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Six

New Year's Eve, 2013

"I'm quite nervous," Kit confessed to Kevin, sounding sheepish as they walked down the sidewalk after getting off the tube, his feet walking a couple of steps in front of Kit. They rarely walked side-by-side. "Do I look alright?" she asked him, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. She hadn't been able to make a salon appointment, but Charlotte had helped her with an up-do that kept most of Kit's unmanageable hair tethered. She was happy with how it turned out, but wanted Kevin's approval as well.

Kevin exhaled loudly, holding his hand up to shush Kit, indicating that he was on the phone. She whispered an apology to him, her head drooping slightly as he kept his phone pressed against his ear. After a moment, he chuckled to himself, dropping his phone back into his pocket and making no motion to mention any details of the phone call to Kit.

"Who was that?" she questioned hesitantly after a few silent moments had passed between them. Kevin was in a surly mood and Kit didn't want to upset him more, but her curiosity always got the best of her.

Kevin sighed again, sounding exasperated by Kit's question. "Davey," he answered. A few more moments passed before he continued. "His parents are having people at theirs later, so we'll go there in a few."

Kit's jaw visibly dropped, and she was relieved Kevin was walking in front of her. "But... I thought we were going to be at this one for the night..." she said, struggling to keep the disappointment out of her voice. She didn't know many of Kevin's friends, but she'd met Davey a time or two. He was even older than Kevin and still lived at home with his parents. According to Kevin, Davey still received an allowance – the envy in Kevin's voice when he told Kit the story was widely apparent.

Kevin scoffed and Kit could see the back of his head shake. "We're not going to do everything you want to do all of the time, Kit," he reminded her, as though she always got her way. In reality, Alexa's party was one of the only things they'd done that she wanted to do since the inception of their relationship. "We'll go round your friends for a bit, and then we'll go see my friends. It's not fair to expect me to be around people I don't know all night long, you know," he added, his voice sour.

"You're right," Kit answered automatically. She supposed he had a point – she rarely spent time with Kevin's friends, but when she did, she hated it because she didn't know them and they didn't include her. She hadn't thought about Kevin's feelings about being in a similar predicament and not knowing a single person in the house they were about the step foot into. No wonder he was in such a mood – he abhorred when Kit didn't consider his feelings.

"We won't have to stay long," she reluctantly added as they stopped in front of the house bearing the number Harry had texted her. A short, brick fence separated the terraced town house from the sidewalk, and a wrought-iron gate provided an entrance to the yard. She hesitated, feeling intrusive as she was faced with the task of opening the gate. With another exasperated sigh at Kit's hesitation, Kevin thrust his arm between Kit and the gate and tugged on the handle. The gate swung open and he walked into the yard ahead of Kit, climbing the stairs to the front door.

Kit scrambled to catch up with Kevin, darting up the stairs and leaning on the doorbell before he could. She wanted to say something to him, to remind him to be well-behaved and polite, but feared his response. Keeping mum, she silently hoped he wouldn't be a reckless jerk in a stranger's home.

The door flew open moments later, and suddenly Kit and Kevin were facing Alexa Chung. Kit didn't think she would be star-struck by anyone at the party – arguably the most famous guest was her childhood friend – but being face-to-face with a woman Kit grew up seeing on television and in magazines was a bit of a shock, though it was expected.