Happy Valentine's Day! (Patreon)

As a followup to our poll, I'm just gonna drop some Valentine's Day fun facts.

First, about the day itself - I kinda love that the results of the poll had the highest answers be to stay in and cook together and then have a casual night of movies at home. Honestly, love the energy of being comfortable and keeping it inexpensive. Anyone doing this tonight?

If you're having a night in with your loved one, I might suggest having some fun, with strawberries and chocolate!

https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/gourmet-chocolate-covered-strawberries/

(easy peasy)

If you want to know about me, personally, I'll have you know that I would never share this on main. But I'm more of a cheesy kinda girl. I love making a playlist or sending songs to my girlfriend orrr reading aloud to her. The funny thing is that someone told me she and her girlfriend did this with my books, one time, and I was like... girl, why!

But now, I get it. It's such an easy little bonding thing!

I'm a sucker for holidays, though, even this one. Even when I'm not in a relationship, I love it and get little boxes of chocolates for my friends. .... okay, I did this again this year, even being in a relationship. I'm a true galentine's day girl, ain't no way my friends are shaking me off

Anyway... moving on to something a little less about me and a little more what The People Want:

Couples in the HCLU and how they feel about Valentine's Day!

Sutton Spencer - it might come as a huge surprise to you all to know that Sweet Sutton is, indeed, a Valentine's Day lover. It's about the *romance*, people!

Unfortunately for Sutton, she has never had a truly successful romantic venture for Valentine's Day. Her high school and undergrad boyfriends were - as we know from TWW - disappointing to say the very least.

It's really always been about Galentine's Day for our girl. Regan and Sutton have their traditions of romcoms and candy. Which she indulges in during her first Valentine's Day where she is dating Charlotte, as well. Because she isn't quite naive enough to believe that her workaholic girlfriend who is still in her first year in Congress is going to take the time during a work day to celebrate a holiday that Sutton can admit is mostly Hallmark fanfare.

(fine, she had flowers delivered to Charlotte's apartment in the evening; she can't help herself. She has a beautiful girlfriend and she loves love!)

Charlotte Thompson - It might also come as a huge surprise to you all to know that Charlotte Thompson is indeed not a celebrator of Valentine's Day - not that she ever really had very strong opinions on the matter. More that... who cares? Girl has ambition and no girlfriend, so, it's really just any other day.

But Charlotte Thompson is no slouch when it comes to romance. And she's definitely no slouch when it comes to knowing the woman she's in love with.

It's almost baffling to her when Sutton doesn't bring up Valentine's Day to her. Only sending her a text in the morning that says Happy Valentine's Day. I love you. <3

And when she hears the knock on her door after arriving home from work, she can't help but feel more than a little smitten when she receives her favorite flowers.

She also can't help but text Sutton - Got a delivery... it's a shame my beautiful girlfriend wasn't the courier...

I wasn't even sure you'd be home from work yet! Do you like them?

I love them. I'd love to see you tonight even more.

It's really all it takes to get Sutton moving.

And when she arrives, she is shocked to see Charlotte's immaculate kitchen (seeing as how Charlotte does not cook or bake) a fucking mess.

Because SOMEONE got Katherine Spencer's recipe for lemon cakes and is in her second attempt at making them for the love of her life.

"I was trying to do something special; I thought you'd appreciate the homemade attempt but..." Charlotte trailed off, frustrated, as always, when she failed at something.

Spoiler alert: she is right

Another spoiler alert: she would not perfect this dessert for years to come

A third spoiler: They celebrate Valentine's Day having sex on Charlotte's kitchen table.

Brooke Watson - Brooke isn't really one for commercial holidays, if she's being honest.

Valentine's Day throughout her childhood meant feeling embarrassed at school when everyone passed out their nice store-bought Valentine's Day cards - her mom wasn't one to bring her to the store or to spend money on those kind of things. It was always a crappy day for her. But her most prominent memory for the day was Taylor Vandenberg walking her home from Thistle Drive the week before V-Day, asking what kind of cards she'd gotten for her class.

And Brooke muttering, "I don't have any."

Only for Taylor to slip her a box - complete with Jolly Rancher lollypops attached - two days later.

In adulthood, her focus on Valentine's Day is all business. It means Faircombe celebrations and she is going to make sure it all goes smoothly.

Taylor Vandenberg - Love is beautiful. Love is fleeting. And everyone around the world does it differently.

She's celebrated the day of wine in Bulgaria. The week of sweetness in Argentina. The Day of San Dwynwen in Wales. The Sisters Meal Festival in Southwest China. Sobrapaev in Estonia. And it's all been well worth the experiences (and the people she's met along the way).

She likes to shower Brooke with her affections all of the time - Valentine's Day is no different.

It doesn't mean, however, that she doesn't sneak up behind Brooke during the Lover's Lane stroll, "Boo!"

Brooke, much to Taylor's delight, didn't jump so much as an inch, merely giving her a look out of the corner of her eye as she pretended to continue looking at her clipboard. "Can I help you?"

"You can, actually," Taylor mirrored Brooke's business-professional tone, as she reached out and plucked the clipboard from her girlfriend's hands. "You see, it's the Lover's Lane stroll. And I'm in need of my lover."

"Don't call me your lover," Brooke wrinkled her nose adorably at the word, as she made a feeble attempt to grab her precious clipboard back.

"Why?" Taylor held it just out of reach,instead reaching out to wrap her free arm around Brooke's waist and spinning them to tug Brooke even closer. She lowered her mouth to Brooke's ear to whisper, "It feels like a very apt word to refer to the woman who made me come so hard this morning I couldn't walk right for an hour." She ducked down close enough to nip her teeth into Brooke's earlobe, before whispering right against her skin, "Lover."

She was so close she could feel the way Brooke's breath shuddered out against her, the way her body melted into hers, even as Brooke pulled back from her just enough to roll her eyes into hers.

The dualities of Brooke Watson.

She slipped her hand into Taylor's, though, lacing their fingers together. The perfect fit.

"I'll offer your clipboard back, for indulging me." She held it out for Brooke to take.

And Brooke eyed it for a second, before she bit her lip and surveilled the scene - the decorated town square - around them. "I'll let you hold onto it for now."

Taylor couldn't contain her grin or the warmth that settled right around her heart if she tried.

From Brooke? That was nearly an engagement ring.

Caroline and Hannah - Since we spent Caroline and Hannah's first and second Valentine's Days with them already, we will go in a little bit of a different direction...

The third time Abbie heaved a sigh, pushing around her mashed potatoes on her plate, Caroline locked eyes with Hannah, arching an eyebrow.

Her wife shook her head and shrugged.

Family dinners weren't always a guarantee with their schedules - Caroline occasionally had to stay at the office during late nights, Abbie's soccer practices and games could run late, Hannah was working on a big project at her firm as the lead architect on a new building in the financial district.

But the few times a week they managed to snag the time together, conversation never dragged. And it wasn't technically dragging tonight - Caroline could maintain a conversation with Hannah for hours.

The oddity was that Abbie was silent. Well, other than her sighing.

Normally, Abbie had a lot to say. It wasn't like she didn't have typical sixteen-year-old reticence at times, but usually, she could talk their ears off about soccer, about her cooking videos, about her favorite and least favorite classes, about all of the high school gossip.

"Honey, I'm just going to be very honest - you're concerning us," Hannah came right out with it.

They'd already attempted to ask Abbie about her indoor soccer season that had recently started - it was going fine - and about her most recent cooking tiktok video - it also had gone fine - and how her friends were - for the record, they were also doing fine.

Hannah's statement made Abbie finally look up from her plate, incredulous frown firmly in place. "Concerning you? What are you talking about?"

"It's fine. I'm fine. Everything's fine," Caroline mimicked Abbie, nudging her foot under the table, getting her to look up. She managed to nudge a small smile from her before she said, "Normally when we get you going, you're ready to talk through all of dinner. And beyond."

Abbie rolled her eyes, hard. "I don't talk that much."

"Yes, you do," she and Hannah confirmed at the same time. She looked across the table and caught gray eyes, feeling the smile that moved over Hannah's face just ping right in her chest.

Abbie groaned, abandoning her fork on her plate as she slumped back in her chair. "Fine, okay, I like to talk! Sue me."

"I would, except we like to hear it!" Caroline encouraged.

"I, for one, wanted the update about Amaya asking Ben to the Sweetheart Dance. And we've been left waiting on the update," Hannah joined her.

Abbie watched them through her lashes before heaving an exaggerated sigh... and then smiling a little. "Okay, fineee. She asked him, in front of the whole team, keep that in mind, and then... he ran away." She giggled, before shaking her head. "Not, like, in a bad way! Like. He blushed and said uh, yeah! Sure! - and then, zoom."

Amaya was the most confident girl on the soccer team, and had become one of Abbie's best friends when she'd started at Elliston Prep at the beginning of the year. It had been a heady debate with Michael - sending her to an elite private school, that had sought Abbie out for her athletic ability - but ultimately, Elliston had a nationally ranked high school soccer team and so... here they were.

And Abbie reported enjoying it, in terms of sports and she appeared to like the variety of classes and the teachers. Which was great.

Socially... Caroline knew she still missed the public school system she'd been in for her entire life. Amaya was the captain of the team and one of the few girls who'd made Abbie feel welcome.

"That's the news we were looking for," Hannah nodded with a grin, though she still watched Abbie closely.

Caroline followed suit. Especially as Abbie's bottom lip poked out in a pout - given the school swap, they'd been on close watch over Abbie's feelings in the last six months. In family law, Caroline saw a lot of struggling when it came to kids, and the last thing she wanted was for her daughter to feel isolated at school.

And though Abbie's social circle still consisted mostly of her close friends she'd made at her last high school, she generally seemed happy with the arrangement.

Wordlessly, she and Hannah locked eyes again. With a few lifts of eyebrows, they nodded at one another, and Caroline cleared her throat.

"What about you? Asking anyone to the dance? Anyone ask you? I read through the school handbook; you can take someone who doesn't go there. If you want to bring Norah or-"

"Caroline, how can you tell if a girl likes you?" Abbie interjected, seemingly living in her own thoughts as Caroline was speaking.

Caroline sat up straight, surprised, looking across the table at Hannah again. Who looked back at her, eyebrows lifted. Before they furrowed, and Hannah turned to look at her daughter. "Why only Caroline? I'm not sure if it's escaped your notice, honey, but Caroline and I are both women in a relationship with one another."

Abbie shot her an exasperated look. "Mom, Caroline's the only woman you've ever been with!"

"And I'm married to her! I got with an amazing woman on the first try; I think that says something," Hannah joked, though her face was the cutest offended expression.

Abbie snorted. "Uh, yeah, no offense, but like. Caroline was a total simp for you. It's not like you had to figure it out from context clues."

Hannah grinned, brightly and beautifully, and totally making Caroline's heart flip-flop. "You do have a point."

She frowned, though, "Shouldn't the no offense have been meant for me? The supposed simp?"

Both blondes turned to face her, with nearly identical skeptical expressions. Abbie was the first to speak, "Do you deny it? And, also, it was meant for you." She gave her that cheeky smile that Caroline adored.

She tried to muster up her offense... but she could only fake it for a few seconds before she deflated. "No, Counselor, I withdraw my objection. Though, you were too young to really notice it." She maintained that.

Even though, she supposed, if she thought about it...

Abbie scoffed again, this time her face actually lighting up into a real smile. "Yeah. Right." She shook her head, laughing down at her plate. "Adults... really think you're so smart."

Caroline, luckily, had no shame and didn't care exactly how she and Hannah had gotten together; she was truthfully so fucking happy they had. She reached out and took Hannah's hand, just to revel in it, before they both turned to look at Abbie.

"So... you're into girls?" She asked, keeping her voice measured and light.

Abbie so far hadn't really expressed an interest or crushes, not really, on anyone, and Caroline and Hannah hadn't pushed it; when or if Abbie was interested, she'd share it. Hopefully.

Abbie chewed at her bottom lip, before she slowly nodded. "I am. Yeah."

"Only girls? Or...?" Hannah prompted, before shaking her head and holding up the hand that wasn't squeezing excitedly at Caroline's. "I'm sorry, you don't have to tell us that. Or know the answer to it yet!"

Abbie laughed even as she rolled her eyes, a blush coloring her cheeks. "I don't - I mean - I think only girls."

Caroline squeezed Hannah's hand back, appreciative of how much Hannah was maintaining a calm. She knew that her wife had been both excited for the day Abbie would share news of crushes or boyfriends or girlfriends and also terrified, because she herself had fallen for Michael when she'd been young and naive, and there was an unshakeable fear inside of her that something similar could ever happen to Abbie.

She cleared her throat, managing to bite back her own smile to not appear overly excited. "So? The girl? Are you going to ask her to the Valentine's Day dance?"

The blush on Abbie's cheeks deepened. "I mean. She's just a girl. Well, not just a girl - she's - her name is Mira, and she's -" She cut herself off, closing her eyes. "I can't talk about it right now. Never mind."

They both nodded, managing to contain themselves. Too much pushing and Abbie would be tighter-lipped than ever. Their girl shared with them, but she was always thinking and always working through things in her mind. The time always came when she shared her thoughts with them; they just had to wait.

Though, it didn't surprise Caroline at all when Hannah hugged her tightly as soon as Abbie retreated to the living room, her expressive gray eyes alight. "She likes someone! A girl! Oh, god, I'm so glad it's a girl," Hannah whisper-screamed, clutching at Caroline's shoulders.

Caroline couldn't help the amused smile that tugged at her lips, her hands falling to smooth over the perfect curve of her wife's waist. "I hate to break it to you, love of my life, but... women have broken my heart a time or two. Doesn't mean it's going to be all smooth sailing."

Hannah shook her head, blonde hair swaying. "I know, but..." She bit her lip. "It all worked out. You don't even hate Valentine's Day, anymore." She arched an eyebrow at Caroline, daring her to disagree and... yeah. She couldn't.