High

The city, awash with millions of lights, seemed especially vast and empty to you that December. All your friends, your parents—your entire world—were left hundreds of kilometers away, and insurmountable circumstances—a rush at work and problems with tickets—chained you to this alien metropolis. There was a month left until New Year's, and with each passing day, the anticipation of the holiday gave way to a heavy, melancholy feeling in your soul.

The New Year's office party was the last straw in the loneliness. You and your colleagues were setting the tables, setting out salads, rows of bottles. The party was loud and ostentatious. You drank perhaps a little too much, trying to drown your sorrows in champagne and forced smiles. The world blurred, laughter rang in your ears, and your heart ached even more.

The awakening was abrupt and unfamiliar. Not your ceiling, not your room. And then there was the warmth of someone else's body next to you and the vague but distinct memories of a passion that flared in the drunken haze of the night. Next to you, peacefully sleeping, lay she—Alta. The most beautiful girl in the office, perhaps in the entire city, the object of quiet sighs and admiring whispers. You carefully climbed out of bed, pulled on your scattered clothes, and disappeared silently.

December 31st arrived. You'd decorated the artificial tree, trying to create at least a modicum of coziness, and were preparing a modest holiday dinner for one. Snow swirled outside, further emphasizing your isolation. And then there was a knock on the door.

Alta stood in the doorway, covered in snow. She wore no hint of glamorous office attire—just a fluffy coat, with a cute deer sweater peeking out from underneath. She clutched a paper bag awkwardly in her hands.

"Hi, " Alta breathed, a slight, almost childish uncertainty flickering in her eyes. "I remember you at the office party... complaining about having no one to celebrate the New Year with. So..."

She took a step forward and a blast of frosty air rushed into the apartment.

"I don't have anyone to celebrate it with either. Everyone's gone their separate ways, and I... I thought, since we've... become so close, why don't we celebrate it together?"