Prompt:  It's snowing outside, but everyone's at the town square, ready to witness the grand celebration. You're at that New Year's party, too. Right before the clock strikes midnight, you hear a voice whisper in your ear, "I really think we can do so much better, so how about we try again?" The clocks strikes midnight, and everyone cheers for the new year as the date appears all around you: January 1st, 2020.

@Ravendipity @Saramitra_

It was snowy outside, and you were watching everyone gather around Big Ben, England's Clock Tower. Everyone was gathering to celebrate the New Year.

You were there too, watching the clock count down, frozen in place, when you heard a whisper in your ear.

"I think we can do so much better, so how about we start again?"

Before you could ask questions, you were jolted out of your thoughts by the ding of Big Ben and the shouts of people cheering for the New Year.

Pulling out your phone, your eyes widened when the date was 2020.

"What the hell is going on?"

You wake up in bed in a cold sweat; fumbling for your phone, you check it.

To your surprise, it says 1st of January 2020.

You laugh and lean back on your pillow. "No, this can't be happening."

"Get a hold of yourself!"

You lay frozen after the shout; you sit up and look round your room. "Hello, who is it?"

You listen for a minute, and then when there's no response, you laugh, "Geez, I need to stop watching paranormal things before bed."

You get up and make your way to the kitchen; while making a cappuccino, you switch on the TV.

While you're making a drink, you hear something that confirms you're back in the worst year of your life.

Your eyes get fixed on the TV, and you realise what the news is showing—the start of the year when the world stopped making sense.

You sighed, but again you heard the voice, "Forget the main event, but you need to get to that place."

You gasped; whatever it was, it was right.

You quickly drink and eat up and get ready, and afterwards you go out.

You pulled up outside work, and before you go in, the voice speaks again, "Go in and act natural."

Your side-eye even though you don't know what you're side-eyeing and get out of the car.

In the office, you are doing your job when he turned up Joseph Lee.

He was the most beautiful man you ever seen, and you want to ask him out, but you never got the chance.

Maybe that was why you were taken back in time to ask him out.

You.

You wait for a free moment to be near him, and when you have it, you ask him to go outside.

"So what's up, Lily?"

His smile shines in the sunlight, and you feel yourself giggling, "Mm, I was wondering if you would like to go out this weekend?"

He smiled and held your hand. "I would love to."

You feel so happy but try to play it cool. "See you Saturday then."

He nodded and went back inside; you went to your car and got inside. You screamed with excitement; luckily, there was no one around.

"Yes, I did it."

You celebrated by yourself, and afterwards you went inside the building and got on with work.

As the week goes on, you get really excited about your date, but luck wasn't on your side.

The day of the date, you got a text saying he is sorry, but he felt sick, so you were left texting him to get better soon and feeling disappointment.

Over the month, you didn't see Joseph, and you started to worry.

When it gets to around March time, you worry you won't see Joseph before it happens.

Around the week before the big event, you got a phone call, and when you were told about Joseph's situation, you got straight in the car and drove to the hospital.

At the hospital, you ran to the front desk and asked where Joseph Lee is. Asking if you're friends or family, you said you're his girlfriend.

Before you get told where to go Joseph's family appeared in front of you, and his mother looked at you, "Hello dear, thank you for coming."

You nodded, "It's my pleasure, Mrs. Lee."

Mrs. Lee led you to Joseph's room, and he looked like he was at death's door.

You walked up to his bed and sighed, "Joseph, if you can hear me, fight, please."

You felt your hands shaking, but you didn't know if it was because you were scared or upset.

You put your hand on his and felt him squeeze it.

You turned and walked to the door. "Excuse me, he squeezed my hand."

A nurse walked in and looked, "It was probably a reflex."

You shook your head. "No, he squeezed my hand."

The nurse smiled at you sympathetically and walked out.

You balled your hands into fists and pressed them to your eyes. You couldn't believe this.

You knew you couldn't stay there all day, so you put your coat on, held his hand one last time, and left the hospital.

As you got in the car, you knew that you had to come and see Joseph regularly before the nightmare started.

That's what you did.

For 2 weeks you kept going to see Joseph, but like you knew, the nightmare started by the end of March.

You knew over the next few months you would see and experience the worst events of your life.

For 3 months you would be stuck in your home and only get to know how Joseph was doing by phone call and texts with his parents.

The worst bit was having to stay indoors for 3 months and only having the dog to keep you company.

The good thing about the nightmare was you could work from home, and you had free time to try cooking and baking different recipes.

Even though the events happening had already happened and you were just reliving them, you were still feeling everything.

One day you got up and got your dog's breakfast, and even though it wasn't quite time, you noticed that he wasn't eating, and one time when you went towards him, you knew something was wrong.

You made an appointment for the vets but couldn't get there for a few days, so you knew if your dog didn't eat, he would die.

You decided to order a feeding tube so you could still feed him.

You fed him like that for four days and then took him to the vets.

After being at the vets for hours, you had your resolve crushed, and the hard work you put into keeping your dog alive was now destroyed.

As the vet explained to you, you stood frozen and numb.

You didn't even reach out after the vet put your dog to sleep.

After giving him one last kiss goodbye, you thanked the vets and left straight away.

At home, unlike the other time, you didn't feel anything and got on with your day.

You didn't feel anything for a few days, but on the weekend you got up one day and poured the dog food.

Only remembering once you saw his dog bed that you had him put to sleep.

You grabbed his blanket and collapsed in his bed.

You felt your eyes burn, and you heard the voice, "Let it go; I am here for you."

You shook your head. "No, this already happened!"

"Suit yourself, but I promise you, you will regret it, Lil."

Your eyes widened at the voice use of your nickname, and you thought the voice sounded like Joseph, but that was crazy.

You shook your head and carried on with your day.

A few weeks went by, and you were relieved when you found out you could start going to the hospital to see Joseph.

And you were even more relieved when you got a message saying he was getting better.

"Just a few more weeks and I am coming, Joseph."

"You know what's going to happen; why put yourself through it?"

You groaned at the voice, "Shut up!!!"

Surprised at how loud you could shout, you almost gave yourself a heart attack.

"Whoa, okay, relax. Whatever this is, it's nothing."

You looked around, but you knew there was nothing there.

Even though there was nothing there, you were almost certain that someone put a hand on your shoulder.

"It's okay."

Running a hand through your hair, you shook your head and laughed, "Get it together, Lil."

You decided to distract yourself with baking.

After a few weeks, you were getting ready to see Joseph but something felt off you were all jittery and your hands were sweating, you took a test just incase you were coming down with something but no and once you realised you were just nervous you started to relax.

At the hospital you arrived with flowers and a teddy bear, as you got to his room where he was awake and looking a lot better than the last time.

"Hey, Joseph."

He looked at you and, with a beaming smile, said, "Hello, Lil."

You put the flowers and bear down and sat down next to his bed, grabbing his hand, "How you doing?"

He squeezed your hand. "Good, a lot better now that you're here."

You looked round the room, and your eyes were burning because you knew he must be suffering still no matter if he put on a brave face.

"Hey, Lil, it's okay."

You shook your head. "No, it's not."

He frowned when tears started rolling down your face. "Lil, what's wrong?" he asked.

You wiped your face. "My dog got put down a few weeks ago."

"Oh Lil, I'm sorry. I know how much you loved him."

You nodded and smiled when he wiped a few tears that were running down your face.

Even though you knew he was not going to be gone soon, you soaked in the comfort he gave you.

You could live in denial a bit longer.

So you did. While Joseph seems like he was getting better, you were full of joy.

At one point you thought Joseph was actually going to survive, but you were deluding yourself because on the same day as it happened, before you got a call saying Joseph was not doing well.

You felt numb, but you managed to get yourself moving and ended up in your car.

While driving, you got a phone call from Joseph's mom; she was crying and saying he was in a bad way.

Once you hung up, you could hear the voice saying, "Let it go."

You pulled over and looked behind you, pretending there was someone there. "What do you want me to do?"

"Let it go, Lil."

Shaking your head, you started driving again.

When you got to the hospital, you parked and jumped out of your car and ran inside.

You went straight to his room.

You got there panting and out of breath, but you couldn't do much to calm down when you heard his mother's scream.

"Ahhh!"

That wasn't any ordinary scream; it was a scream you heard on the news and TV shows, and because of it you couldn't move or respond at all.

You were frozen, all your limbs numb, but the one thing that told you this was all real was the beating of your heart.

At first you thought you were just frozen, but when your heart was almost feeling like it was jumping out of your chest and your breaths were coming out shallow, you knew you were having a panic attack.

Joseph's parents saw you and tried to talk to you, but you couldn't bear it, and once you could move, you ran straight out of the hospital and kept on running till you couldn't anymore.

Where you were going, you didn't know, but you needed to be as far away from the hospital as possible.

Once you arrived at your destination, you collapsed from exhaustion and could feel tears burning your eyes. "Let it go, Lil, let it go."

You spun around and pretended to talk to the voice, "Let it go. Why did you bring me here if I can't stop anything from happening?"

You felt tears threatening to fall, but you wouldn't cry right now; you were too consumed by your frustration and angrily swiped at your tears.

"Lil, it's okay; let it go."

You rolled your eyes and said, "Why, who are you?"

"It's me, Lil, it's Joseph."

You felt your heart leap into your throat and your body tremble, "You're lying!"

"Oh Lil, I wish I was, but it's true."

"Joseph, why would you let me go through all this again?"

Feeling a hand on your shoulder, you turned round, and there he was in spirit form.

"I've been watching you, Lil, and I need to get your attention, so I brought you here so I could tell you, 'I'm okay; I'm not in any pain, and you're allowed to be mad at me."

You looked at the spirit form of your deceased boyfriend and, with fists clenched, screamed, "You know what? I am angry at you. Why did you have to leave me? It's not fair?!"

He sighed, "You're right, Lil, but just because I'm gone doesn't mean you can't be happy with someone else."

You shook your head, "No, how can I be happy without you!"

"Because that's what I want, for you to be happy."

You stood frozen; you knew the words he spoke were sincere, but you knew if you let it go, there was no going back.

Feeling your eyes brimming with tears, you looked at Joseph, "So when you say let it go, what do you mean?"

He smiled, and even though he was a spirit, you felt like he was hugging you. "Let it go, Lill. Let me go."

His deep voice was smooth in your ears, and though you didn't want to, you knew he was right.

"But if I let you go, it feels like I betrayed you."

He smiled, "Don't worry, Lil, I will always love you and just want you to be happy."

After his words, you felt whatever resolve you had slip away, and everything you had been holding back came flooding out.

You felt your body go weak, and you collapsed on the ground, and even though you knew it was pointless, you started banging the ground, "Why did you leave me like that!"

"Why did you have to die?!"

"Why!!!"

The heavens must have felt your grief because it started pouring with rain, and as it got heavier, you couldn't tell if the water going down your face was the rain or your tears.

Even though you were on the ground, you felt a pair of arms wrap around you, and even though you knew it was ridiculous, you put your arms out and pretended you were hugging Joseph's spirit.

You imagined that he was holding you while you were drenched in the rain as you cried your heart out.

You also imagined your tears were being absorbed by his t-shirt, and you gripped his t-shirt.

You knew you were crying a lot, but because of the thunder that started, you couldn't hear your own sobs.

You didn't know how long you were there or how long you were crying, but after a while you felt uncomfortable, and when you looked, you were hugging Joseph's grave.

You got your phone and looked; it was New Year's Eve 2024.

You furrowed your eyebrows and looked at the grave.

How much of it was real? You asked yourself.

As you wiped your face, you knew that part was real, but how long had you been there, and why did you think about that?

Checking the time, you knew the New Year was on its way.

You put your phone away and looked back at the grave. It was drenched by your tears, but you felt great and full of energy, so you went home to get ready for the night.

At home, as you were getting ready, you got a call from a guy who worked in the same office as you. He asked you if you would meet him at the top of Big Ben.

You said yes and smiled when you remembered Joseph's spirit telling you to find someone.

"I'm doing it, Joseph."

That evening you waited at the top of Big Ben, and as the time ticked to 5 minutes before New Year, you thought you were being stood up.

You felt your eyes tear up, hurt that you were being stood up, but you heard a voice say, "Are you okay?"

You spun round, and there he was, Robert Lucas.

You went up to him and slowly hit his chest, "What time do you call this?"

He laughed, "Sorry, got delayed."

Your body shook, but you didn't know why.

You looked him in the eyes. "You're a jerk; you could at least let a girl know," you hit his chest again.

You didn't realise you were crying until he wiped a trail of tears away with his finger. "Don't cry, beautiful; I'm sorry."

The clock bonged, and you stood frozen looking at him, but in the distance, you could hear Joseph's voice, "It's okay, Lil, I give you permission."

You didn't need any other permission as you kissed him and he wrapped his arms around your waist.

You knew tears were still running down your face, but you didn't care. You did want what Joseph wanted, and you were happy. That's all that mattered.

And if you had Robert Lucas to wipe your tears, what more could you have asked for?

As the clock finished bonging and he slowly pulled away from your kiss, he wiped a few more stray tears.

You looked at him, and as he kept wiping your tears, you said, "Sorry."

He smiled and pulled you into a hug. "Don't say sorry, beautiful. I'm here. Cry as much as you want. I understand."

Hearing those words made you overjoyed that you continued to cry softly in his chest, but this time you were happy, and you knew he meant what he said.

And as he held you, you felt safe, which you hadn't felt for a long time.

As you continued to cry, you smiled because you were doing what Joseph wanted, and you could trust Robert.

Which was all you wanted: to have someone to trust and to love you like you deserved.