Valentine's day. Why did it have to be Valentine's day? Of all the days that Bart could have chosen to meet Jaime's parents, it had to be this one day. February fourteenth. The day of passion. Of…love. Didn't they celebrate the holiday in the future? Surely Bart new the significant of this day, knew what it meant…right? Maybe he knew precisely what it meant; maybe he chose this to signify something? Something Jaime hoped he felt toward him like he did with the speedster? Or, maybe, it was just pure coincidence. Nothing more to him than any other day of the month, of the year. Jaime was overthinking it. Too panicked, too scared to find out the significance at all. He had to focus on the day ahead. On the evening to come.

Bart had asked two days ago.

"Hey BB! Blue Beetal, the Big Blue!"

The future boy came rushing to him after the hour of training. They were both drenched in sticky sweat, and Jaime couldn't help but blush at the way Bart's hair stuck to his forehead, just dying for someone to sweep it back.

"Hey, hermano. What's up?" Jaime asked as he peeled away half of his blue coat and headed for the showers. Bart kept even pace with his strides.

"I was wondering when we could hang again! It would be crash if I could come over and see your house and play some-video-games-with-you-andevengettomeetyourfamily—"

"Woah, there, dude. Barley caught three words of that."

"Oh, sorry." Bart half coughed-half laughed and tried again. "I was wondering when I could meet your family?"

A giant cocoon of butterflies erupted within Jaime's stomach. Meet the family? Like…how couples meet the parents? No…no…like friends meet other friends parents. Nothing more.

Control yourself, Jaime Reyes. The Impulse is intruding within the personal boundaries to gain trust. You must take precaution.

Shut up, Scarab.

Jaime cleared his throat, and turned to meet Bart's expectant gaze. "Uh, sure ese. I guess you could come over and meet them sometime—"

"Crash! How about on Thursday?"

"Uh, sounds good."

Bart smiled widely and nudged Jaime's bare chest with his elbow, not noticing the teen flinch with embarrassment. "See you then!" He yelled, or at least, that's what Jaime thought he yelled, but he couldn't be sure because the speedster was already long gone before the words were even in the air.

That was two days ago, and this is now.

Jaime stood in his room, eyeing himself in the mirror. He had to look good, without seemingly trying to look good. Not sloppy, but not intentional. He studied closer to make sure everything was perfect. His jeans were nice, but not too clear cut. They seemed a little worn, which was his exact intension. His hair was tousled, not quite how it normally seemed to fall, but close to where someone wouldn't think twice. His shirt was a normal whit button down, normal for a nice home dinner with his family that no one would question. Perfect.

Jaime was just about to check his teeth once more before he heard a loud knock from downstairs and polite chatter as his mother allowed the guest in for the evening. This was it, Bart had arrived.

Feeling like a speedster himself, Jaime flew down the stairs within moments to greet Bart as well, who was still standing by the front door as the family greeted him warmly. Before Jaime said anything though, he took a small second to take in the boy before him.

Bart had on a nice pair of dark skinny jeans that he had cuffed up at the ankles, with black converse covering his feet. He wore a red collared shirt that made his eyes pop so much that Jaime could see their color from where he was standing, and his hair was floppy around his face. Perfect.

A second later, Jaime was patting Bart on the back and introducing him to his family. His mother, sister, father, everyone seemed to like him just fine. He was glad that Milagro didn't comment on the convenient date of the month it happened to be.

Dinner went fine, like Jaime had planned for it to go. Bart got along well with his family, and they got along with him. He complemented the food his mother cooked, the household decorations, and even could discuss some soccer scores with his father. It was a good hour of laughing, chatting, and eating. But then, came the after that Jaime was dreading. The fact that Bart wanted to stay. To hang with Jaime. Alone. In his room.

Not that he was complaining, No! It just happened to fluster the boy a little, is all.

Jaime Reyes. Your heart rate is excelling at an uncommon rate. The Impulse is the problem. Suggested tactic, exterminate the cause.

Shut up, Scarab.

They sat in Jaime's room on Jaime's bed, door closed, TV on, PlayStation on live mode, Call of Duty. They had been at this for thirty minutes. Jaime knows because he constantly checking the clock. 8:43 pm. Valentine's day. He keeps repeating this holiday in his mind, over and over, until the word sounds weird to his brain.

He was nervous. So nervous, in fact, that he didn't notice the other boy beside him suddenly appear closer…and closer…until finally, they were almost touching. Bart took a breath, then set down his remote. Jaime glanced over at the boy, surprised to see his face so close to his when a minute ago it was two feet away. The older boy gulped.

"What's wrong, ese?"

Bart inhaled again, then completely swiveled his body to face Jaime. Uncertain, the other boy did the same.

"Are we a couple?" Bart asks bluntly, and Jaime almost jumped out of his skin.

"Que?"

Jaime is shocked. Purely shocked. But excited. Really excited. A couple? Bart thinks that they might be a…couple?

"Well it's just," Bart continues, apparently not noticing the glint of hope on the older teen's eyes. "I thought that by asking to meet your parents and hang out, especially on Valentine's day, that maybe it would make us official, cause-I-thought-that-I-was-pretty-clear-with-what-i-feltandIthoughtthatyoufeltth esamewaybutnowimnotreallysur e—"

Even though Bart was speaking more than the normal human brain could process, Jaime caught every word, and quickly silenced the rambling boy with a forceful kiss, pressing both hands against Bart's cheeks and pulling the teen toward him. At first Bart didn't register what was happening, but after a millisecond he caught on, and quickly joined in.

The kiss was beyond anything Jaime had ever felt. He had kissed a lot of other times. Oh yeah, a lot of other times. But none of them had ever felt so…right. So perfect. But, within a few seconds, the awkward placement of their two bodies got in the way, and they had to break. Jaime was smiling widely, and Bart had a question forming on his red lips.

"Does that mean we are…?"

Jaime laughed, and gathered Bart in a tight embrace, the younger boy wrapping his arms around his neck automatically.

"I didn't know you felt the same way!" Jaime exclaimed, then pulled back to stare into the other's wonderful eyes.

"I thought I was pretty clear." Bart claimed, and the other teen couldn't help but laugh. He was about to say a smart retort when Bart caught their lips together once more and silenced Jaime's thoughts. This time however, the boys were determined to make it last. Jaime quickly hoisted Bart into his lap, the younger boy wrapping his legs around his waist in response. His small fingers found their way into Jaime's groomed hair, and he smiled against Bart's lips at the great feeling. Jaime traced patterns on the younger boy's abdomen, arms, and back, kissing Bart's neck and cheeks in the process.

What felt like only a second, but in reality three minutes, the boys were out of breath, laying on top of Jamie's bed, staring at the ceiling above. Their fingers were gracefully intertwined, and their legs gently pressed together. Jaime smiled.

"Jaime?" Bart said, turning to rest his gaze on his friend—no—boyfriend.

"Yeah?" He returned, staring into Bart's fixed eyes. The boy smiled, then tightly squeezed their hands tighter, refusing to loosen the grip.

"Happy Valentine's Day."