February 14th, Valentine's Day. It had been 28 days since Rex had confessed his feelings, 21 days since Weevil had agreed to 'go steady' with him - although not publicly - and this most romantic of holidays also just so happened to be their three week anniversary, so to speak. Rex wasn't good with math, so he wouldn't have been keeping track of all of these dates, but Weevil had made every mental note possible.
On this snowy day, Weevil was walking down the sidewalk, bundled up and hunched over and clutching the gift that had resulted in him not having money for the bus ride over to Rex's place - the reason he was walking down this sidewalk in the first place. His nose was red and numb and his breath created a steam that fogged up his glasses, causing him to repeatedly have to stop and wipe them off. He almost wondered if it was worth it to make the trek all the way out there. If he got frostbite, no one would know. He hadn't told his mom he was leaving - she didn't know about his relationship, how could he tell her? - and his plan had been to surprise Rex. He thought bitterly that this would be a lonely end, just when he was starting a more hopeful chapter in his life...
But the melodrama of Weevil's thoughts wasn't enough to completely dampen his spirits. He looked down at the gift in his hands and smiled, thinking of the look on Rex's face when he gave it to him. It was strange how a person could spend his whole life thinking of no one but himself only to suddenly let one person's happiness - just the thought of one person's happiness, even - propel him forward in the face of the harshness of nature.
Half the importance of this gift came from the fact that Weevil had missed his chance to get Rex anything other than a 'just friends' gift for his birthday, which had been 48 days ago - exactly 20 days before the love confession. Weevil supposed, a bit begrudgingly, that the fact he was getting Rex a gift for Valentine's Day and not White Day made him the 'girl' in this relationship, but given his younger age, shorter stature, and greater tendency towards shyness than Rex, it seemed only natural.
He looked up at the street sign - Rook Street, he was a little over halfway there. He couldn't feel any of his appendages and his throat was filled with cold air that stung, but he had to press on. He'd come too far to go back home and not far enough that he could slow down. He'd only been to Rex's house once before. It was out of the way and surrounded by trees, near the hills and right on a small lake outside of Domino City. He was so far out of the way, in fact, that when he was in town visiting or for tournaments he wouldn't go home - he'd either crash at Weevil's house or find his own 'accommodations.'
Weevil buried his nose in his scarf as a cold wind and flurry of snow whipped past. He sneezed and rubbed his eyes, rubbing his gloved hands against his cheeks so that he didn't lose all the feeling in his face. It was just a bit farther now, this was no time to start slowing down. The streets in this part of town started curving and sloping, making much of the trek uphill and more difficult. His legs were starting to feel very sore and very heavy and he was running out of breath. Street sign after street sign let him know he was getting closer. The wind and snow seemed to let up for a few minutes, enough to give him a moment's relief.
He finally started up the drive, where the concrete turned into a dirt road. The dirt was frozen over instead of being muddy, though, so the change in terrain was not that noticeable as far as his feet were concerned. He stopped in his tracks for a moment, staring straight ahead. At least four cars lined the driveway, and the closer he got the more sounds he could hear coming from the now-visible house. Since when were there ever this many visitors at Rex's house? And why today of all days?
He looked down at the gift in his hands. He was far too embarrassed to go knock on the door like this, if there was a party going on there was no telling who might answer the door. And if his own situation was any indication, Rex wouldn't have told any of his family about the two of them being together, either.
Weevil sighed, hesitantly bouncing from foot to foot as he tried to decide whether to knock or not. He rubbed his arms, shivering, but eventually chickened out. He turned and walked away from the house, repeatedly looking over his shoulder toward the window. Once or twice he thought he saw a familiar face, but he couldn't have been sure.
At this point he was far too out of breath and his legs were far too sore to just head home. There was a tree on a bit of an incline overlooking the lake, about fifty yards from the house, so he made his way over to it and planted himself at it's base, hugging his present and his knees to his chest and letting out a very chattering and drawn-out sigh. If he'd actually been a girl he probably would have started crying then, but he wasn't about to let himself show that kind of emotion.
After a few minutes that seemed like hours, the door of the house opened. Weevil shot it a sidelong glance without much concern, assuming it was a guest leaving and hoping it was a sign that the party was winding down. His glasses were fogged up and he hadn't bothered to wipe them, so he couldn't make out much, but the figure who came out of the house was coming toward him. Was he going to get yelled at for hanging around here? He flinched in anticipation until the figure drew near enough that he could make out exactly who it was.
Rex looked him over a bit questioningly, saying nothing as he took a seat next to him and put an arm around his shoulder. Weevil looked up at him and smiled, offering him the present that had been cradled in his arms. "Uh... H-Happy Valentine's Day." he mumbled.
"What are you doing out here?" Rex took the gift, but kept his attention focused on the younger boy, his voice filled with concern.
"I-I wanted to surprise you and give you this, so I came over, but... are you having a party or something? It's so crowded..." Weevil looked toward the house with a frown, then back at Rex.
"Yeah... my aunt's birthday. Just so happens to also be Valentine's Day, I guess... Uh... I-I didn't get you anything, sorry." He rubbed the back of his head a bit guiltily, rubbing Weevil's shoulder with his hand.
"You'll just have to get me a present for White Day, then." Weevil smiled and Rex ruffled his hair.
"Sure, if I remember..." He laughed nervously, and in his mind Weevil knew he would probably end up forgetting.
"Anyway... you should open it." Weevil smiled at Rex eagerly, waiting for his payoff.
"Alright... here goes..." Rex smiled. He started slowly opening the present, intending to piss Weevil off, but his own impatience proved too much and he ended up tearing into it instead. He let out a gasp once he'd opened it, and his gaping jaw slowly formed into one of the biggest grins Weevil had ever seen. "You're the best!" Rex cheered, tackling the other boy to the ground and showering him with kisses.
"I know..." Weevil grinned, "I know." He let the other boy share his affection and thought happily to himself that in spite of everything that had gotten him down, in spite of all the aching he was feeling from this cold, this was the best Valentine's Day ever. As the two boys rolled around playfully on the cold ground, a light snow started to fall. Weevil's gift to Rex lay on the ground next to them - a heart-shaped box of chocolates, a plush doll of a Two-Headed King Rex with a red bow around its neck, and a simple hand-made valentine that had no message except for the words: "Love, your bug boy."