Liam Payne walked into his second grade classroom, a heart shaped Valentine in hand. He had spent all night decorating it, and with the help of his mom, had finished just before bedtime.

When he spotted Clara Soto sitting in the back of the classroom, his cheeks grew flush. He kept his head to the floor, attempting to hide his soft smile.

Although Liam wanted to wait until the perfect time to give Clara the Valentine, he had always been impatient. This impatience nearly forced his little legs to walk over to the girl.

Clara sat with her friends, chatting about something Liam didn’t quite catch. The closer he got to her, the more nervous he became. His hands began sweating, so he wiped against the side of his pants.
Liam smiled at Clara, as he approached her. Each of her friends looked up at him, giving him pointed looks.

The young boy stuck out his hand, passing the girl the heart shaped card. Her friends snickered, as she read the glittered lettering.

With her eyes wide, Clara shoved the card back to Liam, slamming it against his chest.

“I don’t want your stupid card, Liam.” Clara had her nose turned up in disgust. “You can keep it.”

The girls giggled as they walked away from him, leaving Liam standing alone in the back of the classroom. He looked down at the card in his hands, and began ripping it to shreds. He didn’t need the stupid card. He didn’t need Valentine’s Day. And he certainly didn’t need Clara Soto.

It was that moment, in the late 1990’s, that Liam Payne realized Valentine’s Day was a scam. Those torn, red strips of paper lying on the ground proved to Liam that the whole holiday was a joke.
Valentine’s Day was nothing more than a scheme created by greeting card companies, in an effort to help them raise their profits.

From that moment on, Liam Payne swore he would never celebrate another Valentine’s Day again.