PART ONE

It was Valentine's and the mall was filled with the signs of Hallmark Love. No matter where you turned and looked you were sure to find some sort of red or pink decoration and a lot of hearts. For the people in the mall this was hardly a bother to them, as everyone and anyone seemed caught up in the romance.

Most of all, Jude.

While Jude was normally not one to care for this so-called "holiday", he found this year to be something different. He hadn't told anyone in the gang yet, but, he had a crush on someone. None of them really expected much from him though, since normally he was interested in little else than his skateboard and whatever other shenanigans he was getting into with the other guys. However, he was at a loss. He had no idea how to approach this looming holiday and his feelings that were festering inside of him.

Which was why he was barely listening to the conversation that was going on at the Lemon. His chin rested against the table, eyes blurring as he continued to go over the possible scenarios in his mind over and over again.

"So what are you guys doing for Valentine's day?" he heard someone ask. He looked up from his spot toward Wyatt who was answering the question.

"I actually have a date this year," he was saying before he took a sip of his coffee. "You guys haven't met her yet though."

"Who is it?" Jen asked excitedly.

"Rene, she's the newest clerk at Spin This," Wyatt explained. The boy's eyes lowered slightly to the seemingly sedated blond boy sitting next to him. "Uh, Jude? Are you alright?"

"Yeah, you look really down, Jude," Caitlin peeped from the Lemon. "Is something wrong?"

"Guys...," Jude began, sitting up in his chair, "I think I'm in...love!"

He said it with such distress that, for a minute, the gang had to keep from getting giddy at the prospect of seeing Jude together with a new crush. Clearly, this was something more than just that.

"Jude, that's great," Jen said.

"I know."

"So, what's wrong?"

Jude bit his lip slightly, not knowing how to exactly explain this to his friends. "I don't really know what to do about it," he said, attempting to avoid all conversations about who his prospective love was.

"Jude~!" Caitlin squeaked excitedly from the Lemon. "That is so cute! I can help you, I am a master at all things crush-related. I'll help you tell her how you feel! Trust me, I have magazine credentials." She held up the latest Teen Magazine with much gusto. She immediately began flipping through the magazine, heading directly to the crush advice section.

"Eh... I don't know, Caitlin," Jude began, "I just kinda... I 'unno. I want to forget."

"I hear you, dude," Jonesy said, leaning back in his chair, "the chicks can be great most of the time, but on days like this, they just go crazy!" He flailed his arms in the air to emphasize his point.

"I guess with Nikki out of town you don't have any plans for tonight, huh?" Jen asked.

"None, except maybe watching Wyatt tank on his date."

"Hey!" Wyatt whined.

Jonesy smirked. His eyes lowered onto his friend who, once again, was resting his chin against the food court table. "Hey Jude," he said, watching as the boy's eyes perked up slightly, "if your whole crush thing backfires or whatever, want to sleepover at my house? We could have an anti-Valentine's day party. I just got the brand new Rock Band game. You, me, Diego and Robbie could kick some serious ass."

"Oooh, that sounds like fun!" Caitlin said as she poured a glass of lemonade for a customer.

"Sorry, Caitlin. No chicks, just us guys," Jonesy grinned.

"That's okay, I have a date anyway. You guys know Brian? He works at Belts, Belts, Belts. We're going out tonight. I know it might be soon, but I really think he may be th—."

"The One?" Jude muttered, his voice echoing in melancholy.

"Aw, Jude. You sure you're okay?"

"I think I'm going to go get some grindage. Catch ya later, guys," Jude said getting out from his chair and skateboarding off. Once he was gone the remaining members of the gang turned and looked each other somewhat worriedly.

"He must really be in love," Jen muttered, "I hope he'll be okay."

"He'll be fine," Jonesy muttered dismissively with a wave of his hand.

"How can you say that? Did you even see him just now? He's totally in love!"

"Who do you guys think it is?" Caitlin wondered as she flipped the page in her magazine. "Do you think it's Starr?"

"Nah," Wyatt said shaking his head, "that can't be it. They've been broken up for months now."

"Well, who is it then?" Jen piped. "Jonesy! You're going to find out tonight right?"

"Sure, I can try. I better go though, I've been on my coffee break for the past hour," Jonesy said as he left the table.

Jen shook her head. Why weren't the guys more curious about this new crush of Jude's? It was clearly bothering him, and the fact that it was bothering him meant that it was bothering her. "Caitlin," Jen began.

"I'll keep you posted," Caitlin answered, knowing what Jen was about to say.

"Great, I'll text you later. See ya."

Wyatt watched Jen leave the table and head back to the Penalty Box with a raised eyebrow. "How come all girls seem to have some sort of telepathic link?" Caitlin shrugged her shoulders, mumbling something about it being a 'gift'. "If you say so," Wyatt remarked submissively.

Jude sat at the fountain. He was gloomily munching down on fry after fry as he pushed his skateboard back and forth with his foot. As he sat there, he thought back to the time where he and Starr had agreed to go out after watching Stanley fall into the fountain. That was a long time ago though, and now she was "Nebula". His current crush felt a lot worse than the one he had for her back then, which was probably why he had no idea what to do about it.

The truth was he hasn't felt anything like this before, and no matter how hard he had tried, he couldn't get the feeling to go away. He was in love with one of his best friends, and while that was bad enough he knew that who it was made it even worse. They couldn't be together, he knew that, but... did that mean he shouldn't even mention it?

"Whoa," Jude muttered as his phone vibrated in his pocket. He reached in and flipped it open, not even checking to see who it was. "Yo?"

"Hey Jude, it's me." It was Nikki.

"Oh hey, bra."

"Jen texted me saying you were kinda down, so I was just calling to check in on you. You okay?"

"No, not really, bra," he answered truthfully. "I'm kind of... in love."

"Oh yeah?"

"And the worst part is, it's one of us!" He flung his arms up dramatically, showering the elderly couple behind him in French fries. "Hehe, sorry...," he said sheepishly.

"You're not going to tell me who, are you?"

"Nuh-uh."

Nikki sighed slightly. "Well Jude, I think you should be honest with them. You never know what might happen, I mean, look at me and Jonesy."

"I don't think that could ever happen," Jude muttered.

"Well, you never know, so, don't give up. You might be surprised. I have to go though, but, let me know how it all works out, alright?"

"Alright."

The two of them said their goodbyes and Jude snapped his phone shut. He sat there for a moment, mulling over what it was that he should do next. Although it was the most difficult route to take, he believed that Nikki was right. He needed to tell them... but how?

Caitlin was still nose-deep in her many teen magazines, hoping to find a gem among them that would better her understanding of Jude's situation. Of all the ways to tell your crush how you feel, there weren't that many that were really Valentine's specific surprisingly.

"I knew I should have picked up the special V-Day issue when I had the chance," she grumbled to herself. She looked up briefly from her magazine to see if there were any customers, but instead found Jude hiding on the other side of the mag. "Oh, Jude!"

"Caitlin... I need help telling someone how I feel about them... and stuff."

Caitlin clapped her hands together, dropping the magazine into the blender accidentally. "Hee hee! Jude~! You came to the right place, I can definitely help you tell her how you feel."

"I don't think I can tell them in person, bra..."

"No worries! Gifts left from a secret admirer are so in right now. I can help you get the perfect gift, C'mon, let's go."

Caitlin shut the Lemon down and grabbed Jude by the wrist, taking him to the nearest candy store. "What kind of stuff does this girl like?"

Jude shrugged his shoulders. "I 'unno."

"Well, you can never go wrong with chocolate. Simple rule of girls: we all like chocolate." Caitlin held her finger up matter-of-factly. "Still not going to tell me who she is?" Jude shook his head.

"I think it's better if I told them myself first, y'know?"

"Aww, that's so cute, Jude. Well, definitely go with the chocolate then, you can't go wrong, promise."

Jude looked at the heart-shaped box of chocolates questioningly. He simply shrugged shoulders once more and paid for the chocolates. "Thanks, Cate," Jude said with a weak smile.

"I'm sure whoever she is, she's perfect for you Jude." Caitlin looked down at her watch. "Aw, shoot! I have to go get ready for my date. I'll see you later!"

Jude watched Caitlin leave, and once she had, he returned to their table in the food court to leave the chocolates for his crush. "I sure hope this works," he said to himself.

Wyatt and Jonesy were heading to the food court, talking amongst themselves. Jonesy was giving Wyatt some tips on his date that night, assuming of course that he didn't screw it up.

"I'm telling you, Wyatt, play your cards right and you might just get a homerun tonight."

"Jonesy, I'm barely even in the stadium at this point, it's our first date!"

"First date, pfft. That didn't stop me from scoring with two chicks in one night once!"

"And you actually went all the way with them?"

"Well, no, but, you get the picture. Anything could happen—hey where is everyone?"

Their table was empty and the Lemon was closed. The two guys shrugged their shoulders and sat down in their respective chairs.

"Hey, there's something in my chair," Wyatt grumbled as he pulled up a heart-shaped box of chocolate. He stared at it curiously for a long moment before reading the tag on the box. "Uh, Jonesy... it's for you."

Wyatt slid the box of chocolates across the table to his friend who looked at it just as curiously as the other one had.

"But Nikki's out of town... See what I mean, Wyatt? Play it right, and all the girls would be leaving you candy, taken or not!"

"Uh, Jonesy, I don't think that's from a girl..."

"What?!" Jonesy looked at the tag, his eyes widening... "Dude... it's from Jude!"