(A/N: Sorry I took so long with this one. My writer's block was pretty bad, not to mention irritating. Well, happy early Valentine's Day! Hope you enjoy V.)

V- Valentine

Summary: The Valentine's Day Dance is coming soon at Jim Jr. Junior High School. Shenzi Tuck yearns to ask her crush, Chuckie Finster, to be her date, but she realizes that he likes someone else. Who will she end up asking?

11-year-old Shenzi Tuck walked down the halls, already dressed for the upcoming holiday, Valentine's Day. She was wearing a baggy black sweatshirt with a large, light pink heart on the front, a black high-waisted skirt with two furry hearts on the front, black knee-high socks with three light pink stripes at the top, and a light pink heart, slip-on shoes with black, white, and light pink hearts all over the top, black heart earrings, and a light pink extension in her long bangs, which draped over the left side of her face, including her thick, black eyeglasses. Her sweatshirt unveiled her left shoulder, so the left strap of her black training bra was showing, but she paid no mind to it.

"Hey, Shenzi!" She looked up, and saw her slightly older sister, 11-year-old Frankie Tuck waving to her. "Come check this out!" She ran up to her, and saw a poster for an upcoming Valentine's Dance at the school. "Who are you going to ask?"

"Uh, I-I dunno," She lied nervously.

"Like Chuckie for instance?" Frankie smiled cheekily. 11-year-old Chuckie Finster was Shenzi's best friend, ever since she started attending the same preschool as him. In the 4th grade, she started developing a crush on him, and it was still lingering. She tried to keep it a secret, but it was all too obvious to their friends.

"Pfft, n-no!" She scoffed. "I d-don't know who I want to ask."

"Whatever you say," Frankie shrugged, "I don't know who to ask either." As she and her stepsister headed to the cafeteria, she smirked. 'She doesn't know who to ask, hah! As if! She definitely wants to ask Chuckie! I know it! If she does, I hope he says yes. They make an adorable couple!' After they got their lunch, Frankie was surprised when Shenzi headed for the table behind Chuckie, and 10-year-old Tommy Pickles, but didn't question it.

A few seconds after sitting down and eating, they heard Chuckie talking quietly to Tommy. "Don't get mad, but... I'm thinking of asking Nicole to the dance."

Shenzi almost choked on her spaghetti noodles after hearing that, but staying quiet, as her heart crashed down. "Ohhh," Frankie whispered with sympathy. Almost as if she read Shenzi's mind, she stood up and switched seats with her. The black-haired girl stayed silent as she scooped noodles in her mouth, trying to hide the tears in her eyes, but Frankie could clearly see that her stepsister was crushed. "Um, tha-that's okay; You can ask someone else. I know you wanted to ask Chuckie." She kept her voice volume low.

"N-no I didn't."

"Oh, come on! The entire school knows that you have a thing for Chuckie!"

"I don't!"

"Yes you do! You have since preschool, and you still do! Even the teachers know! The only one who doesn't know is Chuckie, because whoever hints it to him doesn't use your name. But... who says he's the only one you could go out with?"

"But... I don't like anyone else here," Shenzi said quietly.

"Well, we can grab a friend and go as a group," Frankie suggested, "Or it can be just us two."

"Okay," Shenzi agreed. "But if somehow, by some coincidence, Chuckie is suddenly dateless, you can ask him."

"Thanks, Frankie."

"No prob."

Later, the two girls were in the outdoor cafeteria, just hanging out before their next class should start. They then saw Nicole sitting at a table alone, minding her own business, then saw Tommy and Chuckie standing a distance away from her. As Chuckie seemed to check himself for his asking the brown-haired girl out, Shenzi's heart broke. Nicole was clearly prettier than her, and Chuckie deserved that. She'll never be good enough for him.

And Frankie was right; She does have a crush on him. A big one, but never told him. For one thing, they had an amazing friendship, and she didn't want it ruined.

She was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard something from Nicole that really surprised her and Frankie: "Tommy Pickles! You are the cutest boy in school!" Say what? What about Chuckie?

"Okay, that's a problem," They heard the redhead say to himself.

Shenzi could've sworn she briefly heard someone say "Dang!" But dismissed it. He probably dropped something.

Later on, she hid at the lockers, trying to listen in on Tommy and Chuckie's conversation. She hated eavesdropping, but she had to know why Nicole was suddenly head over heels for Tommy. "I know she likes you way more than she likes me," The purple-haired boy told Chuckie.

"Really? You think?" He sounded eager at that; That hurt Shenzi's heart.

"I've been looking for you," She heard a girl's voice, one she didn't recognize, and assumed it was Nicole. Even her voice sounded better than hers.

"Happy Valentine's Day." Tommy opened the card Nicole gave him, and it showed Mexican men dancing to themed music with a small sign that read "Be Mine!" on it. "Thanks. And it isn't even Valentine's Day. Except in Mexico, I guess."

"I give the really special ones early," She heard Nicole say. Ouch; That had to hurt for Chuckie. "Oh, hi Chuckie." Double ouch. She then heard footsteps walking away.

"You get the special one," Chuckie sounded sad.

"Oh man, I am really sorry!" She heard Tommy's regretful voice, "This is like a bad after school special. I, I want to help, but I don't know how."

"I think you've done enough," The redhead walked away, clearly sounding emotionally hurt.

Shenzi panicked and attempted to hide when he was walking her way, although luckily, he didn't see her. She then took this opportunity to at least try to talk with him. "H-hey, Chuckie?"

"Yes, Nicole?" He whipped around, looking hopeful, but he looked surprised at who was actually behind him; Shenzi, already looking like someone just told her she was ugly and would die alone. "Sh-Shenzi! I, I thought you were..."

She sighed angrily as tears welled up. "Just forget it!" She stomped towards the restrooms, with her small hands clenched into fists. "Obviously you want Nicole more than me! I'm not good enough for you! Why should I even bother?!"

"Shenzi, I, I'm sorry!" He tried to catch up with her. "I honestly thought you were...!"

"I KNOW WHO YOU THOUGHT I WAS!" She suddenly screamed, making him jump back and stop running, before she continued her way. "Now leave me alone!"

"Shenzi, I...!"

"SAVE IT! TELL IT TO NICOLE, WHY DON'T YOU?!" She stomped into the girls' restroom, unaware that someone else was in one of the stalls, and slammed the door shut.

Chuckie knocked on the door. "Shenzi!"

"GO AWAY!" He jumped back, as other students stared at the scene.

"Wha-what's she so angry about?" Chuckie wondered aloud to himself. "I just thought she was Nicole, because their voices sound similar. Why's that such a big issue to her?" As he walked down the hall, he saw 13-year-old Susie Carmichael at her locker, and walked up to her. "Hey, Susie? Did you see what happened just there?"

"You mean with you and Shenzi? I think the whole hallway saw it. That girl has some lungs in her. What was she mad about?"

"I dunno," He shrugged, "I heard her voice, and thought she was Nicole, because they have similar voices, then she just exploded on me."

In the restroom, Shenzi locked herself in a stall, sat on the closed toilet lid, and sobbed in her knees. He seriously thought she was Nicole? She didn't want to sound mean, but it was insulting. She may hve a voice similar to Nicole's, but they couldn't sound that much alike, could they? "Shenzi?" Her head snapped up at Frankie's voice. "You okay? Can I come in?"

"Y-yeah," She replied.

Frankie opened the stall door, then closed it after entering. "What happened out there?"

"Well," Shenzi sniffled and wiped her eyes, "I tried to talk to Chuckie, but... h-he thought I was Nicole."

Frankie winced in sympathy. "Ouch."

"Yea. I just decided to forget about saying what I wanted to say, and went in here."

"Well, I-I'm sure you'll find another boy to attend the dance with."

"I don't like any other boys here," Shenzi shrugged, "Not in that way, at least."

"You don't have to be romantically involved with them," Frankie pointed out, "They can be anyone who doesn't have a date yet. Let's think about it, okay?" After her stepsister shrugged again, they started thinking. "What about Harold?"

"Actually, he's the DJ, so he can't go with anyone," Shenzi reminded her.

"Ohh, right. Hmm... how about Phil? I don't think he has a date."

"Mmm... maybe I can try asking him. Although it depends on whether he actually wants a date or not."

"True. It's the same case with Dil."

"Yeah," Shenzi nodded.

Before they could think some more, the bell rang. "Oh! We'd better get to English class!"

"Yipee," Shenzi muttered sarcastically with a little giggle as they headed for the classroom. Throughout the day, she avoided Chuckie, or it was the other way around. He looked nervous every time they looked at each other, whether he at her, vice versa, or simultaneously.

Before long, it was time to head home for the day, and the two spectacled pre-teens hadn't said a single word to each other. Shenzi was too angry, and Chuckie was too nervous.

At home, the black-haired girl slumped on a kitchen chair, with her elbows on the table and her cheeks in her hands. "What's wrong?" Friar Tuck asked her, as he sat in front of her.

"I, I just had a rough day at school today."

"What happened?"

"Well... I want to ask him to the Valentine's Dance, but he likes someone else. Yet that someone else suddenly fell in love with Tommy, without an explanation. And... I tried to talk to him, but he mistook me for Nicole, the girl he likes over me, because we have similar voices. I flipped out on him, and we haven't spoken to each other since."

"Ohh. I'm sorry you had to go through that, sweetheart."

"Thanks, Dad."

"But... the first person you like isn't always the one."

"True," She shrugged, "But the thing is, he's not my first crush. I liked Justin Rogers for a while, before I... liked Chuckie. After meeting him, Justin just escaped my mind after Chuckie stole my heart. And... he and I are a lot alike."

"Well, he seems to focus on his schoolwork a lot like you do."

"Mm hmm," She nodded, "He's just so smart, funny, handsome..." She cleared her throat, "S-sorry, I was just rambling there. But my point is... there's no one else for me to ask."

"Yes there is!" Frankie suddenly piped up, startling her. "Justin Rogers! Ask him to the dance! I don't think he has a date!"

"Hmm," Shenzi thought about it after recovering from the surprise, "I'll try tomorrow."

The next day, Shenzi secretly watched Justin by his locker, waiting for Sean to leave. She knew that he wouldn't even talk to her if he was with Mr. "Too Cool to Care", so it was for the best. When Sean finally walked off, Shenzi walked up to Justin, trying her best to act casual. "Um, h-hey Justin?" He turned to look at her. "I uh, I was wondering... d-do you want to go to the dance with... me?"

He hesitated a bit. "Well... look, you seem like a cool girl, but... I already have a date."

Her heart fell a bit. "Oh, o-okay."

"Sorry."

"It's fine. Um, ha-have fun with your date."

"Thanks. Hope you find one."

"Thanks." She then walked away, feeling disappointed. What now? Her former crush was already taken, and her current crush had eyes on someone else, even mistaking her for that someone else. She was thinking that she should just go dateless with Frankie, stay at the food table, and watch the dancing couples with jealousy. She then decided to do just that, no matter how stupid it sounded.

Before long, Shenzi and her stepsister were in the school gymnasium, where the party was just getting started. Shenzi was wearing a candy heart printed crop top, a black velour hoodie with short sleeves, a black tutu with a faux leather waistband, light pink cycle shorts, black and white horizontally striped knee-high socks with red mustache hearts, black Mary Jane flats with a white skull and crossbones and red hearts, a red heart glittery stretchy ring, a silver heart key ring, black rose earrings, a light pink mini top hat with a small veil and black feather, and a light pink extension. "You want to go dance?" Frankie asked her.

"No thanks," She shook her head, "I'll just stay here." She carefully leaned on the food table, so she wasn't in anyone's way, as Lil slapped any hands away from the cupcakes. Shenzi briefly heard that they were arranged in a friendship symbol or something, but wasn't exactly listening. She however, didn't see two boys hiding under the table. By the entrance, she saw Tommy come out of hiding from behind a potted plant, and Chuckie, who made her heart jump. He looked pretty handsome in his light blue button-up t-shirt, brown jeans, black Vans, and brown belt. Not to mention his hair wasn't all over the place like it usually was; She liked it that way, but personally preferred it wild. It seemed to suit him more. She saw what looked like Chuckie making up with Tommy for something she wasn't aware of. Something having to do with Nicole, she guessed, as they shared a fist bump.

Soon after, the dancing started after DJ Harold turned on the music, and the lights were dimmed. She still watched Chuckie and Tommy, still not knowing what they were talking about, but little did she realize, she wasn't going to like what would happen with them. "Go work that Finster magic, Chuckie, and ask her to dance." To her disappointment, the redhead started walking towards Nicole.

"We got ourselves an incoming," Shenzi briefly heard Dil's voice, then another boy's, who she didn't recognize, but dismissed them. They were probably rooting for Nicole in the competition for Chuckie's heart anyway. Although she herself wasn't fighting anyway; Nicole already had his heart, so what was the point?

She was surprised to see a purple hackysack suddenly fly in the air from behind her back, and land on Nicole's head. When the brunette saw Chuckie, she suddenly looked lovestruck. No offense to him, but that was new. "Chuckie!"

"Yeah, I know, the last guy you want to see, but... would you like...?"

"To dance?" Nicole finished his sentence with eagerness. "Love to!" She took his hand and ran to the dance floor, as Chuckie gave Tommy a thumbs-up.

Tears welled up as Shenzi watched her crush enjoy dancing with a girl that wasn't her. After only a second, she couldn't bear to watch; She crawled under the food table and finally let her sobs out, soaking her knees and the rims of her socks. She didn't notice something crawl down and sit next to her. "Shenzi?" She glanced up, and through her tears, she saw Lil in a light purple blouse, denim knee-length skirt, pink hair bow, yellow bead necklace, matching bracelet on her left wrist, and black shoes. "Are you okay?"

"N-not really," She wiped her eyes under her hair and glasses.

"What's wrong?"

"Well," Shenzi made sure no one was listening, "I... I like Chuckie. As in... I have a crush on him. A big one."

"O-oh," Lil stammered in surprise, "Then how come he's dancing with Nicole, and not you?"

"Because he prefers her over me," She hid her face again, "When I tried to talk to him the other day, he thought I was Nicole."

"Ouch," She winced with sympathy, before she spied feet facing the table. "Oh, here we go again. Sorry Shen, I gotta go." She quickly crawled out from under the table, and defended the cupcakes yet again.

Shenzi kept her face hidden, and stayed quiet as she was alone again. Now feeling curious, she pulled the tablecloth up, and her heart shattered at what she saw; During their dancing, Chuckie pecked Nicole on the cheek. She yanked the cloth back down, almost shifting the food, as she choked another sob out. Why couldn't that be her there, in Nicole's place?! That bimbo didn't deserve Chuckie! (A/N: I don't have anything against Nicole. These are just Shenzi's thoughts.)

Outside the hiding place, Dil looked back and forth after Z went to dance with Kimi. "What's up, Dil?" His new friend, Lil'Q, asked him.

"I hear a girl crying," Dil replied as he looked around, "But I don't see any girls crying out here." Under the table, he caught a glimpse of black skull Mary Janes, and striped socks. There was only one girl he knew who dressed like that other than on Halloween; Shenzi Tuck. "I'll be back." He crawled under the table, and saw the older girl hiding her face in her knees. "What's wrong, Shen?"

She peeked out from behind her arm, saw Dil next to her, and sat up. "W-well Dil, I-I've had a crush on Chuckie for a long time, but I was always afraid to tell him. So, now I'm experiencing the consequences."

"Really?"

"Uh huh," She nodded, "I'm such an idiot."

"You're not an idiot," Dil assured her, "I may not know anything about romance, but I do know that sometimes, it can ruin friendships. Is that what you're afraid of?"

"Yeah," She nodded, "I'm afraid of ruining my friendship with Chuckie, because... well, he's a great friend."

Dil felt bad for her as she rested her face behind her arms. He then wondered; Were those Cupid-like effects from Lil'Q's hackysack reversible? If they were from him at all? "Um, Sh-Shen? I'll be right back." He walked out from under the table. "Uh, Lil'Q? Are those weird effects from your hackysack reversible?"

"I... I think so," He thought about it, "Why?"

"Well, my friend Shenzi under the table likes Chuckie, that dude with the purple glasses, but he's currently with Nicole after she was hit. Would the effect go away if she was hit again or something?"

"I think that's what would happen," Lil'Q replied, "I can test it." He then kicked the hackysack in the air, so it landed on Nicole's head without seriously injuring her.

"Oh!" She exclaimed in surprise.

"What happened?" Chuckie asked her in confusion.

"I dunno," She rubbed her head.

"Hey, Nicole! Over here!" Leslie Myers called her over, along with Diane Delongis.

"Coming, girls!" Nicole ran to the two girls, leaving Chuckie alone on the dance floor.

"Okay Shenzi, come out," Dil coaxed her into coming out of hiding, "Now, go ask him to dance."

"O-okay," She stammered, then walked up to him, her knees practically wobbling. "Um, Ch-... Ch-Chuckie?"

He turned to her, looking disappointed at being ditched. "Hi, Shen. Uh, are you still mad at me for what happened the other day?"

"No," She shook her head, "I, I was just wondering... would you like to... d-dance with me?"

After glancing back at Nicole, unintentionally making her fear the worst, he let a shy smile grow. "Okay, sounds great." Her heart jumped for joy as they started dancing together. After a while, the students started getting tired, so Harold turned off the music and the lights were brightened. It was then when Chuckie noticed something... off about his friend. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, and her eyes looked a bit red. "Shenzi, have you been crying?"

Her heart thumped in her chest; She didn't think it was that obvious. "Uh... y-yeah. Right before I asked you to dance."

"What was wrong?"

"Well..." She hesitated, "It was... from seeing you... dancing with Nicole."

He looked a bit confused. "Why would that make you sad?"

"Because..." This was it. He was going to learn the truth, after all this time. "I... I like you. As in "crush" like."

Chuckie looked very surprised at that. She had a crush on him all this time, and yet he was chasing after another girl? "Y-you do?"

"Yeah," She nodded, "I was just afraid to tell you, in fear of ruining out friendship."

"How would it ruin our friendship?"

She shrugged timidly. "If you didn't like me back."

"But... I do."

She couldn't stop her eyes from widening. "You do? Really?"

"Uh huh," He nodded. "Then why'd you have your heart set on coming here with Nicole?"

"Well, honestly... I was afraid that we'd feel awkward if we went together," He admitted, "I dunno. I was just afraid to ask you."

"Well... we're together now," She pointed out.

"U-uh huh," He nodded, "So um... since the dancing's over... what'll we do now?"

"Hmm, how about we sneak a couple of cupcakes?" She suggested with a giggle.

"Okay," He agreed, and they headed for the food table, hand-in-hand. They each took a cupcake from the arrangement, and ate them as they stood next to each other. "Um, f-fun party, huh?"

"I guess," Shenzi shrugged, "Um, s-sorry I blew up on you about you mistaking me for Nicole."

"It's okay," Chuckie assured him, "I'm sorry for the mistake. But, you guys really do sound similar."

"It's alright, I forgive you. And... you're right; We do sound alike."

"Except your voice is just a little bit deeper."

"Yep," She nodded, "Figures that I would sound like a man," She muttered under her breath, although he heard her.

"You don't sound like a man," Chuckie assured her, "You sound like a girl. A very sweet, very pretty girl."

She smiled timidly as her cheeks flushed. "Th-thanks, Chuckie." She smirked when he started snickering under his breath. "What? What's funny?"

"I-I'm sorry, I just imagined you with an actual man's voice," He chuckled.

She thought about it, and couldn't help but giggle at the concept. "You're right, it is pretty funny."

"But no matter how your voice sounds, you're still a beautiful girl." Her heart jumped in surprise when she briefly felt his lips on her cheek. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you how I felt about you earlier on. We would've definitely gone together if I had."

"It's okay, I'm at fault too. I should've told you my feelings for you earlier as well. So, uh... do you want to get a uh, a pizza sometime? Maybe tomorrow at 3? The Big Mall just opened a new pizzeria."

"That sounds great," He agreed.

"It's a date then," She nodded. As the party went on, the two friends chatted with each other. Shenzi felt perfectly comfortable when Chuckie explained what happened with Tommy and Nicole, while listening intently. Apparently, Nicole had suddenly fallen in love with Tommy, without any warning or foreshadowing, and Chuckie tried to get Tommy to explain. But everything was cool when she danced with Chuckie instead.

That night, Shenzi went to bed with a smile on her face. This Valentine's Day turned from the worst, due to her believing Chuckie liked someone else, to the best of her life, because she scored a date with Chuckie! She could hardly wait for that!

(A/N: Here's V. You know the disclaimer. Only four more oneshots to go.)