okay so

here's a quick fic im just throwing together on new year's eve at 10 PM

and because im a dumbass i accidentally deleted the original version of this so yay rewriting is a bitch

and yes i know i haven't updated this book since 2016 and holy shit im sorry forgive me

~Start~

Palette was sprawled across the bed as he stared blankly at his phone in the dark. Specifically at Goth's profile and contact number. Ever since Goth had to transfer to a different school, Palette had tried his best to keep in touch. But despite his efforts, it didn't work out in the long run. He knew he could move past this if he tried. Palette knew he needed to move on. But a voice in the back of his head wouldn't allow it.

The fact that he lost touch with his best friend was troubling, yes. But what worried him the most was the way Goth spoke to him. Goth's words seemed hollow and forced. His attitude had seemed to change completely. Goth sounded bored and uninterested. When Palette asked, the other simply brushed it off which at some point, lead to an argument. Eventually, they stopped talking completely.

But because Palette had developed feelings for the other, this hit him harder than it should've. Even now it still hurt. No matter what he did, the stone jaws in his chest wouldn't leave him be. It seemed to suck out what energy he had and left him exhausted.

With a sigh, Palette pushed away from the negative thoughts and looked at the time. New Year's was hours away, and he had no idea what to expect. Although he didn't know what was worse than losing your best friend and crush, perhaps he would find out. Or it would be the year he would finally move on and escape this prison of loneliness, despite having a good amount of friends.

And then there were New Year's resolutions. If Palette had, to be honest, he never took the time to sit down and think about it. In fact, it never occurred to him until his mother, Dream, brought it up. Ever since Palette was trying to come up with a way he could improve himself or even come up with a goal. Unfortunately, everything he came up with either involved Goth or seemed out of reach.

Palette was pulled out of his thought when the bedroom door opened and the lights flickered on. "Palette, what are you doing cooped up in your room? Did you forget that we have guests coming over?"

No, Palette didn't forget. He didn't want to acknowledge it. For whatever reason, Dream thought it was a good idea to host a New Year's party and invite everyone he knew. Usually, Palette would've been excited about these types of events. But the last few months took that away. "I know, mom. I'll be down in a few."

"I sure hope so." Dream said with a huff. "I invited someone you might like and it was confirmed that they were coming."

Before Palette could ask what he meant, Dream was gone. He wasn't sure who this 'someone' was, but Palette did know that he wanted nothing to do with them. It was unlikely it was Goth and his family, for Dream only met Death and Geno once. If anything, it'll end up being his cousin, PJ, whom he hasn't seen in months. But considering that PJ was a jerk, Palette would be anything but excited to see him.

After a while, Palette finally left the safety of his room and made his way downstairs. He could hear Dream working wonders in the kitchen and spotted his father, Ink, in the living room. From what he could see, he was hanging up a banner that read "Welcome 2018!"

Palette couldn't help but stare at the word 'welcome.' He questioned if people would actually welcome the new year with open arms. Looking back at the past events, Palette had his doubts that next year would be any better. Despite this, there are a few others that are willing to face the awaiting year with a positive attitude.

"Ah, son, you're alive!" Ink said upon spotting him, giving a silly grin.

"I guess I am," Palette replied with a shrug. He looked back at the banner and let his gaze wander around the room. Various streamers of different colors and forms were hung up for display. Ask anyone and they would say the last of consistency made everything look out of place. Yet, Ink would argue that it showed creativity and effort to make something look horrible.

"Is my boy ready for a new everything?" Ink asked, slinging an arm around the other's shoulders. When Palette's only response was a shrug, his father blew a raspberry. "Well, you certainly won't be with that mindset! I know some things happened and you're bummed out about it, but the only thing you can do is smile and move forward! Come on, where's that smile I know and love?"

Palette rolled his eyes but gave a smile. Ink grinned and slapped his back. "There is it. Shoo away the dark thoughts and just enjoy the party, k? After that, you can lock yourself in your room again. I'll drag you out of it eventually."

Palette nodded to show he understood. Ink rubbed his son's head before leaving to see how his husband was doing. As soon as his father was gone, Palette felt his smile fade away and he let out a soft sigh. If all else fails, then he could always sneak off to his room.

Eventually, the guests were starting to arrive. Palette recognized a good handful of the people he saw but didn't bother to approach anyone. At some point loud, deafening music started playing and Ink set up a timer on the TV. It was your average New Year's party and Palette found himself striking up conversations with others. For the most part, he was actually enjoying himself. Even PJ wasn't as sour.

"Hey, Palette?" PJ spoke up, staring off into a direction. "Didn't you say Goth wasn't coming?"

Palette immediately had a bad feeling about this. "Uh, yeah? My mom doesn't know Death or Geno well enough to have a way to contact them. I don't know about my dad, though."

PJ nodded towards the entrance. "Then why do I see a tiny lil' shit and his two crazy parents?"

Sure enough, when Palette looked, he easily spotted the tall figure wearing all black. Alongside them was a shorter skeleton wearing mostly white. Seconds after their arrival, they were greeted by Ink. Time itself seemed to freeze when he made eye contact with a certain skeleton. A white, oversized jacket, black shirt, and a signature red scarf, like his mother.

He hasn't changed one bit... Palette inhaled sharply and held his breath. He couldn't move. He couldn't speak. It almost seemed impossible to breathe. He couldn't even look away. Fear was starting to build up like building blocks but Palette felt as if he was rooted to the ground. Despite this, in Palette's eyes, Goth looked more than perfect.

Palette jolted out of his trance when PJ snapped his fingers in front of his face. "Uh, hello? Are you going to stare at him forever?"

"Yes," Palette answered almost immediately. There was no way he was going to show his face to Goth, not after how easily they drifted apart. If anything, he was probably the last person Goth wanted to speak to. "If you're suggesting I go over there and talk to him forget about it. We haven't even spoken in months!"

After a long pause, PJ spoke. "Wow, you're a horrible friend."

Palette opened his mouth to retort but nothing came out. The thought has never occurred to him until now. He had always been told that he was a good friend. Palette was willing to do anything in his power to make someone feel better. But now that PJ said it, he was starting to have second thoughts.

Deep down, Palette knew that he was giving up their friendship when he stopped sending Goth any more messages. He had convinced himself that he didn't want to bother his friend and thought it would be best if he had left Goth alone. And since Goth was never the one to start a conversation, they never talked.

"Which is why I can't talk to him," Palette said quietly. "I gave up, PJ. I gave up trying to talk to him. I know I shouldn't of but I just felt like it wasn't worth it."

That was a lie. Palette knew it and so did PJ. Being able to spend time with Goth felt like a blessing to Palette. He would jump at every opportunity given to him. In fact, he was fine if they never ended up together. Palette was content being around the other and making memories that he would forever cherish. Only to throw away the one thing that meant the most to him.

PJ let out a sigh. "You're hopeless... fine. Don't talk to him, you coward. But I hope you know that you'll regret it for the rest of your sad life. This might be the only chance you'll get."

Palette knew that all too well. "Yeah... I know..."

The rest of the party went by agonizingly slow. Palette tried his best to keep a good amount of distance between him and Goth, but with PJ that proved to be difficult. Whenever Goth looked in his direction, Palette averted his gaze away and acted as if he wasn't staring in the first place. He wanted this party to be over so he could hide in his room and sulk all day.

At some point, excited chatter swept throughout the party. At first, Palette was confused until someone shouted, "It's almost time!" Almost instantly people started to crowd around the TV. Because of this, Palette managed to lose PJ in the crowd, which he wasn't sure if he was relieved or worried.

Since the TV was currently blocked from Palette's vision, he decided to eavesdrop on someone's conversation. He discovered that they less than ten minutes away from a new year. He could hear a few people share their New Year's resolutions. As far as Palette could tell, there were some solid goals people came up with. And considering Palette didn't have a resolution, it wasn't his place to judge.

While everyone else was preoccupied, Palette decided now would be a good time to come with something decent as a New Year's resolution while he still had the chance. He could always steal someone's idea if he couldn't come up with anything. It wasn't like he would get in trouble for it. Palette figured he could always say it was inspiration, although he couldn't come up with a real reason why someone would assume he stole an idea.

Palette spotted Goth not too far away. He seemed lost as for what to do and looked uncomfortable to be left alone in a crowd. Before Goth could notice Palette staring at him, he quickly tore his gaze away to consider his options.

Palette felt torn. He wanted nothing more than to speak with his crush and apologize but at the same time, he wanted to stay far away. But Palette knew for a fact PJ was right. It was now or never, and he felt as if he would regret his decision either way. So the best option was to get it over with, right?

Before he could hesitate and stop himself, Palette made his way towards the smaller skeleton. What did he have to worry about? They both knew almost everything about each other. Even if they haven't talked in months, they weren't strangers. Of course, things could happen and change, but Palette was determined to make things right.

The moment Goth noticed him approaching was when Palette could feel his confidence slip away. His heartbeat was starting to quicken with fear or something else. Whatever it was, it was ruining Palette's flow.

A curse flew out of his mouth as Palette seemingly tripped over nothing, though it was someone's shoe. Aware that Goth was watching, he attempted to regain his footing and succeeded moments later. Unfortunately, he had nearly stumbled into Goth.

"Shoot, s-sorry!" Palette mentally screeched at himself for looking like an idiot. He straightened to face unpredictable doom but the moment Palette saw Goth's reaction, the bomb stopped ticking. The other was smiling and holding back a laugh.

Shit... Palette could feel the heat rise to his face. Suddenly everything else didn't feel important. The only thing that mattered was the skeleton in front of him. He's still adorable. And I'm a mess. The world hates me.

"It's okay, you didn't do anything wrong," Goth assured him. Palette found no signs of hostility or disgust, so he took this as a good sign. A few awkward moments passed before he spoke again. "So, uh, how are you?"

"Ah, I'm good," Palette replied nervously. Small beads of sweat formed on his forehead. There were so many things he could say but only a few seemed appropriate. "What about you?"

Goth toyed with his scarf as he spoke. Palette couldn't help but give a smile at this. It was always a habit for Goth to mess with his scarf and it was good to know that not everything changes. "Yeah, I'm okay for the most part. I just feel bad for, you know, pushing you away."

This took Palette by surprise and he had to take a few moments to register what Goth said. This debunked almost all of Palette's doubts but concern found its way back up to the surface. "No, no, it's okay. Did something happen?"

The smaller skeleton nodded. "Long story short, my mom ended up in a mental hospital a few weeks after I had to go to a different school. He's okay now, as you can see, but it was still pretty scary."

"Holy crap..." Palette whispered in shock. He didn't press for details, though there were plenty of questions. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I... I honestly don't know." Goth admitted quietly, averting his gaze. "I just thought... it would be better if you didn't know. But I didn't realize what I was doing until you stopped messaging me so, heh, there's that I guess." He paused and his voice dropped to a lower level. "Sorry I didn't text you, I just felt like I let you down."

"I felt the same way!" Palette exclaimed, catching the other by surprise. "I thought I did something wrong, but I just couldn't figure out what. Or maybe you just decided I wasn't worth talking to or something."

Before Goth could get the chance to respond, there was a loud shout that caught everyone's attention. When Palette looked, he found his father standing on a table. If he didn't know better, he would say that Ink went crazy. "Ten seconds left!"

A loud cheer swept throughout the room as everyone started to count down with the clock. "Ten!"

Palette faced Goth, his soul pounding harder than ever. "Well, since this might be the only chance I'll get, I might as well tell you now."

Goth looked at him, curious. "What is it?"

"Nine!"

There's no turning back now.

He took a deep breath and spoke. "Goth, I... I love you."

"Eight!"

"W-What?" Goth's face lit up purple and his eyes widened in surprise.

"Seven!"

Palette swallowed hard and forced himself to continue. "I-I love everything about you. From your smile and laugh to your personality and flaws I just... can't help it."

"Six!"

"Palette, I-"

The taller skeleton didn't let him finish. "You don't have to feel the same way! I-Its fine! I'm just happy being by your side. Do you think we can start over?"

"Five!"

Once again, Goth opened his mouth to speak but Palette beat him to it. "It's just, New Year's and everything and I've wanted to tell you for the longest time... but uh, now that I think about it, maybe right now isn't the best time..."

"Four!"

"Pal-"

Palette interrupted him. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? For being a bad friend and you know, falling in love-"

"Three!"

Before he could finish his sentence, Goth lifted the other's head off and softly shushed him. Palette could only give the smaller a puzzled look, too slow on piecing the puzzle together. Goth pulled the smaller down to his height and smiled.

"Two!"

"I love you too, you idiot," Goth said quietly. "You have nothing to be sorry for."

"One!"

If Palette was given a chance to respond, he would've blown it. Fortunately, there wasn't time to. Unfortunately, what Goth did next caught him off guard.

"Happy New Year's!"

Without warning, Goth's lips met his. Cheers rang out. Maybe a few people cried. Palette wouldn't know. His face was hot and Palette felt like he was flying. If it weren't for Goth keeping him in place, then Palette's legs would've failed him right then and there.

Nobody seemed to notice the two, which he was thankful for. Everyone else was focused on who could scream the loudest. But even that couldn't take Palette's attention away on Goth. Time seemed to stretch on forever but it felt like Goth pulled away all too soon.

"So, y-you're willing to start over?" Palette asked, hopefully. He knew he sounded desperate, but what could he do? He wanted nothing more than to scoop the other into his arms.

Goth giggled softly and nodded. "Yes, I am. Happy New Year's, Pally."

Palette grinned like an idiot. It's been so long since he heard Goth use that nickname and it felt great to hear it again. "Happy New Year's, Gothy."

He had a feeling this year would be better than the last.

~End~

a day late but oh well-

tbh i hate how this fanfic turned out but since i stayed up a total of 10 hours for this i might as well  post it right

sorry if theres any mistakes, my eyes hurt-

Word Count: 2883