A/N: So, I was looking for some more Christmas/winter songs I could use as titles, and I stumbled upon one called Candy Cane Street. The song itself sucks, but I liked the title, and a Gray/Claire moment popped into my head once I started brainstorming. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon or any of its plots or characters. This fanfiction is merely for recreational purposes.
Candy Cane Street
December 20, 2008
Gray x Claire
"Can you believe it's almost Christmas?" I said excitedly to Ann as she mixed up a drink for me at the bar.
"I know!" She grinned, placing some sort of pale concoction in front of me. "I always love this time of year. It's so much fun!"
"Agreed." I nodded eagerly and took a sip of the drink. Almost as soon as the liquid entered my mouth, I resisted the urge to spit it out and swallowed reluctantly. "Ann, what is this?"
"Why, it's eggnog, of course," she answered, brushing a few strands of red hair out of her face. "Only, we're out of liquor, so I had to use beer."
"Gross, Ann!" I pushed the glass away from me and into the hands of the unsuspecting Gray who had just sat in the stool next to me.
"Oh. Thanks, Claire," he said, grabbing hold of the cup.
"No, wait! Don't!" I tried to snatch the drink back, but Gray had already lifted the glass up to his mouth and taken a sip. Unlike me, he couldn't find the nerve to swallow, so he coughed and spit the "eggnog" back into the glass.
"That's disgusting!" Gray wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and pushed the cup back towards me.
"I know. It's Ann's version of eggnog. With beer," I rolled my eyes and threw an exasperated glance at my friend.
"I repeat: that's disgusting."
"Oh, give it a rest," Ann snapped, dumping the beverage into the sink and rinsing out the excess.
"So, what's your favorite thing about this time of year?" I asked both Ann and Gray, trying to change the subject.
"Cookies. Duh." Ann smiled as she wandered off into a daydream concerning an array of confections.
"Nothing, really," Gray admitted, resting his head on his palm.
"Oh, come on. There must be something," I prodded, nudging him with my elbow.
"Nope."
"Well, what about Christmas trees?"
Gray shook his head and looked off into space.
"Presents? Lights? Snow? Anything?"
All things were shot down with a quick shake of his head.
"Well, Gray," I declared, poking him in the side, "I am going to find one thing that you will like about this time of year."
"You do that," he said absentmindedly.
"You bet I will!" I announced dramatically and left the Inn.
"Gray! Gray!" I called out the next day, jogging to the blacksmith who was a ways down the road. He turned around and waited for me to catch up to him. "Look what I've got!" I waved a red and white striped stick of candy in front of his face rapidly and he grabbed my wrist to he could see it properly.
"What the hell is that?" he asked, scrutinizing the object.
I smiled and starting waving it around again. "It's a candy cane! They're really yummy."
"A candy cane?"
"Yeah!" I stuck one end in my mouth after pulling off the plastic wrapper. "They taste like peppermint," I managed to say around the candy in my mouth.
"Here, let me taste," Gray said, stepping towards me.
"Okay," I held out the candy towards him. "Here you g-"
Apparently, tasting the candy itself was not what Gray had in mind, as he was now kissing me. After what felt like both an hour and a minute, he pulled back and grinned.
"You're right. They do taste like peppermint."
"Well… well… Oh, now you've made me go and forget the reason I was bringing one to you!" I accused him, trying to straighten out my thoughts.
Gray shrugged. "That's alright. I decided that there is one thing I like about this time of year."
"R-really? And… what would that be?" I struggled to keep my blush hidden and looked at Gray's baseball cap instead of his eyes.
"Candy canes," Gray replied without hesitation, and I managed to steal a look at his face to see a glimmer of mischievousness in his blue eyes.
