Well, happy Valentine's Day... truth be told, I don't like this holiday at all. I know it's selfish, but I feel a bit left out this time of year.

But enough of all that. I thought, despite my disliking of the holiday, I would spin a mushy tale for those out there who enjoy my writing. This story, however, has a deeper meaning to it. I explained at the bottom the message I wanted to convey with this short piece, but I really hope everyone takes a little something from this story.

WARNING: This story features Morro and Zee, a pairing from my War for Creation Chronicles series (Reformation, Revelation, The Green Ninja's World, THE GUARDIANS Part One: The Eight), so if you haven't read those, be wary of spoilers/confusion from this point forward. This story takes place during the series and includes characters and settings from the series.

Please enjoy what I hope will be a heartwarming story!

Romance One-shot.

2. Morro and Zee, in... "Always."

Between The Green Ninja's World and THE GUARDIANS Part One: The Eight.

"You want me to what?"

Fear was evident in Morro's tone as he spoke with Zee, his girlfriend.

"Come on, Morro," Zee replied, growing impatient. "You knew this was coming eventually. It's not really a big deal, they already know you're cursed into a ghostly form and they respect you for overcoming that and being so good to me."

"Well, you know, I just thought being cursed would kind of, you know, exempt me from those kinds of things," Morro fake-laughed.

Zee was frustrated. I wish he could just let himself admit to being afraid or disturbed... he only acts like this when he's avoiding his past...

"Morro," she said, taking his hands into her own, sounding deceptively calm. "This is deeper than just being nervous... isn't it?"

Morro's eyes fell to the floor of the living room, in which the wind masters were alone.

"Look," he said, no vestige of joking in his system. "... it's not that I don't want to meet your mother and sister; I'm sure they're wonderful people. It's just..."

He trailed off, and Zee squeezed his hands to show that she supported him.

Finally, Morro sighed and finished his explanation.

"I don't do well in family situations. I mean, you guys are all my family and I love you all. But I don't do well in blood family situations... you know, since mine either abandoned me at birth or are dead, I don't really want to know which it is."

"Morro..." Zee started, careful to choose words that would soothe Morro's wounds rather than irritate them.

Morro rarely talked about his past, but he almost never spoke of his family. He didn't know if he despised them or missed them, but he did know that thinking about them caused him near-crippling pain.

"I'm sorry, Morro... I should've been more sensitive. If you want to wait a bit longer, that's fine."

"No..." he sighed. "You're right, it is something that has to happen. I need to meet your family. I was just caught off-guard by the prospect and I'm sorry for my reaction. I can do this... as long as you're beside me."

Zee hugged Morro tightly and whispered, "I'll always be beside you."

Morro knew deep down that he had to conquer his fear of interacting in situations involving a blood family. He was able to survive and thrive in the company of James's large family, but James was the Green Ninja and the other ninja were all included in the family's activities.

It made Morro wonder if he could consider James's many relatives to be his extended family. Did the other ninja think of them this way? Should he?

Morro was snapped out of his thoughts when he felt Zee stop hugging him.

"You okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm good. Just thinking... you know, James's family really took us in when we came into this world, before you and I met."

I know, that was nice of them."

"It makes me wonder," Morro hesitated. "Would it be, I guess appropriate, to consider them like family to us because of the way they've treated us?"

"Well," Zee smiled. "That's something only you can answer. Maybe you should think on that for a while."

"I think I will... thank you, Zee. You always know just what to say."

Zee simply nodded and smiled up into Morro's eyes.

Both Zee and Morro were pleased that their relationship was at the point that they were able to give much more meaningful conversation to each other, no longer taxed with feeling obligated to say 'I love you' every quarter hour.

"When do you want to do it?" Morro asked.

"Well," Zee contemplated. "We could actually do it today. My mom is off work today and none of us have any plans. Today might be as good a time as any; we can leave right now, but only if you're ready."

"I'm ready," Morro said with new confidence, knowing that he would get through the experience as long as Zee was by his side.

"Great!" Zee beamed. "Let's go!"

Zee held out her arm, onto which Morro held firmly, and teleported to her house.

They stood in front of the door, Zee squeezing Morro's hand gently so that he knew, without a doubt, she would always be there beside him to support him.

Always.

I decided I would leave this open-ended for the reader to imagine how the meeting went. I could possibly come back to this at a later time, but it's unlikely that I will. I fear that my stories tend to over-explain things, so this is a nice contrast to that.

I hope you enjoyed this story, and I even think we can take something from it. Those that truly love you will always be there beside you to support you through adversity. Often, conquering our trials requires us to overcome fears stemming from past trauma. It is absolutely essential to surround yourself with people who love and support you, in the good times and the bad. I think Morro is a good example that anyone can achieve change and overcome obstacles with the essential support of loved ones.

Sorry for the long message, but I feel strong about this topic and I was just wanting to use a fluffy story to get this important life point across. From personal experience, lean on your loved ones. They care about you and want to support you.

So, happy Valentine's Day! I know I'm posting at the tail end of the day, but I hope you all had a lovely day with you loved ones. I don't personally like this holiday, but I do hope that everyone else has enjoyed it!

I will see y'all next time; thank you for reading. Leave a review!

God Bless.