V
"Valentine's Day?" Glitch frowned and scratched his head. "Don't think I've ever heard of that…"
DG giggled and offered an explanation. "Valentine's Day is a holiday where you get to show people how much you care about them."
"Is it the same as that other holiday with the fat man in the red suit?"
The young woman grinned and shook her head. "No, it's not the same as Christmas, but close. Valentine's Day is dedicated specifically to love and friendship. You give valentines like cards or flowers to all of your friends and loved ones as a token of your love."
"Oh, well in that case…" Glitch grinned and blushed a little. "Will you be my valentine, DG?"
DG smiled and hugged him. "Oh Glitch, of course I will. But I think you need to ask someone else first." She winked at him and nodded a little. "I think Cain needs to learn a little about Valentine's Day as well."
Catching the hint on the first try, Glitch grinned brightly and pecked the younger woman on the cheek. "Thanks princess!" He exclaimed before running down the hall in search of the Tin Man.
Glitch made a quick stop by the palace gardens and picked a rose for the Queen, Azkadellia, and DG and tucked them off in one corner of the garden so no one would find them. He then ran back up to his room and pulled out a few pieces of paper, making cards for Ahamo, Raw and Kalm. The cards had the words "valentine's day" written across the front as well as a smiley face that looked like the artist had forgotten what he was doing halfway through the drawing and not much else. Happy with the completion of that phase of the project, Glitch folded up the cards and tucked them in his pocket. Now, what to do for Cain?
Glitch quite literally got lost in thought for a few minutes before he stood abruptly, an idea popping into his head. Walking back over to his desk, he rummaged around through the various stacks and piles of papers he'd managed to collect over the past few months and found what he was looking for. He grinned happily and tucked the paper inside his pocket along with the cards. Now for something to put it in…
The brunette skipped out of his room and down the hall, almost colliding head on with Cain who was walking down the other hall with a large package that smelled strangely like flowers in his arms.
"Cain!" Glitch exclaimed excitedly. "I'm so glad I found you! I wanted to ask-"
"Not now sweetheart." Cain stopped him. "I need to drop this off right now. Ask me a little later, okay?" Without another word, he disappeared down the other hall, leaving Glitch behind him.
Glitch shrugged a little and continued on his way. He slipped into one of the metal shops on the lower floors and set to work his new project. It was slow and time consuming but it was turning out exactly the way he wanted it to. A few hours later, metal piece in hand, Glitch left the shop and walked back up to his room to complete his gift to Cain.
Speaking of, the Tin Man rounded another corner up ahead and Glitch paused. "Cain!" He called, hoping the other man would turn around. Instead, much to his dismay, Cain kept his back to him and kept walking.
"Not now, Glitch!" He called over his shoulder, disappearing once again into the other hallway.
More than a little put out now, Glitch sighed and continued back to his room, slipping inside and setting his metal work on the table. He pulled out the piece of paper and arranged it into the metal, carefully fastening it inside and looking at it closely. He smiled in spite of himself and brushed his fingers over the metal, hugging it close to his chest.
A low rumble of thunder echoed through the halls followed by the tinkering of rain and he looked out the window into the gardens below. Hmm…there was something he needed to get from the garden…something important…
Glitch gasped as he remembered he'd left the Queen's and princesses' flowers in the garden and they were now getting rained on. Jumping up, he ran back out into the hall and down the stairs towards the garden. He rounded a corner just in time to run face first into Cain, sending them both toppling to the ground.
"Ahh! Cain, I'm sorry!" Glitch cried as he ran to help the Tin Man up. "I was in a rush because I was trying to get the flowers out of the garden for Valentine's Day and I-"
Cain sighed irritably and waved his hand. "Glitch, I don't have time for this! I have something I need to do."
Glitch blinked, slightly taken aback by the way the blond was acting. "But Cain…its Valentine's Day…"
Instead of an answer, the Tin Man simply shook his head and continued up the stairs, not looking back to the deflated brunette behind him.
Numbly, Glitch started back down the stairs, his excitement for the holiday gone. He trudged outside into the rain and weaved his way into the garden, locating the roses and picking them up. He gazed at the vibrant petals, a sense of loneliness filling him. Maybe Cain didn't want to be his valentine…
Glitch slumped onto one of the benches in the garden and sighed, closing his eyes for a minute and letting the rain soak him. If this was what Valentine's Day was all about then he was perfectly content with forgetting it along with the hundreds of other things he usually did.
"What are you doing out here in the rain?" A voice called from one corner of the garden. Glitch looked up to see Cain approaching with an extra coat and a lantern.
"Go away…" Glitch mumbled, hiding the roses from view. "I was trying to do something nice for everyone for Valentine's Day but you don't care about that so just leave me alone…"
Cain quirked an eyebrow. "Whoever said I didn't care about it?" He walked over and gently pulled Glitch to his feet, wrapping the extra coat around his thin shoulders. "Come on, headcase. Let's go back inside."
Figuring resistance was less than futile, Glitch allowed the taller man to lead him back into the palace and up the stairs toward Cain's room. "What are we doing here?" He asked quietly, glancing over his shoulder. "My room is down the hall."
"I'm aware of that." Cain pushed the door open and motioned for Glitch to go inside. The room was warm and inviting, candles glowing in the dim light. Rose petals had been scattered across the floor and bottle of wine was sitting on the table.
Glitch gasped and covered his mouth with his hands. "What the…how did you…when did...?"
Cain laughed and kissed him to make him stop babbling. "Earlier today when you kept running into me, I was trying to get this set up for you. DG gave me the idea." He winked and grinned as Glitch gazed around the room in shock.
"I thought…you didn't care about Valentine's Day…" He whispered, tears prickling his eyes.
"Well, I don't. Not really. But I care about you, and that's all that matters." He pulled the smaller man into his arms and kissed him deeply, holding him tight. Pulling away slowly, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small heart-shaped charm on a silver chain. "This is for you."
Glitch took the necklace and gazed at the charm. The words "key to my heart" were engraved in the back and he felt a new wave of tears flood his eyes. He smiled happily and reached into his pocket, pulling out what he'd spent all afternoon working on.
It was a picture frame, cast in silver with small, intricate designs carved into it. A picture of he and Cain at DG's welcome home ball (the princesses had somehow managed to snap a picture while they were outside talking)(1) was placed in the center, the words "I think about you all the time" written across the bottom.
Cain looked at the picture and smiled warmly, his fingers ghosting over the photograph lightly. He smiled and pulled Glitch to him. "Happy Valentine's Day darlin'."
"Happy Valentine's Day sweetheart."
(1) Reference to my other story February Song. No worries if you haven't read it!!
I love making these so sweet...I feel like I'm getting cavities just writing them :D