Hello again!

I want to thank you all for reading, you all inspire me in my writing.

I have to thank particularly to my reviewers Gabi123, Ravenclaw53, Faith121897 and A Midsummer Night's Dream for their constant comments. I'll do my best to keep on going.

Also, I welcome my new reviewers Chocobo86, R.a.A, Kohana92 and Trapper Chavez. Thanks for taking your time and commenting.

So I hope you enjoy and leave more reviews plz XD

Pd. I know that promised not to write more multiple POV's, but I think these ones can be understood better. XP

Angela

The morning after a girl has been stood up sux. You know, it's like one of those Limp Bizkit lyrics, It's just one of those days when you don't wanna wake up, everything is f***, everybody sux.Well, yes, now I could relate to that song, in every way.

I was embarrassed. I was embarrassed and humiliated. Hell! I was embarrassed, humiliated and angry. Why did I think country boys were any different from city boys? Oh yeah, because Elli and Irene have their heads full of romantic fluff and that is contagious. Why I ever thought I was going to be lucky with Gill is beyond me…

Last night, I dressed in my best (and cleanest) outfit – a blue, sleeveless, knee length dress with high heels- prepared the hot Tomato Risotto and parted to Caramel Falls to possibly one of the best nights of my life. As soon as I arrived, I spread the white blanket and sat down. It was 6:40 pm, early still, but I swore to myself that I wouldn't be arriving late to my first date with Gill. Well, I didn't know if he counted that as a date or not, but according to what Irene told me, it was customary in the Island to take your romantic interest to the Firefly Festival or go with a group of friends. She even commented with a dreamy smile how she was given the blue feather in a Firefly Festival (whatever a blue feather is supposed to mean is beyond me, but it must mean something good I guess…).

Ten to seven, Reneé and Toby appeared and asked me who I was waiting for. I told them with a smile that I was waiting for Gill; Reneé opened her eyes to bovine proportions and Toby looked as surprised as her. While I don't know how most of my friends know I like Gill, none of them believed I had a chance. They congratulated me and went on their way, to a spot next to the waterfall. At 7, Luke, Bo and Owen startled me when they clapped my back loudly: Owen invited me to join them by the shore, but I informed him I was waiting for someone.

"Is it Gill?" Luke asked smirking. Behind him, I saw Elli approaching us.

"What if it's him?" I asked back defiantly. From the party I threw at my house, I still remembered Luke's ability to embarrass me with anything concerning Gill.

"Ha, ha, ha, ha, I knew it!!" he laughed loudly while Elli dragged him away towards where Owen was sitting down. "Well, enjoy yourself, Mrs. Hammilton, ha, ha, ha"

Flushed, I ignored Elli's wink and Reneé and Toby's amused looks. Everybody was distracted however, when the fireflies began coming out. They were beautiful and as a treat, began flying among us, surely perceiving that none of us were a threat to their immediate existence. After 20 minutes, a newly arrived Anissa sat next to me. I asked her to keep me company while we both waited for Gill and Doctor Jin. She said that the Doctor was going to be arriving late because he had a case, but at least we could all watch the fireflies together when he came.

Ten minutes later, the Doctor came up to us. He looked agitated and apologized profusely to Anissa for having kept her waiting while thanking me for having kept her company. "The shortcut by the beach perhaps was not the best one," he said. Anissa asked the doctor if they could stay with me until Gill arrived, to which I refused. There was no way I was going to interrupt their evening; although Gill was not one to arrive late, I was sure he was bound to be there in any minute. Although the doctor insisted it was not problem –and he insisted a lot, with an unusually expressive gaze- I ushered them away and resumed my position. It was 7:30 pm so I decided to steal some bites of the Risotto while thinking how I was going to heat it up when Gill arrived…

At 7:40, the fireflies began to fly away, leaving their most flirty companions behind to entertain us for some more minutes. And while everyone was trying not to, I could feel them watching me, pitying me from the sides. Scaring one firefly who had sat next to me, at ten to 8, I began picking up the blanket and the leftovers of the cold Risotto. As the firefly posed on a rock, everyone as if on cue, began commenting on how beautiful was the festival and how it was late. I ignored the rest as I began to walk towards my house in wobbly steps because of the damned high heels I had worn to match the stupid blue dress that had wrinkled incredibly as I sat during 1 hour 10 minutes before I finally understood I had been ditched as the fool I am. However, my evening was not over; I slipped because of the heels, falling face to ground in the path in front of my house. The glass Risotto container mutinously escaped from my hands, rolled three times on the air and crashed spectacularly on the floor, breaking into million pieces –many of which embedded themselves in my shoulders and arms. And of course, the sound of fatality had to attract my friends:

"Angie! Are you ok?!" Elli's footsteps were soon to approach.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine…" I grumbled as I fought with the knot in my throat. When I tried to stand up, a sharp pain extended through both of my hands: several pieces of glass had incrusted on my palms and forearms.

Owen came and lifted me by the waist, extracting me effectively from the sea of glass shards. Some glistening pieces fell off my skirt, bouncing hypnotically on the ground. I also thought it was raining, as I saw some drops fall on the ground, but apparently, they were really tears that had treacherously escaped my eyes. I tried to wipe them off before anyone noticed, but Jin grabbed my wrists, stilling them.

"Don't!" he said while taking a handkerchief Anissa was offering. "You'll get glass in your eyes that way. Better come to the Clinic. Goddess knows that those cuts hurt a lot..."

Everyone knew I was not crying because of the cuts, after all, which farmer would cry for something like that? Yet, nobody mentioned otherwise. Good friends these I have; they respect my wounded pride. While Owen carried me after Jin and Anissa, Bo and Luke searched my right pocket for my house keys and offered to clean up the mess. Elli trailed behind, trying to cheer me up with promises of cakes and drinks later at the Inn. I hiccupped once more and kept silently weeping…

It was 8 o'clock.

…

"Well Angela, that's it!" Jin announced as he dropped the last glass shard on a metal tray next to the lavatory. "Some bandages here and there and you can go home." We were at the Clinic, where I got a glass of water, some medicines and some stitches.

"Thanks doctor!" I said sincerely. Anissa's herb tea really had calmed me down. "I'll swing by later to pay for this, I promise!"

"Don't mention it," said the kind man. "Keep bringing me those singular Pontata Roots you somehow get and I'll consider us even."

"You wanna join us at the Inn, Doc? There's a huge party over there!" Owen asked while helping me down the bed as the doctor finished bandaging me up. "Bo and Luke have to be already there and Elli, Angie and I are heading over there too!"

Party? Inn? "Hey, I didn't say anything about going with you!" I protested. All I wanted to do was curl up, die and wake up tomorrow morning to plow my field. Was it so difficult?

Elli smiled and pulled my nose, "That's why we didn't ask you! You're just coming and period!" Leaving me pouting, she turned to the doctor, waiting for his answer.

The Asian shook his head, "No, I'm terribly sorry; I left certain unfinished business by Caramel Falls. I may go by later, if it's not too late. But Anissa may want to accompany you, I think."

The long haired woman looked at the Doctor for some moments and then smiled, leading the way out to Owen and Elli's delight. As I followed them, I realized something was just not right: Anissa was never one of parties, but for me I know she would assist to any. But the Doctor leaving Anissa to attend any unfinished business was unthinkable…

…

The Inn by night was nothing new to me, but that night was definitely different from others. There were a lot of the town elders over there plus some other residents I had never seen, perhaps from the neighboring Islands which I still had yet to visit. As soon as the Mayor saw us he frowned a little but then regained his usual cheery self (fueled by alcohol, no doubt) and introduced me as the Island's new star farmer. Introductions made, I was dragged to the dance floor by Pascal, who still had some nice moves in him, I gotta admit. Although he mimicking Tom Jones and me taking off my shoes may have helped a bit…

Owen was being harassed by the old ladies, for Anissa and Elli's mirth. Bo and Luke tried to save him after returning my keys, but ended up in Yolanda's clutches instead. After a lot of laughter and more alcohol, I was sitting next to Maya, Pascal taken away by an old woman in glasses who looked like my grandma but moved as if she were a stripper. And dancing Sex Bomb may have given her the idea…

"Having fun?" she said as she sipped her cocktail.

"Very!" I had to admit. I had calmed down and I would talk to Gill later; perhaps he had to work late and he couldn't go. He did have a lot of things to do according to what he told me. "I never imagined you threw this kind of parties or I would have begun coming long ago!"

"Ha, ha, ha, ha! That's the spirit, isn't it?!" she laughed while looking at the crowd. "Well, we don't have them often, but Shelly came back so we had to!" she pointed at the old woman dancing with Pascal.

"The granny-stripper?"

"HA HA HA HA HA, WAIT 'TILL I TELL HER!!" she laughed as she almost fell from her chair. I hurried to grab her, but she recovered on time. "Well, yeah, she was our old seamstress. When alcohol touches her, she just transforms! Her snob granddaughter Luna were here, she would have a stroke, ha ha ha"

"Oh, she has a granddaughter as well?" I asked.

"Yeah, well, she has 2. Candace, who is on the bar next to mom and Luna, that is not here." Maya explained while pointing to a blue haired, quiet girl beyond the dancing crowd. "Hammilton and Gill went to greet them earlier when they were arriving to the port. It's not hard to guess that Luna is catching up with Gill if you know what I mean…" she winked.

'Catching up with Gill?' Something justtold me I was going to get more than I bargained for. "What do you mean Maya?"

She beckoned me closer and threw her arm over my shoulder. "Well, don't tell anybody I told you but Gill has this thing for Luna; ever since they were children, actually. Luna acts tough but we all know she likes him too. Even dad said they would marry someday."

I signaled Kathy for another of whatever Maya was taking. I needed to keep the alcohol flowing so she would tell me what I needed to know. "And what happened?"

Maya gulped the rest of her concoction and smiled as a new one came in front of her. "Well, Shelly –as many others- decided that she had to leave the Island. Those times were not very good for the small businesses, you know? So of course she took her granddaughters with her. Poor Gill, he was so miserable. Hammilton did everything he could, from fishing contests to mining competitions, so he could try to cheer him up. Well, those were sad times for me too, 'cause a dear friend of mine had to go away too…" she finished gloomily, watching intently the liquid in her cup.

I had experienced something similar, when my friend Vaughn turned into an animal dealer. "I had a friend like that too. I never saw him again, though he writes every now and then. Does your friend write too?"

She looked at me and gave me a small smile, "He used to. But now he writes more to my grandma, to show her his new recipes. He doesn't care for me… " I saw a tear fall on her hand and roll down to her cocktail, mixing with the alcohol.

I didn't use to like Maya, because I thought of her as annoying, but maybe she was trying to hide that she was not happy. Suddenly, I decided that I had to cheer her and myself up. I took her by the arm and dragged her onto the dance floor.

"Come on, life is short, many fish in the sea and little time to catch'em all!" I said over the noise as I began dancing. Maya wiped her eyes and began dancing as well. She looked at my hands and arms for the first time and asked for the bandages.

"Oh, I went to the Firefly festival earlier and dropped a glass container. Guess where all the pieces went…" I said as I danced.

"Oh! That's too bad! It happens to me every month, ha ha ha. And by the way, who did you go with?" she asked while laughing.

"Oh, with Owen, Luke, Bo and Elli!" No else one needed to know I had been dumped, even if it was a matter of time.

"Oh, I knew it!" she said as she made a victory sign to Kathy –who sighed and returned to serve drinks. "Kathy had said that she saw Gill and you talking by the Clinic about the Firefly festival. She was positive he was going with you!"

I gulped and smiled, "Oh, was she now?"

"Yeah, but I told her that Gill and the Mayor along with Ruth and Craig were greeting Shelly, Luna, Candace and Taylor at the dock. There was simply no way Gill would have left Luna to go on a date with another girl. It's obvious!"

"Yeah, very!" I agreed while silently cursing Irene and Elli for not telling me this when I asked about Gill's past. Come morn I would be the town's fool…

"Yeah, but now that you're here with the rest and Gill and Luna are nowhere to be seen, I win the bet Kathy and I made" Maya finished as she saw Kathy waving some bills in her direction. She said she would be back and went to collect her reward.

As soon as she was out of sight, I put my shoes on and hurried to the door, thanking the providence my friends were distracted. I loved them dearly but I needed to be alone, under my covers. Hell, under the bed if it was all it took to stop feeling like trash. It was midnight as I walked the path to my house, slipping again after a few steps because of the damned heels. This time I fell on my butt, staining with dust and dirt whatever was left clean of my dress. Needless to say, I got up, retraced my steps, went to the Maple Lake District and with a wild yell, threw the goddamned things to the bottom of the lake.

Stupid night!

Stupid Luna whom I had never met!

Stupid Elli and Irene who filled my head with fluff!

Stupid me from believing in love! Dwak!

Stupid Gill who is sitting on my door step looking troubled!

Stupid… wait a second!

And there he was, five hours late, the mayor's son sitting on my door step in a grimy white suit…

……………………………..

Jin

Closing the door to the Clinic earlier that night, I hadn't imagined what expected me in the shortcut by the beach. I had finally mustered the courage to ask lovable Anissa to the Firefly festival and I had to admit I was excited by the prospect. However, Yolanda had a nasty cut some moments ago and I had to assist her. Apparently, she was hurrying to prepare a meal for the party the Inn was throwing to welcome the seamstress Shelly and granddaughters. I knew them since Candace and Luna spent an inordinate amount of time requiring medical services. Candace was fragile and she was usually sick of whatever was in season during those years; perhaps that being why she became such a proficient seamstress, being secluded in her house almost 24/7. Luna and her explorations activities looking for new fabrics and colors demanded an extravagant quantity of medicine so my grandmother and I could keep her healthy.

In any case, I took the beach shortcut since Angela had sworn it saved 2 minutes in arriving to the Caramel District. Angela had also spent an incredible number of days in the Clinic either recovering from exhaustion or talking to my grandmother. Deep inside, I was glad since I didn't have much time to talk to grandma these days and Angela became another grandchild, as she commented to me recently. During those talks, I overheard how the new farmer was pursuing the Mayor's son and somehow had gotten him to invite her to the Firefly Festival. I didn't think of it again until I arrived to the beach and saw how Angela's date was kissing a person with pink pigtails and a flowy dress of the same color; Luna, no doubt.

I stood shocked for some of seconds but then rounded the couple and continued my way, thinking perhaps I had overheard the wrong information. Once I arrived to the falls, however, I sadly saw that it was not the case. Anissa had arrived earlier and was sitting next to an unusually elegant Angela, who was waiting for Gill as my date informed me. Anissa even suggested for us to wait with Angela until Gill arrived and I agreed wholeheartedly, not looking forward to see her alone while her date was on the beach with other girl. Angela, as considerate as she is, refused our invitation and settled to eat the risotto she brought in the container while she waited for Gill. I contemplated telling Anissa the information I knew but inexplicably, I couldn't. I never thought of Gill as dishonorable so there had to be some good explanation about what happened.

The festival came and went, but Anissa and I couldn't help looking at Angela, who was bravely smiling at the fireflies while her eyes were watering. At the end, she was the first to pick up her things and leave, under everyone's veiled glances. As we left the place and said our good byes, we heard a big crash of glass in Angela's direction. Owen and Elli were the first to run, followed by Bo, Luke and Anissa. Toby and Renee tactfully left the matter in my hands, figuring Angela wouldn't want more attention than the one she had gotten for the night.

…

Once I treated Angela, I decided to swing by Caramel Falls again, figuring that somehow, Gill would be there. And I was not mistaken; he was sitting on a rock looking at one last firefly as it twirled around him.

"She's at the Inn…" I said, announcing my presence. "We left shortly before 8."

He got up and turned at me. "Did you stay with her?" he frowned.

"Anissa and I stayed with her for some minutes, but she wanted to wait for you alone. And after kissing Luna by the beach, I could tell you that you have no business inquiring about Angela."

He looked surprised for a couple of seconds, but then he slumped on the rock he was sitting on. "You are right… I'm just… I thought it would always… I never thought I could be in this position…"

I sat next to him. "What happened Gill? I told no one of what I saw because I wanted to get your version first. I just simply cannot picture you as a brigand who would two-time two perfect honorable women."

He sighed and placed his left hand on his face. "I've always pictured Luna and I together. The fact was simply beyond contestation; I loved her and I knew that somehow she loved me as well. But then Angela came and I knew nothing for a fact. She is efficient, likes tomatoes as I do, and is smart and thoughtful. A marvelous farmer too, I must add; I've gotten no problem in finding customers for her produce. It had been months and I hadn't thought nor dreamt about Luna but now that Luna is back, all is confusing…"

"Do you love Luna?" I asked him, though I knew the answer.

"I don't know!" he shouted, throwing his arms to the arm. "When I kissed her, I was happy because I had succeeded, but it definitely wasn't what I expected. And suddenly I remembered Angela and ran to her, but I was too late…"

I took a deep breath and began walking away. "Doctor, where are you going?" he said as he took my leave.

"That is your answer Gill. You kissed Luna, you were with her but you ran to Angela. That's all you need to know"

And with that, I left to the Inn. I could probably dance a piece or two with Anissa before Shelly claims me for the night.

……………..

Gill

I took a sit on Angela's door step after I had assessed the sorry state of my suit. I had no idea of what I was going to tell Angela, but leaving without speaking to her would only make matters worse. A soft sound to my right drew my attention; there came the farmer in a soiled blue dress, with some bandages on her arms and hands. I got up without thinking and ran to her.

"Are you ok?" I asked, almost touching her arm but halting a few centimeters before.

She assented swiftly and drew a lock behind her ear. "I'm ok, I guess…" She looked at her naked feet and sighed impatiently, "Look, Gill, why are you here? It's midnight already…"

"I came, first of all, to apologize. I was…" what the hell was I going to say?

"You were with this Luna, weren't you?" she asked, still looking at her feet. "Maya told me you had gone to meet her and her family at the dock"

"Yeah, I was but I want to tell you that-" I began, but she waved me off as I tried to explain.

She went past me, looking for her house keys "You've got nothing to explain. I now know you guys have a history. Had I known before, I wouldn't have insisted nor pressed." She opened her door and turned on the lights. She turned to look at me,"So, run along and go to sleep. I presume you have to work tomorrow…"

I entered her house before she could close her door. She protested with a hey, but I ignored her and stood in the middle of the room. "Look, I know that you may be mad at me and believe me when I tell you that I do feel bad about what happened today. Give me 5 minutes and if you don't like my explanation, I will leave, ok?"

She thought for a moment and finally sat on her bed. I took this as my cue and began to account for my actions. "Luna and I never had an official history. I liked her when we were younger and apparently she liked me as well, but she left and we couldn't get to anything. I won't deny that had she stayed, perhaps we would have become a couple, but that is neither here nor now. I was serious about her but now I'm not so sure anymore… Anyway, I met with her, we talked and I lost the track of time; I ran as quickly as I could, but you were gone. For this, I'm sorry…" I finally bowed lowly in front of her.

She stayed quiet for some time. Then, she stood up, took some pajamas out of a drawer and went through a door I presumed was the bathroom. After she got changed, she came back and opened the door for me.

"Gill, I understand that you are confused. But if you're not sure about what you feel, I refuse to let you use me to find it out…"

"Angela-"

"No, let me finish. I just can't see you right now, ok? When I met you, I told you that I had come here looking for a new life. This thing that you and Luna have… It has nothing to do with me… I won't be dragged into something like this again, not anymore…" she said while lowering her head. I think I saw some tears, but I can't be sure.

"Again? Angela, what are you talking about?" I had to get to the bottom of this.

"Please Gill, just go…" the farmer said as she wept.

Seeing I had nothing to do there, I bowed and left her house, feeling horribly guilty by the second. As I turned to look behind, I saw her silhouette through the window. She was lying down on her bed, her shoulders trembling… She was crying…

To be continued