It's summer time! FINALLY right? Haha! XD

Okay, not sure if I got Kai down or not. Idk, but he was sort of... hard to write, but I tried! :)
And thanks to those who have reviewed so far! :) I really appreciate it! :D


Sitting on the beach, Claire stared out into the ocean. The waves lapped at the shore as her dog Akira walked along the shore line, back and forth. Both seemed to be in deep thought.

It was Beach Day—a day for hanging around the beach and participating in a swimming race and a Frisbee throw. The blonde-haired farmer decided to arrive at the beach early, really early. Why? She just wanted to be alone and be able to enjoy the ocean to herself. And she got to for awhile till a certain purple-bandana-wearing person decided to disturb her little alone time.

"So you're Claire." he said as he sat rather close to her: too close for her comfort, "Nobody told me that the new girl was cute, quite cute!" he flirted as he looked at her. She slightly blushed as she continued staring off into the ocean.

Akira made her way towards her mistress.

"And you must be Kai." she stated, eyes fixated still on the ocean. "I'll say this: your reputation perceives you."

"Oh? What may that be?"

"Being the town's flirt."

The tanned man paused slightly before responding, "Success?"

Claire stifled a laugh, "Let's just say I've met men who would put you to shame." Akira nudged her head against her mistress's hand, staring at Kai. "It's alright, girl." she patted her dog's head.

"Your dog ain't going to attack, right?" Kai nervously asked, "Cause she's giving the look."

"What? That look?" she motioned towards Akira's facial expression, "Nah, she's just checking you out; don't worry about her. You're fine." She paused a bit before continuing, "So, besides angering every male in this town, what else do you do?"

To that, Kai chuckled, "Believe it or not I run a little restaurant here—right over there." he pointed at the white wooden building beside Zack's place.

"Really!" Claire purposely remarked dramatically.

"Really." he echoed, "I call it the Seaside Lodge. You can find me there the majority of times." he winked.

"And why would I be looking for you?" she cocked her head at him.

"Cause I'm irresistible and fun to hang out with." He moved closer to Claire's face, much to her discomfort. Deep down though, she knew that he was different from all the other flirtatious guys she had met in the past.

"Kai, what the hell do you think you're doing with my sister?" an angry voice boomed causing Kai to jump.

"Relax, Andrew. He's harmless." the blonde interceded.

"Yeah, Andrew. He's harmless." Kai repeated.

"Listen to me, young lady-"

"No, you listen!" she exploded, "I can hang out with whomever I want to; I've spent the last eight years—the eight years that you weren't around—around men a hell of a lot worse than Kai here. You have no business dictating whom I can or can't hang out around here! If I want to hang out with Kai, I can dam well do so!" She took a deep breath then continued, "And for the record, if he was really a threat to my well being, Akria would've done something by now; she's good that way."

"Sis-"

"Save it! I'm in no mood right now." She stood up, dusted the sand off her bare legs, and grabbed her flip flops which were beside her. "Akira! Come on, girl. We're going to the dock." Glancing over to her brother, "And I don't want to be disturbed!" Claire made her way towards the dock with Akira following close by.

Once Andrew knew Claire was out of hearing range, he crossed his arms as he turned his attention towards Kai. "I better not catch you with my sister again!"

"Chill, man! I get enough trouble from Rick as it is. You're starting to sound just like him; and I don't think you want that comparison, dude."

"I'm just saying if you dare touch-"

"I won't; I won't, but that doesn't mean I'll stop seeing her from time to time. Your sister—she's different... and drop dead gorgeous, if I say so myself! She seems cool." Kai commented.

"Kai, I swear-"

"Dude, you need to relax for a minute and open your eyes." Andrew gave him a puzzled look. "Look, do you see Trent and Gray?" he motioned towards their way.

"Yeah, but what the hell do they have to do with you?"

"Not me; your sister: they are both staring at her direction. Though Gray is trying to be inconspicuous about it, but he's failing miserably... to some extent. Others may look at him and not see it, but me—I know him. If I viewed Claire in that kind of way," he rubbed his chin, "she would already be in my hands-"

"Kai!-" he growled

"Dude, my point: if you want to protect your sister, I would be starting here first; don't worry about me." He paused. "Besides, I have someone else in mind anyways..." he trailed off.

Processing what Kai had just said, Andrew blinked. Whether or not Kai was telling the truth... he didn't know. "Kai..." he started off but quickly lost original thought, "You think Gray and Trent has a thing for my sister?"

"No, I know they do. I've seen it all, Andrew: all the signs are there; I may have been here only for a few days now, but believe me, I caught on quick."

"Even Gray? Cause they aren't exactly best friends."

Kai nodded, "Even him; and by what I've heard and what you just told me further proves it."

"So let me get this straight: Gray not getting along with my sister means he likes her?"

"Even more so. Think of it this way: have you even known Gray to be someone who just talks to anyone?"

"No, he hardly talks, well maybe except for us; and when he does talk to other people, it's usually short or not at all."

"Exactly my point! Dude! I know when a guy likes a girl! It's my area of expertise!"

"And you got that all from watching them from here."

"Not all of it; I've heard stuff. It really doesn't take much to figure it out. I'm surprised you haven't put two and two together."

Andrew processed what the tanned traveler told him and quickly realized something. "Kai, are you trying to get my off your scent? Cause-"

"Dude, seriously? I'm telling the truth here: if you don't believe me, then, with your permission, I'll go and sit beside Claire and do what I do best-" Andrew glared at him. "Hang on, nothing will happen—while I do that, watch Trent and Gray, specifically Trent though: Gray knows me and is one of the few that doesn't mind me too much... I think... pretty sure though; but Trent—I know the guy hates my guts. Just watch Trent's reaction... so, can I prove it to you?"

"Fine, but the min-"

"Like I said, nothing bad will happen: trust me." he winked.

"You're asking me to do the impossible, Kai."

"You won't be let down, Andrew." Kai hollered out as he headed towards the dock.

Andrew ran his hand though his dark brown hair in frustration. "He better be dam right about this," he muttered under his breath, "and not using this as an excuse-" He watched the doctor's uncomfortable demeanor as Kai did what he normally does with a woman—flirts, Kai style. His eyes then turned to Gray who was watching the dock carefully but his stance remained the same.

"Well, what do you know: Kai's right. What to do from here—I haven't a clue; it's not like there's a manual on this stuff. I guess keep an eye on those two for now; Claire can hate me all she wants to—that's not going to change my role as a big brother... it's the least I can do for not being there for her all those years..." he spoke to himself.

"Andrew, who are you talking to?" Ann inquired. Course, she happened to overhear; this was Ann after all. "And why, for that matter, are you allowing Kai around your sister—I thought-"

"Ann, it's complicated."

"Uncomplicate it for me then." she folded her arms, waiting for an explanation.

He looked at Ann then to the long brown-haired man beside her. "Why don't you and Cliff go do something and leave me alone." he muttered.

"Fine! We'll do just that! Come on, Cliff." Dragging a confused Cliff, she stormed off to go mingle with people who weren't "the grouchy Andrew."

As he watched the two leave, he sighed heavily. He wished with all his heart that he had the courage to tell Ann how he really felt about her; but for some reason, he never could. Maybe he was indeed a coward.

But even if he did work up the courage to tell her, she was with Cliff. And in his mind, there wasn't much he could do about it. But as long as Ann was happy, he could somehow be happy for her... or at least try.

Kai soon returned. "So?"

"You were right, Kai." Andrew stared off in the distance.

"Of course I was!" Kai observed the somewhat distant and depressed man, "Now about you and Ann..."

"Kai, I don't need advice from you." Andrew protested of what he knew would come. He certainly didn't want any love advice from Kai.

"Clearly you do since you have allowed the new guy to have her."

"It's not like I wanted it to happen! Ann's the one who went after him."

"And you just allowed it? Dude, I know how much you're crazy about her."

"So? Is it any of your dam business?"

"It is when it sends a negative vibe in the same room I'm sleeping in; and I need my beauty sleep. You don't get this handsome without taking care of yourself!" Andrew rolled his eyes. "And don't think I haven't noticed how you glare at Cliff when he's not looking."

"Kai, why don't you bug someone else."

"Alright. I'll go see if Claire would like to join me for lunch tomorrow." Kai commented nonchalantly as he slowly headed towards her location.

"No wait!" Andrew grabbed his arm before Kai could get far. "Say what you have to say." he remarked as he let go of Kai's arm.

"I don't think Cliff likes Ann in that way." Kai stated as if it was the most obvious thing.

"Yeah, well what do you—wait, what?" he blinked. Confusion was very apparent on his face.

"Dude, you heard me."

"You're not pulling my leg, are you?"

"Andrew," Kai gave a friendly slap on his back, "sooner or later, you'll notice, man."

"Kai, so help me if you're wrong-"

"Let us now begin the swimming contest!" the mayor loudly announced to everyone. "Anyone who wishes to participate in it, please get ready."

"My cue to go." Kai stated. "See ya at the finish line!" The overly friendly guy shouted as he scurried off, leaving Andrew confused and speechless.

His mind wandered to two scenarios. If Kai was right, then he figured that he had a shot with Ann; but if Kai was wrong, he didn't know what he would do exactly. He desperately hoped that Kai was right. Hoping that Kai was right—that was something new to him; something that he wasn't planning on getting used to.

Claire, out of nowhere, appeared in front of him, Akira being close by. "Cat caught your tongue?" She received no answer from him. "Look," she continued, playing with her ponytail, "I'll make you a deal: win the swimming contest, and... I'll do as you say." He stared at her then blinked; he blinked again and again, trying to process what she just said to him. Had he been transported to a parallel universe? "Andrew, are you alright? You look a bit... not there."

"N-No, I-I'm... I'm fine." he managed to speak out. "It's just.. what Kai said and what you just said... it's one of those days." he sighed out the last part.

"Kai?" She scrunched her face in confusion then quickly shrugged her shoulders. "Well, you better get ready for the race; and you better beat Kai."

He blinked again. Scratching his head, he spoke up, "Claire, I'm not understanding something; first you exploded at me and now you come up to me and say that you want me to win? …and if I do... Claire you aren't making any sense to me."

"Dammit." she muttered under her breath, knowing full well she had to admit she was wrong, "Andrew, I had some time to think at the dock and let's just say... look, I don't want you to go all Rick on me but at the same time... Gah! I don't know what I'm trying to say."

"I think I understand, sis."

"But there's more... maybe not exactly what you want to hear.." the blonde shifted her feet while finding the sand interesting, "I... kind of? made a bet with... Gray..."

"What?" he raised his eyebrow.

"I don't even remember how the hell it happened, but one minute we were arguing and the next we... were still arguing but who would win... it all went quite fast... and he seemed to think that Kai would... and well—dammit! I wasn't going to let him win!"

"And so you just decided to place down money... on me of all people."

"Yeah... but the thing is I know you can win; he might have told me that Kai usually wins, even when you arrived; but I know it's because you didn't do your absolute best. You need to... just do this one thing for me, please? I'll even give the money to you."

"Claire, sis, it seems like you're doing everything you can to prove him wrong... is there something that I should know?"

The farmer crossed her arms. "Andrew, if you thinking what I think you're thinking—don't: you're way off. Just go quickly before the race starts without you." she said as she shoved him in the general direction. He only chuckled to himself.

The race soon began when all participants were ready. Kai, first, was in the lead which wasn't a surprise to anyone. It looked like he would win till, out of nowhere, a dark-brown-haired figure emerged from underwater and slapped the rock seconds before Kai could. It was close—quite close, and no one at the beach knew who won. "And the winner is... by mere seconds... Andrew!" Rick shouted from the rock he was standing on. He was relieved that he didn't have to say Kai's name again that year.

That just made Claire's day. She skipped over to the grumpy blacksmith apprentice and gave him a devilish grin. Reluctantly, he paid her what he owed while muttering under his breath.

Then next few hours were spent either eating or talking since more people were expected to come to the beach. Yeah, people watched the swimming contest, but the main event was the Frisbee tournament. Everyone simply adored watching the dogs catch the Frisbee.

The rules were simple: the dog catching the farthest Frisbee would win.

The blonde farmer though had no intention of entering her dog in the competition. She simply was content sitting in the sand observing the people around her as well as the gentle waves the ocean produced. But like usual, someone had to interrupt her though it wasn't the flirtatious man she had met earlier. This figure wore a heavy tanned outfit—an outfit not exactly summer-friendly. "Aren't you going to enter that-"

"Gray, so help me if you say mutt, I will snatch that stupid hat of yours and throw it as far as I can into the ocean; and don't think I'm kidding." He scowled at her. "And to answer your question—no."

"Why? 'fraid you're gonna to lose?" he sat next to her.

"No." she stared out into the ocean.

"Then you're entering?"

"No!"

"Why the hell not?"

"Why the hell you care?" she snapped as she glared at him. He grew silent as he pulled down his hat, hiding his face. Stupid hat of his... I can never tell what's he thinking... not that I care or even want to know... "If you must know, I'm not entering cause my dog would have an advantage over the competition; it wouldn't be fair."

"Aren't you being a little-"

"No I'm not!" she almost yelled. "It's the truth! This dog of mine," she motioned towards Akira who then perked her ears up, "she's like... human; she is highly intelligent for a dog. Why would I enter her in a competition when I know she doesn't have to? She's proven her keep to me countless of times. And bottom line, if I don't want to enter her, there's is no dam law saying that I have to. And it's certainly none of your dam business."

"Whatever you say, blondie." he muttered to himself but loud enough for her to hear. She viciously gripped the sand beside her while gritting her teeth. She absolutely hated that nickname and always had. Right then and there she wanted to deck him, but she restrained herself from doing so. Why? Cause Kai had decided to grace them with his presence.

"Yo! Whatcha two doing?" he smirked.

"Nothing, Kai! Nothing at all! So, whatever you're thinking—stop!" Gray snapped.

"Dude! Geez, take it easy. It was just a question. No need to get all protective." he teased; Gray only glared at him. Kai, turning his attention to Claire, continued talking, "So, is Prince Charming here treating you well?"

"I wouldn't call him a prince and he's hardly charming."

"And I wouldn't exactly call you a princess."

"I can act like one when I want to, you know! I just chose not to most of the times!"

"And I can be charming when I choose to be!"

"Ha! You? Charming?" the blonde snorted, "As much as a brick wall perhaps."

"Ya know, you two sure argue like a married couple; it's... interesting." Kai nonchalantly commented, interrupting the conversation and Gray's attempt of a comeback. He found the whole situation amusing.

They both shot menacing glares at him. If looks could kill, he would've been dead long ago in the most brutal way possible. "Shut the hell up, Kai!" They both shouted at the same time. A small, unnoticeable blush crept on Claire's face while Gray, like usual, covered his face with his hat.

"What?" he innocently asked, "It's true! You two would make a good couple-"

"Kai!"

"You're both alike in many ways-"

"Kai!"

"And you both-"

"Dammit, Kai!" Gray shot up from sitting, "If you value your breathing and wanna make it to the next day, I suggest you to stop!. Don't forget: I know where you sleep!"

Kai only gave the stupidest grin.

Standing up, Claire brushed the sand off her legs. "I need to go now. So I'll see you two whenever." she calmly stated, much to the surprise of the two men near her who had expected her to go all G.I. Jane. She approached Kai then whispered in his ear. "You don't want to be on my bad side: and if you continue with this nonsense, let's just say the only thing which will remain of you will be when people observe the sudden high quality of my crops." And with that she, along with Akira, left the terrified Kai and still confused Gray by themselves all while evilly grinning to herself.

"The nerve of him..." she muttered as she walked towards her farm. He definitely wasn't what she had expected him to be. She then chuckled to herself. "First impressions of him—he has a death wish! Definitely will be calling my two friends tonight."

When she had just arrived at her farm, she noticed a figure in the distance running towards her. "Sis!" It was her brother.

"Yeah?"

"Why'd you leave?" he asked while trying to catch his breath. "I had expected you to enter the tournament."

"Didn't really feel like sticking around." she shrugged her shoulders, "What'd you want anyways?"

"Came to check on my lil' sis, if that's okay with you." She rolled her eyes. "That and... what did you say to Kai? Cause whatever you said to him, he hasn't been the same. It's quite comical actually."

"Just warned him that's all." Her brother gave her a elaborate-please look. "It was only because of his stupid comment about Gray and myself... of being a good couple" She almost spat that word out. "As if that would ever happen. Gah!" she realized, "I really hope he doesn't team up with Ann; those two as an alliance would be... catastrophic!" He chuckled at that.

"Oh Claire. My sweet naïve Clairey."

"What the hell is that suppose to mean?" the sweet blonde exclaimed.

"Nevermind... So, speaking of Kai-"

"Oh, don't worry: I'm not even sure if I want to hang out with him. He's friendly, overly too friendly yet harmless, but after what he said... I want to break every bone of his body." she clenched her fists.

"You don't even allow me to finish. What I was going to say was—you don't have to keep your promise. I know I-"

"Andrew, can we not dwell on what happened today?" she interrupted him yet again, "We already got passed that..." A brief silence befell them. "I have to do some chores now; so if you want to help, stay; if not, then I'll see you some other time."

"I'll leave you to your work then." he said as he ruffled her bangs. "Bye lil' sis!"

"Bye." she blew her bangs.

Turning towards her field, she marched over to her watering can she had left near the shipping bin that morning. She picked it up then started to water her seedlings. After that, she entered her house to grab her rucksack since she didn't have it with her.

Once she had her rucksack, she headed towards her chicken coop to check on her chicken. "Hello, Alice! You look good today!" the blonde chirped when she opened the coop. The hen clucked in response.

She placed some chicken feed in Alice's feed box then gathered the egg. Finished in the chicken coop, she exited and headed towards her stable where her horse, Alex resided. "Hey, boy! You look bigger and stronger everyday!" She took the brush out of her rucksack and started brushing her brown horse. "I bet you can't wait to explore these parts!" He neighed in response. Once she was sure Alex's coat was to her satisfaction, she put away the brush back in her rucksack and made sure he had enough food.

Exiting the stable, she sighed at her field. Stupid enormous rocks! And stumps! And- Her thoughts were interrupted when Akira came running towards her, carrying an object. "Akira, what do you-" noticing what she was holding in her mouth, she continued, "Akira! Bad dog!" The blonde tried to sound serious but couldn't though her laughter. She knelt down and grabbed the object out of her dog's mouth, "You funny dog! Stealing a Frisbee... I'm sure you're what everyone's talking about at the beach now." she laughed.

"Okay, girl!" Claire exclaimed as she stood up. Winding her arm back, she threw the Frisbee, "Go get it!" She watched as Akira ran after the Frisbee. "Whoa! I don't know my own strength!" she commented. The blonde-haired farmer then saw Akira gracefully leap up, catching the Frisbee with ease. "That dog totally would've dominated the tournament!" she laughed to herself.

Since she was done with her farm work, Claire decided to sit under her apple tree located relatively near her shipping bin. "Akira! Apple tree! I'm heading towards there." the blonde yelled as she headed towards her tree. Akira perked her ears up and followed her mistress.

Sitting against the tree, Claire began to ponder again, but her eyes soon closed, drifting off into dreamland.

The blonde-haired farmer woke up to her dog nudging her with an object. "Not now, Akira!" she mumbled, eyes partly open, "I don't want to throw the Frisbee right now." Her dog again nudged her. "Akira! I said-" Her eyes fully were open now and to her horror, and dismay, she saw what the object really was. "Akira!" she groaned, "Not again!" She quickly stood up.

Just like she predicated, he came storming onto her farm. Talk about déjà vu... Before she had a clear view of him, she hid the hat behind her back.

"That dam mu-" he noticed her glaring, "-dog of yours stole my hat again!"

"Now how did she managed do that, again? You barely take if off as it is." she teased.

"That dog is smart, too dam smart; now gimme back my hat!"

"Ha! You admit that she's intelligent!" The blacksmith glared at her. Ignoring his glare, she continued, "What makes you think I have it anyways?"

"She's your dog! Who else would have it?" he yelled.

"Yeah, she's a dog... meaning that dogs dig—dogs bury stuff; so there's no guarantee that I even have it."

"I see it behind you! Now give it back!"

"What this ol' thing?" She waved the object in front of him, taunting him with it. He tried snatching his precious hat from her but she was too quick. "Ooo! Aren't we getting a bit gutsy around my dog... my dog whose quite capable of biting you... not that she would: she seems to like you a lot." She laughed, "Yet on Spring Thanksgiving you scurried up my apple tree, afraid for your life of her! That still cracks me up!"

"Dammit, Woman! I just want my hat, not a conversation!" His patience was growing very thin.

"You're not getting it back till you ask nicely... or at least say please." she stated calmly.

The hatless Gray ran his hands through his strawberry blonde hair in frustration. Sticking his hands in his pockets, he glared at the grass wishing somehow the earth would swallow up the blonde-haired farmer. He smirked at the thought of it.

As she waited for the blacksmith to respond or rather blow up, she fiddled with his hat. "Ya know, I may keep this for Akira; she seems to like it. Besides, your hair—Gray?"

He came close to her, a lot closer than she expected. His blue eyes met her sapphire ones as only inches separated their faces. "Please, Claire, give me my dam hat back."

She blinked then shoved his hat into his chest. Quickly, she sidestepped around her tree, absolutely dumbfounded at what had just happened. There was no way she had predicated that. Again, he had done something that completely caught her off guard. She was expecting him to explode then snatch his hat out of her hands, but she was way off on that one... again.

"I-I didn't want your stupid h-hat anyways!" the blonde exclaimed, still in some state of shock.

He placed his precious hat back on it's rightful place. "Thank you, blondie."

She gritted her teeth hard while clenching her fists, "Oh, go rot in a hole..." But he had already left.

She then glared at her dog who was sitting and looking up at her. "Akira..." the blonde shook her head, "I don't know what I'm going to do with you..." Akira only barked.


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