Every February you'll be my Valentine
AN: Took some liberties with the time line, so just go with it!
Tina Cohen- Chang hated Valentine 's Day with a passion. Mostly because she saw it as another excuse for stores to make money, and mostly because the hated the color pink. But to be honest it was also very depressing to see all the happy couples going around, and she's off all alone by herself.
So she was surprised when a brightly colored paper sticking in the vent of her locker. She stared for a moment before flying in a blind panic at the thought anyone would pay attention to her. Without thinking she ripped it, tearing it shreds as she made her way to the trash can. As she dumped the red confetti her lab partner, Artie Abrams, rolled by.
He stared at her as she brushed the red paper off her hands, the unasked question on his face.
"I hate Vvvvalentine's Ddday." She stuttered in answer before she stormed off, missing the crestfallen expression on his face.
"You do know technically," Tina said as the credits rolled, "they only changed it so that Harry and Sally got together in the end for a Hollywood happy ending."
Artie made a face, "You really don't like Valentine's day do you?"
Tina returned his question with a disdainful look, before she sunk further on the couch, her bright stripped sock resting on the coffee table. Her righteous rage at the holiday made it easier to speak in fully sentences around him, something she hesitated at times given they were still on ice from stuttergate. She wasn't even sure if it was a good idea to hang out on the distasteful holiday given they were in the weird place between friends and more than friends, and it was clear Artie was much more of a romantic than she ever was. "It's a commercial holiday," she said, "to sell candy, flowers, and overpriced cards. Everyday should be Valentine day if you're in love with someone, not because some calendar tells you so."
She regretted the words the moment they came out her mouth, because he abruptly looked away, as the elephant in the room did a jig.
"Let's," she jumped up to her feet, "let's watched a horror movie or some kind action movie—"
She went around to cabinet of movies only to see a bag of candy and valentine cards stacked inside.
Tina turned looking pointedly at him ready to rage about the holiday again, but he shrugged. "Not mine, my sister decided to have a vendetta against the holiday as well. My mom pissed since she got some good candy too."
Tina eyed the candy bags, noticing her favorite wrapped in the pink and red wrappers. Her fingers twitched as she reached out to it, only to pull back at the last second.
"I was," Artie said slowly amused at her dilemma, "going to suggest we share but that requires you being my Valentine."
"Fine," Tina said looking away from the chocolate smiling as shock crossed his face, "and you'll be my funny Valentine." She grabbed the bag of chocolate plus a new movie, "let's watch Space Odyssey that's like an anti-Valentine right?"
"Happy Valentine's Day!"
Mike presented her box of chocolate as he came up to her kissing her on the check.
"It's only a few days until Valentine's." She replied as she turned the box over, glad to see it was normal chocolate. She still had some leftover candy from Lunar New Year she wasn't quite sure what to do with, but was too polite to say a word. "It can wait."
"It's the first part of three," He promised kissing her again before he ran off to class. "Part two starts just before rehearsal, make sure you find Brittany."
Despite her worries part three might be a Valentine dinner with his mom, she smiled again at the prospect of the holiday. She still disliked the holiday, but the fact Mike was so into it, made her extremely happy. Valentine's day stopped looking so bad when you had a boyfriend to spend it when. Sure it may be holiday to sell cards, give florist a boost in sales, and sell candy, but it was day of love, what could be so bad about it?
She smiled down at the candy for a bit before she slowly began to unwrap it.
"What happened to Valentine day being the spawn on the devil?"
"I changed my mind," Tina said to Artie though he looked amused. "People are allowed to do that."
"It's just that it's Tina Cohen-Chang, the destroyer of paper hearts, and demolisher of candies and heart balloons, smiling on Valentine's day." He rested his hands on the armrest. "If I known…."
"Known what?"
"I sprung for something better than a singing Valentine."
Tina's smile faded a bit. They were friends of sort, and though it was easier to be friends since he was dating Brittany now, there was still that weirdness between them they really didn't want to cross. They said exes couldn't be friends, but they were doing it and worked so well so far, as long as he didn't do anything stupid.
"You don't have to do that, I already a Valentine this year."
He grinned, "I know."
He rolled and the mystery of the singing Valentine wasn't solved until he, along with Mike, came dancing down the hallway serenading her and Brittany with Michael Jackson.
It was fun and a few times she caught herself thinking it was her boys serenading her, her current boyfriend and the ex who, for the better or for worse, just couldn't stay out of her life. The feeling of being overwhelmed with love rose up inside of her as she went to give her thanks to her boyfriends.
After the performance she had top it with something. Something personal, something romantic, something so utterly unlike herself. She had to find the perfect most romantic song she could think of, and as she whipped through her mp3 player, an old jazz standard popped up and she knew at once she had the song.
It wasn't until she stood in front of the group singing the song, she realized why the song resonated with her so strongly. It hit her like a ton of bricks, even though it should have been obvious from the start. Mike was great, thoughtful, affectionate, and million other things as he looked up at her proudly from his seat. But he wasn't her Valentine. Her Valentine, her funny Valentine was sitting a few seats away watching her sing with a look he often wore when they were still together and a look that hadn't changed at all.
A feeling weld up inside as she felt torn in two directions, guilt stricken and feeling so overwhelmed with love that it there was only those feelings could go, outwards.
Tina Cohen-Chang hated Valentine's Day with a passion even as her current boyfriend pestered her to go out for coffee.
"It'll be just like in Harry Potter" she muttered half asleep pounding her pillow nearly dropping the phone," cupid's floating around dropping stuff everywhere- it's not funny, Artie, stop laughing!"
"It's not like I'm going to propose or anything like that, it's just coffee … and Kurt and Mercedes wants to spy on whathisface's date."
"And you're up for this?"
"It'll be fun. And there will be free chocolate."
Tina found herself smiling, he knew there was no way she'd say no now.
"Fine, I suppose you're going to insist on being my Valentine?"
"Every February, I will."
"I think I can live with that."