Today started out to be a good day. I finished my farm work a lot faster than Alex, so I decided to lend her a hand. I knew that being a farmer and taking care of a family is a lot of work, especially for a first time parent. I honestly don't know how my best friend does it. I would crack under the pressure. Not to mention having the responsibilities of a town on her shoulders. And fishing and mining. I asked the orange-haired girl this.
"It's not that hard if you find it fun," she had remarked with a tired look in her eyes, "I'm doing the thing that I love and it makes me enjoy every single minute of it."
I had to admire how much she enjoyed her job. Farming was pretty nice and made a lot of money in Echo, but I can't help feeling like I'm missing something. Like I'm not fully satisfied. Maybe I needed a guy in my life? I was still a bit jealous of my friends. They all seemed to have someone special in their life while I don't. But there weren't that many single guys in town. Not to mention all the single girls in town who would be my competition. I couldn't compare with Felicity's looks or Michelle's magic. I didn't have Iroha's maturity or Yuri's humbleness. Or even Alex's charm. Feeling a bit sad, I decided to go to Clement's to cheer myself up.
The restaurant had the best food in town, since no one could compare to Clement's skill. I would sit with Alex, but she was there with her family, so I didn't want to bother them. So I sat next to Michelle and Yuri. The girls were some of my best friends.
"Hey Hazuki," Yuri gave me a light smile.
"Anything interesting happen?" Michelle stretched, "I've been so busy with my magic lately, that I decided to have a meal with Yuri." She was interrupted by Alison's laughter filling the place. She frowned at the little girl, "I swear she gets louder everyday. Must be terrible parenting."
"They are doing a good job," I defended, "Alison is polite and caring for her age."
"Well I wouldn't want a child at that age," Michelle crossed her arms angrily, "Have you not heard the rumors?"
"Rumors?" Yuri and I echoed at the same time.
"Yes. I heard Camilla and Rebecca talking about how young they are. They haven't been married for that long. There's a theory that Allen only proposed to her because he knocked her up."
"Michelle." Yuri scolded her, "That's not true."
I looked to see if they could hear us, but the couple seemed too into each other to notice. I swear they acted like newlyweds. But my thoughts were interrupted by the magician.
"What? I'm just saying. To be honest, I'm starting to believe that. They didn't even date for a whole year before getting hitched."
"My best friend would not get a shotgun wedding," I frowned, "I don't really feel like eating. Good day girls." I got to my feet, making them both jump.
"Hazuki, wait," Yuri stretched out her hand, but I was too irritated. I could see Allen and Alex giving me a stare, but I ignored the couple and walked out grumpily. Unfortunately, I wasn't watching where I was going and bumped into someone.
"Watch it," Neil stepped back with an angry gleam in his eyes, "Hazuki? What's wrong? You look pissed."
"It's nothing," I rubbed my head, "Why were you here anyways?"
"To get something to eat. Why else would I go to a restaurant?" Neil rolled his eyes, "If something's bothering you, you can tell me. Since you want to be friends and all."
"Really?"
"D-don't look at me like that. Anyways, I see you later."
I gave him a nod, but he was already inside of Clements. I still felt angry, but I felt a bit better after talking to Neil. Not sure why. Maybe because he was the first one I bumped into?
"Hey Hazuki!"
"Huh?" I turned to see Rod and Tina walking towards me. The couple was very bright against the soft white of the town, standing out like sore thumbs. They seemed to be followed by Niko, Toni, and Hina.
"Would you like to have a snowball fight with us?" Tina grabbed my hand, "We only needed one more person and everyone else is busy."
"You can be on our side," Rod explained, "Adults against kids."
"You're pretty childish yourself," I teased Rod, "Sure, I'm game. I need to clear my mind anyways."
"How come?" Hina spoke up, "Did something bad happen to you?"
"Just heard some rumors."
"About Allen and Alex?" Rod looked at me sheepishly, "I know what people have been saying."
"Well they are wrong," Tina responded, "They are clearly in love. They are mates after all." She glanced at Rod when saying this. I guess it was a wolf thing.
"I agree. Allen would never marry someone for such a awkward reason. He's very traditional."
"Are we going to have this snowball fight or a tea party?" Toni grumbled, "I wanna fight."
"Alright," I sighed, "We can discuss this later. We don't want to keep the kids waiting to lose."
"I'm not gonna lose," Hina declared, the other children agreeing with her.
"That's right!"
"Let's go then," Tina led the way to the festival grounds, but the three youngest ones ran ahead of her, trying to race each other to the place. But I couldn't help worrying. Did Alex know about these rumors? It wouldn't make me very happy to be talked about like that. Maybe I was better off alone. Rumors could get very nasty if they were able to spread.
