The Rude Awakening of Love

33 - New Year, New Us?

Emerson's POV

The party has wound down. The sounds of laughter and music slowly fade as one by one, our friends start to head out, their New Year's Eve energy finally fading.

The apartment is quieter now, the bright lights dimming as people say their goodbyes, pull on jackets, and step into the cold night.

Sophia and Ellie were the last to leave, their teasing goodbye lingering in the air as they made their way out the door, no doubt with a thousand more plans for the year ahead.

But for now, the apartment feels like a ghost of itself—quiet, still, and, for some reason, a little too big.

I stand in the living room, gathering empty champagne glasses and bottles, but my movements feel automatic, distant.

Dakota's voice was the last one I heard clearly, his quiet "Happy New Year" still echoing in my head.

The room feels empty without the others. But even with the silence stretching between us, there's something about the space that feels more... intimate now.

The clock on the wall ticks past twelve-thirty, the night growing colder as the windows fog up slightly from the warmth inside.

I glance over to the couch where Dakota is, sitting with his feet up on the coffee table, looking more relaxed now that the others are gone.

"Hey," I say, a little too loudly in the silence. My voice feels like it carries more weight now, like it's pulling us into the next chapter of whatever this is between us. "You okay?"

He looks up from his phone, his expression softening when he sees me. "Yeah, I'm good. Just... thinking."

I don't know what it is, but I feel like I'm standing on the edge of something with him. The tension from earlier in the night is still there, a subtle pull between us that neither of us can ignore.

"You sure? You've been kind of quiet since the countdown." I set the last glass on the counter and walk over to sit on the armrest of the chair, careful not to sit too close. I don't want to make him feel cornered. But at the same time, it's hard to ignore the pull toward him.

Dakota's eyes flicker, and for a moment, I think he's going to brush it off, but then he just nods. "Yeah. I've been... thinking about everything, I guess. About tonight."

"About tonight?" I repeat, feeling a knot twist in my stomach. It's hard not to wonder if we're both thinking the same thing. "Like... the game?"

"No." He shakes his head slightly, glancing down at his hands before looking back up at me. "I mean, yeah, that too. But more... I don't know. Everything. Between us."

My heart skips a beat, and I can feel my palms get clammy. "What do you mean?"

He leans back into the couch, his eyes not quite meeting mine. "I don't want to make things weird, Em. But I can't pretend like I haven't been feeling something lately. You know? More than just... whatever we've been calling this. Our friendship. The roommate thing." He shrugs like it doesn't matter, but his voice is quieter now, heavier. "It's like—" he cuts himself off, running a hand through his hair, frustrated with the way he can't quite find the right words.

I feel the same way. I've been feeling it too—the change between us, the way something that used to be easy and natural has started to feel different. More charged, more... complicated. But I don't know how to put it into words either.

"I think I know what you mean," I finally say, my voice a little shakier than I want it to be. "I feel it too. It's just... I don't know how to deal with it. I mean, we've been living together for months, and now it feels like everything's changed."