Extra Chapter (9 ½)

"Hey Claire, does Ringo running around me in circles mean that he's hungry or that he needs to go outside for the bathroom?"

Claire lifted her bright blue eyes from the dirty dishes to see Ringo panting heavily as he ran past a troubled Trent over and over again. She smiled showing her teeth, grabbing her pooch's leash from the coat rack and tossing it to her boyfriend. "Outside. Running back and forth means hungry."

"Well alright, since he asked so nicely," Trent attached the leash to the now-grown dog, gave Claire a peck on the cheek, then headed outside.

Claire went back to cleaning the soiled plates from their dinner, a warm feeling spreading throughout her body. She and Trent had been a solid couple for seven whole months. Most days they spent together—finding time to see each other through their busy work schedules. She brought him to hang out with her regular group of friends, and although he didn't have too much in common with Popuri and Ann, he got along really well with Cliff on their outings and usually chatted up a storm. In fact, he was opening up to the whole town, attending festivals with Claire and coming to Doug's every now and then. Wednesdays were still their days, too, except now they added in long walks around town holding hands and snuggling in front of the TV at night time. Plus, he spent so much time at Claire's house that he even had his own clothing drawer in her dresser—work attire, pajamas, exercise clothes, underwear, not to mention his own toothbrush, shampoo, and razor in her bathroom. Things had been going so incredibly well she had to remind herself from time to time that it was still real life.

Trent walked back in with a content Ringo, unhooking him and replacing the leash to its previous position. He yawned, glanced at his watch, then back at Claire. "Well, it's pretty late. I wanted to get to work early tomorrow to organize our new shipment of medicine." He walked over to her then paused, as if he was waiting for her to say something.

"Alright. Are you sleeping over here or—" She started, but he plucked her on the lips before she could finish her sentence.

"You know I can't resist sleeping next to you before a busy day. I'm going to head to bed now, though, okay?" He grabbed her waist and kissed her again, longer this time. "Thank you for dinner, thank you for cleaning up, and thank you for listening to me talk about the discoveries in European medicine for thirty minutes."

Claire ran her hands up his chest, standing on her toes to peck his forehead. "Hey, I may not understand all of the doctor words you use, but it's still interesting!" She let him go and went to finish drying. "You get to bed. I'll be there in a minute." A grin, much like the one she'd worn for the last seven months, spread across her lips. Lately she'd been smiling herself so much, she had to remind herself to stop before her face started to hurt.

It was only five minutes later when she walked into her bedroom. Trent was already in bed in some boxers and his old university t-shirt. He was laying on his side, one palm pressed to his cheek and the other arm laying across the space where Claire's body normally occupied. His eyes were already closed peacefully and his jaw relaxed, mouth slightly open to breathe gently. She stripped down to her nightclothes as quietly as possible and scooted onto the mattress and under his arm, covering them both in her blanket. Her leg hung off the side of the bed a little, and when she peered over she saw Trent's large feet dangling off the edge as well. Rolling her eyes, she thought back on the easier days of when she slept in her tiny bed on her own. Sure, it was a lot lonelier compared to snuggling up with her tall and muscular Trent, but her bed was not made to hold two people comfortably!

"Is it just me, or does this bed get smaller every time we sleep in it together?" Trent chuckled lazily, voice half-muffled from the pillow. Claire rolled onto her side to face him (and also because she couldn't lay on her back without nearly falling off) and ran her fingers through his fluffy hair. "Not that I mind though," he yawned. "I love cuddling close to you like this when I'm here." At this, he squeezed his arms tight around her.

"I was actually planning on getting a bigger bed," Claire said shyly. "I mean you're always over here anyway… In fact I was thinking about making my house bigger in general. I have enough money to expand my kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and get some new furniture." Her stomach hurt with nerves for a moment, about to ask him what had been on her mind for a month now.

Trent's eyes opened a sliver and he peered at her. "You've been saving up that much?"

"Well," Timidly, Claire brushed a bit off his forehead. "Yes. And, I've been thinking about, um, maybe if you moved in, I would need a bigger house and everything." She held her breath, waiting for his response. His expression was unmoved, still staring at her through his dark slits of eyes. When he didn't say anything for a while, she interjected. "You wouldn't have to move in right away and everything! And I know it's really convenient for you to live right above where you work, but my place is so much bigger and much more of a home, you know, and you're here all of the time…I could knock the wall down between the bedroom and living room to put in an office for you…and you'd be a lot closer to the herbs and leaves out back for your research!" She stopped talking as he let out a chuckle, not knowing what he was going to say next.

"Come on, Claire, you don't have to convince me!" He laughed, eyes widening to their normal size. "Of course I want to move in with you! It's only five minute walk to the clinic anyway. I love you and I'd love to take the next step in our relationship. I think we're ready." He traced the outline of her heart, smiling calmly at her.

"Oh! I'm so happy…I love you too and definitely think we're ready too…!" She exclaimed, heart thumping wildly against her chest. Claire was so happy it was hard to form regular thoughts in her head, so she shut up for a little while and stared into his deep eyes.

Trent snuggled up to her again, fixing their bodies so that she was on her back and that he was on his side, his head laying on her chest and torso pretty much overlapping hers. "Then it's set," he said. "I'll move my stuff over next week. Although, we can keep the bed the same way, you know. I can lay close to my Claire like this every single night." The last sentence came out in a teasing, childlike voice.

Claire let out a roaring laugh, poking him in the ribs. "We are definitely getting a bigger bed!"

***Author's Note***
Hey everyone! It's been a busy spring, but I am working on the last chapter of my Claire x Trent Harvest Moon Fanfiction! I want to spend some time on it making sure it's what I've been imagining. I also realized that I haven't posted anything in forever, so I took this excerpt out from my final chapter and decided to post a small chapter for a change (and apology for not writing lately)! In other news, I am working on the first draft of my next fanfiction, for Harvest Moon A New Beginning (Rio and...well, it'll be a surprise). Thank you for commenting, favoriting, following, but most of all, thank you for just taking the time to read. It's been fun to write, and I can't wait to finish this fun little fanfiction.