Tuesday came and went by quickly, thanks to me smiling every time I thought of my relationship with Skye. I was really theirs now, and vice versa. I smiled so much that Rob had to ask if something good came up on Wednesday. 

“Yeah, I am in a relationship with someone now. Their name is Skye.” 

Rob was surprised by the name.

“Is their last name Long?” 

“Why yes, yes their last name is Long. Do you know them?” 

Rob laughed. 

“Yes, Skye is actually my neighbor. Oh my god, you were the person who ran away and fainted near my house, right? I knew someone fainted nearby, and the next thing I knew Skye was carrying someone while running to the nearby hospital. That was you?” 

Wait what? My babe definitely did not mention this detail to me. I couldn’t imagine their worried face when they were carrying me. They must be freaking out at that point. I would too if I were in their shoes.

“Oh, yeah, that was me. I was out on Monday as I was being discharged from the hospital that day. Skye did not tell me anything after I fainted, the next thing I knew I was at the hospital.”

“Well, Skye is a good person. I’m happy you’re dating them.” 

Of course I didn’t mention that Skye was also my bully in school, not that Rob needed to know now. Plus, that was the past and what was the most important thing was that Skye was a good partner who knew how to treat someone like royalty. 

“Thank you. I’m actually going on a date with them after work, so I’ll actually be taking off slightly earlier than usual.” 

I intentionally said that to make sure that Rob was aware of my after-work plans and didn’t throw a last-minute case to me. Even though we were colleagues, Rob was my senior at work and had the responsibility to delegate tasks to me. 

“Fine, today looks like it will be a quiet day after all.” 

At exactly 5pm, I logged off from my computer and packed my stuff. As I finished packing, I received a text from my babe.

Babe <3: Let me know when you’re done with work. I can’t wait to see you.

Me: I’m done, I’m coming down now. 

Babe <3: Great, see you soon my love.

Once I reached the ground floor, to my surprise, Skye was there in their very fancy outfit. Skye was dressed in a tuxedo with a red tie, while carrying a bouquet of red roses and a teddy bear. I was awestruck. 

“Babe, what on earth is this? Why are you dressed so well? Are we going somewhere fancy? I need to change!” 

Skye gave me a kiss on the cheek to calm me down. Not surprisingly, that worked well in their favor, and I returned the kiss by giving them a kiss on the cheek too. 

“Don’t worry, my love. I just wanted to dress up today, and we aren’t going anywhere too fancy, so your outfit is perfectly fine.”

They then passed me the flowers and teddy bear. The teddy bear was also holding a card that said “Happy Valentine’s”.

Oh my god, it was Valentine’s Day today. I was so engrossed in my work that I forgot about this day. I realized that I needed to get something for Skye too.

“Oh shit, I didn’t get anything special for you, babe. I totally forgot today was Valentine’s Day.” 

Skye laughed as if it was not a big deal. 

“I knew you would say that. It’s okay, you are my Valentine anyway, that’s the best present for me.”

They just knew exactly what to say, even if it was so cheesy. I enjoyed being cheesy too, though. I knew I still had to get something for Skye, even if it was last-minute.

“Before we leave for dinner, can I get something at the convenience store nearby? I really need to get this thing before I forget.”

Skye figured that I wanted to get something for them, but didn’t stop me and nodded instead. I quickly darted to the convenience store, searched for a big box of chocolates that I knew they would like. I then paid for the chocolates and darted back to them.

“Happy Valentine’s, babe. Sorry that this was last-minute but I can’t accept not getting you anything. I know you enjoy this brand of chocolates, so - “ 

Before I could finish my sentence, Skye pulled me closer and gave me a long and intense kiss, this time on the mouth. I figured I did the right thing there.

“You really didn’t have to, my love, though I appreciate whatever you get me. Thank you.” 

“You’re welcome, babe. Now let’s go to dinner. Where are you taking me anyway?” 

As it turned out, Skye made a reservation at a fancy vegetarian restaurant. I may have liked my meat, but after I started dating Skye, I have been enjoying all sorts of vegetarian cuisines, where the meat substitutes were very close to the non-vegetarian options. Apparently Skye also had a full 7-course meal ordered, so each course was a different selection of famous dishes made vegetarian. Even the dessert was fully plant-based, and it was my favorite mint chocolate chip ice cream. 

I beamed at my babe. They were so thoughtful and knew exactly what I liked. They then told me something I wasn’t expecting.

“So as soon as I realised you enjoyed mint chocolate chip ice cream, I went ahead and asked the chef if they could make a plant-based option. They usually needed a week’s notice for any menu changes, but I asked really nicely to see if they could accommodate the change. Thankfully they did say yes, so you get your mint chocolate chip ice cream today. I hope you enjoy it, my love.” 

I had to give them a hug and a kiss at this point. Skye really treated me like royalty, and I felt very loved.

“Oh you didn’t have to do that, babe. That’s too sweet of you. It must cost a fortune for this meal.”

“Oh nah, I know the owner of this restaurant, so I basically called in a favor since he owed me a few.”

I was surprised. Skye seemed to know many people, especially as a musician.

“Speaking of mutuals, I just found out that Rob, your neighbor, is my colleague at work. He saw everything that happened on Sunday. He told me you carried me all the way to the hospital.”

Skye started turning pink.

“Yeah, I didn’t want to mention that because I was embarrassed. You turned out fine anyway.”

“Babe, thank you. Thank you for being there for me. I love you, Skye.”

Oh wow, I wasn’t expecting to say that so soon, but it was true. I really did love Skye. Of course Skye wasn’t expecting to hear that so soon either, but their reaction to it was something I would never forget.

“I love you too, Lee. Thank you for being you.”