2001. The real millenium. Me, my dad, Matt, and Maggie had our same New Year's tradition we'd been doing every since I could remember. We'd pig out, watch
Dick Clark's New Year's Eve Special, and when the ball in Times Square would drop, we'd pull the string on those mini champagne bottle things that shot off confetti, and then of course we'd drink white grape champagne. It was a simple ritual, but it was usually fun. And when that clock hit midnight, I couldn't help but wonder if Zac was thinking of me like he said he would be...
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WackyZaccy22: Shrimpo! long time no talk! HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Sweet_Kisses: lol hey Zaccy
WackyZaccy22:you got my present, right?
Sweet_Kisses: yup. :) I love it. thanks a bunch
WackyZaccy22:I'm wearing the playboy shirt right now hehe. my parents thought it was the funniest thing ever
Sweet_Kisses: hehe yeah I showed it to my dad before I sent it and he laughed his ass off too.
WackyZaccy22: so what'd ya get for Christmas?
Sweet_Kisses: mostly money and gift certificates. and a few cd's. you?
WackyZaccy22: yeah, same here. and a couple of video games of course. so what'd you do last nite?
Sweet_Kisses:just hung out w/my family and Maggie as usual. I bet you guys had a kick ass party
:)
WackyZaccy22: yup! it's tradition. a bunch of friends and relatives come and everything. it was awesome, but it would've been better if you were there :)
Sweet_Kisses: aww
WackyZaccy22:
you're coming next year, k? ::grins::
Sweet_Kisses: hehe sounds like a plan to me
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About three weeks later, the doorbell rang on a Saturday afternoon. I opened up the door and there stood Isaac, Taylor, and Zac.
Talk about an unexpected surprise! I was so excited! "Oh my gosh! Hey you guys!" There were hugs all around of course. "What are you doing here?!"
"Our family decided we needed a vacation," Zac answered. "So...here we are."
"Gosh your whole family came too?" I asked as the guys came in my house. "Where are they?"
"I think they were going out to eat," Isaac answered.
"Whose kick ass Cougar?" I asked as I looked out the window at the red Cougar in the driveway. "Wait, let me guess. Tay's, right?"
Taylor laughed. "Yup. Ike didn't wanna get his precious Mustang dirty."
"Come on, give me a break. I just got it washed yesterday and I sure as hell wasn't gonna drive it up here," Isaac said in defense.
"His car is his baby," Zac whispered to me. I smiled. Hey, if I had a Mustang, I'd treat it like a baby too!
"Jess, honey, who was at the....oh, hey guys. Nice to see you again," my dad said.
"Hi, Mr. Taylor," Zac said.
"Call me John. Mr. Taylor makes me feel way older than I already am." All the guys laughed.
The rest of the Hanson family came over to my house that night and that was actually pretty fun. Mackenzie and Zoe are the two cutest little kids ever. Everyone left around midnight, but Zac and I had plans to go and hang out the next day.
So around 12:30 the next afternoon, I went to go pick Zac up at the Mariott. He was waiting in front, and when I pulled up he quickly got into the car.
I laughed. "Cold, huh? Your ears are bright red."
Zac smiled. "Are they really?" He wiped his nose, then rubbed his hands together and held them in front of the heat vents. "So, what do you wanna do?"
"I don't care. What do you wanna do?"
Zac laughed. "I don't care."
After driving around the city for a few minutes, Zac suggested, "Let's get out and walk around somewhere."
"You sure you wanna do that?" I asked. "As you've already experience, it's only like 20 degrees outside..."
"I'm a man. I can take it." He grinned.
I laughed. "Yeah, well, don't come crying to me when you're freezing your ass off."
Zac and I decided to go hang out at Crescent Lake. The sheet of ice that covered the lake sparkled and glistened.
"So, why'd you guys decide to come back here?" I asked as we walked along the frozen bank.
"Like I said before, my mom loves it here," Zac answered, then added, "And I do, too."
"Why?" I asked, still confused about why the heck the Hanson's liked Wichita so much. Wichita was Wichita--right in the middle of Tornado Alley, and one of the only actually civilized cities in Kansas. I hopped up on to a branch in a willow tree.
"Well...you're here."
I felt the blood rush to my cheeks. They were warm despite of the freezing weather. "Well, I'm glad you guys decided to come back."
"I missed you, Shrimpo." Zac grinned. He took my hands and pulled me back down to ground level.
"I missed you, too, Zaccy."
I playfully punched Zac in the arm, and what he did next was a total shock to me. He grabbed my fist after I hit him and spread my fingers apart and interlocked his hand with mine. He pulled me close to him--so close, that I could feel his hot, sharp breaths blowing into my face. I got the chills. He leaned down, and our lips met. I practically turned into Jello when he deepened the kiss. After being caught up in the heat of the moment, I backed away.
"My knees are shaking," I whispered.
Zac's voice was barely above a whisper as well. "My heart's pounding."
"Gosh, that was the kiss of my life. Not that I've had many to compare it to..."
Zac smiled and gave me another small kiss. "Mine too."
