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As the sun rose to a cold morning on a quite special day of February, the calendar was marked. February 14th. To Grady, this was typically a day to watch in silence as others, perhaps more fortunate than he, expressed their love for one another. However things would be different this year.
He looked over to his table. There sat a gift, wrapped up in ribbon with a small note attached to it. Years prior, Grady always sat around and waited, just to see if anyone was remotely interested. He'd never tried going for anything himself. Yet this all changed the day he met Wheatley.
Wheatley. His heart shuttered at the thought of him.
Grady knew the guy quite well now, and knew if he wanted to try his shot to admit his feelings, it would be him to do it. Wheatley could never; he was already so reserved about his platonic feelings towards others. Trying to imagine Wheatley ever confessing love to somebody seemed like an impossible task.
So Grady would do it.
Of course, he was nervous. He'd never done this, first off, but the anxiety welled up in his mind. What if he didn't like him the same way? Would that make things awkward, or even strained, if they tried to stay friends? What if they drifted apart? It stung to think about.
He swallowed his nerves, though. His gaze fell down to his hoodie on the floor. Typically, his attire was quite casual; blue hoodie, sweatpants, sneakers, hair brushed just enough to not be one huge knot. Grady wasn't going to do that today, he'd decided. Maybe Wheatley would like it if he were to dress nice.
So, he looked through his closet and found a nice, red and pink button-up top. He cuffed the sleeves and slipped on a pair of dark blue jeans. Of course the guy didn't own anything like dress pants, but it still went nice, and gave him a semi-formal appearance. It felt odd, if he would be honest.
Grady combed through his long, thick hair, looking at the bottle on the sink. It's something Virgil had given him to calm frizzy hair, of which the brothers both had issues with. He'd not used it much, which surprised neither of them, but he was glad he had it today. He sprayed some into his hair and watched as he combed down the strands that would usually be sticking up. He gazed at himself in the mirror. This sure wasn't something that felt very 'Grady' to him. If it would make Wheatley happy, though, then he'd put up with it.
Walking back into his room, he slid on some socks, followed by black slip-ons that weren't quite fancy, but were a lot more formal than any other shoes he had.
Grabbing his phone off the night stand, he opened the messages he had with Virgil last night. The two had planned a day out with their friends Rick, Aaron and Solar, as well as Wheatley. They had all agreed to meet up downtown at 11 am for brunch, just to get out of the house a little. Besides, Gy and Camille had planned a Valentine's party for 12:30, so they might as well do something before then.
Grady opened up to his brother about his plans, and he took full support, even giving him tips on what to do. He hoped this would work. Rick and Aaron were already together, much to the initial surprise of everyone. Grady was only thankful that Aaron was a bit reluctant to the lovey-dovey gestures of Rick. As much as he was happy for his friends, Grady was quite sick of watching everyone else be all romantic. Depending on how the day would go, though, he may be proven a hypocrite.
He checked the time: 10:40 am. He'd better get going. Grady grabbed his gift and his car keys, checking his appearance one last time. He hesitantly gave it an approving smile and nod before walking out.
The car ride was anxious for a couple minutes, his heart racing. Why was he so torn up about this so soon? He'd not even spoken to Wheatley today, asides from a good morning text. His phone eventually buzzed. Rick? Quickly, he picked up.
"Heyy, Grady! Happy single awareness day!" Grady chuckled. It might've been funnier without his anxiety still lingering in his pulse. "Yeah, I'm aware, alright." Rick laughed with him. "Yeahh, I get that."
He paused for a moment, sending Grady off-guard. Rick didn't often hesitate like that. "Listen, uh, I know y' always hate bein' all alone on Valentine's day, so uh-"
"So, what, you're gonna be my valentine?" Grady couldn't help himself to the sarcastic comment. Rick deeply chuckled. "Eh, nahh. Y' ain't my type."
"Yeah, I'm not a nerd."
"Ay, now!"
"What, you do it all the time!"
"Yeah, well I get t' cuz they're my partner!"
"Yeah, yeah, whatever!" The two laughed once more, though after it settled, Rick continued.
"But uh, I was gonna see if y' wanted to ditch the party." He blinked. "Ditch the party?"
"Yeah! I mean, Aaron isn't a party freak, and I know y' don't really like spendin' Valentine's day alone and watchin' others be all smoochy smoochy, so I thought I'd offer, yknow?"
Grady sighed. "Well, uh, I appreciate it. But, I've actually got some plans to be there. Besides, you and Aaron would be all up on each other anyways."
Rick scoffed. "Would not!"
"Ha! Would too!"
He heard Rick hum briefly. "...Plans, huh? And I'm assumin' it's with Wheatley?"
Grady stiffened. He genuinely didn't expect to be called out so quickly. "Wh-?! How..?" He heard Rick laugh again, but he wasn't laughing with him this time. "It's obvious!" He groaned at that response. He'd hoped to be more subtle about all this.
"Eh, y' can't help it, though. I ain't tellin' a soul, on mine." Grady felt relief wash over him. As much of a dick Rick could be, he still had a heart.
"Yeah... thanks." He realized he was just about there as he pulled his mind back. "Hey, I'll talk to you downtown."
"Alrighty! Cya there, G!" The tone went off as Rick hung up.
His thoughts tangled up. He was obvious, wasn't he? At least to Rick, he was. He shook his head. There's not much he could do about that, he guessed.
Spotting Virgil's vehicle, he pulled up next to it, where Virgil was waiting on the sidewalk bench. Stepping out, he saw his brother light up with surprise. "Well, look at you! Really putting in an effort, huh?" Grady chuckled. "I think I'm gonna be hearing a lot of surprise today." Virgil nodded. "But to answer you, yeah. I thought I would dress nice today. Maybe Wheatley would like it?"
"Do you like it?" Grady never liked the way Virgil perked up an eyebrow when he always saw through Grady's facade. "Uh... I don't not like it..."
Virgil sighed, an exhausted sigh. The two had done this a few times already. "I told you to do it if you wanted to."
"I did want to," Grady huffed. "I wanted to for Wheatley, but I still wanted to." Virgil rolled his eyes. "Whatever..."
Grady glanced behind him, seeing a truck pull in near the two. Rick was here, and so was Aaron. The two stepped out and met Virgil and Grady on the sidewalk. "Look who went through their closet!" Rick grinned, enthusiastic. Aaron was more mild about their surprise. "That's unusual for you, Grady." They eyed his formal attire with interest. "What's the occasion?"
"Me finally deciding to look half-decent, I guess." Grady shrugged, though a knowing glance from Rick kept his mouth shut as Aaron simply nodded. He held back a sigh. At least he wouldn't be interrogated by Aaron.
After a while of waiting, Solar ended up calling Aaron. They'd run into some traffic, so the group decided to get their table ready. Meanwhile, Grady felt his anxiety keep eating away at him. He was grateful that it wasn't too awkward, though, since Rick and Virgil somewhat knew what he had to be nervous about, and Aaron didn't seem all too concerned of it.
Eventually, his senses came back to him, and just in time, too.
"Oi oi! Sorry we're late!"
Grady raised his head excitedly. "Wheatley! Hey!"
Wheatley and Solar were walking up to the table. Wheatley's eyes shone with interest. "You look great, Grady! You don't usually wear fancy stuff-! Well, fancy-ish? That's the word, right? Fancy-ish. Yep, that makes sense. But it suits you..!" Grady felt his heart lift. "You think so?"
"Yeah! Sorta brings out the rest of you, right? As in making you appear more... just more, really. Do you understand.. what I'm saying?"
"I think I get it, yeah." He couldn't help but feel his chest warm up at Wheatley's awkward compliments. The two sat next to each other, Grady having saved him a seat. He managed to calm down, feeling himself being pushed by the ebb and flow of the fuzzy feeling in his chest during his conversations with Wheatley, which naturally bounced all over the place. It was like Wheatley's presence overtook him with love every time.
"...Hundreds of people! Just dead! That's INSANE, isn't it??" Before he could respond, Wheatley kept going. "And it's not as if they told me about any of it! Yknow, it's not like it's my JOB or anything! Bloody madness!"
Grady chuckled. "Yeah, aperture's jobs are pretty fucked up, huh?"
"You're tellin' me, mate." Wheatley shook his head. When someone else spoke to Grady, it almost sent him into shock. He'd been so absorbed into the conversation with Wheatley that he couldn't realize Virgil was trying to talk to him until he was shook. "Hello?? Grady?"
He yelped as Virgil shook him around. "What?? What? What's up??" He looked over quickly. "You done eating? We've gotta leave soon."
Grady looked down at his plate, seeing that he still had a bit more to eat. He quickly finished and looked over. "Yep, I'm good!" Virgil chuckled under his breath, once again perking his eyebrow up. Stupid Virgil... Grady resisted rolling his eyes at him.
Grady looked over at Wheatley. "You're headed with us to the party, right?" Wheatley blinked, then nodded. "Oh! Well- Yeah! I mean, people want me to go, it would be rude to not, really! It'll be fun, anyways! Yknow, except for being single at a Valentine's Day party. But ey, I'm not alone there, right?" Wheatley smiled at Grady, and he politely smiled back. "Yeah." Might not be the case by the time the party's over.
He shook himself. He shouldn't get too hopeful, now. All he could do was wait for the moment.
As Grady got settled into the party, he and Wheatley still continued to talk, sitting on the couch in the guest room. "...You didn't even learn how to do it beforehand, I mean you just built the turret! That's incredible!" Letting out a deep laugh, Grady looked at Wheatley. "You say that all the time!"
"I just can't even wrap my head around it! I mean you did that on your own! With no prior training! Really, it's- it's BRILLIANT!"
"Well, eheh, thank you! Really, you- you don't have to say that all the time." Wheatley tilted his head. "Oi, but it's true! It really is." The two sighed, only slightly. Wheatley's eyes darted around, and Grady could tell he was thinking of something to say, or maybe trying to avoid a question..? He couldn't tell, but he knew it was something akin to that.
Eventually, Wheatley spoke. "How come you're so dressed up today, anyway?" Grady blinked. "Well, uh. I thought it would be... nice, I guess." He looked over. "Is it not?"
Wheatley jolted. "No- No it is! Don't get me wrong! I just... don't know why you'd choose to do it. It doesn't..." He paused, gaze fixed on the ground. "It isn't... you. Y- You know? I mean, it is nice! Very, very nice! But you always wear more casual clothing, it's just... odd to see you being so formal, I- I mean there's gotta be a reason to it!"
He felt himself stiffen. Why did Wheatley have to know him so well? Why could he see through it?
"I thought it would be nice, I said."
"Nice for who?" He perked up at that response. "What..?"
"You've never been one to care. You must be doing it for someone else, or for some other reason, or- or something!"
Grady hesitated. What does he even say? He knew he had to do it at some point, but he didn't expect to be so unprepared. Does he say everything? Does he keep it low? He felt his head pound with frustration.
"Grady? I... I didn't mean it like that, I- I'm sorry." He looked back up to see Wheatley glancing to the side guiltily. His heart raced. "No! No no, you- you're ok! It's just..." His gaze fell to the floor once more. "I thought you would like it."
"Me??" The confusion in Wheatley's voice dug into his heart. "What do you mean? Why do you care what I would think?"
"Because-!" What do I say?! "Because I- I care for you! And I wanted to do something nice for you, and it was just out of my ordinary, I guess!" The only time he could bare to glance back at Wheatley, confusion still littered his face. This was a lot harder than he thought it would be.
They both took a moment in silence, both clearly tense, though Grady a lot more so. He felt himself calm down enough. You just have to say it. There's no turning back now.
"I thought you would like it..." Suddenly, while reaching his hands instinctively into his pockets, he realized something. "I wanted to give you something."
He pulled out the gift he'd gotten. An envelope with a small sucker glued to it. "I- I know it doesn't look like much, and I kinda dressed up to make up for it, but I thought it would be nice..." Wheatley looked down at it, still a little confused, but Grady could feel like things were starting to click for him. He opened up the envelope. Inside was a card, predictably. As Wheatley read through it, Grady felt his heart pound in his ears. Of course, Wheatley's habit was to read out loud.
"There are so many ways I could say I love you, but I had to go for something simple. You're the light of my life, will you be my Valentine?"
Grady couldn't bare to look at Wheatley, not with his chest tightening with anxiety, with his ears pounding, with his mind scrambling for any hope. And yet he could feel the bright blue gaze on him, freezing Grady in place.
Wheatley inched closer. "Grady?" He glued his eyes shut.
"Grady..."
He clenched the seat beneath him, preparing for whatever was to come.
Grady felt a hand gently grab his jawline, forcing his eyes to blink open. His head was tilted towards Wheatley, and before he could do anything else, he felt their lips meet. The warmth of Wheatley's embrace nearly melted Grady, and he ran a hand through his soft blonde hair. The two stayed there for a few seconds before pulling away, leaving their faces just a couple inches away from one another.
"Grady..." Wheatley's voice was thick with love, his eyes locked to Grady's. His gentle smile left Grady hot. "Yes?"
"Yes."
The two stayed there for a while, mainly kissing and taking in the moment. Eventually, though, the party came to its end. The two walked outside, gazing at each other. "Well..?" Grady eventually broke the silence that had grown thick in the cold night air.
"Well," Wheatley began. "I've had a lovely day with you." Grady nodded in agreement. "Yeah..." The question popped in his mind. "So are we..?"
"Together?" The smaller man moved closer to him, and he nodded. "Would you want to be?"
"Of course! Wouldn't you?" Quickly, Wheatley nodded. "Yes!"
Grady smiled, pulling in Wheatley by his hips for one last kiss. "Then it's official."
The two chuckled lightly. Eventually, they pulled apart from each other's arms. Grady turned to walk to his car. "I'll text you tomorrow, kay?"
"Okay, love!"
The car ride home that day was one spent reflecting on the day lovingly. And also brought the inevitable calls from Rick and Virgil and their excited reactions.
As Grady got home that night and got back into his usual clothes, Wheatley's words echoed in his mind. And he was right. The fancy stuff wasn't him, as much as he thought Wheatley would love a fancy Grady. This was him. In a T-shirt and boxers for the night, scrolling through his phone for a moment before bed, relaxed and sprawled out on his bed, with not a damn about his looks. This was what Wheatley loved. This was him. And he couldn't be happier.