Olga Spent All Day Preparing for Her First New Year’s Eve Away from Her Parents and with Her Beloved…

Olivia had spent the whole day preparing for the New Years celebration: cleaning, cooking, setting the table. This was her very first New Year not with her parents, but with the man she loved.

She had been living with Tony in his flat for three months now. He was fifteen years older, had been married before, paid child support, and sometimes liked a tipple a bit too much But none of that seemed to matter when you loved someone. No one could quite understand what had drawn Olivia to himhe wasnt handsome by any stretch, quite the opposite in fact, his temper was awful, he was miserly to the extreme, and never seemed to have money. And when he did have any, he would only ever spend it on himself. Yet, despite all this, Olivia had fallen head over heels for this most peculiar of men.

All throughout those three months, she kept hoping Tony would see what a kind, devoted woman she was and, surely, would want to marry her. Hed always say, We should live together first, see what youre really like as a wife. Dont want a repeat of my ex. What sort of woman his ex was, Olivia had no ideaTony never gave her any real details. So she tried her absolute best to impress: never argued when he staggered home drunk, always cooked, washed, cleaned, and did the shopping herself (heaven forbid Tony should think she was out for his money). Even the New Years feast was paid for with her own pounds. Shed even gone out and bought him a brand new phone as a present.

As Olivia busied herself with the final preparations, Tony was getting ready his own wayby going out for drinks with his mates. He came home merry and declared that his friends would be coming over for New Years too. His friends, strangers to her. Olivia finished setting the table, with just an hour to go until midnight. Her spirits sank, but she bit her tongue, determined not to say a wordshe wasnt going to be like his ex.

Half an hour before midnight, a rowdy, drunken crowd spilled into their little flat. Tony immediately perked up, sat everyone around the table, and the drinking carried on. He didnt even introduce Olivia, and it was as if she simply didnt existthey drank, joked, and chatted amongst themselves. When Olivia reminded everyone there were just two minutes until the New Year and they ought to pour the bubbly, one woman looked at her as if she were some unwelcome intruder.

And whos that? slurred the tipsy guest.

Oh, thats just my bedroom neighbour, Tony sniggered, and the rest roared with laughter, all at her expense.

They ate the feast Olivia had prepared and mocked her as they did. When Big Ben chimed in the New Year, they jeered at her naïveté and applauded Tony for his brilliant movefinding himself a free cook and cleaner. Tony did nothing to defend her, only joined in their laughter, stuffing his face with her food and treating her like she was nothing.

Quietly, Olivia left the room, gathered her things, and slipped out to her parents home. Shed never had a more miserable New Year. Her mother simply shook her head and said, I did warn you. Her father let out a relieved sigh, and Olivia cried until all her hurt had drained away, finally seeing things as they truly were.

A week later, when Tonys money had run dry, he turned up at her parents door as if nothing had happened.

So, why did you leave then? Got a bit upset? he scoffed. Seeing she had no intention of coming back, he decided to lay it on thick: Nice one, really! Lounging about with your mum and dad while Im scraping together mealsyoure turning out just like my ex!

Olivia was lost for words at his sheer cheek. Shed rehearsed countless times what shed say, yet now, standing in front of him, only one response seemed fitting: to tell him, in no uncertain terms, to leave and slam the door in his face.

And so, with the start of the year, Olivia began a new chapter of her lifea chapter where she finally realised her own worth. Sometimes, the best new beginnings come from ending what should have never been.