn’t looking for a relationship. But a kiss at midnight, sure.

So the party began. We played some rounds of charades. Jackie was good at the game. Then we played "Never have I ever".

"Robin, you start," my sister said. "Okay, never have I ever gotten arrested."

Jackie drank. "Interesting," I said.

"Minor offense. Unpaid parking tickets."

Then it was Jackie’s turn. "Never have I ever, kissed a girl." Jackie looked at me.

"Sorry," I said. "If you had said, never have I ever kissed a guy then I’d have to drink."

"Interesting," Jackie said.

The game continued. But Jackie and I ignored most of the others in the room. We had our own game now. Try to get the other one to drink. My turn. "Never have I ever kissed a guy." Most of the guys in the room took a drink. Except one guy. "Bisexual," he said. "I’ve kissed a lot of people." Jackie took a long drink, then looked at me. "Never have I ever gotten a tattoo." I drank.

"You have a tattoo?" my sister said. "How come I’ve never seen it?"

"Because it’s not in a place you would ever see." Jackie’s eyes went up, attention peaked. I could see Jackie’s eyes scanning my body, trying to find my tattoo.

It came around to me again eventually. I was a little buzzed, almost all the things people had said, I’d had to drink.

"Never have I ever done illegal drugs." I looked at Jackie, no drink.

"Good," I said, "I don’t like people who do drugs."

Jackie’s turn. "Never have I ever had sex in a public place."

"Dang you got me," I said taking a drink.

The game continued. Both Jackie and I were a little drunk now. "It’s almost midnight!" My sister cried. Jackie and I got up. Now Jackie’s arm was around me. "Well, this has been an enlightening evening."

"It has," I replied.

"So at midnight."

"We kiss."

"And then."

"I guess that’s up to you." I heard the tv turn on, and my sister said, "Okay everyone ready!" We counted down. "10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Happy New Year." Now Jackie’s lips were on mine, and then suddenly her tongue was in my mouth. Her kiss was unlike any other kiss I’ve had from any woman. It made me forget why I hadn’t celebrate New Year’s in a long time. Not since I’d proposed to my girlfriend five years ago and she turned me down in front of a lot of people.

Jackie pulled away from me. "Well I guess if we play "Never have I ever" ever again, I’ll have to drink."

"So are you bi?" I asked her.

"Nope. Completely straight. But when your sister said Robin was coming, I figured you were a guy."

"I get that a lot," I said. "I assumed she wanted me to have a New Year’s kiss with a guy. She still thinks she can convince me to be straight. If she’d told me your name before I came, I probably would’ve figured you were a guy too."

"If I were a lesbian, I would totally date you."

"Thanks. You really helped make New Year’s fun for me again."

"What do you say if neither of us are seeing anyone, we do this again next year?"

"Sure," I said.

Soon after everyone began leaving. Jackie kissed me on the cheek. The next few days, I thought about Jackie a lot. I dated a few women during the year, but none were like Jackie. So I eagerly looked forward to the next New Year’s.

This time my sister didn’t need to coerce me into coming. I went eagerly. I walked into the room. "Where’s Jackie?" I asked. "I thought she might be here."

"Haven’t you talked to her at all?"

"We didn’t exchange numbers. She’s not a lesbian. We just said we might see each other here again this year, if we were single."

"No wonder you were eager to come. Well she met a guy and moved to England a few months ago. But this year, we invited a lot of single people, so maybe you’ll share a kiss with someone special."

"Maybe," I replied. My sister melted back into the party. I mingled, but I knew that I wouldn’t want to kiss anyone else that night. I was forever grateful to Jackie for replacing my bad New Year’s memory with one amazing one.