The church was definitely my favorite place in the entire village. I was sitting on the first pew, leaning back and watching the flame flicker on one of the candles nearby. Faint light leaked through the stained glass windows, painting the hard floors beneath in blues, yellows, and reds. Despite the windows and candles, the church was always a little dim, even in the late afternoon. My mind was empty, a rare blessing that only seemed to happen when I was alone in this building. All I could focus on was the comfortable atmosphere and sights around me. Muffled speech and laughter was coming from outside. Carter was outside humoring May and Stu, two neighborhood children, with silly stories that always ended with a moral. How typical of a pastor! I was often subjected to those childish stories myself, but Carter was a good friend of mine (well, one of my only friends) so I could put up with them.

I heard the clamor of footsteps approaching. The kids must have left and Carter was coming in to work again. I straightened up a bit. Even though Carter was a great (although strange) guy, I wasn't completely comfortable around him. I wasn't comfortable with anyone, really. The doors opened and a light flooded the room for a few brief seconds.

"Hello, Cliff." Carter greeted me cheerfully as he walked past me to his desk. He was a guy who always seemed to be in a great mood, and was always encouraging me to go out and have fun. He acts like the perfect mom in some ways. Like I said, he's a strange guy. He's in his mid-thirties, yet has the "wisdom" (senile ramblings) of an old man.

"Hey." I mumble back. He sits at his desk and starts writing something, probably a new story to spread around town. He seems completely at ease as always, but he's marred the peace that the church creates for me.

I was always awkward around people, but now I can hardly stand to be around them. When anyone is around, I can't just relax and enjoy myself. In this particular situation, I feel as if Carter's waiting for me to speak. I don't know what to say, and the scribbling of his pen is agitating, making me increasingly uncomfortable with each painful scratch against the paper. It grows louder until I can't bear it any longer.

"What's the latest news?" I breathe, and the tension I probably imagined is temporarily relieved.

"Oh," he sighs and puts his pen down, trying to act nonchalant. He always tries to hide his excitement when I express any interest in the goings on of the people around me. "Nothing other than a young lady moved into that old abandoned farm."

I can't help but smile at the fact that he said young lady. "Why would she move there?"

"Some say the mayor tricked her into it, but I wouldn't know. You should ask her."

There we go. Now he's going to suggest that I start making more friends.

"You know, Cliff, you can't lock yourself in the church forever. I really think you should get to know more people."

Bingo.

"I know plenty of people." I protested, my voice sounding like a child.

"Name them." Carter demands, sounding like he's preparing to scold me for my pathetic lie.

"Well, there's you." I said as I frantically racked my mind for more names.

"And?"

"And Ann at the Inn. We're pretty good friends. There's my roommate, Gray, too. We talk."

"I still think you need to get out more often." Carter said and resumed his work.

The anxiety started to build again, but I didn't want to be lectured by Carter anymore. I checked the clock. It was almost seven. Time to go back to the Inn.

I stood up and my bones popped as I stretched. I couldn't believe I had been sitting there and spacing out for nearly eight hours. "I'm going now." I said to Carter and walked down the aisle to leave.

"See you tomorrow." He sighed.

I opened the door and walked out onto the cobbled streets of North Mineral Town, the narrow path lined with tall lamps on the brink of turning on. Twilight had settled in the sky, turning everything a light shade of blue that grew darker as night hastily approached. Delicious scents filled the air from the remnants of dinner. As I walked along the path I carefully observed the villagers in their daily life. The brown-haired nurse was saying her goodbyes to the Doctor, who wished her grandmother well. She blushed and began to walk home, ready to prepare some late dinner for her infirm grandma and Stu, her younger brother, before returning. The sickly shopkeeper, Jeff, was closing up his store, or was trying to, as the talkative Manna tried to chat her way in to buy some meaningless thing. Down the street I could see Basil, a botanist, cheerfully leaving his home to go drinking at the Inn as his wife looked forlornly out the door. It's true that I never talked to these people, but I did know them, probably more than they would want me to.

I finally reached the Inn and was greeted with the loud cacophony of socializing. Karen, Jeff's daughter, was laughing it up and drinking it down at the bar with Rick, the boy from the poultry farm, who looked slightly uncomfortable and concerned. Saibara, the hard-as-steel elderly blacksmith was drinking wine and lost in thought at a table by himself. Although he visited the bar every night and drank the entire time, I had never seen Saibara act silly or show any sign that the alcohol affected him whatsoever. It was rather impressive. Basil walked in, ordered a meal before sitting with the winery owner and beginning a loud, boisterous conversation about grapes. Yes, grapes. The air was hot and burned with a tint of alcohol. Just walking in was uncomfortable for me, but I was hungry, and had to order dinner.

"The usual?" asked Doug, the Innkeeper and chef. He was a portly man who seemed like he had it all together. I immediately liked him from the moment I first met him, and we had formed a small understanding of one another. Not exactly friends, but we respected each other.

I nodded as I sat at the bar and Doug hurried to the kitchens to prepare my meal. Just as he hustled into the kitchen, his daughter burst out. Ann was energy. During the days she cleaned and delivered lunches, at nights she helped run the bar and cook meals, yet she always made time to chat with customers and everyone thought of her as "a sweet girl".

I had known Ann for nearly a year now, and, with much persistence on her side, had grown close to her and found in her a real friend. On some of the more dreary days I had spent in Mineral Town, Ann's smile had brightened them and made them much more bearable, probably more than she ever understood.

She ran Basil's food out to him, her long red braid flowing behind her. Karen cried out for more wine (against Rick's advice) and so Ann ran to serve her as well. It was then that she noticed I was back, and smiled at me as she pushed some loose hair out of her face.

"Cliff!" she grinned and ran around the bar. Her cheerfulness surprised me every time I saw her. She rushed to me and collapsed on the seat next to mine. "Phew!" she sighed, and flashed me another grin. I couldn't help but give her a small smile back.

"You seem pretty excited today." Ann was excited every day.

"Well I had a very exciting day!" she said, almost defensively.

"Oh really?" I asked, not believing anything truly eventful happened. "How so?"

"I met the new girl!" She cried as she pulled out a cloth out of the pocket of her overalls and began to wipe the bar counter. "She came to the Inn earlier today. Dad and I gave her a free lunch."

It seemed like this small village couldn't get enough of any new gossip. When I came to Mineral Town a year before, I was visited by nearly everyone in town, each person eager to see me and meet me. That was when I first found refuge in the church. It's one of the only places people don't come up to you and try to make small talk (unless you're Ann). Eventually most of Mineral Town grew tired of my unwillingness to chat and forgot me. I simply nodded in response and Ann continued.

"Her name is Claire, and she really likes tempura. She's pretty nice but she seemed kind of tired to me."

"Everyone seems tired to you, Ann." I smirked.

"Oh shut up, you. She's running a whole farm by herself, and we all know that that farm wasn't in mint condition."

Hearing that made me remember my earlier question. "Did you ask her why she bought the farm?"

"No, I hadn't thought to ask her that." Ann said and gave me a strange look. We were quiet for a moment, which began to increase my discomfort. Ann was easy to talk to, but occasionally Ann would go silent, and I couldn't be around her anymore.

The kitchen door swung open and Doug came out with my usual: curry rice. "Eat up." He said as he placed the plate in front of me. I handed him some coins and dug in.

"Looks like Karen needs another refill." Ann said as she scooped up a handful of rice and popped it into her mouth. I looked up at her to protest, but she had run off to fetch the wine bottle.

The upstairs in the Inn is quiet and cool, the complete opposite of the bar area below. I unlocked my room and saw Gray was lying on his bed, reading. Gray is easy to get along with, and I think it's because he's not a people person either. He's reserved but I think it's more because he hates people than is shy, which is probably why he's only friends with Mary and the always absent Kai.

"Hey." He mumbled, not taking his eyes off his book. I tried to read the title, but his hands hid it.

"What're reading?" I asked him, only half-interested as I sat at the table.

"Nothing." He replied and turned a page.

I pulled out my money and counted how much I had left. My savings were starting to dwindle, but in a small village like this there wasn't much work available. The thought of having to move again put me in a somber mood, and I had to put the money away. I began to think about my life here. I was doing nothing all day, I had no job, barely any friends, no family, no love, nothing. There seemed to be no point in even living, let alone living in Mineral Town. The pleasant little village didn't need someone like me moping around. Yet I didn't want to leave. Was it because of Carter? Was it because of Ann? I knew it wasn't. There was something in me, a former self, that didn't want to give up, that kept telling me if I stay here something would happen and my life would change.

I pulled out the old picture tucked away in my pocket. A happy boy of about five with wild brown hair and even wilder brown eyes grinned at me. He was hugging a confused looking three year old girl whose hair was a mess of light brown curls. Above them was a beautiful woman whose green eyes shined with happiness and pale blonde hair fell down her shoulders in waves. In the right hand corner was half a body whose face was hidden. It was a man with dark brown hair that was hurrying to the side of the woman, trying to get there before the camera flashed, but was too late. It was a family that didn't exist anymore.

I jumped at the sound of Gray's book slamming against the wooden floor.

"I'm going to sleep." It sounded like an order more than a statement.

"Yeah, me too." I said and changed into some pajama bottoms. I blew out the candles in the room and crawled into bed, feeling more miserable than I had in years.

I woke up to the sound of my door opening. I quickly sat up to see Ann walking in to my room, holding her cleaning supplies. Once she saw me lying there, with my shirt off, she jumped, dropped her cleaning stuff and ran out of the room. Great way to start a morning. I had just finished changing when I heard a light knock on the door. I opened it and of course it was a red-faced Ann.

"Uh, sorry for barging in on you. You're usually gone by now so I thought I'd come in and do some cleaning before I deliver lunches." She said as she stared at the floor.

Deliver lunches?

"No it's fine, but what time is it?" I noticed my room was unusually bright.

"It's almost one-thirty." She said, finally looking me in the face.

One thirty? Wow, I really did sleep in.

"I need to go." I said as I ran and grabbed my money off the table. "Bye Ann."

She started to say bye, but I was already running down the stairs. I ran all the way to the church before throwing the doors open and yelling, "Sorry I'm late!"

Carter looked up from his lunch with a puzzled expression. "What do you mean you're late?"

And that's when I realized how stupid I was being. I had no obligation to be at the Church at ten o'clock every day, I just was.

"Er, never mind." I mumbled, clearly embarrassed, and walked up to the first pew and sat down.

"Want something to eat? I can make you something." Carter offered, gracefully ignoring my dramatic entrance.

"No thanks. I just need to cool off here for a minute."

I thought I heard Carter murmur something that sounded like "or hours."

After an hour or two I was thinking about my money problems again. Usually the church clears my mind, but this issue would not go away, no matter how long I stared at a candle.

The creak of the church doors interrupted my thoughts and suddenly the church was filled with bright sunlight. I carefully glanced over my shoulder to see who it was.

There was a girl standing in the door, a girl I'd never seen before. She had long, straight blonde hair that went down just below her shoulders. She looked pale, but I could tell her cheeks were flushed pink from the heat. Around her shoulder was a brown rucksack that rested at her hip, brimming with mountain grass and bamboo shoots. She was carrying bags of seeds and even had a small bag sticking out of the front pocket of her blue overalls, which were covered in dirt and grass stains. This must be the girl Ann was telling me about.

Claire who likes tempura.

"Is it alright if I come inside and cool off for a bit?" she asked breathlessly. I turned and faced the candle again, lowering my head a little in hopes of going unnoticed.

"Sure, sure! Have a seat!" Carter abandoned his lunch to help the girl with her bags.

"Thanks." She said and sighed in relief as the load was lifted. "I just need a short break."

"Take your time. My name's Carter, I'm the pastor of this Church." I could hear a thunk as he set her belongings on a pew.

"I'm Claire, I just moved into that farm a few days ago."

"I heard. Are you buying seeds to plant?"

"Yeah, I spent these past days trying to clean up the field a bit, but there's just so much more work left!"

"It must be hard by yourself."

Their conversation carried on for a while. I was eventually able to tune them out and return to my thoughts, but was pulled back when I heard my name mentioned.

"Well, I really should be going now. I'm pretty tired."

"You have a lot to carry… Cliff! Why don't you help Claire with her bags back to her farm?"

I quickly turned around to see Carter grinning at me like a mom who just found the perfect man for her daughter.

"Oh, no it's okay. I can do it on my own." Claire said, probably seeing the look I was giving Carter.

"No, no, he wants to help! Just look at him!" Only Carter would interpret an "I'm going to kill you!" look as an "Oh boy, I'd love to!" look.

"I don't want to be any trouble, it's fine." The girl said as she slipped her rucksack over her neck.

Oh well. "It's alright, I'll help." I mumbled and walked over to her pew and picked up the bags.

"Thanks." She said and gave me a smile. I looked at the ground.

I followed her towards the door and as she stepped out I looked back for a quick glance at Carter. He was smiling and giving me two thumbs up. What an idiot.

At first we walked silently, but after a while the girl began to talk.

"So you're name's Cliff?" she asked, trying to make small talk.

"Yeah."

There was silence again.

"Have you always lived in Mineral Town?" she asked, trying once again.

"No, I came here almost a year ago. I lived in another village not too far away."

"I used to live in the city." She said.

I remembered my question again. "Why did you move to the farm?" I asked.

"I'm not really sure. I was just in my apartment one day and realized I was doing nothing with my life. I wanted to try something new and actually start living. Then I saw an ad in the newspaper advertising a nice comfortable farm and a happy life. I thought it was my chance."

We reached her farm and I stared at it in awe.

"I really should have thought about it first." She laughed darkly.

Her farm was a mess. The field where she was supposed to grow crops was covered in rocks, weeds, branches, and even tree stumps. I turned and stared at her face. She had weak written all over her. How on earth was this little girl going to run a farm all alone?

"Oh, it's not that bad!" she said, reading the look of sheer pity on my face. "Do you want a glass of water?"

The unusual heat and the heavy load I carried had made me parched. I nodded and quietly followed her into her house.

"You can set the bags by that chest over there." She instructed and walked off to the kitchen.

I did as I was told and observed the little living room she had left me in. I could tell she spent a great amount of time fixing up the house. The floors were polished, the walls wiped, and there wasn't a cobweb in sight. The room was small and cozy. I sat at the little round coffee table in the center and waited for her to come back. I then noticed a stack of books from the library. I was rifling through one when she walked in.

"This book is all about growing crops…" I murmured as she leaned over me to place the water on the table. I casually moved away and kept my eyes on the book.

"Um, yeah." She laughed nervously. "It really helps when you have no idea what you're doing."

I shot up and looked at her in surprise. "Don't tell me you've never farmed before?"

"I'm from the city, remember?" she said, before chugging her water.

I continued to stare at her, shocked. Not only was this weak little girl running a farm on her own, but she didn't even know how to run it? Her situation was growing more absurd by the minute. I couldn't just watch and see her lose her farm, have her chance for a new life, as she put it, destroyed. I looked at her eyes and saw a faint sadness in them, like deep down she knew what would ultimately happen to her.

"Well," I started, hoping I wouldn't regret this later, "I used to live on a farm."

Her blue eyes flashed to mine.

"Really?" she asked, eyes intent upon mine.

I quickly looked down at the book once again. "I could help you out until you get the hang of it." I mumbled.

Suddenly she jumped up, startling me. "Really? Really?"

I could feel my face go red. "It's alright; I don't do much during the day anyway…" I closed the book and set it on top of the others.

"Cliff!" she cried, and even though I wasn't looking at her, I could tell she was grinning. She sat back down though she was still fidgety with excitement. "I couldn't accept your help for free though, but I don't have a lot of money…" she mused on it for a while. "How about 70 G a day and free lunches?"

That was perfect. I could earn a bit of extra money and cut back on my expenses by not buying lunch at the Inn every day. "Sounds like a deal to me."I said and awkwardly held out my hand for her to shake. She grabbed it and shook it enthusiastically.

"Can you show up at eight tomorrow morning?" she asked, still smiling.

"Sure, I'll see you then." I answered and stood up to leave.

As I reached for the door knob she called my name. I turned to see her standing with a small grateful smile.

"Thanks."

"Bye Claire." And I left.

At the Inn I caught Ann preparing the bar for its nightly visitors. When she saw me walk in, I saw her face go pink and she began to focus extremely hard on arranging various bottles of liquor. I didn't understand why she was so embarrassed; it was just a small mistake that she made this morning.

"Ann, you don't need to feel so ashamed. All you did was wake me up, and I needed to get up anyway." I said as I pulled up a stool.

She continued to fidget with a bottle. "Yeah, you're right, I guess." She mumbled something inaudible and went quiet.

The situation became awkward once more. I decided to cheer Ann up a bit.

"I met that new girl on the farm today."

With one simple sentence Ann was perked up again. "Didn't you think she was nice?"

"Yeah, actually." I realized that during my conversation with Claire I hardly felt uncomfortable. Well, at least less uncomfortable. "I'm actually going to help her on her farm tomorrow."

"Really?" Ann said, and began wiping the counter.

"Yeah, I felt bad for her. She has an enormous amount of work ahead of her." I smiled.

"Hmm." Ann replied and began to clean more vigorously.

I laughed a little. "She actually has no idea about farming. It's pretty ridiculous."

Ann surprisingly made no reply but smiled at me. Luckily Doug came in from the back room.

"Curry rice today too, Cliff?" he asked cheerfully.

I thought about that for a while. "No, not today." I said, quietly laughing to myself.

"What then?" he asked, a little puzzled by my mood.

"Tempura."