Conflicting Loves

Chapter 4: First Kiss

A/N: Dedicated to the loving memory of Mage. Let's see, what do I have to say? I'm actually going to address a concern from one of the reviews. Somebody said that the way I described Jack planting seeds in the previous chapter was unrealistic. Hey, play Back to Nature, then you'll get the reference. Oh, another thing. I believe that since Nami is one of those people who are relatively silent in public, she probably talks a lot in private. Well, enjoy!

(-)

"I honestly don't know what to do." Jack complained, his head slumping against the bar. The bartender, Griffin, had become one of Jack's best friends here in Forget-Me-Not Valley. Part of the friendship involved forcing Griffin to listen to Jack as he complained about every aspect of his life that wasn't going perfect. "I have to buy a bag of seeds for every square I want to plant of a crop! I have to milk the cows twice a day! The dogs attacked some little midgets who claimed to be Harvest Sprites! Hah! I know Harvest Sprites and these guys are nothing like the ones back home!" After the first two days of this, Griffin had come to expect crazed stories from the new farmer.

Tonight was the third of Spring and this time Jack was complaining about how impossible Nami was to give gifts to. "First off, she hates flowers! What kind of girl hates flowers?" Jack demanded, lifting his head from off the counter.

"I like flowers, Jack." Muffy whispered into Jack's ear. Jack took the hint and pulled a flower out of his rucksack and passed it to Muffy. "Thank you, Jack."

Griffin thought carefully as to the matter. He had two reasons to do so. Foremost, he had no clue what to say to Jack. Secondly, the longer he remained silent, the more Muffy flirted with Jack. Griffin had high hopes for Jack and Muffy, even despite the resent that Jack showed towards Muffy. Jack liked Muffy just about as much as a cow likes to be pushed at midnight. The bandage across Jack's stomach was proof of his cow's short temper.

"I remember Nami saying something about liking fossils." Griffin stated, matter-of-factly. He hadn't heard this directly from Nami, of course. In fact, he hadn't heard Nami say a single word since she arrived in Mineral Town. This little tidbit of information had been passed along by Rock, who occupied the second room on the top floor of the Inner Inn.

Jack scoffed at the notion. "Yeah, right. What kind of a girl would like a dirty old fossil?"

"The kind of girl who hates flowers." Griffin retaliated, almost before Jack had finished his question.

Jack fell quiet. What Griffin had just said made perfect sense to him. He knew that Nami was a world traveler who was interested in history. He had learned so much upon gaining admittance into her room one morning. Jack hadn't been in there long before Nami kicked him out, but he had enough time to see all of the objects from different regions and time periods. So, it could be possible that Nami was the kind of girl who liked fossils as gifts.

"Thanks for the advice Griffin. I'll go home and see if I left any of my fossils on the shelf." Jack smiled politely as he attempted to rise up out of his seat. A pair of hands pulled him back down, and shortly after, Muffy's head was resting on Jack's shoulder. "Do you have to go so soon, Jack? We haven't had time to talk yet." Muffy whispered innocently giving Jack the puppy-dog eyes.

Jack gently removed Muffy's hands and made to get out of his seat again. "I'm sorry, but it's getting late Muffy. Maybe tomorrow." Muffy lunged forward to pull Jack towards her again, but the farmer was out of reach. She found herself slipping out of her chair, twisting violently to get back up and regain her balance. It was too late. Muffy fell out of her chair, issuing a frightened screech as she fell.

She never hit the ground, though. A strong arm was wrapped around her waist, holding her mere inches off the floor. "You ok, Muffy?" Jack asked, his face mere inches away from Muffy's. Muffy blushed, realizing how foolish she must have looked. She had locked her arms around Jack's neck, more to be close than for the additional security. It was one of those awkward romance scenes when you know that the pair should kiss, but somebody always walks in on them. Muffy didn't care if somebody interrupted her, she planted a quick kiss on a shocked Jack.

"Hmph!" Somebody turned on their heels and walked right out of the Blue Bar.

Jack's eyes darted to the door just in time to see Nami's red hair disappear as the door slammed shut. "Nami, it's not what it…" He tried to say, but Nami was long gone. Jack let go of Muffy, letting the blond temptress fall to the ground. Jack was on his feet, halfway between the door and Muffy on the ground. The obviously flustered farmer looked back and forth between the girl he had just kissed and the direction the girl he loved had gone off in. His eyes rested halfway, looking at Griffin. "I think I need a drink."

(-)

Nami had ran off down to the beach, which was basked in the glow of the moon. She was furious beyond belief and she didn't know why. Sure, Jack had kissed Muffy, but why did that bother her so much? It wasn't like she was interested in him or anything, was she? "No, that isn't possible." Nami quickly told herself. Jack wasn't her type, but still she was upset that he was getting involved with somebody else.

"What's with me? This shouldn't be happening." Nami was pacing along the sands, looking out at the ocean. She had traveled all over the world and never once had she reacted like this when a guy she liked chose somebody else. Wait… Did she just say that she liked Jack? Her actions were betraying her true emotions, thrusting them out into the open for everyone to see. This wasn't like her normal, cool and collected self.

"He's not the one for you." Nami kept telling herself. "He talks too much and he shows his emotions too much for a man. But then again, he is so kind and polite. And he's hard working and determined. I've pushed him away at least half a dozen times and he keeps coming back for more." The more she thought about it, the more she was beginning to realize that she might be in love with Jack.

Nami stopped her facing and turned towards the ocean. She was thinking about her lifestyle, traveling the world, visiting small towns like this for a season and leaving. Maybe she could settle down in one place for a while… The thought had never crossed her mind her entire life up until this point. Now, she was actually thinking about staying in one spot.

Nami giggled slightly as another thought crossed her mind. Another emotion that she never showed, happiness, was breaking through. "Mr. and Mrs. Jack. Jack and Nami. Nami and Jack. Jack, Nami and Family… Family… Oh, my god… I can't believe that I actually just thought about having kids with Jack!" Nami felt herself blushing, another first in a very, very long time.

"But, what if he doesn't feel the same? What are you saying, Nami! Of course he likes you!" Nami was overjoyed by the way she was feeling. "So this is how love feels like." She whispered as she hugged herself with joy.

"Nami…" Jack's voice snapped Nami back to reality. She instantly slipped back into her normal, quiet self as she listened to Jack's footsteps cautiously approach her. The farmer stopped a few steps behind Nami, letting out a worried sigh as he did so. "I don't know what to say. Back there, at the Bar, was entirely accidental. Muffy fell out of her chair and I caught her. She surprised me with the kiss and that's where you came in. I just want you to know that I don't feel the same way about her as she does towards me."

The apology and explanation caused Nami to breathe a sigh of relief. Jack didn't see the exhale, continuing on, "Look, I'm not sure if you feel the same way as I do, but I'm going to let you know something. I just haven't been able to find a way to express this until now. Trust me, I've been trying to but you are just so hard to have a conversation with. Nami, even though we just recently met, I feel like you are perfect for me."

Nami turned, very slowly, to face Jack. The farmer had his head tilted away from Nami, his eyes directed to the ground. She took a hesitant step towards Jack, the sand giving way under her feet. Jack kept speaking, not realizing that Nami was approaching him. "You already know about Elli. You are the one who filled that void that she left when we broke apart. I realize now that I was making a mistake with her. You are so much better than she ever could be."

Jack was saying all the right things. Nami was hardly thinking about the words that Jack was saying, being drawn in by the romantic speech that Jack was giving. There was a tiny warning light in the back of Nami's mind that told her that Jack was just saying these things. She knew that he was one of those guys who would flirt with any girl, but right now, Jack was aiming at her. That was what made her forget about the warnings that her brain screamed at her.

Nami was barely a foot away from Jack and still, the farmer did not know that she was even looking at him. Jack was still trying to find the correct words to say. He was obviously having a tiny bit of trouble with getting to the "l" word. Guys were not the best at saying love in a sentence directed towards a girl. "Nami, I… I… I love you." He said it, he actually said love!

Jack kept his head hung low, silently praying that Nami would actually say something to him instead of leaving him with this awkward silence. Nami reached out with her hand, tucking it underneath of Jack's chin, lifting his head to face hers. The two of them locked eyes, light sapphire staring into twin auburn pools. Jack's eyes were full of surprise, but that quickly vanished when he understood what Nami was doing. "I love you too, Jack."

A smile crossed Jack's lips as he placed his hands on Nami's shoulders. Nami felt her heart racing as she felt Jack's breath on her neck as he pulled her against his chest. Her eyes drifted shut, her head tilting up towards his. At first only a light touch, their lips soon found each other, gladly melting together in a passionate greeting. Jack's hand ran up Nami's cheek, gently caressing her face. "I'm definitely staying here." Nami thought blissfully.

(-)

Meanwhile, a pair of tiny feet were rushing up the path on the side of the stream closest to Jack's farm. The tiny Harvest Sprite was having difficulty running in his oversized blue outfit. His feet kept catching on the tunic and he fell repeatedly. He didn't care much for falling down, his news so much more important that injury, "They won't believe it!" He told himself, picking himself up off the ground once more.

He finally got up to the tiny clearing beside the waterfall. There were the fancy blue plants that glowed during the nighttime, illuminating the path up to the large tree that served as his home. Out front of the building were the two other Harvest Sprites, one dressed in red, the other in yellow. They were busy chasing after a rather large blue bird that easily dwarfed the Sprites.

"Guess what! Guess what!" Nic shouted out to his fellow Sprites.

Flak, the yellow Sprite stopped his pursuit of the bird to catch his breath. He was a tad overweight, so the excuse to rest was gladly taken. "What?"

"What?" Nak, the red Sprite repeated, also stopping with the torment of the bird. The blue feathered creature took off into the air, leaving behind a single one of its feathers.

"Jack." Nic simply stated.

"The other Harvest Sprite?" Flak asked.

"The Harvest Sprite named Jack?" Nak added.

Nic nodded his head, agreeing with the other two Sprites. "Nami."

"Nami?" The other Sprites echoed in unison.

"Uh-huh!" Nic smiled.

"Together?" Nak inquired in disbelief.

"Uh-huh!" Nic repeated with a growing smile.

"They are together?" Flak asked, repeating Nak's question.

"They kissed." Nic stated.

"Blue Feather!" Flak shouted.

Nak shook his head. "Too early."

"When?" Nic demanded.

"Summer." Nak smiled, picking up the blue feather and rushing inside the tree with the prize in hand.

"Not fair, I saw it first!" Flak complained, chasing after Nak.

"Wait for me!" Nic added as he joined the chase.

(-)

A/N: God, that Harvest Sprite section was painful to write. The other sections I think I did beautifully. Hope you enjoyed them as much as I enjoyed writing them (except the Sprite section, enjoy that at my expense).