“What do I do again?” Jongup asked as he looked at his hand. Usually he spent New Year’s with his family, nothing extravagant because he didn’t care for it enough, but this year he had gotten snowed in at uni, so some of his friends had decided they should celebrate together.

Daehyun had dug up some (read: loads of) alcohol, Himchan a game called Cards against Humanity, which was both hilarious and horrible. Yongguk didn’t like it much, but Youngjae and Daehyun had pretty much been under the table with laughter for most of it.

“You choose the funniest answer,” Himchan answered helpfully, Junhong leaning over to see Jongup’s cards, soon being pushed aside by Yongguk, who told him that that would be cheating. “Like in the last round, when Daehyun had ‘I drink to forget blank’, and we had to fill in the blank.”

“And I won!” Youngjae shouted as he reached for his drink.

“You don’t know that yet, we’re not finished!” Daehyun protested.

“So it’s ‘Harry Potter and the Chamber of blank’,” Junhong repeated, collecting everyone’s answers. “And Yongguk has-” He stopped and sighed. “’Harry Potter and the Chamber of strong female characters’. Hyung, I don’t think you understand the game.”

“That’s what should happen, though,” Yongguk insisted. “It doesn’t have to be horrible”

Himchan patted his arm and smiled. “I completely agree. Are there any better answers, Junhong? Because Yongguk hasn’t won even one card yet,” he said urgently, nodding towards his best friend.

“Well, maybe you can give him one when it’s your turn,” Junhong huffed before reading out the rest of the answers and choosing Daehyun as the winner.

“Guys, guys! Thirteen more minutes!” Daehyun exclaimed excitedly.

“Till midnight?!” Youngjae asked, clearly surprised that time had passed so quickly. The last time they checked the clock it was only nine o’clock, but that was also several other games ago, including a few rounds of Munchkin, which had nearly led to bloodshed more than once until Jongup had suggested they play something else.

“No, until Yongguk finally plays the game properly,” Daehyun deadpanned. “Yes, until midnight! We should go outside and look at the fireworks!”

“What fireworks?” Junhong asked curiously as they all got to their feet, Himchan assuring Yongguk that of course he knew how to play the game, the rest of them just didn’t understand. “I thought we weren’t allowed any?”

“Yeah, and I doubt the university will have their own show,” Youngjae added, although he did put on his coat and shoes all the same. “Or do you think we’ll be able to see the ones from the city over here?”

“Worth a shot, right?” Daehyun shrugged.

“I’ll say, with this cold,” Himchan mumbled as he reached for a small glass of Jägermeister, shuddering when he knocked it back. Yongguk patted his shoulder as he coughed while Jongup handed him his things.

“Don’t we need champagne or something?” Jongup asked innocently as he pulled on his gloves.

“I think we’ve all had enough,” Youngjae said firmly. “Let’s just go outside, wait for midnight and any fireworks, and then go back in and continue our game. Everyone agreed?”

It didn’t take long for all of them to get outside, Daehyun and Junhong running ahead into the snow, while Himchan complained about the cold and huddled closer to Yongguk. Jongup was in the middle of explaining something concerning the colour of ice when Youngjae threw a snowball in Daehyun’s direction and interrupted him. Things got out of hand quickly after that, until someone bumped into Himchan and knocked him into a big pile of snow, which led to a lecture from Yongguk on being more careful and a vengeful Himchan they all quickly apologised to.

“So, what do you guys wish for the new year?” Daehyun asked curiously once they had all settled down, standing close together in front of their dormitory, the other students either absent or indoors.

“Health and happiness,” Junhong answered. “For everyone. That’s what’s most important, right?”

Yongguk nodded in agreement. “If people were happy, the world might be a better place. And mutual respect. We need more of that, because there’s a serious lack of that right now, if you ask me.”

“I want to let go of the past,” Himchan added softly. “Of the bad stuff, I mean. Move on and be open to new opportunities, that sort of thing. And I don’t want to be taken advantage of any longer.”

“I’m with you there,” Youngjae mumbled. “I guess that falls in the respect category.”

“Acceptance,” Jongup continued. “We can only be happy if we respect and accept each other.”

“Don’t forget understanding each other,” Daehyun piped up. “It’s fine to accept someone, but trying to understand them is something else.”

“And no less important,” Youngjae continued.

They were silent for a while, sniffling and staring at their phones to check the time, all slightly relieved when midnight was mere seconds away.

“We deserve a good 2015, don’t we?” Jongup mused when the countdown started, heard through a window upstairs. “This year has been hard at times.”

“At least we’re together,” Yongguk said firmly. “We can handle anything as long as we remain that way.”

Midnight arrived then and the fireworks started up close-by. Together they stared up at the sky, the lights from the fireworks illuminating their faces. “I’m happy we got stuck here,” Jongup stated thoughtfully, breaking the silence that had fallen between them. “There are worse people to spend New Year’s with.”

“Of course you could,” Himchan scoffed, though he sounded pleased. He glanced upwards once more. “Okay, I think the fireworks are over. Can we go back upstairs now? I’m freezing!”

“Ah, yes, we need to continue our game,” Youngjae said with a grin, rubbing his hands together. “Mind you, I’m winning anyway, so there’s no rush.”

“Are you, though?” Daehyun asked, trying to sound mysterious as they went back to their dorm.

“Well, yeah, because- Wait.” Youngjae narrowed his eyes and grabbed Daehyun by the arm. “What have you done?” he asked, his voice more of a hiss.

Daehyun pointed at himself innocently. “Me? Absolutely nothing.”

They entered the room and Youngjae pointed at his now sad little pile of cards. “Don’t lie! Where have my cards gone, Jung Daehyun?!”

“He’s not lying, actually,” Junhong said with a grin.

Jongup sighed when Youngjae started telling off the two partners in crime and watched Himchan head into the bedroom to change his clothes, closely followed by Yongguk for some reason, and he had a feeling they wouldn’t be seeing them for a while.

“Happy New Year, Jongup,” he mumbled to himself as he sat down, unable to stop smiling regardless.

A/N: It's kind of crack, I guess? I played Cards against Humanity during the holidays and one of my friends actually answered like Yongguk most of the time. It was actually quite impressive! Anyway, happy New Year to anyone reading this. <3 May 2015 bring you everything the boys mentioned here, and may our boys get the justice they deserve. It's good to hear from them again, in any case. :)