Pink hearts, heart candy, heart cards, lace embroidered with hearts, heart posters and even little hearts over the 'I's…hearts everywhere; making it awfully hard for Vanitas to enjoy any particular part of this day. He hated hearts. Those round little humps with the pointed 'v' shaped bottom; which only served to remind Vanitas of two different little lumps he'd love to get his hands on. Hey, the heart is based off the shape of the butt anyway, Vanitas really couldn't be apprehended for his line of thinking.
He pulled irritatingly at his school tie, the black fabric only serving as a fabulous insulation for all the students in the hot weather, making it even harder to get cooler. Vanitas could always opt for the summer uniform, but he was never a shorts kind of guy, and he didn't feel like exposing himself unless it was absolutely necessary.
So when he felt a tap on his shoulder, Vanitas' face, with all the hearts and the heat and the squeally girls and the too-stupid-to-really-care-about boys, only went several shades redder, his ears burning with anger and frustration.
"What!?" He whipped around, hissing at the offender and glaring at the girl with golden slits.
A startled expression covered the girls face, her black bangs flicking against her nose as she jolted from the sudden lunge. Vanitas could only sneer.
He remembered this girl, Xion, if he remembered correctly, from his home room. She was another one of those squeally, crazy, romance-induced females that Vanitas despised. This was only confirmed by how she blushed at his outburst, twisting her hands in her skirt so the white hem became all wrinkled, stuttering through her words.
"Well…um…you see…the thing is…" this went on before Vanitas just growled, baring his teeth. Xion squeaked before rushing out her confession.
"I need to speak with you in private!" She said, her face flaming and he hair askew, that irritatingly blue bow starting to fall slightly from her black strands. Vanitas just grunted in response.
"What for?"
"Oh…well…um…it's…just that…"
Vanitas growled again. Xion squeaked again (he could see a pattern forming).
"I just need to tell you something…special…"
And just like that, Vanitas saw all the pieces falling into place. Xion had never spoken to him before but he had always caught her eyeing him in class, or in gym (though all the girls did that, how could they not?), or when he was at his locker, or during lunch, or hanging out on the oval and, the most obvious place, the library; where she would pretend to read a book across the room from him, all the while peeking over the rim and gazing at him with expectant blue eyes. Vanitas had just learnt long ago to ignore her…it had gotten boring catching her out and watching the expression on her face fall from shocked to embarrassed to shame.
So on this particular day, with the hearts all around and the heat making all the girl wear their skirts that little bit higher and the festivities in the air, and something special to tell him, Vanitas didn't have to be an ace student to guess what this was about.
He sighed heavily, ruffling his hair and trying his best not to let the next few words to leave his mouth be too incriminating.
"Look, Xion…was it?" he waited for her to nod before continuing.
"I'm sure you're very nice," he was gagging internally, "but the thing is…"
At that, Xion foresaw his answer, and hurriedly thrust a bright pink card showered with confetti and smelling strongly of peach into his face. Vanitas gagged internally some more.
"I like you!" She squeaked, her eyes shut and the card still in his face. "So, if you would just give me a chance…I know I'm not very popular, but…" It was almost sad watching her (almost, though Vanitas was thinking more that it bordered on pathetic) and as he went to interrupt her again, a sweet voice belonging to a lovely blonde in a skirt of her own (one that wasn't wrinkled) beat him to it.
"Vanitas! There you are!" The blonde ignored Xion, preferring to walk right up to Vanitas and lacing her hands around his neck, kissing him sweetly on the lips (which Vanitas showed no shame in returning) and smiling at him with pink lips that tasted of strawberry (much preferable than peach).
"Are you going to walk me to my class Vanitas? Carry my books for me? Accept my Valentines chocolate like the good boyfriend I know you are?" the blonde chided. See, on any other girl this behaviour would sicken Vanitas to the core, but knowing his 'girlfriend's' little secret, this girl didn't sicken him in the slightest.
"C'mon Ventus, you know I wouldn't dare to dishonour you on today of all days. Look, I even went that extra mile and bought you this," to which Vanitas protruded a little pink box tied neatly together with a white bow and dusted with glitter (which if anyone looked closely, was still embedded in Vanitas' fingernails).
"Oh Vani!" Ventus squealed at him. "You really shouldn't have! I didn't get you anything!"
"That's okay," Vanitas comforted his gushing blonde, wrapping his arms firmly around her waist and burring his nose into the crook of her neck, inhaling her scent (vanilla…it went so well with strawberry). "I know you'll make it up to me this afternoon…and tonight…and most of tomorrow morning…"
So a girl with black hair, blue eyes, blue bow and a crumpled Valentine's card had to quietly slip away and stare sadly at the sweet sight of the cute couple canoodling in the hallway. She wouldn't have anyone to share this day with, and even though she really had expected this, it didn't stop her wiping away the tears in the corner of her eyes and dumping her home-made card into the bin before exiting the scene, never to enter it again.