"IT'S A TRADITION, they say," Alex said and Amelia raised an eyebrow.

“I think it's pretty stupid but you should do it,” Amelia responded, laying on top of him.

“We'll have to decide on a place.”

His hand slipped under her shirt, drawing shapes against her skin.

“A huge no for Cedar’s. It's too expensive.”

He nodded. “That's what I was thinking.”

“What was the name of the one we went to on our first day here?” Amelia asked, eyebrows scrunched as she reached out towards her phone on the side table.

“Yeah, that one was good enough,” Alex agreed.

“It'll be perfect for a party this big. How many people would there be anyways?”

“Eight of my colleagues and maybe the mysterious boss.”

She gasped dramatically.

“The mysterious boss is coming? Damn, Al, that alone should entail a booking at Cedar's,” she whispered.

He snorted out a laugh and she giggled.

“No, I'm serious though,” she began. “It's a big deal if he's coming.”

“I'm not sure if he is. One of my colleagues is in contact with him and he said he'd try to convince him but I've heard he's an asshole. And anyways, I’m not going over my budget just because he might show up.”

Amelia nodded in understanding.

Alex’s mysterious boss had been the subject of both of their jest and intrigue since Alex had gotten the job. Apparently, the CEO of the company operated behind veils and no one had seen him except a select few in the higher positions.

The point had appeared very shady to Amelia in the beginning but now, one month later, Alex had somehow convinced her that the only reason for this very suspicious behavior was that he didn't like catching the attention of the media or getting his pictures taken.

Now, they just laughed whenever this man with no name and no face was discussed.

“Speaking of asshole bosses, how's work?” Alex asked, breaking the silence.

“Wonderful except for those few unfortunate meetings. They're considering me for a promotion.”

His eyes widened, a whole universe glinting in the blues.

“What the hell? That is so wonderful, Am. That has got to be the fastest promotion ever. I'm so proud of you.”

He captured her lips in a kiss, his smile somehow growing brighter.

“Thank you,” she whispered once he let go.

“I'm so damn proud,” he said once again and Amelia was sure she was glowing.

“We should celebrate,” he said and Amelia laughed.

“It's not final, Al. They might pick someone else.”

“Yeah, well, it doesn't matter. The fact that you were considered with only one month in, entails a celebration.”

She giggled, brushing his curls out of his face.

“We will but we should first decide the venue for your ‘traditional end of the first month dinner.’”

“We've already decided that, haven't we?”

“Okay fair enough. You'll also have to make a booking.”

“Am,” he said seriously and she grinned, climbing off of him.

“Let's go,” he said, holding out his hand for her.

The bedroom door of the apartment creaked when he pushed it open.

Their apartment.

It wasn't much, with creaky floors and cracking brown paint.

It was a two bedroom apartment on the sixth floor with a little kitchen and the balcony on top of them.

It didn't have the view that both Alex and Amelia had fallen in love with at the hotel they'd stayed at for the first three days but it was theirs and Amelia loved it.

He took her hand and she allowed him to lead her away.

___________

Over the past six months, Amelia had gotten used to that infectious personality of Alex’s.

Yet, his anxiety was something she couldn't ever get accustomed to.

The people around them chatted freely but the air around Alex and Amelia was thick with coils of nervousness and panic.

She wished she could take it away from him but she wasn't sure if she'd be able to handle the weight of even half of what he was feeling.

“Alex, please stop pacing,” she said finally.

“This'll be a disaster and oh god, I should have picked someplace better,” he said, running a hand through his brushed back curls, making them fall over his forehead once again.

She found herself giggling despite the grim mood in the room. He stopped and looked at her as if she'd committed some sort of sin.

“What's so funny?” He asked, the anxiousness now replaced with a sharp as knife look as he tried to read her.

“You're perfect, you know that?” She asked.

He stared at her for a long while and then he blinked and the frown lines were gone, replaced by the crinkling at the corner of his eyes and those stars shining in the blues of his pupils.

“Where did that come from?” He asked and the coils in the air loosened a little.

“I don't know,” she shrugged. “I just wanted to let you know that you're perfect and you can never mess anything up even if you wanted to.”

He opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by the dinging of the entrance bell.

They both turned towards the glass paneled door to see a group of men entering.

Alex passed her a smile before walking over towards them. She watched as they shook hands and embraced each other, their lips moving in a conversation that Amelia couldn't hear.

Alex turned around and pointed towards her. Four pairs of eyes stared back at her and she offered a polite smile, waving at them.

Amelia walked towards them and Alex held her hand, introducing her to his colleagues.

“You could have told me you were bringing your girlfriend. I would've bought my wife,”  Leo, the tall one with red hair, said.

“Oh, that would have been wonderful but I was only here to help Alex arrange everything and then I'll be leaving you guys to it. Maybe we can arrange a double date soon?” She offered and Leo beamed at her.

“Kylie would absolutely love that,” he nodded.

Amelia's phone vibrated in her pocket and she pulled it out, barely repressing a groan on reading the name on the screen.

“It's mom. I'll be back,” she said to Alex.

She turned on her heels, walking towards the back of the bar, where there was a little quieter.

She stared at the screen for a long minute before pressing the green button.

“Hi, mom,” she said cheerfully, surprised by how real her voice sounded when she felt anything but.

“Hello, Am. How are you?” Her mother's voice, high and always a little fake sounding even if it was said from the bottom of her heart, came from the other side.

“Great. What about you?”

“I got a little fever last week but I'm fine now.”

Did you go to the doctor?” she asked.

“It was just a minor cold. I treated myself.”

“Oh,” she said awkwardly, unsure of what to say next.

“How’s Alex?” Her mother asked.

“He's good. We're actually at a dinner party with his colleagues right now.”

“Oh, that's wonderful. Am, you are coming home for Christmas, right?” Her mother asked and Amelia pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration.

“I'm not sure, mom. How about we talk about this later?”

“Am, please, try to make time. It'll be fun, I promise,” her mother said and she winched at that word.

Promise. When had her mother ever kept her promises?

“Mum, there’s a whole month in Christmas. We'll discuss this later.”

“Dani and Jo are also coming. They confirmed it today.”

“Oh.” She said, not expecting that. “Okay. I'll see what I can do.”

“Okay great,” her mother said cheerily. “You can go now.”

“Thanks. Bye. I'll talk to you later.” Amelia said hurriedly, hanging up.

She turned around, heading towards the main area but bumped into Alex on the way.

“Ouch,” she groaned a little too dramatically.

“Hey, sorry,” he laughed, wrapping an arm around her waist to balance her.

“What did she wanted to say?” Alex asked, jerking his head towards the phone in her hand.

“I'll tell you later. Right now, you look like you're bursting to tell me something,” she said with a raised eyebrow, a smile playing on her lips.

He had that look on his face, with the little too big eyes and flushed cheeks. Like he couldn't contain the gossip inside anymore.

He laughed. “Yes, I am. You won't believe who's here.”

Amelia gasped, eyes wide to match his as her hand flew to her open mouth.

“No way,” she murmured.

“Yes way,” he said and she giggled but then immediately bit her lip to stop herself.

“Al, him being here is a huge thing. It’s like the equivalent of getting a promotion.”

He cocked his head to a side, his face alight.

“Not really but yeah, it's a close enough comparison.”

Amelia nodded.

“So,” she said, stretching the syllable, looking at Alex with that knowing glint in her eyes.

He let out a laugh, shaking his head in a no before she even asked her question.

“Is he old and bald like we imagined?”

“He is the exact opposite of what we imagined. Come on, I'll introduce you,” he said as he grabbed her hand and started to pull her away and into the warm, yellow lights of the main area.

His friends were gathered around the bar, laughing and chatting among themselves.

Only one of them had their backs to her and Amelia knew it had to be the mysterious boss.

But there was something about him. Something so familiar that it made her heart race.

Amelia watched with a frown as the guy grabbed a glass from the counter and drowned the whiskey in a single gulp before placing it back on the counter.

She noticed how his hand lingered a little longer on the counter as he placed back his glass.

He paused, checked the watch on his wrist, shuffled in his position with what seemed to be frustration and then shoved his free hand in the pocket of his black pants.

Amelia halted in her steps, her blood turning cold.

She knew him. She knew him. She knew him.

Her heart had recognized him way before her mind could catch up. As if that wretched thing had been waiting impatiently for him for the last two years.

“Am!” Alex’s face loomed in front of her, forcing her to tear her gaze away from him.

Alex said something but it sounded muffled to her. All she could hear was the thumping of her heart and maybe, if he listened carefully, he could hear it too.

It couldn't be. He couldn't be here. It wasn't possible. She was just being paranoid. He couldn't be here.

She forced herself to look away from Alex’s slightly blurred face, back towards the bar.

The man at the counter that had made Amelia's heart race turned around at exactly the same time.

Their eyes met across the room and suddenly there wasn't enough oxygen for her anymore.

The unfamiliar beats of her heart weren't so unfamiliar anymore.

Amelia recognized the pattern. It was all her heart had known a million years back. It was his name over and over again.

Ethan. Ethan. Ethan.