Seth and I sat at our high school basketball game in the stands. We liked sports, he played soccer, and I softball, but we were there mostly for each other's company. We had become closer since the whole Taylor and Edward thing. When they decided to hand out we were the lackey friends. It was early February, the school was covered in red and pink, preparing to celebrate the upcoming lover's day.

I have never understood the meaning of Valentine's Day. Why did you need a specific day to show affection? Was there something wrong with caring just because you could? I didn't like the three C's. Chocolate, cherubs, and cheesy greeting cards. Bee mine? A relationship shouldn't come down to an insect holding a box of candy.

"What do you think Valentine's Day is about?" I asked Seth out of the blue. We were into the basketball game, but not so much so we toned each other out.

His eyes gently rolled over to meet mine. I wasn't petulant about it, I was curious. "What do you mean? What I'm going to do or what?"

"No, what you think it means."

"Valentine's Day? Um…I don't know. A time to show love?" He shrugged his shoulders and rubbed his hair, a telltale sign of confusion.

"So there has to be a time?" I sat up straighter, not because I was annoyed, because I was getting intrigued, he didn't know either. Did anyone?

So did Seth, his posture corrected and re-corrected several times before he seemed comfortable. "No? It's just a day some guy came up with and his name was St. Valentine. I don't remember why, we learned it in like, third grade. Why?"

The crowd cheered, apparently something big happened. It brought both of us back to our surroundings. We stood up, along with the rest of the fans, and looked around. A buzzer-beating three pointer at the end of the first quarter, no big deal. Seth and I sat back down. I missed the end of his response. "What did you say?"

"It has something to do with St. Valentine—"

"I know that, what did you say after."

"Oh, why?" He relaxed a bit and leaned back onto the bleacher behind us.

A man groaned, "Hey, kid. Watch it." He was a heavyset man whose glasses didn't fit his face. They were barely big enough to cover his eyes.

Seth's face flushed and he sat erect again. "Sorry, sir, didn't see you there." He squealed.

I couldn't help but smile. I tried to hide it, and tried not to laugh because I didn't want to be classified as "rude and unruly."

The hefty man laughed a hollow, throaty laugh that resonated throughout the gym. "Don't see how, son, I'm not exactly easy to miss."

Seth smiled politely, nervously. I could see in his eyes he wanted to joke and laugh with the man, to make it less awkward, but he didn't want to call the man fat, so all he did was sit up, laugh, and turn back around. "So, as you were saying." He nervously said, wondering if the non-response was ethical.

I chuckled at Seth's nervousness. "Valentine's Day…"

He got right back on topic. "Oh, yeah. I remember. Why?"

Did he just miss our entire conversation? He was probably thinking about waffles. "Because I want to know what you said."

"Why?"

"I just told you. Open your ears."

"Open yours. Why do you want to know?"

"Oh," My mouth formed over the words and I felt like a buffoon. "Huh huh, yeah." I silently laughed. "I knew that. I was just testing you." I smiled, hoping it would be my get out of insults free card.

"Sure. So why?" He persisted.

I hoped he wasn't one of those firm believers in the "I have to get you something for Valentine's Day and we have to make a big deal out of it" kind of person. I would be a total downer if he were. "Because I don't think it's that big of a deal. It's over dramatized, over glamorized, expensive, flashy, tacky attempts at winning someone over, which is especially stupid of you already have someone." I took a deep breath, I had held it in for a while.

Seth sat silent while I prepared for the, "How could you say that's" and the "Heartless's" and the all important, "You just don't know what it's all about…"

I couldn't take the suspense any more. "S—" I was cut off by another cheer. You can't do anything productive when I have nothing to find out? The crowd ceased and was seated again. "So…"

"Wow. Big words, impressive."

"That's it?" I was flabbergasted after such a violent distaste of Valentine's Day to get a compliment on 'big words.'

"Would you like more?"

"I'd like something."

"That was something." Seth smiled, proud of himself.

I rolled my eyes. "A something that relates to this conversation, not my grammar."

"Which is impeccable…." He sarcastically stated. Was he trying to butter me up for the worst?

"That's because I have been thinking about this."

"Maybe it's because you don't have a Valentine?" Seth suggested.

I cut my eyes at him. Me? Not have a Valentine? Pfft. Well, I don't but that's not the problem. "What?"

His smile turned mischievous. "You heard me."

"I don't think I heard you correctly." I cupped my hand around my ear, trying to listen in better.

Seth leaned in to my ear. "You don't like Valentine's Day because you don't have a Valentine."

I couldn't come up with a response. "I don't?" Crap. Stupid first-thing-that-comes-to-mind-outbursts.

"Do you?"

"Do you?" I shot back. I didn't think he did, but I couldn't be completely sure. We were friends, but we were in each other's business.

"In fact, I have my eye on this one girl…"

I scanned through the list of girls in Forks. Jessica? Mike. Taylor? Edward. I didn't let Taylor's voice in my head rule any considerations. I finally settled on someone who was recently single and looking. "Angela! Hey, I've seen how you look at her." My eyebrows shot up and down, accusingly.

He gave me a "come on" look. "Yeah, sure."

"Hey, what's that about? She's a nice girl."

His head hung and never came up for a response, he just said. "Yeah."

I didn't want to press the issue. I didn't know the background, so I decided to go back to the topic of choice earlier. "So, you never told me what you thought about Valentine's Day." I tried to sound as chipper as the suddenly somber situation would allow.

"It depends. If I have a girl, then I want to do something nice, if I don't then…I guess it's pointless really." Seth looked like he came to the sudden realization at the minute moment the words came out.

I really wanted to know if he was going to do something for Angela, but I didn't want his doom and gloom coming back. I didn't like his doom and gloom. Since we were friends I wanted to comfort him. But if course not in the presence of Taylor, she'd think we would be getting married in the Bahamas and vacationing in Cancun for every year after.

The crowd went crazy again but we sat in silence for the rest of the half. Neither one of us felt like standing up to get concessions. His sadness, confusion, or anger, seemed presses into me. I felt…him.

I couldn't bring myself to say anything for fear the conversation would hit an abrupt end again. I think I hurt him. I wanted nothing of the sort.

He was right, I wanted a Valentine.