Disclaimers: I don't own Harvest Moon, though I did buy Back to Nature...and the characters belong to Natsume.

Hurricane of Change by Yaoi Girl

There were still four days left until summer came, so it wasn't time for the Seaside Lodge to open, and so Kai had stayed in the inn the second day of his return.

He had gone downstairs to get something to eat, though he took the food to his room; Doug was giving him strange looks.

After he had finished his meal and taken the dirty dishes downstairs, Ann came to clean his room, giggling like a maniac.

"Did you really kiss Maya?" she smiled as she began to sweep the floor.

"Yeah, I did," he admitted half-heartedly, as he was now reading a book he had brought with him.

"Is he a good kisser?" she asked several minutes later, after having finished with the sweeping.

"Ann, do you really have to ask something like that?" Kai yelped at the question, surprised at how outright she was about this, though it was somewhat expected since she is a tomboy. He then closed his book and set it aside, knowing he'd have to answer sooner or later; the girl had plenty of blackmail material on him from previous years.

As the redheaded girl began to strip down Cliff's bed, Kai ducked his head with a blush.

"It was great, better than I've ever imagined," he said, biting his lip afterward as he recalled it, his eyes focused on a knot in the wooden flooring near his feet.

"So, if you both enjoyed it, why is he so upset?" Ann asked, oblivious to his actions, seeing as she was busy with her chores.

Apparently, Karen hadn't told them everything.

"I think that he's in love with me…"

The girl then made a sympathetic face as she turned to face him. "And you're not?"

Kai shook his head and sighed. "I didn't know he was when I kissed him, or I would've thought twice about going through with it."

"You don't like him like that, not even a tiny little bit?" she asked as she sat on Cliff's now newly clothed bed.

"I don't think so; I mean, I always felt different around him, but I think it's just because he's the only guy that understands me. The only guy that trusts me, or at least, did trust me."

"Up up!" the girl said, indicating to Kai to move so she could strip and change his bedclothes. "I think you need to really think about this Kai. You're not even sure of your own emotions towards him."

"I know, I know…"

"And don't think about what everyone else will think; it's what makes you happy that counts. No one's going to run you out of town for being different. And my dad, well, he's a little homophobic, but he'll get over it," she smiled as she finished her chore.

"I kinda noticed about your dad," he replied, talking about Doug and his earlier looks.

"Well, I have to go clean Gray's room up, but if you need to talk about anything, don't be afraid to ask me! Oh, and I'd at least try to go make things somewhat friendly between you and Maya again; this town's really suffering without his crops, you know," she said as she finished his bed, soon after leaving to clean the next room.

~*~

"Oh, Mayor Thomas? Are you looking for Maya?" Kai asked the next day, noticing the man standing outside of the farmer's door.

"Yes, but it seems that he's either still asleep or he's out somewhere. Could you give this to him if you see him, please? I have to go to the next town over today, so I'll forget by tomorrow."

"Uh, sure thing," he replied as he took the letter from the mayor and tucked it in his back pocket.

Soon after the mayor had left, Kai walked over to Maya's bedroom window and peered inside, but saw no one. He then looked in through the front window and still couldn't find the boy anywhere in site.

He sighed and began to walk off the farm towards town, stopping as he heard a dog barking from the back of the farm.

"Tobi?" he whispered to himself, noting how the dog was frantically wagging his tail and darting back and forth over the bridge, staring and whining towards the mountain for a few moments before starting the cycle over again. "What the heck? I've got nothing better to do."

He walked across the farm and pet Tobi, who then took off up the hill with the waterfall and hot spring, Kai noticing that there was someone relaxing in the heated water once he reached the dog's side.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked hesitantly, Maya looking at him for the briefest of seconds before turning his gaze away.

"Do what you want," he shrugged. "You can use the extra towel."

"Oh, uh, Thomas wanted me to give this to you, but I think you might want to wait to read it," Kai said, not wanting to give the boy his letter while he was soaking wet. He then stripped down and wrapped the towel around himself.

"Yeah, I'll wait," the brunette replied as Kai slipped into the water at the opposite end.

"So…how's the farm life been?"

At this, Maya looked at him in disbelief.

"You walked right through it, so you should know."

This was true, but he hadn't been paying attention to the fields or the absence of chickens clucking or the cows mooing or the sheep baa-ing; he was only following Tobi's movements, hoping that the other boy wasn't in some kind of trouble.

"You really did sell all your animals?"

The brunette nodded and sighed, relaxing deeper into the water. "I may be moved out by next spring, you know."

"I won't let you," Kai said firmly, his eyes set directly into Maya's, as the boy had looked back up at him in shock..

The farmer's eyebrows then furrowed. "And why's that?"

"Because…" he started, tearing his gaze away, trying to figure out why he was a little uncomfortable looking at the boy for so long. The butterflies in his stomach weren't helping much either. "If you leave, I won't have any reason to come back here anymore; you're the only real friend I have in this town."

At this, Maya snorted.

"So, are you saying that you're not my friend anymore?" the other asked hesitantly.

"It's not that; you're just a terrible lair. You'd come back for Popuri and you know it."

"Why would I want to when her brother hates my guts and always puts me down? She's alright, but I've never really considered her anything more than an acquaintance."

For a while, the pair sat in silence until Maya stood and began to dry off with another towel, putting his clothes on. Kai followed a moment later.

"How are you getting along? I mean, money wise?"

"I'm down to about 300G, that's why I said I probably won't be here next spring," Maya said as the pair began to walk down the hill and toward the rundown farm, Tobi following merrily behind, wagging his tail all the while.

"I'll help you then. I'll stay all fall if I have to because I'm not letting you leave."

"What are you talking about?" the farmer sighed in exasperation.

"I'm saying I'm going to help you farm this summer; help get you back on your feet."

"What's the use? Seeds are too expensive in the summer for me to buy enough to survive on, especially if a hurricane or two happen to come through town."

"I'll pay for the seeds," Kai said as he walked a few paces in front of the boy before stopping, staring into his eyes, silently saying that he wasn't going to take no for an answer. "I'll help you plant, water, weed, whatever. Even if you won't do it for me, do it for the town. A lot of people still care about you, but you're not letting them in anymore. This town will go downhill if you don't help support them."

"What about your Seaside Lodge?"

"It can wait; it's only a way to pass time more or less while I'm here enjoying the countryside," the boy shrugged.

"Fine; but you promised to help, so don't let me down."

Kai smiled as Maya sighed again.

"Oh! Here's your letter," he said, handing the envelope to the boy before running off down the dirt path in front of the farm. "I'll be back in a little while!"

'What am I doing? I'm just going to get hurt again; I know it…'

TBC

I was hoping to get things a little further than this, but the fluff will begin hopefully in the next chapter. ^_^ At least they're talking again