Disclaimer: Nope. Don't own Harvest Moon. Take all your complaints to Marvelous Interactive.
Author's Notes: This is a Sequel to Previous one-shot "In the Beginning", and is also connected to the lengthy story "Between Maidens". I would suggest reading the former before looking at this, but if you don't really feel like catching up, go ahead. I also wrote it to accommodate those not familiar with those stories, so you don't need any prior knowledge to understand this story. Now please enjoy:
Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life
Yet You Are One I Still Cherish
One Winter afternoon, in the secluded Forget-Me-Not Valley, a young lady rested sick in the bed of an ornate, spacious room with a concerned man sitting at his side.
The young lady had long, flowing brown hair and weary amber eyes. Underneath her red thick red blanket was a glimpse of silky white pajamas that wrapped around her body.
The young man had messy chocolate brown hair and solemn brown eyes. He wore a white t-shirt with a red handkerchief and a pair of blue jeans. His hands were clutched together on his lap as he watched on restlessly.
"Gavin… thank you… for spending the day to take care of me the whole day." The young lady voiced in deep gratitude.
"It's no problem, Lumina. I just… wanted to make sure you'd be fine." The young man answered back with a warm smile.
"But… I already have Sebastian to tend to me. I'm still glad to have you here at my side, but what about your farm? Didn't your crops and animals need tending? I heard you practically ran out of bed the moment you heard I was sick." Lumina asked.
"Oh, that's been taken care of. Celia happened to be around when I heard the news, and she offered to take over for the day. She's really great, huh?" Gavin answered with a chuckle.
The young farmer turned his blushing head slightly while rubbing his head.
Lumina sensed a feeling of fondness from him as he spoke of Celia and clutched her heart underneath her blanket, but didn't take notice of another emotion that kept well hidden.
"Celia… right." Lumina said in subtle disappointment.
"…But enough about that! Today's about getting you all better, so I'm sure right now I belong here with you!" he cried in an encouraging voice.
Lumina's sickly eyes gazed deep into Gavin's , and felt inner strife.
"Gavin… maybe this sounds rather off of me to say, but I'm surprised you managed to stay around so long. I mean, I've heard from you how much you despised your Father… and how disgusted you feel in actually taking over the farm. I could tell how much you loved your old job as a freelance artist, and yet you still remain like you've been a farmer your whole life." She voiced in astonishment.
"It's because I found something important to stay for." Gavin replied calmly.
"…Like… Celia?" Lumina asked hesitantly.
Gavin nodded. "You, too. Even Sebastian, Flora, and Carter, and everyone else. I guess you can say I have a family here."
"…What about Nami? I could tell you were really great friends with her, and she stayed around for a long, but then she decided to leave. Do you miss her? Are you jealous that she was able to give up what she could to move on without being back?"
"Nami left for reasons she believed were important…" he said in a solemn tone. "And yes, of course I miss her. As for whether I'm envious of her able to leave this place because she has no obligation to, I'm not quite sure, but I know I did the right thing by staying around. This isn't about my Father anymore… this is all about my own life now. And I'll say it again: I'm glad to be here." Gavin assured her.
Lumina smiled faintly. Despite her unrequited feelings, there was something about Gavin's earnest attitude that never failed to inspire her.
"Good…" Lumina sad with a nod and a grin. "So… have you found the time to work on another painting? I haven't seen one from you for a long time now, and I'm starting to think your farm work keeps you completely occupied."
"Oh, don't worry about that. I have a new painting started up, it'll just take awhile to get done. But I promise as soon as I'm done with it, you'll get to see it immediately!" Gavin grinned.
"Thank goodness. I can't wait…" Lumina answered in a weary voice.
As her eyelids grew heavy, she gazed intensely upon the young man before him.
"He still treats me so tenderly, even despite finding his special someone… the one he loves most. I'm very grateful for this time with him, this attention from him… I feel so happy… but for how long will this last? I'm like a kid sister to him. He'll have to move on eventually to find his courage to devote his affection to the love of his life and leave me to grow up, but I… I still can't stand it… even when he's here for me right now; I feel my heart cracking apart. How much longer do I have left to hold on to this happiness? How am I going to finally let go?"
In a matter of moments, the young maiden passed off into dreamland. A small tear ran down her cheek.
The maiden's caretaker remained behind. His body trembled ever so slightly as his regretful eyes observed unguarded expression.
"It's been hard on you these past few weeks, hasn't it?" he uttered solemnly to the dormant lady.
Gavin stiffened his quivering body and shook his head slowly.
"I'm sorry for saying such things when you can't hear me, but it's the only thing I can think of… at least until I know you're able to handle it. You're still so young, I can't bear to make it any harder on you than it has to be…"
He then placed his hands firmly on his lap and hunched his body over closer to Lumina.
"I'm thankful for the support you gave when I realized my feelings for Celia. I could tell you were sincere in saying you were happy for me, but you had some issues you didn't want to bring up, didn't you? I noticed the whole time… that you became nervous whenever I was around her."
Gavin then closed his eyes and gave a simple nod.
"I know what you're feeling right now, and I'd rather not stand to see you suffer like this, but I don't want to lie to you. I don't feel that way towards you, but I still care so very much for you. I don't want to hurt you, but I know I've already done so. And at this point, no matter what I might try, I see it'll only get worse for you until you can find the strength to get over it. All I can do is stay honest and hope with all my heart you will find that strength in time…"
A moment later, he brought his clasped hands right before his face.
"It doesn't matter if I see you as a sister, it doesn't demean your worth to me in my eyes. You'll still be special to me no matter what… and that's because you've done far more for me than you realize. I know for now that you take that likely when I say that, but I want you to understand how serious I am about it someday. You're truly a good person, and you deserve what matters most in life…"
Suddenly, Gavin's narrowed eyes gazed nostalgically in the air.
"I still remember back then… when I so was adamant in coming to this valley, all because my Father had been so horrible to me in life, that I refused to attend the funeral. I resisted for so long, even believing wholeheartedly that his death was hoax out of anger. Even Taka's arrival on its own wasn't enough to make me come, yet it was only until he gave me a certain letter that made me have second thoughts. And it was a letter written by you. I was perplexed. You spoke of my damned Father like he was a hearty man to you, yet there was something about the message that convinced me you were sincere. What made me even more curious about that letter was that I immediately felt that we were alike, somehow…"
Gavin closed his eyes once more, going into a state of intense concentration.
"So I made my awkward decision to come and understand all of this, and there you were… crying for a man that I despised all my life, even though I'm his own son. Of course I was confused at first, so I decided to hear your story on him, along with everyone else. To be honest, I'm still in disbelief about his legendary kindness, but I'm glad to hear that he had a positive influence on one place. And I'm aware of this because of you."
Gavin looked upon the sleeping beauty with a sweet smile.
"Because of you, I was able to see this wonderful valley and meet the wonderful people here. Because of you, I finally found the love of my life in Celia. And most of all, it's because of you that I found a true friend that I confide in. I still remember all the times when we laughed and talked together… especially about passion you held in music that was much like my own in art… only to have it put in doubt by Ms. Romana's training regiment. I'm glad that you held on to your passion. I've heard you over the year, and I've noticed each hint of improvement as time moved on. You play so beautifully now… you should be proud."
The farmer's smile suddenly dropped as body trembled once more.
"Recently… I can't help but sense that staying close to you like this will only make it all the more painful for you in the end. That's why you're so uncomfortable with me holding onto you for so long, isn't it? I know this sounds so foolish of me, but please don't torture yourself over me… even now, it will pain me to see your heart tear apart, especially knowing fully that it will be my fault. And please believe me when I say I don't intend to abandon you. I still want to be there for you and try to make up for making you suffer so much."
Gavin nodded his head again.
"You always spoke earnestly and honestly about life, and it always cheered me up and encouraged me whenever I felt doubt. I know someone will one day love you for it, in a way I never could...someone that you deserve, and someone deserving of you. There's a brilliant future that I want for you… please, don't throw that hope away…"
Gavin paused to bow his head for a long period. Eventually, he inched closer to Lumina's face.
"Please forgive me… I'm so sorry for breaking your heart." He uttered with a quivering voice.
He then held back her row of bangs and gently kissed her forehead. Afterwards, he drew back far into his chair. For one brief moment, he looked upon the sleeping princess bearing eyes filled with hope and kindness.
"Sweet dreams, my cherished friend. From this day forward, I wish you lasting happiness…"
Out of sheer vigilance and concern, the solemn Farmer remained at his dear friend's side for the remainder of the day.