Maggie awakes to the sound of her phone ringing and forces her body to roll over. She glances at the screen and sees that her best friend is calling. She answers with a grunt of exhaustion.
“Good morning, Sunshine!” Josh’s deep voice greets with exaggerated enthusiasm.
“What do you want?”
“Just to wish you a happy Valentine’s Day.”
Maggie immediately hangs up at the mention of her least favorite day of the year.
He calls back a second later.
“Hate you.” She answers.
His rich chuckle passes through the connection before he disagrees. “But you don’t. What are you doing today?”
“Staying in bed and eating massive amounts of non heart- shaped chocolate.”
“Wrong answer. We’re going skiing. Be ready at noon.”
“Oh hello, Maggie. Would you like to go skiing with me today? Yes, yes I’d love to. When would you like to leave? Noon is perfect for me.” She reiterates sarcastically.
“Same thing. See you then.”
…
Maggie just sits down to enjoy her bowl of cocoa krispies when she hears Josh let himself in the back door. He sets a huge stuffed bear holding a heart reading Love on the table in front of her. His brown eyes sparkle with amusement and a grin crosses his face.
“I’m glad you find yourself clever. That makes one of us.” Maggie comments dryly.
Josh’s smile only widens before he pulls a rose out of his back pocket, sweeping to his knees and dropping it on Maggie’s crossed legs dramatically.
“Are you done?”
“Awe, come on Mags! Admit it. I’m hilarious.”
This prompts a small smile she fails to hide. Josh grins smugly before leaving to load Maggie’s ski equipment into his car.
…
Despite Maggie’s resolve to be miserable, she finds herself enjoying the day. The elation of cold speed and Josh’s incessant chatter work together to break through her defenses.
“Let’s play!” Josh calls out, cutting through the woods toward the outdoor playground. Maggie follows, rolling her eyes at his immaturity. They pop their skis off and lean them against a tree before removing their helmets and racing toward the clubhouse and up the stairs. Once there, they fly down the slide, laughing when Maggie appears directly behind Josh, giving him no time to move. They end up in a tangle of arms and legs.
“Explain to me again why you hate today.” Josh requests from under Maggie.
“It’s stupid.” Maggie stresses. “A calendar shouldn’t dictate when people should be in love. A kiss today wouldn’t feel any better than any other day.”
“Wanna bet?”
“I… Wha-“
Josh quickly rolls with Maggie in his arms, reversing their positions. He dips his head to press his cold, wind-chapped lips to hers. Maggie kisses back.
…
The two friends sit by a fire in the lodge, winding down from the day’s events. They have removed most of their snow gear and have it scattered around them to dry. They are positioned across from each other. Maggie’s stocking clad feet are propped on Josh’s lap.
“Mags?” Josh questions, absently running his fingers up her shin.
“Hmm?”
“Would it be a bad day to ask you to be my girlfriend? I mean, I wouldn’t want to ruin your rep and have anyone think you could be capable of positive emotion on such an awful day.” Every word is laced with admiring mockery.
She picks up the glove beside her and throws it at his head. He catches it neatly in front of his face and laughs before pulling her into his arms.