Valentines Day

The day started like every day had every year before. Lonely. I rolled over and groaned, closing my eyes. I hated Valentines Day. It was the bane of the life of a single woman with no man in her life. I have had men in my life, they just never seem to be around during this particular holiday! They always seem to fade right after Christmas or I find someone just after February, never during – never in time to celebrate The Day.

And today was just another one. I pulled my covers up over my head, sure there had to be some kind of sickness I had that I could call in sick for. Wasn’t my stomach queasy? Wasn’t I feeling flu symptoms and my eyes gritty? Just because they were gritty from lack of sleep and I was feeling flu-ish because of that as well had nothing to do with it. At least it wouldn’t be a total lie! But I couldn’t do it. I never enjoyed a day off playing hooky if I wasn’t really sick. It was something my parents had ingrained in me, and so there it was. I had to go to work. I opened one eye and pushed the blankets back to see what time the alarm clock showed. Oh great… I was late already.


By the time I got to work, my mood had only gotten worse. I wished I could wear a ‘don’t come near me’ sign, but I don’t think my boss would have appreciated it. The small favor I was thankful for was that I worked in an office building and not in a retail store. At least I wouldn’t be swamped with last minute boyfriends and their thoughtless gifts that made their girlfriends happy and appreciative enough to spend the evening with them. Pathetic.

I knew I wished I could be as pathetic, but I buried it under my glumness. I was going to have a good long depression, and tonight I was going to go home and watch some sappy love story movie with popcorn and chocolate ice cream and all the chocolate candy I could find in my apartment. (which wouldn’t be very much, because I’d cleaned most of it out after Christmas in an effort to loose the weight I’d gained DURING Christmas…)

During lunch my friend Kathy gave up and came over to give me a lecture. She did this every time she thought I was being selfish or inconsiderate of others – usually herself. I wasn’t in any mood for her today, so I just raised an eyebrow and folded my arms.

“I don’t want to hear it,” I told her as soon as she was within hearing range.

She stopped, shocked that I had gone on the offence. “W-what?”

“I said I don’t want to hear whatever you think I need to hear. I don’t want any lectures, I don’t want to be told how the day is almost over – I just don’t want to hear it. Go on back to your desk.”

“Hmph!” she snorted, obviously startled and hurt by my words. I didn’t care I wasn’t going to take it today. “I guess I will then!”

She turned and stomped away, and I sighed and faced my desk, wishing there was a vacation I could take that would make me forget this holiday. Why didn’t I start going somewhere so I wasn’t where everyone and their dog celebrated romance?

Just before the end of the work day while I was gathering my things and filing papers away, I got a call from the downstairs receptionist.

“Yeah?” Like I said, I wasn’t winning any friendship awards today.

“You have a package down here – don’t forget to pick it up on your way out.” She didn’t even say have a good night or anything – I’ll be she had spoken with Kathy and was angry with me.

I sighed and pondered her words. Who would have sent me a package? Obviously it wasn’t for work, or someone would have brought it up! “That’s strange,” I muttered to myself and shrugged. I finished cleaning off my desk and gathered up my coat and purse. I could hardly wait to get home and kick off my shoes and delve into the carton of Burnt Almond fudge I knew was waiting in my freezer.

I almost forgot to stop and pick up the package, but just knowing I was going home and getting out of the world of pink and red hearts, I was able to be nice to Charlotte, the receptionist. She managed to smile at me, although I could see it didn’t reach her eyes.

I grabbed the small box, just larger than a cd case, and went outside into the brisk winter air. I always feel strange about Valentines – like it should be a warm weather holiday. One always forgets that it’s a winter day and usually has snow. Today our city is bursting with lights and decorations - pink and red streaming from every lamp post.

No fresh snow, but lots of week old stuff still sitting there. It hadn’t gotten warm enough from the last snowfall to melt anything. It would be delightful stuff to sit in front of a fire and sip hot chocolate with someone – a romantic someone, but not to be for me. It didn't seem right that it had been bright sunshine today either - I wanted it to be gray and rainy, fitting for my mood. With everyone else enjoying it I had to just deal with it.

Now I shrugged, finally becoming resigned to my fate and pulled my collar tighter around my throat. It was the morning and daytime that was usually the worst for me. By the time the end of the day rolled around, I could handle it – nothing could get worse after I was safely back in my apartment with hot cocoa and a romantic movie playing away. I was even going to splurge and order pizza. Lots of leftovers for lunch the next couple of days, I sighed as I unlocked my car and got in.

I tossed the box on the passenger seat of the car and shifted so my coat wasn’t bunched before shutting my door, only then noticing that there was something on my windshield. “What the…” I stared at it in shock for a moment, realizing that it was a pastel pink envelope.

Someone at work must have felt sorry for me, I thought with a wry grin. I opened the door and reached out to grab it. Sittinb back in my seat, I gazed at it for a moment, seeing my name printed rather carefully across the front. It wasn’t typed – it wasn’t a label – someone had handwritten my name. how nice…

I opened it up, expecting some silly thing with Snoopy or something on it, and discovered instead a lovely thick card with a ribbon woven through it. The cover itself was lovely enough to frame and I gazed at it in wonder for several minutes before finally pulling it open to see who had sent it.

“May all your warmest dreams come true,” I read out loud, seeing the same careful printing on the inside. “Your secret admirer.” I snorted, and ended up laughing. Secret Admirer? Someone was claiming to be my secret admirer? What a joke! This was great!

I turned the card back over to look at the front again, running a finger over the thick embossment and silk ribbon. This was the nicest card anyone had ever gotten me. It had been expensive, and I appreciated quality.

Seeing how nice the card was, made me suddenly conscious of the box I had so casually dumped on the seat. Now I reached over and picked it up, realizing it rattled softly. It was wrapped in thick red paper with a lacy pink ribbon and a small card bearing my name attached to it. Once again, underneath was ‘your secret admirer’. I was dumbfounded. Who could it possibly be?

I thought of all the different men I knew, in work and outside of work, but none of them inspired romantic thoughts, or even vague ponderings of latent fantasies for me. It couldn’t be anyone I knew. No one who knew me very well, at least, that was for sure. No one that knew me would know how desperately I loved lace and hearts and everything to do with this holiday. I constantly berated the stores and commercialism for forcing it upon the unsuspecting female. While inside – it was the deepest wish of my heart.

I sighed a little shakily and gently removed the ribbon, saving the note to go with the card. Whoever it was had certainly made my whole day, and I would never forget it. I pulled back the paper to reveal a thick velvet box. My breath stilled in my chest as I gazed at it, knowing it was a jewelry box. Oh my!

I quickly took the lid off to reveal a lovely gold bracelet. It had little charm hearts all around it, and upon closer inspection, each heart had a saying – like the candy hearts. It was gorgeous! I felt my eyes filling with tears at someone being so thoughtful, so caring – of me! And I didn’t even have a clue as to who it was!

I vaguely remember the drive home. I was so very conscious of the bracelet dangling upon my wrist – where it fit perfectly. I parked my car and floated to the elevator, uncaring as to who saw my bright eyes and happy smile. I finally had romance on this romantic of all days!

It seemed as if I was walking on clouds, I didn’t remember even having my feet touch the floor. I came to a stop outside my apartment door, and felt my heart thud hard in my chest. There was a bouquet of roses – red and pink ones, laying on the floor by my door. I slowly bent down and picked them up, their fresh fragrance already wafting through the hallway. I held them up and breathed deeply – I’ve always loved roses best of all flowers, and these were mine! They were beautiful, and tears pricked at my eyes again. This was truly amazing, and I felt as if I were living a dream. Who was this secret admirer?

I finally went to slip my keys into the lock and realized there was something on the floor under where the roses had been. I picked up the small white envelope that typically came with flowers, and ran my tongue over my dry lips. I wanted to savor this – so I decided to go inside my apartment first. I went in and promptly dropped my coat, purse and keys on the floor, tenderly cradling my roses, box and card as I took them over to the kitchen counter. I set everything down and quickly filled a vase (the only one I owned – thank heavens it was large enough) to put the roses in. I took one more deep breath of them before sitting on a stool and opening the little note.

“If you would agree to meet me, Please be downstairs in front at 8 p.m. I’ll pick you up for dinner. Formal dress. I’ll be waiting – your secret admirer.”

I stared at it in amazement, even reaching over and pinching my arm to make sure I wasn’t dreaming. I was going out for dinner on Valentines! I flew off the stool to my room, panicked that I wouldn’t have anything appropriate to wear. Never mind that I still had two hours to get ready…



When eight o’clock arrived, I found myself standing inside my apartment, feeling light headed. I’d found a dress stuffed in the back of my closet that I had never worn – it was perfect. A mid-calf black velvet number with a slit up the side and sleeves of a light see through material down to my elbows. The front had a V-neck that was a little lower than I normally like to wear, but figured it was fitting for the day. I slipped on my high heels – what my sister called ‘come hither’ shoes, and had piled my hair on my head in thick ringlets that hung to my shoulders. I guess it was passable – but I was so nervous and wondering what I’d gotten myself into, that I wasn’t sure of anything anymore. What if the guy was a stalker? What if he was a total dweeb? What if I was totally bored within a minute of getting in the car? I didn’t know what to think or do, and found myself frozen to the spot.

I put a hand to my throat and the tinkle of the charms seemed to snap me out of it. I’d already accepted his other gifts – I might as well go find out who he was and thank him for the lovely way he’d ended my day. I determinedly grabbed my dress coat and purse, turned off the lights and left my apartment. The ride down to the foyer seemed to take seconds, and before I knew it I was walking out to the steps of the apartment building, my heart in my throat.

A beautiful black stretch Limo sat outside, glistening in the streetlights. Standing by the back door was a young man in a suit, apparently the driver. He nodded and tipped the smart little hat he was wearing, and held the door open for me.

I guess it must have been obvious I was the woman he was waiting for, otherwise it would have seemed really silly…

I made it down the couple of steps to the car and hesitated a moment at the door. He grinned and nodded his head toward the car.

“Your date is waiting, Ma’am.” His voice seemed to push me into the car, and I landed with a unlady like plop next to a handsome man in a tuxedo.

“Good evening, Kristine.” I gasped as I registered the voice and recognized the man sitting next to me.

“Jason!” he grinned and I threw myself into his arms.

How could I have forgotten about Jason? My best friend all through college and during the rough year of my new job and relocating. He’d been the best. He’d had to move two years ago and while we’d kept in touch with emails and the even chancier phone calls, it had been that long since I’d seen him.

He returned my hug with warmth and I leaned back so I could see his handsome face clearly. “What are you doing here?” I gasped, reaching up to touch him, almost afraid it wasn’t real. “I thought you were in New York!”

He chuckled and shrugged. “I couldn’t stand it anymore. I didn’t have any friends and Teresa walked out on me, telling me that I thought more of you than I did her.”

I gaped at him. Teresa had been his love interest for the past year or so. “She what? That’s ridiculous!”

He smiled a wry smile and shook his head. “Not really.” He paused and looked uncomfortable for a moment, almost as if he was nervous. “She was right.”

I felt my heart start to thud with some nerves of my own as I saw the warmth in his eyes. “She was?” I whispered, afraid to speak.

He was my best friend in the whole world. He was the most handsome man I knew, and I’d secretly loved him since college, I just hadn’t dared even put any thought into motion – he’d never seen me.

He nodded and pulled me close to kiss me softly – tenderly, almost like he was afraid of my reaction. I kissed him back, slipping my arms around his neck, letting my fingers touch his thick curly dark hair – something I’d always wanted to do.

“Me too,” I told him softly, knowing the time had come. “Me too.”

word count = 2676