In My Life

Six

"Make sure Lilly knows it's important you get your rest. Don't stay up much later than midnight." My mother urged as I was walking out the door with my overnight bad to where she assumed I'd be staying at Lilly's.

"Alright, love you." I grinned before I stepped out of the door, pulling my jacket closer to my body. I descended the front steps of my porch wearily not knowing where John was hiding after throwing a few snow balls at my window to signal his presence.

Going out and turning around my front yard bushes, I found John crouching on the ground hiding behind them carefully, causing me to laugh.

"What are you messing about on the ground for, come 'ead." I watched amused as he rolled his eyes

"Well I'm glad you're having a giggle about it." He huffed getting up and brushing the snow from his hands and knees.

"Let's go." I hurried him along looking back to my house to ensure my mother wasn't peaking out at us.

The two of us ran across the streets of Liverpool to the bus stop, John holding my hand to help me to keep up as we hurried.

The two of us were laughing like maniacs as we'd arrived at the stop waiting for the bus.

"If you were running any faster I would think you were a long distance runner." I said with a big huff trying to catch my breath.

"Had practice from running from my share of bizzies." He said snorting like a pig holding his nose up with his index finger to imitate the cops.

"Shocker." I sighed, cracking up slightly.

He shrugged knowing how it must've not even surprised me as the bus pulled up to the stop.

The two of us made it to the Casbah with plenty of time to spare until midnight, and the club was absolutely packed with people.

John had ordered for us from the bar two scotch and cokes as I attempted to familiarize myself with the tightly packed club.

The band onstage played Blue Suede Shoes, absolutely igniting the crowd with a burst of life that caused everyone to dance and sing along.

John wasn't lying when he said he could show me what I was missing out on.  The energy in the club was unlike anything I had ever been familiar with before, call me square.

"Scotch and coke?" John asked handing a glass over to me with a smug smirk.

"Oh so you're trying to make me drunk drunk?" I laughed taking it knowing I was sure to forget the whole night after a couple of these.

"What doesn't kill you," John recited half the saying holding out his glass for a cheers.

I shook my head with a lopsided smile as we both drank to his sentiment.

"Dance with me?" John motioned his head out further to where people danced.

My face reddened, sure I liked dance but dancing with John was a different story completely.

"Take a chance with me?" He pouted seeing my hesitation as he held out his free hand for me to take.

I nodded, dragging my feet as I took his hand, John puffing his chest out happily.

The two of us had begun to dance, Johns friends finding him quite quickly after and coming to say hello.

"Glad to see you again Elle." Paul had a funny little smirk as he walked up to me to say hello.

"Glad to be here." I looked back to John who was speaking with George, Pete and a few others I didn't quite recognize.

"Well I hope you decide to stay for awhile, John seemed to have made a change, for the better, might I even say he's a bit soft." Paul spoke genuinely glancing back to make sure John hadn't overheard him.

"Well, soft in more ways than one," we giggled, "but I'll stick around for awhile if he'll let me." I leaned closer to Paul to whisper, Paul's eyes crinkling at the corners with joy.

Further into the night when it was nearing midnight, the new year, we had lost the lads who I'd strongly assumed went to go find their New Years kisses.

John and I had found a spot at one of the tables that was further away from the others, giving us even the slightest amount of privacy.

"I just realized I never showed you what I got you, rather, what I've done." John avoided making eye contact as he fiddled around with his hands, pulling out a paper from his pocket.

I watched with baited breath as he uncrumpled the paper, turning in it my direction so I could read the writing on the page.

"Hello Little Girl" was written boldly at the top in what looked to be John's handwrighting, the lyrics to a song stretching the length of the page.

"A song?" I smiled to myself as I began to read through the lyrics.

"I wrote it for you." He tried to seem casual, though his eyes scanning over my features told a different story as they waited anxiously for a reaction.

"For me?" I blinked a couple times in shock, rereading the words with a context that caused me to blush.

So I hope there'll come a day
When you'll say, "Mm you're my little girl"

I read the page nearly giving myself a heart attack as my eyes caught the line.

"It's silly I know." He scrunched his nose distastefully in embarrassment, reaching for the paper.

I stopped him by placing my hand on his gently.

"I love it John." Was all I could seem to say, smiling ear to ear completely flattered by the song.

His worry changed to elation, he immediately beginning to lean over the table as I did the same, the two of us sharing a kiss that was intensely passionate, the two of us seeming to have a mutual understanding that the feelings for each other were reciprocated.

"Countdowns about to begin!" We overheard from a very drunken Pete onstage announce with a girl under his arm, the microphone in the other.

John grinned tucking the sheet back in his pocket and offered his hand as we both walked over to where everyone gathered to count down till midnight.

"John," I began as everyone around us began counting.

He hummed looking down at me warmly.

"If that was to ask me to be with you, officially I mean, the answer is yes." I couldn't shake the lyrics from my mind.

He said nothing but his look of delight grew.

"Happy New Year!" The countdown had finally come to an end before our conversation could continue on, the two of us sharing a New Years kiss, John practically sweeping me off my feet as he did so.

"John!" A familiar face smiled through the crowd a moment after John and I had come back to reality.

Why was he so familiar?

"Ringo." John laughed seeing who I assumed to be his mate.

Ringo. The puzzle pieces seemed to click into place as my realization was stark.

"Ritch?" I was speechless as I looked at his electric blue eyes with a mix of excitement and fear.

He could unfold my entire carefully fabricated front in seconds with one word of my past.

This couldn't end well.

"Eleanor?" He spoke in disbelief realizing where he had seen me before.