Author's note: Well, hi!
This short fic was written for both me and the readers to better understand Cheryl. I hope I did her justice.
Well, hope you enjoy it!
P.S. The fic was named after the song that was used as major inspiration as I was writing. It's a song by Two Door Cinema Club.
What You Know
Ever since Cheryl could remember, she'd idolised her big brother. In fact, she couldn't remember a time where she wasn't looking up to him, or adoring him.
Her mother had said once that she'd followed him around since she could walk. That was probably true, though she'd never really given it much thought. He was her brother and she loved him. Besides, it wasn't as if there was anyone else in town her own age. Her entire life, she'd been the youngest member of Bluebell – and, of course, Konohana had always been out of the question – so that was probably why she'd gotten so attached to him. She knew she'd have been very lonely, otherwise.
Plus, there was the matter of her mother, Jessica. She couldn't remember a time when that woman had played with her. She was always way too busy with running the family business.
As for her father, she could barely remember him. All she did know was that, once he'd left, her mother had been left to run the business by herself. That was probably why she never had time for her only daughter.
Ash, however, had always been there for her, right from the start. No matter what she did, or what she said, he'd rush to meet her needs in a heartbeat. She could always count on him for the smallest things, no matter what. If she wanted him to play with her, he would. If she wanted him to cook for her, he would. He could never say 'no' to her and she adored him for it.
When he'd started getting close to the girls in town, though, she'd felt an icy cold bucket of despair fall into her stomach. If those girls took her brother away, she'd be alone. All alone. There'd be no one else in town who'd play with her anymore. Her mother was always too busy and there was no one her own age. Immediately, the cold bucket had been replaced by a blazing fire. She wouldn't allow them to take him away. Never.
Laney had been easy to scare away. A single bug – was it a locust she'd chosen? – placed on her shoulder. The girl had run away screaming instantly. Georgia had been much more difficult, since the girl actually liked insects. Instead, she'd resorted to gathering a bucket full of them and dumping them on her when Ash hadn't been looking. Even the critter-lover hadn't been able to take that many bugs at once. Neither girl spent much time around Ash anymore, much to her delight.
She sometimes wondered if the new girl, Lillian, had any interest in him. She often saw the two of them talking and hanging out, and the icy bucket of despair would return. However, Lillian would then answer her requests for bugs to put on any out-of-town girls that stopped by to talk to Ash, so she began to wonder if there really was any chance of her stealing him away from her. She'd have to keep an eye on her.
As she watched the latest in a long line of girls who'd spoken to Ash run away in fear – a cricket sitting on her shoulder - she scowled. She wasn't about to let herself end up alone. Never. She'd never admit it, especially to Ash, but the thought terrified her more than she could put into words...
Ash turned back around from the request board. "Sorry about that," he said. "I... Huh?" He looked around, but the girl was gone. Instead, he saw his little sister, who was looking off into the distance. "Cheryl?"
She turned to him with a bright smile. "Hi, Ash!" she replied.
"Where'd that girl go?"
"Oh, she had to leave. Oh well!" She walked away.
Ash stared after her for a while, then looked where she'd been looking not long before. He heaved a sigh, feeling his mood drop quite rapidly.
Why did this always happen? He'd meet a girl, they'd talk, then, the moment he'd turn his back, she'd be gone. Was it something he'd done? Was it something he'd said? Why did they always leave?
Back when he'd first begun talking to Laney and Georgia, the same thing had happened. Even the two girls he shared a town with couldn't stand the sight of him. Why? What had he done? He'd happily do his best to fix it, if only he knew what it was.
He sometimes wondered why Lillian hadn't abandoned him yet. Had she not seen in him what the others had seen? Either way, it was causing him to develop feelings for her. This would probably make it all the more painful when she eventually did grow tired of him.
He didn't want to make people worry about him, though. He certainly couldn't afford to be sad in front of Cheryl. The girl was such a perky ball of sunshine that he'd hate to be the raincloud floating above her.
He honestly didn't find it fair to her that she was the youngest person in Bluebell. For many years, he'd wished that she'd find a friend, but no such thing had ever happened. As a result, he'd dedicated himself to making her happy.
He did have a secret desire, though. He very much wanted someone to spend his life with. Maybe even start a family with. A mother and sister was lovely, but what he craved was love. However, he really didn't see how that was ever going to happen, at this rate...
Lillian observed Ash from her safe distance. She knew he couldn't see her, but she'd seen everything. She knew what Cheryl liked to do and, heck, sometimes, she even helped her. That cricket on the girl's shoulder had likely been the one Cheryl had asked for a week ago.
She felt guilty – of course she did – but she could never refuse a request. It boosted her profits and her relationship with the villagers, but did Ash really deserve this?
She knew his situation. Howard's diary had told her all she needed to know. She really shouldn't have read it, but it had been right there, open upside-down on his bed. She imagined that Howard had wanted her to read it, anyway. The smile he'd given her when she'd spotted it was one of close-kept secrets, before he'd gone back downstairs.
The only thing she didn't know was why. Why was Cheryl's love for her brother so strong that she'd be willing to keep him single for the rest of his life? She'd invented a few theories, but wasn't really sure which one was the right one.
She felt really sorry for him. So much so that she'd made sure to spend a lot of time with him, occasionally bringing him hot milk and asking him on days out. It helped her feel like she was giving him a least a little bit of happiness.
Maybe part of the reason she continued to do Cheryl's requests was to keep her from thinking that she was trying to steal Ash away from her. She did like Cheryl, after all, and wanted to be her friend. However, she'd be lying if she said she hadn't thought about it a few times. Did she really want to date him out of pity, though? Wasn't that crueller than leaving him to find someone who could give him actual love?
It had now been several seasons since she'd first met him and she'd mulled this question over many times in her head. Then, one day, something had clicked. She wasn't sure what it had been, or when it had happened, but she came to realise that the pity had melted away. She'd developed genuine feelings for Ash.
She gave the tiniest of smiles as Ash straightened up and walked back to his farm. She'd love to be the one to fix everything. She really would. She'd chosen Bluebell in the spur of the moment, thinking that raising animals might be fun, but it was rather nice to think that she could do more with the choice. Maybe she could give Ash the girlfriend he was being denied and show Cheryl that love wasn't such a bad thing after all. It was a tall order, but she could certainly try.
She turned and walked back to where her horse and cart awaited her. She had a day of chores ahead, so she'd best get started. Maybe later, she could bring Ash a cup of hot milk and they could have a chat. That'd be nice...
The End