Forever Valentine

A Josh & Maya Story

By Brown Eyes Parker

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Rated: K (for all audiences)

Thanks to boymeetsgmw for the title and the screencap.

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Valentine's Day. Their first one as an actual married couple. Josh had vetoed a family celebration of his birthday so they could spend the whole night together without any distractions. There had been some protest from both the Hunter and the Matthews families but after promising to celebrating Josh's birthday with them on the 13th, the newlyweds were (blessedly) left alone.

It wasn't going to be a huge celebration. Student loans and their rent ate up a huge chunk of their income but Maya had managed to scrimp enough money from her tips together to purchase two chicken breasts and a bottle of cheap rosé for their dinner. Josh's card would be homemade but he loved her art, so there wasn't going to be a problem there.

Maya hummed "Dream A Little Dream Of Me" as she cut a lemon in half and squeezed it over the chicken before drizzling it with olive oil and a handful of salt. She contemplated garlic and decided to use it since both her and Josh would both be eating the same meal. When the chicken and potatoes were in the oven, she put some music on and went to get ready for her date with her husband.

Her husband. The thought still made her giddy.

She was applying her lipstick when somebody covered her eyes with their hands.

"Guess who!" A voice whispered before she had a chance to react to all the worst case scenarios in her head by screaming.

"Josh?"

"Keep your eyes closed!"

"Josh what are you doing!? You almost scared me half to death!"

"I have a surprise for you! Just keep your eyes closed!"

"But it isn't my birthday! And I don't have anything for you except for a card!"

"And dinner! Which smells amazing by the way!" Josh answered, brushing his fingers across the nape of her neck before pressing a gentle kiss on it. "Okay, you can open your eyes now!"

Maya did. He had gotten her a necklace with a garnet shaped heart and diamond charm. She smiled at him through the mirror. "Oh Josh. . . I-I don't know what to say. I mean. . . thank you! I love it! I love you!"

Josh spun her around and kissed her. "I love you too Maya. I wish tonight could be more than dinner in, it being our first Valentine's Day together as Mr. and Mrs. Matthews."

"There will be plenty of Valentine's Days for going out," Maya promised him. "We're in it for the long game, right?"

"I think it was in the vows," Josh answered, grinning at her.

"Oh, right. Right! I should have remembered that!" Maya teased, smiling back at him. "Come on. I want to dance with you. We can pretend we're on the most expensive of dates. Be creative with me."

"I knew there was a reason I married you, Mrs. Matthews."

"And here I thought it was because we would make beautiful babies one day," Maya joked.

"That too," Josh answered.

Maya took him by the hand and led him out to the living room. She turned up the stereo and one of their songs filled the spaces between them. She curtseyed at him, giggling as she did. "May I have this dance Mr. Matthews?"

"Of course!" Josh answered, pulling her into his arms and waltzing her around the living room. He twirled her out and then in, dipping her when he did. He bent down and kissed her, almost causing them to lose their balance in the process, he caught her just in time. "Whoops!"

Maya laughed as he straightened them up and continued to dance with her like nothing had happened. He picked her up and spun her around. The timer dinged, ending the moment and reminding her to check on their dinner.

Maya stumbled to the stove, a little drunk on love and music and her husband as she put her oven mitts on and pulled out the chicken. She studied it and wrinkled her nose. "I'm not sure it's ready yet."

"Put it back in the oven," Josh said. "I'll order Italian and we can make chicken salad for lunch tomorrow."

Maya sighed and shoved it back in the oven. "It better be cheap Italian."

"I'll just order a pizza," Josh assured her.

"You better throw some canoli in as well. I just remembered I forgot all about dessert! Geez, our first Valentine's Day together is really turning into a disaster. I should have really thought this through better."

Josh laughed a little bit and went over to her, framing her face with his hands. "Hey! Weren't you the one just telling me to make the best of our circumstances? We'll have Valentine's days to have expensive dates and well-made plans. Remember our Valentine's Day last year? You had an allergic reaction to the seafood place I took you to for dinner. I'd call this progress."

"You're right, of course," Maya answered. "We're together. That's all that matters."

"And we're not in the emergency room."

"I didn't know I was allergic to shrimp!" Maya protested. "I'd eaten shellfish for years before that and never had a reaction."

"I know," Josh replied, laughing and going over to her and wrapping his arms around her.

"Josh. . ."

"Yes?"

"I'm kind of getting hungry," Maya confessed.

"I'll go and order dinner," Josh said, kissing her forehead.

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Later that night, they cuddled on the couch and watched old Disney movies and tried not to fall asleep. It was tame, almost highschool like, but Maya wouldn't have had it any other way.

After all, they did have years and years of Valentine's Days to spend together.

The End

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Author's Note:

Short but sweet, I hope! The tone of this story didn't leave room for Josh pulling Maya into their bedroom or a steamy makeout session. I don't even write that kind of stuff anyways! Anyways, I hope you will tell me what you thought.

I will be back next week with Maya and Rules of the Game. I had incredible brain fog this week for so many reasons. Anyhoo! I hope you guys have a fantastic Valentine's Day! I'm sending you chocolate kisses.

Until Next Time!

Love,

Holly, 2/12/2016