@toddtootles said: “I know I'm not the person you want, but I'm here.”
It was five minutes to midnight and Peter was still standing with Wendy like he had been most of the night, the focus of his attention making it clear who he intended to kiss when the clock struck twelve. Tink was doing a very poor job at trying to look unbothered by this. And Tootles was, if not the first to notice, the first and only to actually do anything about it, coming to Tink’s side as he usually did when she was in a mood and needed cheering up. She smiled up at him, not a full bright smile, but not a forced one either.
“I’m glad you’re here.” There was no need to dissect what he’d said about not being the person she wanted; she wouldn’t be surprised if Peter was the only one who couldn’t tell, so she wasn’t going to ask Am I that obvious? She would just be happy that she wasn’t left alone in a corner at midnight, thanks to Tootles. She raised her champagne glass in a silent toast. They'd all been toasting all night, sharing their best stories of 2023, their hopes and resolutions for 2024, and Tink was honestly all toasted out. Pretty much everything had already been said. "Ready for the new year," she said simply.