A Lifetime of Valentines

"Where is your valentine Donnie?" I asked. "He owes me ten bucks!"

"I won that bet!" Donnie said as he appeared behind Jenna and hugged her. Donnie and I met in the fall when Jenna and her family came for a visit on my mother's birthday. We quickly took to each other and became friends. We both loved arguing sports.

"No way!" I cried. "You took..."

"Jill," my cousin interjected before we could continue. "Why don't we leave these two to themselves? They'll be arguing for the next hour over who owes who what, and why. Let me introduce you around."

"Happily," Jill said and both ladies disappeared.

"She seems pretty hot," Donnie said once we were alone.

"You have no idea!" I laughed. Jill had long blond hair and a great body that she wasn't against sharing, at least with me.

"How long have you been dating?" he asked.

"Since New Year's Eve," I replied. "We met at a friend's party."

"You lucky shit!" Donnie grinned.

"Ain't that the truth!" I laughed. "Let's go get a drink."

We made our way over to the bar and I was startled to see Maddie acting as the bartender and handing out drinks. I hadn't really forgotten about her over the last two years, but as time passed our first meeting became more of a fond memory then anything else.

I saw Maddie smile in recognition and felt my chest tighten for no reason. I suddenly felt on edge and a little hyper. She looked amazing! Her body had filled out nicely. The feelings I thought of as puppy love when I remembered our first meeting resurfaced in force.

"Hello John," she said.

"Hello Maddie," I smiled. "I see Jenna assigned you for bar duty."

"Not really," she shrugged. "I volunteered. I don't have a valentine this year. My boyfriend and I broke up a couple of weeks ago."

And suddenly, I didn't feel so lucky to have Jill in my life.

"My valentine is around here somewhere with Jenna," I said, holding in a sigh. What was wrong with me?

"I know, I met her earlier," Maddie said. "She seems nice."

"She is," I shrugged, and then shocked myself by adding, "But you'll always be my first valentine."

"You were mine too," she laughed as she handed us our drinks.

"What was all that about?" Donnie asked when we left.

"What?" I asked in reply. He shook his head and let the subject drop.

The party was fun and Jill seemed to fit in easily. I got a lot of complements from those who knew me. Yet, despite all that, my eyes kept drifting toward Maddie.

"Okay, this is getting silly," Donnie suddenly said when Jill and Jenna were off in the kitchen.

"What?" I asked.

"Come with me," he demanded, pulling me toward the bar.

"Where are we going?" I asked, but I already knew the answer.

"Madeline, it's time for you to take a break," Donnie said, taking her hand and placing it in mine. "Go dance with John."

"But..." I began.

"It's just a dance between old friends!" he snapped.

"You don't have to, if you don't want to," Maddie said, trying to let go of my hand.

"Oh, he wants to!" Donnie snorted.

"Come on, let's go," I said as I blushed.

We made our way to the small dance floor and danced to the end of a fast song. I saw Donnie make his way to the DJ and say something just as the song finished. The guy nodded and quickly switched albums on the other table. The next song was slow. I shook my head, but didn't let go of Maddie.

"Shouldn't you be dancing with Jill to this kind of song?" she asked.

"Yes," I replied honestly. "But she's not here and I'd prefer to dance to it with you."

Maddie shook her head, but didn't let go when I pulled her close. It felt wonderful to have her in my arms. It was like she belonged there. The song ended far to quickly. We parted slowly. I had a strong urge to kiss her and I think she would have let me, but I was at the party with Jill. It would be wrong.

"Thanks for the dance," Maddie said as I let go.

"Thank you," I smiled. "Happy Valentine's Day, my first valentine."

"Happy valentine's day," she replied, smiling as well. "You know, you still owe me that game of chess,"

"I know," I said. "One day."

"One day," she agreed and drifted away. I watched her go and noticed Jenna and Jill returning from the kitchen. I also saw Donnie watching me. I looked at him and shrugged. He shook his head.

***

"Oh how romantic!" Elli cried.

"Please!" I snorted. "Jill found out about the dance and grilled me for the next three days. She never did want to go visit Jenna again!"

"How long did you two date?"

"On and off until the next Christmas," I replied. "I joined the army that fall and was stationed a few states over. You know the old saying about long distance relationships."

"I know it, but don't put much credence into it," the nurse replied. "I've found that they work as good as any other relationship for two people who really love each other."

"You're probably right," I shrugged.

"So, did you finally ask Maddie out on a date the next time you met?" Elli asked, switching topics.

"I planned on, but it didn't work out," I sighed, and then smiled and added, "Although we did have our first fight."

"You had a fight before your first date?" Elli asked with a raised eyebrow. "That sounds very interesting." Her expression made me smile. It was very similar to one Maddie used to show me when I did something particularly stupid.

"It wasn't really," I said. "Actually, it was pretty embarrassing."

"Why not let me be the judge of that?" Elli asked with a smile.

"I'd rather not," I laughed. "Isn't it time you went and checked on your other patients."

"Oh no you don't!" she laughed. "I'm too involved in your story for you to stop now!"

"Okay," I sighed. "But don't think less of me because of what I'm about to tell you."

I told Elli about the next time Maddie and I met. I was tempted to give her a quick summarized version, but that wouldn't be fair. More important, I wanted to share my memories now. I'd held them so tight for so long that it felt oddly therapeutic to tell Elli. Actually, it was more than that. I kept glancing down at Maddie as I spoke. It hurt to see her like she was now, but the memories reminded me who she really was.

***

"John, this party better be great for the amount of time we spent on the road getting here!" my squad mate Steve grumbled.

"It will be," I grinned. "My cousin Jenna throws a great party. She has a lot of cute friends too!"

"But ten hours on the road..." Steve continued to complain.

"That's why it's called a road trip!" Jack, another squad mate interjected.

"Exactly!" I agreed.

"Besides, John is hoping this girl who was at his cousin's party last year shows up again," Jack added knowingly.

"Aha!" Steve cried. "Now the truth comes out!"

"Jerk!" I snapped at Jack, but he just grinned and shrugged.

"I can't believe I sat on a bus for ten hours because of a girl!" Steve whined.

"Oh stop bitching! I didn't force you to come. All I did was ask you if you wanted to join me on my leave. I'm starting to regret it," I said pointedly.

"Hey, relax! I'm just kidding," Steve said, realizing I was really angry. "It's Valentine's Day and I'm not dating anyone. A party with a lot of good-looking women is just what I need. I'm planning on wowing them with my uniform!"

"Good luck," I laughed, letting go of my anger.

"You've got a chance," Jack put in. "These girls don't know that you're a jerk yet!" The two exchanged some unpleasant words, but I ignored them. It felt weird visiting Jenna's parent's house after being in the army for almost half a year.

We decided to walk the few miles from the bus station because we needed the stretch our legs after being cooped up for ten hours. At least, that's what we told ourselves. The truth was we didn't want to spend the money for a cab.

We were a block away when I saw two young ladies making their way toward the party. They looked familiar.

"Hey!" I called, making them turn. They looked nervously at the three of us. I smiled in recognition and asked, "Sharri, is that you?"

"John?" she asked in reply as we moved closer.

"Yep," I grinned.

"You look different in that uniform," Sharri said, relaxing and smiling. She looked better than I remembered too. Either that or it was the fact that I was a soldier now and just about any female looked good.

"This is Steve and Jack," I introduced. "We're on leave and I thought we surprise my cousin Jenna."

"I'm Lisa," the other girl said before Sharri could introduce her. "We're on our way to the party ourselves."

"That's nice to know," Steve said, eyeing Lisa. She was doing the same to him. Jack and I exchanged a look and had to fight hard not to laugh.

My cousin's house was only a block away and it didn't take us long to get there. Lisa was nice, but Sharri was the one who caught my eye. She was a cute brunette who knew it. I always liked a girl with confidence as long as she had a sense of humor to go along with it.

"John!" Jenna cried excitedly when she saw me walking up. "What are you doing here?"

"Hey," I grinned. "How could I miss the second annual Leighton Valentine's Day party?"

"You're lucky you didn't!" my cousin grinned.

"This is my friend and squad mate Jack," I said, and the looked around and frowned.

"Lisa and Steve went to get a drink," Sharri said. "It looks like they're hitting it off rather well."

"Oh well," I shrugged, "I'll have to introduce to my other squad mate later. So how have you been?"

"Jack, why don't you come with me to get drinks while we let these two catch up?" Sharri asked before Jenna could answer.

"Sounds good," Jack shrugged.

"Thanks," I smiled, and then turned to my cousin after they went to the bar and asked, "By the way, where's Donnie?" I could tell it was a bad question from her expression.

"We broke up last night," Jenna admitted.

"What?" I asked in surprise. It just didn't make sense. "What happened?"

"I'd rather not talk about it," Jenna sighed. "It's so embarrassing!"

"What is?" I asked in confusion.

"I'm having a Valentine's Day party and don't have a date," she laughed, but looked close to tears.

"Hey!" I said hugging her. Jenna squeezed me tight. "Why don't we go somewhere and talk?"

"Maybe later," she smiled, wiping tears from her eyes. "I can't leave right now."

"Are you sure?" I asked. My cousin nodded.

"Hello Jenna," someone said from behind me. I recognized the voice instantly. I turned and there was Maddie. Her hair had grown a bit, but other than that she looked just as amazing as the last time I saw her.

"Hi Maddie," I smiled.

"John!" she said in surprise. "I didn't know you were coming."

"It was a surprise for Jenna," I shrugged. Maddie nodded, but didn't look happy. It confused me. I thought...well, you know what I thought.

"There you are Madeline!" a decent looking guy said as he joined our little party. I watched the way he was looking at her and sighed. Now Maddie's expression made sense.

"This is Bernie," Maddie said in introduction. "Bernie, this is Jenna, my best friend in the world and her cousin John."

"Pleasure," Bernie said, holding out his hand. I felt an almost uncontrollable urge to push it away and slug him, but instead I shook his hand and smiled.

"Hello," Jenna said, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Madeline is always bringing you up in conversation back at the university," Bernie smiled. "I feel like I know you already."

"Jenna and Maddie have been friends forever," I said, hiding my surprise at the fact that Maddie was going to college. Not many women did in the fifties.

"I know," he said with a frown for some reason. I wondered what was bothering him. I didn't have to wait long to find out. He turned to Maddie and asked, "How come he calls you Maddie? I thought you hated that name."

"She does," I grinned. "But I won the right a few years ago by beating her in chess."

"You beat her in chess?" Bernie said in amazement.

"It was a lark!" Maddie laughed. It still caused my chest to tighten when she did that, but I hid my reaction as best as possible.

"Now, now!" I laughed. "I won fair and square."

"You still owe me a rematch," she said.

"You name the time and place."

"Jenna, where's the chessboard?" Maddie asked, I think only half in jest.

"You will not go off and play chess during my party!" Jenna snapped, but she was fighting hard not to laugh.

"I guess it would be unfair to you and Bernie," Maddie sighed.

"You're just chicken!" I taunted, and then grinned and added for good measure, "Maddie!"

I thought I was doing a good job hiding my feelings for her, but Bernie must have picked up on something.

"Don't you think it's a bit childish to insist on calling her a name you know she doesn't like?" he asked me with a frown.

"But of course," I shrugged.

"Forgive my cousin," Jenna said, stepping in. "John thinks his childishness is part of his charm."

"Hey!" I cried indignantly, but then grinned and added, "Actually, I don't know whether to be offended or thankful that you're willing to admit I have any charm at all."

"Maybe a little," my cousin said with a grin of her own.

"What do you think Maddie?" I asked, now using the name more to irritate Bernie than her. "Do you think I have any charm?"

"Stop calling her that!" Bernie said sounding seriously annoyed. "It's rude!"

"Hey Bernie, maybe I am a little childish and rude at times," I said, no longer smiling. I didn't like this guy and it had nothing to do with the fact he was dating Maddie. That was just extra incentive.

"But it's really none of your business. I've known Maddie longer than you and if there's one thing I can tell you about her, it's that she can take care of herself."

"I'm sure she can," he retorted. "But she doesn't have to as long as she's dating me."

"John, would you care to dance?" Sharri asked as she and Jack returned. It was obvious she was trying to stop me from causing a scene at my cousin's party. I gave Bernie one last look, but he seemed to back off a little when he saw Jack. The uniform was a dead giveaway that we were friends. It was too bad really.

"Sure," I said, taking Sharri's hand. I also took the drink she had for me and downed it in one gulp.

"Jack, why don't you ask my cousin for a dance?" I prompted.

"Nothing personal, but my boyfriend and I just broke up," Jenna said quickly to Jack before he could ask. "I'm not really ready to date."

"Who said anything about dating?" I frowned. "I don't know what happened between you and Donnie, but I'm willing to bet a month's pay that you'll work it out eventually."

"Besides, Jack has a fiancé who lives across the country that he's disgustingly loyal to. I just thought you'd both like to have some fun. It is a party after all."

"Let's dance," Sharri insisted, pulling me toward the floor. I went with her. A few minutes later I was happy to see Jack and Jenna dancing, but my smile quickly disappeared when I saw Maddie and Bernie join them.

"What was that all about?" Sharri asked midway through the first song.

"Nothing," I shrugged. "Let's go get another drink."

A couple hours later I was feeling much better. Sharri was a lot of fun and quite a looker. The alcohol didn't hurt either. I tried hard to ignore Maddie and Bernie whenever I saw either one of them. For some reason I was just as mad at her as I was at him. It didn't make sense. I guess that was the alcohol as well.

"I'm stealing my cousin for a few minutes," Jenna said toward the end of the night, taking me away from Sharri and the bar.

"What's up?" I asked.

"Bernie went to go get the car. He and Maddie are leaving. She'd like to talk to you for a moment before she goes," my cousin replied. I shrugged, but followed her to where Maddie was waiting.

"I'm sorry about Bernie," Maddie began once Jenna left us alone. "He can be a little over protective at times."

"He's a jerk!" I snapped angrily, causing Maddie to frown.

"You're drunk," she sighed.

"Certainly," I shrugged. "But drunk or sober, he'd still be a jerk!"

"This is pointless," Maddie mumbled.

"Probably," I nodded in agreement. I wasn't quite weaving, but on the other hand I wasn't steady on my feet either.

"Do you ever think we'll be able to play that chess game?" she asked.

"Probably not," I laughed sadly.

"Goodbye John," she said and turned to go. It sounded so final.

"Maddie, wait!" I cried, grabbing her and turning her back toward me.

"What?" she asked.

"Only this," I said softly and then kissed her. She didn't pull away, but neither did she return my kiss. "You'll always be my first valentine."

Maddie touched her lips where I kissed her. She had a thoughtful look, but didn't stop me when I turned and left.

***

"You didn't say that you shared your first kiss the third time you met!" Elli said excitedly. "What a perfect love story!"

"That's because you interrupted before I finished," I sighed.

"What do you mean?" she asked. "You mean that wasn't the end of the story?"

"Not hardly," I sighed. "After saying goodbye to Maddie, I was suddenly very angry and still drunk. Instead of going to find Jenna or Sharri, I went outside."

"You didn't!" Elli cried.

"Yep," I said with a shake of my head. "First I broke Bernie's nose and then I threw up all over his car."

"What did Maddie say when she found out?"

"You don't want to know," I groaned, remembering. "Thankfully, I was drunk enough to miss most of it."

"How did she ever forgive you?" Elli asked in amazement.

"I'm not really sure," I shrugged. "It probably helped that we didn't see each other for a while. My unit was called up and I spent the next few years in Korea."

"You were in the Korean War?" Elli asked in surprise.

"Yes, I'm that old," I laughed. "I'm actually so old I can even remember World War II, although I was only a kid."

"What was it like?"

"Korea?" I asked in clarification. She nodded. "Cold."

"That's it?" she frowned.

"What more do you want to know?" I shrugged. "It was war."

"What ever happened to Steve and Jack?"

"Steve came home after the war, married a nurse and had a whole gaggle of kids," I replied. "He died a few years back from a heart attack. I still keep in touch with his eldest boy. The family is doing well."

"And Jack? Did he ever marry that girl he was staying true to?" Elli asked.

"Yes," I sighed. "He married her the next month."

"That's so romantic!" she cried.

"Yeah," I shrugged. "It's too bad Jack didn't make it home."

"Oh," Elli said, sobering quickly. "I'm sorry."

"Me too," I smiled sadly.

"So, when was the next time you saw Maddie?" Elli asked, getting back to her questions about Maddie and me.

"We didn't seen each other until a few years after I got out."

"Valentine's Day?" she asked. I smiled and nodded.

"The year we both turned twenty-four," I answered.

"One of your cousin Jenna's parties?"

"No," I said with a shake of her head. "Jenna stopped throwing Valentine's Day parties after that second year. It always reminded her of her breakup with Donnie."

"They didn't get back together?" Elli asked in surprise.

"Of course they did," I smiled. "But not until the Fourth of July the following summer. You should have seen the parties they threw after that! One year the fire works were so bad that the fire department needed to be called!"

"So, how did you and Maddie finally get together?"

"Fate, of course," I smiled, looking down at my wife of forty-nine years. I wasn't seeing the husk she had become. I was seeing the girl I fell in love with nearly sixty years ago when I was a boy of fifteen. I was seeing the young woman of twenty-four who finally forgave me and took me into her heart. "The only way true love ever happens."

"Tell me!" Elli insisted. I nodded and began to speak.