Hello there. This is a super short Spamano oneshot that I wrote for the prompt, write a love-themed piece for Valentine's Day, in my creative writing class. Hope you enjoy it, and please review!
Saint Valentine wasn't originally the patron saint of love. He wasn't really a saint, either, but that's another story.
It's a Roman thing.
Psh, go figure, Romano scoffs mentally. There's a reason he absolutely hates Valentine's Day.
Feli always got so excited, but honestly, they were probably present at almost every canonization, so the idolizing of saints has kind of lost its luster.
But he would never tell that to Toni, because remembering all those saints' days in his honor, something Toni thinks is especially for him, is kind of what he lives for.
And as much as Lovi hates the bastard, he knows that would literally shatter Toni's heart.
Fucking pathetic, romantic bastardo.
No, the reason he hates Valentine's Day in particular isn't completely because of all the mushy, lovey crap (though Feli really needs to just shut the fuck up).
It's because they got it wrong.
He was born in Portugal but he died in Italy, and he was the original patron of love. It's not even what he represents for Lovino's people.
It's his name.
There just had to be a St. Anthony who just had to die in Padua. Italy. Not southern Italy, granted, but still.
People only started worshipping Valentine as the saint of love just recently (well, recently to him) but no matter how much he tried to think otherwise, Anthony would always remain the "patron saint of love" in his mind.
And Toni didn't have a clue.
Granted, Lovino was lucky in that respect and fervently hoped (for once) that Toni stayed that way, but he couldn't help but be just a little pissed. I mean, come on. I know Valentine fucking stole the day, but it's our fucking tradition. Of course we were fucking there. We know what he did, what he preached, about love…
He'd been a child at the time, but he'd known Anthony personally. Children crying in the streets after his death wasn't a legend. He'd had a gift…
Lovino rolls his eyes. A gift of love. Whatever.
He didn't just worship Anthony for love, either.
Things had always been messy with Valentine, who was he, which one of them had the day, why there were so many of them in the first place…but people always knew St. Anthony of Padua was the patron saint of lost things. And (though he'll deny it) it was to Anthony that Lovino prayed to bring his conquistador home.
And as he watches Toni bounce all around the house, making plans for going out and happy as a fucking clam, Lovino thinks that maybe…maybe he doesn't hate Valentine's Day so much. As long as it kept his secret.
. . .
But only just this once.