Chapter 6: Summer's Heat and Unsuspecting Passion?

-x-

I found the hot air in the Meadow to be much windier than usual. More blew into my face and I sighed, wondering why exactly Noe, that red Harvest Sprite, wanted me to come here… And what exactly was it I was looking for?

Out of nowhere, the wind picked up and blew strongly against me and I found a flash of purple in front of me. Whatever it was ran into my face and I whimpered in reaction. As the gust died down, I heard some muffling sound beneath me and looked down to find another harvest sprite, except it was dressed in purple. How many of these guys were there?

Bending down I picked up the little guy in my hands and he apologized softly. He then introduced himself, his name being Kalen.

I didn't really understand what was up with these harvest spites. I wonder if anyone else could see them…?

-x-

(Chelsea's POV)

I leisurely trotted down the road to the beach, noticing that Gannon fixed up the roads in West Town pretty well. I sighed though, wondering what was up with the weather. It was too hot for comfort. I almost passed out again in the fields yesterday, not because of the tightness around my chest, but because of the hot weather. I hope my newly planted vegetables are happy…

And even at this very moment, it felt like the sun was only a yard away from me. More sweat rolled down my cheeks and I lifted my hat, feeling some salt fall out. Disgusting… But as I continued urging my "burning" body to move forward, I began to pick up a conversation ahead of me.

"What exactly are we waiting for? Can't we just go already? The boat's right there…" It was Lanna's voice, sounding quite annoyed.

"Just be patient.. My mom's just being slow as usual." Natalie said with a bored tone.

"It sounds like you don't seem as excited as we are." Julia laughed.

"Of course I'm not. Shopping is not something I would do."

"What? Oh, but shopping gives us an opportunity to reveal ourselves! It's like bonding with one another!"

Each soon noticed me come up on the dock and their faces filled with surprise.

"Braden, what are you doing here?" Lanna asked loudly with a flushed face. Her outfit was different, summer like and less frilled dress with a white summer hat with a lime band around it. The dress was up above her knee and she pulled it down with her hands, as if embarrassed.

Julia's outfit didn't change much compared to Lanna's new light green dress and Natalie.. The only thing different with Natalie was that she wore shorts instead.

"Oh," I brought my hand up behind my head and grinned. "I saved up lots of money and thought this would be a good time to pay for my family."

Natalie's eyes lit up and she suddenly asked, running over to me and pushing me over. "How about Braden goes with us?" Her face looked slightly desperate as I caught my balance.

Lanna frowned. "But this was just supposed to be for us three to bond together and be such wonderful friends!"

Julia smiled. "We still can fit more room on the boat. It would be fun with Braden."

I titled my head to the side. "Oh, you three were to go hang out together for today?"

"Yeah, but…" Lanna beamed. "I guess it would be more fun with you huh?"

"Oh, Braden?" A soft voice said behind me and I turned my head to find Felicia standing nearby. "What brings you out here today?"

"I'm here to get on the boat… To send some money to the family. I got tons of money since the last harvest during Spring soo."

"Yes." She nodded. "This would be a good time. How about you join me and the girls? We are planning to head off too."

I looked at her, then at the three girls, then at the boar. "Well, I guess it can't be helped… why not?"

Julia and Lanna smiled brightly and Natalie sighed with relief, probably from knowing she wasn't alone in this whole shin-dig. And Felicia seemed quite content.

"Ah, fantastic. Well, lets go!"

-x-

Denny's POV

I peered out of my window as I wiped away my drooling from my slumber. Kuu still slept warmly in his pile of pillows and cooed loudly asleep. Suddenly, I jerked up forwards as I saw what I'm pretty sure I saw. My nose collided with the glass and my eyes widened.

There was Braden at the dock talking with the girls. I had no idea what the conversation was about, but there was laughing and smiling and …. Her…. What was her name? .. Lanna. Yeeaah, that's the one. That wench saying this and that about Braden. I still watched though, no matter how much of that green monster made my eyes bleed.

Braden was now talking to Felicia and they seemed to have agreed on something. The rancher began leading toward the entrance of the boat, Lanna clinging on his arm like a leech. I growled under my breath watching them enter the boat, disappearing from sight.

I sighed and sunk down on my wooden creaky floor. So Braden is going to the city today.. With that flirty popstar. Ugh, how that girl disgusted me. It was annoying, watching her talk about Braden as if she knew him her whole life, and how she praised him and talked about him. It was nerve-wracking.

Wait, why was I even saying this? I couldn't possibly be jealous right? I mean what's so wrong about a girl praising my other number one bud? There's nothing wrong with that right?

The image of Braden in a tux waiting down the red carpet with Lanna dressed in white suddenly popped up and I gasped.

"There is NO way that is going to happen…" I chuckled feverishly and sighed.

"What am I thinking?"

There was no response and I sighed again. I thought I could get along with that popstar, like when Braden first introduced me..

-x-

…Flashback…

I opened the doors to the diner to find Braden sitting nearby with a girl that had long blonde hair. My first thought was, 'Who is she?' At the moment, all I knew was that Braden wanted to invite me here just to talk, but I wasn't expecting someone else on our table.

"Hey, Denny! Come here and eat." Braden waved toward me and grinned. "It's my treat."

I walked over to the table and sat down on a chair across from them. "What's up?" Braden pushed a plate of food toward me and I thanked him, taking my spoon and giving thanks.

"Well, I wanted to introduce you to somebody. This," He patted the girl's shoulder, "This is Lanna. She's new in town and I've come to learn that you two have a lot in common!"

"Braden!" She growled and glared his way.

"What? It's not like I said anything yet.."

I didn't like the feeling I got from them. It was too… close. And the way she looks at him… It's quite disturbing for some odd reason. I slowly put my spoon down and nodded, saying with a low voice, "Nice to meet you also. The name's Denny."

She looked at me strangely and shrugged. "Nice to meet you too."

We got along pretty well after that. We both laughed and exchanged, but it wasn't too long…

"Mmm…" Lanna smiled more than usual, happily biting into a sashimi.

"What are you so happy about?" I asked leaning my arms on the table.

She looked at me and blinked a few times as if she spaced out. "Oh… "

I raised a brow, kinda scared of what to expect.

"I-It's…" She started nervously. "It's Braden."

I tilted my head, thinking as if something suddenly got my senses alerting. "What about Braden?"

"He's a wonderful guy…" She bit into her food again and said, "But I don't think you would be interested in hearing such girly things…"

I shrugged. "Whatever…"

There was a moment of silence between us and I noticed that she could no longer hold it in.

"Okay.. Fine! I'll tell you." She pouted.

Well, It's not like I asked her to. Or made any gestures bribing her to tell me, but I guess these types of girls are -

"BRADEN IS AMAZING!" She screamed quietly between us. "He's so nice and sweet. And he's very gentlemanly too!" She blushed, raising her hands to her cheeks. "I wonder if he would like to be my boyfriend…"

I didn't know why, but it felt like something in me clicked and that bothered me.. Immensely.

"Yeah, right. Braden is to busy to have a love life right now. He can't have anyone pulling him down since he just started…"

"What?" She looked quite dismayed from my comment. "Are you telling me I'll just be in the way?"

"Basically. Anyway, I don't think you're his type anyway. "

"Oh, so you know what type I am?"

"You've been flirting with him and been trying to catch his attention. I think it's pretty obvious,"

After a while of a bitter quarrel of what type she is, it soon became to be..

"Hmm…." She looked to be thinking hard, quite frustrated .

"What?" I snapped quite irritated myself.

"Well, if you keep saying that Braden shouldn't be with those many types of girls, are you saying that he should be with a guy instead?"

"That's ridiculous, Lanna. He's not gay. He just can't be with someone right now."

"But it's so unfair, Denny." She puffed her cheeks. "You're always hanging around him as much as I do! And why do you care so much?"

-x-

Since then, we'd been bickering like a cat and a dog, I being the dog of course…

Geh… That was the only question I couldn't answer (but then again, she stomped on my foot and walked away before I could answer.) But up until now I still don't know what that answer would be. I laid back and bit my tongue.

Probably I was thinking to much about it. After all, Braden is my best friend here. We, men, have to watch each others' backs. A good friend would worry over another. And they would also think of the person they would end up with right?

…. Great… I'm making excuses….

-x-

Chelsea's POV

I was thrilled to be able to go back to the city. Not only do I get to see my old life again, but probably because things will be in a much faster pace AND … the most important.. TO SEND MONEY TO MY FAMILY AND PAY OFF THOSE STUPID DEBTS! MUAHAHAHA -

"Braden? Why are you laughing evilly in the corner?" I heard Lanna ask.

I sweat dropped. I was laughing out loud? Also to mention evilly too..

"You were laughing to yourself… Maliciously… in the corner.." Natalie appeared next to me which scared me out of my skin. "You're a suspicious one." I twitched watching her closely.

Julia sat nearby. "I'm curious, Braden. You said earlier that you wanted to send money to your family. Is that why you started up the ranch?"

"It was the main reason, but I guess I have other reasons now too.. Well, since the island has been growing now." I mentally cried, knowing that leaving the ranch would be harder now with all that I have to do and whatnot.

It felt quite nice just going across the sea again, unlike the first where we happened to be attacked by an outrageous storm that caught us to be shipwrecked. This boat looked much more developed and sturdy than the other I was on, but that storm was still no joke. Probably it was destiny for me to get shipwrecked… or that I was just with my unlucky charm again.

It seemed like quite a while until we reached the city since all we saw was blue. The girls decided to wander throughout the corridors of the ship for a while, but got caught by some of the sailors and were threatened to be thrown off board. I also seemed to be catching the eyes of some other women on board, but the three girls were making them veer away. It was until such events that we were finally there.

"Girls, we are nearing the city. Please get ready." Felicia informed, standing up and brushing off her skirt. We stood from our seats as well, standing nearby her. The loud speaker went on and the captain informed us that we have reached the city and that the bridge from the ship will be going down.

We heard a loud THUNK on the dock and carefully walked across the bridge, finding that the city was sitting before us. It surely wasn't the city I was from and it didn't look much like it either. It looked like a small town, with rows of shops and cute cobblestone paths leading throughout the city. Once we left the pier, we found that some entertainers were nearby. There was children all around with smiles and laughs and the adults seemed to enjoy as well as the performers did their tricks and stunts.

I also noticed that Julia and Natalie watched with interest as well, but Lanna was already thinking ahead of which shops to enter. Felicia seemed to be thinking too.

"I am sure this is the place." I heard the woman mumble. She turned to the look at the four of us and said, "Girls, Braden, I'll be going off in what I have to do. You may go of and do your tasks as well, and at around 3 o'clock we'll all meet up here again. This city is quite smaller compared to others and the people are quite nice. I believe you'll enjoy it." She spoke a little more, describing the small city before nodding and leaving us on our own.

"Soooo…." Lanna started, quickly slipping on some sunglasses. "What are you two gonna do?" She seemed to refer to Natalie and Julia.

Natalie shrugged. "I guess I'll just hang out with Braden." Her eyes flicked over to me.

Julia looked around. "I might go around and look for some clothes…"

"And what about you, Braden?" Lanna twirled on her heels to look at me now.

"Ah, I'll be…" I touched my pocket to make sure my money sack was still there. "I'll be checking out to see if there's a place here that could send my money to my family."

The popstar seemed a little disappointed, but smiled anyway. "Alright. I was hoping to hang out with Braden, but I guess it's a not, huh?" She walked to Julia's side and said. "I guess we'll be the ones that will be shopping."

Natalie had a bright smile on her face. "Okay. That's fine with me."

Lanna stared at her. "I'll get you next time." Both her and Julia began to walk off in the directions to the shops, but before they completely left, Lanna yelled, "Natalie, you better not do anything funny with Braden too!"

Both of us sweat dropped. I looked at Natalie to see she was already leading ahead of me.

"Hey," My greeting seemed to catch her attention and I continued, "why didn't you tag along with them?"

"Nah, I'm not much of a fan for shopping, Chels." I blinked upon hearing my name and smiled. "So, ya gonna finally send some moo-la to your folks? You must be happy."

I nodded. "I'm immensely happy to send some money. I didn't think I would get so much, but it sure is worth it. Farm work wasn't as easy as I thought, but it surely pays off."

We both passed some other stores and I found my stomach to be rumbling. Natalie gave me a curious look and sighed.

"You didn't eat breakfast this morning?" She patted my back. "With your appetite, I'm surprised your not fat."

I patted my belly. "A hard worker need the food, dearest Natalie. And, yes, I did skip breakfast. I was too excited to send money." I sniffed the air and knew exactly what it was. "Say, Natalie? Have you ever had a -?" A honk of a truck blocked out my last words.

"A what?" I heard Natalie ask once the truck left.

-x-

Denny's POV

I was now picking out some new bait from Chen's store. The bait worms were very wiggly and slimy, just to my liking. I mostly enjoyed watching them inch around my palm and fall over and roll when I shake my hand. But putting that aside…

"How much is the bait, Chen?"

He looked at me from his counter that he was washing off and answered, "Hmm… About 500g a can."

"Awesome." I took a few cans of bait and set them on the counter side that wasn't washed off yet. Giving him the money owed, he took the cans one by one and gently placed them in a plastic bag.

"Where's the little tyke?" I looked behind the counter to find that Chen's son wasn't around.

"Charlie? He's playing outside like usual. I hope he could find a friend his age soon." Chen handed me my goods and smiled. "Please come again."

"I surely will!" I nodded and exited out the shop to find the clearing of green again and the summer heat pelting my skin. It surely has been hotter than usual…

As I walked along the road to the beach, I found myself to be quite disturbed once again. I decided to take a detour to Chen's shop than my normal route, not to only get more fresh bait, but to get my mind off of thinking something so wrong… It ain't working..

I found Charlie playing nearby my shack and waved toward him. He noticed me fairly quickly and ran toward me, immediately asking, "Big Brother! Where's Big Brother Braden?"

I flinched on the spot and answered, "He left for the city today, with the girls."

"Oh…" He seemed rather disappointed, digging one foot in the sand. "I was hoping to play with him today, but Daddy said that he left early this morning."

I ruffled his hair to learn that it felt like fire. "Ah, he'll be here!" He looked up at me and nodded.

Then a wonder came to my mind. "Charlie, what do you think of Braden anyway?"

"Well, he's my big brother! And I have much respect for him too!" He balled his hands and continued, "He's also a hard worker. And strong like my dad! … He also is fun to play with!"

I tilted my head to the side.

"What do you think of big brother?"

I raised a brow. "Me?" I wasn't expecting the same question reflected back to me.

Braden.. He's a great friend. Lively, and quite different from other guys I've met. He also somehow can make anyone around him in a better mood. He's kind and funny in his reactions and things. And I agree he works hard, but he has something that makes you remember him and not forget the feeling…What am I saying?

.. But now that I think about it, it surely is something…

I looked down to find the boy had disappeared and shrugged, continuing on to my house.

-x-

Chelsea's POV

"C'mon Natalie! It's not like it's going to kill you." I pestered her, urging her on.

"Really, Chels… You really don't expect me to." She eyed at me, holding the food in her hands. "Is this really food? And how does it fit in your mouth anyway?"

I laughed. "Yes it is food. A hotdog with chili, two kinds of pepper, 5 toppings, and the extravaganza list!" I beamed at the wonderful sight. The taste was ever-lasting, and I truly wasn't expecting this to be in such a small town, but whatever. It's here and now this city is wonderful to my eyes.

"What the heck is the extravaganza list?" Then she smirked. "And what are you? A pig? I have to wonder why you aren't fat… And, " She turned the hotdog to one side then to another. "How exactly do you eat this?"

I set my hands on my hips. "Man, you ask so many questions. Just eat it already…"

She eyeballed me and opened her mouth as wide as it allowed her to. He teeth chomped down into the hotdog and retreated, her mouth obviously full and struggling to chew. After a few moments and her gulp, she puffed out some air and looked at me with a slight sparkle in her eyes. "It.. This… This is delicious!" She took another bite with much enthusiasm.

I smiled. "Fantastic! I knew you would like it." I was glad that Natalie and I shared many interest. She wasn't as girly, but knew how to be feminine. And she liked to prove herself as well. So.. It's easy to predict what and how.

Natalie then hand gestured to me and I leaned forward as she whispered in my ear, "There's lots of girls looking at you…"

I looked around and found a group of two looking at me for a moment, and when they noticed I noticed them, they both freaked at the spot. I smiled slightly and waved toward them, watching them flinch and move away.

It was interesting being a boy, but it's sorta annoying at the same time. I didn't really liked these types of boys who try to get the attention of girls… For example, the most popular guy in high school known to be this and that and every girl likes him for some apparent reason. Yeah.. That type, but now I guess I know how they feel, except the fact that I'm not trying to catch their attention.

After eating lunch, I was finally able to find some place that could send money to my family. I smiled brightly as I slipped the money into the envelope that was to be sent for my family, knowing that strangers around me would think I was mental since I was smiling at an envelope. Inside the envelope was not only the money, but a note for my family too. Hopefully Erika would be the one to get first hold of the money…

We both left the shop and now walked down a cobblestone path surrounded with other shops, hoping to find Julia and Lanna soon.

"Say, Chelsea…" Natalie whispered my name as we walked side by side. Once I looked at her, she continued, "I've been wanting to ask you something… if you don't mind."

"Shoot." I replied.

I felt her finger poke at my head and pull my hair. "How exactly do you keep your hair up like that? It's like you cut your hair to look like a boy, but I know you didn't cut it…"

"Actually.." I started reminiscing. "I've always had my hair short and I liked it short too since no wind could make your hair death whips to your face, but I decided to grow it out this time. And the way I tie my hair?" An image of the past popped into mind and I smiled. "A wonderful friend told me how to do it since she had to do the same as me. But I mixed it up with different styles so this one is all my own."

She seemed content with my answer and nodded, looking forward. "There's a lot of people here huh?"

"There's tons more in huge cities too, like where I'm from." So loud and fussy… but this, I was okay with.

Out of nowhere, a man in dark clothes ran by Natalie, making her tumble over toward me. I caught her and immediately asked, "Are you okay?" She didn't reply, but looked at the guy who almost ran over her.

Right after that, Lanna's voice cried out, "My bag! He stole my bag!"

Somehow I got the feeling that we were in some kind of movie set and this was all planned, but either way, I was bound to do the same. I helped Natalie to her feet and dashed off after the stealer, seeing that he wasn't too far away. My feet pumped against the ground and I found myself right behind him. Then … THWACK!

He stumbled to the ground, Lanna's bag flying up in the air and landing in my hands. He jumped to his feet and turned to look at me, but directly fell back on the ground again with groans coming from his mouth. I walked over him and nudged his body, realizing that I might have hit his pressure point too hard.

"Braden!" Natalie called, running toward me with Julia following right behind and Lanna trying to keep up with her heels.

"Are you alright?" Julia asked worried. She stepped up and examined me, but I told her I was fine.

I came up to Lanna who trailed behind them nervously. "Here's you bag, Lanna."

"Oh, thank you, Braden. I had all my things in here and if I lost it…" She trailed away and I noticed she was staring at the unconscious body laying on the ground. "What happened to him?"

I frowned looking at the thug as well. "I think I hit him too hard on his pressure point."

There were murmurs coming around us and I realized that we had a crowd around us. Most, especially noticing Lanna's presence.

"What are you kids doing?" A policeman appeared between the crowd, followed by two others. The guy that yelled out to us was a round-bellied, puffy cheeked, plump man with small legs and constricted arms compared to his circular form. I tried my best not to laugh as his belly jiggled while he came toward us.

"You, boy, what happened to this man?" He pointed to the hoodlum who was picked up by the other policemen.

I was about to reply, but Lanna interrupted me saying, "That man stole my bag. And Braden, he retrieved my bag from the thief."

The policeman's round eyes narrowed. "Then how'd he end up like this?"

"Sir, I trained in kickboxing and it came into affect. I also happened to hit his pressure point, which might be the main reason why he's down." I answered quite sternly.

The three girls repeated loudly, "Kickboxing?"

"It's a long story.." I sighed.

"I see… Consider you kids lucky this time. And make sure you take care of these girls, boy." He glared at me before he jiggled away.

As the girls were talking to me about the recent incident, I was busy with the crowd that closely watched us. Their buzzing was louder, some about Lanna, some about what just happened and what I did, and some considering that I was Lanna's boyfriend. Other comments were mainly from girls saying how "heroic" and "handsome" I looked… or something around that.

But I came to understand another thing… There's a lot about me that hasn't been said.

-x-

Denny's POV

I heard the diner bells ring to show that the diner had a new customer. Of course, I wasn't exactly "new" since I come here almost every night. I saw Lance sitting where he normally sat and always wondered whenever I looked at him.. I wondered if he had his own life other than here…

I walked up to the counter to find Luke wiping off some glass mugs. He looked up at me and immediately said, "Welcome, Denny! You're quite early than usual." This was Luke, the owner of the Diner and who cooks my fish and other cuisines very well. He was easy going and east to tlak to about things…

"Geh.. Yeah." I brought up the fish he ordered atop the counter and he studied them. "Here's what you wanted, right?"

"Yes, this is perfect. As expected from a skilled fisherman from a long line of fishermen." He took the fish and went to the back to store it wherever.

As he was gone, I looked around to find that the place had upgraded quite a bit and that the place looked livelier than usual. Luke returned from the back and washed off his hands.

"Is there something wrong with you? You seem quieter than usual." Luke looked back at me as if he was reading me like a book. "I'm always free to listen. I always have that old man over there telling me things 24/7 too." He pointed to Lance and chuckled.

I decided to go right out and ask, but I found my tone to squeak out and I grimaced, attempting a second try. I gave up and decided to go for it in a different perspective. "What do you think of the town?" Oh, yeah… nice way to start it off..

He looked puzzled for a moment, but pasted that smile on his face again. "It's quite nice. Peaceful and quieter, yet there's still business everyday. But I wouldn't have gotten here if it weren't for that farmer.. Braden, was it?"

"Yeah. That's him." Well, this turned around better than I expected.

"You seem to hang around him a lot. You two good buds?"

"Yeah. He's an awesome friend." I noticed his eyes flickered and I knew his instincts clicked on, being able to read me out so clearly. Great…

"I see…" He smiled again. "Braden comes around here sometime before you, but he seems to always surprise me. He's quite the nice and unexpected kind for a guy."

I raised a brow. "How so?"

The owner picked up a cup and began to wipe away flecks of water. "He comes an hour or so earlier than you do, and yet all he gets is a piece of bread and water. I also talked with Anabelle, the owner of the café, and she tells me that she buys the cheapest things on her menu as well."

I paused for a moment, thinking. Braden only gets that much food? … Does he even eat to his fill at all? I frowned, my thoughts still running.

"It surprises me. It was because of that farmer that I came here since the fee he paid allowed us to come here, but then with all the money he has, he just buys bread…" He shrugged. "It was also because of him that Gannon decided to take my offer and upgrade this place. That young man is quite capable no?"

I knew where this was going. He also knew where it was going too, after all he was the one leading this conversation along. It was frustrating to know how predictable I was. My frown reached low to my chin now.

Luke chuckled. "Since your not going to say it, I might as well. You've got Girl… and Boy problems don't you?" He set down his cup and continued, "I watched how things hit off with you and Lanna. You seemed to start getting irritated once she talked about Braden. Then…" He pulled out his thumb and pointed it downward until it hit the surface of his wooden counter.

"I don't know why though." I looked at Luke and asked seriously. "Has that ever happened to you?"

"Actually quite the opposite." He immediately answered. "There was tons of girls that liked the way I cooked once we found out that it was my talent, but my younger brother was furious and made them run away with fear. So .. I know how it feels for the one who's receiving such attention, but I'm no where close to see how it the other way around, Denny."

I dropped my head to the counter and deeply sighed. "I don't know what it is…"

"I don't either." His tone seemed to change as he said, "But then again, I find Braden… different from other guys, myself. Maybe that's what caught your attention."

"But…" I rested my aching head on my arms. "Wouldn't friends who are good buds be quite like this too?"

"Well, you've only known him for …" He looked at me and shrugged. "… Braden is lucky to have a friend like you then that feels this way."

I felt my insides lighten up on me again and not such a heavy burden on my shoulders anymore. I sat up straight. "Yeah, that's probably it…" I bowed my head slightly. "Thanks for listening." I stood up and began for my leave.

"I'm always here, Denny." Luke's voice then said, "But aren't you going to eat since you're already here?"

My stomach grumbled and roared, and I sweat dropped, but my intuition denied. "Nah, I'll be fine! See ya!" I opened the door again and walked down the path to West town. I felt so much better. Maybe what I felt this whole time was … brotherly love. Nothing like what was bothering me..

As I walked down the path, I found Lanna pass by me quickly with a jacket slung around her shoulders. The jacket looked familiar… It was the one that Braden wore this morning! Yeah… but why did she have it?

Continuing on toward the beach, I saw that Natalie, her mother, and Julia were returning to their homes too. They must've just returned. I looked around to see if Braden was nearby, but I caught no sight of him. Soon, my feet sunk into the sand and an unusual scent filled my senses… and it was coming from my house?

I glanced toward my house from my viewpoint to only find thin legs moving side to side on the sand. Beginning to walk toward the scent and legs, my brain could only comprehend one person who would be that very person sitting in front of my house. It even sent me a picture image just for me to understand.

"Braden?" I guessed, looking down to find his chocolate hair ruffled by the wind. His face lifted to look at mine and I instantly found his blue eyes stare into me and I hesitated, my breath cut short. I felt my heart pound loudly and coughed.

"Denny? You okay?" He asked, standing up. I waved to assure I was fine, but really I wasn't.

What was this feeling? It couldn't possibly be that feeling toward this guy right? No, I … Braden is like my little bro! Gah…

I tried to think of something before anymore silence could fall down upon us. "Sooo… came back from the city?"

"Yeah. I wanted to do something and tagged along with Natalie, Lanna, and the others." He bent over to pick up his hat and slapped it down on his head. A small grin came from him and I veered away.

"I see. And what brings you here?" I asked curiously. What exactly was he here for?

"Well, I thought I should pay you a visit since I've been gone for the most part of the day. And," He brought up a plastic bag that held the wonderful smelling scent. I stared at it for a while and quickly came to notice, as I accepted it, that Braden's hands were unusually smaller than I expected.

"What's this?" He gestured for me to open it and I did.. To find fish shaped taiyaki?

Braden began laughing, probably because of the face I made when I gaped at the taiyaki. "I figured you might like this. And this is also a token of gratitude for always being around!"

Suddenly, my stomach growled repulsively and we both paused. I chuckled, "Well, thanks… Actually I skipped dinner today.."

"Oh, then hopefully this would fill you up." He smiled again and looked at his watch. "Oh, crap! This late already?" His face looked frantic and he apologized. "I'm sorry but I can't stick around. Bye-Bi, Denny!" He began running off, almost tripping over a mound of sand, but regained balance and dashed out the beach into town.

I couldn't help but smile when I looked at the food in my hands. It smelled wonderful…

…..geh….

I faced my house and banged my head against it.

Braden… I hate you so much…

-x-

Hope you enjoyed this installation. Let the gay begin… XD

- Do Jo