A/N: the song used in this is my own song that I wrote, which shows up a little in my Valentine’s Day story.  That is the only link between the two Valentine’s Day stories, besides that Jessica Prentice is mentioned in both and that both are about depressed people on Valentine’s Day.

Valentine’s Day II

“Have I ever told you how much I hate Valentine’s Day?” Cassandra Norman asked as she stirred her cracked mug full of cheap coffee.  In her mind, she pretended it was something better.  One of those fancy coffees in little cups with lids from one of those fancy coffee places downtown.  They were almost everywhere once you got a few streets in, but there were none in this neighborhood.  None of the people could afford it.  In fact, Cassie was the only person she knew who even drank coffee anymore.  She didn’t know too many people, though.  It was mostly Evan and Cynthia and Eddie.

            Evan sighed, passing Cassie the jar with a few lumpy grains of sugar at the bottom.  “I believe you’ve mentioned it.”  She had mentioned it so many times that he was starting to hate the holiday, too, but for different reasons.  He hated how it came after weeks of Cassie griping about the cheery red hearts in the windows of the card stores.

            “Last year on Valentine’s day, I was sitting in that beautiful powder blue kitchen, drinking some expensive coffee – French hazelnut or something – and opening a heart-shaped box of twenty expensive chocolates.  It was the best morning of my life.  Unfortunately, it lead to the worst day in my life.”

            “Cassie…” Evan moaned, holding onto the diamond ring that he had hidden under the table.  “Please.  You’ve always been a romantic sort of person.  Can’t you look at today as a day in the spirit of romance and love?”

            “I’ve tried.”  She reached for the coffee cake that Evan had splurged to buy, but he grabbed her hand.

            “Not yet.  I’m saving it.”

She signed deeply and brought her hand back to the mug, lifting it to her mouth.  It tasted so awful that she nearly choked on it.  “You have no clue what I’ve been through.”

            “Cassie, we’ve gone over this so many times.  I’m willing to listen if you’re willing to talk.  What happened?  I mean, I know that you’re upset that he did whatever he did to make you leave.  But what was it that happened last year?”

            “I don’t want to talk about it,” Cassie replied stubbornly.

            Evan was about to beg when he heard the stairs creaking.  “Can you please wait to complain until later?”

            “Oh, I understand,” she told him bitterly.  “You need me out of the way so you can romance Cynthia.  Because you actually have a girlfriend.”

            “This is an important day, Cass.”  He lowered his voice to a whisper, hoping that Cynthia was moving slowly.  “Edward was conceived a year ago.  Exactly.  I’m going to propose to her today.  Could you maybe take Eddie and go somewhere?”

            “So you can impregnate her again?”

            “Cassandra!” he hissed.

            “No, I see how it is.  You go ahead and charm her into bed with a cheap card and a fake diamond ring.  I’ll be going.”  She stood up and left, slamming the door behind her.  The streets were nearly empty, and she took off down one of them.  This was not a good neighborhood to wander, but at least they all knew her.  “That crazy Norman girl,” as they called her.  She could always go downtown, but that wasn’t worth it.  She’d just see the enamored wealthy men giving their girlfriends expensive gifts while looking down their noses at her.

            She passed the old barbershop, the one with the rusted scissors.  She refused to go there, but it was all they could afford, so she let her hair grow long.  Cynthia just cut her own hair, but she was fifteen years old with her own child.  She seemed the type to cut her own hair.

            Cassie let her mind drift back to last year.  How he had leaned over the table and smiled at her.  She couldn’t think his name – it hurt too much.  He had said the sweetest things to her and given her a bouquet of roses.  Then, he had told her that he had a surprise for her.  He whisked her upstairs to her room, which was completely filled with flowers.

            She didn’t still have the ring.  Or the baby.  She had stayed with him for months more.  She had let him pay to have the baby gotten rid of, and she had loved him.  Somehow, she also hated him because of all of the things he had done, so she finally left.  She ran to her brother’s run-down apartment, where he was living with his pregnant teenage girlfriend.  She had offered to help with the baby, once it was born, in return for a place to stay.

            She shook her head.  What a nightmare.  It was surprising that Cynthia hadn’t insisted that she go.  The poor girl must have been so overwhelmed already, to then have her brother’s older sister rush in like that.

            At least she’d get a real diamond.  Cassie knew that much.  Evan had pocketed the ring that she had thrown down at the ground in frustration.  Maybe he had exchanged it for another, or maybe he would give Cynthia the same ring.  That same cursed ring.

            Cassie sank down onto the steps of someone’s house, not able to stop the tears from coming.  Someone inside had the radio on, and she listened through her sobbing.

            “And now, for those of you who are alone today, here’s that classic Jessica Prentice song, Valentine’s Day.”

            Cassie sighed.  She loved that song.  Maybe it would help.

            The first notes twinkled out, and Cassie hummed them as well.  When the lyrics began, she couldn’t hold back.  In a second, she was standing on the top stair to that person’s house, belting out the sad ballad of one of her favorite singers with her eyes closed and her whole body moving with the emotion.

Everything

I had everything

And something had to go

Everything

I had everything

And you, you had to go

It should have been the best day

But it feels like the last

It turned out so unhappy

When I should have had a blast

And I want to make this all go away

But I can’t…  It’s Valentine’s Day

Everyone

You had everyone

All caught up in your net

Every girl

You had every girl

It’s me that you forget

It should have been the best day

But it feels like the last

It turned out so unhappy

When I should have had a blast

And I want to make this all go away

But I can’t…  It’s Valentine’s Day

Every heart

Look at every heart

Today, they’re full of love

Every day

I cry every day

’Cause you’re what I think of

It should have been the best day

But it feels like the last

It turned out so unhappy

When I should have had a blast

And I want to make this all go away

But I can’t…  It’s Valentine’s Day

Everything

I had everything

And you, you had to go

            Cassie’s eyes were closed with the passion of those famous and familiar lyrics.  When she opened them again, she saw that the entire neighborhood was out, watching her.  Many were still in pajamas beneath their coats.  Evan and Cynthia were there, holding each other, while a neighbor held Eddie for them.  Cassie couldn’t miss the glittering diamond on Cynthia’s small finger, but no one else seemed to notice.  They were all staring at “that crazy Norman girl” in shock.  They had never heard her sing.  They didn’t know she was so loud, so powerful, and…

            “Damn, she’s good!” one little boy exclaimed, summing up the thoughts of everyone there.

            Cassie smiled, a blush coming to her face.  She hadn’t performed before people since high school.  Her boyfriend had convinced her to give up singing in order to focus on their relationship, and she had foolishly listened.

            She let herself smile even more.  She had broken away.  “Make sure you all keep an eye out for me, okay?  The name’s Cassandra Norman, or Cassie for short, and I’ve been selected for a pop girl group that should be coming out soon enough.  Thanks for your support!”  With that, she swung herself over the railing of the steps and hit the ground, running over to meet Evan.

            “You’re crazy,” he told her fondly.  “Absolutely nuts.”

            “Thanks,” she replied, hugging him and Cynthia at the same time.  They were all beaming proudly.  Cassie took Eddie from the neighbor and danced him around in her arms.  Maybe Valentine’s Day wasn’t so bad after all.