New Year's Kiss (Kittle Chronicles)

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A beautiful night surrounded those who were blessed enough to be in an area not obscured by clouds. There could not be a more perfect night so such an occasion that was occurring today, as people all around the world were preparing to celebrate the incoming New Year.

 Specifically, within a tiny inn found in a specific city around the world, a small group of sorts was nested together, trying to figure out their plans for the night. Or at least, they were wondering if they would even go through with the plans they had planned beforehand.

 “A New Year’s Party? I’ve never really been to one actually…” Selwyn lamented with a faint hint of regret in his tone. “I’ve had chances to in the past, but I had always opted to work instead…”

 The Badger leaned into Asher a bit as he spoke, talking with the entire trio of brothers as they had been discussing the possibility of going to a New Year’s Party. Asher noticed that Selwyn was a bit more touchy today than usual, and kept a close arm around him. Something was getting to the badger, but now wasn’t the time to discuss it.

“Hmm...I don’t...s-see why...we should..not go…” Asher responded, rubbing the Typhlosions back a bit in comfort. He wasn’t entirely sure how to respond, as this was the first major time he had seen Selwyn in a much more pessimistic attitude. And clearly Asher was not the only one to pick up on this, as Bernard seemed to be a bit more in thought.

 “Err...you two should head on over to the party!” Bernard encouraged with a smile, giving Asher a small nudge with his elbow. “I uhh...I already promised Miguel that for New Year’s Eve I would uhh...take him to get some really good food around here! Yeah, ain’t that right Miguel?”

 “I don’t remember...but...foooooooood….I’m in!” Miguel laughed innocently.

“Hmhm…don’t...s-spend all..our earnings..” Asher warned, giving a gentle nudge back to Bernard. He also flashed a warm smile to Bernard, as if to thank him.

Once they had dispersed and the two younger brothers had left for their sudden excursion, Selwyn couldn’t help but stifle a quiet laugh and a genuine smile while rubbing Asher’s paw.

“They...seem to try harder to get us alone more than we do…~”

“Hmm...yes~”

The Lycanroc bent down a little and planted a loving kiss on Selwyn’s lips, pulling him closer by the hips. From there, he lifted Selwyn just a little off the ground and carried him into the bedroom so they could get ready for the part.

 Roughly an hour later, they found themselves in the backyard of some mansion, full of people who were ready to ring in the new year with excitement and alcohol. There was without a doubt a guest list, and the front of the mansion was being monitored by a bouncer. However, nobody at the “venue” seemed to care much about unwelcome guests, considering the gate to the backyard was both open and wholly unguarded.

 The yard consisted of live music where plenty of people could dance the night away on a small stage, an outdoor bar that seemed to be more of a catering service rather than a permanent feature of the yard, a dining area under a tent full of tables and delectable food, and even a few game tables from a local casino for those drunkenly-confident gamblers in the crowd.

“Wow...this sure has...just about everything I’d imagine a rich New Year’s party would consist of.” Selwyn joked, managing a smile as they miraculously found an empty table to settle down at. “This is so lively, and there must be like….300 people here, possibly more! That’s like...almost twice the population of where I lived in the Solustra ports…”

“Hmm...do y-you...like it..?” Asher asked with a smile, reaching down to hold Selwyn’s hand.

“It’s...it’s a lot to take in, honestly. I think it’ll be okay, I guess I just need to adjust first. Maybe we can...check the bar out actually? I don’t really like to drink that often but...it seems like the right occasion.”

“Mhmm…~”

 Not needing much convincing from either side involved, Asher stayed behind Selwyn and kept a small grip around his arm as they walked so as to not lose him in the crowd. With a bit of pushing, yelling, and even cussing on a few occasions, they finally made it over to two empty bar seats right next to each other.

 There wasn’t exactly a menu, but one of the bartenders nearby was able to recite the available drinks to them when they had a moment to approach the waiting couple among the busy crowd. Most of what was offered seemed to be mixed drinks, which Selwyn didn’t detest, but he seemed to be more in the mood for something straight out of the bottle.

 “Are you okay with...a few shots?” Selwyn asked Asher, not wanting to drag him into anything that he didn’t feel comfortable doing.

 “Yes..hmmm…” The Lycanroc responded, seemingly a little unsure. “Just a few...w-will not hurt..~”

“Yeah...I guess you’re right as usual, my love…~” The badger giggled, leaning into Asher. “Let’s do...vodka shots and tequila shots. We’re big, strong ‘mons. We should be able to handle our liquor without issue anyway…~”

 As the first round came, Selwyn and Asher toasted to the night and took their shots. Needless to say, they both needed to acquire a taste for taking these shots for them to be remotely enjoyable which would take time. Regardless, the first round didn’t stop them.

They took another shot of vodka.

And then a shot of tequila.

And then another tequila shot.

And then they got some lighter, but still alcoholic mixed drinks.

A problem with Selwyn’s previous statement became aware quite quickly: Although their bodies would probably be better at handling alcohol than someone much scrawnier than them, because of how rarely they drink and neglecting to eat before, the alcohol entered their system much stronger. To say the least, both of them were at least quite buzzed if not bordering on being drunk.

 “T-that’s...enough..drinks f-for me… Selwyn huffed, rubbing his head a little out of a slight headache. He stood up, rocking back and forth for a moment before regaining his posture. Asher didn’t exactly have an easier time standing up, however he easily seemed to be having a much more fun experience.

 “T-those...were good...hm..drinksss…~” He chuckled at a higher tone than his normal voice, a tone that even threw Selwyn off for a moment through his intoxication. “Let’s...go back...to the table…~”

 Returning to the table proved quite the challenge for the couple. In addition to both of them being unable to walk straight, Asher had...oddly enough stopped to talk to a few strangers who seemed to be just as drunk as him. When passing by the dance stage, Asher had even tried to convince Selwyn to stay for a few dances, but that idea was quickly put to rest due to an underlying feeling of nausea from both of them.

 Once at the table, Selwyn held his head in slight pain. With the alcohol already occupying so much of his attention, all the sound coming from the crowd as well as his own mentality was getting to him.

 “M-man...t-this...was a mistake…” he muttered before suddenly getting up.

 Selwyn made his way out the gate and exited the yard, much to Asher’s dismay. Although he had been conversing with strangers in a daze, seeing Selwyn leave in such a concerning manner snapped him right back to reality within seconds.

 “Err….mhmm...-e-excuse me…” Asher said to the people, sounding more like himself as he followed the Typhlosion outside.

 Asher found Sewlyn sitting against the yard’s fence, holding his head in pain as he tried to focus on not letting his mind crack into two,

 “Selwyn...-l-love…?” Asher whispered in a loving tone, getting on a knee in from of Selwyn as to be leveled with him. “W-what’s...h-hmm...wrong…?

 The badger looked up at the Lycanroc with teary eyes, wiping said tears away. Without much more a moment’s notice, Selwyn threw himself forward and into Asher’s arms as tight as he could.

 “I-i’m...sorry Asher...I-I always get like this...a-around the New Year, and...alcohol didn’t help. I knew I shouldn’t...b-be drinking...I knew it would m-make me sulky. I-im sorry…” He admitted quietly. “I just...this has been...o-one of the best years of m-my life...now having you right by my side...i-i've never been happier. I love you, so much...” Selwyn explained, looking up into Asher’s eyes. “I just...I get so sentimental at the e-end of the year, cherishing every moment. But this year, I've...i-i’ve realized just how-much reason i-i’ve gained to live, and how...in the past...it felt like I n-never truly had a reason. I can’t help but feel...i-ive wasted my life up until now, and...I-I don’t want to feel t-that way…”

 While Selwyn let out some well needed emotional distress, Asher smiled. He wrapped his arms around the Typhlosion, staring into his eyes and rubbing his cheek as gentle and tenderly as he could.

 “Hmm...my little badger…” He whispered to him, pushing their noses together. “You...a-are my everything..a-along with my family. Y-you have not...hmm...wasted your life in the p-past...everything..i-in..hmhm...the past...l-lead you to me, and lead...me t-to you…~”

Selwyn seemed shocked at hearing Asher speak so much in one sitting. However, he was more touched by the compassionate viewpoint that Asher had on the past: It wasn’t that every uneventful part of the past was a waste, it brought them together in the end! He began to tear up more as he thought over the philosophy, as he could not argue with it; Selwyn would do his entire life over again if it meant he could be with Asher.

 “Oh...Asher…” He said softly with a hiccup, closing his eyes. Selwyn held into Asher and was acting a bit more vulnerable than usual. “I...I truly love you...I need to...o-open up about how I-i’m feeling when I’m like this more..I can’t be...happy all the time. Thank you, hun…~”

“Anything for...hmm...you..~” Asher whispered, giving Selwyn a kiss on the nose.

 While they were kneeling there outside the party, they heard people counting down from within the fence. They were at 30 seconds, counting down the near year. Hearing the, Selwyn smiled up at Asher.
 “Hey...did you ever..g-grow up hearing about... a New Year’s Kiss.” Selwyn asked.

 “Mhmm…” Asher responded with a nod.

 “Have you...ever h-had one…”

 “Hmhm...n-no…”

 “Well...there’s 15 seconds left...let’s...m-make it a first for us both…”

 The countdown hit 10 in the background and quickly descended. Asher and Selwyn stared into each other’s eyes with no one else around them to interrupt their loving giggles and smiles. As the clock hit midnight and people began to shout in celebration, both of the lovers moved forward and closed their eyes. Going into a loving kiss, Selwyn held around Asher’s neck and Asher held around Selwny’s waist. The Lycanroc gently lifted Selwyn off the ground, rubbing behind his head softly while they kissed.

What felt like a minute later, Selwyn slowly pulled away from the kiss, Both of them panted quietly into each other’s mouths, a saliva trail connecting their lips as they pulled away.

“A-asher...let’s g-go home..” Selwyn whispered softly with a smile, snuggling into him as the alcohol in his system began to make him feel drowsy. “I love you, so much Asher...I’ll never leave your side…”

Asher grinned happily and lifted Selwyn into his arms, against his chest as he stood up straight.

“I love...y-you too, Selwyn...w-with all my...hmm..h-heart…~”

 Looking back at the party for a moment, Asher knew that no amount of alcohol could ever erase this moment from their memories. He turned around and began to walk back home into the night, making sure that not even the tiniest negative thought laid rest on the sleepy badger whom he loved to no end.