Welcome to the latest installment! Enjoy!

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"We've got a room… But you don't want to stay, do you?" Ann smirked; this had become her running gag with the farmer.

"Uh, is…?"

"Gray's upstairs," the waitress rolled her eyes, wiping down a table.

"Th-thanks…"

The wooden steps creaked as Claire climbed up them. Her feet didn't want to move; they were heavy as bricks. It was that golden hour of the day; Gray had come home from the library after work, and it was the perfect time to get a moment alone with him. She looked forward to this time nearly every night, but it didn't make her any less nervous. Surely, Gray had noticed by now that she was actively seeking his attention. Surely he had to…

She timidly knocked on the door. After a few seconds, she heard heavy boots shuffling and the blacksmith opened the door.

"'Evening."

"G-good evening, Gray…"

"Come on in," he stepped out of the doorway. He politely nodded to her and noticed her evening visits were becoming a ritual.

"Th-thank you," she reddened as he closed the door behind her.

"So, what do you need?" The young man asked her, standing in the corner by the doorway. She noticed he never sat down when she came to visit, and it always made her feel a little uncomfortable.

Claire adjusted her rucksack; her hands were sweaty and her mouth felt dry. "I… I just came to say hi."

"Hello…" He didn't enjoy small talk at the best of times.

"S-soo… How do you like living here?" She nervously looked around the room.

"You mean the inn? I use what little Gramps pays me to rent out this place. It's not too bad; I get discounts on the food. The roommate's pretty quiet and doesn't hang out here too much, so I've pretty much got the place to myself."

"Oh… I thought you and Cliff were friends…" She noticed his description of the young man sounded rather cold.

"We are," Gray shrugged. "You kind of have to be if you're going to share a bedroom."

Ah, an opening! We actually have something in common; don't blow it! She scolded herself. "I-I had to share a bedroom with a couple of toddlers when I lived with my parents," Claire ventured.

The blacksmith looked surprised. "Siblings? How old were you?"

"A teenager. Two little brothers."

"Yikes... My apologies," He tugged on the bill of his hat and a hint of a smile crossed his lips.

Claire's heart pounded at the reaction. She noticed his warmer demeanor and tried to keep him talking. "So, how do you like town?"

"Town? … It's alright, I guess. There's not too much to do around here, but I suppose that could be nice for some people."

Claire got the distinct feeling he was not one of those people. "Well, there's the mine…" She said boldly as she reached into her rucksack and offered him a small piece of ore she had cupped into her hands. She had braved the strange sounds of the spring mine for the young man nearly every day. "… For you," she blushed.

"A-are you sure you want me to have it?" Gray was distracted as he saw the bedroom door silently open and he reddened.

Claire was grinning at the color in the blacksmith's cheeks. Her hard work was finally starting to pay off. "Yeah… I … I know you guys work with ores…"

Wow, way to state the obvious! She immediately hated herself for her stupid response.

"Well, thanks…" He took the piece of metal. Claire's heart gave a flutter when their hands touched in the exchange. "It looks like good quality… Thanks again."

"Y-you're welcome…" She was lost in his pale blue eyes.

There was a long silence.

The young man blushed deeply and cleared his throat. "So…"

"Yeah…?" She was staring at him dreamily. She didn't want to waste a single moment of her precious alone time with Gray. He was blushing…

"Uh… I'll make something neat out of this someday, okay?" His hands were shaking as he took the copper to a haphazard pile of assorted things he kept on the floor by his bed. If there was any order to the mess, Gray was the only one that would be able to distinguish it.

It was at this point that Claire noticed Gray's roommate was in the bedroom with them. Claire jumped when she saw Cliff and felt her face get hot; she could've sworn he was not there when she arrived… He was sitting cross-legged on his bed on the far side of the room, expertly sharpening a stick to a deadly point with a small knife. He was catching the shavings in a bowl, and several more sticks waiting to be cut were propped along the side of the bed.

"Cliff startle you?" Gray laughed.

The young man looked up apologetically. "I'm sorry… I d-didn't mean to scare you…"

"W-were you here when I came in?" Claire's heart pounded uncomfortably in her chest; she thought she had been spending all of this time alone with Gray. She felt a little angry at the fact that they weren't by themselves.

The blacksmith grinned. "He snuck in here around five minutes ago. I'm only now getting used to it; he's like a ninja a lot of the time."

Cliff didn't look up from his work. "I just don't stomp around like you do," he said quietly.

"You going fishing tomorrow?" Gray asked him.

This roommate nodded, finishing one stick and grabbing another.

"If you catch any rainbow trout and smoke it for me, I will pay you."

His eyes widened in excitement. "R-really?"

"Sure; I've been craving it since the last time you made some. How much you want for it? I know you need the cash," Gray nodded.

"Ah…" The young man felt uncomfortable discussing his financial situation in front of Claire. "L-let's talk about it later… Y-you have a guest… Please… pay me no mind," he reddened, continuing with his work.

Claire found that she was fascinated by the makeshift spears her friend was creating, but she was more focused on the blacksmith. Claire had no problem at all fulfilling Cliff's request; he had, after all, interrupted her time with Gray.

"So… What kind of things do you guys make out of copper?" She asked, picking up where they had left off.

"We actually refine a lot of it and sell it to an artist who lives over in Forget-Me-Not Valley, but we make tools, machine parts, jewelry…"

"Wow… So if I brought you some more copper could you m-maybe… make me… s-something?" She imagined wearing a piece of jewelry made with Gray's own two hands and felt weak.

"An ingot is the best you'll get from me," the apprentice sighed. "Gramps won't let me make much else for our customers. I make other things, but they're just always thrown back into the furnace… My grandpa is so hard on me for every little thing! I can hardly stand it!" He fumed.

"W-well, you are in training," She reminded him gently.

Gray stared at the floor; he realized this conversation sounded a lot like the one they had the day they first met. He had promised himself that he would not lose his temper with Claire ever again; she had looked as if she was on the verge of tears when he had raised his voice at her at the beginning of spring. "Well… Apparently, I make an awful lot of mistakes even for an apprentice…" He couldn't help but feel bitter.

"He just wants you to be the best you can be," Claire offered.

"Thanks… I guess you're right." He folded his arms across his chest and attempted to smile. He looked out the window and noticed it was sunset. "… Don't you think you should be heading back to the farm now?" He asked.

Claire's heart sunk. "Yeah… I suppose so…" Her eyes moved up to him hopefully.

"See you later."

Not tonight. Claire's heart sunk.

The young man on the opposite side of the room had looked up from his spear making. "H-have a good evening, Claire… I'm… looking forward t-to our lunch together." He gave her a friendly smile.

"Yeah," Claire's expression mellowed out. "Good night, Cliff; I'll see you soon." She looked over at the blacksmith; she wanted her last word to be with the person she had actually traveled to the inn to visit. "Good night, Gray."

"See you later," he repeated, not unkindly.

As the young woman walked home, she couldn't decide if she should be proud or disappointed at how the conversation with the blacksmith's apprentice had gone that evening. As always, there were so many opportunities missed because of her nerves. She threw herself on her bed and attempted to sleep. She tossed and turned for hours before finally passing out from exhaustion.

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Author's Note: I always thought of Gray as the type who hates being tidy and organized. He gets enough orders from his grandfather all day and at least he can come home to his comfy, messy nest of random junk and unwashed laundry. I think I'm channeling my own laziness here…

People may notice I also gave Cliff a few hobbies and interests from the N64 game. I find it hard to believe that a wandering traveler clad in rural mountain wear just has a year's worth of rent sitting in his pockets and eats at the inn for every meal.

As for what exactly is in the spring mine, if you haven't figured it out yet, don't worry! It will be revealed with time.