i think! ★ sturniolos

𝐕𝐈𝐈 : valentine?

𝗩𝗔𝗟𝗘𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗘?
# - 𝐜𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬 sturniolo.
# - 𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐞 intended.

༄ 𝐖ho was she?
nobody knew. not even her. that's what intrigued him.

some say she was hurt in her past, some say she's just distant. others say she's simply a fuck-up with nowhere else to be but within herself.

chris has tried talking to her a few times. she doesn't talk back. she stares at him, face empty. yet, if chris gazes for long enough, he can see a glint of gratefulness in her eyes.

she likes the company. she hasn't said so herself, but he knows it. they both know he knows it.

chris felt bad for her. nobody knew who she was. that wasn't the sad part; the sad part was that nobody cared to try change that.

"what if she's dangerous?"

"she's batshit, everyone knows it."

"she's some runaway, or that's what i've heard, at least."

they say it to her face. her angelic, sweet face that acts as a shield for a damaged soul that would never wish harm upon anyone.

chris thought about this as he looked at her with optimism, sitting at her usual spot by the white picket fence, surrounded by dampened grass and morning dew. he held a small gift behind his back.

he sat next to her and felt the wetness of the ground on his lower half. she didn't react, per usual.

"happy valentines day." chris said, looking at her with a smile. she looked up at him, her eyes closing tiredly. chris figured she had just woken up.

"i got you something," he said, handing her the small brown gift bag. he had even taken the time to tie a small ribbon on it to make it look fancier.

she didn't take it. she only glanced at it, then at him, then her shoes. chris set the bag in her lap, refusing to take no as an answer.

she gave him a side eye (which made him laugh quietly), and accepted defeat. she gently took the tissue paper out, only to find a card, a candy bar, and a black box.

the card was removed first. the front was all pink with a beaming red heart with glitter sprinkled expertly amongst the matte.

she opened it. in scribbly handwriting, will you be my valentine? with a large smiley face was written vertically down the right-hand side of the card. her eyes found the bottom of the note. to: Y/N. from: chris :)

and for the first time ever, chris watched as she smiled. it was small, but he saw the wrinkles in her cheeks, her tiny dimples, and the way her eyes squinted slightly. his cheeks hued pinkish as she looked at up him as if to say "yes, thank you".

she nodded. his smile grew wider, teeth showing, a lovesick feeling swirling in the bottomless pit of his innards. a feeling of pure adoration rumbled through his bones when she removed the black velvet box, and held it in one hand, opening it with the other.

inside was a ring. tears would have brimmed in her eyes if she were anyone else. it was a beautiful bronze, intertwining with itself repeatedly to form a pattern. she recognized the material immideately; guitar strings. he had bought her a guitar string ring with her birthstone in the middle, glistening within the dim light of boston's morning sunshine.

"do you like it?" chris whispered. he was closer than she remembered him being, but she wasn't mad about it; no, no. in fact, she was quite joyous about the circumstances that were taking place, unfolding right infront of her eyes.

to his surprise, she dropped the ring on the ground. she dropped all of his gifts, including the bag and the candy bar, and threw her arms around his shoulders. she pulled him as close as she could, silently thanking him for everything he had done for her in these past three months of visiting her, being patient with her.

chris held her as tight as he could. neither of them could breathe preoperly, but they didn't care.

they were two kids in love, and that was all that mattered in that moment; them.

she pulled away hesitantly. chris allowed her to, holding her ring in his palm. she stared at his face for a few more moments.

"why don't you hate me?" she asked. her voice was delicate and quiet. chris's pupils dialated in shock.

"w-what?" he stuttered. "Y/N, how could i hate you? nothing in this world could make me hate you."

she didn't expect to feel loved on the lonliest day of the year. yet, by the grace of god, here she was. "nothing in this world could make me hate you." she bubbled with utter disbelief and pure devotion.

his hand found her face, and tears found her eyes.

a single tear leaked silently from her eye. she felt accepted, a feeling that could never be reciprocated or copied or stomached fully until the circumstance comes to a close in its entirety.

"i knew there was something special about you from the day i saw you," chris continued. she inched her forehead closer to his. "i knew you deserved somewhat of a chance, even if its from a fucking loser like me."

she smiled at him as he wiped away one of her tears. he pushed his forehead against hers.

"i knew i was capable of loving you, Y/N."

and with that, they sat with each other, dwelling within the other's presence. she spun her newly gifted ring as it adorned the angelic craftsmanship known as her hand, and ate her candy bar without sound on his lap, him holding her with all that was left in him.

all was well.

☆