Fanfic: Four Things That Happened to Barney and Robin on New Year's Eve
Title: Four Things That Happened to Barney and Robin on New Year's Eve (and Some That Didn't)
Author: bredalot
Fandom: How I Met Your Mother/Sports Night
Rating: PG
Word Count: 2360
Summary: Barney and Robin celebrate New Year's Eve at Robin's black-tie office party.
Disclaimer: I don't own Robin, Barney, Dan, Casey, or anyone else mentioned herein. I don't own the Louboutin Anemone or the Alexander McQueen dress from which Robin's was adapted (hers is a rich fuchsia with black lining). Thanks to Laura (frenchfriedeggs) for the fashion advice! :D
Author's Note: This is the much-requested sequel to Walking in a Winter Wonderland. I tried to get it up in time for New Year's Eve, but I failed, so instead it's here to entertain you on a quiet New Year's Day! Also, for those of you unfamiliar, Casey McCall and Dan Rydell are from Sports Night, a brilliant and tragically short-lived show by Aaron Sorkin (creator of The West Wing). I didn't capture their witty brilliance at all, I'm afraid, and so you should definitely check out the show. They're here because I needed Robin to have a job in the last fic and jokingly gave her one at their network, because it's fictional and based in New York. So it's all your fault that they had to be here for real now. I hope you like it!
1. Barney got compared to Batman. Again.
He showed up on her doorstep in his brand new tux - classic black and white, bow tie, you don’t mess with perfection - feeling oddly out of place. At least it wasn’t Brooklyn. He readjusted his cuffs and rang the bell. After a few seconds, he heard her voice over the intercom, sounding out of breath.
“Barney?”
“It’s me,” he said, feeling faintly foolish.
“Come on up,” she said. “The door’s open.”
The door buzzed, letting him in, and he took the elevator up to her floor. He knocked, because while he has never had a problem bursting into Ted’s place unannounced, you simply do not desecrate a tux by doing anything less than dignified in it. Suits are awesome; tuxes are awe-inspiring. And you don’t mess with that. So he knocked and let himself in.
“Hey, Barney,” Robin called from the bathroom. “I’m almost ready. Which shoes do you like?”
She had about four pairs laid out across the floor of the room, various versions of the Little Black Shoe. He picked up one each of a simple black sandal with straps crisscrossing the foot and of that Louboutin pump with huge black-and-white ribbon bows from a few years before, dangling one from each hand as he made his way to the bathroom.
“Scherbatsky, you’ve - “ he started, leaning towards the doorframe, when he actually caught sight of her and was struck dumb. He knew she was beautiful; that’s nothing new. But she was wearing a tight fuchsia dress with asymmetrical shoulder straps, a dress that simultaneously made her look hot and classy, and she was leaning forward over the sink, bringing her face close to the mirror in an attempt to get an earring in. It finally slid through her ear, and she turned to face Barney. Her dark hair flowed over her shoulders, and he couldn’t stop staring at her collarbones, framed by the lines of the dress.
She smiled at him, and stepped forward to adjust his tie. “You look good,” she said, and he could barely frame the words to say it back. She grinned at him, evidently taking his gaping for the compliment it was, and tugged the shoes out of his hands.
“What were you saying when you came in?”
He pulled himself together with a legendary force of will and lifted the shoes in her hand to eye level. “Right,” he said. “I can’t believe you’re wearing a pair of shoes so conspicuously out-of-date as those.”
“The ribbon ones?” she asked, and laughed. “I once read they were the perfect shoes if you had a date with Bruce Wayne for New Year’s Eve. I figured this was as close as I was gonna get.”
She walked, barefoot, out into her living room, searching for the other shoe. He turned off the light in the bathroom and followed, hands in his pockets. “I’m not Batman,” he said, and mentally cursed himself for being so lame.
“That’s exactly what you’d say if you were,” she said absently, looking under the couch. “And besides, for all I know it could be true. You secretly work at Wayne Industries, don’t you?”
He snorted. “Robin. Please.” She still hadn’t found the other shoe, and he joined her in the hunt. He finally found it set on a table and brought it over to her; she casually balanced herself against his shoulder as she stepped into them.
“Okay,” she said, pulling on her coat and picking up her purse, “I’m ready.”
When they got down to the street, Robin automatically began looking for a taxi. “Robin. Please. A taxi? In a tux? Who do you think I am, Ted at Prom?” She turned around, and he waved her down the street to the waiting limo.
She turned back to him, grinning and awestruck. “You really are Bruce Wayne, aren’t you?”
2. Barney embarrassed himself.
“Robin,” he said, and she could tell he was trying very hard to be cool, because his voice had just dropped half an octave, and he wasn’t quite looking at her, and he was smoothing his shirt (a habit he couldn’t break even when he wasn’t wearing a tie) while swirling his drink; “Robin, is that who I think it is?”
She threw a quick look over her shoulder. “Dan Rydell and Casey McCall? Yeah, why?” He gave her what was clearly supposed to be a withering glare, but it was ruined by the grin spreading across his face. “Barney, you knew they worked here.”
“Well, yeah, but, but Robin, they’re legends!”
“Would you like to meet them?”
Barney gasped. “YES! But I can’t! But it’s Dan Rydell and Casey McCall!” he dithered.
Robin laughed and took him by the elbow. “Come on, Barney.”
Dan and Casey were propped against the wall in identical positions, one foot braced against the wall, drinks held precariously in crossed arms. As Robin approached, dragging the unusually star-struck Barney, they straightened up and smiled.
“Hey, Robin, what’s up?” Dan asked.
“Hey, guys. This is my friend Barney Stinson, and he’s a big fan,” she said propelling Barney forward so that he stumbled.
“How’s it going?” Dan asked, casual as always, as he shook Barney’s hand.
“I think I’ve seen you before - you’re friends with Calvin Trager, aren’t you?” Casey asked, friendly and comfortable. Robin shot Barney a look.
“Murgeoihf,” Barney mumbled, and Casey looked between him and Robin in confusion.
“Business dealings,” she clarified, making a note to ask Barney why he’d never stopped by her office to say hi. Casey nodded affably.
“So, Robin, how’s the new job working out?” Dan asked her.
“It’s really great, it’s - is it always that chaotic at QVN?”
Dan laughed, open and joyous. Casey elbowed him, grinning as well. “You have no idea.”
“And she doesn’t have Natalie stealing her clothes.”
“I LOVE YOUR SUITS,” Barney burst out, trying to be cool and failing utterly.
Robin chuckled and patted Barney on the arm, trying to salvage some of his dignity. “He really does, you know. He only wears suits, and whenever we watch your show, he comments on it.”
“Hey, thanks!” said Dan.
Casey, having learned his lesson, nudged Dan and said, “Yeah, thanks, definitely, but really, you should tell Maureen. She picks out our clothes.”
“And she does it well,” Dan added. “I’m gonna go get another drink. Robin, Barney?” They shook their heads, and Dan clapped Barney on the shoulder. “Nice to meet you, Barney. Robin, you look gorgeous.” She smiled at him as he walked away.
“Oh, damn,” Casey said. “Guys, I gotta go - Dana’s waving at me.” They glanced over to see a short blonde woman playing with her earring. “That’s her ‘rescue me’ signal. I’ll see you later.” He grinned at them and walked off, and Barney wilted.
“That was - that was humiliating! I was so lame!”
Robin patted him on the back. “You were very lame, Barney. But it’s okay, there’s scotch.” And she led him off to the bar.
3. They were stuck there for midnight.
Robin was having such a good time with Barney that she didn’t think to check the time until it was already 11:30.
“Oh, dammit,” she said upon realizing this fact.
“What’s wrong?” Barney asked.
“We’re never going to make it back to Marshall and Lily’s by midnight.”
Barney glanced at his watch, but he didn’t seem to share her disappointment. “Oh, no.” When he saw the impatient and disappointed look on her face, though, he continued: “What’s the matter? Aren’t you having a good time?”
She had to smile at him for that. “Of course I am. I just really wanted to be there.”
“It’s ok, they’ll understand.”
“I know, it’s just - “
“What?”
“Well, Ted and I have this standing tradition, that if neither of us has someone to kiss at midnight, we’re always there.”
“Like a safety net?”
“I guess you could call it that, yeah.”
His next words, spoken close and low, sent shivers down her spine. “Scherbatsky, you deserve better than a safety net.” She wanted to argue - it’s just a friend thing, I’m not settling, it’s just Ted - but she couldn’t form the words, and the next moment he’d straightened up, slipped that easy grin of his into place, and taken the empty glass out of her hand. “I’ll be right back,” he said; “don’t move.”
She wouldn’t dare.
By the time he made it back across the crowded ballroom from the bar, there was a bright countdown lit up on the TV screen, and the camera kept flashing between the crystal ball and the freezing, life-high spectators in Times Square. Dick Clark was rollicking along, saying nothing of any consequence, and there was a spike of jittery energy throughout the room as champagne-slicked pulses began to race. Barney passed Robin a glass of champagne and braced his elbow against the chest-height cocktail table she’d positioned herself by. Together they leaned back and watched the crowd’s chatter increase as couples paired off without separating. Across the room, Robin could see Dana Whitaker laughing and dancing, Casey unable to take his eyes off her but unwilling to stop his conversation with Dan.
It didn’t take long for the energy to peak: a 60-second countdown, the slow majestic slide of Waterford crystal, and the frantic chanting of slightly-more-than-tipsy partygoers. Robin turned to Barney.
“The first time I heard about the ‘ball dropping’, I thought it really dropped, you know? Fell and shattered. This is so disappointing, after that.” He was still watching the screen as it ticked down the last ten seconds. “Barney?”
He finally turned to her, a huge grin on his face. “Happy New Year, Robin,” he said, as cheers erupted around them, noisemakers going like crazy. She grinned back at him, they clinked champagne glasses, and he only waited long enough for her to take a sip before whisking it out of her hand and placing both their glasses on the table behind them.
“Barney?” she asked. “What’s - “
She never got the chance to finish her question, as Barney slipped his arm around her waist, hand sliding just a touch on the slick fabric of her dress, and dipped her back just far enough that she felt swept off her feet without ever leaving the ground. Just far enough to feel the world tilt. And he kissed her, the perfect New Year’s kiss: that old familiar affection, mixed with equal parts enthusiasm and joy, and just a hint of a grin behind it. His fingers curled in the soft hair at the base of her skull, and his arm tightened just enough as he pulled her upright, his hand lingering at the small of her back as she caught her balance.
She couldn’t look him in the eye; her gaze swept the ballroom, passing over couples kissing, friends laughing, silvery confetti caught in everyone’s hair, lips moving in a chorus of “Auld Lang Syne” that she could barely hear over the rush of blood in her ears. She was glad that their little show had gone mostly unnoticed, though she did catch a glimpse of a tiny dark-haired woman she thought was called Natalie grinning at her as she elbowed her boyfriend - Jerry? Gerald? Jeremy, that’s it - in the stomach. She tore her eyes away quickly, before she started to grin in response.
She finally turned back to Barney, just in time to see him grinning and nodding his head, a physical expression of the word, “Yeaaahhh,” and it was enough to bring her back to reality. This was Barney: of course he knew how to kiss a woman like that, the way no one kisses in real life because you always drop the woman on her head, or can’t figure out the angles and wind up bumping noses and chins, or slip and wind up in an awkward-and-not-at-all-sexy tangle on the floor. But Barney could pull it off. Of course he could.
4. Barney lied. A lot. And then told the truth.
Half an hour after midnight, they were waiting for their limo. The party was still raging fiercely upstairs, so they didn’t have any competition, but they wanted to see their friends. They stood side-by-side, shivering slightly in the cold, wrapped in elegant coats and scarves, not saying a word.
Until Robin broke the silence. “So, Barney. What was that?”
“It’s a bro thing, Robin. Article 83: Never leave a bro alone on New Year’s Eve.”
“You just made that up.”
He was all indignation. “Like I would violate the sanctity of The Bro Code by making up articles!”
“Does it frequently involve actually kissing your bro yourself?”
“Almost never,” he admitted. “But I’ve never had a female bro before, so I’ve never had occasion to examine that particular clause.”
And he hadn’t even turned that into an innuendo! Robin almost had to do it herself, just to make things less weird, but then she remembered she was wearing an $800 dress and decided she could let it pass, for tonight.
“Just a bro thing?” she asked as their limo pulled up, not sure what she wanted the answer to be.
“Just a bro thing,” he reassured her, as he opened the door and handed her in.
“Thanks,” she said as he slipped in after her.
“Any time,” he said with a disarmingly soft smile. “Any time you need me.”
I. They didn’t change.
They didn’t flirt. They didn’t dance (much). They didn’t drunkenly profess undying love. They didn’t get jealous of attention (or try to make each other jealous). They didn’t sneak off to play laser tag, or sing “Let’s Go to the Mall” on the dance floor, or try to hook each other up. They didn’t share great confidences, they didn’t change the course of each other’s lives, and they definitely didn’t have sex. They didn’t fill the night with drama (just that one moment). They joked and laughed and remembered why they were friends. They didn’t need anything else.
They didn’t regret a thing.
Author: bredalot
Fandom: How I Met Your Mother/Sports Night
Rating: PG
Word Count: 2360
Summary: Barney and Robin celebrate New Year's Eve at Robin's black-tie office party.
Disclaimer: I don't own Robin, Barney, Dan, Casey, or anyone else mentioned herein. I don't own the Louboutin Anemone or the Alexander McQueen dress from which Robin's was adapted (hers is a rich fuchsia with black lining). Thanks to Laura (frenchfriedeggs) for the fashion advice! :D
Author's Note: This is the much-requested sequel to Walking in a Winter Wonderland. I tried to get it up in time for New Year's Eve, but I failed, so instead it's here to entertain you on a quiet New Year's Day! Also, for those of you unfamiliar, Casey McCall and Dan Rydell are from Sports Night, a brilliant and tragically short-lived show by Aaron Sorkin (creator of The West Wing). I didn't capture their witty brilliance at all, I'm afraid, and so you should definitely check out the show. They're here because I needed Robin to have a job in the last fic and jokingly gave her one at their network, because it's fictional and based in New York. So it's all your fault that they had to be here for real now. I hope you like it!
1. Barney got compared to Batman. Again.
He showed up on her doorstep in his brand new tux - classic black and white, bow tie, you don’t mess with perfection - feeling oddly out of place. At least it wasn’t Brooklyn. He readjusted his cuffs and rang the bell. After a few seconds, he heard her voice over the intercom, sounding out of breath.
“Barney?”
“It’s me,” he said, feeling faintly foolish.
“Come on up,” she said. “The door’s open.”
The door buzzed, letting him in, and he took the elevator up to her floor. He knocked, because while he has never had a problem bursting into Ted’s place unannounced, you simply do not desecrate a tux by doing anything less than dignified in it. Suits are awesome; tuxes are awe-inspiring. And you don’t mess with that. So he knocked and let himself in.
“Hey, Barney,” Robin called from the bathroom. “I’m almost ready. Which shoes do you like?”
She had about four pairs laid out across the floor of the room, various versions of the Little Black Shoe. He picked up one each of a simple black sandal with straps crisscrossing the foot and of that Louboutin pump with huge black-and-white ribbon bows from a few years before, dangling one from each hand as he made his way to the bathroom.
“Scherbatsky, you’ve - “ he started, leaning towards the doorframe, when he actually caught sight of her and was struck dumb. He knew she was beautiful; that’s nothing new. But she was wearing a tight fuchsia dress with asymmetrical shoulder straps, a dress that simultaneously made her look hot and classy, and she was leaning forward over the sink, bringing her face close to the mirror in an attempt to get an earring in. It finally slid through her ear, and she turned to face Barney. Her dark hair flowed over her shoulders, and he couldn’t stop staring at her collarbones, framed by the lines of the dress.
She smiled at him, and stepped forward to adjust his tie. “You look good,” she said, and he could barely frame the words to say it back. She grinned at him, evidently taking his gaping for the compliment it was, and tugged the shoes out of his hands.
“What were you saying when you came in?”
He pulled himself together with a legendary force of will and lifted the shoes in her hand to eye level. “Right,” he said. “I can’t believe you’re wearing a pair of shoes so conspicuously out-of-date as those.”
“The ribbon ones?” she asked, and laughed. “I once read they were the perfect shoes if you had a date with Bruce Wayne for New Year’s Eve. I figured this was as close as I was gonna get.”
She walked, barefoot, out into her living room, searching for the other shoe. He turned off the light in the bathroom and followed, hands in his pockets. “I’m not Batman,” he said, and mentally cursed himself for being so lame.
“That’s exactly what you’d say if you were,” she said absently, looking under the couch. “And besides, for all I know it could be true. You secretly work at Wayne Industries, don’t you?”
He snorted. “Robin. Please.” She still hadn’t found the other shoe, and he joined her in the hunt. He finally found it set on a table and brought it over to her; she casually balanced herself against his shoulder as she stepped into them.
“Okay,” she said, pulling on her coat and picking up her purse, “I’m ready.”
When they got down to the street, Robin automatically began looking for a taxi. “Robin. Please. A taxi? In a tux? Who do you think I am, Ted at Prom?” She turned around, and he waved her down the street to the waiting limo.
She turned back to him, grinning and awestruck. “You really are Bruce Wayne, aren’t you?”
2. Barney embarrassed himself.
“Robin,” he said, and she could tell he was trying very hard to be cool, because his voice had just dropped half an octave, and he wasn’t quite looking at her, and he was smoothing his shirt (a habit he couldn’t break even when he wasn’t wearing a tie) while swirling his drink; “Robin, is that who I think it is?”
She threw a quick look over her shoulder. “Dan Rydell and Casey McCall? Yeah, why?” He gave her what was clearly supposed to be a withering glare, but it was ruined by the grin spreading across his face. “Barney, you knew they worked here.”
“Well, yeah, but, but Robin, they’re legends!”
“Would you like to meet them?”
Barney gasped. “YES! But I can’t! But it’s Dan Rydell and Casey McCall!” he dithered.
Robin laughed and took him by the elbow. “Come on, Barney.”
Dan and Casey were propped against the wall in identical positions, one foot braced against the wall, drinks held precariously in crossed arms. As Robin approached, dragging the unusually star-struck Barney, they straightened up and smiled.
“Hey, Robin, what’s up?” Dan asked.
“Hey, guys. This is my friend Barney Stinson, and he’s a big fan,” she said propelling Barney forward so that he stumbled.
“How’s it going?” Dan asked, casual as always, as he shook Barney’s hand.
“I think I’ve seen you before - you’re friends with Calvin Trager, aren’t you?” Casey asked, friendly and comfortable. Robin shot Barney a look.
“Murgeoihf,” Barney mumbled, and Casey looked between him and Robin in confusion.
“Business dealings,” she clarified, making a note to ask Barney why he’d never stopped by her office to say hi. Casey nodded affably.
“So, Robin, how’s the new job working out?” Dan asked her.
“It’s really great, it’s - is it always that chaotic at QVN?”
Dan laughed, open and joyous. Casey elbowed him, grinning as well. “You have no idea.”
“And she doesn’t have Natalie stealing her clothes.”
“I LOVE YOUR SUITS,” Barney burst out, trying to be cool and failing utterly.
Robin chuckled and patted Barney on the arm, trying to salvage some of his dignity. “He really does, you know. He only wears suits, and whenever we watch your show, he comments on it.”
“Hey, thanks!” said Dan.
Casey, having learned his lesson, nudged Dan and said, “Yeah, thanks, definitely, but really, you should tell Maureen. She picks out our clothes.”
“And she does it well,” Dan added. “I’m gonna go get another drink. Robin, Barney?” They shook their heads, and Dan clapped Barney on the shoulder. “Nice to meet you, Barney. Robin, you look gorgeous.” She smiled at him as he walked away.
“Oh, damn,” Casey said. “Guys, I gotta go - Dana’s waving at me.” They glanced over to see a short blonde woman playing with her earring. “That’s her ‘rescue me’ signal. I’ll see you later.” He grinned at them and walked off, and Barney wilted.
“That was - that was humiliating! I was so lame!”
Robin patted him on the back. “You were very lame, Barney. But it’s okay, there’s scotch.” And she led him off to the bar.
3. They were stuck there for midnight.
Robin was having such a good time with Barney that she didn’t think to check the time until it was already 11:30.
“Oh, dammit,” she said upon realizing this fact.
“What’s wrong?” Barney asked.
“We’re never going to make it back to Marshall and Lily’s by midnight.”
Barney glanced at his watch, but he didn’t seem to share her disappointment. “Oh, no.” When he saw the impatient and disappointed look on her face, though, he continued: “What’s the matter? Aren’t you having a good time?”
She had to smile at him for that. “Of course I am. I just really wanted to be there.”
“It’s ok, they’ll understand.”
“I know, it’s just - “
“What?”
“Well, Ted and I have this standing tradition, that if neither of us has someone to kiss at midnight, we’re always there.”
“Like a safety net?”
“I guess you could call it that, yeah.”
His next words, spoken close and low, sent shivers down her spine. “Scherbatsky, you deserve better than a safety net.” She wanted to argue - it’s just a friend thing, I’m not settling, it’s just Ted - but she couldn’t form the words, and the next moment he’d straightened up, slipped that easy grin of his into place, and taken the empty glass out of her hand. “I’ll be right back,” he said; “don’t move.”
She wouldn’t dare.
By the time he made it back across the crowded ballroom from the bar, there was a bright countdown lit up on the TV screen, and the camera kept flashing between the crystal ball and the freezing, life-high spectators in Times Square. Dick Clark was rollicking along, saying nothing of any consequence, and there was a spike of jittery energy throughout the room as champagne-slicked pulses began to race. Barney passed Robin a glass of champagne and braced his elbow against the chest-height cocktail table she’d positioned herself by. Together they leaned back and watched the crowd’s chatter increase as couples paired off without separating. Across the room, Robin could see Dana Whitaker laughing and dancing, Casey unable to take his eyes off her but unwilling to stop his conversation with Dan.
It didn’t take long for the energy to peak: a 60-second countdown, the slow majestic slide of Waterford crystal, and the frantic chanting of slightly-more-than-tipsy partygoers. Robin turned to Barney.
“The first time I heard about the ‘ball dropping’, I thought it really dropped, you know? Fell and shattered. This is so disappointing, after that.” He was still watching the screen as it ticked down the last ten seconds. “Barney?”
He finally turned to her, a huge grin on his face. “Happy New Year, Robin,” he said, as cheers erupted around them, noisemakers going like crazy. She grinned back at him, they clinked champagne glasses, and he only waited long enough for her to take a sip before whisking it out of her hand and placing both their glasses on the table behind them.
“Barney?” she asked. “What’s - “
She never got the chance to finish her question, as Barney slipped his arm around her waist, hand sliding just a touch on the slick fabric of her dress, and dipped her back just far enough that she felt swept off her feet without ever leaving the ground. Just far enough to feel the world tilt. And he kissed her, the perfect New Year’s kiss: that old familiar affection, mixed with equal parts enthusiasm and joy, and just a hint of a grin behind it. His fingers curled in the soft hair at the base of her skull, and his arm tightened just enough as he pulled her upright, his hand lingering at the small of her back as she caught her balance.
She couldn’t look him in the eye; her gaze swept the ballroom, passing over couples kissing, friends laughing, silvery confetti caught in everyone’s hair, lips moving in a chorus of “Auld Lang Syne” that she could barely hear over the rush of blood in her ears. She was glad that their little show had gone mostly unnoticed, though she did catch a glimpse of a tiny dark-haired woman she thought was called Natalie grinning at her as she elbowed her boyfriend - Jerry? Gerald? Jeremy, that’s it - in the stomach. She tore her eyes away quickly, before she started to grin in response.
She finally turned back to Barney, just in time to see him grinning and nodding his head, a physical expression of the word, “Yeaaahhh,” and it was enough to bring her back to reality. This was Barney: of course he knew how to kiss a woman like that, the way no one kisses in real life because you always drop the woman on her head, or can’t figure out the angles and wind up bumping noses and chins, or slip and wind up in an awkward-and-not-at-all-sexy tangle on the floor. But Barney could pull it off. Of course he could.
4. Barney lied. A lot. And then told the truth.
Half an hour after midnight, they were waiting for their limo. The party was still raging fiercely upstairs, so they didn’t have any competition, but they wanted to see their friends. They stood side-by-side, shivering slightly in the cold, wrapped in elegant coats and scarves, not saying a word.
Until Robin broke the silence. “So, Barney. What was that?”
“It’s a bro thing, Robin. Article 83: Never leave a bro alone on New Year’s Eve.”
“You just made that up.”
He was all indignation. “Like I would violate the sanctity of The Bro Code by making up articles!”
“Does it frequently involve actually kissing your bro yourself?”
“Almost never,” he admitted. “But I’ve never had a female bro before, so I’ve never had occasion to examine that particular clause.”
And he hadn’t even turned that into an innuendo! Robin almost had to do it herself, just to make things less weird, but then she remembered she was wearing an $800 dress and decided she could let it pass, for tonight.
“Just a bro thing?” she asked as their limo pulled up, not sure what she wanted the answer to be.
“Just a bro thing,” he reassured her, as he opened the door and handed her in.
“Thanks,” she said as he slipped in after her.
“Any time,” he said with a disarmingly soft smile. “Any time you need me.”
I. They didn’t change.
They didn’t flirt. They didn’t dance (much). They didn’t drunkenly profess undying love. They didn’t get jealous of attention (or try to make each other jealous). They didn’t sneak off to play laser tag, or sing “Let’s Go to the Mall” on the dance floor, or try to hook each other up. They didn’t share great confidences, they didn’t change the course of each other’s lives, and they definitely didn’t have sex. They didn’t fill the night with drama (just that one moment). They joked and laughed and remembered why they were friends. They didn’t need anything else.
They didn’t regret a thing.