Maleficent

Jeremy Forbes had asked me to be his Valentine.

And I had said yes.

My fingers traced the curve of the pendant dangling on the chain around my neck, admiring the smooth beautiful necklace that Jeremy had clasped around my neck. Sneaking a glance over my shoulder, I caught him smirking at me, watching as I obsessed over the delicate Valentine gift he had given me.

Snapping my eyes back to my notebook, I wondered how the hell I had come to this conclusion. I never accepted Valentine requests. I never tied myself down. But the moment I had turned and seen Jeremy kneeling, actually kneeling, before me, well I caved. Honestly, I didn’t regret it, though I’d never admit that out loud. Jeremy had been a gentleman all day, which I found surprising. After our strange meetings previously, I couldn’t really be sure what to expect.

Bentley on the other hand, had heard the rumours and seen with his very own eyes, the arm I had threaded through Jeremy’s as he escorted me to class. The glare was obvious and threatening though Jeremy didn’t seem fazed by his brother’s hostility. A moment later and Laura came stalking down the hall with the very bouquet Bentley had been holding that morning.

“Seriously?” Jeremy exclaimed once the final bell had rung. “You weren’t kidding when you were surprised I didn’t know you.”

I smirked; my hip jutted out to the side as he stuffed my Valentine’s notes and chocolates into his bag and gathered up the roses still stuffed into my locker.

“This is only half,” I smiled in amusement. “I saw a couple of girls stealing some roses earlier to either claim the Valentine or give it away. I don’t know.”

He grunted in response, shaking his head as he led me out into the cold. Tugging his borrowed jacket closer, I followed Jeremy out to his car, piling into it as fast as I could. It smelled of leather, and the subtle scent of his cologne which oddly comforted me.

“So do you like sushi?” he asked, folding into the car and throwing his bag on the back seat.

“Only one of my friends who does,” I replied, disappointedly.

Giving me a pleased grin, he pulled out of the car park and headed towards town. “Good,” he said. “That’s where we’re going.”

The town was lit up like a Christmas tree once we reached it; obviously opening later for the Valentine’s holiday. The sidewalks were covered with swarms of couples. Most of them clinging to each other as if their lives depended on it. I suppose it kind of did. If you got lost in that mass, you’d probably get trampled.

“You’re never going to find a parking space,” I mused, indicating to the people milling around the restaurants.

“How much do you wanna bet?” Jeremy replied, pulling neatly into a free park. “How about a kiss?” I narrowed my eyes at his cocky smirk.

“I never agreed,” I answered, leaping from the car.

Giving a small breathless laugh, Jeremy held his arm out to me; leading the way to the sushi restaurant he had been praising the whole ride here. It was quaint. A large sign, with a simple fish outline and iSUSHI written in its centre, glowed at the top of the doorway. A train, lined with stools sat at the restaurants centre, already filled with chattering people pulling plates from the belt.

At that point, it didn’t look as though we would be getting a seat anytime soon. The smell of the rice vinegar mixed with assorted meats was making my mouth water. I was about ready to turn and find a free restaurant if we could manage, but Jeremy pulled me along behind him, locating two empty stools that seemed hidden from the entrance. His grin was infectious, reminding me of when I’d first met him. In the woods, dragging a drunken Bentley back to the party.

I smiled back, laughing and shaking my head in disbelief at his luck tonight. “Let’s play a game,” I announced, pulling a pair of wooden chopsticks from the box and rubbing them together. “I’ll pick what you eat, and you pick mine.”

For a moment, Jeremy’s eyes scanned the belt lined with sushi plates in crazy designs before his grin widened. “You’re on,” he agreed, setting a plate in front of me.

Salmon. Such a tame choice compared to the unknown selections circling the bar. Biting down on my bottom lip, I waited for the perfect plate to pass, landing one that I had no idea what it consisted of. It looked a little slimy, like green spaghetti strands shoved into a roll in the shape of a boat. I smirked at Jeremy’s uncertain look.

“So,” I mused, getting down to business. “What’s your deal?”

Jeremy ruffled a hand through his hair as he poked at his sushi with a chopstick. “My deal?” He asked, finally deciding to shove his food in his mouth and get it over with.

“Yeah,” I answered with a laugh. He was turning slightly green, chewing his food slowly before swallowing. “You’ve been kind of weird,” I continued. “One minute you’re all mysterious. Then you’re sending me death glares. And now you’re my fucking Valentine.”

“Oh, no,” he smirked, giving me a sly wink. “We’ll be getting to that later.”

It took me a second to catch his meaning, giving his arm a playful smack. “See what I mean?” I cried out, blushing slightly. “We’ve gone from innocent Valentines to fuck buddies.”

“Does it bother you?”

It didn’t bother me in the slightest. I’d had my fair share of rumours on the mill, but I couldn’t help but feel intrigued by this boy. He was so forward. So direct with his mood, even if they didn’t particularly make any sense. I shook my head, downing a slice of sushi.

“So?” I asked. “Let’s have it. What’s with you? And why have you been acting weird around me?”

Jeremy was silent, watching the varieties of sushi passing by. He had finished the strange selection I’d given him before, so now he was waiting for another. Picking out the chicken and avocado, I set it down, still waiting for an answer.

“It won’t make any sense to you,” he answered finally. “But you aren’t what I expected. You’re different, and I guess I didn’t really know what to do about it.”

“What do you mean, I’m different?” I pushed. “What exactly were you expecting? You don’t even know me.”

Jeremy just shook his head, brushing off my questions and I didn’t dwell on them long. Somewhere during the dinner, he had changed the direction of our conversation and we’d begun joking about what exactly we were eating. Cat and crocodile were amongst the most voted. By the time we finished, we were in hysterics, stumbling out of the sushi bar, and tears streaming down my face.

“Thanks,” I smiled, glancing at Jeremy briefly as he drove me home. “For today.”

“It was nothing,” he replied, his lips tilting up at the corners. Turning the car into my driveway, he switched off the ignition and stretched. It was getting late.

“I mean it,” I insisted before I could stop myself. “This was something to me. It’s not what I usually do and, well, it was nice.” My fingers found the pendant on my necklace. It was quickly becoming a habit. “And for this too.”

Jeremy stopped, his eyes darting to mine before turning away, blushing. “It’s nothing, really,” he whispered. “Just something someone gave me a long time ago.”

The tone of his voice broke me. There was such sadness, lacing with his attempts at keeping his words from breaking. He seemed like the loneliest person in the world.

“Well it’s beautiful,” I said, giving him a small smile before leaning across and giving him a kiss on the cheek. “Happy Valentine’s Day, Jeremy.”