This is just a quick oneshot I thought about making. I hope you liked it, since I'm not the best at these things. Review if you liked it, and tell me if I should make it into a multichapter. Enjoy! :)
Topher's POV
It came every year, Valentine's Day. Most people would call me crazy, but this is the one day of the year I want to go missing. Why? Well, my best friend and crush, Sammy, has been on my mind for weeks. I know I'm in love with her. But she has me in the friendzone, she has for a while. For some reason, she doesn't want to start a relationship. Another reason to hate today is because even though I love Sammy, girls surround me every year, trying to find out my number and if I like them. I say no each year, but of course they come back again.
The sad part of all of this is that Sammy needs hope and someone to turn to. I hear from her all the time about how her twin sister Amy abuses her and will do anything to her. It makes her feel useless, she tells me. It makes me want to cry. Sammy wouldn't hurt a fly, even if her life was on the line for it. She's an angel, on Earth.
I know I'm crazy. Everyone prefers her bossy, rude, abusive sister, Amy instead of her. Sammy's heart feels broken, she feels like nobody sees what she goes through. She tells me, "Topher, sometimes I feel like death is the only way out of this."
It breaks me inside. Sammy is the most amazing girl I've ever met. She has beautiful blue-green eyes, the prettiest smile, and the kindest, most beautiful personality and heart of any girl at school. She's one in a million.
I really need to tell her, I know. My father insists that love is useless, he thinks it's worthless and makes everyone crazy. "Topher," he'd tell me as I sat near him as a little kid. "Your daddy never fell in love. Love drags you down, makes you forget who you really are. Promise Daddy you'll never fall in love."
"I promise, Daddy." That's what I'd always answer.
But now, things are different. I've met Sammy, and she's the one girl I want to be with. The only person on my mind.
I was looking for her as soon as I walked into the school. Being one of the popular kids, girls and boys alike noticed me and either waved, fist-pumped, or yelled out, "Hey, Topher!"
I nodded back, half listening and half looking for Sammy. Earlier this morning, I'd come up with a plan to make her my valentine. I'll just tell her there's someone that wants to meet her, and that they'd be at the bike rack after school waiting for her. She rides her bike to and from school, so she'd have to be there anyway.
My thoughts were cut off by a girl in front of me. She had wide sky-blue eyes, blond hair, and was known as the school's 'Dumb Blonde,' Lindsay.
"Hi, Torren!" She smiled and waved, obviously trying to show off a new skirt or something she was wearing. "How was you nigh- I mean, morning?"
Lindsay is obviously trying to flirt with me. It's Valentine's Day, of course she is!
"Hi, uh, Lindsay. Can you please move over?" I tried to get past her, but Lindsay knew that I did that and made it impossible to make it by her.
"Silly, sure!" Lindsay may be blonde, and have a pretty face, but she was also stupid. "Bye, Terry!"
"Bye." I walked past her, to my locker. It was right across the hall from Sammy's, and she was getting her things out of it when I showed up. My head was suddenly clear of what to tell her, although I had gone over it with myself a thousand times. Then, it hit me. Sammy loved when I surprised her. I went behind her, covering her eyes. "Guess who it is, Sammy?"
Sammy's POV
"Guess who it is, Sammy?" I heard Topher's voice before I saw him. He had his hands over my eyes, anyway.
"I know it's you. Hi, Topher." I tried to sound as normal as possible. Amy had beaten me this morning, about how I'd better not get in the way of her and boys and how I was dead if I did. I still had a bruise on my chest from where she'd kicked me.
"How was your morning, Sammy?"
"You know, the usual." I kept my back to Topher. "You?"
"Look, Sammy. We've known each other for months, maybe a year. I can tell when something's up. So what is it?"
"Oh, uh, Amy did something?"
Topher took his hands off my eyes. "Come with me." He grabbed my hand, pulling me down the hall.
"Why?"
"Amy did something? That means you're hurt somehow. I'll take you to the nurse."
I was grateful he was helping. He was the only person who knew about Amy's abuse towards me. I let him pull me, down hallway after hallway. Luckily for me, on Valentine's Day, Amy was always out all over the school flirting with boys. She did it every year.
The nurse's office was too familiar to me now. It was so familiar, I could walk through it with my eyes closed and not touch a single thing. I knew the exact shade of the walls (cream/beige), the color of the scales (silver), and other things.
"Sammy Morris. What brought you here again?" The nurse, Blair, looked up from her clipboard. She had jet black hair, red lipstick, a pale face, and was a natural beauty to all the male teachers here. Apparently, Blair had dated every one of them in the first year she'd worked there.
"She kind of got hurt this morning." Topher answered for me, and I could already feel tears in my eyes.
"Oh, don't worry! Let us help."
Blair was the only adult at the school who cared for me. Having no kids (we'd had lots of time to talk, after all the times I was here), she treated me like her own daughter.
"Thanks."
Topher stood behind me now. "Should I go?"
Blair nodded. "You don't want to be late."
I watched him leave. Right when he did, Blair looked at me. "You have a nice boyfriend."
"We're not dating."
"I can see it in the way he looks at you, I could tell with all the teahers I dated here. He looks at you like you're the only girl in the world that matters to him."
"Really? But we're just friends."
"Just friends. Look, it's Valentine's Day! I'm sure he'll try to ask you out or something."
Topher's POV
I really didn't go to class. Sammy had said to me before that Blair was the only adult here she could trust. I was worried, though. What she'd said was true. I cared about her like I never did about anyone ever. She'd been right.
How would I tell her about the person at the bike racks now? What if she was suspicious? I wanted it to be a surprise. This was the day I'd tell her everything.
"What do I do? Sammy may never know-"
"Never know what, Topher?" Sammy was waiting for an answer, in the doorway of the nurse's office.
"Uh..." I stuttered for an answer. "That we have a math quiz today?"
I saw the suspicion on her face. She probably didn't believe me. "Okay, if you say so."
We walked side by side. Luckily, there were no girls around. They typically came by my table at lunch. "So, what did the nurse say about your bruise?"
"Oh, she said it'll be fine." Sammy looked down, then at last grabbed my hand and faced me. "Topher?"
"Yeah?" I could feel her eyes on me. I was starting to get nervous, and looked down at her hoping she didn't see it.
"I can trust you right?" Both of her hands were holding mine now.
"Of course."
Sammy reached out and quickly hugged me. It felt so right to feel her there, although I've hugged her plenty of times when she told me her Amy stories. This was special.
"Thanks. I'm so happy I can talk to you. I'd really miss you if you left me."
I felt myself hug her back, and for a few seconds we stayed in that position frozen solid. "Me too, Sammy," I said finally, after a long pause.
"Sammy?" Sammy looked up at me.
"What is it, Topher?"
"Can you meet me at the bike racks after school? I need to talk to you."
There, I'd asked her. Now, all she had to do was say yes and show up.
"If you want me to."
Sammy's POV
I didn't know why I hugged Topher so randomly. Maybe it was because he'd waited for me, or that he'd stayed by my side all this time. Either way, I would meet him near the bike racks after school. I had something to say to him.
The day was almost a blur, a random change of events on the way to last class. I couldn't get my mind off Topher. He was so sweet, kind, trusting, welcoming, and everything I loved in a friend. But I wanted to be more than good friends. It was Vanentine's Day, like Blair had said. Maybe he'd feel the same way I did.
I kind of lost hope at lunch. Like always, Topher sat next to me. But it wasn't the same with the crowd of girls at the table trying to flirt with Topher while I sat there listening. A couple of them even gave him their phone numbers. That made me wonder- if I were one of those girls, would Topher call or text me? Or would be throw away the number?
He noticed my mood, and turned to me when the girls left. "You okay, Sammy?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." I picked at my old PB&J sandwich Amy had 'kindly' given me to eat. You could barely see it was a sandwich. Meanwhile, Amy got to enjoy a fresh ham sandwich and talk with her friends, and her valentines (there were a lot of them, Amy's popular). It was unfair.
"Here." Topher pushed his hot dog from the lunch line in front of me. "You can have it."
"I can't just take your food!" I pushed it back towards him. "I don't want to force you not to eat. Really, I'd feel terrible if you gave it to me."
"I insist. I can buy another."
"Thanks, I guess." I took the hot dog, carefully biting into it. It tasted like paradise. "Honestly, you have no idea how much this means to me."
"Anything for you."
No one's POV
After School
Sammy walked to the bike racks, spotting her red sport bike given to her by her aunt before she passed away. Aunt Claire had treated Sammy like she never treated anybody ever. She gave Sammy all the chances in the world to fix mistakes, and rewarded her with real food and drinks that Amy hid from her. Sammy sercetly wished Aunt Claire was her mother.
"Hi, Topher." Sammy gripped her bike handles. "What did you want to see me for?"
"I need to ask you something, since it's Valentine's Day. Sammy, I know we're friends..."
Sammy looked at Topher, confused. "Yeah, I know too."
"Well... I've been through times where I realized that I nedd someone to confide in. You were always there for me. For weeks now, I've hid feelings for you. I was too scared you'd reject me..."
Sammy only smiled. "Actually, it's the same with me-" Sammy cut herself off, realizing what she'd just said.
"Really?" Nothing could compare to the wide, happy smile on Topher's face. This was what he wanetd her to say, and it was happening.
"Sammy. Will you be my Valentine?" Topher held out a box to Sammy.
"Yes! Yes, I will!" Sammy happliy hugged Topher, then took the box from his hands. In it was a silver charm bracelet, with a tiny heart dangling from it. "Oh, it's beautiful!"
Topher hugged Sammy back, perfectly aware that people were watching. Let them think he was crazy. He loved Sammy, and Sammy loved him.
This was the perfect Valentine's Day.