…

It had started out as a regular day.

His alarm went off for thirty seconds before his hand slammed down on it and he fell back asleep. His mother knocked on his door twenty minutes later, telling him he was going to be late.

He ignored her, of course, because sleep was far more important than studying in school for the next seven hours. However, his mother then said that she wasn't going to drive him again and that he wouldn't have time to eat breakfast.

Groaning, he had rolled out of bed and stretched before he began his morning routine.

He practically shredded off his sleepwear and grabbed the first thing he saw from his closet, which was obviously in chaos, and he scrambled to the bathroom. He moved his toothbrush around his mouth with one hand while he attempted to pull up his dark jeans with the other.

Upon hearing his mother call his name, he spit out the toothbrush and quickly rinsed his mouth before pulling on his shirt and racing back to his room where he grabbed book bag and favorite red jacket.

On his way out the door, he happened to glance at the calendar. At once, he froze as he stared at the date in horror.

Circled in red was the fourteenth of February, aka today. It was Valentine's Day.

Seventeen-year-old Dan Kuso felt terrified for more reasons than one.

For starters, he hated anything to do with mushy, gooey love in general. It was one of the reasons he wasn't a fan of serious relationships.

Secondly, due to his adventures with the Bakugan and being one of the Original Brawlers, he was rather popular at school. The girls already annoyed him with their persistence and Valentine's Day was definitely going to encourage them even more. And girls in Bayview took the holiday really seriously.

The third reason was because of obvious reasons that more or less contradicted his first reason.

When he was twelve years old, Dan had begun to date his long-time friend and rival, Original Haos Brawler Runo Misaki, back in Japan after their battle with Naga. Their relationship was unique; they were basically best friends that occasionally held hands and kissed, and Dan liked that he didn't have to be a boyfriend to Runo all the time and that she wasn't so high maintenance compared to other girls.

Three years after dating, both of them now fifteen, Dan was invited to help his old Bakugan partner, Drago, save New Vestroia and he had obviously accepted. However, his love of adventure and desire to help made him forget about the fact that he had abandoned his girlfriend and other friends back on Earth. That certainly caused a huge argument when he returned back to Earth after an incident where Runo attempted to travel to New Vestroia.

Runo had been deeply hurt that he had left her like he did, but forgave him almost right away. That made him feel extremely guilty; he knew he didn't deserve it, but he eventually moved on since there were more important matters to deal with.

After their adventure on New Vestroia, a year had passed and they were now about sixteen, and they were introduced to Ren Krawler in the Bakugan Interspace, a virtual reality world created by the Original Aquos Brawler Marucho Marukuro.

After that, his father got a promotion and Dan learned his family was moving to a city called Bayview in California, which meant he was moving to a new continent. He didn't know how to tell Runo, who he had been seeing less and less of because of his involvement with the Interspace, so he never brought up the subject.

Almost immediately after settling into his new house, he received an angry call from Runo, who screamed that she hated him and he was an awful person for not even telling her or saying goodbye. A few days later, she calmed down and apologized right before she said it was probably best they break up. It was around the same time that the Brawlers learned that Ren had deceived them and it was Fabia who they should be trusting.

With the help of the Original Ventus Brawler Shun Kazami, Dan and Marucho battled in the war between Gundalia and Neathia. It was a nice distraction from his love drama, which he had always tried so desperately to avoid.

After everything the war was a huge blur and Dan only remembered bits and snippets, which was partly due to his desire to forget that experience and partly due to the fact he had some creep controlling his mind. His old friend, Mira from New Vestal, had visited and helped them out but she eventually worked herself to exhaustion.

All seemed lost without her input, but to the guys' surprise, it was Runo who swooped in and took her place temporarily. To Dan's relief and disappointment, Runo treated him nothing less than a friend. It was like they had never even dated. But the situation they were in didn't call for anymore drama so he put 'dealing with Runo' on his to-do list and focused on their new enemy.

Afterwards, he had planned to speak to Runo about what the hell was going on with them but she left Bayview and returned to Wardington. And apparently she got a new phone because the number he had was no longer in service.

And now this was the first Valentine's Day he had in a while on Earth and his ex girlfriend was incredibly pissed at him, even if she didn't show it.

So yeah; Dan hated the holiday.

"Dan," called his mother once again, sounding exasperated.

The seventeen-year-old shook his head and raced down the steps, anxious to get to school so he could get the damn day over with.

"Bye Mom," called Dan, grabbing some toast from the table before he went to the garage and grabbed his bike, which he hopped on and pedaled to school as fast as he could. One more tardy and he'd get detention for a month.

Miyoko Kuso sighed as she watched her son go off. She didn't exactly approve of his adventures at first, but she had gotten used to them. And now she knew exactly what was troubling her not-so-little boy.

"Oh, Daniel, what have you done?" She murmured to herself, shaking her head sadly.

…

Shun Kazami raised an eyebrow as he approached his best friend in the boys' bathroom.

"Third period isn't even over," he remarked. "Is it really that bad?"

Dan glared at him. "If you didn't know the answer, you wouldn't be hiding in here with me!"

The ninja couldn't argue with that; he was just as popular as Dan was, though unlike the brunette he was harder to catch so the girls didn't pay him much attention.

"Julie's not helping either," added Dan. "She's been telling every girl where I am even though I begged her not to! What does she have against me?"

"It could be the fact that you said cheerleading wasn't a sport and being a reporter was a waste of time," said Shun. "Or it could be the fact that she's still best friends with Runo, aka your ex girlfriend."

Dan glared at him. "I wasn't aware; thanks," he replied sarcastically. "I know that it's my fault we're not together anymore, but it's not like Runo's mad at me either! In fact, she treats me like nothing had happened!"

The ebony haired male sighed. "Dan, you've known Runo just as long as I have; is it normal for her to brush something like that off?"

Dan took a few seconds to answer. "No, but…"

The ninja sat down on the floor next to him.

"Have you even talked to her about," Shun flicked his wrist, "all this?"

The Pyrus Brawler shook his head. "I was going to after the whole thing with Gus ended, but then she left before I could. And I'm guessing she got a new phone because the number I have saved is no longer in service."

Shun blinked. "Oh, here, I have it." He pulled out his phone and handed it to his friend.

"…why do you have her number in the first place?" Dan asked as he took the device and scrolled through his contacts. "And why am I number six on your speed dial? I thought what we had was special, man!"

"To answer your first question, I do keep in touch with her, and she used to come over to complain about you after you moved," replied Shun. "To answer the second one, you're ridiculous. What number am I on your speed dial? Ten?"

"…no," said Dan defensively. "I am not ridiculous though. Julie's number five, Marucho's number four, Runo's three, Alice is two, and your grandpa is number one. What's up with that?"

Shun rolled his eyes. "Didn't you want Runo's number? It doesn't take you that long to put in a few numbers."

"I want an answer," said Dan stubbornly.

"Well, they are our best friends; of course I would have them on speed dial. Alice is my girlfriend and unlike you, I do try to make the long-distance relationship work. And since he's my guardian and old, I need to check up on Grandfather often anyways."

"Whatever, here," said the brunette, shoving the device back at his friend as the both of them stood up. "I don't want to go to class."

"Do you ever?" Shun replied as they headed back into the hallway.

"No, but especially not today," said Dan. "Look, I don't think I can stomach the rest of the day; can you cover for me?"

Shun stared at his friend. "Sure, man; just…don't do anything dumb, got it? I may be able to outrun them, but the girls are a force to be reckoned with when they're angry."

Dan grinned weakly. "You don't have to tell me, dude. And thanks." He clapped the ninja on the shoulder before heading down the hall towards the doors.

The ninja watched him go and sighed when he finally vanished from his view. He pulled out his phone and dialed the second number on speed dial.

"Hey, it's me…Happy Valentine's Day…listen, Alice…"

…

Dan stared out at the sunny ballpark as he sat on a nearby park bench. He hadn't been walking in a certain direction, but he ended up at the park a few blocks away from his school.

It wasn't Wardington Park, where he had met Runo ten years ago, but it still had the same effect on him. Memories he had tried to suppress crept up to the front of his mind and he grimaced.

"Hey, chuck back my ball!"

"My name is Runo! Got that? RUNO! RUNO! RUNO! AGHHHH!"

A small smile made its way on to the brunette's features. He would never tell her, but Dan found Runo's temper absolutely adorable and oddly attractive. Though he usually managed it without any effort at all, he always tried to provoke her so he could see her face get red as her face scrunched up and she began to shout obscenities at him.

He wasn't afraid to admit that he was in love with Runo. They had their ups and downs, but he knew that she cared for him as much as he did. She wasn't the prettiest girl in the world, but he wasn't known for his looks either so it didn't matter much to him. He thought she was pretty beautiful; and when he couldn't remember that, she usually did whenever she dressed up for one of their rare fancy dates.

He still remembered how…girly Runo had looked on their very first date back when they were twelve. She had let her hair down and wore a dress! Maybe she wasn't as developed as Julie or Alice, but her legs were slender and to die for. Dan had hardly concentrated on the movie they had watched, trying not to focus on how such a beautiful girl was sitting so close to him.

And it was like she knew the effect she had on him; she dressed tomboyish most of the time, but she also knew how to get his brain to shut down. For example, Dan thought, there was that one time he made the mistake of accepting her invitation to the beach back when they were fifteen; god, he rarely left the water after seeing his girlfriend in a bikini for the first time.

But Dan loved Runo for more than her looks.

She was different from other girls; that was sure. She was hotheaded and stubborn, just like him, and it drove everybody insane when they clashed-which was always. She was tomboyish and vulgar at times, but she was also sweet and caring. Her heart was pure and she always leapt into action before thinking. She wasn't afraid to speak her mind and told Dan exactly what she thought whenever he asked for her opinion. And even though she knew how to hold a grudge, she knew when it was time to be an adult and act on the situation.

Dan could come up with a million reasons why he loved Runo, but there was no point since she'd never read it.

He groaned and titled his head back against the bench, covering up his face with hands. "I screwed up so badly!"

"What did you do this time?"

Dan shot up, startled, before his red oak eyes met the amused aquamarine ones in front of him. It took him a few seconds to process who was in front of him.

Finally, he stammered, "R-Runo? Is that really you?"

The blue-haired teenager rolled her eyes. "No, Dan, I totally died and came all the way here to haunt your ass off."

Despite the situation, Dan grinned. "I don't know if I can last an eternity stuck with you, kid."

As he predicted, her cheeks reddened and she scowled at him.

"You're as insufferable as always," she said as she sat down next to him. "What are you doing out here?"

"Isn't that my line?" Dan asked. "Why the heck are you here…in Bayview?"

Runo rubbed the back of her neck. "I…uh, I never told you, did? It's a long story so I'll just sum it up. You know how Alice's grandfather got sick last year?"

Dan nodded, remembering the distressed call he had gotten from the Russian girl.

"Well, after the funeral, she came to stay with me for a while even though she's already eighteen. My place isn't exactly meant for more than three people, and we couldn't have her stay in the guest room forever. So my parents decided that it was time to expand the business and move to a bigger location for more customers, you know? But with the current economy and new restaurants and shopping malls nearby, we kinda sunk. So my dad came up with the idea of going international and…well, I suggested we move here."

Stunned, Dan asked, "So…you live here now? You and Alice?"

Runo nodded. "Yeah…she wanted to take a walk around the neighborhood and I guess she saw you first because she kinda pushed me in this direction and disappeared. She's as bad as Julie sometimes, I swear."

Dan smiled. "No one is as bad as Julie is," he replied, making his ex girlfriend chuckle quietly. "But why did you want to move here, out of all places?"

The blunette blushed. "Um, well, you guys were here, right? Marucho practically lives here even though his 'house' is a few blocks away from mine, Shun moved here a few months ago so I don't really have anyone to talk to, Julie's here too, I figured Alice would want to be near Shun, and I…I missed you guys. I don't really see you a lot before you disappear again, you know?"

Dan frowned, feeling guilty. "I never meant for that to happen, Runo." They were treading into dangerous territory now and they both knew it. "I just…"

"I know," interrupted Runo. "You don't have to explain or apologize, Dan. It's in your nature to be curious and adventurous. I mean, you definitely pissed me off when you did it, but I get why you did it. Anyways, I have to apologize."

The Pyrus Brawler's eyebrows disappeared into his hairline as he stared at her in shock.

"What? Why are you apologizing?"

Runo blushed. "I called you some pretty mean things and I even told you I hated you, Dan, but I don't hate you! I was just so mad that day and I blew up at you, and I'm sorry!"

She blinked past tears, looking surprised. She obviously hadn't meant to start crying.

"I always meant to call you and apologize but I…well, I was scared. And then when Mira called me in and asked me to help you guys, there was always something more important to do than talk about our relationship and I…I'm just so sorry, Dan!"

"God, Runo," said Dan after a few seconds. "You don't need to apologize; I deserved to be yelled at like that. I mean, not only was I being a douche of a boyfriend, but I was also being a terrible friend in general. And for that, Runo, I'm sorry. You're right; there was always something else, but right now, there is nothing more important than us and I don't even know if there is an 'us'. That's what I screwed up so badly on, Runo."

The blunette stared at him as he looked back at the ballpark and remarked, "I know you probably moved on and have a great new boyfriend who deserves you way more than I do, but I just want you to know that I will always love you."

Runo opened and closed her mouth, strongly resembling a fish. Finally, she burst into tears and Dan suddenly looked terrified.

"I'm sorry," he exclaimed. "I didn't mean to make you cry! I always do that, don't I? I am such an idiot! Sorry, sorry, sorry; please don't cry, Runo!" He began to panic and stood up. "I should go before I make things worse!"

He turned to run away, probably to call Shun and frantically ask what the hell he should do, but he was stopped by Runo grabbing his arm. Dan looked back at her.

"No, don't go," she said, wiping her eyes as she calmed down. "I didn't mean to start crying like that, Dan; I know how clueless you are when it comes to stuff like that. I just…I'm just so relieved."

Runo looked up at him. "I thought that maybe after all this time, you decided you didn't like me anymore and our relationship was built on stupid hormones and obligation. I was just so terrified that you'd move on and find a better girlfriend, one who didn't get stuck between dimensions and yell at you all the time. The truth is, Dan, that I still love you too."

Dan stared at her in surprise for several seconds before he grinned and suddenly hugged her, pulling her close to him as she let out a startled gasp. They had never been known to show affection after all.

"Dummy," he muttered. "I could never find a better girlfriend than you. You're pretty much my other half, kid."

"Same goes to you," whispered Runo, returning the hug as she rested her head against his chest. A few minutes later, they finally pulled away and began to walk around the park with joined hands.

"So does this mean that we're back together?" Dan questioned, glancing over at her.

Runo raised an eyebrow. "I hope so because I definitely don't want to be friends with benefits."

"Well, that does sound tempting…ow!" Dan exclaimed, grimacing as the blue-haired girl stomped on his foot all while smiling pleasantly. "Okay, okay; sorry, I didn't mean it like that. So where did Alice disappear off to?"

Runo blinked. "I think she went back to the house…oh, no, there she is." She pointed at the high school, where Alice was admiring the sculpture out in the yard. "Come on, she'll want to say hello to you."

"I think she'd rather see Shun," remarked Dan, making his girlfriend laugh. That earned the attention of the redhead, who turned around and waved at them. She had a knowing smile on her face that was much sweeter than the one Julie was bound to have once she found out.

"Hello, Dan," greeted Alice. "I see you guys sorted things out."

"Yeah, you could say that," replied Dan, grinning. "I don't suppose you came down to the school just to check it out, right?" Alice blushed lightly. "Come on; you guys are enrolling here anyways, right? You can say you're getting a tour and if we happen to stumble upon your boyfriend…then, oh well."

"Dan Kuso, you're as bad as Julie," said Runo. "But I agree; let's go in." She grabbed Alice with her free hand and led them inside the building.

"It's lunch now," said Dan. "So they'd be in the cafeteria."

He took the lead, occasionally mentioning which classes taught what. Soon, they reached the cafeteria and immediately spotted Shun and Julie sitting near the middle of the room with Marucho, who had come in to examine the Interspace Building.

Julie was attempting to ward off Shun's admirers, who were quite persistent, but it was a struggle when her own admirers flocked all around her as well. The scene was quite amusing, but Alice had an odd look on her face. Runo spotted it and glared at the hound of girls.

She released her boyfriend's hand and cupped her hands around her mouth. She then shouted in perfect English, "Oy, quit crowding the poor boy! And you get away from her before I knock your lights out!"

The cafeteria became silent as everyone turned to look at the newcomer. A few of the girls looked irritated; who did she think she was?

Before they could something though, Julie squealed at impossibly high octaves and bounded over to her friends. "Oh my god, Runo! What are you doing here?" She threw her arms around the Japanese girl, who laughed and returned the hug.

"I just moved here," explained Runo. "And before you ask, yes, we did sort things out and, yes, we are back together." Julie looked confused for a second but she caught on quickly and let out another squeal. "But we'll deal with that later. I'm on a different mission now."

She pulled away and grabbed Alice's hand, leading her to where Shun was. "I believe this is your girlfriend, Kazami; Happy Valentine's Day! I accept something in return on White Day."

Shun merely gave her an appreciative look before he hugged his girlfriend, who yelped and blushed brightly before returning the embrace. Julie and Runo sighed happily while Marucho and Dan exchanged amused looks.

"Oh, yeah, that reminds me," said Dan. "You didn't get me anything for Valentine's Day!" He mocked a wounded look. "And here I thought you loved me, Runo."

Runo blushed. "I do, you idiot; and I did get you something!" She reached into her bag and pulled out a small white box. "I made them, with Alice's help, almost as soon as we got here."

Dan took the box curiously and opened it. A grin formed on his face as he ignored the heat that rose to his cheeks. Inside the box was a small chocolate cake with red icing that formed the Pyrus symbol; on the bottom, she had written out, Bakugan Brawl!

He looked up and saw that Runo was watching him anxiously, and that everybody else-namely the girls-was watching intently. "I love it; thanks, Runo! Now I have to come up with something amazing for White Day!"

"We're not in Japan anymore," pointed out Marucho. "There is no White Day here; it's just another March 14th here."

"Party pooper," muttered Julie, lightly smacking the blonde. "Let them have their moment! I haven't seen them act this gooey in love since we were twelve! Well, unless you count the time we caught them making out in the park." Runo and Dan blushed brightly.

"I managed to forget that, thanks," drawled Shun. "But it doesn't matter; they're sure to do more of that now that they're together again."

"Shut up," snapped Dan, glaring at his best friend.

"Anyways," said Runo loudly. "I made you guys chocolates too." She pulled out five more boxes and handed it to them; they were identical to Dan's but with each Brawler's appropriate attribute.

"And even though I'm not Japanese, you are, so I made you this," added Alice, pulling a container from her purse. "It's not anything fancy, just some dark chocolate that I made, but…" She was cut off by Shun stealing a kiss, making her blush.

"I'm sure it'll be delicious," he said. "Thank you, Alice."

Julie sighed. "You guys are making me feel bad! I have to go and call Billy now because I feel like the third-I mean, fifth-wheel! Come on, Marucho; you can take me shoe shopping to make me feel better."

"Poor guy," muttered the other four as the Australian girl dragged the blonde out of the cafeteria. Julie got intense whenever she even mentioned the mall.

"I think we should just skip the rest of the day and take our lovely girlfriends out on a Valentine's Day date," suggested Dan. "I mean, I'm already failing and you can afford to skip a few classes, and they're not students yet so…"

"I'm alright with that," agreed Shun. "Are you?" He directed his question towards the two remaining girls, who exchanged looks.

"Sure," they said cheerfully.

And so, the two couples spent the rest of the holiday reveling in each other and showing just how much they loved the other. Julie and Marucho eventually rejoined them and they all camped out at Dan's place to watch a movie, while the adults reunited.

Once they were all asleep, Miyoko shook hands with Saki Misaki, who was watching the teens with a contented expression.

"Nice job," she said.

Saki smiled knowingly. "I told you the plan would work. So did you figure out when he'll propose?"

"Knowing Daniel, Runo will have to spell it out for him."

The two women laughed while their husbands shook their heads. Valentine's Day really was an odd holiday.

…

"Runo?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

"I love you too."

"Forever and always?"

"Forever and always."

…

I do not own Bakugan!

So, yes, just a little Valentine's Day love. I hope you all liked it! Don't hesitate to tell me if you spotted any mistakes or what you thought of the story!