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Rick sat on the edge of his bed with his shoulders hunched over as he scrolled through his phone, alternating between stupid TikToks and old text messages from Beth. An old radio that he had found and fixed from Zeke’s junkyard played music on the dresser across from him.
You’re just too good to be true
Can’t take me eyes off of you
The bonus room above the Dugan-Whitmore garage had previously been used for storage, but it now served as Rick’s bedroom. It had been several months since Matt got out of the hospital from the Eclipso incident, sold the farm, ditched Blue Valley, and left Rick homeless. But Barbara and Pat had been quick to make space for Rick and provide him a safe home.
Pardon the way that I stare
There’s nothin’ else to compare
Rick glanced up from his phone to stare at the old radio. He bit the inside of his cheek as his brain tried to reach some lost memory of this song. Had he seen his parents dancing to this in the kitchen when he was supposed to be in bed asleep? Was it something that his mom used to hum when she was folding laundry and he was helping her by mismatching socks together? He sighed and fell backward against the mattress as he gave up grasping for something that he wasn’t sure was there.
He shut his eyes momentarily before there was a knock on the door. He let out a quiet groan before pushing himself off the bed and lumbering over to the door.
“Yeah?” He began as he swung open the door. His heart did a little flip in his chest when he saw Beth standing in front of him with a rectangular glass container in her hands and her bike helmet on.
“Hi!” she said.
“Um, uh, hey,” he greeted her as he self-consciously tugged at the bottom of his shirt. He was wearing a pair of pajamas that Barbara had gotten him last weekend when she had bought Courtney and Mike some of their own. They were comfortable but they had little cartoon stars all over them, which wasn’t his style or something he would want to be caught wearing.
“Nice PJs!” Beth complimented Rick as she stepped around him and into his room.
Rick could hear the sincerity in her voice, but embarrassment made him grumpy. He forced the smile, which he had been sporting since he had opened the door to reveal his favorite person, into a frown. “Whatever,” he mumbled.
He shut the door as he watched her spin around the room as if it were the first time she had ever been inside of it. He smiled but it quickly morphed into a frown. He suddenly realized that this had been the first time that she had been there without either Yolanda or Courtney. Whenever the two of them studied or worked on JSA stuff alone, they did so at the Pit Stop. He pulled his fingers through his hair, hoping that it didn’t look too messy. He berated himself for not using the good shampoo that Yolanda had suggested he try.
“We should have a painting party, Rick! I’m sure Mr. Dugan won’t mind if we make your walls more fun, colorful, ” Beth said as she drummed her fingers against the plain white wall closest to the pair of windows facing the driveway.
“Sure,” he replied, not at all caring about his walls.
His eyes lingered on Beth. Except for her bright helmet, her outfit was unusually monochrome for a Beth outfit. He checked her out. Her skirt, tights, and bowtie were all black and her ruffled long-sleeved shirt was white. He didn’t think that she looked bad. She looked the opposite of bad and that thought made his chest feel tight.
“Why are you dressed like that?” he asked.
“Oh,” Beth gasped as she looked down at her outfit. She smiled up at him and explained, “I was the waiter for my parents’ romantic dinner. I wanted to go for like a fancy, French waiter vibe. After the almost-divorce situation, I wanted to make this Valentine’s Day extra special.”
Rick gave her a small smile as he thought how it would have been weirder if Beth hadn’t gone all out for her parents. It was such a Beth thing to do.
“They like it?”
“I think so,” she responded proudly.
“Cool.”
“Anyway, I wanted to bring you these before it got too late,” Beth said as she handed him the glass container. “I made extras to make sure I had enough for you.”
Rick lifted the lid and grinned as soon as the smell of strawberry cake mix filled the room. There were six perfectly frosted cupcakes fit snugly inside the container. Sprinkles shaped like red, white, and pink hearts decorated the treats.
“Wow,” he chuckled lightly. “Thanks.”
He was about to grab a cupcake out of the container when a troublesome thought interrupted his actions. He glanced at the time on the Spiderman clock that Mike had regifted him as a “housewarming gift.” It was almost 10:30 p.m. He frowned as he looked at the closed blinds, and even though he couldn’t see the night sky, he knew it was dark.
“Beth, don’t tell me you biked here in the dark.”
Beth shrugged. “It’s not that far. And I really, really wanted to make sure I got these cupcakes to you on this day . Plus, I wore my safety vest with the bright colors and reflective lights.” She pointed her thumb over her shoulder. “I left it in the basket on my bike.”
Rick shook his head disapprovingly. “Beth, I could’ve drove over there. Or Courtney. She’s got her staff and you know she’d fly over for anything you baked.”
“I…” Beth fidgeted with the bottom of her skirt.
Rick’s eyes couldn’t help but follow her fidgeting and land above her knees. His disapproval of her biking in the dark fizzled out because she was dressed like a hot magician and he forgot what they were talking about.
“... I didn’t make cupcakes for Courtney,” Beth said quietly.
“What cupcakes?” Rick replied dumbly as his eyes shot back up to Beth’s face at the sound of her voice. He blinked and shook his head. He held up the container of strawberry cupcakes and muttered, “Right. Cupcakes.”
Beth didn’t seem to notice his odd behavior, but she stopped fidgeting with her skirt. Instead she messed with the chin strap of her helmet. “I didn’t bake cupcakes for Yolanda either. Or the Dugan-Whitmores. Just for my parents…and you.”
Rick furrowed his brow. “Why?”
Beth dropped her hands to her sides and clenched her fist. She visibly inhaled deeply through her nostrils and exhaled through her mouth. Rick dropped his gaze to the heart sprinkles on the cupcakes and forced his brain to forget the image of the ruffles of Beth’s shirt expanding and collapsing from her breathing. He could hardly hear the sound of the soft music playing from all the gears turning in his brain.
“What the…” he grumbled under his breath.
“Because it’s Valentine’s Day!” Beth announced loudly over Rick’s grumbling.
Confused by her declaration, Rick lifted his gaze from the cupcakes to Beth’s pretty eyes. She was standing with her shoulders square and a confident grin on her face. Rick’s grip tightened around the glass container. She looked adorable and that was so much worse for Rick than her looking hot. His heart couldn’t take adorable when they were all alone in his room without Courtney or Yolanda or Mike to distract from the fact that Rick knew he had romantic feelings for Beth.
“It’s Valentine’s Day, Rick! And I made special cupcakes just for you! Happy Valentine’s Day!” Beth repeated brightly.
She spread her arms wide and shimmed slightly to indicate that she was ready for a bear hug, because Beth only ever gave warm, all encompassing hugs. Rick had a little of nothing to call his own, but he would totally give it all up for a Beth hug.
“Hug?” she asked enthusiastically.
“Um uh…”
Out of everyone, she had made a Valentine’s gift for him? Rick imagined tossing the container of delicious cupcakes over his shoulder and rushing forward to scoop Beth up and… Well, he had spent so much of his life avoiding people that at seventeen he was not too sure of what exactly he would do with all of the admiration and attraction that he had for his best friend. In his imagination, he was bold enough to move forward and figure it out.
“Still waiting,” Beth whispered good-naturedly.
But this wasn’t Rick’s imagination, so in reality he stood there frozen. He stared into the distance between them as if they were standing on opposite ends of the Earth. His face was hot from blushing and he cursed internally for not changing the radio station to the weather because all that continued to play were old love songs.
“You made cupcakes as like a Valentine’s gift for me or something?” The words came out of his mouth in a monotone that was not at all a reflection of all the chaos going on inside of him.
“Um…” Beth slowly lowered her arms and her shoulders sagged. She looked down at the tan rug beneath their feet and then looked shyly back up at Rick. “Was that something that I shouldn’t have done for you?”
“You can do anything you want to me,” he said in a desperate rush without thinking. His tone wasn’t flirty or suggestive, but he was being completely honest. He squeezed his eyes shut and folded his lips as he let out a breath through his nostrils. “I mean thanks for the cupcakes. This is awesome.”
“Really?” Beth smiled. Her shoulders and chin lifted as she regained her confidence.
Rick opened his eyes and the sight of her hopeful expression made his gut sick with butterflies. He was feeling embarrassed again, but instead of being grumpy he picked up one of the cupcakes and took a huge bite. He hummed his approval.
“I used fresh strawberries in the batter,” Beth explained as she closed the gap between them to stand in his personal space. “And look at the sprinkles. They’re little hearts!” She exclaimed as she pointed into the container.
Rick chuckled as he chewed. He nodded at her and the grin on his face made her beam up at him.
“It is kinda late and dark out,” Beth said as she glanced at the time. “Would you mind driving me back home?”
“Oh, you biking back home wasn’t even an option,” Rick said as he placed the lid back on the container. He tossed the closed container onto his bed and walked toward the bathroom. “Let me get changed.”
“Aw, but I like the little stars,” Beth pouted as she took off her bike helmet and tossed it onto his mattress. “And you look so cuddly in your cute pajamas!”
Rick felt his face heat again as he clenched his fist and refused to let thoughts of cuddling Beth in the back of his car enter his mind. He turned back to look at her and said, “Give me a minute.”
“Okie dokie,” Beth replied as she flopped down on his bed. She crossed her legs and the stretchy material of the tights tightened as the fabric of her skirt raised slightly. “I’ll be right here.”
Rick’s chest tightened again and he could have sworn he heard something inside of his brain shatter. The sweetest person in the world had just made him the most delicious cupcakes he had ever tasted and was currently relaxing on his bed in the best outfit ever on Valentine’s Day. Nope.
“Never mind,” he said as he moved quickly to the table beside the closet where he kept his car keys and the newly fixed hourglass. “I’ll take you now. You need to rest from cooking and stuff.”
“Not really,” Beth replied brightly. “I could probably stay up all night. Like no sleep at all.”
Rick bunched his eyebrows together and looked down at the rug as he muttered to himself, “She doesn’t mean it like that, idiot,” as the thought of staying up all night to figure out how Beth liked to be kissed crossed his mind.
“What was that?” Beth asked as she smoothed her hand across his bed. She gasped and gazed down at the freshly laundered blanket. “Wow, Rick, your comforter is super soft! What fabric softener do the Dugan-Whitmore’s use?”
Rick didn’t reply. He just focused all of his nervous energy on getting Beth Chapel as far away from the seclusion of his warm and cozy new room on Valentine’s Day while soft music was playing from an old radio. He grabbed her hand and practically yanked her off of his bed and toward the door.
“But what about your pajamas? And your cupcakes?” Beth asked in confusion as she quickly swiped her bike helmet.
“It’s fine. Let’s go. And let’s bring Courtney too! She’ll be happy to see you.”
He noticed a worried look flash across Beth’s face. Guilt made him pause as they both stood in the doorway. He knew that it wasn’t Beth’s fault that he was kicking her out for being unintentionally hot and destroying his brain cells with her adorableness. But he couldn’t risk looking any more like a loser in front of her. And he certainly couldn’t handle a car ride with her in the passenger seat wearing a skirt, not without Courtney sitting in the back and telling them all the boring details of her date earlier that day.
Rick squeezed her hand gently and lied, “Only in case she saw your bike. I don’t want her to be jealous if we don’t invite her. But don’t worry. The cupcakes are our secret.” He gave her a small smile and admitted, “No one has ever given me a valentine before. Thanks, Beth. Happy Valentine’s Day.”
Beth leaned into him slightly and smiled. “Your welcome, Rick.”
Cause girl, you’re amazing
Just the way you are
At the sound of the music from the radio, Beth squeezed Rick’s hand and her eyes brightened.
“Hey! My parents love this song. My dad used to sing it all the time to my mom when they’d get ready for work in the mornings,” she said before singing along.
Her lips, her lips
I could kiss them all day if she’d let me
“Do you like this song, Rick?” she asked nonchalantly.
Rick’s body immediately started working against him again. Had he imagined her voice lowering an octave when she asked that question? His neck heated, his brain wondered if her kisses would taste like those strawberry cupcakes, and his heart started making crazy demands of his hands.
“Time to go,” he stammered. Rick let go of Beth’s hand as if it were on fire and then gently nudged her out of the doorway. He slammed the door shut behind them and made a mental note to throw that radio back into the junkyard.