Title: Home

Author: Lalipop

Rating: T

Genre: Drama/Romance

Fandom: Harvest Moon: (More) Friends of Mineral Town

Disclaimer: Harvest Moon and Natsume do not belong to me.

Summary: If she was a coward, I didn't know what bravery was. She didn't know how strong she really was,

and she needed to find that inner strength I loved about her. I just wasn't the right person to help her.

Author's Notes: ENJOY ^^

Chapter the Second

Don't Freak Out

I woke in an unfamiliar room, by myself. Honestly, I liked it better like that. And honestly, I knew the room, if only from pictures Kai had shown me. Orange-golden sunlight filtered through the window and the faded tatters that had, I supposed, once been curtains. I lay in a hammock, a thick, wooly, scratchy blanket over me. The room was filled with boxes, each labeled, although I didn't bother to read the inscriptions just yet. It took me a moment to figure out where I was, exactly, despite the hints the familiarity of the room alone gave me.

Mineral Town. Kae's little shack, the one he'd told me he'd built on the beach a few years back. There was an ocean between me and… those people. I shuddered and slipped out of the hammock, looking around. Our two suitcases were beneath the hammock. Kai couldn't be far away, could he?

I bit my lip, heading towards the only door I could see. There was a simple note taped to it, covered in Kai's messy handwriting.

Claire,

I'll only be out for a little while, okay? Don't freak out on me honey,

you'll be just fine. I'll be back in a few minutes, and then we can make

dinner together, okay? Just sit back, relax, go through the shack, if you

want. Please don't leave, though.

Love,

Kai

I held the note to my chest for a long moment, trying to keep breathing, as I stumbled into what I supposed was the front room. He wouldn't have left if it weren't completely necessary. He wouldn't have. He knew how scared I got… I blinked around, the weight of the situation hitting me.

I had no idea how to navigate the house I was in.

I had no idea where said house was, except that it was on a beach near a village called Mineral Town.

I had no idea where Mineral Town was, except that there was a water barrier between here and Kai's apartment.

I also had no idea where the one person I trusted happened to be.

I sank to the floor beside the counter, trying to breathe deeply and slowly. It wouldn't help anything if I hyperventilated. It wouldn't help anything if I fainted. I needed to stay conscious, focused. I couldn't afford to freak out. Kai even asked me not to. I could do that. I could listen to him. I could do it.

Dear Goddess, I hoped I could do this.

The front door slammed open just as I'd gotten my breathing under control, and a shrill voice shrieked, "KA – who are you?"

I peeked out between strands of my hair, only to find a very beautiful girl with cotton candy pink hair standing in the doorway, hands on her hips. She stared at me with such suspicion my heartbeat spiked again. It was like a car crash: horrible, frightening, but you couldn't look away. I couldn't look away. Needless to say, I also couldn't answer. I just stared back at her, my hearting beating erratically in my chest – actually, it felt like it had jumped into my throat – and my breathing shallow and nearly impossible to complete.

"Who are you?" she repeated, her face flushing scarlet. The only coherent thought that I had was that it really didn't match her hair. Why was she so angry anyway? I hadn't done anything wrong.

Had I?

I had, hadn't I?

What had I done?

How could I fix it?

How could I… make her stop being angry?

Her face turned purple. That was even less attractive than the red, although it matched a bit better. "I said, who are you?"

Things happened really fast after that. I was sure I just was about to faint but somehow I was standing up and Kai was staring at me. His mouth was moving as he lifting my arms by the wrists, moving them over my head.

"Breathe, Claire, breathe," He whispered, stroking my hair with his free hand.

Once I figured out how to do that godforsaken task, I clung to him, whispering, "Why's she so mad at me? What did I do wrong, Kai?"

He stroked my hair, whispering back, "You didn't do anything wrong, darling. It's all me. She's mad at me."

"Kai… care to explain?" the pink-haired girl asked haughtily from the door. I shrunk further into Kai's arms. "Or should I just draw my conclusions and leave? Because, really, you could have at least come by and told me you already had some blonde bimbo hanging all over you."

"I think you've been hanging out a bit too much with Karen," he informed her, sounding a bit annoyed. I was not only scared stiff by the girl, but the last comment had hurt. My heart shuddered in my chest, which started aching a bit. I was already off on the wrong foot here. How could this ever work out? How could Kai have expected this to ever work out? "You used to be so sweet, Popuri. What changed?"

The smile in her voice was obvious. "You happened."

I could feel the blush spread over my body, and it wasn't even for me. I was blushing because of something she'd implied about them. I clung to Kai, pleading, "Make her go away, Kai."

"Not yet, honey," he replied softly, so the girl couldn't hear. "But why don't you go into the back room and change into something fresher, Claire? You might feel better."

Fat chance. But I obeyed anyway, clinging tighter for a moment before I slipped back into the room I'd come from without even looking back. I changed into a pair of denim overalls and a red-and-white plaid flannel shirt. I even pulled on some old work boots Kai had found for me, one of two pairs of shoes that had fit me from his sister's closet. I peeked through a crack between door and doorframe to see Kai talking to and laughing with the pink-haired girl.

Okay, bad timing. I moved back to the hammock and sat on it, looking around. The golden light was fading, slowly giving way to the darkness of night. How late was it? I checked my wrist – no watch, although it didn't surprise me. I'd stopped wearing a watch years ago because…

Don't close your eyes, Claire. Don't think about it. Think about now. Maybe think about tomorrow. That'll be so much better for you.

It would be. I knew that. It would be better for me not to remember. I could remember times with Kai, but honestly, I'd never been good at controlling what I remembered when I chose to do so. In short, it was just better for me not to think about it. And there was me, always the—

"—Claire?" I looked up, finding Kai peeking into the room. Did that mean she was gone? I smiled weakly at him. "There you are, honey – you were taking so long." I watched him silently for a long moment, until he blushed and murmured, "Don't look at me like that, Claire."

"She's your girlfriend, isn't she?" I whispered, staring at him.

He blushed deeper, which he didn't do frequently. "Uh, yeah…"

"So I have to meet her," I added, just as softly, my eyes lowering to my knees. The denim was faded there, turning almost white against the soft blue everywhere else.

Kai sat down beside me, which I only realized because the hammock weighed down and his thigh slid against mine. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me against his chest. "You don't have to," he murmured into my hair, rubbing my back soothingly. "But it might make things easier for you. She tends to hang around here a lot when I'm around." I stiffened against him, not liking the sound of that. He noticed, because he added, "Besides, you need a friend…and it'd make me happy if you got along with her."

I looked up at him, meeting his eyes with my surprised ones. He not only wanted me to meet her, he wanted me to make friends with her? Was he insane?

He bit his lip. "Never mind, honey."

I watched him for a long moment, reading his face, his posture. His face was down-turned, a bit of the blood still coloring his darkly tanned face in a blush. He looked a bit sad, honestly, and nervously wrung his hands in his lap. He still chewed on his lip, eyes flickering all over the place.

I bit my own lip, then hugged him gently and kissed his cheek. "I'll try…"

Kai blinked at me, surprise coloring his face as he looked up. "Really, Claire? I mean, she can be a bit over the top, excitable and all… I don't want to frighten you on your first day here, honey, or anything."

"Are you trying to convince me otherwise?" I whispered into his shoulder, which shook a moment a later as he laughed in amusement. "Baka."

He took my hand and pulled me up and into the other room. I didn't even have time to react before I was suddenly enveloped in thin arms and my face was covered with a bush of fluffy pink cotton candy, just as Kai called, sounding like he was wincing, "Popuri! Popuri! What are you doing? Remember what I told you!" When she finally released me, I was shaking. He tugged her back, murmuring worriedly, "Now look what you did."

The pink-haired girl blushed, rubbing the back of her neck. "Sorry, Claire. Kai said that was what your name is: Claire. Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

I shrugged, backing up a bit, watching her timidly. She was excitable, just like Kai had said. And she had scared me, which I hated enough to begin my dislike of her.

"He also said you're real quiet," she continued. "Guess it's true, huh?" She giggled nervously as I nodded, chewing on my tongue. "So…you staying here with Kai?"

I nodded, moving to bite my lip instead of my tongue.

"I'm still leaving the last day of summer," Kai informed her, patting my shoulder. "I'm trying to find a place for her to stay here when I leave, if she likes it here."

Popuri looked at me, and, when I shrugged, she thought for a moment, and then suggested, "How about that farm down by ours?"

Kai and I stared at her in confusion, until Kai asked hesitantly, "Popuri?"

"You know, that abandoned farm that's down beside Chicken Lil's?" she asked, and when neither of us understood, she rolled her eyes. "Well, there's a farm down there, on the outskirts of town. It's pretty run-down, and it's been abandoned for a few years, but Thomas is saying it's still livable." I glanced at Kai, who looked like he was catching on. I was still a bit lost. "Just ask Thomas if you can have the farm. I'm sure it'll be cheap, and if you explain the situation, he'll give it to you really easy!"

"Perfect!" Kai exclaimed. He turned to me, clapping me on the back, pushing me slightly towards the other girl. I backed up just as quickly. "We can ask Thomas if you can have the farm. It'll probably take a few days or weeks to get everything settled, so we can handle the paperwork and you can move in a few days before I leave. You get settled, and if it doesn't work for you, we'll figure things out before I leave, okay, Claire?"

I nodded hesitantly.

"Uhm…Claire?" Popuri murmured, looking a bit embarrassed. I titled my head to the side curiously, but didn't voice my thoughts. "I…wanted to, you know, make sure you were cool. With earlier. And me hugging you and all. You know, that you'd forgiven me for that. Kai warned me, but… I get excited, I guess."

I smiled at her, a bit timid but smiled, actually smiled. It felt, strange almost, new, too, because the only person I ever smiled at lately was Kai. Kai laughed at my side, ruffling my hair.

"That's her way of telling you it's okay," Kai explained to his girlfriend.

She grinned at me, almost lunging forward, but stopped herself. Instead, she held out her hand. I shook it, and she grinned bigger than she had before. It felt like it would break her face in half, but it also made her much more beautiful. I felt like scum, ugly.

I could blame that on what had happened at home. I could blame it on so many things, but the important part was that it was the way it was and it…would take a lot to fix it up, if that was even possible. Being the pessimist I was, I sincerely doubted things would ever get better for me. I had never had that inner strength, and what little I'd been said to have had been destroyed or compressed inside me.

Kai said that's why I hurt inside sometimes, because there was something beautiful there that had been tied up and compacted, and it wanted to get out. The pain was that beautiful thing trying to get out. I didn't believe him. I never had.

Either way, Kai ended up pleading with Popuri to go get this mysterious Thomas. He said he didn't want to leave me alone again, because I'd obviously nearly freaked out last time, despite his note. Although he was obviously teasing, I felt bad again for not having obeyed. She rushed off with a peck on the lips to him and another awkward handshake to me.

When she was gone, Kai sat me down at one of the tables and made me a sandwich.

"Thomas is the mayor here," he informed me, setting a china plate in front of me and going back to the counter. "He's a pretty nice guy, but he's also a bit… on the overreacting side."

I nibbled on the sandwich. "Energetic. Like…"

"…Popuri, yeah," he admitted softly. He came back from the counter with two glasses, handing one to me. "Pineapple juice," he explained, getting a grin from me as he sat down again. "Anyway, he might be a bit skeptical, but I think you'll be able to handle him pretty easily. As far as I know, that farm's been up for sale since forever, so he'll want to get rid of it."

"You're leaving me again, aren't you?" I asked him, putting the sandwich down.

He blushed. "I just…gotta talk some friends into something. As a favor for me. And I need to make sure my room at the inn's still available. Will you be cool sleeping here on your own?"

I bit my lip, staring down at the bread on the plate and shrugging. Could I? I didn't know, honestly. I wanted him to be proud of me, to know I wasn't that much of a coward, but…I doubted I was strong enough. But he was being nice and letting me stay here and all that… "I…I'll try, Kai, but… no promises, okay?"

"Good," he grinned.

And then, Popuri came in, leading in a short man with a big nose, dressed in a red suit and giant red top hat. I picked up the sandwich and did my best not to freak out again, nibbling hastily.

Honestly, it wasn't as bad as I thought. The man was nice enough, although his handshake was sweaty and sort of disgusting. He wrung his hands as he talked to me – actually, he was looking at me and talking to Kai.

"Kai, are you quite sure?" the mayor asked him uncertainly, watching me somewhat curiously.

My friend nodded, grinning. "Claire needs a place to stay for a little while. I'll pay the rent or whatever, handle the paperwork and everything. As long as the farm belongs to her."

"That should be fine," Thomas nodded. "Shall we fill out the legalities, Miss Claire?" I nodded, and Thomas led me to a table at the back of the restaurant.