Disclaimer: Now how could I own this? It belongs to Natsume!

Harvest Moon: Save The Homeland

"I Have To Smile…"

By Gray

I awoke early that spring day. Stretching tiredly, I got out of bed, and slipped into my usual attire of cap, sleeveless white shirt, jeans, and boots. I yawned and flipped on the T.V while fixing a boring poor man's breakfast of fried eggs that I had gotten from my chickens. After eating my two eggs, I turned the T.V off, and stepped outside. The cool morning breeze hit my face, and washed the last vestiges of sleep from my body. Feeling refreshed, I steeled myself for the day's work. It was right in the middle of the dry season, and my crops needed water, ASAP. I was just about to fill my watering can when I heard a polite cough from behind me. Turning, I found myself staring into the bright eyes of the owner of the flower shop, Lyla Popuri. Her bright pink hair was done up perfectly as always, and she wore her usual conservative dress. But there was something off about her. She was smiling as always, but it lacked…something. The usual bright warmth was gone from her face, and instead she appeared very pensive.

"Lyla…Is there something I can do for you?" I asked. She shook her head.

"No…No, I'm fine Jack…" She looked down and fidgeted with her dress nervously.

"There's something…something I need to tell you…" She said slowly. My heart was hammering in my chest. There's something you should know about Lyla and I. You see, I love her. I know I've only been here for a few weeks, but in those few weeks, I've grown to love this wonderful young woman in front of me. I know she's a year older, but so what? I'm 21! She's 22! Not a huge difference! Anyway, it's been tough, but I've been doing my best to impress her. I work hard all day, Give her lots of business, and have been doing my best to find ways to save the area from being bulldozed and replaced with a theme park. And I think it may have paid off. I see her smiling at me constantly, and sometimes she'll even blush when I talk to her early in the morning, or give her a gift. Why, on her birthday, I gave her a pontata root, and I'd swear she was going to kiss me! Now, she seemed to be very uncomfortable and nervous. What was going on here?

"What is it?" I asked. After I had finished growing the Blue Mist Flower, she had been so excited. I wondered what was wrong.

"You see…I…I'm going on a trip…" She looked up at me to gauge my reaction.

"Trip?!" I said intelligently.

"Yes…a trip…I…I'm going after him…I've decided that I have to tell him my feelings…" She whispered the last part, but I heard her anyway. Now there's something you should know about Lyla. She's in love with Parsley, the local botanist. Parsley's a nice guy I guess. Weird name, but a nice guy. Actually, his name suits him. Parsley is a type of seasoning that is extremely boring. It has not flavor at all, and is mainly for decorative purposes. That's sort of like Parsley. Boring, zero personality, and really just here to make the place look better. Talking to him is like talking to a post. Of course, when all you do is wander around, looking and talking to plants, I guess you wouldn't exactly gain tremendous social skills. But I swear, even the snotty Dia is more fun to be around then that idiot. Ahem, sorry, I guess I'm just sort of jealous…Anyway, after I painstakingly grew the Blue Mist flower in the hopes that it would attract a special butterfly called the Azure Swallowtail, not to mention attract a special lady called Lyla, Parsley decided to go on a journey. I had, shamefully I admit, been quite excited by this fact. Finally, now maybe Lyla will get him out of her head. I had thought. Boy was I wrong. Now she wanted to go after him, and I felt my world crumbling around me…

"I..I see…" I said simply.

"I just wanted to tell you Jack, I haven't told any of the others, but I just couldn't leave without letting you know…" She looked uncomfortable. I could see that this was hard for her.

"Yes w-well…I appreciate it L-Lyla…" I stuttered out. I could almost feel the tears coming, but I willed them away with great effort. God! I felt like my heart was going to rip in two.

"I won't be able to run the shop obviously, so I'm sorry if your Farm suffers at all…" She looked around the run down old place with a turn of her head, making her hair sway slightly. A breeze picked up, and an uneasy silence developed for a few minutes.

"Well…goodbye Jack…" She said. Was that moisture in her eyes from the wind? Now I felt indecision grip me. Should I stop her? Should I try and make her stay? Or should I let her go do what she obviously wants to do? I made my choice…

"Goodbye Lyla…" I said with a smile. She nodded slowly, and turned to walk down the path without another word. I watched her go the whole time…

"Goodbye…" I whispered, still smiling, though it never reached my eyes…

I have to smile…

Author's Notes: This is obviously my interpretation of a scene in the game. It's right after the Blue Mist Flower blooms, and Lyla decides to go after Parsley. In my game, I had been trying to woo Lyla. (Yes, I know you can't get married! But you can make a girl like you!) So when Lyla left, I just sort of thought about what Jack might have been feeling. I mean, it would kind of suck y'know! The game gives you the choice of trying to stop her, or smiling at her, hence the title. Unfortunately, stopping her is impossible. I tried ten times, and she just refuses! Anyway, please let me know how I did! This is my first Harvest Moon fanfic! And sorry if the dialogue isn't 100% accurate! I forgot some of it!