"Hey, Red!  There you are!"

She looked up and saw Chris Jericho making his brisk way from partway down the hall to her.

"Hi, Chris!" she exclaimed, and the blond man caught up to her.  "I was actually looking for you this morning."  She slid the keycard in its slot, then held the door for Chris to enter before she did.

"You were?  Oh, you must have stopped by when I was out getting the flowers."

Lita stopped in her tracks to stare at him.  "Flowers?"

"Yeah, flowers...They go hand-in-hand with this holiday, don't they?" he quipped.

"Well, yeah - of course," the diva said, then began chewing on the bottom of her lip thoughtfully.  "But Chris, you don't have to give me flowers."

"Oh, stop it, Lita!" Y2J chastised.  "A sweet, pretty girl like you deserves flowers..."  Then, when she opened her mouth as though to protest, he cut her off at the path.  "And don't start telling me you're not the type of girl that was made for flowers - because you are!"

Lita smiled.  "Okay...fair enough."  She laughed, as did her wisecracking friend.  She was enjoying this.  "So, what kind did you get?"

"I'm not telling," Jericho said.  "You're just gonna have to wait."  Boy, are you ever! he thought, but not about any flowers.  He wanted to check with Stephanie on her end of things.

The redhead grew silent, the smile still on her face as she thought about who Chris should have really asked to be his Valentine.

"Hey," she began, "can I ask you something?"

Y2J grinned at her.  "You can ask me anything, lovely Lita..."

"Well, I know the only reason you asked me to be your Valentine is because you found me crying last night - and don't deny it, because I know it's the truth."

Jericho arched an eyebrow as he kept those clear blue eyes of his on her face.

"So, Chris...tell me - who would you really have wanted to be your Valentine?" the diva asked, crossing her arms over her chest as she regarded him.

"Why, you, of course..."

"Come on, I'm serious!  Who?"

"Oh, okay," Y2J said resignedly.  "But you better not say anything!  Okay...if I'd have gotten my way, I would've wanted Stephanie to be my real Valentine - no offense to you, of course."

The redhead's pretty face brightened with a grin.  She'd gotten the exact answer she'd expected from him.

"Stephanie, huh?"

Chris nodded, then looked away, running a hand through his long hair.

Lita bit her lip, mischievously deciding to play oblivious.  "But I thought you always hated her!" she cried.

"No - I never hated her," he replied, meeting her hazel gaze.  "Whatever gave you that idea, anyway?"

"Oh...just the way you've always been so relentless in picking on her.  I mean, what a way to show a girl you really care - by calling her a 'dirty, disgusting, filthy, brutal, skanky, bottom-feeding trashbag ho!'"  She had to bite her lip again to keep from giggling, but she was failing miserably.

"Oh, all that stuff...I never meant it.  Steph's really cool...and quite the looker, too."

Now it was Lita's turn to arch a brow in surprise.  It was refreshing to hear Jericho actually praising the brunette.

"And I suppose she really did love that jackass Triple H...But she was always too good for him."  Chris shifted his gaze back on the redhead.  "Same as you were always too good for that ass clown Matt..."

Lita's smile disappeared at the mention of her ex-boyfriend's name, and Y2J reached over for her hand.

"I'm sorry...I shouldn't have brought him up."

"It's okay, Chris - really," she said.  "And, in a way, you're right...Well, Matt was so sweet, so caring and thoughtful for a long time, but toward the end, he'd changed.  He was like a whole new person - one I didn't like and didn't want to be with.  He was an ass clown - and still is now."

Jericho frowned.  "And what's up with that whole Mattitude thing?"

"I know," the redhead said, shaking her head.  "He's way over the top.  I just wish Shannon would see him for what he really is and tell him to go to hell."

"Well, hopefully he'll come around and see the light," Y2J said.  He glanced at his watch.  "Hey, it's getting pretty late...What do you say we step out for awhile?"

"Gladly."

As they left the room, Jericho smiled to himself.  He had to call Stephanie soon and get the dirt from her.