February 14th
11:45 am

Bzzzz.

Maxine sucked in a breath of air through her nose as she woke up. She curled in on herself, pulling the blankets towards her stomach with her knees, her pillow coming downwards with her hands. A sigh tumbled past the curve of her lip before she started to pat the cool mattress top in search for her phone.

“Ow.” Her knuckles slammed into the corner of her phone before she grasped it in her hand. She retrieved it from under the covers and squinted one eye open to peer at the screen. A little icon of a ringing phone shook back and forth on the small display before Laura’s name appeared. Maxine hooked her thumb in between the two halves of the phone before shoving it between her ear and the pillow. “Hello?”

“Girl, I’m glad you answered,” Laura said, sounding relieved. “Cell signal was down for a while and I couldn’t get a hold of you and I was worried about you. But, you’re ok?”

“Course I’m ok,” Maxine replied, eyes closed. She cleared her throat after hearing how gravelly her voice sounded.

“Well, I didn’t know if you were drugged or something,” Laura  replied, her voice getting high pitched. Maxine was sure her eyebrows were lifted, throwing her free hand into the air before twirling a lock of her hair around her finger, and pacing back and forth.

“What are you talking about?” Maxine asked, becoming more and more awake as the seconds ticked by.

“As long as I’ve known you, you’ve never slept in until noon,” Laura pointed out. And there goes the pursed lips, the hand on her hip, and the sucking of her teeth.

Maxine’s eyes flew open before she sat up in bed, removing her phone from her ear. She glanced down at the display, her jaw dropping just slightly when she saw the time. It was almost 12 o’clock. No wonder she was worried. Laura was right: she never slept in. Not that she didn’t try, she was just used to getting up early due to school, some of her jobs, and especially to maximize her time in practicing her cooking skills.

“I’m fine,” Maxine said, putting a hand to her head. She then twisted in the bed and found  the area next to her empty. Her eyebrows knitted together before she looked around the room, stopping when she noticed the bathroom door was closed, light shining underneath. “We just stayed up late last night. That’s all.”

Laura gasped. “Oooh, doing what?”She asked. Maxine’s shoulders slumped as she let out a heavy sigh.

“Nu-thing,” she replied, putting as much emphasis on the word as she could. “We just talked and got to know each other. We fell asleep talking, that’s it.” Maxine felt her face flush as she thought back to that night. Making pizza, being serenaded on the piano, and just talking until they fell asleep.

Actually, she faked going to sleep for his sake. As the dark morning dragged on, they could find just about anything to talk about. And in his line of work, he needed to get as much sleep as he could get, and she would give it to him. As their conversation wore on, and she knew he was getting tired, she purposefully responded after more and more delay.

Yes, he had kissed her cheek in good night, but only when he thought she was asleep. And yes, there was some cuddling. Let’s be honest though, cuddling with a person was better than cuddling with a pillow. But, that was it. Nothing else happened.

It was so simple and natural.

And nice.

“Awwww. That’s so cute.” Laura made a high pitched squealing sound. “I want full details when you get back. By the way, when do you think that’ll be? I mean, I don’t know if you two planned anything for Valentine’s Day or…”

“Uhhh.” Maxine trailed off. She blinked once, twice, three times.

She hadn’t thought of that herself. Did he want her to stay? Did she want to stay herself? An ache formed in her stomach at the thought and it surprised her. JC would be out finishing the rest of his tour and be immersed in that lifestyle all over again and she’d be back at work. She didn’t know what to expect from him or the situation at all.

Truth be told, she had enjoyed the break from her life and hoped he was enjoying himself as well. Working on a tour was a lot harder than catering for a graduation party or a wedding party or anything like that. They were just from two different worlds and had a chance meeting. No matter what, she’d always remember this Valentine’s Day.

“I don’t know,” she finally answered. “I hadn’t thought about it.”

“Well,” Laura said just a quiet, seeming to pick up on how she was feeling, “just let me know either way, girl. Ok?”

“I will.” Maxine nodded her head despite knowing her friend could see it. “Talk to you later. Or…see you when I get home.” She removed her phone from her ear and jabbed her thumbnail into the small END button. She set her phone down into her lap, glancing towards the closed bathroom door a second time. “Uh, I think I’m going to go.” Once I find my clothes.

“Just…hold on and I’ll get you your clothes,” JC called back his voice muffled by the heavy door. “I’ll let you in here to change.”

“Ok.” Maxine shrugged her shoulders. There wasn’t much she could say about it. Maxine gathered the sheets and blankets around her before flopping back down into the pillows. She lifted her hands and ran her palms over her face before sliding her fingernails over her scalp. She took in another deep breath of air, her nose wrinkling when she smelled smoke.

Smoke?

She sat up in alarm, her heart hammering in her chest. “Uhh, is everything ok?” she asked, her voice quivering just slightly. She bunched the muscles in her leg getting ready to launch herself out of bed and into the hall the second the fire alarm went off.

“Fine.”

“Oh, yeah, because smoke coming out of the bathroom isn’t anything to worry about.” Maxine rolled her eyes before taking another whiff. It didn’t smell like cigarette smoke.

Of course he couldn’t smoke due to his line of business, but maybe it just took the edge off things. A lot of her coworkers smoked to calm their nerves. It didn’t smell like anything caught on fire. She had accidentally set too many wash cloths on fire to know what that kind of fire smelled like. But, it was familiar. Almost like…

“A candle?” Maxine’s nose wrinkled when she spotted the small white and pink striped candle that sat in the container of brownies in JC’s hands. “What the-?”

“Happy Valentine’s Day,” JC said with a smile. He handed Maxine the brownies before he stepped up onto the bed, lowering himself into a seated position. He crossed his legs as best he could. “Go on, blow out the candle.” He put a hand in the air. “I promise, despite being made in the bathroom, they’re really good.”

Maxine leaned forward and extinguished the flame with a single puff. “Where did you get these?” she asked, removing the candle from the center.

“I bought it a couple days ago. To be honest, I kind of hid them from Joey and Chris because I knew they’d eat them before I got the chance to have any,” JC said with a roll of his eyes, getting a laugh out of Maxine. He shrugged his shoulders. “I thought it’d be nice to have if I was going to be by myself, but now I have someone to share with  so…” He shrugged his shoulders.

“Thank you, that’s very sweet,” Maxine said, bowing her head, feeling herself blush.

“Sure,” JC replied. He reached out a hand and carefully worked out a piece of brownie. “Just don’t tell Joey or Chris.” Cupping his hand underneath his mouth, JC took a bite out of the brownie.

Don’t tell them about the brownies or about me? Maxine hated that the thought came dive bombing into her thoughts and she tried to shake it away. She gave JC a smile of thanks before leaning forward and planting a kiss on his cheek.

JC’s eyes widened as his chewing paused for a moment. “What was that for?” he asked, a chocolaty smell emanating from his mouth.

“For all of this,” Maxine replied, waving her hand in the air. “You didn’t have to do any of this for me.” She then gave him a teasing smile. “But, I wouldn’t want you to have to feel the wrath of your mom.”

“Thanks for that,” JC said with a laugh, his deep timbre mixing in with hers. “But you can stop thanking me. It’s no problem.” He then clapped his hands together before pointing his fingers at her. He back rolled off of the bed before crossing to the closet, pulling the sliding door open. He reached for the top shelf and carefully pulled down her clothes. “Here you go.”

“Thanks.” Maxine took her clothes and hurried into the bathroom to change out of her borrowed clothes. As she folded the shirt and pants in her hands, she felt her muscles tense as she really fought the urge to lift the shirt to her nose to take in a final smell. It probably smelled more like her now anyway. At least that’s what she told herself. “What do you want me to do with--?”

Maxine’s words died on her lips as she watched JC’s abdominal muscles ripple as he lifted a clean shirt over his head before he pulled the hem down to his waist. He raked his fingers through his hair. “You can just throw that in the closet.” Maxine nodded her head as she made her way around the bed for her shoes, throwing the clothes to the floor of the closet.

The sound of rain hitting against the window pane caught her attention and she paused for a moment to push the curtains back. The clouds looked more puffy and a lighter gray in comparison to the dark, threatening storm clouds from before. It was almost all over and with a weight in her stomach, Maxine realized how symbolic it was to her situation.

“So, I guess I’ll head out.”

“Can I get your number?” Maxine whirled around to face JC, allowing the curtains to swing shut. “Just in case you leave something.”

Duh! “Right, sure,” Maxine replied with a half smile. JC reached for the pen and hotel stationary on the bedside table and handed it to her. She quickly scribbled down her name and number before handing it back to him. She quickly slipped on her shoes and located her wallet and phone, making sure she had them.

Do I hug him or…? She stood awkwardly by JC’s bed for a moment before forcing another word of thanks out of her mouth before she made her way towards the door.

“Don’t forget your brownies.” Maxine looked back at JC and saw that he was holding the box out towards her. His demeanor had changed. His gaze was shifted towards the ground, he shifted his weight from foot to foot, and he scratched at the side of his jaw.

“You can keep them,” she replied.

“I  can fend off Joey and Chris,” JC said with a half smile. He shook the box, insisting on it. “Don’t worry about that.”

“Thanks.” Maxine grasped the box in her hand, reaching behind her with her other hand to unlock the door and pull it open. She held the door open with her foot and waved before slipping out into the hallway. She willed her legs forward, guiding her to the elevators. Once inside she slumped into the corner. What did you expect was going to happen? He’s a famous pop star for crying out loud!

Shaking her head from side to side, she tried to get rid of the thought, to shake out the nerves, to try and counter act the rapid beating of her heart. The elevator lowered her to the first floor and the doors slid open with a ding. After stopping at the front desk to call her a taxi, she stepped out the revolving door to wait. She realized that she didn’t have an umbrella and that fact didn’t bother her.

It matched her mood, it matched the situation and a part of her hoped it’d wash all thoughts of JC from her mind. The rain water was cold enough to attempt at shocking the thought of her. The initial droplets of water hitting her skin robbed her of her breath, not unlike the feeling of JC wiping flour from her face the night before.

Suddenly, it stopped raining around her and Maxine looked up to see JC standing over her, holding an umbrella above her head with one hand. She parted her lips, but no words came out. He, on the other hand, had no trouble talking.

“Look, I don’t know how we’re going to work this out, if we want to work this out because of our schedule, my schedule, but I’m going to call you later and I hope you answer,” JC said, his words pouring out of his mouth before Maxine could even form a syllable in her mouth. “Because I’d like to hang out with you again.”

Maxine opened and closed her mouth a couple times before a smile pulled the corners of her lips upwards. “Yeah, I might not pick up,” she answered. JC swallowed. “Because of my changing work schedule and all. But, if you don’t want to resort to having bathroom-made brownies for dessert, I think I can work something out.”

JC let out a startled laugh, shaking his head. He brought his bottom lip into his mouth with his teeth, smiling. “You’re terrible,” he commented, locking eyes with her.

Maxine’s eyebrows twitched upwards. “You have no idea.”

JC gave her a peaceful smile, lifting a hand to brush her hair from her face. He cupped her cheek in the warm curve of his hand and rubbed small circles on the ample curve of her cheek before dipping his head, pressing a gentle kiss to her lips.

Maxine’s eyes fluttered shut as she looped her arms around her neck. He removed his hand from her face and gripped her hip, pulling her closer towards him. The world slowly faded around her, the sounds of slow raindrops falling, birds chirping, and cars speeding by decreased as if being lowered by a volume dial…

Bzzzzzzzz.

Maxine let out a small huff of annoyance before she pulled her ringing phone out of her pocket, flipping it open with her thumb. “Hello? Hey, Laura. Yeah, on my way back now, waiting for my taxi.” She pursed her lips, lifting her eyebrows as she looked over at JC as Laura’s response slid into her ear. “Yeahhhh, I’ll let you know when I get back. Mhm, all the details like I promised.”

JC chuckled, scratching the back of his neck, a grin on his face, blue eyes bouncing from object to  object  as he rocked back and forth on his feet.

“Yep. Yeah, I’ll see you in a little bit.”

Maxine closed her phone against her hip and slid it back into her pocket. She dropped her gaze to the sunlit pavement before lifting her head to look up at JC. He gave a half smile, his bottom lip catching between his teeth, earning a smile from her as well only to be smothered in another kiss.

All that mattered in that time was who she was with on that Valentine’s Day.

The best Valentine’s Day of all.