HELLO! I'm back. Thank you so much Greaced, chocobo86, TsunTsun and Gamerzgal for the reviews. :D Yay! OK, here's Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own Harvest Moon

Chapter 5

A Dramatic Love Story

When I got to the church, Carter was standing in the row behind Cliff's normal spot with his hands clasps.

"Amen," I heard him say, and then he stood up.

"Oh, Mary," he said. "It's very rare to see you here. How are you?"

Wow, I was right, I thought. He really is lonely. The last time I came here I had to start a conversation, and even then he didn't say much.

"I'm…fine," I said.

"I hope Cliff's OK," he said. "What got into that boy, anyway, swimming fully dressed?"

"Ah, well, he didn't exactly go swimming," I said.

"Then how did he drown?" asked Carter.

"He rescued me from a rip," I said.

Carter gasped. "Goddess, I had no idea, Elli just told me he drowned. Will he be alright?"

"He's drifting in and out of consciousness," I said, thinking I sounded a lot like Doctor. "But he should be fine."

Carter nodded, looking rather relieved, and returned to his place. Normal Carter has returned, I thought, smiling.

I left the church, and wondered what I should do. I couldn't go see Claire or Gray…I didn't want to. I couldn't go check up on Cliff, not without seeming obsessed. Besides, he's usually asleep. And there was no way I was going swimming again. Not ever. So, I decided just to go back to the library and read.

I was greeted by Gray when I entered the library. He was standing in his usual spot by the desk.

"Hi Mary," he said.

I forced a smile in response.

He sat at the desk, and motioned for me to join him. I hesitated.

"Mary, I need to talk to someone, and you're the best person to talk to." I sighed and sat down.

Gray absent-mindedly fiddled with his UMA hat. I wished he'd just take it off. I'd never seen him without it. I bet Claire has. I thought with a sigh.

"Mary, I- I-, umm, I…" he stuttered. Goddess, he's stuttering more than Cliff. What is wrong with him?

"I, umm, well…"

He continued fiddling with his hat. I would have just snatched it straight from him had he not managed to force out some words that actually made sense. Too much sense.

"I want to propose to Claire," he said, finally.

My world just stopped. What was I supposed to say? "Oh, that's great."? Or "DON'T YOU DARE YOU BELONG WITH ME DAMNIT!"? And why was he telling me?

"Why are you telling me?" I asked.

"I needed to talk to someone. I'm really nervous."

Then it hit me. If Claire was going to steal him from me, I'd just have to steal him back.

I looked away, and started fiddling with my hair and dress, trying to look distracted and nervous.

"Mary?" he asked. I suppressed a grin. Perfect.

"Claire is…" I cut myself off quickly, on purpose.

"What?"

"Don't worry," I said. But I knew Gray well enough to know that he would worry.

"What is it?"

"She's…well…I went to see her today, and she said…well…she…doesn't feel that way about you any more…"

I felt guilty as I saw the pain and heartbreak in his eyes. But it would be great, once he ended up with me.

He was silent.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I had to tell you. I didn't want you to get hurt."

"Thanks," he said, emotionless. He got up, and walked out the door. I grinned in triumph. Now he'd go to Claire, break up with her, and we can finally be together! This would make a great romance novel. I pulled out a notebook to start writing.

***

Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. They completely backfired. About half and hour later, Claire and Gray both walked into the library.

"Mary, why did you tell Gray I didn't love him?" she asked, her eyes filled with anger. I decided to stick to the lie.

"But that's what you said," I said, trying to sound innocent. Oh goddess, I am so dead. Luckily, Claire was super gullible.

"I…didn't…" she said, uncertainty in her voice.

"I'm sure you did," I said.

"Well…if I did, I didn't mean it," she said, to both me and Gray. "I love you, Gray. I really do."

"I love you too," he said.

"Sorry, Mary," Claire said to me. "I thought that you, like, tried to break me and Gray up or something." She laughed. "What was I thinking? Why would my best friend try to break up me and my boyfriend? It was just a silly misunderstanding."

Tears burnt in my eyes. Gray was going to propose to Claire, they'd live happily ever after, start a family, and I'd be heartbroken forever. Claire saw my tears.

"Mary," she said soothingly, hugging me. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have just accused you like that. I'm so sorry."

Part of me cried, heartbroken. Another part of me thanked the Goddess that Claire thought that the misunderstanding was why I was crying, and that it was her fault. The last part of me thought the Claire was the most gullible person on earth. That part was the most logical. I was surprised that Gray believed all this too. But it made more sense than Claire believing it.

Claire released me from her tight, hugging grip. "Why don't we all go out for dinner tonight?" she asked.

I looked into her sapphire eyes and I couldn't say no. Not because she was my friend or anything, no way. If I seemed like her friend, this whole incident would blow over, but if I said no, Gray would probably believe that I did try to break them up and we wouldn't be able to be even friends.

"Great!" said Claire when I agreed. "See you at…seven? OK, bye!"

And once Gray and Claire had left, I banged my head on the desk and sobbed, louder and for longer than I had the past few days.

***

I met Gray and Claire at the Inn at seven. Claire constantly apologised for the 'misunderstanding', and I felt slightly guilty. But then I'd remember that she and Gray were together and the guilt would wash away as quickly as that wave dragged Cliff under.

Cliff. I suddenly lost my appetite. If he made it through tonight, he'd be fine, but I couldn't help being worried. If he didn't make it, I don't think I could live with myself.

"Mary? MARY!"

Claire and Gray were both staring at me.

"Oh, I'm fine," I said. A grin crept onto Claire's face.

"You may deny it, but you definitely like Cliff."

"What? NO!" The Mary loves Cliff thing again? Goddess, I hate her.

"What's this about Cliff?" asked Gray. Ann, who had been taking our plates at the time, stopped and looked between Claire and I questioningly.

"Mary has a crush on Cliff," said Claire. "She denies it, but it's so obvious."

Suddenly, Ann's face was as red as her hair. Goddess, what a dramatic love story our lives have become.

"I don't have a crush on Cliff," I said, crossing my arms. Ann's face returned to normal and she walked away. "I'm just worried about him because if anything happened it'd be my fault."

"Your fault?" repeated Claire. "Mary, you said he'd drowned."

I sighed. "Trying to save me," I said.

Claire gasped. "I bet he likes you too. I mean, who would honestly risk their life to save someone unless they really like them?"

CRASH!

We looked up. Ann had dropped the plates. I got up to help her.

"Back off," she hissed. I stepped back. "I…have to go," I said, before racing out the door.

I had a lot to think about that night. But above all, one question kept ringing in my head. Do I really like Cliff?

I was thinking about him all the time and I've never felt this worried about anyone. Were they signs of a crush?

What about Gray? I've always loved him. And Ann clearly loves Cliff. Oh Goddess, I hate my life. No matter what happens, somebody's heart will get broken. What am I supposed to do?

Hope you liked it. But now I have writer's block and have no idea what should happen next. If you have any ideas, I'd love to hear them. And even if you don't have ideas, review anyway. I love reviews.

Thank you!