how the !readers celebrate valentine’s day
bahamian!reader is neutral about the holiday but rafe is excited and going all out. their first valentines was the most laid back and it was a first class trip to the bahamas
every valentine's day is a friendly competition to see who can outdo the other's romantic gesture. before the kids they would either spend the day in bed, hit the beach, or go to a club in new york. post-kids the spontaneous traveling has died down but the romance and adventure is still very much there
after dropping the kids off at school the couple have the house to themselves and sleep in til lunch. they have lunch at the country club, ordering every valentine's special available. rafe is intrigued but disgusted at the idea of to-go boxes but that does Not stop bahamian!reader from asking for them
"i guess i just don't get it." rafe watches her effortlessly position the uneaten dessert into a box.
she shrugs, "what's not to get? couldn't finish the food, don't wanna waste it, still want it, i'm takin' it home."
"it's not that strange rafe. no different from leftovers and i know you know what leftovers are rich boy."
he blushes, "i know what leftovers are."
"well then there you go! this isn't all for me you know? not that grabalishous." she closes the final box and licks the cream cheese from the cinnamon roll of her finger. she taps the table, "fuck that's good. i'll give you folks that, you make good treats."
rafe blushes at the casual act made vulgar by his own mind. he looks down at his watch, "we have an hour before school let's out."
"i miss our chirren too but bringing them up on a date is what you rich folks would call a faux pas no?"
he sighs, "no i mean.- we have the house to ourselves..." he tilts his head and squints.
a grin slowly stretches across her face, "ooh you're nasty." she chuckles, grabs the bag full of takeout boxes and stands up. she points at the table, "pay then meet me in the car."
he watches her strut out the lounge, "yes ma'am."
they share their sweet treats with their kids and listen to them talk about their mini valentine's day celebrations at school (and yes they do take some of their candy)
after putting the kids to bed they take a dip in their pool, reminiscing on the times they would get drunk and skinny dip and reslize how dangerousbtaht was
they end the night sleeping soundly on the couch, cuddled up together after a valentine's day different from the ones of the past but still a success in their book (who gets the point for this valentine's will become discussed the next day)
academic rival!pogue always imagined library dates as the extent of pope's romance before she realized she had feelings for him. the reality is a welcomed surprise.
she spends the night at pope's the day before after getting permission from both their parents.
pope stares at the ceiling in his room, "is it a good or bad thing that our parents think we're virgin loaers?"
she stops kissing his neck to meet his eyes, her glare tells him that was the wrong thing to say.
"i wouldn't describe myself like that." she removes herself from his lap and plops down next to him.
he shakes his head and sits up, trying to meet her eyes. "no of course not. i just mean- you know- i'm happy you're here and i have so much planned tomorrow and-"
"pope." she glances at him.
she pushes him back down and throws her legs on both sides of his legs. "stop talking."
pope wakes her up with coffee just how she likes it and gives her an itinerary list of their day. she hates that this has made him 1000 times hotter in her eyes.
10:00-11:00 breakfast/get ready for bookstore
11:30-1:00 bookstore shopping
1:15-2:00 reading at the park + lunch at the wreck
they get ice cream after the movie and head down to the pier which leads them to the beach and collecting as many unique shells as they can find. academic rival!pogue comes up with the idea of putting shells on each other and taking pictures of their work
next valentine's day they both give the pictures they took with decorative frames
wake and bake. arts and crafts (card making) in their shared pajama set while they eat breakfast
"okay that's cheating." she stops kissing her envelope and turns her attention to him.
"kisses? on your envelope? that's like ten sexy points. "
"you literally have color pencils and markers, 10 points for creativity, we're evenly matched and if it's that much if a big deal you can borrow my lipstick?"
"okay so you're just talking to talk. take your L like a man."
after swapping cards and calling the competition a tie they go to the park. they smoke on the swings and talk about the morality of child free spaces until one of the kook parents call the cops on them. kitty's kookness saves them from getting arrested but they have to leave the park
grocery shopping for pizza recipes goes better than expected, they get everything they on their list and almost no one can tell they're high as a kite
watching courage the cowardly dog reruns while they try to make a heart pizza. kitty is running that kitchen like the navy, it's the most intense pj's ever seen her and he into it
they eat their heart pizzas while playing dress to impress. kitty makes comments on how accurate it is to the fashion and modeling world
the first half of the day is a half date half treasure hunt. puppy gives him a bunch of kisses (paper) with her favorite things about written on them and he gives her two tickets to the fair
they go to the beach bright and early because john b is meeting someone ther but puppy is none the wiser. he doesn't rush them to the next destination immediately but it's less out of the kindness of his heart and more because he doesn't need to be there til much later
on the way back from the beach puppy spots a trail and says they should see where it leads. john b worries that this impromptu hike will mess up his schedule but he doesn't wanna look sketchy so he agrees
puppy brings her picnic basket in hopes that they'll find a good spot for a picnic. they do.
"isn't this amazing?" she takes in the beautiful meadow they found once out for the woods.
john b holds his knees to his chest and anxiously taps his foot against the picnic blanket. "yeah it's great."
she sits down by his side and tucks a strand hair behind his ear, it calms his nerves somewhat. "don't worry baby, we'll make it in time."
he feels his heart drop, "how did you-"
"i know you, remember? and i know what someone keeping secrets looks like?" she looks down at her lap, "can you tell me next time?"
he kisses her forehead, "of course lady."
john b spends 30 minutes at the fair before he heads off. he refuses doesn't bring puppy to the mysterious location out of fear of her getting hurt but it doesn't make it any easier for either of them. he promises to make it up to her and tells her that jj will pick her up before zooming out of the parking lot leaving a heartbroken puppy
she's woken up by a hand over her mouth and screams before recognizing the familiar hand, john b. she screams some more at his horrifying entrance and curses ever giving him a key
"what the hell are you doing here?" she turns on the lamp on her nightstand to get a better look at him.
"i told you i'd make it up to you." he takes three steps forward and caresses her face before leaning in for a kiss.
hislips on hers almost melts all the questions out her mind. she softlt psuhes at his chest, "john b. where did you go? what did you find?"
he softly smiles, "don't worry about that right now." he kisses his way down her face, to her neck. she pulls him down on top of her, trying to keep up with his kisses and wiggle back onto the bed.
he slowly lifts up her shirt, placing kisses around her stomach before stopping at her boxers that look very familiar. "you missed me that much."
she looks down at the boxers, "i wanted to be close to you."
he smiles, "i missed you too" he roughly pulls the boxers down. she whimpers in anticipation and at his manhandling.
"shh it's okay." he kisses her cheeks as he pushes his pants down.
"you ready?" she nods. he slowly pushes in, making her grip his shoulders. his breathing grows heavier from the overwhelming feeling of her warmth squeezing around him.
he lokks down. she's having a similarly hard time. "you forgive me yet?"
"mm-hm." her eyes are squeezed shut.
"huh?" he thrusts, "hey. open your eyes baby."
she grips his curls, "y-yes! yes!"
"yeah?" he picks up his thrusts.
he gives her a soft but passionate kiss. "i love you."
"i love you johnny." she wipes her tears.
he slows down his thrusts to lean down and whisper in her ear, "don't cry. i'm sorry."
"i won't leave you alone again." he wraps an arm around her waist lifting her onto his lap.
she drops her head in his shoulder, "johnathan."
'warm' is the only word that comes to their minds when they collapse side by side.
"promise you'll tell me what you found tomorrow?"
they've spent every valentine's together since high school but finally being official stresses them both out. rafe shows up at her house with flowers and balloons and she makes them heart pancakes. it's awkward for a couple minutes before they fall back into their usual routine
rafe gives bestie!kook a letter detailing how he feels since "he's not the best ar words". first time he realized he was in love, apologizing for using her, wanting her to move on with him, they're all in the letter. she cries of course
jewelry shopping after breakfast. bestie!kook picks out a pink heart diamond ring which rafe immediately puts on her finger. makes them think of marriage which leads to them crashing a wedding
talking about the future and hopes and dreams like they used to do on the roof at family parties. they leave early and go to a hotel
a rose petal bath to unwind and two glasses of wine to celebrate a successful valentine's day
weird girl!kook drives to tanneyhill to wake jj up, knowing he crashes there 9 times out of 10. she gives him a wet willy which makes him wake up screaming and cursing until he realizes it's her. irritated that she went through the trouble of getying a box, a gift, and gift wrap for this spoiled brat she calls her boyfriend
"beautiful girl what did i do to deserve this?" his voice us muffled as he whines into her side.
"you were supposed to pick me up at 12." she pulls his hair causing him to wince and remove his face from her side.
"i know. forgive me?" he pouts. she drops her hold on his hair and stands up causing his face to hit the bed.
"gross." she tosses his gift box on the bed, "here's your gift."
he rips it off within seconds and gasps when he sees the contents. "babe! a lighter? and it's got my name on it?" he pulls her into a hug, she pats his head.
can't stay mad at him for long espeically when he gets her the paint/brushes she's been talking about for months and shares his weed with her
they go back to weird girl!kook's so she can check on her babies (ferrets) before they head out
jj surprises her with dinner reservations to her favorite outdoor restaurant. he's on his best behavior which freaks her out so bad. she drags him to the photo booth and kisses him stupid
she only comes up for air after feeling his hand on her butt. she grips his face; "stop whatever you're doing?"
"wha do you mean?" it comes out slurred so she let's go.
"this well adjusted normal guy act. it's freaking me out "
he laughs. it makes her eye twitch. "you're the one that told me to be on my best behavior."
"yeah, your best behavior not your best serial killer impersonation."
he pinches her side, she pinches him back. "you're a really complicated woman you know that?"
he shakes his head and sighs, "i hope no one took our photo. though someone perming off to picture of us making out is kind of flattering, no?"
she shakes her head, "freak." her smile tells him it's a compliment.
going to the abandoned exhibit to paint the walls using the new brushes and paint jj got her. jj's supposed to be lookout but he's too enamored by her painting to notice the sirens, nearly getting them caught
biker!pogue doesn't think the holiday is that big of a deal while rafe sees it as the ultimate indicator of whether or not a couple is meant to last
he gets her flowers and a motorcycle charm for her keychain. she's genuinely surprised at his thoughtfuless and can't help but wonder if he's only doing this out of his misguided belief that valentine's day is some fortune teller or out of actual love for her
it's proven to be the latter when he takes her to an arcade. not just any arcade, but the arcade that helped her hone her motorcycle riding skills. he talks about his intense attitude the whole day and gives the closest thing to an apology he knows
racing on the beach until the sun starts to set. rafe loses back to back to back but insists 4th time's the charm. it's not, he loses again. takes his loss semi gracefully.
they stop at a grocery store in figyre eight and the heywards' in the cut to get everything she needs for the dinner she's got planned. she makes rose-shaped pizza rolls and heart-shaped garlic bread
originally, angel was supposed to go to a church event but rafe somehow convinced her to take a trip with him, mostly as an apology for everything
shocked by how much fun she's having at the getaway, angel starts to think of her future and what she wants in life. making heart shaped cookies and the trial run life with rafe is nice but it reminds her too much of her old life
rafe thinks the resort will cheer her up because he's having a ball but angel doesn't care for it. choosing to go on the tour of the nearby forest instead. it's there she has her spiritual reawakening
she meets rafe back at their cabin and is surprised to find him eating the cookies she made. she apologizes for ruining his planned day but he's not bothered at all
they eat sweets for dinner and feel that pain on the drive back to the outer banks
rafe actually loves valentine’s day-- not the holiday itself but that he gets to prove his worth, take care of his bunny and show her off, so he goes all out. a weekend stay at a resort leading up to the big day.
the first gift of the weekend, a trip to the salon and a new purse filled with 100-dollar bills, because what kind of man would he be letting her pay for her own nails
after the salon they relax by the pool, bunny working on her tan and rafe glaring at anyone that stares too long at her
the second day has bunny lounges by the pool, new nails shining under the sun as she works on her tan. rafe tries to take it easy on the drinking so he's sober at dinner later
candlelit dinner at a classy restaurant rafe bought out just for them. bunny has been dying to go there and is estatic when rafe tells her their dinner plan. squeals and jumps into his arms, covering him in glossy kisses.
"oh thank you thank you thank you!"
"yeah yeah, look save it for later 'kay? i paid good money for this shit, don't want us to be late."
bunny makes him coordinate with her (not those godawful pastels). she gives him a color palette and expects him to stick to it which he does, not wanting to hear her rant about the "color palette for valentine's day" again
rafe goes all out, renting out a limousine for the day driver takes them to dinner
ending the day over the moon and completely lovestruck
they're still not officially together so they don't celebrate together, they just happen to be in the same places at the same time. foxy is still getting used to not hating rafe and rafe is getting used to her not hating him and getting over the betrayal he felt after she helped the pogues. things are rough.
they're both invited to a work event but don't bring a plus one just in case the other is there. they are and they do.
foxy feels rafe's eyes follow her every move and it is just as irritating as she remembers but when she moves to confront him he's chatting with not just any lawyer, but a lawyer at a rival firm who hates her.
she's up for an award but loses to said rival. she goes outside for a smoke and rafe follows suit
"that's a nasty habit you got there."
her bloods runs cold at the sound of his voice, "yeah well considering the circumstances, i think i've earned it."
he leans against the railing, "the circumstances being?"
"should i listen them alphabetically or chronologically?"
he hums and lets them sit in silence for a few seconds. "you deserved that award."
"i know." she exhales, "i think this is karma for all those years i worked for you guys."
he scoffs, "you know i don't believe in that shit."
she puts out her cigarette and turns to him, "what do you believe in cameron?"
he gives her a half smile.
spend the rest of the evening talking shit about the attendees. it's the most fun they've both had in a while.