He wasn't my first boyfriend.

Before him, there was Barry; he got bored of me and left after a year or so. Before Barry, there was Kenny. Kenny cheated on me with my best friend. I have since gotten over it – she's a much better fit for him than I ever was – but at the time, it hurt like hell.

The most recent one, he was the worst. His name was Conway. Dating him was the worst decision I think I've ever made. He seemed like he really cared about me at first. I was willing to give Conway a chance, but he ended up doing more than just breaking my heart. He ended up hitting me. He was always rough with me. Once I got out of that relationship, I tried to stay alone.

It wasn't until I ended up in Veilstone City during a freak storm. I had taken up refugee at Reggie's place, thinking it was the next safest place for me to go since the Pokémon Center was packed. Reggie was willing to take me into his place, though I would be left alone because he had business to attend to at the gym.

I figured I was completely alone, so I huddled onto the edge of the couch, willing myself not to cry. Thunder storms were my weakness – nothing scared me more than thunder and lightning. I was just trying to hum to myself, but every crash of the storm made my heart race. Soon enough, it felt like my heart would fly out of my chest cavity.

"What are you doing here?"

I squeaked and shot my head up to look at who was addressing me. "Oh, n-nothing, really, Paul. Just waiting for Reggie to come back," I said to him rather nervously.

He ended up taking a seat next to me and turning on the TV, keeping the volume low. "So why are you crying?"

I brought my hand up to my cheeks, and to my surprise, they were wet. I cursed inwardly, I didn't want to cry, and I certainly didn't want anyone to see me. When Conway would see me cry like this, he would just yell at me. He would call me names, scolding me for acting like a child.

I was about to reply to Paul, who was looking at me expectantly, when another crash of thunder was heard. I jumped in my seat and buried my face in my hands.

"You're afraid of storms..?" He asked gently. I simply nodded my head in response, preparing myself to the onslaught of nasty names.

I felt the seat next to me shift, but I didn't look up. Not until I felt watch surround me. When I looked up, I saw that Paul had gone to retrieve a blanket for me and was now in the kitchen boiling water for what I assume would be tea.

He put the tea on the table next to me, sat back down, and draped his arm across my shoulder. I looked at him, confusing spread on my face. "Why are you doing this?" I questioned him.

"Maylene is scared of storms, too. This is how Reggie makes her feel better, so I thought it might help you too."

I smiled up at him, moved closer, and wrapped my arms around his waist. "Thank you".

It had now been years from then, and my pervious defense were down. I shifted in my bed and looked over at the person sleeping next to me. I hugged him from behind, which caused him to stir. He looked at me, and pressed a chaste kiss against my lips.

"How'd you sleep?" I asked my boyfriend.

I just got a grunt in response and I giggled. "Wasn't much sleeping getting done under somebody's insistence."

I looked up at him, blushing brightly. He just had a smirk on his face.

"I hate you," I said looking away, embarrassed.

He got up and went to the bathroom. "Not what you were saying last night," he called as he walked away.

"Paul!" I yelled as I threw a pillow in his direction.

I know he was teasing me. He had done nothing but make me happy these past few years. Of course we had our rough patches, but he made the effort to fix them, rather than leave me in the dirt like my past boyfriends. I thought there was nothing that could make me happier.

That was, until we went out for dinner. It was Valentine's Day, and I knew that Paul usually wasn't the type to do stuff on this sort of holiday, so I was confused. We sat there, waiting for our meal, making small talk. He seemed distracted the entire night. It wasn't until we were done with our meal, taking a walk in the park that I understood why he was so nervous.

"Dawn," I looked up at my boyfriend, confused but willing him to continue, "God, this is so embarrassing and cliché, but you make me really happy. More happy than I've ever been." I felt my eyes begin to water as he continued speaking. "Well, I guess it's now or never, right?"

He kneeled down and pulled out a small velvet box. "Dawn, will you marry me?"

My hands went up to my face in shock and I began to cry a bit while I was nodding. "Yes, yes, yes!" I repeated excitedly.

He chuckled as he slid the ring onto my finger. "I love you" he said before he pulled me into a passionate kiss.

"I love you, too" I said.

It was in this moment that I knew that nothing in this world would make me happier than the man in front of me.

Well, except maybe a few kids one day.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!