The fourth and last part of Abigail's adventures will be uploaded next week, but I wanted this uploaded before Valentine's Day. Another entry in the Zoe & Thomas series.
Zoe smiled blissfully as she curled up under the blanket on the couch. It was Friday, she didn't have any college classes today, and best of all, it was Valentine's Day! She wondered what Thomas was planning to do once he came home from work. Would he cook something lovely? Had he ordered a table at a nice restaurant? What sort of present had he bought? He knew how important the day was for her, and he always knew how to make her feel special.
Her phone rang. Seeing that it was her boyfriend, she eagerly picked it up. "Hello, darling!"
"Hi, Zoe. I've just been told that there will be a mandatory meeting at the end of the day, so I'll be about half an hour late. Thought I'd let you know. You have the day off, right? Were you planning to make dinner, or should I pick up a pizza on the way?"
Zoe's eyes widened. He expected her to cook on Valentine's Day? That was HIS job! And pizza? He couldn't even pick up something fancy? "I… I wasn't…" She was too stunned to speak.
"Oh, and I think I mentioned to you that I'm playing Fifa with Steve later today? Hope you didn't have any plans?"
Zoe couldn't believe her ears. He was going to play games with one of his buddies on Valentine's Day? After bringing home a cardboard pizza? She frowned. This would not go unpunished. "No plans, no," she said quietly.
"Are you OK?" he said, a hint of concern in his voice. "You seem upset. Is something wrong?"
"No, nothing's wrong. I'll have dinner ready when you come home," she promised, trying to sound cheerful.
"I'll see you soon. Love you, babe."
"See you later," she said, hanging up. She headed into the kitchen to prepare the first part of her surprise.
A few hours later, Zoe was lying on the bed with a glass of wine, still wearing her sweatpants and an old t-shirt. She'd originally planned to dress up before he came home, but their conversation had changed her mind. She heard Thomas enter the house and call out her name, but she didn't respond, and he started looking for her. By now, he would probably have noticed that the house didn't smell like dinner – Zoe had already eaten some pasta. She had no intention of cooking anything for him.
Thomas let out a shocked exclamation when he entered the living room. A few minutes later, he found her lounging on the bed. "Hello, Zoe," he said, his voice strangely calm. She didn't respond. "Would you care to explain why my PlayStation is full of porridge?"
"THAT is what happens when you ignore me on such a special day and make plans to play games with your friends instead," she huffed, glaring at him. "And pizza? Instead of a nice restaurant? Do you really think that's an appropriate Valentine's Day dinner?" She folded her arms in front of her chest. "I bet you don't even have a gift for me, do you?"
Thomas stared at her for several seconds, speechless. Finally, he sighed. "Zoe, Valentine's Day is tomorrow."