Hello. This kind of came to me in my exam stress but I waited until after to write it and well... completly forgot how it went along with all of the information I was temporarily stockpiling in my brain.
Anyway I wrote this as best I remembered... but it's not quite what I originally had in mind. Ah well, such is life.
Disclaimer: I don't own harvest moon
She slogged wearily into the house, the animal dealer watched as her steps faltered and she tumbled slightly to the left before catching herself, and gave him a week smile. "I brought you some milk." She said and handed him the cool metal tin. It was a jerky motion, as if her body was on auto-pilot and the liquid inside sloshed back and forth against the container's side harmonically. He bit his bottom lip in worry, she looked exhausted, her usual bright blue eyes were glazed and hooded by dropping eyelids. A couple of leaves sprung out from her head, deeply tangled in her hair.
"Thanks." He said. "Uh, how's the farm?"
"It's good." She grinned, or at least attempted to but the smile didn't reach her tired eyes and she wiped some flecks of dirt off her overalls. The action was to no avail, the clothes at this point were practically were made of dried mud as much so as thread. As always he sighed and handed her a plate of food with the hopes that it would ensure she wouldn't collapse on the way home or wherever she always stumbled off to after her visits.
She smiled, "Thanks Neil, you have no idea how much these help me."
He blushed and scratched the back of his neck, "Yeah, sure no problem, just eat that and cheer up."
They exchanged a few causal words and he sighed, "You should probably get home and sleep, you look like the living dead."
She shook her head, "As appealing as that sounds, I just need a StayAwake and I'll be good as new. Actually I was planning on clearing the trees on the eastern part of my farm."
Alarm bells rang through his head, "Oh no you aren't! In your condition your going to either end up unconscious again or crushed under a tree." He growled, "You're going home, taking a shower and heading to bed even if I have to force you!"
She giggled, "Force me into the shower? Who knew you were so bold."
His face flushed, "Ah. That's not what I-"
She interrupted, "Yeah I get it doctor. I'll be good. See you tomorrow."
They nodded their goodbyes and she walked out with just a little more spring in her step. That was the extent of their relationship, always the same, she'd be in and out in five minutes. Not that he found it strange, he had been shocked when she confessed to him a month earlier and even more surprised that he agreed to try out dating. He had never really dated before and left it up to her to decide the extent of their relationship. More so than anything, he was relieved that she didn't seem to be expecting too much out of him.
It was only while he was in the city that he began to notice things.
He had just finished all of his little administrative duties and was ready to head home. He walked briskly through the busy streets, jamming his hands in his pockets to somehow minimize the space he occupied and weave through the sidewalk's hustle and bustle when a couple passed him hand in hand. He had actually never held Rio's hand before he suddenly realized. He withdrew a hand from his pocket and looked at it curiously opening and closing his fingers. He shook his head and chastised himself for the seemingly random thought.
Though that random thought made him more observant to even more anomalies. He passed a café and saw a boy and girl, probably only highschool students, sharing a parfait, "wanna catch a movie after this?" Asked the boy. "Can't," Said the girl sadly, "Pay day's next week."
He pat her head with a smile, "My treat then." The girl giggled and leaned her head into his hand which had slid to cup her cheek, "You spoil me." She said softly, voice tinged with affection.
Was he supposed to be asking Rio to do things? Was she expecting him to be more romantic or whatever that was? He shook his head, they were adults, he didn't need to take relationship tips from a couple brats. Neil bit his cheek, the sun had already begun to set, dropping below skyscraper height but leaving blinding golden reflections on all of the street's windows. He wouldn't be home until long after his girlfriend was home and asleep.
Knowing that, he stopped by the convenience store to grab a carton of milk, after all, she had gotten him used to drinking it every day. He managed to nab the last carton lined up in the stores open fridge and was heading to the dead eyed cashier when a magazine caught his attention. Some young person's magazine targeted at men promising the perfect workout regimen and celebrity interviews but that wasn't what caught his eye, a small yellow box in the corner wrote How into you is she? Pg.10.
After much deliberation he bought it too.
It was a long bus ride home so he took a swig of his carton, noticing with distaste that it wasn't nearly at the quality of Rio's farm, and slowly pulled out the magazine. His scarlet eyes quickly skimmed the bus in embarrassment, he wouldn't be caught dead trying out one of these tests.
Luckily the bus was pretty empty, the only other passengers sitting at angles that didn't face him.
Question 1: How excited is she to see you?
Err-not that excited. Or at least it didn't seem so but by 7 she was always inanimate from a day of working the fields and building amenities and buildings for the town. He never really thought he was the problem but such a complicated answer was not available in the choices.
2- How many hours a week do you spend together?
Five minutes a day, seven days a week, a total 35 minutes a week. So that would fall under less than an hour.
3- How often do she kiss you?
His face turned red just at the thought. Never, they had never done something like that.
The questions continued and he tallied his score and flipped to the corresponding page,
You are…. Acquaintances. Pretty pathetic dude, are you sure you're really dating?
A dark cloud hung over the animal dealer and he shoved the magazine back in his suitcase. What a waste of time.
The next day like always Rio handed him his milk. A line of dust lay atop her cheek bone so he leaned forward and brushed his thumb over it revealing the smooth skin underneath. She watched him blankly and annoyance quickly weld up inside him. Shouldn't she have some sort of response to such an intimate action?
She had already turned around to head back out the door when he finally asked, "Do you even like me?" Perhaps the magazine quiz bothered him more than he'd like to admit.
Rio met his eyes with some surprise. He waited, but the silence was his answer. Of course not, what did he expect? He had thought it was weird she'd choose him. He was well aware that she could easily pickup any guy in the village she was the town's hero after all. Everyone admired and respected her. Rod had always been trying to get her out to picnics and even Allen seemed to have some sort of soft spot for her. Why did she even bother with him in the first place? At first, no matter how hard he tried he could only ever be a complete jerk to her. Even while dating, he sometimes said the wrong things and even almost made her cry at the last crop festival.
He sighed regretfully, "Maybe we should just-"
With a sudden burst of energy she grabbed his forearms, "Of course I do!" His eyes widened in astonishment, her expression was nothing short of pleading, "Am I doing something wrong? I know you said you'd leave the relationship stuff to me but I don't really know what I'm supposed do either- You're the first person who's ever made my heart skip a beat before." She admitted with a blush. "Wow that's embarrassing to say…"
Her smile turned sad, "Of course, if you don't like me I get it… I know I always prioritize work and don't really have time to be feminine. I'm just really happy you gave someone like me a chance."
He had been worrying about these things alone the whole time, only to find out that she also felt the same insecurities. Maybe he was laying too much expectations on her. It was his turn to step it up. "Want to stay for dinner? Um, if you want to." He found himself asking.
She looked at him for a moment and broke out in a smile, "Sure!" Then she looked down at her tattered and dirty overalls suddenly self-conscious. "Would it be alright if I got changed first?- I'll track filth everywhere."
Neil nodded gratefully.
It was a good forty-five minutes later though when the rancher returned. He had been getting irritated and had the slight suspicion she might have forgotten him to go fishing or mining or sleep- but then the door opened with the familiar squeak that he just hadn't the time to fix.
Rather than walk in as usual, Rio peeked her head through the doorway hugging the frame with an inexplicable meekness. Her head tilted to peek in further and a few locks of her pale blond hair freed themselves from behind her ear to pour over her shoulder. The entire action being unusually… cute for the farmer.
"I've been waiting." Said Neil with some residual anger from the notion of being abandoned. "Just come in already I'm starving."
Rios face turned redder than the tomatos growing in her fields in an instant. "I'm sorry!" She blurted. Her eyes flickered to the indoors and back to him. Her body trembled twice.
In exasperation he made a step towards her and she clutched the wood tighter. "What the heck is going on with you?" He asked seeing as she obviously wasn't about to respond he marched over to her and her eyes grew three sizes in wild panic yet her body remained ridged stiff unable to pry herself from her current position. Just as she gained the awareness to turn tail and flee he had reached her and caught her wrist. With a single tug she was forced fully into sight.
Neil was not prepared for was he saw. "Y-you're wearin' a skirt." Was all he could manage.
"It's not like I've been waiting for an opportunity to wear it or anything!" She blurted, "It's just everything else I own is covered in grass stains! Yuri had practically forced me into buying it…"
He wasn't listening as he was trapped in a momentary state of paralysis. For the first time she wasn't covered head to toe in mud, dirt, dust and whatever other bits of filth she picked up around the farm that he'd rather not think about. Unlike her overalls the clothes she wore now were fitted to her form perfectly and her long legs were clearly displayed. He would have expected them to be covered in blemishes, bug bites and scabs- not that he ever pictured them- but rather, all he saw was perfectly toned muscles and skin with the smooth consistency of porcelain.
Said legs shifted together nervously under the pressure of his gaze and he broke out of his trance, "Ah, how do I say it? You look cute- or, I-" Embarrassed by his, well, embarrassment he decided to just shut up and hand out the compliment.
"Thanks." She said quietly. "What are you making?"
"What?" He asked dumbly.
"For dinner." She added.
He let a hand run through his hair and watched the bangs fall back over his forehead, "I thought I'd ask you so I hadn't started anything."
She wandered comfortably over to the fridge and peered inside. With an expert's eye she pulled out various ingredients. Her nose crunched in distaste and certain items including the eggs which she had examined closely before sighing and putting back. He was wondering what she was doing before remembering that she was the advanced cooking class champion at the last festival, of course she was selective with her ingredients.
"Everything is pretty low quality" she admitted with disappointment. "There's no helping it." She sighed and returned to the dining table where she had left her bag. She riffled through it for a moment before procuring a bag of shrimp.
"You're just carrying that around?" He asked in disbelief.
"I've been breeding them in one of my fish sheds-Top quality I assure you- and I was going to ship them after visiting you but got distracted." She returned to the fridge, "If we combine it with these tomato's and chilli peppers we can make a moderately-acceptable shrimp chili."
"That's my-" he started.
"Favorite?" She finished with a grin, "I know, I'd been bugging Rod to find out for a while, I wanted to surprise you." She sighed, "I had asked Hana to get the recipe in but she dropped it in the river. Don't ask me how- I had to fish for it for days."
Neil looked at her in disbelief, "You did all of that for me? Why?"
"Because I lo- really like you!" She said cheerfully with a small stumble. He had caught it though, she loved him? That didn't freak him out nearly as much as he thought it would, in fact, he kind of liked it. He tried to keep his face neutral as he never had and never would allow himself to make a silly grin. He didn't notice his efforts made him look like he was scowling though.
"Well, we're both here." He said, "Might as well cook together, it'll be done faster." Rio frowned but began to prepare the shrimp after giving him one last expectant glance. He realized a moment later that she just confessed her feelings and he sounded as if he were just batting them away. He didn't even smile. It was too late now wasn't it?
He almost dropped the knife he had begun to use on the tomatos when he then realized that off course she would have wanted him to respond with some sort of confirmation, less than an hour ago he tried to break up with her. Mother of the Harvest Goddess, he was an idiot.
The meal had been finished and they sat awkwardly at opposite ends of the dining table both too lost in their own thoughts. She tentatively took a spoonful tasted it and looked up thoughtfully, "three stars. The other ingredients dragged down the star rank."
He also tried it and couldn't see what she was talking about. He hadn't had his favorite dish in a while, which might have been a contributing factor, but he had thought it was probably the best thing he had ever eaten.
They finished their bowls, using eating as an excuse for their silence. Neil leaned back in his chair, "Man, that was good." He said absent mindedly.
"Next time I'll make it even better." She told him, "I've got plenty of tomatos at home. Er- there is a next time right?"
He sat back up and looked at his girlfriend in confusion, she folded her hands together and bit her lips. Her eyes would not leave the dirty dish in front of her.
"What do you mean?" He asked.
She stayed silent but he didn't ponder over her words long, he was too focused on what he should do next. He had exhausted all he knew about dating . Why did relationships have to be so complicated? They retired to his old but comfortably over-cushioned couch.
Couples seemed to generally talk to each other, yet he never really seemed to have full demand of her time so it was to first time he actually had her sitting next to him with her undivided attention. Yet he was completely pulling a blank on what to talk about and there seemed to be a tense atmosphere surrounding them. Rio looked more and more nervous as he deliberated.
He could always start with the weather- but then she'd think he was boring.
Finally after what felt like eons but was only actually a couple minutes Rio finally blurted angrily, "AH OUT WITH IT ALREADY!"
"Nice weather we're having." He said in a higher pitch than usual. She blinked at him. Then again and burst out laughing.
"That was all you had to say?" She gasped between giggles.
"What?" He asked defensively, a blush creeping up his face.
"I thought you were trying to break up with me this whole time!" She wiped a tear from her eye that could have been from anything.
"Why would I do that?" He asked.
"Because you've been quiet and moody this whole time!" She said in exasperation, "You completely avoided me when I said I liked you and we've been sitting here these past couple minutes while you looked like you had something super important and difficult to say to me." She laughed again, "Nice weather we're having!"
He couldn't help but laugh too at the ridiculousness of the whole night.
"Sorry… I just thought that maybe we were unusual because we only ever see each other five minutes a day. Then we don't really do 'couple stuff'. Plus I just couldn't see why someone as perfect as you would like a guys like me." He said and then replayed that last part in his head, "Gah! That sounded sappy! Forget I said that!"
She leaned on his shoulder somberly. "When I first met you I thought you were just grumpy. Of course I never really looked at guys. Then every so often you'd make a different expression and my heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest and I felt light headed."
He tried to lean out to see her face but she held on to him stubbornly to hide her embarrassment. "Then when we started dating you'd sometimes say the sweetest things and it made me fall even more. Of course then something like this happens." She buried her face even further into his shirt. She spoke in a muffled voice that took his brain a minute to translate what she then said, "I love you."
He held her tight, arms suddenly around her waist protectively, "I love you too… I hope you heard that 'cause I'm not repeating it!"
She pulled out and smiled brightly. "I did." She said and began to tear up which she wiped away frantically. "Hehe, how embarrassing I don't cry this easily, I promise. *sniff* I don't know what's wrong with me."
Her lips wobbled slightly but still managed to look alluring. He felt the sudden urge to kiss her but was too awkward to think of an excuse to.
She stopped sniffing for a moment, "Is there something on my face?"
He shook his head and then cursed himself. He could have said 'yeah, I'll get it.' And then kissed her, it would have been smooth. He had already missed the opportunity to spontaneously kiss her after confessing like they did it in the movies too. Neither thing really sounded like him anyway.
He finally went with the brutally honest. "Can I kiss you?" He asked.
She giggled, "We're dating, you don't have to ask. In fact, now I feel kinda flustered."
He placed a hand on the small of her back and pulled her forward, painfully aware of the closing distance between them. Lips slowly fit together like two puzzle pieces. They found themselves strangely knowing what to do despite being new to kissing. She wrapped her arms over his shoulders and around his neck. His own hands reached up subconsciously to cradle the back of her head and his fingers entwined together through her hair.
They pulled apart slightly. "Your lips taste like shrimp chili." She giggled. "So do yours," He said slowly, "I love shrimp chili" and he crashed his lips onto hers once more.
From that day on-wards neither ever questioned the other's feelings again. They simply didn't need to.