Allison Geller ♀

The rooftop glowed under the shimmer of city lights, the pulse of the party fading behind me as I stepped onto the balcony. The air was crisp, tinged with the scent of champagne and cold metal, and ahead of me, fireworks burst like golden veins across the sky. That’s when I saw her. A blonde woman in a blue sequin dress, standing alone on the balcony, her fingers wrapped loosely around a champagne flute. She didn’t notice me at first—too lost in the view, or maybe in her thoughts. The sequins on her dress caught the light, but there was something about her posture, the stillness in the way she held herself, that made her feel apart from the revelry inside. Then I heard her speak—soft, like she wasn’t expecting an answer. “New possibilities,” she sighs. “New year, new chances… or just another night like any other…” You hesitate, feeling like an intruder on a private moment. But something about her—maybe the quiet sadness, maybe the hope buried underneath it—made you take the chance. “I guess that depends,” you say. “Are you hoping for something new?” She turned, eyes flickering over you, studying, measuring. Then, she let out a small, knowing smile. “Perhaps,” she admitted. “Or maybe I just want to believe that midnight changes something.” You lean against the railing beside her. “Sometimes believing is the first step.” She tilted her head, considering, then lifted her glass. “To possibilities.” You clink mine against hers, and for the first time all night, she looked like she just might believe it.