Original Valentine

First Posted: 9th of November, 2008

Edited: 3rd of September, 2009

Valentine's Day had proven to be swelteringly hot for Coconut Cove that year. Even past the hottest point of the day, the sun was still strong and overzealous.

Roy felt as content as he imagined a well-fed Persian would be, basking in his swimming trunks in the Floridian sun. The Sunshine State was no Montana, that was for sure, but even he had to admit that being warm without having to wear much clothing was pretty nice.

The ocean was a soothing constant, its waves rushing forwards, dangerously close to his resting spot, before skittering back into itself to regain momentum. A few times the slightly chilled water managed to brush against his sensitive toes.

He opened his eyes, squinting in the intense sunlight, before turning to look at his companion, who had quickly become a constant in his day-to-day life ever since the little quarrel with Mother Paula's All-American Pancake House had been resolved. "Hey Mullet?"

The sun-kissed blond merely grunted, not cracking his eyes open or turning in the direction of the other's voice.

Roy willed his lax body into an upright position, yawning slightly. He could hear his mother harping in his ear now: "Drowsiness is a sign of dehydration, young man! Now, come and get yourself a water bottle! And while you're at it--"

He shook his head slightly with a frown; maybe he was going a little wacky from all this heat.

"Have you ever had a valentine before?"

Apparently Mullet Fingers deemed this question worthy of a bit more attention, because he cracked open one baby blue eye, his eyebrows raised in slight mirth. After a short, silent staring contest, he scoffed and lay back down, closing his eyes. "Valentine's Day is stupid and commercial."

Roy didn't miss the sardonic frown pulling at the other's chapped lips. "So you've never had a valentine, I take it."

His companion didn't bother with a response; instead, he got up from his comfortable spot in the sand, with a grace befitting some kind of dark, cunning feline instead of a lanky teenaged boy, and headed over to the calm waters of the sea.

"I've only had one valentine, back when I was still in Montana," He had lay back down again, and his eyes were shut against the February sun. "But she was so creepy. She had this weird smile--it reminded me of some psychopath's, actually--and she was way into that… what's that weird cartoon cat-thing again? Y'know, the one from--"

"Roy."

He quit his rambling long enough to look next to him, where Mullet fingers had been laying.

Slightly confused, he turned and yelped when he was face-to-face with a dark, slightly scarred kneecap. He glowered when Mullet Fingers chuckled, willing his face to not heat up in embarrassment. "What?" He eyed a pointed piece of shell debris, toying with the thought of chucking it at Mullet's calf.

"Happy Valentine's Day," He crooned with false bravado, and when Roy snapped his head around to look at the blond, he furrowed his brow at the cupped hands being shoved under his nose.

He backed away before getting up, and took a closer peek into Mullet's cradled palms… and gave a startled laugh. "For you, my Cowgirl-love!" He managed to declare through his snickers.

A small, silvery fish, no larger than his index finger, sprinted about in Mullet's cupped hands, banging itself against the fleshy walls.

Roy thought he'd never seen a diamond that sparkled as much as that little fish. "Aw, shucks; Mullet, you shouldn't have." He grinned as they trekked back to the water's edge to release the nervous little mullet.

"I'm the first person who has ever gotten a fish for Valentine's day, I think," Roy pondered aloud as they both watched the narrow little creature zip away from them, into the sprawling expanse of the teal-blue sea.

"Well, now you can say that your valentine's original, and know you're being completely honest," Mullet announced, puffing his chest out.

Roy chuckled, shoving the arrogant blond backwards and grinned, triumphant, when Mullet landed with an indignant oomph in the pale sand. He stopped his laughing, however, when his ankle was caught in a vice-like grip. He gave a slight cry of bewilderment before he, too, found himself sprawled out on the shore.

"That's no way to treat your valentine," Roy admonished, but his façade was completely ruined by the grin on his face.

He could tell the blond imp was all set to dish out a retort, but Roy grinned and playfully pounced upon him, rolling them about in the sand before landing on top of Mullet.

They were both slightly winded, sand peppered throughout their hair, as they took a breather.

Roy felt his grin fading, as his heart began to beat out of rhythm. Mullet was looking up at him in slight confusion and… anticipation?

All of a sudden, he thought, Man, he's got the bluest eyes. And all of a sudden, he found himself leaning forward.

Mullet Fingers, who had been submissively sitting back and staring, felt completely blown away when a pair of soft, unmarred lips tentatively pecked at his rougher, uneven ones.

Roy seemed to snap out of his daze quickly enough, and quickly made his retreat, flying off of Mullet Fingers as if he was on fire.

"Oh G--… God, I'm sorry Mullet! I'm so sorry, I don't know what was going through my head, I--"

Mullet tugged on a wrist that was precariously keeping the brunet balanced, grinning with satisfaction when Roy flopped back on top of him with a startled yelp. "I'm no expert with this whole Valentine's thing, but I'm pretty sure that you're supposed to give your valentine a better kiss than that."

He rolled his eyes when all Roy did was stare at him and flap his mouth open and closed like a fish, and tugged the boy back down by the hair at his nape, firmly pressing his lips against Roy's.

After a lengthy moment, Mullet pulled away, catching his breath as he looked up with interest.

Roy looked just as thrown as before, but now there was a calculating look in those eyes. "Mullet…?"

The blond smirked, and Roy knew he should've taken that as a warning, but it was too late: he'd been pushed into the approaching wave.

He sputtered as he tried to right himself, growling at Mullet Fingers' howls of laughter. "That wasn't very nice!"

"I'm an original valentine, Roy, what can I say?"

He looked up into those sparkling blues, and he couldn't have agreed more.