In the back of a coffee shop, a young, blond man checked his watch, before rolling his brown eyes. A few minutes later, a man in his mid-twentires with light brown hair and green eyes entered the coffee shop, before joining the blond. 
"Did you order anything for me?" He asked, eyes sparkling. "Happy Love Day, by the way."
The blond held back a smile. "I almost did... but it would be cold by now, wouldn't it? And as for 'love day' as you call it, that's not it's original context and--"
The bruin leaned forward and kissed him gently, before pulling back. "Everyone treats it like Love Day, so it's Love Day." 

The blond blushed. "That's not it's official name, Connor." 
"Yeah, but just because some people are in love all year round, and make it well-known to their significant other." 
"...so, back to you being late on Love Day, as you call it." The blond muttered, his hair flopping into his eyes.

Connor smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, Blake. I had to pick something up. Hey, where are we going later?" 
"Our options are to hang out with your mother, tolerate my sisters... or go home." 
"No no no. We promised we were going out tonight. It's Valentine's Day! It's the one night we should go out instead of cuddling on the couch." 
"I like cuddling on the couch." Blake pointed out. "And it's cold out." 

Connor sighed. "Please, Blake? For me?" 
Blake sighed as well. "Fine. But two conditions-- one, I don't want to see either of my sisters tonight. They're annoying, and this is our time. Two, if we're going out, we can't go to some dingy hole in the wall, just because they have nice chicken wing prices." 
"That was one time!" Connor protested, though he was smiling. 

"Three, actually." Blake replied, though he was smiling too. "Anyway, go get your drink, and let's go." 
"Aww, but I just got here." 
"Well, you were thirty minutes late. C'mon. We have stuff to do." 
Connor shot Blake a confused look, but bought his drink anyway, and strode out of the coffee-shop alongside him. 

"What's the surprise?" He asked. 
"There's no surprise." Blake told him, lacing his hand with his. "I just wanted to keep our regular schedule." 
Connor kissed the top of his head. "Yeah, right." 
Blake leaned up and kissed him. "Would I lie to you?" 

"Mm... about surprises, yes." 
"New subject-- what were you getting that made you late?" 
Connor laughed. "That's a surprise of my own, sweetheart." 
Blake sighed. "You must be in a good mood if you're using pet names. In any case, come with me." 

"Oh? And where might we be going?" Connor grinned. 
Blake rolled his eyes. "Well, usually at this time of day, I go to work. However, even if I had a surprise, would I tell you?" 
"No. You wouldn't." Connor sighed. "But speaking of work, you just reminded me..." 
Blake's face fell. "You... have to go in today?" 

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm really sorry, Blake." Connor sighed, kissing him gently. "I know we said we'd spend today together, and I know that you had to beg your boss for the time off--" 
"Forget it." Blake sighed. "I understand, or whatever you want me to say. At least you aren't working all night again..." 
Connor bit his lip, and Blake frowned. "Really, Connor? Really? You, the golden boy, couldn't get today of all days off, and I could?" Then his eyes shifted. "If this is an elaborate trick, I'm going to be really pissed with you later for playing with my feelings like this." 

Connor pulled him into another kiss. "I promise, I'm not. It's not even going to run that late." 
"Hmmph. It's against the law for you to have work hours like this." 
"I'll do my best to be back by eight." 
"Okay. If you're not home by seven, I'm throwing darts at that picture of your boss again." 

Connor laughed. "That's fair. I'll see you later, okay?" 
Blake nodded numbly, before the two of them set off on their separate paths. 

**********************

"I'm sure that he's planning something." Olivia McAllister commented from her perch in Blake's kitchen as he moved around the room, perfecting everything. "He's not as absentminded as you think, he knows the date." 
Blake scoffed. "Please. He once almost left the apartment without shoes in his underwear." 
"Why was my son in his underwear, hm?" Olivia asked, sipping her wine. 

"Because we were too tired to have sex that night." Blake replied bluntly. 
Olivia laughed. "Fair enough. But he remembers things when it comes to you. He always has."
Blake flushed, stirring the dinner on the stove. "Still. This isn't a matter of lack of planning-- it's about his stupid boss."
"Technically, it's about the crime rates in the city." Olivia pointed out.

Blake frowned. "Still. it's out of Connor's hands."
Olivia sipped her wine again. "Hm... I don't know, Blake. He's as charming as a snake when he wants."
"No one likes snakes. They are not charming."
"That's not the point." Olivia waved him off. "The point is, he's planning something, mark my words."

"Ugh, fine. If you say so."
"Exactly." Olivia grinned, before checking her watch. "I have to go. Bye, Blake."
"Bye." Blake responded without looking up.
He was putting the finishing touches on the food when Connor walked in. "I'm hoooome!"

Blake looked up, "I'm not--"
Connor kissed him gently. "I thought we agreed we were going out? You don't have to cook tonight."
"Well, I did. So we should eat it, and appreciate it, and then we can go out for a movie or something." Blake replied, kissing him back.
"I'll never be able to crowbar you out of the house." Connor laughed as he sat down.

"Well, it is winter." Blake pointed out, carrying the food over to the table. "Hey, I made something special tonight."  
"That was nice, thanks." Connor beamed. 
"And... I might have a surprise." 
"So do I. I just hope it isn't the same one-- our budget couldn't take it." Connor laughed. 

Blake raised an eyebrow. "Alright then. Do you want to see it now, or after dinner?" 
"Now would be fine, unless it's bad." Connor frowned. "Are you breaking up with me? On Valentine's Day?" 
Blake shook his head. "Nowhere close. Look... I know I can be a little high maitenance sometimes, and I can be a little grumpy, but... do you remember... what we talked about?" 

"We talk about a lot of things, Blake." Connor responded, his hand drifting down to his pocket. 
"Yeah, well... I sent in an application to an adoption agency." 
Connor stared at him, before clearing his throat. "And... what did they say?" 
"They said they'd give us a shot." Blake said softly, smiling. "A pretty good shot, too." 
Connor grinned. "A baby...!" 

"Yeah... yeah. So, what's your surprise?" 
Connor pulled a little black box out of his pocket and set it on the table, before sliding it over to Blake. "Normally the baby comes after the wedding, but... well, we're not that traditional anyway." 
Blake's eyes widened, then he smiled. "Will I have to add another hyphen to your already long surname?" 

Connor laughed. "No, but the baby will have to add a few." 
Blake opened the box and slid the ring on his finger. It was a simple silver band. "What, no diamonds?" He joked. 
"Ah, well. You got pissed about the way they treat their laborers, remember?" 

Blake nodded giddily. "I do indeed. This is wonderful, I just... I love you so much. You know that, right?" 
"I love you too." Connor grinned. "So, you accept?" 
"No, I was about to break up with you." Blake replied dryly, before standing up, moving around the table and kissing him gently. 

Connor kissed him back, then rested his head on top of Blake's. "This is wonderful... everything's right in the world." 
"Just wait until we run out of coffee again." Blake muttered. "I give it about a week." 
Connor laughed. "Alright, fine." 
"And we have to go see my grandmother. She doesn't even know I'm gay, so..." 

"Okay..." 

***************************

"I still can't believe your grandmother doesn't know you're gay." 
"Yeah, well... she doesn't. She's really strict, okay? And I was her favorite-- I didn't want to disappoint her." 
"Disa...? Blake, this isn't like a bad grade." Connor said hotly. 

"Yeah... yeah. It's just, she means a lot to me, okay? And I know it's not my fault if she starts spouting bullshit, but I just..."  Blake took a deep breath. 
Connor gripped the steering wheel so hard that his knuckles turned white, but he tried to sound light-hearted. "What's the worst that could happen?" 
"She could disown me. She could hate me. Oh, God. We could be lynched, Connor." 

"It's 2015. No one lynches people anymore. And who cares if she disowns you? And if she hates you, that's her own damn fault, okay?" 
"Connor, how would you feel if your mom hated you?" 
"That's different." Connor said immediately. "Mothers are different from grandmothers." 
"Your father then." 

Connor was silent for a minute, before saying venomously, "Why the hell would I care what Fletcher thinks? I didn't care when I was a kid, and I don't care now. He may have finally shown up, but that doesn't make a damn difference. And that's not the point. Your grandmother has always been a permanent fixture in your life, right?" 
"Mm... fine. It appears that we don't have a basis for comparision. But all the same... my grandmother is important to me, Connor." 

"Who-who is more important? Me, or her?" 
"You, obviously. You've been around me almost as long as she has, after all. But that's not the point, Connor. The point is, we need to tell her, and we need to hope to God that she accepts us." 
"Or what." 
"Or... I don't know. I just don't know. Look, can we please talk about something else? I feel sick." 

Connor looked at him worriedly. "Do you need me to pull over?" 
Blake shook his head and pulled a paper bag out of the glove compartment, twisting it in his hands. "I'll-I'll be fine. I promise." 
"Still, maybe we should turn back..." 
"No, no. I'll still feel sick, even if it's years from now. And she'll be in a good mood today. It's only about a week 'til spring." 

"It's been exactly a month since I proposed?" Connor asked, surprised. "Huh." 
"Yeah. But she likes this day because she used to teach math at the local high school, and it's Pi Day..." 
"Wow. And here I was, wondering where you got all of your adorable nerdiness from." Connor grinned. 

"Watch the road." Blake replied, flushing. "...and thank you for the compliment." 
"It's not just a compliment-- you're the one with the higher-paying job. After all, I'm just a police officer. You're a doctor." 
"Hmmph. the only reason my job pays more is to help pay off my medical school loans, and you know it." 

Connor laughed. "I guess. And hey, it's all going to be okay, alright? Everything's going to be just fine." 
"...do you promise?" 
"I swear on my mother's grave." 
"That's not worth much, considering she doesn't have one yet." 

"Well, nothing's gone wrong yet." 
"Don't swear then. Just promise." 
"I promise. I love you, Blake." 
"And I love you too, Connor."