Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon.
Better Than Flowers
Rain. Cam had a love-hate romance with it. Sure, a nice drizzle of rain was always refreshing, a heavy downpour kept him inside to read while it did the work and watered his flowers, but a storm?
He hated those. It was too much rain. It would just drown his flowers, occasionally knock over the pots and destroy them by the harsh force of the raindrops and wind.
Today was much worse. He was in his room, watching the typhoon from his window in the middle of the summer season. Not only was it incredibly dangerous for both him and his flowers, but it was also sickly hot and humid.
He did not hate it- he despised it.
It was an uncomfortable feeling and he was sure the flowers felt the same too. It was the same feeling he always experienced whenever he talked to someone. The rain was like beads of cold, nervous sweat dribbling down his temple, the humidity like the awkward tension in the air. The silence. The only sound being the rain battering at the street, his heart pounding, pulse throbbing in his ears.
There was a loud boom of thunder as it struck the earth, causing the flower pots to tremble. He hated the sound too.
He faintly remembered Alisa saying once that the weather reflected the Harvest Goddess' mood. Was she that mad? And for what reason?
Oh Harvest Goddess, when will you stop torturing Cam with this typhoon? He couldn't possibly continue his day without worrying about the flower bed outside of the café... Luckily for his personally grown flowers, they were safe beneath the thick, plastic net. And yet, Cam still found himself fidgeting in his seat at the thought.
He patted his leg rhythmically and drummed his fingers on his knees, which were bobbing from balancing on his heels. His other rested on his lap, elbow jabbing into his thigh, his hand cupping his chin. Hunched over, he wore the usual blank expression on his face, his emerald eyes distant and unreadable. His thin lips formed into a small pout and his blond eyebrows were furrowed.
His flowers were okay, right? The sheet he put over them should protect them from the harsh weather...
The beat his fingers tapped on his knee sped up. He sucked in air through his clenched teeth.
Maybe... not.
Cam stood up quickly, worried sick about the flowers he worked so hard on to keep healthy and beautiful. He rushed to the door, slipping on his shoes and grabbing his blue umbrella with the yellow stripe around it.
Laney heard him in his haste and called from the top of the stairs, "Cam, is that you? Where are you going?"
She went down the stairs when she didn't get an answer. She crossed her arms under her chest and raised her eyebrows. "Cam?"
"Out," he said simply, almost mumbling, "I'm just going out for a little bit."
He looked over his shoulder and met eyes with her, green clashing with green, both bright and narrowed at each other. And they wondered why people told them they looked alike. He added, burying his chin into the collar of his shirt, "I'll just be at the flower shop, I won't be long."
She shook her head. "You should stay inside on a day like today! This wind is almost strong enough to blow you away!"
"Exactly," he replied, turning away from her, his grip tightly on the doorknob, "I just hope my flowers don't blow away..."
"Oh, come on, Cam," Laney sighed, "they're just flowers. Your safety is more important!"
He huffed in reply, "I'll be fine, really, Laney."
He looked at her once more and tugged the corner of his lips slightly upwards reassuringly. Laney knew him long enough to understand that that was Cam's smile, but she rarely saw him really smiling before.
She sighed again before going back to her room. "Be careful."
Cam turned the doorknob and inhaled deeply, holding his breath. He braced himself as he swung open the door, feeling the blast of the wind like a cold slap in the face. It nearly knocked off his hat off his blond head. Guess he deserved it for underestimating the typhoon.
He could barely see through the pouring rain. He squinted, trying to make out the figures he was seeing. The air was moist and humid, smelling of wet grass and dirt. He opened his umbrella, and stepped outside, closing the door behind him.
"So much for an umbrella," he grumbled under his breath, feeling his already wet shirt cling to his body uncomfortably.
He made his way carefully to his flower shop and checked on them. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the net was still tightly secured over his precious flowers. He walked over, tracing his fingers along the slippery wooden wheel at the front of his cart.
"Good, they're perfectly safe," he said to himself.
His eyes scanned the area, and then lit up in shock.
No.
He crouched down, and squinted more. He felt his heart drop to his stomach. Ever so carefully, Cam picked up what looked like to be a flower, lying on the ground, flattened and tattered. He gritted his teeth.
It was a flower. A red rose, a very popular one he sold in the summer time. Most of the petals were torn off, the bud flattened and squashed. The petals that hadn't fallen were just barely attached to the bud, hanging limp and soaked, the bright colour literally washed away. The stem was now brown and mushy between his fingers. It drooped in his hands.
Dead.
All that time he spent on it just to be ruined in mere seconds because of a typhoon. Yes, he really despised the rain right now.
Then a huge thunder clap cut through the air, filling the town with its loud ringing. Cam almost jumped out of his skin in surprise, but for a different reason.
He didn't know if he was imagining things, but he swore he saw someone walking towards him as the thunder boomed, lighting the sky for a couple of seconds. In those seconds of flashing lights, he saw it reflect off of someone's hair, gleaming skin, and umbrella, casting a shadow on the cobblestone. Then the fog and rain clouded his eyesight, and the person was gone.
No, that couldn't have been a villager. Everyone was forced to stay indoors because of the weather. It was a typhoon, for crying out loud! Who would want to work in such nasty weather?
"Who's there?" Cam called over the sound of the rainfall. He tried to keep his voice firm, but his throat tightened and his heart hammered.
Who would spend their day outside in a storm like this?
"O-oh... hey, Cam," the person replied. Cam could imagine the person was smiling, and he knew the exact kind of smile she was wearing.
"Lillian," he said bluntly, taking a step towards her voice.
He could see her now. He could make out the shape of her body through the rain as she got closer, hopping on the steps.
"Boy, we're having a pretty bad storm today," he stated casually.
The rancher exhaled slowly, "Yeah, I know."
Cam realized as she got closer, that she was wearing her work clothes. The outfit Ash said he liked. On the other hand, Cam replied saying he's seen better.
When she was standing in front of him, he got a clearer view of her, and she was covered in mud and drenched with rain. As soaked as she was, she still held her neon yellow and purple umbrella over her head. At least it stopped her clothes from getting even more wet.
Stupid girl.
Lillian's unique, purple eyes lit up in surprise. "Oh, right..." she began, and searched through her pockets, "I got something for you. I know how much you like flowers, so when I found it in the mountains today I immediately thought of you." She let out a light, breathy laugh, it almost got drowned out by the rain.
She pulled out a bright, yellow moondrop flower. Cam could tell she was telling the truth about finding it today. It looked so fresh and had high quality.
"That's for me? Really?"
She nodded and extended her hand towards him.
"Wow, that's so nice. Thanks," he breathed, happy to see something alive. He placed it in his chest pocket, making a mental note to place it in a vase when he went back inside.
Then it hit him. He raised his eyebrows in shock. "What were you doing on the mountain?"
"Just foraging like usual," she replied simply, "Are Howard and Laney inside?" She tilted her head curiously.
"Yeah," he replied.
"Okay!" She smiled again, some water dribbling down the creases of her cheeks when she smiled.
Cam narrowed his eyes at her. "How long were you out here? In the typhoon, I mean."
"Oh, I just did my work like any regular day," she answered. She said it like it was no big deal. Like there was no problem or any certain danger that could occur when she was working during a typhoon.
He sighed, closing his eyes. "Lillian, that's so bad! Do you know how dangerous it is? And here you're prancing around town giving gifts to everyone and striking up conversations."
Criticizing and contradicting. Cam found himself doing that a lot to Lillian. Even though she was known for being a strong, independent and hard worker, he found this girl too ditzy - an airhead, to be more specific. She just didn't know when to stop working unless someone told her and asked her to stop and take a break. This time, she wasn't even doing any errands or requests! She was just talking to the villagers because she wanted to!
Then again, he was standing out in the pouring rain too. What a hypocrite! He had to think of a reason quick before she caught on...
"I'll be fine, really," she said, placing the hand that was free on her hip.
Didn't Cam just say that to Laney? Lillian was an interesting girl... Cam found her so confusing.
"So what are you doing out here?" She asked teasingly, poking him with a wet finger.
And... she caught on.
She left a drop of water on his shirt. Usually, he'd be mumbling out an answer, but he replied, "I'm just checking on my flowers, not wasting my time trying to have a social life."
"It's not that I want a social life, it's something I have to do," she said.
"Having a social life is something you have to do?" He inquired.
"I wouldn't say it's for the social life. It's... hard to explain," she began, "I guess, it's kind of my duty to make sure everyone's okay and happy, y'know?"
Was this girl even happy?
"And just who the heck gave you that duty?" He questioned, "Shouldn't that be the Mayor's job?"
She placed a finger over her lip. "Secret."
Cam rolled his eyes. Whatever, he didn't have time for her crazy stories right now. So then why...
Why was he still standing in the middle of the typhoon with her? He could've left her ages ago, ignored her when he saw her and let her come to him in the café. He could've continued on with his day knowing that his flowers were okay now.
"What happened there?" Lillian's voice came out gentle and soft, "Did one of your flowers wilt?" Her slender fingers pointed at the dead rose in his hand.
He almost forgot he still had it there. He answered, "Yeah. Stupid typhoon."
"Oh, I'm sorry," she said quietly, as if the flower's "death" really meant something to her.
The wind howled and Cam struggled to keep his hat on. He grumbled, "S'alright, I guess."
Ever since Lillian and Cam went out a couple times on a date, she's been very friendly towards him. Well, there was never a time when she wasn't friendly, but now the two were closer than before. Still, even Cam noticed that he hasn't really changed when it came to expressing his feelings.
It was always work. And work meant flowers. It's not like he minded anyway. That was something they both had in common: work. Whenever they did go out though, they made the most out of it because they both knew how busy they were. Still, Cam's expressions towards her did not change, but Lillian's did.
"So are you going to stay out here until the storm clears out?" The rancher said, leaning towards him. "I know how much you care about your flowers, but don't stay out too long!" She smelt of herbs and mint.
"Maybe, I don't know. How about you? You can't stay out too long either then." He replied.
She shrugged. "Laney and Howard are the last on my list then I'll be heading home." She gave him a sweet smile. "I'll be going into the café, then."
Cam didn't even think when he replied, "Sure, I'll come too."
His breath quickened. Did he just say that? Never mind...
Lillian nodded at him, smiling. As they were both walking in, Cam was mentally swatting away a thought that kept coming whenever he saw her, or the flower that was placed in his chest pocket.
Maybe Cam couldn't move... He couldn't leave his shop not because of his flowers. They were fine; he knew that for a while when he checked on them. It was because he was waiting for her to get out of the typhoon too. Was it because in the back of his mind, he feared that something would happen to her in the storm as well?
A/N: I have the worst case of Writer's Block so I'm turning to Harvest Moon for some help... This will be a two-shot. I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! Please tell me how I did with a review. Thank you for reading :)