Valentine’s Day Challenge: Sweet Gifts
Mireille sighed. It was getting harder each day to ignore her growing feelings for the cute brunette she was sharing her apartment with. Her attraction was also getting harder to hide. ‘Where do you run when you live in such a small apartment?’ The Corsican grumbled to herself good-naturedly.
Truth was, she loved being around the Japanese girl. She loved her. She loved the cute little squeaks that came from her mouth when Mireille did something unexpected. She enjoyed every little smile that she coaxed from the quiet girl. Her heart beat faster every time the girl said her name with that cute little accent. ‘I’ve fallen so hard for her. I’m just like a school girl!’ She giggled to herself, which was most unusual for her.
Kirika, who was cleaning the dishes from lunch, peered out of the kitchen confused at the noise coming from the blonde. ‘Is something going on? Does she know?’ The Asian carefully examined her partner, making sure she wasn’t noticed. ‘Something’s going on…’ She felt a moment of panic. ‘Does she know I’m planning something?’
Secretly, the Asian girl was trying to plan a special surprise for the beautiful blonde. However, the only Valentine’s Day ritual she was familiar with was from her stay in Japan. A girl would make chocolate and give it to the boy they liked. She watched many girls do this each year; however, there was one girl who gave hers to another girl. She was a shy, dark-haired girl in the Science club named Honoka. She had stayed up late making chocolate for a redheaded girl named Nagisa. She remembered them sharing a kiss later after school.
Kirika wanted to give Mireille chocolate, but the blond wouldn’t leave her alone so she could work. ‘Not that I wouldn’t mind regularly, but… I need some time alone so I can make her present!’
Then, the Corsican spoke. “Kirika, I’m going out…to…get my hair done and pick a few things.” She paused anxiously, expecting Kirika to ask to go along. She was surprised when all she was received an accepting nod. Mireille noticed the sweet girl looking distracted, but decided that it could wait. She patted the girl on the head and gave her a quick smile. The girl blushed and gave her a small smile in return.
Kirika sighed as the door closed. ‘Now to work!’ She used the speed and concentration she had developed from her work as an assassin to gather her ingredients. The book she used was a source of a great many of her and Mireille’s favorite recipes, so it would definitely work.
As the chocolate slowly began to form, her mind drifted to other thoughts. In the few romantic movies she had watched with Mireille, there was always music in the background as they confessed. She was trying to think of a way to acquire romantic songs. Then, she remembered Mireille downloading on her computer! (Disclaimer: Illegal in the U.S., by the way!) She looked at the chocolate, which didn’t seem to be going anywhere and went to the computer.
She sat down and tried to think of a romantic song. ‘I don’t know any!’ Frustrated, she sighed. Her sharp mind began to work it out. ‘Where would someone hear romantic music?’ The brunette’s returned to the romance movie. ‘At a wedding!’ She blushed as she thought of Mireille in a wedding gown. She shook herself out of her daze. ‘I have to concentrate! Mireille’s perfect Valentine’s Day depends on me!’
She slowly managed to retrace the Corsican’s technological steps and search for songs that were popular for weddings. ‘Mireille… dressed in… so pretty! Focus!’ The first site she came to had the best songs for wedding receptions. ‘That’ll do.’ She picked the most popular one and started the download. She sat back and relaxed as the computer began to work.
Kirika’s senses were top-notch; fine-tuned for survival. Her nose alerted her brain that something was burning. “Oh no, the chocolate!” She panicked, making a break for the stove. A small fire had broken out where the chocolate had sputtered out into the flame and caused it to ignite the nearby recipe book. Kirika instantly had the extinguisher in hand and put it out.
Her heart broke as she noticed the damage to the stove on which she had lovingly prepared so many meals for Mireille. The black smudges on the surface made it obvious that the stove would have to be replaced. Kirika imagined her partner would be quite upset with her for being so careless. She picked up the phonebook and hoped someone would be able to deliver a replacement.
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Mireille hummed to herself as she walked down the streets of Paris. Couples were everywhere! Tourists had flocked in from around the world and even normal Parisians were being sickeningly romantic with their loved ones! A few single guys tried to pick up on her, but she snubbed them with a cold shoulder. ‘As if they had a chance! I guess they can’t recognize a lesbian! And besides, Kirika is devastatingly cute!’
She was a little surprised to see a few ladies try to pick her up. One brazen woman, who was also cop, handcuffed herself to Mireille! “What’s your favorite color?” The black-haired woman asked with a sultry voice.
Mireille answered: “Red; the color of my girlfriend’s eyes! Now let me go, so I can buy her a gift!” The Corsican blushed. ‘Kirika isn’t my girlfriend… yet.’ She smiled as the officer released her, pouting. The woman promptly attached herself to a dark-haired American that caught her eye. ‘She recovers quick.’
Her plan was simple. She would buy some roses and groceries and then have a romantic dinner with Kirika. The sweet girl always worked so hard on their meals that she wanted to make something special for the girl she loved. ‘I love her!!’ She giggled as she thought of kissing her partner afterwards. The look of surprise on her face would be priceless!
Mireille decided to get the groceries first, so the flowers would be fresh and not get crushed while she was shopping. She knew that there were plenty of seasonings at the apartment, so she needed to get to get the other ingredients. The blonde was happy to find some pre-sorted salad ingredients! ‘I’m terrible with slicing up vegetables! But Kirika makes it look so easy.’ Her love-sick mind drifted off to images of Kirika dressed like a chef, covered in flour. Then, she entered and kissed the cook. Her attention was misplaced as she grabbed a bag and threw it into her basket. She wasn’t sure what she wanted to prepare for the main course. After some deliberation, which meant trying to think of the foods Kirika enjoyed, she picked up some lean chicken. There was a recipe book that Kirika loved to cook from that she had looked through. It would have something special in it.
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Her partner put the receiver back down. She had been unable to find someone who would deliver a stove on Valentine’s Day. In fact, many of the stores were closed! She knew she would have to face Mireille’s wrath. ‘And it was going to be so perfect…’
Kirika’s heart fell as she noticed what had started the fire. It was the remains of her favorite cookbook. Tearfully, she tossed it in the garbage. ‘So what do I do now?’
She sat at the window and tried to think of something she could give to Mireille. ‘I wish I knew more about French customs...’
As she looked out her window, she noticed a couple of women across the street. She casually opened to window to hear what was they were saying.
“I’m so glad to be in Paris with you, Fleur! It’s so beautiful here!” The bushy-haired brunette said to her blond companion.
“Not as beautiful as you, ‘ermione.” Fleur spoke in accented English, as she caressed the other girl’s face.
“I bought something special for you.” Kirika’s eyes and ears strained to see what the English girl was giving the other girl.
“Thank you, ‘ermione!” The Asian girl could see the blonde’s smile from here. “I love strawberries almost as much as I love you!”
“I love you too, Fleur.”
Kirika watched them kiss passionately and continue down the street. ‘Strawberries? Would Mireille react like that to strawberries?’ She figured it was worth a shot.
She grabbed her coat and took off out the door.
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Mireille walked out of the grocery store, nearly floating on cloud nine. ‘I can’t wait to see her reaction!’ She carefully made her way to her favorite florist. The kind old man always had pretty flowers. She had bought them for a couple of girls at high school, though they didn’t seem to understand that she had a crush on them. And this was at an all-girls’ school! ‘Well, I always liked the cute, dumb ones…’ She laughed at her young crushes.
At the entrance of the florist, she noticed an elegant girl with dark hair handing a bouquet of roses to a blonde girl, obviously her girlfriend. She responded with a blush and hug. “Thank you, Chikane! They’re beautiful!”
“Himeko…” The other girl said, as if life couldn’t get any better. “I love you.” Then, they proceeded to make out in front of her.
Mireille blushed. ‘I want to do that!’ She thought as she went into the shop. “Hello, J---. I’d like a dozen of your finest roses!”
His cheerful response: “That young lady just bought the last ones!”
Mireille’s smile fell apart. “What?!”
The cheerful owner repeated his answer assuming the blonde was having hearing problems. “There are no more roses!” He yelled. ‘Poor thing; losing your hearing is difficult. I know!’
Mireille sighed. ‘Well, it isn’t the end of the world…’ She perked up. “I’ll take a bouquet of wildflowers.” The florist smiled and began to work on her arrangement.
A few minutes later, she left the shop with a somewhat avant garde piece of botanical art. ‘He’s losing it…’
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Kirika rushed into the grocery store. ‘Now where are the strawberries?’ She knew Mireille would be getting home soon. She found a nearby attendant. “Valentine’s strawberries now!”
The young man, who was formerly glad to be working on Single’s Awareness Day, was now questioning that joy. This young Asian girl managed to inflict the fear of God into him. His spine dissolved as her eyes bored into his, speaking of unnamed horrors to be inflicted upon his person if he did not supply the right answer. “A-aisle two!” He squeaked out, as if he was going through puberty again.
He managed to relax as she disappeared, as if she were a ninja. ‘Thank goodness she’s gone! She was scary!’
The Japanese girl quickly scanned through the aisle. ‘Where are they?’ She saw a package of the red fruit and grabbed them. She dashed down the aisle (and did an awesome flip over an old lady) and quickly paid for it. ‘Now back to the apartment!’
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Mireille opened up the door to her apartment, expecting to be met with a cute smile from her partner. She did not expect to return to a burnt stove and empty domicile. The groceries and bouquet hit the floor. The blonde began to panic as she performed a search of the apartment ‘Where’s Kirika? Did she get burned? Did she have to go to the hospital?’ Tears formed in her eyes. ‘I’ve got to find her!’ She went for her gun as she wanted to be prepared for anything.
Then, she heard the door open and a familiar, soft voice. “Mireille?”
The blonde let out a sob when she saw the girl unharmed in the doorway. She wrapped the girl in a tight embrace. “I’m so glad you’re all right! I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you!”
Kirika shyly spoke again. “I’m sorry for ruining the stove…” She nuzzled into the blonde, silky mane.
Mireille felt her heart begin to pound. Her Japanese roommate’s nose was tickling her neck. She pulled the girl back and delivered a breathtaking kiss. Well, for Kirika it was more like a world-shaking kiss. As she let up for air, she whispered: “I love you, Kirika.”
The girl blushed, but responded quickly with: “I love you, Mireille.” They shared another quick kiss. Then, Kirika’s stomach grumbled quietly.
Mireille grinned and tapped her on the nose. “So cute! I know the stove’s messed up, but I’ve brought home salad mix.” She bent down to pick up the sack. “What?! This is Mesquite Barbeque! That’s weird.” She pondered for a moment. “How about we call for some take out?”
“Chinese?” Her new girlfriend asked. The blonde picked up the phone. Kirika knew it would take a few minutes for the food to arrive. She decided to give her gift now. As her partner hung up the phone, she shyly offered up her gift.
“For me? How sweet!” Mireille opened the package and fed one to her new girlfriend, who accepted it eagerly.
As Kirika chewed, remembered her earlier internet acquisition. “Mireille, I downloaded a song for us to… dance to. Would you like to dance with me?”
“Of course!” She went to the computer and swiftly found the new, unnamed file. She managed to get it play and wrapped her arms around the other girl.
(insert AC-DC’s “You Shook Me All Night Long”)
Both girls blushed as they began to hear the English lyrics, but the rhythm was still fun to dance to. Mireille asked her: “Why did you pick this song?” She asked with a suggestive purr.
Kirika blushed deeply and hid her face in Mireille’s shoulder. “The internet said it was popular at wedding receptions…” (Author: true fact!) They continued to dance for a while, until there was a knock at the door. As Mireille answered the door, Kirika picked up the flowers. “For me?” she asked, uncertain.
Mireille was sheepish. “I wanted to get you roses, but…”
“I love them,” was the quiet reply. The girl managed to find a vase and placed the flowers onto the table. They began to eat the fresh food, swapping shy glances across the table. Surprising, it was nice not to have to worry about so many dishes after dinner. It gave them more time to cuddle on the couch.
Mireille leaned over to whisper into Kirika’s ear. “This was my best Valentine’s Day ever.” Kirika nodded sleepily. The blonde loved how cute her partner looked. She turned off the television and carried her to bed.
Kirika sleepily changed into her pajamas and crawled into bed with Mireille. The younger girl wrapped herself around Mireille, laying her head on the Corsican’s shoulder, whispering: “I love you.”
“I love you too.” The blonde watched her partner sleep for a while before joining her in unconsciousness.
End