Gregory Valentine Headcanons that Nobody Asked For
More than just a smart kid, he was already the youngest in his year when he skipped a grade
His teachers wanted him to skip again but he put his foot down (He was already spending the majority of the year two years younger than anyone else he wasn’t going to make it three)
His mom didn’t really understand until he came home one had with a black eye and a ton of other bruises
She wanted to call the school but he claimed he could handle it
He came home the next day with a black eye AND a split lip but he also looked proud as hell so she just gave him a kiss on the forehead and told him he could have second helpings for dinner that night
Teachers LOVED him, which is why they were all so shocked when he got sent to juvie (he was sixteen and walking home from school when he found a guy beating up a male prostitute and he just flipped)
After juvie he couldn’t get into college and even if he could he couldn’t pay for any of them because no one was going to give a scholarship to someone with a record
His name wasn’t always Gregory Valentine, it used to be Valentine Finster, but after his mother declared him a sodomite and tried to convince him to change his ways, he changed his name and moved out (she still helped him find somewhere to live because she loved him and he let her because he was nineteen without many other options)
He wasn’t always so flamboyant, but after a boyfriend who every much was he realised how much he enjoyed the lifestyle
It was after he moved in with Backstrom so he was hesitant at first but he quickly realised that Backstrom didn’t much care what he did so long as he paid the rent
(He should have realised seeming as Backstrom knew he was a thief and a conman but he could just never be sure how people would react after his mother)
He is fluent six in languages, including French, Italian, Spanish, and a little Mandarin
His mother used to kiss his forehead a lot as a kid which is why he does it so much now, it is such a strong sign of affection in his mind, it makes him feel safe
He really likes Niedermayer but despite all the flirting he could never ask him out because he knows he couldn’t keep a steady monogamous relationship
The truth is he wouldn’t have a clue what to do in one as he’s never had one before and his mother wasn’t exactly a shining example of healthy relationships as a kid
When they do finally get together despite all his intelligence he still fucks up several times but Niedermayer always forgives him when Val tells him the truth and is respectful of his past and his boundaries
Valentine cries for hours when he realises this and can’t stop because he’s so unused to someone loving him in that way
When he finds out Backstrom is his brother it’s pretty much one of the greatest days of his life
Backstrom even stops charging him rent after a couple of months
He loves dragging Everett into brotherly activities and even though he moans and groans and whines about it at the start he seems to really enjoy it too
After going out with Peter for a year, knowing Everett is his brother, and his mother finally relenting from calling him a sodimite, Valentine feels like he has a family for the first time in over a decade and it makes he so warm on the inside and he cries for another few hours days