You're not afraid of people passing by or even the past

 "Oh, it was a party all right," the way Simon said it. It was as if he'd delivered the baby right there at the party, but Victoria only had contractions and rang in the new year at the hospital with a baby girl. Naturally, Steve was right by her side.

"Yeah, and we're still all friends," Chevy smiled back. After all, they were honorary uncles to baby True. "Who would have thunk it?" 

Simon knew Chevy had been waiting for this day. Yes, Simon took his time ever wanting to speak to his ex again. But maybe it was all Chevy and Mick's doing. But then again he'd been in full-throttle mode with his startup company of fixing old houses and selling them to first-time buyers. He didn't have time for this kind of thing. And then they had their New Year's Party which included far too many people. But Melissa and Rylie were there and so were Brandon and Declan. It was a good time for all.

Of course, when they did get to the hospital, they found out about Matty and Valentina's arrival. It was definitely a big night for babies on New Year's. They had a baby boy and his name was Foster and he was huge. Chevy said he looked already a month old. "How did she even have it?"

But all was well and Simon was happy they could be there for the party. He knew his brother Xander was elated to be a grandpa. Yes, 2023 was looking good. Although, it was still cold. Not exactly the kind of weather you could enjoy the Christmas lights in. However, there had been a nice warming trend for a day or so when it got back up to warmer temps. Still not enough for Simon.

If he could he would say to Chevy, "Let's go to Miami!" But he was still busy and it was best to keep working. 

Really, it was the last person Yuki expected to meet at Chevy and Simon's party, but she got to catch up with Melissa. Emily was there with her and it was still an adjustment with the broken arm, but things were getting better.

"How did that happen?" Melissa wanted to know. Rylie was concerned too. She said she'd heard Brandon talk about it. Honestly, Yuki wanted to keep this all low-key, but suddenly it felt like she had some real friends around her. She didn't know what to say. But it was a good feeling. It was as if she felt she could talk with ease. No longer stuck, waiting for someone to tell her what she could and couldn't talk about.

There was Emily too who made Christmas feel real with a tree, Christmas lights, and of course cozy treats, and a marathon of all of Yuki's favorite Christmas movies. Yet, the holidays just got better. Going out, meeting up with Brandon and Declan, and now Melissa and Rylie. Truly, she hadn't thought January would be giving her so much to look forward to. And she was even getting holiday pay at work.