Game of Love—Cliff's Purple Heart Event
by taitofan
Rated PG-13 for yaoi
Disclaimer: Since Jack couldn't marry guys and Claire couldn't marry girls, it's safe to assume that I don't own the Harvest Moon: Mineral Town games.
Author's Note: This takes place between Won's Second Heart Event and Rick's Purple Heart Event. In case you were wondering. I know this event is hard to see before the Wine Harvest, but it is possible, so here it is. And… Sorry if it seems like I'm bashing Ann. I'll admit that she's among my least favorite characters, but I'm trying to be nice. She is Jack's rival though… Don't worry; I won't make her into a villain or anything. I was also worried about the pacing of the story… But then I remembered that I had Cliff up to a red heart before the fall and decided that pacing was fine. Heh, don't worry; some conflict will come eventually. And am I screwing with the Rival Heart Events? You'd better believe it.
Flames do nothing but make me laugh, although I'll listen to any CC you have. Please read, review, and enjoy! Finished 10-09-06
Jack liked the rain, really he did. But he liked it when he was inside and warm, not when it began pouring when he was on the way to the church. It had been two weeks since he'd first met Cliff, and he'd visited him everyday since. And dreamed about him every night, but no one needed to know that. The point was, he was going to the church rain or not, though not would certainly have been more pleasant.
In the short time they'd known each other, Cliff had started talking to him more, but he was still shy. Not nearly as bad as the first day, but he hadn't completely opened up yet. He was very reluctant to talk about his past. But he seemed to love talking about Jack and the farm. One day they spent an entire afternoon discussing fishing, which Jack had found a lot harder than he'd originally thought. He'd even gotten Cliff to laugh when he'd admitted to falling in the river once when his line had gotten tangled in between two big rocks. It wasn't that Jack minded talking about himself as long as Cliff showed an interest, but he still wished he knew more about the other man…
'Ah, finally, the church! And right at four, perfect. Stupid rain can't stop me…'
He quickly pushed the door open and stepped inside, hoping that it wouldn't take too long to get dry. His concerns about his clothes were cut short though, as he was met with a rather unusual sight. Instead of Cliff sitting in the front pew and Carter at the altar or in the confessional, they were both standing in the aisle, almost as if they'd been waiting for him… But that was just silly, right?
"Oh, hello Jack. How are you?" Jack opened his mouth to answer, but Carter continued on without waiting for an answer. "Cliff and I are having dinner together this evening. Would you care to join is?" Cliff's cheeks were tinted pink as Carter discreetly nudged him.
"Yes, please join us if you have the time!" Jack found it a bit odd that Cliff would ask, seeing as he came by this time every day, but he didn't dwell on it. Dinner with Cliff? Hell yes!
"Sure, I'd love to!" Cliff looked downright excited, to Jack's confusion and Carter's amusement.
"Our first time having dinner together, wonderful…" Jack's eyes widened at that. Cliff thought it was wonderful? Really? "Oh, ah, I mean—!" And judging by that reaction, he hadn't actually meant to say that aloud.
"Well, Ann will be over soon with the food, so would you two mind cleaning up? If you need me, I'll be in the confessional." And before either of them could argue, he was gone.
"What? Carter…? But we're the only ones here!" He muttered something that sounded suspiciously like 'That wasn't in the plan,' before turning to Jack. "It's okay, I'll handle this, so don't worry about it."
He was all alone with Cliff and had the chance to work with him. Was he honestly going to look like a lazy jerk and let the other man do all of the work himself? Yeah right. Especially not when Ann could be coming at anytime. Her father ran the inn that Cliff stayed at, and if Jack had any competition for his affections, the redhead was it. He knew she had already talked to Cliff, since the shy man had told him about her visit to his room a few nights before. Luckily for Jack, Cliff hadn't talked much with her. But still, she was obviously interested in the mysterious, handsome man living above her… Oh no, he was staying right there.
"Don't be ridiculous, I'll help you! I work in the kitchen most of the day anyways. This'll be nothing." Cliff smiled gratefully, a look that Jack decided he'd kill to see more often.
"Thanks! Let's get to it then."
Sure enough, Ann came in shortly after they began…
"Oh, hi there Cliff! What are you doing?" Jack didn't care that he was being ignored. He wasn't very fond of the young woman anyways. She was his rival after all, whether she realized it or not.
"…I'm cleaning with Jack…" He mumbled towards the floor. Ann put down the food on the front pew where Cliff usually sat and walked up to him, smiling sweetly.
"Oh, so you are. Well… Hey, I have a great idea! I've noticed that you only ever visit the church, so how about tomorrow I show you around town? That sounds fun, doesn't it?" Cliff bit his lip as he continued cleaning, refusing to look up and meet her hopeful gaze.
"I… I'm sorry Ann, but… Um… Jack already offered to do that actually." Now, it was obviously a lie, and if anyone else had said it, Ann wouldn't have believed them. But this was Cliff, and he was just being shy, right? She pouted but nodded, and Jack was mentally cheering. Jack: 1, Ann: 0.
"Oh, okay. Maybe some other time…" Cliff mumbled something that neither Ann nor Jack could understand—Ann hoped it was a "yes, of course," and Jack hoped it was a "hell no"—not once stopping his task. Ann sighed and turned around to leave, but not until she sent a heated glare at Jack. It seemed she realized that they were rivals after all… Good, because he had a feeling that he could actually win this one.
Once she was gone, Cliff finally paused and sent Jack a hesitant look.
"I just didn't know what to say… You don't have to—"
"I'd love to," Jack interrupted. "If you want to of course. I mean, I'm still not completely familiar with the town, but I know where almost everything is. And if you don't want to meet anyone, we could always just walk around…" Jack had Cliff's full attention at this point. And yet again, Cliff's face had taken on that red tint Jack was so used to. And he finally was beginning to understand exactly what it meant.
"Jack… It sounds like you're asking me on a date… While we're in a church…" Jack shrugged, though he wasn't feeling nearly as nonchalant as he looked. Actually, he was a nervous wreck. What he was about to ask would give him all the answers he needed…
"Well, you don't have to think of it as a date if you don't want to. But if you do, I certainly wouldn't mind. We could even eat dinner together afterwards, either at the inn or at the farm. You'd have to meet Claire, but I think you'd like her… Eventually." Cliff stared at his shoes for a few minutes, contemplating what he should say. For the longest time he'd known he liked guys, but to actually go out on a date with one… It went against everything he'd ever been taught, but he'd be lying if he hadn't wanted this since he first saw Jack…
"I… I'd like that; I really would, but… Do you think it's right?" Jack chuckled as he walked close to Cliff and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Cliff, I've known I was gay since I was twelve. I stopped worrying about what people thought about me a long time ago. You don't have to tell anyone it's a date if you don't want. You don't even have to call it that. Just go out with me once and see if you don't like it, okay? We can go from there." Well, it was hard to say no to such a sound argument, especially when Carter had told him to plan this stunt tonight to have an indirect date with Jack… So he didn't.
"O-okay, it's a date then." Jack smiled and squeezed Cliff's shoulder gently.
"Excellent."
Once they had finally gotten everything all ready, Carter conveniently came back right on time. He thanked them for doing the work and blessed the food before they all dug in. Jack might not have liked Ann much, but she wasn't a bad cook. Or Doug wasn't—whatever. He'd have to try to get the recipes regardless. Especially the recipe for the Curry Rice, seeing as Cliff admitted that it was his favorite food ever. Maybe he could learn it by tomorrow night…
"So, when is your date tomorrow?" Cliff froze, mouth open and fork en route, and Jack raised an eyebrow.
"You were eavesdropping the entire time, weren't you?" Carter laughed and nodded, and Jack poked Cliff's side until he closed his mouth.
"Well, I can't lie in a house of God, can I? Yes, I could hear quite well, and I've very happy for the both of you. Maybe there'll be a wedding here soon…?" Cliff made a rather amusing squeak in the back of his throat and dropped his fork altogether.
"C-carter! We're going on one date, not getting engaged! We haven't even kissed yet! …I mean… Oh my…" Jack didn't think the day could get much better than it already was. He supposed that twenty-one years of being single and lonely was finally paying off.
"Not yet, no. It doesn't seem that either of you would mind much though…" Cliff's face was redder than Jack had ever seen it, and he didn't say anything as he quickly resumed eating. But since he didn't deny it… Jack had high hopes for his future. And Cliff was definitely in them.
Jack had walked Cliff back to the inn and was rewarded with a good night kiss. True, it was a kiss on the cheek, but for only knowing each other for two weeks, that was pretty good. He finally got home and practically danced into the farmhouse, causing Claire to snort at her brother's antics from her spot at the table, and Koinu to yelp happily and join in.
"What has you so happy? Let me guess, Cliff did something that has you sure that he's your soul mate." He ignored his sister's wry tone and picked up Koinu before he got stepped on.
"Something like that. Let's see… I only had dinner with him and Carter, got him to agree to go on a date with me tomorrow, and had him kiss my cheek. I'd say I made out pretty well for myself, wouldn't you say, sister dear?" Claire let out a low whistle of admiration. Looks like Jack had finally picked the right guy.
"Damn, that was fast. I'm guessing I'll finally get to meet him then?" Jack nodded and set the wiggly puppy down before he sat across from his sister.
"Yeah, I'm going to show him around and then we're coming back here for dinner. I gotta learn how to make Curry Rice by tomorrow… I don't suppose you know how, do you?" She gave him a look that clearly said, "Don't be an idiot."
"I burn water, remember? You won't even let me within ten feet of your precious kitchen…" Oh yeah. He did ban her from the kitchen last week, didn't he…?
"Well, then I'll have something to keep me occupied before my date then… Wish me luck?" Claire smiled at her twin and snorted at how damn sentimental he could be.
"Good luck bagging your man Jack."
Somehow, they both knew that time was simply going to crawl until the next evening…
