2024 Story Collection

Happy Valentines Day!

Another Valentine's Day alone.

She stood up from her computer, already night. Where had her day gone?

She had spent her whole Valentine's Day writing about a fictional couple. She hadn't even noticed the date until now. She looks at her watch. It reads 10:00pm.

A heavy, sad wave of emotions rushed over her in that moment. She'd never cared about something as silly as having a date in Valentines Day but strangely, in that moment, she was lonely.

Lonely and suddenly claustrophobic. The room swirled around her, her vision blurring, and then she fainted.

She woke in what felt like only a moment later in her bed, her head sore and her body aching.

"Why don't you ever call me when you're sick?" she heard a man's voice beside her. She turns to him, but he is blurry. She blinks a few times. His face comes into focus. She sighs.

"I thought you'd be busy, seeing as it's Valentine's Day and all." She snaps, laying back in the bed.

"It was Valentine's Day like two days ago-wait." He pulls back the wet cloth from her forehead. "What do you mean Valentine's Day? How long were you laying there, passed out before I got back early this morning?"

"Don't worry about it," she says, turning her gaze from him to out the window on the other side of the bed. "What a beautiful sunrise," she tries to change the subject. Had it really been that long?

"Susan," he whisper yells.

"Jeramy," she mocks, turning her attention back to him. He glares at her and she rolls her eyes.

He was her brother's best friend. They went way back and when things got bad at home for the two of them, they would go over to his huge apartment and stay with him for a while. After her brother got cancer, Jeramy had promised to take care of her for him and visa-vera.

Before her brother's death, they got along horribly, all threats and insults, but after he died, they had gotten a lot closer. It was as if they had made an unspoken truce to stick together and take care of eachother and not let their claws out.

That's how she ended up at his vacation home in the rocky's. It was perfect for writing. Jeramy would travel back and forth between a few different properties, but spent the most time here.

"Susan, if I hadn't come-"

"-but you did," she cuts off his thought, her words coming out a bit harsher than she'd ment them to.

She watches him as he stands walking out of the bedroom. Not even a minute later, he enters again, his eyes puffy.

"I already lost your brother. I can't lose you too. I won't. I can't. Please-"

"Okay," she apologizes, now understanding his reaction. "I'm sorry. I'll be more careful and communicate better."

"You better," he says. "It's not like I can't afford to drop everything for you." He grumbles as he leaves the room.

"Hey Jeramy," she calls out. He turns back, an annoyed look on his face. "Thank you."

His face softens, a small smile forming on his lips. "You're very welcome."

"So, did you?" she asks, her curiosity getting the better of her. "Did you have a Valentine?"

He stares at her as if she just grew a new second head like a hydra.

"What?" she shrinks back under his gaze. "Can I not ask that?"

"Just get changed and come out," he says, finally leaving the room. She watches the doorway, waiting for him to come back, but finally, after a few minutes, decides he was serious.

She closes her door and pulls out the first T-shirt she sees and sweats. She puts them on and walks out to the kitchen.

"Jeramy?" she calls out when she doesn't see him.

"I got this for you," she spins on her heel to face him but doesn't take account of the dizziness in her head and almost falls, but he catches her. "Woah there. I thought you said you were going to be more careful?"

"I guess I just can't help but let my guard down around you," he rolls his eyes. "Look. This is a perfect example. I fell, and you caught me."

He stares at her then before eventually clearing his throat and stepping back.

"Here." He hands her a bouquet of the most beautiful roses she's ever seen.

"What's this?" she asks breathlessly, taking the bouquet.

"Roses." He says and she can almost hear the obviously at the end.

She looks up at him for more of an explanation, but finds none.

"I can see that," she says. "But why are you giving them to me?"

He ignores her question. "I finally took that cooking class I've been talking about forever. There were a bunch of nice old ladies there that helped me through the whole thing. Thank God they were there," he says, walking into the kitchen. She follows behind him.

"I made these for you," he says, pushing a heart-shaped box across the counter to her.

"Okay," she says, trying to wrap her brain around all this. "Is my sick brain making this up or did you just give me a bouquet and a heart-shaped box of chocolates that you personally handmade?"

"That is correct."

"Jeramy, what the fuck?" She almost yells.

"Do you not like roses-"

"Why are you giving me this?" she asks. "Do you like me or something?"

At those words, he stops and looks away. She might've thought he was mad if it wasn't for his ears turning bright red.

"-and if I did?" he asks.

"I would ask why? When?"

"I've liked you for a while now," he admits. "I don't quite know why, just that at some point it changed from me loathing having to see you, to looking forward to telling you off, to wanting to make sure you were safe, to wanting to stand by your side." He finally turns back to her, a light dusting of red on his cheeks. "Maybe I've always liked you."

She sets down the flowers on the counter and pulls out a chair. She looks at the box and undoes the bow before lifting the lid.

The chocolates were a mess. It made her smile.

He had worked hard on this, was proud of it, and wanted to share it with her, her. The man who never showed less than perfection to anyone gave her these ugly, utterly unappetizing chocolates that he made with his own hands for her.

She picked one up and took a bite. Unlike what you'd expect from its appearance, it was delicious. She hummed and pupped the rest into her mouth.

"I love it, thank you," she says, her mouth full of chocolate.

"Do you really like them?" he asks, walking up beside her.

"Yes," she replies honestly and while looking at him in that moment, she realizes, "I like you too."

"What-"

"Will you be my late Valentine?" she asks, popping another chocolate in her mouth. He stares at her, mouth agape, before his face transforms into a wide smile.

"I would be honored," he replies. "If I can have a kiss?"

"I'm sick," she protests.

"I have not cared less about anything in my entire life," he says as he pulls her face up to meet his own and kisses her.

The End.

February 14, 2024