Love Day

I'm not normally overly gushy and romantic. I'm not a fan of public displays of affection, sappy stories, red roses or any of that sugary crap. Don't even get me started on the hideous jewelry Jane Seymour designs. But I do like love. I like that Seth and I have fifteen years of history together, some of it good, some of it bad, but all of it ours. I like that I don't have memories after the age of thirteen that don't include him. I like that we've been discovering what real love is together, and it has nothing to do with roses or sweet nothings. Love is work. It's the hardest thing we've ever done, but it's also a worthy cause.

I've been writing "our story", or at least I was before I got pregnant and will continue after my creativity returns. In honor of Valentine's Day, here's an excerpt from our first February 14th together. We were not officially "going out" at this point. And we were in 8th grade. Enjoy the awkwardness.

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On Valentine’s Day, I sat with my friend Leah during study hall, going over our notes for a History test. Seth sat at the table to our right, fidgeting with his pencil. I could feel his stare warming my cheeks, but pretended not to notice other than casting a few smiles his way. I was busy wondering what he was thinking when I saw him sharing a private conversation with the teacher, Mrs. Gumm. She was chuckling and asking him questions, and his ears were bright red. After a few minutes, they headed to her classroom. Curious, I thought, but put my focus back on my studying.

Later, during art class, I discovered what they had been up to. Mrs. Gumm had stocked up on little heart shaped cakes to pass out to our class in honor of the holiday. She’d given one to Seth to assist him in his romantic endeavors. Art was right before lunch, so after I’d finished my project, I headed to my locker to stow books and grab my food. When I opened my locker, I found two little cakes, and a heart shaped note cut from red construction paper. “Sweets for my Sweet. Love, Seth.”

My heart plummeted into my stomach. This was it! Finally, a grand gesture of affection! He was laying claim to me, I was sure of it. I had to play this right.

So what did I do?

Naturally, I told all my friends right away and we laughed and giggled together. Being brilliant junior high girls, we quickly hid the cakes and note in my coat pocket, deciding it would be really funny to pretend like nothing happened at all.

Seth came to our lunch table to a chorus of stifled giggles. No one said a word about the note, but I couldn’t help but smiling at him every so often. Lunch was nearly over when he leaned over and whispered, “Did you get my note?”

Blushing, I whispered back, “Yes. Thank you.”

He seemed pleased after that.