For the first time in years, Nancy was alone on Valentine's Day.
The week had started out great. Nancy and Ned had made plans for the weekend. On Saturday, they were going to spend the night at Nancy's house and have a quiet evening at home, then in the morning, brunch at Pancake City. She remembered her excitement as they planned their romantic dinner in, away from the hustle and bustle of late night flights, foreign countries, and airplane food. Not to mention the ghosts, ghouls, curses, and criminals she was sure to uncover. As much as she loved cases, she had been thrilled by the idea of finally, finally having a break. But then, Mrs. O'Reilly called and said that the ghosts had come back to her basement. And Nancy was in a predicament.
"But Mrs. O'Reilly," Nancy replied, "you never had ghosts in your basement. Remember? It was just the neighbor's cat." "Oh, but dearie, you must help me!" The older woman cried, seemingly ignoring the teenager's reassuring words. "I don't know what I'll- oh no! It's starting again! Please hurry, dear!"
With that, Mrs. O'Reilly hung up and Nancy was stuck rescheduling her date... Again.
"Sooooo... Ned. You're pretty excited about my break from cases, aren't you?" the titian-haired girl asked carefully.
"Yes," Ned replied flatly. "What are you getting at?" he said as he eyed her cautiously.
"Don't sound so suspicious!" she said, hiding how hurt she was at his cold response. She paced closer to him and took his hand, but couldn't bring herself to make eye contact. "Mrs. O'Reilly called, and-"
"No!" Ned interrupted. Through gritted teeth, he growled, "no, Nancy. Not. Again." Shocked by her boyfriend's sudden change in demeanor, Nancy regained herself before snapping at him.
"Ned! You promised when I was in Germany, you would try to understand. I can't just turn Mrs. O'Reilly away!"
"Can and will," he shot back.
"Or what?" she asked, her eyes now blazing.
"Or you find yourself a new boyfriend," he said in an eerily calm voice. Nancy gasped. Her heart sank as the weight of his words sank in.
"Oh, come on, Ned. Y-you don't mean it," she stuttered as she tried to hide the uncertainty in her voice.
"Yes, Nancy, I do. I can't take this anymore! I don't think this relationship is working out. If you walk out that door, so do I."
"Don't make me choose, Ned! You and I both know that I can't leave Mrs. O'Reilly hanging," she said, horrified at the prospect of choosing between her love and her livelihood.
"Then go." He sighed and turned away. "Your heart belongs to something else."
"Come on, Ned. You're just-just being stupid! We love each other!" She grabbed his hand and squeezed it, but he did not return the gesture. Instead, he stood up and looked her in the eye.
"I'm sorry, Nancy. I wish you the best, I really do." He gave her hand a quick kiss and was gone. As soon as he had left, Nancy burst into tears.
An hour later, she cleaned herself up and headed over to Mrs. O'Reilly's house. Just as she had suspected, the problem was not spiritual but rather, feline, and soon Nancy found herself at home once again, crying face down on her bed. She was crying so hard, in fact, that she didn't notice the figure entering the room.
"Nancy?" a familiar voice called.
"Huh?" She sat up, startled.
"Oh, sorry," the dark haired boy replied quickly, "I didn't mean to surprise you. Are you okay?"
"Uh, yeah. Sorry. Are you on a case?" She asked groggily, wiping her face. The male detective handed her a box of tissues before answering.
"Um, actually," he looked down and shuffled his feet, "I came to make sure you were alright." He lifted his gaze to her eyes. "I hate to see you like this, you know," he paused, "hurt. So I just,-hmm. I just want to keep an eye on you for a while. And if you need anything, I'm always there for you," he said gently.
"You always have been," she whispered.
"Have you eaten anything?" he asked in a more serious tone.
"Not since this morning."
"Okay, Nance, you have to eat." He looked her in the eye. "Stay here. I'll be back soon, alright?"
"Alright," she said. "And, Frank?"
"Yes?" He stopped and turned from his position near the door.
"Would you-" Nancy thought for a moment, trying to find the right words. "Would you like to stay for dinner?" she finally asked. "Dad is away on business, and it's Valentine's Day, and I just don't want to be alone," she said in one breath. Frank seemed surprised for a moment, then walked back over to Nancy and put his hand gently on her shoulder.
"Of course I'll stay with you. I would never leave you."
As Nancy looked into his eyes, she knew that Frank was telling the truth. He would never, ever leave her.