Claire opened the door to the supermarket and nearly collided with the patron leaving at the same time.
A pair of deep blue eyes looked at her with a combination of surprise and enthrallment.
"Cl-Claire!" Cliff gasped. "I'm sorry – I almost ran right into you, didn't I?" Despite his apologies, his face flushed and his lips curled up into an affectionate smile.
"It's alright; I almost did the same thing." She bit back a giggle; he almost looked like there was nothing he'd rather do. Her eyes traveled over his ruddy cheeks, his wind-tousled hair – it looked like he had just gotten off of work. If his employment at her farm was any indication, Cliff was a very determined and hard worker.
"I was just doing some shopping…" He let out a small chuckle. "I guess that much is obvious, huh? I'm not able to get as much fishing done now that I'm working, so I was picking up some things to bring for my lunch. It feels kind of strange, buying food when I can go fishing. Anything I catch has been going to Cain lately. It's getting darker out, so I can't stay out fishing for so long." His words flowed out easily.
"What kinds of foods were you looking for?"
He gave her a rueful smile. "Something cheap – rice and dried beans. To be honest, I haven't cooked on a stove since I lived with my parents, and even then, all I can think of is the time I attempted to make chili but forgot to stir it and ruined the pot."
Claire let out a good-natured giggle. "I may or may not have done something similar when I was young." She could still smell the scorched rice pudding as she recalled standing in front of the stove, her eyes filling with tears as she looked at the charred mess before her.
"Ann was eager to give me a few pointers and she's going to lend me one of their old hotplates. It shouldn't be too different from using a campfire. I don't cook many complicated things," Cliff admitted. "I've been told I'm decent at it, but my presentation is terrible. Ma always said my meals always looked like someone had already eaten them."
A grin cracked across her face amid laughter. "I think my little brothers would like you."
He was positively glowing at her comment. "Ah, your brothers… really?" His eyes lowered and there was a deep sadness to them amid his earnest smile. "Ma… Ma would've really liked you… Papa, too…" He looked down at his hands, which had been lingering on her shoulders since they nearly collided. "And Ivy… I can't imagine her not wanting to be your friend." He gently removed his hands from her, giving her shoulders a playful squeeze as he did so.
While Claire was happy to hear this, she wasn't blind to the unique sadness on his face at the very mention of Ivy's name. She wanted to cheer him up and tell him that her family would like him, too, but she wasn't sure. After the letter her parents had sent her, she felt a little nervous of their opinion. "Well… in the crazy chance that one of my family members actually manages to make it all the way out here, I'd be happy to introduce you to them."
Cliff turned cherry red but remained silent. Claire wondered how she would introduce him. Her best friend? Her boyfriend, perhaps? She scrunched up her nose at the word – it didn't seem to quite capture her feelings for him. It was often a title her friends in the city used to refer to men who bought them trifles and chocolates, participating in melodramatic arguments and apologizing with bouquets of flowers. If that's what that word meant, she didn't want Cliff to be her boyfriend.
She began to wonder if friend was the correct title for the girls she associated with in the city.
"I bet they'd be really impressed with your farm."
Claire gave him a sad smile; he was far too kind. She had a long way to go to impress anyone in her family…
He took her hands in his and gave them a friendly squeeze. "I know what you're thinking, but if they really saw everything you've done, they'd have to be proud."
"He's right, you know," Karen called from within the grocery store. "And if they weren't, they'd have to answer to me." She poked her own chest with her thumb.
Cliff looked back at the inside of the shop and blushed, shuffling his bag on his shoulder. He was likely keeping her from her own chores. "I'm happy I got to see you today, Claire. See you again soon?"
"Of course." She loved the way his eyes glowed when he said her name. The last time they had said goodbye, they had shared a long, romantic kiss in her doorway.
He gave her hands one last squeeze. "Well, I guess I better go back to the inn to start soaking those dried beans." He gave one last look over his shoulder, his face still quite red. "O-of course, I can stay and keep you company while you shop…"
Claire felt her cheeks blaze. Flattered as she was, she didn't want him to change his plans for her. She didn't want to get too clingy to him while their relationship was still budding. "Oh, no, it's alright! You have those beans to soak. It's okay!" Flustered, she shook her head.
His hand softly brushed against her arm. "Alright. See you around. I, uh… I had a wonderful time with you last night." He looked over his shoulder, ducking his head with embarrassment as he saw a couple of people had shamelessly been listening. "S-see y'all later!" He gave everyone a collective goodbye.
"Bye, Cliff." Claire watched him walk back toward the inn a few seconds before he turned around to give her one last look. Her heart jumped into her throat and when she turned back into the store, she did so with a giddy buzzing throughout her body.
Elli was watching Claire with interest as Mary continued to rifle through the bundles of spinach for sale.
Jeff let out a chuckle, shaking his head. "I don't think I've ever seen that boy so talkative."
Karen looked up from stocking the shelves and shot her father a poisonous look. "Don't say things that aren't necessary, Dad!"
"I thought it was rather endearing," Elli admitted with a smile. "I don't think I've ever seen him that happy. It's a nice change."
Endearing…
Claire had used that word herself to describe him. How long ago had it been since she had first seen him that way? Late spring? Early summer? It all felt like a haze. What would life have been like if she had realized how precious he was sooner? Would she have been jealous of Ann? She recalled some of the strange jitters in her stomach she had felt when she saw Cliff and Ann together. Perhaps she had already been a little envious without realizing it.
Mary was observing the way Claire was nervously rubbing her arm, unsure of how to reply. "Did you come shopping for something special today? Normally I'd recommend the spinach, but that'd be silly since you're the one who grew it. Yours is so much fresher than the shipments we used to get from the Valley," she said with a slight smile.
Claire was tempted to tell Mary she didn't need to be so kind, but she stopped herself. She looked down at the small display of leafy greens on sale, bundled up and set up in a small tub of crushed ice. She recognized Karen's rounded letters on the sign marking the price. Maybe it wasn't a giant display in a big box supermarket, but it was the fruit of her labor.
"I'm just looking for some staple ingredients for the week. How about you?"
"Mary's helping me get ingredients for a special birthday dinner for Trent," Elli explained. "He's going to have a couple of special guests visiting at that time as well."
She hid a frown. Trent's idea of celebrating thirty-four years of age was taking on a new project in work. She knew it was silly to hope he would want to go with her out to dinner on that occasion, but he would most likely see it as a gift from one worker to another, not between friends, and most definitely not between potential lovers. Elli sighed. Year after year, she had waited and hoped for more than a passing glance, a kind touch, a glimmer in his eye, a sweet word, anything… If only she could get him to look at her the way she saw Cliff looking at Claire – he had looked absolutely entranced by her.
Maybe someday…
But she had been waiting for him to reach out to her for years. Was "someday" ever going to come?
"Family?" Claire asked. She had heard others say that he wasn't originally from the area.
Elli shook her head. "I doubt that will ever happen. He's meeting with a specialist from the west, along with his wife. Trent's always eager to help other doctors move to a more holistic approach."
"He and my father work closely sometimes," Mary stated, selecting a bundle of spinach and adding it to their shopping basket.
"That's actually how we met," Elli told Claire. "Trent was tickled when he learned a botanist had moved to Mineral Town."
Claire looked at them curiously. "I just assumed the two of you grew up together. You both seem to have so much in common."
The two friends looked at each other and laughed.
"This crazy lady who keeps beetles in jars and insists on showing them to me? She's worse than Stu!" Elli's smile and voice had a warmth to them as she shook her head with a laugh.
Claire was surprised to see Mary a smirk play at her lips as she giggled. "And this one refuses to read anything but trashy romance novels! She never listens to my recommendations!"
Elli dismissed this with the wave of a hand. "Gray takes your recommendations enough for the both of us." She turned toward Claire. "Mary is always suggesting dull old books by dead people, but she can make the best cup of herbal tea on this side of the Valley."
"And Elli might not truly appreciate good literature or how fascinating insects are, but her cakes are better than my mom's." Mary shot her friend a stern look but her slight smile gave it away. "Don't tell Mom that, though – she's very proud of her baking skills!"
"That reminds me, I was going to bake a cake for when the guests come." Elli was counting off a mental list in her head and Claire was surprised when she turned back toward her. "Hey, Claire, do you know what bergamot looks like? It grows up on Mother's Hill."
It had been so long since her foraging lesson with Cliff, but she had remembered him pointing out the pale purple flowers. "Kind of like a chrysanthemum, right? Lavender-colored and kind of frilly?"
Elli gave her an emphatic nod. "The growing season for them is ending, but Trent wants to work on a project with them. He wants to have some by tomorrow. I found some today, but it's not enough, and while Stu likes flowers and is usually really helpful, I ended up spending half the afternoon trying to catch him instead of finding many."
Claire could see where this was going. She had finished watering for the day and there were no other large tasks on her list. "I can see if I can find any more and bring them by the office."
Elli's warm brown eyes lit up. "Ah, are you sure? I would really appreciate that."
Claire gave her a smile. "I don't mind. I have two younger brothers myself, so I know how it can be."
"I know you're busy with your farm," Elli said with an apologetic look.
"It's alright," Claire insisted. "I have a big harvest coming up, but right now, I've got some time. How much do you want me to bring?"
She wished Elli would stop looking so sorry for asking for her help. "He's trying to make an extract, so really, as much as you can find would be wonderful. He will pay you, of course. He'll pay by weight."
Claire was determined to continue to prove she was someone to be counted on in the community. "I'll try my best to get you some."
"Thank you, Claire." Elli was glad she had kept her mouth shut to the farmer during the days her best friend had come to her in tears over her rivalry with Claire over Gray. It seemed like Claire was a decent person and Elli wished she had started with a different impression of her rather than seeing her as an antagonist.
She gave them a small wave in farewell. "I hope the dinner goes well."
Mary gave her a grin. "Elli's cooking, so it should be fine."
The young woman smirked. "Are you implying I should talk Trent out of putting one of his homemade cocktails on the table?"
Mary's cheeks blazed. "Th-that's not what I said!"
Elli had seen Gray's face turn the same color as the juice mixtures Trent had treated them to when the four of them spent time together. Even Mary, polite as she was, would turn a little pale. "It's alright," Elli insisted, giving her a knowing look. "I've been trying to give him some pointers and I told him I'd handle the food tomorrow."
Claire gave them one final wave and made her way to the dried goods section, Cliff's earlier words leaving her in the mood for chili.
"Pssst!" Karen wasn't subtle at all as she reached for Claire and linked arms with her.
The blonde brightened at her friend's company. "Hi, how are you doing?"
She was given a smirk in reply. "Playing it off all cool, huh?" She looked over her shoulder. "You gotta be anywhere soon?"
Claire's blue eyes drifted toward the ceiling as she ran her to-do list in her mind. "Well… not really…"
She stifled a squeak when Karen whisked her away to the back room, plucking the empty basket from Claire's hand and setting it on the floor by the door. Karen swung the door open and pulled her friend inside their living quarters.
"Wow…" Karen was pacing back and forth across the creaky floorboards, shaking her head.
A frown worked itself onto Claire's lips. "What's wrong?"
Karen's green eyes were startled as she looked back up at her friend. "Nothing bad, I'm just shocked at the fireworks between the two of you earlier. Are you telling me the whole truth about what happened the other night?" She gave her a playful wink.
Claire's cheeks turned crimson. "Ah, you mean me… a-and Cliff…?" She played with a strand of her long hair, her heart rate quickening. "We… also had a date the other night."
It still felt a little strange saying it aloud. She had been on multiple dates in the past with other people, but she never felt a connection to the person she spent time with. Cliff? Cliff was different…
Karen leaned against the kitchen table. "Flowers and chocolates?"
Claire shook her head, her stomach bubbling with giddiness and excitement at the mention of their date.
The brunette whirled around, her hair falling over her shoulders like a curtain. "He serenaded you with his sanshin with a rose between his teeth!" She snickered at the image.
"Not so much," Claire replied with a coy smile. The thought of him singing for her left her a little lightheaded, though. She could definitely get used to his rich, warm tenor singing songs for her…
"Are you going to keep me guessing?" Karen gave a playful wink.
"I'm kind of having fun," Claire admitted, hanging her rucksack on a chair and sitting down at the table.
Her friend watched the way Claire stretched her arms over her head and leaned forward on the table, resting her chin on her folded arms. Claire was more comfortable here, and Karen reveled in it. Despite the fact that her body was relaxed, her cheeks were glowing and her eyes were dancing. Karen wondered if she looked that way after the Midsummer's Dance when Rick asked her to be her girlfriend. Karen's heart dropped a little.
"He was a naughty boy and kissed on the first date," she guessed.
Claire went redder, if that were possible. She buried her face in the table.
She sat down and rested her chin in her hands, smiling at her smugly. "Looks like I won a point. You made out passionately under the stars."
Claire let out a gasp; embarrassed at her reaction, she laughed so hard she snorted, causing further mortification. "Even if I did, it's not like I'd tell you!" She lifted her face, fighting her blush.
"Well, you are telling me to guess," Karen reminded her. "He held you in his arms and said 'Baby, you're my forever'!" she drawled in a thick backwoods accent, lowering her voice.
Claire shook her head, immediately hiding her face in her arms once more. Her heart raced at the possibility of Cliff one day actually saying something like that to her.
The date went well… I can see us going on future ones… It just feels so right; it's probably too early to tell, but maybe in all the crazy circumstances leading us to where we are, we're supposed to be together…
Forever.
A loud twang caused her to jump.
"Be my gal, Claire~!" Karen cooed, making smacking sounds with her lips.
Claire sat back up; by now her hair had turned into a bird's nest with all of her movement. She had allowed herself to get rather flustered. "Okay, okay. There was dinner and dancing. Satisfied?"
"Hardly," Karen teased, puckering her lips.
Claire smoothed down her hair. She looked up at her friend, batting her eyelashes. "Alright, if you really must know, I made…" She gave her friend a keen look. "… chicken and sweet potatoes for the dinner," she stated in a sultry voice.
Her friend clutched her heart, pretending to swoon. "Oh, Claire! So bold on the first date~!"
"Duke and Manna gave him a bottle of wine to celebrate his employment and he was sweet enough to share it with me," Claire explained, a grin creeping back onto her face. "We had a really good time."
"I'm glad you two did," Karen replied, resting her chin on her palm. "It was written all over your faces." Her smile faded a bit as she looked up at the ceiling, reclining in her chair. "He looks at you like… like nothing else exists… like he can't imagine a world without you in it."
A warm glow filled Claire's chest. She opened her mouth to speak, but Karen continued.
"And I see you look at him the same way… like he's your whole world." Her green eyes welled up with tears. "Like you've been waiting your whole life for him." Karen's normally strong voice cracked.
Claire felt a twinge of guilt at Karen's watery eyes. "I never meant to make you feel left out…"
The young woman shook her head in response. She blinked and a couple of tears fell heavily on the table's surface. "That's not it at all. I'm sorry, Claire. I want you to be happy; that's what I've always wanted for you."
"I am happy," Claire insisted with a small frown, "and I want you to be happy, too."
"I feel like I could be," Karen said miserably, "if I could kiss under the stars, or dance on the beach, or receive a flower to tuck behind my ear 'just because'."
Claire's cheeks became hot as she realized she had done some of those things with Cliff already. "I thought you and Rick did those things."
She got a bitter laugh as a response. "Hardly. It's like we're not dating at all."
Claire recalled the couple spending some private time on the end of the pier. "What about the Fireworks Festival?"
Her friend looked as if she was going to cry again. "That was pretty much a one-time thing."
"Well… why don't you tell him that's what you're wanting?"
"You think I haven't?" Karen's voice had a bit of a bite to it. She wiped her tears. "He never said it outright, but I can tell he thinks it's stupid. Anything not involving work is a waste of time to him!"
Claire hesitated. "Did you tell him you feel that way?"
Karen's eyebrows furrowed. "He said he was sick of arguing and he had eggs to collect. He's already picked his work over me." Her expression melted into tears. "I'm done… I'm just…. done."
Her friend wasn't sure what to say so she silently rubbed Karen's shoulder in a soothing manner.
Karen sniffed. "I deserve better. I know I do. This is all so stupid. I'm going to have to take matters into my own hands. I'm going to dump his sorry ass, and then…"
Claire looked at her curiously, and she became concerned as Karen averted her eyes and went silent. Her sudden hoarse voice made Claire flinch.
"Promise you won't get mad." Karen's voice was muffled. She didn't wait for Claire to reply. "I… I think I want to give Kai another try. He seems to have a healthier balance between work and friends. M… maybe if we tried again there'd be sparks this time."
Claire felt the blood drain from her face as she recalled Popuri crying in frustration at Kai's yearly departure. "But, Karen… P-Popuri…"
"I know!" Karen began to sob. "I know I'm a horrible, selfish person!"
"I never called you that."
Karen sniffed, burying her face in her hands. "I wouldn't put it past you if you did. You're right. Popuri is my friend and I can't do that to her. I won't. I'm horrible for even thinking it. I could see if there's someone in the Valley…"
Claire gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "I don't know if replacing Rick as soon as possible is the best idea."
Karen peeked out from behind her hands, hiccoughing. "But… I… I don't want to be alone, Claire!" Her voice rose into a cry once more and she moved her hands back up, sobbing.
This wasn't the strong, proud Karen she was used to seeing. There were so many times that Karen stood up for her and listened to her cry. She wanted to be the same source of comfort for Karen. Claire hugged her around the shoulders. "But you're not alone – you have me."
She was met with a scoff. "A sweet sentiment, but I hardly think you want to take me to a nice dinner and make out afterwards in the woods." Karen let out a bitter laugh. "Maybe you should just go."
Go be with someone who makes you happy, like Cliff. Not me.
Claire felt her heart drop. "B-but…"
"I hate having you see me like this. I just need some time to sort it out."
"I can help you sort it out!"
Karen shook her head. "Maybe I do want to be alone after all." She gave her friend's hand a squeeze as she brushed away her tears with her free hand. "I'm sorry I'm such a mess. I'm not mad at you, Claire."
"If you're not mad at me, then don't shut me out!" Her breath hitched as she recalled the last time she had used that phrase. "I've… I've had to deal with that enough already." Her voice softened.
"I don't really feel like talking about it anymore. Wanna watch some My Dear Princess?" She gave her friend an apologetic look as Claire got up. "I just feel like zoning out, but… it wouldn't be so bad if you were by my side."
Claire had already retrieved the remote control to the television.
Author's Note: I'm back! It feels like ages between these updates. I hope it doesn't feel that way for y'all. :( Some days are better than others, that's for sure. And a lot of days it can be difficult to write, even if it is my therapy. I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for a rough portion of this story in the future. A particular event in the game at the beginning of winter, if you recall… I can promise it will be very emotional, and I can imagine a lot of you are eager to finally learn why Cliff left his home.
I really appreciate everyone's feedback and I'm so glad you're reading along. I'm really grateful for it. As someone who needs constant validation, your reviews do so much for me, and I really am grateful.
I wanted to announce that I have a Deviant Art account under the same username where I've posted some non- fan fiction work, along with some poetry. I've got some fan fiction on there, too. Feel free to give it a look.
And to answer a request that I've been getting for a long time from multiple people – yes, I have written a LEMON. I wrote it a couple of months ago and I posted it on Archive of Our Own (I have the same username on there). It's an explicit short story that involves "Shy Newcomer" Claire and Cliff a couple of years into their marriage (OMG SPOILER ALERT! Haha). The story is called "Let Me Love You". It's my first explicit work, so I'd love to hear your opinions on it.
Thanks again! :)