Lance shifted in his seat never taking his eyes off the passing world outside his window. The world was a pretty big place, he reasoned, and it held lots of people, many of whom were probably wallowing just as he was on this eve of St. Valentines. It might have been easier to deal with had there not been pink paper hearts and white teddy bears with red ribbons around their necks everywhere he looked. He couldn�t even go into a food mart at a gas station during a routine pit stop, without seeing those little boxes of multicolored pastel candy hearts, the ones that had sweet nothings and nonsense printed on their surfaces. The same candies he�d used when he was a kid as a form of communication with the opposite sex, just like those do you like me? check yes or no notes he�d passed on occasion. But now, things were more complicated and Valentines meant more than that, he was sure.

Lance sighed lustily, the fourth in a string of similar not-so-subtle clues he�d given to let the others know something was bothering him. Lance wondered with a touch of frustration why no one else seemed to be particularly blue, especially since he was not the only one among them who found himself single and sadly lacking a special someone. Only Justin had a girl to call up with cotton candy wishes full of love and adoration. Lance thought maybe the approaching holiday had alluded JC altogether because nothing but the usual melodies wafting around in the space between his ears even came close to being a lover. The fact that JC didn�t seem to care made Lance wonder if perhaps he should take up writing their songs in hopes of gaining a comparable sense of indifference. At the very least, he�d have something to occupy himself instead of sitting there, staring out the window and feeling sorry for himself.

Lance heaved a sigh again, and this time, Chris decided to take the bait.

�Okay, what?� he demanded, flicking off the playstation and setting his controller aside. Joey echoed his movements because there was nothing else to do since Chris had pulled the plug on their virtual warfare.

�Nothing,� Lance muttered sullenly, not out of a desire to be difficult, but because that�s how things worked between them.

�Spill it, Bass. I can�t concentrate with you moping over there, whimpering like your dog just got run over by the milk truck.�

�I haven�t been whimpering!�

�Maybe not, but you�ve been pouting for a good hour,� JC said, looking up from the keyboard laid across his lap. He smiled kindly, sticking his pencil behind his ear.

Lance tucked his lower lip in. �Justin pouts. I don�t pout.�

�You could give me a run for my money, Scoop. Now, just tell us.� Justin, who was laying on the couch opposite Lance, ordered softly.

Lance rolled his eyes; they all knew full well he couldn�t beat the curly haired boy wonder in a battle of the puppy face, but he appreciated the verbal peace offering. �Valentine�s Day is tomorrow.�

Four pairs of eyes looked at him expectantly. �And?� Chris prompted,

�Jesus, I�m lonely, okay?� Lance spat, then exhaled in a huff. �I mean... it�s just like, this holiday where everyone seems to have someone and those of us who don�t have anyone end up feeling like crap. Me especially. Because. Well, I�ve always wanted to be one of those merry fools who goes around buying out the florist, snatching up Hallmark cards and like...I�m not.�

The room was quiet for a moment, the only sound that of the bus wheels eating up the pavement beneath them.

�We all feel like that once in a while, Lance,� Joey offered. �I mean, I don�t have a woman either, but-�

�You could get one, though! You could go out this very night and find some soft, curvy, beautiful girl with long blond hair and big blue eyes and you know she�d be half in love with you by morning! I can�t.�

�How about a guy, then?� Chris joked, �We all know you�re into them too, you and JC both. You could cruise the fellas together. Pick up a few. Have a good time.�

�But I don�t want that, Chris. I want somebody special, someone who makes me feel...sublimely happy.�

�You want the fairy tale,� Joey mumbled quietly.

�Yeah,� Lance nodded regretfully. �I do. Is that so bad?�

�No,� JC decided, �it�s not. But it�s not exactly practical, either.�

�Fuck practicality! Things used to be so much easier, you know? Like, you buy a box of those cheap cartoon valentines, fill �em out, give �em to your friends with a little heart shaped chocolate, and suddenly, you have a whole fistful of valentines addressed to you! You�re not alone, you don�t feel alone, and you know - you know - you�re loved. Why can�t it be like that always? Why does everyone have to decide that showing friendship and affection like that when they get older isn�t warranted?�

Lance drew in a deep breath as his tirade came to a grinding halt, spontaneous tears clogging his throat. He was angry, genuinely pissed, at whomever had come up with the idea of Valentine�s Day in the first place. With a half uttered curse, Lance leapt swiftly to his feet and strode purposefully toward his bunk, where he threw himself on top of the covers, yanked the curtain shut, and resumed his pout. By morning, he thought maybe he really would be able to give Justin a run for his money.

That night, Lance woke with a start. He lay on his back in his bunk, beneath a careworn blue blanket, the same one he�d dragged around the world since the beginning. Years ago, it had been folded every morning at the foot of his bed in Mississippi, and now it practically had its own passport and travel papers. Lance might have wondered who had thought to cover him up, but the answer was readily available and placed carefully on his chest.

Squinting his eyes, Lance lifted the giant red paper heart that lay over his own. It had been crudely formed out of construction paper and the rough edges had been masked with the lacy portion of a paper doily. Bits of tissue paper and smaller, just as roughly cut, hearts were attached to the base shape. What felt like a pound and a half of glitter had been sprinkled on as a finishing touch and flaked off on his shirt like a silvery snowfall.

In the middle of the hand made valentine were the words Be Mine, written in purple ink with a little smiley face drawn beneath it. On the flip side, it said To: Lance. From: Chris.

A slow grin worked its way across Lance�s mouth until he was positively beaming at the inexpertly crafted, but hewn with love, valentine. Shifting his weight to the edge of the bed, Lance flung open the privacy curtain, intent on finding Chris so he could throw his arms around the smaller man in a hug that he hoped would say everything he wanted it to, because he had a feeling his tongue wouldn�t be able to form the appropriate words.

Around him, all the bunks were neatly made, draperies tied back. Not a single sound emanated from the back room and for the first time, Lance realized that not only was it dark outside the bus, but inside as well. Except for the tiny night light left on above the stove in the kitchenette.

Well fuck, Lance thought bitterly; a bit of the sourness he�d felt all day returned. They�d obviously stopped at a hotel for the evening and no one had even bothered to let him know. Granted, he�d been sleeping, but Lance would rather be warmly slumbering in a real bed with a thick mattress, as opposed to the stuffy bus, any day of the week. He felt a pout tug at his mouth again.

Outside the bus, a security guard was waiting to escort him inside. Lance kept up his sullen visage all through the ride in the elevator and up to the eighth floor. He didn�t even bother to give his usual farewell wave to the guard, only shuffled straight to his door, key card in one hand and valentine clutched in the other.

At his door, Lance�s clumsy fingers lost their grip on the key card. When he bent down to pick it up a small, thin, rectangular box caught his eye. With a frown, Lance plucked it from the floor where it was placed flush with the base of the door.

The object proved to be a clear plastic case which contained a cassette tape. The index was penned in JC�s cramped handwriting and listed a number of tracks. Lance�s spirits lifted when he realized that each song on the mixed tape was a love song, perfectly apropos for the impending holiday; a glance at his watch revealed that it was just after midnight. Incredible timing, he thought happily. The note stuck to the cassette read, Happy V-Day, Lance. Love, JC.

A smile emerged on Lance�s face that only grew larger when a bantam envelope taped to the door snagged his attention. The white paper blended in with the ivory paint of the wood, and the bold blue ink that addressed the pint sized card to him stood out in stark contrast. Given his mood, it was no wonder Lance had missed its presence upon first glance, but he was approaching sheer giddiness at the prospect of becoming the recipient of yet another seasonal gift of friendship.

He wasted no time tearing open the envelope. A little card slipped out of its confines, Winnie The Pooh emblazoned on one side, clutching a honey pot and fending off a buzzing bumble bee that apparently had it�s sights set on Pooh�s jar. The words, Won�t you Bee my Valentine? were followed up with a nearly illegible signature that Lance recognized immediately as Justin�s. He laughed a little, the first happy sound he�d made in at least 48 hours, and wondered if his friend had been forced to buy an entire box of cheesy kiddie cards, just to get this one special little sentiment he knew Lance craved.

Lance was still grinning ear to ear when he finally wrangled his key card into the slot and pushed open the door. He persisted in chuckling to himself, thanking St. Valentine himself for the wonderful friends who�d embedded themselves in his life, while popping the mixed tape into his travel stereo that someone had kindly set up on the dresser.

As he slid the tape into the player, Lance received the biggest valentines surprise of his life when he glanced up in the mirror hanging above the bureau. His jaw practically came unhinged and a gasp escaped his mouth before it could be stifled.

There, on his bed, languished a very life size, very *human* valentine, one Lance had occasionally dreamed about over the years but had only ever considered unattainable in the worst way.

�Happy Valentine�s Day, Lance.�

�J...Joey?� he murmured.

�Very good,� the older man smiled warmly, eyes crinkling at the corners with suppressed laughter. The bare muscles of chest flexed as he held his mirth in check and Lance fought to take everything in at once.

�Wha...um.� Lance cleared his throat; twice. �How -oh. Uh, how�d you get in?� He was mortified to hear his voice crack and proceeded to turn several flattering shades of pink as he tried not to look at a very naked, very appealing Joey. Or rather, he tried valiantly not to look there.

He looked anyway.

�I made an arbitrary decision to take over as keeper of the master key card. After all, somebody had to step up to the plate; you were asleep.�

�Right. Uh, well...what are you...?� Lance did whimper then, a pitiful sound brought on by the complete absence of coherent thought and the panicked feeling that welled within him at the realization that he, Lance Bass, had absolutely no idea what to do.

�I thought,� Joey began, his voice huskier and smoother than Lance had ever heard it before, �that I would give you a present in honor of this festive occasion.� Joey stretched languidly on the bed making Lance swallow audibly and ball his fists at his sides to keep from lunging across the room.

�And herein would be said present?� he choked, gesturing at Joey�s attire, or lack of it.

�Exactly. Except, I thought I�d make things a little more,� Joey raised a suggestive eyebrow, �interesting? So I borrowed Chris�s art supplies, then made you a valentine of my own. Me.�

�Hence the glitter.�

�Mmhmm. Sorry if the hearts are a little crooked, I had to draw them while I looked in the mirror.�

�Are the markers...washable?�

�So says the package,� Joey smirked.

�Oh.�

�I also got you these.� Joey moved off the bed and approached Lance slowly, like a cat about to pounce on its pray. In his hand was a box of candy hearts.

Lance grinned, peering up into Joey�s face through his girlishly long lashes. Joey stepped impossibly close to the younger man, close enough that the heat from his body permeated Lance�s clothing and began to warm the skin beneath. A rosy flush covered them both as Joey�s fingers wrapped around the hem of Lance�s shirt, pulling it up and over his head in a single fluid motion. Palms slid against skin with light, feathery touches and Joey pulled Lance to him, burying his face in the boy�s shoulder. Pressing a line of half formed kisses along the column of Lance�s neck, Joey�s lips hovered over his ear.

�Care to exchange silly nothings?� he asked, tapping the candy with the tip of his index finger.

�Oh,� Lance sighed, reaching between them to boldly run his hand along the length of Joey�s erection. �I wouldn�t call this nothing. Besides, everything that needs to be said has already been...expressed. You look like twisted Hallmark card, you know that?�

�That�s because I care enough to send the very best.�

Hours later, both lay in bed in a room filled with the heady scent of sex and candy, thoroughly sated. All melancholy thoughts had been chased from Lance�s mind, his pale skin now covered in glitter, traces of marker and bits of crumpled tissue paper that had come off of Joey and glommed onto him. Lance decided he rather liked feeling like a human valentine, albeit a funny one, but most of all he liked the feeling of a naked Joey cocooned around him like a bear skin rug, warm and fuzzy and sweet.

�Hey Joe?�

�Hmm?� came the sleepy response.

�Happy Valentine�s Day.�