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Valentine's Day.
A day for lovers, the desperate, and other fools.
It's a time when those in love either blossom and rejoice, or have their hearts shattered when they learn their feelings aren't returned. For those who are single - or who already know their love is hopeless - there's no worse day. Though, in a lonely life, every day tends to feel the same... except when that loneliness becomes even more visible, even more painfully obvious.
But that's not what this story is about. Sadness and despair belong to the real world - while here, we're dealing with a fictional one. And such a fictional world that its main character is the very picture of a perfect man - a kind of perfection that probably doesn't exist, no matter how hard people might try.
Tanjiro Kamado - popular, decent-looking, but far too kind and considerate for his own good. No matter how you looked at it, his nature inspired deep respect - or other feelings entirely - from every girl who wanted to be treated the way she deserved. Though in Tanjiro's case, he treated everyone far better than anyone could ever earn.
Anyway, we're in Japan - so it's the girls who give chocolates to the boys. And that's where the problem - or rather, the most interesting part of this story - begins.
At Kimetsu Academy, every Valentine's Day, Tanjiro could barely carry all the sweets he received. Not that he really minded. He used to find it incredibly sweet and heartwarming, and he always appreciated every kind word and gesture.
But this year was different - because his heart already belonged to someone.
He had a dream girl - one of the prettiest girls in the entire school - though her beauty was just one among countless wonderful qualities that could fill pages upon pages of description. Of course, her looks were never in question.
But this girl had never given chocolates to anyone. People assumed she didn't have romantic feelings for anyone at all. Yet, somehow, she had managed to steal his heart.
It had happened not too long ago, and no one else had found out yet. They both agreed it was better to keep things quiet for now; only their closest friends knew. She had been slowly convinced to keep their relationship private - but oddly enough, as Valentine's Day approached, she dropped the topic entirely, and her attitude about it took on a strange, almost teasing tone.
She had never been very talkative, nor openly expressive, but the more time they spent together, the more that began to change. Her beautiful smile grew warmer, brighter, until it became her natural expression. Somewhere along the way, that shy, quiet girl had developed a playful, mischievous side - but only when she was with her boyfriend.
Tanjiro would be lying if he said it wasn't unbelievably adorable.
Of course, he had loved her from the start, and every part of her had always been wonderful - but the livelier she became, the more new sides of her he discovered, the deeper he fell for her. He always felt that, when she was with him, her shyness melted away and she seemed happier - and that thought alone filled him with indescribable joy.
The fact that he could call himself her boyfriend made his head spin. He giggled like a little girl whenever he held her hand or remembered that he was her boyfriend. Sometimes he forgot he had legs instead of wings - and had to save himself from face-planting on the ground after daydreaming too hard.
But it was that same girl who, unintentionally, forced him to turn down dozens of confessions throughout the day. And when he tried to hint that maybe they should do something about it, she simply said she didn't mind - after all, that just meant more chocolates for them to share later.
Which was exactly why he was now heading to school with a very large backpack, knowing full well it was going to come in handy.
He was greeted by Zenitsu's gloomy, piercing stare - one that seemed to bore straight into his soul.
"Hey, Zenitsu! Everything okay?" Tanjiro asked, completely unaware.
"How could everything be okay? You think I don't know why you're carrying that enormous backpack, you lucky bastard? You're gonna be buried under a mountain of gifts while I'll be left with nothing!"
"I'm sure you'll get something too!" Tanjiro said cheerfully, forcing a smile despite the death glare his friend was giving him - as if accusing him of a sin comparable to robbing a kindergarten.
"Don't fake your pity," Zenitsu muttered, scowling and grinding his teeth.
"Monjiro! Look what I got!"
Both boys turned at the sound of an excited yell - and there was Inosuke, running toward them with his face smeared in chocolate and a heart-shaped box in his hand.
Zenitsu's spirit shattered. He couldn't even form real words - just muttered something incomprehensible like he was chanting a curse in an ancient language.
"Inosuke, you already got chocolates? That's amazing!" Tanjiro said with a bright smile, genuinely happy for his friend.
"Of course I did! And I didn't even have to do anything!" Inosuke said proudly, puffing out his chest.
"H-h-h-how did you even-?! Who gave them to you?!" Zenitsu stammered, trembling as if on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
"No idea," Inosuke replied simply. "I jumped out at some girl from behind a corner. She screamed and dropped the box. I figured she left it for me when she ran away."
Tanjiro and Zenitsu both let out a quiet, confused "Eh?" - neither of them able to say another word.
"Hashibira! I heard you stole chocolates from a girl!" shouted one of the teachers with piercing blue eyes as he ran toward them from afar.
"You'll never catch me, tracksuit man!" Inosuke yelled back before bolting away at full speed.
Tanjiro felt overwhelmed by the barrage of bizarre interactions and finally decided to head inside the school. Things weren't much better there - as soon as he reached his locker, he noticed it was covered with heart-shaped stickers and red or pink notes that read "I love you" or other confessions. He sighed and tried to open it, but before he could, two girls rushed over, their eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Tanjiro! Happy Valentine's Day!" one of them nearly squealed, shoving a box into his hands. The other followed right after, doing the same.
"Thank you so much, girls. That's really kind of you," Tanjiro replied as politely as ever - and in truth, he genuinely appreciated their gesture.
The girls giggled and ran off, leaving him with two boxes of chocolates. He finally opened his locker and put them inside. A moment later, someone tapped him on the shoulder - and he recognized that scent instantly. He turned around with a bright smile.
"Good morning, Kanao."
"Good morning, Tanjiro. Judging by the state of your locker, it seems like you're having quite a good day," Kanao said, quietly laughing to herself.
Tanjiro shook his head in disbelief at her teasing, but still smiled warmly.
"Does that really amuse you? Can I at least give you a hug?"
"And risk losing the chance to get even more chocolates?" she replied, smirking slightly.
"Is your love for sweets really more important than all these people confessing their feelings to me? Won't you get jealous?" he teased back.
"This happens every year, Tanjiro. Besides, I know you'd politely turn each one of them down."
"But do you know how exhausting that is?"
"We both know you'd do it anyway."
"That's because no other girl ever interested me. Only you," Tanjiro said, flashing a charming grin.
Kanao didn't reply - she just blushed, turned away, and started walking off.
"Hey! You're leaving me like this?" Tanjiro called out, disappointed.
"I've got class soon. Enjoy your day," she said, winking playfully before walking away.
Tanjiro nodded to himself again, melting inside at the thought of being with such a wonderful girl. His dreamy state, however, was quickly interrupted by another wave of admirers bringing him more sweets. He turned on his characteristic smile again and continued accepting each gift with grace until the first class.
Just when he thought the tide had subsided, yet more girls appeared during every break, each one determined to show him kindness in the little time they had. He kept smiling, thanking them, and doing his best to come across as a friendly classmate who accepted their gestures out of politeness - nothing more.
Of course, Kanao's comfort mattered most to him. If it were up to her, he could keep their relationship secret forever. They could have kids, be married for years, and she still wouldn't tell a soul.
But Kanao didn't actually seem that uncomfortable with the idea of showing everyone that they were in love. Maybe Shinobu's influence had awakened a slightly more mischievous, teasing side of her. Before Valentine's Day, she had been all for revealing their relationship, but right before the day arrived, she suddenly changed her mind - telling him instead to collect as many chocolates as he could.
So, he kept seeing her from afar - watching him with a sly, almost mocking smile, yet one that said only one thing: "I love you."
It took Tanjiro some time to realize what she really meant, but eventually, even his pure, oblivious self figured it out. Kanao wanted him to take the lead - to be assertive, to say openly what he wanted the world to know. She understood how much he cared about others' feelings and how hard he tried not to hurt anyone, but this time, she wanted him to forget about everyone else - just once - and think only about them. And sometimes by thinking about them he seemed to think only about her. It was always her decision that had to be important, he always had to listen to her and not his own heart and that was also something Kanao wanted to change. He was supposed to be just as important as her, to be more decisive, to show his own will, because he also had every right to expect something from their relationship.
So began a quiet war: Tanjiro battling his considerate nature, while Kanao waited patiently for him to understand on his own. Communication had always been vital in their relationship, and if one of them didn't understand something, the other would explain it. But this time, they both knew what the other was thinking - it was just a matter of who would yield first.
In the end, Kanao won that unspoken battle. Tanjiro realized he couldn't always rely on her decisions and had to take responsibility for once - to make the first move himself. He had to stop being too nice, because the one person who most deserved his warmth and kindness was her, and her alone.
During one of the breaks, Kanao approached him - her expression full of love, yet slightly amused by his silent pleas for help.
"So, how's your day going?" she asked cheerfully, almost tempted to pinch his cheek.
"Great. You know how many cookies I'll have to bake next month to repay all this?" he said in a mock-complaining tone.
"You know I'll help you with that, silly," Kanao replied, slowly giving in to his playful act.
"But I think it's too much already. I want to tell everyone that I love only you - and that I'll never love anyone else."
"So, you don't want to collect any more boxes or kind words?"
"No. The only kind words I want are yours. I really want everyone to know we're together."
Kanao giggled sweetly, rummaging through her bag before pulling something out a moment later.
"Here," Kanao said, handing him a small box of chocolates with the words 'I love you' written on it. "Do you still accept them?"
Tanjiro's face lit up with a wide, joyful smile as he took the gift and held it close to his heart. He truly appreciated the effort and every kind gesture he had received from the other girls - he was sincerely grateful - but these chocolates, no matter how they actually tasted, would taste entirely different, entirely better. These chocolates, he loved... and so too the person who had given them to him.
"Thank you, Kanao. I love you," he said, blushing and letting out a soft laugh.
"I love you too, Tanjiro," she said with a giggle, reaching up to gently ruffle his hair.
Then she glanced toward the other girls waiting nearby for their turn - but their turn would never come. Standing slightly on her toes, she leaned forward and kissed Tanjiro on the lips, long enough for everyone around to see. Kanao didn't like attention - she had never wanted to tell anyone about their relationship - but this time, she didn't want her boyfriend to feel bad for constantly having to turn down other people's advances. This time, she wanted to do him a favor.
Both of them felt a rush of energy course through their bodies at the touch. It wasn't their first kiss, but it tasted just as sweet as all the others before it - their soft lips meeting, sharing warmth and affection, pressing together tenderly.
During those few seconds of contact, they could almost hear the sound of hearts breaking all around them - those who had wanted to give Tanjiro another gift, or had secretly hoped Kanao might give them hers - shattering like fragile porcelain cups.
And over that quiet heartbreak came a loud, unmistakable scream - from a very jealous Zenitsu.
"Agatsuma, stop yelling in the school hallways and dye your hair back to black!" shouted PE teacher Giyu Tomioka, rounding the corner in pursuit of the blond boy.
Zenitsu dashed past the couple, still shrieking.
"AAAAAH! They're kissing in the middle of the hallway and you're still chasing me!?" he wailed.
Tanjiro and Kanao burst into laughter. Maybe this wasn't the most appropriate time or place - but right now, they didn't need to think about anyone else's feelings, even though they almost always did. For once, what mattered most was them.
What mattered was that everyone could clearly see - he belonged to her, and she to him. The news would surely spread quickly, and they'd proudly and happily show the world that they were in love.
At least... until Mr. Tomioka decided they needed to be chased down next.