Hey guys! Sorry it had been a while I updated this fanfict. This is chapter 9 and I hope you guys enjoy it! I've been sad that I haven't got any review. I open to any comment or criticism so long it has no flame (:
Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon or any of its characters.
The first thing I felt when I started regaining my consciousness is that I felt so hot. The second thing I realize that my best friend, Julia is looking at me as if I'm dead. "You're awake! Thank god!" She exclaimed. I closed my eyes for a second or so, than opened my eyes blinking carefully. I was lying down on a bed, but than I remembered that the last time before I lost my consciousness I was in the storm. I gasped, trying to sit up and looked at Julia with horror as reality sink in. The storm. My puppy. "Baxter! Where is he? I-is he dead?" I asked, fear completely filled my heart as I looked pleadingly at Julia.
"Calm down. Mom has him. He's yapping happily now." Julia said pushing me down so I lay down again.
I lay down, though I told Julia that I don't need the extra layers of blankets anymore. She took it away and folded it. "You're so lucky that somehow Vaughn find you. I have no idea how did he manage though." Julia said. I frowned, the thought of the cowboy saving me was a little bit unsettling, especially that I remembered he didn't like me. And I've been trying my best to avoid him. But I didn't say anything and just nod. Sometimes the easiest way to shut Julia up is to nod to whatever she said. "Are you hungry? I'll ask my mom if there's any food left." Julia said even before I asked her question. And that there's she go out from the room, and looked for the food she's going to brought me later.
Since I got no one to talk to and I've got nothing to do, I looked around the room, noticing it was not Julia's room, since I had been there a lot of times before. It was quite masculine, now that I realized. Chill went through my bone, but this time it was not out of fear, but because I might know whom this room belongs to. The door opened silently, and at first I thought it was Julia, returning from her search for food. But to my horror, it was not Julia, but a certain anti-social cowboy, who as Julia said saved my life from the live threatening storm.
He looked at me with his unusual amethyst colored eyes, brooding, his arms crossed over his chest. I tried not to look at his eyes, but I couldn't look away, and I have no idea why. He sighed and than he whisked his hand on his hair, making the hat falling down to his face before he fix it. I still couldn't look away from him, but suddenly his outburst shocked me.
"What were you thinking?" he said, though he didn't raise his voice, I could note fury there.
"E-excuse me?" Shocked with his outburst, since usually he would only regarded me with a snort or even a simple glance and nothing at all.
"Out there. With the dog."
"I-I…" I stammered, I don't know if I wanted to tell him why I'm outside in the storm. I know he think that I couldn't take care the animal well, and if he knew about this he would have been even worse towards me in the future. "What?" he asked gruffly, I still could feel fury in his voice. "Baxter, ran out last night." I whispered.
I watched as the cowboy frowned, and than he looked at me. "And you think… I'll just look for him tomorrow." He said sarcastically.
"NO! I didn't know that he was gone, okay! He sneaked out of my house. I didn't realize it until this morning! The last time I saw him before I go here, he was sleeping." I said fiercely. Surprised that I didn't stammer as I explained about it. Why I didn't stammer? I usually got even worst when someone yell at me or mad at me.
"And you risk your life so you could find him in this storm?" he said.
"I don't want to lose him so fast!" It's true, I didn't really thought about the concequence of looking Baxter in the storm, because the only thing I had in my mind back than was I should find my puppy and get him back to the safety of my home. I didn't think about risking my life, and even if I have to do it all over again, I would still look for my puppy no matter what. It wasn't in my nature to leave my animals or pets in danger. I just couldn't live with myself if that happen.
"What's the point if both of you die?" he asked gruffly, but this time I didn't hear any fury in his voice, rather I felt concern. Vaughn? Concern about me?
"I… I didn't think of that." I answered lamely, voicing all the thought that was playing in my head while he's glaring at me before.
He snorted, "Thought so."
I looked at me, I could feel fury building inside me but I didn't know why I'm so mad. Perhaps it was because he suddenly mad at me, since he never saw me as someone outside a stupid girl trying to build up her own farm. And suddenly he started telling what to do; it was like throwing wood into fire. "Don't you yelled or get mad at me! You never care about me; you always made fun of me! So suck it up, cowboy!" I yelled at him. Before horror came into my face and I hid my face with the blanket. But after a while I gathered my courage and peek from the cowboy.
Surprisingly, hee seems to be taken back by my outburst, and he tip down his hat so I couldn't see his face, "You're right." He muttered and walked out from the room, almost bumping into Julia, who seems to manage to find food for me.
"Oh!" She exclaimed.
But Vaughn the walked out from the room, leaving Julia and me in the room.
- - - Around the late afternoon - - -
It turned out Julia brought me a soup to eat. I ate it in heavy silence, and the reason of that was the cowboy who suddenly came in and came out from the room throwing his temper at me. I know that Julia is dying to know what Mr. Temper and Mysterious cowboy said to me. But I didn't want to talk about it and I'm glad that Julia seems to understand that. Right now, I'm looking out from the window, the storm seems to be slowing down, and I could tell that it would stop later tonight. However, there's another important thing in my mind, and that's Baxter. So I turned the blanket, and moved my legs down to the edge of the bed till my feet touched the floor.
I stood up carefully, and a sudden pain hit me and I cried out in pain and fallen to floor. I just didn't realize that when I fallen down as I looked for Baxter, that the injury was more severe than I thought. The door suddenly opened, and I looked to the rude cowboy again with Julia behind him. "Chels, what's wrong?" Julia asked, coming straight to my side, as I was sitting on the floor.
"I-I think I hurt my knee." I said sheepishly.
Julia looked at me with worry, while I heard Vaughn sighed. "What are you doing out of bed anyway?" Julia asked as she helped me sitting down at the bed. "I wanted to s-see Baxter." I said though my eyes were on Vaughn, challenging him, dared him to make any bad remarked about me. But he didn't. He just stood there leaning at the wall next to the door. Julia sighed and patted my back, "He's save. He can't wait to see you again." Julia said with a smile. I looked at Julia, than started to stand but Julia hold me down, "No! You can't go with that knee."
"But.. I just want to see the puppy."
"You can see him later. After we got you a doctor tomorrow."
"P-Please? I'm so worried about him." I said.
Julia looked conflicted because one she is worry about my condition, and two she could understand my feeling. And three, even if I'm so shy at times, and most of the time I stammered as I talk, I could be really stubborn regarding things, such as something like this. She was still deciding if I could go out from the room and looked for Baxter when I heard Vaughn sighed again. I looked up at him, finding him walking towards me slowly. He stood in front of me, and without much word he haul me up, bridal style and took me out from the room. I could see Julia's surprised eyes, and I would have chuckles with amusement if not for the fact I was shocked with his action as well. He just haul me and pick me up as if it was an everyday activity, I thought.
He walked to the main room, and put me down at the dining chair. Than without much of word he walked away, towards the back of the house, probably the barn. I looked up and found Baxter sitting at the corner of the kitchen, contently drinking milk. But than he sniffed his nose up, as if he could smell my fragrant, and he probably did, and turned around. He yapped happily when he saw me and rushed towards me. I smiled with delight and reached down and took him up and snuggled him. Baxter licked my face, and I laughed happily, I could feel tears in the corner of my eyes.
"You silly dog. Never made me scare like that again." I whispered affectionately to the puppy.
Than I put him on my lap, and patted his head carefully. He seems to be content with my action before not long after that, he's fallen asleep. "Chelsea dear. I'm glad you're okay!" Mirabelle said from the counter, she must have been taking care some minor issue of the stock. I smiled at her, and said, "Me too."
"When Vaughn suddenly walked out from the shop, I nearly had a heart attack. Than when he came in not long after that carrying you and the puppy, I'm sure I had a heart attack." Mirabelle said gently, though she gave me that motherly stern look and I know that she meant I shouldn't do something as idiotic as this ever again.
I blushed and mumbled sorry, feeling guilty with my thoughtless action. I just realize how stupid my action was once I saw the worry from Mirabelle and Julia as well. Thankfully, she waved her hand, and just came towards me and gave me a motherly hug. "That's alright. I'm just glad you're alright." Mirabelle said. It's been a while I'm being hug like this, and I'm kind of missed it. I need to send the letter to my mom later on. But than Julia, who had been close her mouth until now, chirped up and said, "Chelsea hurt her knee, mom." I groaned hearing that, and Mirabelle looked at me with worry again. I didn't want to make this people feel worry. But somehow I managed to do that twice. I just looked down to Baxter and patted the puppy even though he's already asleep; because I couldn't take the worry look I received from both of them.
"Julia. Made contact to the doctor."
"I-I thought we don't have doctor." I remembered specifically that there's no doctor in the islands.
"I know. But I acquaintance with this doctor name Trent."
And I swear I almost faint when I heard that name. Trent? Oh god, please not that Trent or I'm going be so dead! I thought, dread creeping up inside me.
Alright, once again I hope you enjoy this chapter, and please review~!
