New Year’s Eve Party (1)

Derek and Aiden were sitting in the backseat of the car on their way to the Montgomery manor. The previously impassable roads were cleared but snow still blanketed the ground. Aiden kept glancing at Derek, wondering if he should say something or not. He could tell that Derek was really tense, more so than the last time they had gone to an event where his family would be present. If he grit his teeth any harder they might break.

"...Derek?" Aiden asked tentatively. Derek answered without looking at him.

"Hm?"

"...Do you want to talk about it?" At this, Derek turned to Aiden with a slightly confused expression.

"About what?" Aiden gave him a look that said 'seriously?' and continued.

"About whatever's got you so stressed. The tension is basically radiating off of you at this point. I know you don't like your family but your way worse than before."

"Ah," Derek sighed. "...You noticed?"

"Well, yeah! It would be stranger if I hadn't noticed."

"That's true." Derek leaned back in the seat and ran a hand through his hair. "The family banquets are at least somewhat tolerable but when it comes to all the other gatherings they have, everyone's always showing off and trying to one up everybody else since it isn't just family that attends. It's exhausting. Especially when they all seem to have the same things to say when it comes to my father and I." Aiden frowned and reached over to hold one of Derek's hands.

"I know there's not much I can say but there is one thing different this time."

"What's that?"

"This time you have me." Aiden grinned. Derek looked surprised for an instant before smiling gratefully at Aiden and gently squeezing his hand.

"Yeah, this time is different." They remained holding hands in a comfortable silence for the rest of the drive and soon they pulled up to the manor.

Many people had already arrived and expensive cars filled the driveway. Derek opened the door for Aiden when he got out of the car. Unlike the Montgomery family banquet, Aiden was wearing a slim fitting, white suit. The fabric sparkled like freshly fallen snow under the moonlight. He wore a single long silver earring and a silver chain connecting the sides of his shirt collar. Standing in the snow with the night sky as a background, the other guests who saw him couldn't help but think he looked ethereal.

In a stark and perfect contrast, Derek wore a pure black suit without a single speck of another color. Standing side by side they made an amazing pair, completely opposite but a perfect match. Ignoring the gazes of the people around them, Derek and Aiden casually walked up the stone steps and inside the house.

The amount of cars outside was nothing when compared to the amount of people in the manor. Every direction one could look was filled with elegantly dressed groups of guests chatting and laughing amongst themselves. Of course, as Aiden and Derek passed by them, their conversations would turn to fevered whispers of gossip and slander. While Derek simply ignored them, Aiden would occasionally give them a stunning yet dangerous smile that dared them to continue spewing their nonsense.

Eventually, Derek spotted his grandfather in the middle of a large crowd of guests, all intent on giving their greetings. Just being invited to one of his events was something praise worthy in their eyes but, if they managed to catch his attention, they may get invited to beneficial dinners or get introduced to powerful and important people. Neither Derek nor Aiden were interested in such things but they still needed to greet him as he was the host of the party.

Derek stopped walking and glared at the crowd of people with annoyance. If he waited for them to disperse, others would show up. On the other hand, if he tried to make his way through the crowd, he'd be seen as rude and nagged to death by his grandfather. Even if he ignored it all entirely and simply didn't greet his grandfather, he'd still be the one losing in the end. No matter what he thought of, he couldn't see a way out. That's when Aiden nudged him with his elbow.

"Come on. It'll be fine, just let me do the talking and watch the faces in the crowd. I'm sure you'll see some interesting expressions in a minute." Derek didn't know what Aiden was going to do but he didn't argue and followed behind him. As Aiden reached the crowd, he cleared his throat and raised his voice just enough to be heard by Derek's grandfather. "Oh my! Isn't this a bit too chaotic? I didn't know there'd be so many people saying hello. Maybe next time someone should hand out waiting tickets."

Some of the surrounding guests weren't pleased by the unknown interruption. While most just ignored him, others openly showed their discontent. However, all of them froze in shock when Mr. Montgomery laughed.

"Ha ha! Quite right, tickets might be a good idea! I know that was your voice Aiden, but where are you?" Since Aiden was rather short and standing behind a lot of people, it was no wonder he couldn't be seen. He raised a hand in the air.

"I'm over here." The crowd parted immediately so as to not stand in Mr. Montgomery's way. "Good evening, Mr. Montgomery. Derek and I came to give our greetings." Aiden smiled politely.

"What's this 'Mr. Montgomery' I hear? Didn't I say at dinner before to just call me William? And I see you're wearing a suit instead of a dress this time. It looks nice." At William's words, many of the onlookers couldn't believe their ears. There were people who had been acquaintances with him for decades but still weren't permitted to address him by his first name. Then, all of a sudden, there's some random nobody who shows up with the disgrace of the Montgomery family of all people and he's able to speak with him in such a casual manner? How could they accept such a thing?

"My apologies. I guess I'm just not used to it yet. And thank you very much. I think I'm incredibly lucky to be able to look spectacular no matter what I wear."

"Ha! That's some confidence you've got there." William then looked at Derek and continued. "Well, aren't you here to say something as well?" All eyes turned to him when Derek stepped forward to stand by Aiden's side.

"Hello, grandfather."

"Hmph! Still the same as always." Before things spiraled like they did at the banquet, Aiden took hold of Derek's arm and casually leaned his head closer to him. Then he quickly coaxed Mr. Montgomery into letting it slide.

"Please don't be too upset, William. Derek's just not the chatty type. You can see his sincerity from the fact that he waded through all these people just to say hello."

"Hm…" William seemed to be debating the situation but eventually gave in. "Alright, I see your point. But, he should still learn to expand his vocabulary! Now, you shouldn't spend all your time here with this old man. Go ahead and enjoy the party."

"Then we'll see you later," Aiden said.

"Okay. Go on now." After waving a hand dismissively, Mr. Montgomery went back to talking with the other's and Derek and Aiden made their getaway. When they were out of earshot from the group, Derek looked at Aiden with an astonished gaze.

"How did you do that? I've never seen anyone handle that old man so easily." Aiden shrugged.

"Honestly, I have no idea. I noticed that time he randomly invited me to dinner that he was overly nice to me for some reason. I just figured I could use it, given the situation, and it worked."

"You never cease to amaze me."

"Aw! Stop it! You're gonna make me blush," Aiden teased.

"Oh, shut it." Derek walked off towards the drinks and Aiden cheerfully followed after him.

The two of them spent the next little while sampling the food and avoiding the other guests as much as they could. Apart from the food and drinks, there was also music playing and people dancing elegantly on the dance floor. Derek overheard some of the other guests talking about how there'd be a countdown to the new year and fireworks. He silently cursed since that meant they'd have to stay until after midnight.

Once they had their fill of the food, Derek was at a loss of what to do. Normally, he'd just stand gloomily in a corner somewhere glaring at anyone who tried to get too close but he couldn't do that and leave Aiden to fend for himself. The one time it would've been helpful for his boisterous father to pop up out of nowhere, he's nowhere to be seen. He was trying to think of a solution when Aiden asked him a sudden question that made him nervous.

"Hey, Derek, can you waltz?"