Change of Plans

Glen didn’t feel much of anything in his day-to-day life. Sure, there was the pleasure of gas station cheeseburgers and takeout, but food hardly made for a happy life. Mateo was the only person that really got him up in the morning. Normally, he was content with that.

This time, it was the day before Valentine’s Day. And Glen hadn’t felt so terrified in his entire life. Everything had to be utterly perfect for his boyfriend’s visit tomorrow, and if it wasn’t ... God, he didn’t even want to think about it. There were a couple of bright sides, though.

The first thing was that work wouldn’t get in the way. Yes, it was a Saturday, but even if it wasn’t, he would’ve called out of work that day. Not like the students would be showing up anyway. Most of them were probably too busy with their partners, too. For once, he could understand that. Mateo would’ve stayed, but thankfully, Glen didn’t have to plan for that. Another perk.

Instead, he had to plan for a whole evening. He couldn’t decide what was worse: organizing delivery on that stupid college campus or planning an entire schedule around Valentine’s Day crowds. Mateo was a hopeless romantic; the least Glen could do was play to that. Right?

Glen knew, however, that he had no romantic bone in his body. The week beforehand had been spent looking up the typical gestures: flowers, food, desserts, candles ... all things he just didn’t understand. Why would someone spend more than $5 on a single meal? Didn’t flowers die? Why the hell would he buy chocolates that probably tasted too rich anyway?

It all seemed so strange to Glen, but he knew Mateo would love it. He hoped that was the case, at least. He’d just have to do it; seeing Mateo’s face light up would make it all worth it.

So, Glen got to work.

First, he called out for the day. His boss sounded exasperated, but she accepted it. Reluctantly, but even so. He had a romantic day to plan, so it wasn’t like he could focus on teaching anyhow. Once that was squared away, Glen checked the status of the flower delivery. The arrival time was still 10AM tomorrow. Nothing changed there -- good.

The hardest part was going out to get supplies for dinner. And dessert. And the candles. And ... God, what didn’t he need to get? Glen grit his teeth and reminded himself how grateful and happy Mateo would be, then forced himself out of bed. It took everything he had to throw on a t-shirt and jeans. Smoothing down his hair was just too much effort; he’d go out looking like crap today. It was tomorrow that was important.

Glen grabbed his keys and wallet, then walked to his car. His mind was going a mile a minute as he drove down to the store. He had to grab a decent steak, make mashed potatoes, find some inexpensive-but-not-terrible wine ... maybe canned green beans would do?

No, it wouldn’t. And he knew that.

It was a zoo the moment Glen stepped inside the grocery store. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one frantically running around to get last-second items for Valentine’s Day. In a way, it was comforting. In another way, not so much. He’d have to fight through the crowd.

Glorious.

He fought his way through the crowd, not caring about the strange looks and glares that he received. He had to get to the meat section, come hell or high water. And it was very much hell. Glen staggered towards the various cuts of steak and almost relished in the cool air blasting out. The selection wasn’t as sparse as he’d expected, so he grabbed a couple of decent cuts of meat and rushed out of there.

It was a similar story for the rest of the supplies. The instant mashed potatoes were acquired, fresh green beans were (reluctantly) acquired along with a fresh pan, and Glen almost felt confident when he went to the specialized aisle for Valentine’s Day.

He wanted to slam his head on a wall when he saw the barren shelves.

There was barely any chocolate left! There were plenty of candles, at least, but ... the chocolates! What was he going to do now? Glen stared blankly out into space, but shook it off. A heart-shaped box of mid-tier chocolates was the plan in the first place, so if there was one of those ...

Glen looked around, and froze when he noticed someone very familiar at the end of the aisle looking at the remaining chocolates.

Mateo.

Crap! How could he have forgotten that Mateo had shortened hours today? Glen didn’t even hesitate; he turned and rushed away from his boyfriend. He had to check out with what he had, now, and leave before Mateo noticed. The surprise would be ruined if he saw this! Crap, crap, crap!

Glen turned tail and rushed out of the aisle before Mateo could see him. Even though he was in the clear at check-out -- he glanced over his shoulder a couple of times to be sure -- he didn’t feel entirely safe until he got in the car. If any of the students playing hooky saw him dash to his car like a madman, he’d never let it down. Still worth it.

Hopefully Mateo hadn’t looked over. The last thing he wanted was for this whole surprise to be spoiled. Glen cursed himself for being careless on the way home and as he brought in his spoils. Steak and beans in the fridge, instant potatoes on the counter, pan in the cabinet, chocolates ...

He had forgotten chocolates. And the candles. And the wine, too, just for that extra kick in the teeth. How was he going to have a romantic dinner without those? And with Mateo running around, going anywhere else would be risky. Sure, he could text him and ask what he was doing, but wouldn’t that look suspicious? Mateo usually just volunteered that information without asking, but still ...

Glen knew he was overthinking this. He hated himself for it. He also hated this whole situation. Why couldn’t people make romance simple and cheap? Why did it have to be so expensive and gaudy? Glen dragged a hand down his face, groaning in agitation as he did so.

Screw this. Mateo would get the idea. A home-cooked dinner was still romantic, and if all else failed, he might be able to find some candles around the house. Students absolutely loved thoughtless gifts to look good. It wasn’t a bad failsafe.

All Glen had to do now was get through the rest of the day and not be a nervous wreck over it. Maybe he should just take a shower and just watch TV for a while. And get a quick cheeseburger from the gas station. Tomorrow was tomorrow, and he had already braved the pre-Valentine’s rush. He deserved a treat, too.

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Glen was always one to snooze alarms. It’s why he set up ten. But when the first morning alarm sounded, he leaped out of bed immediately. Some would call it a miracle -- others would call it a panic-induced fear that he would miss the flower delivery. Both would be right.

He wasn’t the type to camp by the door waiting for a package, but this was too important. It was already nine in the morning, and there was always the chance that they’d be early. Glen sat in the living room and played with his phone.

When the door rang, Glen leapt out of his seat and tore to the door. He flung it open with relieved gusto.

“You’re here early --”

That’s when he looked up.

Instead of a delivery person, a very bright-eyed and bushy-tailed Mateo stood at Glen’s doorstep. He wore a massive grin, clearly pleased with how he looked in his tweed suit and recently showered. On top of that, he held a box of chocolates in one hand and a pile of movies in another.

“Good morning, Glen!” he said, entirely too chipperly. “I wanted to surprise you for Valentine’s Day! I thought we could watch some movies and just relax for a while.”

Glen stammered for a moment, wrestling with the fact that his carefully-planned day had completely gone to pieces. God, Mateo looked absolutely adorable and so happy. There was no way Glen couldn’t invite him in.

“Morning,” Glen replied, still stunned. “I -- uh -- it’s good to see you.”

Mateo’s cheerful face fell. “Is something wrong?”

Glen was quick to reassure him. “No, no! I just -- I expected a delivery, that’s all.” He then stepped to the side and gestured Mateo inside. “Come in. I, uh -- not quite ready, if that’s okay.”

“Not a problem at all! You’re cute when you’re just waking up.” Mateo winked at Glen and stepped inside, all smiles once more. “That’s part of why I came so early.” A pause. “I’m actually shocked you’re up.”

“Well, delivery.” Glen shrugged it off and shut the door once Mateo was in his house. “Go ahead and get on the couch. I’ll get some water and, you know, get a shirt and pants on.”

“Aw, do you have to?”

“... No,” Glen said, completely weak to Mateo’s puppy dog eyes. He sighed, resigned to Mateo’s devious witchcraft, then followed his boyfriend to the couch.

“So I have How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days, Trainwreck, Much Ado About Nothing ...” Mateo looked through his selection, very pleased with himself. “I saw them on sale at the store yesterday, so I grabbed them.”

Glen pointedly said nothing about the store in hopes to look innocent. He looked through the movies. None of them really sounded like his type of movie, but Mateo had gotten them for the occasion. Clearly, this was something people did on Valentine’s Day, and it’d make him happy, so ...

“Trainwreck sounds interesting,” he eventually said. “We can start with that one.”

“Cool! Want me to order breakfast?” Mateo pulled out his phone. “I saved some money for delivery, so we can do that if you want!”

Glen’s heart melted. Mateo really was a man after his own heart. “Sounds good to me. Breakfast bowls?”

“Got it.”

Glen tugged Mateo close to him and looked over his shoulder. When he was sure Mateo’s full focus was on the screen, he not-so-discreetly glanced at the door now and again. Mateo’s phone had said 9:40, and if that damn delivery didn’t show up soon ...

“All right, order placed!” Mateo, unfortunately, looked up when Glen was looking outside. “Jeez, this must be an important delivery. What is it, flowers or something?”

Glen simply stared at Mateo. The jig was up. If he denied it, he’d be a liar -- and he didn’t like lying to Mateo. He sighed and just nodded.

“Wait, seriously?” Mateo instantly lit up. “You did that for me?”

Glen let out a quiet ‘oof’ as his boyfriend wrapped his arms around his waist, snuggling up close and beaming ear-to-ear. Glen returned the hug without even thinking about it. Mostly, he was too stunned to do anything else.

“I love you so much!” Mateo leaned up and peppered Glen’s face with kisses. “You really went all out, didn’t you?”

“Well, tried to,” Glen muttered in embarrassment. He rubbed his face and looked away. “I, uh ...”

Should he just spill the beans now? Everything else was ruined, so him knowing about the dinner wasn’t exactly going to make things fall apart. But it was his last surprise ... Glen wrestled with himself, then eventually just sighed.

“I was going to make dinner, too,” he said sheepishly. “Got a steak and everything.”

Mateo stared at him dumbly. Was he in shock? Was that a tear in his eye? Glen didn’t really get a chance to look; Mateo had started showering Glen in little kisses. Glen blushed furiously and did nothing to stop him.

“You never cook!” Mateo said. “You really were planning on doing that?”

“I looked into what makes a romantic night.” Glen couldn’t look Mateo in the face at this point; embarrassment coursed through him, causing his cheeks to get even hotter. He almost burned in shame. “I know you like those things ...”

“Like them? I love them! And I love it even more since you’re doing it!” Mateo smiled brightly and smoothed back Glen’s hair. “But, dear, you have no idea how to cook.”

“I was going to use a recipe.”

“And burn the house down? I love you, but I don’t think it’s worth it. I can do the cooking tonight.”

Glen grumbled under his breath. He hated how right Mateo was; it would be much better if Mateo was the one cooking. But the attempt and thought that went into it surely would have made up for the charred steak. That’s what he’d tell himself.

“What am I supposed to do for you, then?” he asked. “Couldn’t get the dinner, I forgot chocolate and wine ... candles, too ...”

Mateo’s smile softened, as did the look in his eyes. He cupped Glen’s cheeks and pulled him in for a gentle kiss. Glen returned it, holding Mateo close.

When Mateo pulled away, he looked up at Glen. “All I wanted was time with you, Glen,” he said softly. “I don’t care how we get it. I just want a whole day with you.”

Glen’s heart almost fluttered out of his chest. He couldn’t help but smile now, and he kissed Mateo on the forehead. “I can do that.”

“Let’s start Trainwreck, then.” Mateo picked it up off of the couch and stood up, walking to the DVD player. Glen watched him as he popped in the disc, still wearing a dopey smile.

It might not be what he planned, but Mateo was right: the best possible plan was just to spend the day together. And how didn’t matter.