She Is Love
"All the boys in Mineral Town call her love, love, love. I never believed them. At least, not until now. Now that I can finally call her mine." Claire/Gray. One-shot. Written in Gray's POV.
By Adaelie
Author's Note: Hey, guys! This is Adaelie. Yeah, I lied. I'm not sure as of what I should really write about. And I'm not sure I can dedicate myself to writing other than one-shots. But, hey, I hope you like it. It's a song fic, if you were wondering. The song is "She Is Love" by Parachute. I do not own Harvest Moon, or any of the characters incorporated into the story, and I do not own the lyrics, as they belong to Parachute.
"I've
been beaten down, I've been kicked around,
But she takes it all
for me.
And I lost my faith, in my darkest days,
But she makes
me want to believe."
"What's wrong with you?" I screamed at Saibara, in other words… my grandfather. "It's not my fault that you can make something as simple as a locket! Honestly, after all the years I've had you working on these sorts of things!" He shouted back, and my fingers curled into a fist. I just wanted to hit him. Maybe that was a little harsh… no! That wasn't even close to harsh! He- He was a horrible old man with not even the slightest eye for talent. "It's not my fault that you're a cranky old man with nothing better to do other than scream at me!" I shouted back, picking up the locket into my hand and grabbing my coat. "Where are you going?!" He shouted furiously, though I didn't answer. I just walked out and slammed the door behind me. That should be answer enough. A blonde girl fell backwards, onto the ground. "Watch where you're going," I said. It was obvious my patience had already been worn thin.
"What's wrong?" She asked, getting off the ground. My face was contorted into a look of disgust and anguish. "It's nothing." I responded in a rather gruff tone. "I'm sure it's not just nothing." She said, glancing at my clenched fist. "What's in there?" She asked, smiling at me. She was just a ball of sunshine wasn't she? I reluctantly opened my hand, revealing the silver locket that Saibara had deemed inadequate. "That's pretty," She murmured, eyes staring intently at it. "Do you want it?" I said, a bit confused. Since when did anyone ever want anything that I made? "Sure!" She chirped, holding out her hands. I dropped it into hers, folding her fingers over it. "Thanks! Can you put it on for me?" I nodded slowly. She lifted her blonde hair. I pushed in the clasp, and then let it hold onto a silver link. It fell around her, and she asked. "What's your name?" "Gray," I said. "Claire," She chirped. "I'll see you around, Gray!" Yeah, whatever.
"They
call her love, love, love, love, love.
They call her love, love,
love, love, love.
She is Love and she's all I need.
She's all I
need."
"Hey Gray!" Claire said merrily, skipping into the store with another meal. She had made a bit of a habit of coming in at lunch and making food for all three of us. Of course, Gramps always insisted on me working before I eat. But then Claire would find a way to excuse me from working so that I could eat. I waved at her though, putting down my hammer and stepping away from the forge. "Hi Saibara!" She said, waving at my grandpa as well. "Hello Claire!" He said, chuckling a little. Gramps had been bothering me about if I liked Claire. If I even loved her. I always answered with a no. I mean really! She had only been here for a few seasons. I had no right to love her. I really didn't. She had been poking around in the dirt a majority of the time anyway.
Even if I loved her, whom I don't, I doubted she'd love me back. I mean seriously, what chance did I have? After all, all the other guys loved her (and trust me, they fell HARD), they called her love, love, love. Or at least, they just called her love. But Rick, Kai, and… even Cliff admitted to liking her. Liking, as in love. It was sad to know that they all fell for her so quickly. I even asked them if they even knew what her favorite things were. They all answered incorrectly; of course they asked how I knew. I told them that she told me everything, and they all seethed with jealousy.
Either way, she always made my days a bit more bearable. I had to admit. "Gray? Hello?!" She shouted, waving her hand in my face. I let a small smile come onto my face, glancing at her quietly. "Yeah?" I answered. "Nothing, I was just wondering why you were staring off into space." She said happily. "Saibara, come on down! The food's getting cold!" She said; smiling as Gramps made his way down to the floor. It was hard not to make her happy, it seriously was. I loved seeing her smile. Though, it hurt a lot when she wouldn't look at me. It hurt when she looked at other people. Thump-a-thump. My heart went, and I looked at her nervously as she smiled at Gramps, then at me. I never wanted her to smile at anyone, anyone other than me. I think I love her.
"Well
I had my ways, they were all in vain,
But she waited
patiently.
It was all the same, all my pride and shame,
And
she put me on my feet."
It was about to be the Starry Festival. I wanted to go with Claire. Not for a romantic thing, no… just because I really wanted to hang out with her that night. And the idea of her being with anyone else besides me on the night made me feel like my heart was being squeezed in a vise. "G- Gray?" A sheepish voice asked, and I turned to look. "Hey Mary…" I said, staring at the coal haired beauty before me. I used to adore her… I used to love her with all of my heart. But after Claire came, both Mary and I began to drift apart. But I still found her to be beautiful, in every way. "W- Would you like t- to come w- with me to the Starry Festival?" She blurted out, staring down at her fingers nervously. I raised an eyebrow. Mary seemed sincere, I turned my head towards the road as Claire tapped along the walk way. She had several ores in her hands. I was pretty sure that she was going to hand it to Saibara. A pretty girl like Claire probably had a date by now.
"Sure," I said, kissing Mary on the forehead. She looked like she was about to cry tears of joy. The ores fell to the ground with a clatter. Mary walked away, happy as can be. I turned back to the fragile, blonde farmer silently. "It's okay, Gray." She finally said after a moment of silence, trying to hold back the tears that so desperately wanted to fall from her eyes. "I'll wait," She said, and I stared at her confused. "I'll wait for you, Gray." Claire said again, touching my face with her small hands. She looked at me crestfallen, leaving the ores on the ground and leaving for her farm. I watched as she left, every sway of her hips, the way her hair bounced off her shoulders. I wanted to run after her and scream my heart out. But I didn't, instead I simply turned towards the Blacksmith's before disappearing into my work again.
"They
call her love, love, love, love, love.
They call her love, love,
love, love, love.
They call her love, love, love, love, love.
She
is love, and she is all I need."
I watched as numerous bachelors of Mineral Town approached her. Kai had even decided to stick around through the winter for her. And trust me that was saying something about her. Claire had such ways to make you feel like you were on top of the world and nothing could ever bring you down. That explained why everyone loved her, even the other women in the town couldn't bring themselves to hate her. Not even Mary, though she took me away from the librarian. "G- Gray…?" She said, looking up at me sadly. "Yeah?" I answered, looking at her quietly. "You can go see Claire if you want…" She said, miraculously without a stutter. I bit my lower lip and looked at her quietly. "Are you sure, Mary..?" I began, and she nodded smiling. "I just want you to be happy. I see the way that she changed you. She made you so much happier. I just want you… to have what you think is best." Mary said finally, trying not to cry.
"Thank you Mary." I said, holding her face in my hand, before I kissed her on the forehead. I felt bad for deserting her like that. I really did, but Claire… was what was important to me now. I finally realized what I felt about her. I loved that stubborn, beautiful, lying, forgiving, stunning woman. I loved her; I loved her so much that it made my heart want to burst. I couldn't help but think that it was impossible. I thought that it was impossible that one woman could make even me, the cold hearted blacksmith, become the sentimental fool I was today. I loved her. I loved her so much.
"And
when that world slows down, dear.
And when those stars burn out,
here.
Oh she'll be here, yes she'll be here,
They call her
love, love, love, love, love."
The world seemed to slow down around me as I approached the fair-haired woman. "Hey Claire," I said, nearly choking once I said those words. She turned her head towards me, smiling. "Come sit down." She said, beckoning me to sit aside her on the gentle, rolling hilltops that the other couples sat on. "Why aren't you with Mary?" She asked, as I sat down. She stared at me with those beautiful blue eyes. "She wanted me… to talk to you." I said, feeling almost suffocated. "You plan on sticking around for a while?" I managed to say. "I told you Gray." She answered, leaning back on her hands to look better at the stars. "I was going to wait for you." I couldn't help but feel that she was getting closer to me for some reason.
"W- Why?" I stammered, watching as she looked back at me longingly. "Because I love you." My breath hitched in my throat, making it near to impossible to breathe. "W- What?" I stuttered, looking at her as she leaned in. I leaned in as well, though subliminally. I caught her lips in mine, and we held the kiss for a moment or so before breaking away to breathe. I felt like I was on a bubble of tingly… tingliness. "See those stars?" She said, pointing at the midnight black sky, as the stars shined back at the beauty from above. "I'll love you. Every day until all the stars in the sky burn out." I kissed her again, wrapping my arms around her. I wanted to hold her forever. Never wanting, never wanting to let her go.
"They
call her love, love, love, love, love.
They call her love, love,
love, love, love.
She is love, and she is all I need,
She is
love, and she is all I need,
She is love, and she is all I need."
All the boys in Mineral Town call her love, love, love, love. I never believed them. At least, not until now. Now that I could call her mine. She promised to be with me forever. I did the same. But, looking back now… The day I met Claire… must have been the day my life really first began.
