"Charlie! Willy's here," Mrs. Bucket called. Up in his old room - he now had his own quarters in the factory - Charlie climbed down the ladder and eagerly ran to the front door. He hadn't seen Wonka all day, for he had said he was planning something special for the evening.

Lately, it seemed the air had shifted between Charlie and Wonka. They were spending more time together, bonding, growing closer. Wonka opened up to him and vise versa - Charlie didn't like talking about how his family had suffered during his childhood, and Wonka didn't like talking about his past either. But they understood each other, and this made them work well together. They were not just teacher and student - they were a team.

"Hi Willy," Charlie said now, happily. They embraced without a second thought, and Mrs. Bucket smiled. "What are we doing this evening?"

"Well if I told you that, it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it?" Wonka said with a smile, tapping Charlie on the nose. Charlie laughed.

"Have fun, boys. And Willy, don't bring Charlie back too late," Mrs. Bucket said.

"I won't," Wonka promised, holding an arm out to Charlie. "Shall we?"

Charlie took his arm, feeling a fluttering in his heart as they walked out of the house and down the path. He realized they were headed towards the Great Glass Elevator, and was even more curious. When they turned the corner, Charlie gasped. Inside the elevator, he could see a tablecloth laid out on the floor with tons of food, candles, and blankets and pillows. He gasped. "Willy, did you do all this by yourself?"

"Well, yeah. Heh," said Wonka indifferently.

"You're amazing," Charlie said, hugging him and kissing his cheek. Wonka blinked, startled, as Charlie ran to the elevator and opened it. The candles were fake, he realized, but they looked so real and everything was set up so beautifully.

"I would've gotten real candles, but I didn't want them to accidentally fall over when we leave," Wonka said, following him in and closing the elevator.

"Probably a good idea," Charlie agreed, smiling.

Wonka gestured to the setup. "Please, sit." He pressed a button and they lifted off the ground.

Charlie was used to takeoff by now, but he worried about the food. "You really went all out," he observed.

"A special evening for my special heir," Wonka replied, and Charlie blushed. "Try the chocolate covered strawberries, they're delicious."

Charlie watched the outside views as they toured around town. He accepted half a strawberry that Wonka himself had taken a bite out of, grinning. His grin faded as they passed over the spot where Charlie's house used to sit before Wonka had it moved into the factory. Wonka followed his gaze and moved closer to him, their shoulders brushing as they looked down at the ground with matching somber expressions. "I can't imagine my life without you in it," Charlie said. "I feel like now that I live with you, I've finally lived."

Wonka nodded in understanding, and empathy. "I was so glad I could help you and your family," he said. "Instantly when I met you, I knew you'd be the one. Not just for the factory, but for me. Someone who could help me grow, who could help me see the good in life instead of the bad."

Charlie stared at Wonka, in shock that the older man could give such a beautiful, honest, deep speech. Usually Wonka had a hard time sharing his feelings. "You know I'm not here just for the candy, right?" Charlie said, his heart pounding as he realized just how close he and Wonka were now. Their noses were almost touching, and Charlie could feel his breath on his lips. "I've always admired you, even before I met you. And then you saved me." He reached up to brush hair out of Wonka's eyes, and his mentor's breath hitched. "I love you, Willy."

Wonka opened his mouth to say something, but then fireworks erupted in the sky, startling Charlie. He fell forward into Wonka's arms, and the older man caught him. Wonka held him upright as Charlie saw the display in the sky. The fireworks were rainbow colored and displayed the words "I love you Charlie Bucket" in the night sky.

Charlie looked at Wonka, open-mouthed, and then kissed him full on the lips. Wonka gasped into the kiss and didn't respond at first - likely out of shock, because then he tugged Charlie closer and deepened the kiss. Charlie did something he'd only dreamed of, and ran his hands through Wonka's chocolate hair. His mentor moaned against his mouth, pulling Charlie onto his lap and leaning back against the glass wall.

Charlie didn't realize he was crying until they broke apart and Wonka kissed his tears away. "Don't cry, Starshine," Wonka said, his hand on Charlie's lower back.

The younger man rested his head on Wonka's shoulder, sighing happily against his neck as he watched the fireworks display. "I'm the luckiest man in the world," Charlie murmured, pressing a kiss to Wonka's neck. Wonka moaned, leaning his head back to give Charlie better access. Charlie trailed kisses down Wonka's collarbone, enjoying the noises his mentor was making. He kissed his throat, right over Wonka's Adam's apple, then tried to kiss lower, unbuttoning the first button on Wonka's shirt.

"Charlie, wait," Wonka gasped as Charlie's hand slid up his shirt. "I think we should...take this slow."

Charlie was disappointed, but he had to agree. "Alright," he said, getting off Wonka's lap to sit beside him. Wonka kissed him deeply, wrapping an arm around the boy's shoulders as they watched the fireworks together.

The next morning, Charlie smiled happily as he remembered last night. He and Wonka had stayed up late talking, and admittedly kissing, but then Wonka had retired to his room so they could both get some sleep.

Along with Charlie's breakfast of chocolate coffee and fruit, an Oompa-Loompa brought him a newspaper with the fireworks display on the front page. Surprised, Charlie almost spilled his hot coffee as he read the front headline. "CHARLIE BUCKET AND WILLY WONKA DATING?"

Charlie groaned - the media had jumped to conclusions before he and Wonka themselves had even worked out the details of their relationship. That was part of what they'd talked about the previous night - what they wanted from each other, their fears and concerns, and the risks they knew might affect their lives negatively if they decided to indeed deepen their relationship.

Charlie continued onto the actual article. "Last night on Valentine's Day, a fireworks display confessing love for Charlie Bucket, Willy Wonka's heir, could have only been from one individual. Willy Wonka, the amazing and world's most popular chocolatier, has hosted the Bucket family in his factory for the past six years. Is it possible, then, that these two have been exploring all possible areas of their relationship now that Charlie Bucket is eighteen?"

Charlie rolled his eyes and fell back against his pillows. "I can't even read this," he moaned. "What a terrible writer."

"You know, I completely agree," said a familiar, cheerful voice from across the room. Charlie sat up to find his newfound love standing in the doorway. "We did say last night, didn't we-"

"After all the kissing," Charlie added with a smile.

Wonka blushed. "-yes, after all the kissing, that the media would speculate about such a display?"

"And you're okay with that, now that it's real?" Charlie asked.

"I knew what could potentially happen when I planned it," Wonka reassured him, sitting down on Charlie's bed. "I figured it's about time I get out of my comfort zone. It can be exhausting to hide from everyone, especially you."

Now it was Charlie's turn to blush. "And my parents?" he asked. "You know they'll see this eventually, right?"

"Charlie, you're eighteen," Wonka pointed out. "You can do whatever you darn well please, you know. It's not illegal for us to be together now. That's why I waited until this year - before your eighteenth birthday, I would not have made a move on you."

Charlie nodded. "If they have a problem with us, they are welcome to leave. This is our home, and I won't have any negativity come between us. I won't be embarrassed to be with you, no matter what anyone says."

Wonka smiled and leaned in, brushing their lips together. Charlie put his hands on Wonka's waist, leaning in to deepen their kiss and explore the older man's mouth. Wonka groaned as Charlie's tongue stroked his for the first time. It was a weird, wet feeling, but eventually they got accustomed to it. The newspaper lay forgotten on the bed as they toppled over, Wonka on top of Charlie, his hat tumbling to the floor. Charlie giggled into Wonka's mouth, sliding his hands up his shirt. Wonka let him this time, and he did some exploring of his own, sliding his hand down Charlie's leg.

A gasp made them break apart quickly. Charlie stared in surprise at his parents standing in the doorway, open-mouthed.

"Charlie?" Mrs. Bucket exclaimed.

AN: Sorry I haven't posted anything in so long! College has been kicking my butt. I'm working on Back Together (3 years later, naturally) but for now enjoy this Valentine's Day story! Also this is based off the 2005 version.