under the rain; au
Besides the obvious, Hope felt that he was lucky in many ways. Not only was he with Lightning, the most gorgeous woman in the world, but she also didn't expect grand, romantic gestures that a lot of other females seemed to demand. And unlike others that were just being coy and simply saying they didn't want anything (but really, totally did), Hope knew that Lightning meant it.
This was especially true for Valentine's Day, the most romantic day of the year. Lightning had told him multiple times in the no-nonsense tone he'd grown to know and love that she didn't want or need anything. No chocolates, no flowers, no jewelry, no chalky-tasting candy hearts with funny sayings on them. Period.
On one hand, Hope was glad that he didn't have to come up with anything grand and stress himself out year after year trying to top it. On the other, the holiday existed for a reason, and he felt like he needed to do something for her. Maybe not something over the top, but just something that was just a little more extra special than normal.
He thought he'd come up with the perfect thing - a walk in the park that they'd visited during one of their first dates. Common enough to not be a super amazing gesture, but different enough for celebrating purposes.
Yes, it was perfect.
…Until the downpour started.
They were lucky in the fact that they'd been near a bench with an awning over it to shield them from the worst of it…which, really, was pretty bad. It'd started out as a drizzle, but now sheets of rain were steadily pouring down.
Hope had been sitting next to Lightning for quite awhile as they waited it out, not saying anything for fear of sounding dumb, but of course, Lightning said it all when she actually spoke.
"…You and your ideas."
She wasn't mad, that much was obvious. More like exasperated, with a tinge of this is why you listen to me, because I'm always right.
"I'm sorry," Hope replied sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. Impulsively, he reached for her hand, relaxing slightly when she twined their fingers together. "I just thought, you know, it'd be a nice way to celebrate."
"I keep telling you that we don't need to." She sighed a little, scooting over a bit closer and looking at him. "We don't need one day in particular to have us say how we feel about each other." With an added little smile that surprised him, she continued, "…After all, you do that every day."
For the millionth time, Hope wondered how the hell he'd gotten so lucky. "True." He leaned in and kissed her, smiling against her lips when she returned it ardently. "Very true."
"If you ever insist on doing something more celebratory, I say we should keep it between us." She glanced around at the rain. "Not that there's anyone here, I suppose."
"Is that a hint?" He chuckled when she flicked him in the forehead, "Okay, okay. Any holiday celebrating is kept minimal to the two of us." He tilted his head and met her lips again, this kiss much deeper, taking care to linger over her lips in that way that always made her sigh in contentment.
"Got it."