Disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon, it's Natsume's. If I did, there would probably be a crazy HM game out right now that was interactive and incorporated things like Eyetoy and DDR controllers (neither of which I own).

Words 'with italics and apostrophes at the ends are thoughts' and other words, are well, the rest : P

"Thanks! I promise I'll practice extra hard tomorrow!" A slender brunette rushed out the villa door, wincing slightly when it slammed shut. 'I'm gonna get chewed out for that when I get home. Oh well, I don't want to dwell on that now. I can't believe I got to skip piano today! Now, what will I do with my freedom?' The young woman turned her attention to the path in front of her, taking care not to fall. 'I think I'll head to the inn first. I ran out so quickly when Grandma told me the news I forgot to eat, and I need to stop at the restroom too.' A cool spring wind tore through the valley, whipping at her shoulder length locks. 'Uggh, now I'll probably have to fix my hair too. I better hurry, so I can get that stuff out of the way and then go out and enjoy my day.'

When she reached the edge of Forget-Me-Not, she realized that she'd never seen the town as it was waking up. Patrick and Kassey, the local pyromaniacs, had just entered their small workshop. Cody walked groggily out of his trailer, but he perked up when he saw her.

"Lumina! I've never seen you out this time of the morning!" The burly painter exclaimed, questions filling his face.

"I… um… got a day off today, so I'm just enjoying my mini vacation." She threw a polite smile his way before stating, "I need to go. I was going to stop at the inn for some breakfast."

"You could come here for breakfast! Well, don't be a stranger…" She heard him call behind her. 'Why does he creep me out so much? Being the only single girl in the Valley really sucks sometimes. Especially since all the single guys here are so creepy, except for…'

"Lumina!"

She looked to her right to find the owner of the voice. 'Gustafa, the creepy musician. ' A small sigh escaped Lumina's lips before she composed herself and began speaking. "Hello Gustafa. How's your newest song going?"

"It's great! I've finally found a new inspiration. This song is called 'I love you Lu…' An awkward silence filled the air when he saw the horrified expression in Lumina's honey colored eyes. He watched as she composed herself, but the depression had already settled over his heart.

"Oh. Um, sounds great!" Lumina said cheerily, with a noticeably forced smile. "I really need to get to the inn now. Bye!" Trying to hide her horror, she spun quickly on her heels. Too quickly. One of her feet hit a rock and she tumbled to the ground. Looking over, she could see both Cody and Gustafa coming towards her. "I'm okay!" She yelled, more harshly than necessary. Lumina jumped up and brushed off her now-wrinkled skirt, then sped towards the inn, ignoring Tim's greeting just outside the door.

Ruby, Tim's wife and co-owner of the inn, wasn't behind the desk, so Lumina assumed that she was in the kitchen. The heavenly smell of eggs and bacon confirmed her assumption. 'I had better let her know I'm here for breakfast.' She opened the wooden door, catching it just before it slammed back into her.

"Oh hey Lumina. Rock isn't in here. I don't even know if he's even up yet." Ruby turned back to her cooking, catching some warm toast just as it popped up.

"Oh… I…" Lumina blushed at Ruby's assumption that she was looking for Rock. "I just stopped by for breakfast, if that's ok. You can put it on the Villa's tab." Ruby just threw her a silent smile, confusing her even more. "Unless I can too late? I see you're already in the middle of cooking."

"Huh? Oh, no, it's not that. Of course you're welcome to breakfast. But I'm not charging you. You've been around here so much lately, it's almost like you're family." Ruby threw her a warm smile, before adding, "and I'll make sure Rock is up to eat breakfast with you"

"I… uh… ok? I need to go to the bathroom." Lumina blurted out nervously. She spun and headed across the lobby and through the bathroom door, slamming it behind her. 'My day of freedom has turned into a nightmare, and it's only beginning! Cody and Gustafa freaked me out with their… creepiness. Why did Nami have to leave Forget-Me-Not? Muffy got married to Jack, and Celia to that guy in Mineral Town. Why'd they all have to leave me to stand against all these guys? And the only one I love is Rock, and his mom knows. I thought I hid it so well. Wait, I love Rock?' The slender girl moaned and slid her back down the wall until she was sitting on the cold tile floor. She was completely unaware of a conversation upstairs between a certain young blonde man and his mother.

"Rock, wake up!" The woman with salt-and-pepper hair shook her son as she spoke.

"What?" His eyes opened to reveal annoyed brown eyes, his pupils growing smaller with the sudden light.

"Lumina is here for breakfast. She's been around a lot lately, but she isn't normally here this early. I think she's ready for you to tell her." Ruby's words were rushed, and it took a moment for them to register in Rock's mind.

"Huh? Lumina's here? Cool! Hold up. Tell her what?"

Ruby smiled at the mixture of emotions racing over the young man's face. "Tell her that you love her, you idiot. As if it isn't obvious."

'Is it that obvious?' Rock questioned himself. "What the heck?" He looked up at his mom. "I don't… wait, how do you know she's ready to hear it?" 'Dang it! How'd that slip out?'

"She came looking for you this morning." Ruby fidgeted slightly. She wasn't the type to lie. "Oh well, it's for good reason. Both of them have grown up in the last few years, but as much as I love my son, he needs to get married and get his own life, move out of the inn. And Lumina's the perfect girl. They are so in love!" She turned her attention back to her son. "Get up. I'd told her that you would be down for breakfast. Which reminds me, I better check the food before it burns. Good morning."

Rock stared after the woman who raised him, confusion written all over his face. 'I love Lumina? I guess I do… who wouldn't. But why'd I have to find out from my mom… eww. What am I gonna do now?'

Brown eyes stared at themselves as Lumina looked into the mirror. She had finally gotten off the cold floor, used the bathroom, and was just finishing washing her hands. Her thoughts continued as she turned off the water, the hot side first, then the cold. 'If only my thoughts could be turned off so easily. How did I go from what I thought was a simple crush to wanting to spend the rest of my life with Rock in a matter of minutes? Is it even real? I remember a few years ago I thought I wanted to marry Jack, when I asked him out he said I was too young and immature. That was cruel, even if it was true. I've matured a lot since then though, and I think this is true love. But can Rock love a 21-year old girl who still gets ordered around by her grandmother as if she's a child?'

A few minutes later, Lumina walked out the bathroom door towards the kitchen, finally having composed herself. 'Now all I have to do is hold it together through breakfast. Darn grandma and my polite upbringing. Any other girl would've canceled.' The first thing she noticed when she entered the kitchen was that there were only two place settings at the table, and that Rock was at one of them.

"Oh there you are! You're just in time. Sit, sit! Here's your food, if you want seconds it's all being kept warm on the stove. Now, I've got to go outside and check on the garden. See you later!" Ruby rushed outside, leaving the two young people alone.

Rock was the one to break the silence. "So… um… Lumina, you're here pretty early. I thought you had piano lessons?"

"I normally do, but for some reason grandma let me off today. It's a rare occurrence, so I'm going to try my best to enjoy my day of freedom." Lumina shot him a quick smile, trying hard to conceal her emotions.

'Why does she look so nervous?' Rock thought. "Why'd she let you off? Is she feeling ok?" His face showed genuine concern.

'I hadn't thought of that.' A trouble look crossed the young woman's face, but quickly passed. "I'm sure she's ok. I think that maybe she's just realizing that I've grown up some. At least I hope that's it. I hope nothing's wrong with her. Her leg might be bothering her. I've got to get home." Lumina started to rise from the table, but stopped when she felt something over her hand. She looked down to see a different hand, but made herself stop thinking about it as she focused on the hand-owner's words.

"Lum, I didn't mean to scare you. I'm sure she's ok. She let you go, didn't she? And she's got Sebastian if she needs anything. Romana is fine. Sit down and eat with me, please?" Lumina seemed to calm down slightly at his words and sat down, but he noticed that she was seemingly interested in the table. Only then he realized she was staring at his hand covering hers. He quickly jerked it away.

"No!" Brown eyes met a pair of matching brown eyes. "I mean… it's ok…" Lumina looked away, blushing furiously. 'Too bad I left the city when I was so young, otherwise I would know how to handle this.'

"Lumina." His voice was a little deeper, and she returned her gaze to his.

"Rock," she whispered. "I…" her words were cut off by a kiss. A sweet, simple, wonderful kiss from the one she loved.

"I love you Lumina."

So, this is my first fanfic. Well not exactly, I have another but it's co-authored. Anyway, please review, and if I get enough (good) reviews, I might even write a sequel! I have some ideas for a sequel, about the ups and downs of the relationship and where it ultimately leads them, but we'll see.

-Royal-