ALO! Back, back, back! My back hurts XD

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FanfictionFun831: I know right? I feel the same way about them! I like it because they looked so natural together and.. Gray is a tsun-tsun XD. Thanks for telling that there are some grammar mistakes... hohoho~ I'll do better next time *PEACE!*

So anyways! On with the show~

PS: Italicized words are their thoughs.

4th Chapter:
He who is to blame

The girl they were longing to see suddenly appeared before them, with an umbrella in her hand.

The librarian jumped to her and hugged the blonde farmer. Claire smiled and she returned the embrace of the librarian. Ann, in verge of tears, ran to her and greeted the blonde with a smile on her face. Cliff remained on his seat, a smile pasted on his face while Gray just stood there dumbfounded. "It's been a while..." the young blacksmith stated.

"Yeah..." Claire looked at him with emotionless eyes that made him cringe a little. Mary, still hugging the blonde farmer, raised her face and looked at Claire, she too saw how emotionless her eyes are.

"I knew it!" the waitress walked to Gray "You have something to do with Claire hiding in her farm!" The blacksmith frown at what Ann said, he just sighed. Gray turned his back and started to walk away.

Claire swished the droplets of the rain off of her umbrella "Coward." she loudly but softly said.

Hearing this from the blonde made him turn around and face her. Gray looked at Claire and saw a disgusted look from her face. She looked up to him, literally and gripped the handle of her umbrella tighter than before. "Why can't you be a man and face your problems?!" she yelled.

"Well! I kind of facing at it in a moment like, right now! Literally!" the blacksmith retorted back.

The two glared at each other silently. Gray grits his teeth and on the other hand, Claire bites her lower lip. The three silently look back and forth the blacksmith and the blonde farmer, they can almost see the two throwing daggers and knives at each other.

"Claire!"

The blonde was interrupted by a familiar and old voice, she looked at the person who called her to confirm it. "Saibara!" Claire called the old blacksmith with glee.

The blonde farmer ran to him and the old blacksmith spread his arms wide. Claire hugged him and Saibara returned her embrace. Gray on the other hand, frowned as he sees this unfold before him. Finding an opportunity to escape the blonde girl questioning him, he tiptoed his way up to his bedroom on which he failed, his grandfather noticed him scramming the scene.

"Hey!" He yelled "Don't you run off, you stubborn young man!" The old blacksmith stomped making his grandson curse under his breath and giving up on escaping. The three sat with Saibara on the middle while Claire and Gray looks on different direction.

Damn... This so awkward. The blacksmith said on his mind.

"Here yah go!" Ann arrived with three mugful of beer and placed it on top of their table.

"It's on the house!"

The blonde blinked "I-i don't drink."

"It's that so? How about some grape juice?"

"Um..." Claire looked sideways "Do you have some strawberry juice or an apple cider?"

Ann smiled "Well, we certainly don't have any strawberry juice but we do have apple cider! I'll bring you one right away!" The blonde farmer returned the waitress' smile and nods. Ann immediately returns to their kitchen.

Saibara and Gray begun to drink their beers. Claire is so amazed on how the two drink their beer in unison. As the young blacksmith put down his mug, he saw how awed the blonde farmer was. Her eyes are sparkling with interest, Saibara laughed as he saw the expression Claire has in her face.

"You seemed amazed my dear," he paused and touched his beard "you are amazed by how fast I drink my booze in one gulp?"

"Uh... Yes?"

Actually I am amazed how the two of you drink in unison.

The old blacksmith laughed again "I want to teach you but you are too young to drink booze."

Claire giggled "I'm already 20, Mr. Saibara."

The old man chuckled "Just call me Saibara," he smiled "but it won't hurt if you call me 'grandpa'."

Gray nearly does a spit take as he heard this. The blonde farmer smiled as he heard the old blacksmith's reassurance. Saibara cleared his throat "Anyway," he looked at Claire which made her sit straight "what is the reason why you are all cooped up in your farm?"

The blonde farmer lowered her head and didn't reply while the young blacksmith is just looking at the stairs, wanting to lie down on his bed upstairs. Claire couldn't say the fact why she did that is because of Gray. She was hurt when the young blacksmith just laughed on what she said and she thought he's not going to take her seriously, ever. But what the blonde farmer said was true, she sees herself in Gray but she experienced much worse than Gray has.

"It's because of Gray!" Ann declared as she slammed an opened bottle of apple cider on the table.

The young blacksmith widens his eyes and dropped his jaws as he heard the waitress' declaration. Saibara frowned and glared at his own grandson. Sensing that his grandfather is glaring at him, he shook his head in denial. "I have nothing to do with it!"

"H-"

The blonde farmer was about to talk when Karen covered her mouth, not letting her talk. This time Mary took the stand and started talking. She explained to the old blacksmith that it started the day after Claire visited the library, the librarian is even surprised when she returned, the blonde farmer was not in sight. Mary thought that after leaving Gray and Claire alone at her library, something might have happened between the two of them and she thought that if she leave the two alone, they could have been closer than before but her plan backfired.

The old blacksmith has his eyes closed while listening to the librarian's explanation, not paying attention that the blonde next to him that is trying her best to uncover her mouth while his grandson pretended not to listen.

"BWAH! Gray has nothing to do with it!" Claire screamed after she was released from Karen. All of them, including Gray looked at her. "He has nothing to do with it." she said, much calmer than before.

Saibara placed his hand to Claire's shoulder "Claire, my child," he paused "if Gray has done something wrong to you, don't cover for him. Let him know what he has done."

"No!" the blonde farmer stood "I'm telling you! He did nothing wrong or some sort!" Gray's eyes widens as Claire defends him from Mary and Ann, especially from his grandfather, Saibara.

Why? Why is she defending me? The blacksmith asks in his mind.

The blonde stole a glance at him and took a deep breathe, "It's just me," she paused, choosing the right words to say, "I just let my emotion run wild and uncontrolled," she looked down "I decided to cool it down by cooping in my farm."

"Claire, my child."

"So please," she looked at the old blacksmith with teary eyes "don't blame Gray... He really doesn't have anything to do with this."

The waitress looked at the librarian and mouthed what to her. Mary just sighed and comforted the blonde farmer. She just couldn't resist Claire.

Gray looked down, feeling guilty. He really did something wrong, he hurt Claire's feelings, he laughed at her. The young blacksmith thought that what she said to him back at the library was just a joke, it never crossed his mind that someone will care for him, especially a girl. Waves of guilt hit him as he pondered about it.

"I think, I'll go home now..."

The voice of Claire has brought Gray back to reality, he stole a glance to the blonde farmer. He saw how sad and pained Claire's expression is.

Was that because of her lying to protect me? He said to himself.

The librarian grabbed her wrist, "You're not going to coop up in your farm again, are you?" Claire shook her head and looked to Mary "No, I won't. You'll see me and I will see you tomorrow."

The waitress crept behind the blonde girl and hugged her, "Well yah better be Claire! We missed hanging at with yah!"

The blonde girl smiled "'Course... I'll come by after I'm done with my farming job and stuff."

Ann loosened her embrace and watched Claire as she reaches for the door but before she opens it, she took a quick glance to the young blacksmith. Gray saw it, making them having an eye contact even for just a second. The blonde girl then turned to the door and opened it, making the sound of falling rain to enter the inn.

Gray thought that the tension has disappeared but he was wrong. After the blonde farmer left, the air of tension returned but much heavier than before. Ann walked to him, "You're lucky that Claire came to defend you." she said while glaring at him.

The librarian stood and walked to them and restrained Ann from trying to punch the young blacksmith, "I don't know what's gotten to Claire," this time she's the one who is glaring at the young blacksmith "but take a note of this, if she's hurt again and if and only IF I learned that you are the reason of it, you don't know what's coming to you. Even if the two of us are friends. Childhood Friends!"

He widens his eyes for a moment then looked down at the table again. He gulped quietly.

The young blacksmith can't believe on what he heard from Mary. Mary who's always been sweet, compassionate and nice to him when no one is and Mary who makes his heart beats fast, who makes his pulses run wild, makes his brain fuzzy and laggy and making him to forget all the thoughts of him being lonely and alone in the world. That is only the first time she has been mad at him and what makes it worst, it's because of a girl who who just came here and she just knew for 3 weeks!

It's like the youngsters of Mineral Town has turned against him because of a blonde girl who came from the city. They are making him a bad guy, a villain, even Gray's dream girl. Seeing this unfold in front of him, in front of his two eyes, has made his mind to be clouded by lots reasons why and why he should be alone.

"I want to excuse myself." he muttered and walked past by the two girls who are glaring at him earlier.

Even when his head is down, he knew that their eyes are following as he went upstairs into his room. "Ugh!" the waitress stomped "What a nerve! Oooh! That boy makes me so angry!"

"Ann..." The old blacksmith stood and placed his arm to the angry waitress "You shouldn't be so hard to your little brother." he whispered and sighed under his beard "You know that he's stubborn and hard headed but I know that he won't do something horrible to little Claire."

The waitress dropped her jaw for a second "But gr- I mean Mr. Saibara!"

"But even if he did hurt the feelings of Claire, I know that was not the boy's intention, heck he wouldn't even know that he has done something wrong. You should know that." Ann sighed in defeat "Fine... I'll restrain myself for further more blaming Gray."

The old blacksmith nod then left the inn. It was exact 9 in the evening, the time the inn closes. Mary left quietly and Rick left with the drunk woman at his arms, ready to throw up anytime. Cliff went to their room while Ann cleaned the place up with her father Doug.

Gray just lay on his bed with his hand on his eyes, blocking the light coming from the ceiling. He thinks about what just happened downstairs earlier. The young blacksmith will be recognizing as 'the person who made a blonde girl who just came here cry'.

Did she even cry? He said internally.

"Hey there man." Cliff called him, closing the wooden door behind him as he enters their room. "How cha' holdin'?"

"Great... Just great." the young blacksmith sighed. "Here to gloat on me dude?" The brown haired boy flopped down on his bed and looked at the ceiling too "'Course not. I'm here because this is my room too you know." he chuckled.

"Whatever."

"But now I know why you had told me to 'Blame Claire'. But," he looked at the young blacksmith "why would I blame her?"

Gray sighed, irritated by his roommate's question, "Why ask me that now?" Cliff shrugged "Dunno. Maybe I just wanted to know your side of the story."

"There are no sides Cliff. Mary said it all." Gray huffed.

"Pffft." the brown headed boy snickered "Of course, well, for you." The young blacksmith turned away from his roommate "Do me a solid Cliff. Will you let it go and shut up."

"Sure."

He sure is talkative for a shy boy.

Two chapter updates in one day? Whooo that's tough!

I know you are itching to give a review XD.. Mmm... K'bye... XD