Rhythm || Ashton Irwin

Chapter Thirty-Eight

(Lauren's POV)

December 30th and these fucking Christmas lights are still up. I scowled as I made my way through Central Park, sipping on my coffee, trying desperately to keep warm in the frigid winter winds as I made my way over to Cassie's place.

Cassie had insisted I come over to help pick out her outfit for new years, something about 'an outfit should never see daylight until your best friend approves it'. I wasn't exactly in the mood to be out today, but I also wasn't in the mood to deal with her wrath if I decided not to come over.

Sure, I hated the holidays, but New Years was different. New Years was the only time during the year I truly let go. It was about new beginnings, reminiscing on the old, but looking forward to the new. Although, more often than not, resolutions were lost and promises for a better year were broken, it was the thought that counted, right?

Soon enough, I found myself at Cassie's threshold looking in on the disaster she called a home. Clothes and shoes thrown all over the place while random pieces of jewelry hung from various chairs, cabinets and other bits of furniture.

"Cass?" I called, walking through the room towards her room, knowing she was in there continuing to tear her closet apart.

"Lauren, thank god you're here, none of these are going to work!" She sighed as she sat down on her bed in defeat, looking over the mess she had made.

"What are you talking about, you have so many dresses here! Most I've never seen you wear, by the way, that would be perfect!" I reasoned, picking up some of the mess, clearing a path for myself to her bed.

"Yea, but none of these are speaking to me! I need something that says, 'It's New Years and I'm glamorous and ready to get trashed, but still fucking classy', you know what I mean?" Standing and walking back over to her very large and very empty closet, she gave it one last look before sighing in defeat as she leaned against the frame of the door.

"We're gonna have to go shopping, lets go!" swiftly she grabs her purse and walks right out of her room, leaving me on her bed, confused and annoyed at her rapid change in plans. Soon enough she was back at the door, eyebrows raised and a small pout on her lips, "Well?"

"Do we really have to go? You have so much here and I just want to have a nice night in, you know?" I reasoned, I really didn't want to go back out into the cold just so Cassie could buy a dress that she would wear for one night.

"Lauren, I know for a fact that you yourself probably don't have an outfit for tomorrow picked out, and I also know that there is no way I'm going to let that slide. Now lets go." Grabbing my arm, Cassie pulled me up from the bed and out of the room towards the elevator.

Soon enough, we were downstairs and making our way down the street to whatever stores Cassie planned on raiding.

"Look, Cas, maybe I don't want to go out tomorrow? Maybe, I just want to have a nice night in... Watch a movie, smoke a little, a bottle of champagne? You know, something simple!" I wasn't lying. Sure, I was all for the crazy night out and the parties, but this year I wanted something a little different. I turned my head back once I noticed Cassie had stopped walking, shooting a look of disbelief my way.

"You're not serious are you?" she stood there, waiting for my answer, only getting a quick shrug and eyebrow raise form me, "No... No no no. Loz, New years is the only night of the year that you get my level crazy, you need this and I need this."

Walking back towards me, Cassie placed her hands on my shoulders, a look in her eyes that I had never really seen before.

"Look, I just... I feel like we never see each other anymore! With all your ballet and spending time with Ashton, and me spending so much time with Calum, I feel like we're..." She couldn't finish her sentence and she didn't need to. I could see the sadness in her eyes, I knew what she meant.