Disclaimer: Harvest Moon isn't mine.

Author's Note: Yet another reedited chapter. I think I won't be reading past chapters if this obsessive editing keeps happening. Well, after this chapter the story actually will start going somewhere. Anyway, here's:

Chapter III: People Change

Waiting patiently in the clinic, Scarlet tried her best not to drip blood onto the clean white floors. Gray's scarf was already soaked so she decided to us the paper bed cover instead, and wrapped his scarf within the paper. To her, tissues were a last resort. She didn't want to be more of a burden than she already was by dripping blood everywhere.

'Darn it! I just made a complete fool of myself. I don't want Jack to think I haven't grown up at all since he left.' Swinging her feet, Scarlet looked out the window smirking, 'Well, at least I know he's just as mischievous as ever. I guess in a way, both of us haven't changed at all.' After her last thought, she got a great idea of for the next scene in her story. Wasting no time, she got some tape, wrapped the paper bed cover around her head to cover her nose, grabbed some paper that she found in the office, and started writing.

Meanwhile, Jack had caught up with the others and ran as fast as they could to the clinic. Within no time, they entered the clinic, and into the examining room to find Scarlet writing with some huge crumbled paper tapped to her head. Jack's sudden burst of laughter instantly caught her attention. Scarlet's head shot up and she glared at her older brother. "In what way is this funny?"

Trying to catch his breath, Jack replied, "There's…a giant…piece of paper…tapped on your face!" Tim shook his head at the immaturity Jack was displaying and walked over to Scarlet.

Removing the tape and paper bed cover from her face, Tim examined the source of the blood, while Scarlet stuck her tongue out at Jack. This of course just made him laugh harder.

Scarlet had missed these kind moments with Jack. It was hard for her to imagine that her brother was married and had a son. To her, he was still the same boy that left home. "Good to see you too, Jack." Jack finally stopped laughing and just smiled at his sister.

Gray stood back and watched the reunion between the siblings. It was sickening. Why did people want to enjoy his company? Anger welled up inside him as he pondered the reason while walking out the clinic.

The grin on Mary's face, from watching her husband sister in-law, faded as she turned to look at Gray just before he left. She followed him, a little confused by the frown on his face, but frightened by the hate and bitterness she had seen in his eyes. It sent chills through her body. Not understand why he felt that way was the thing that bothered her the most.

Leaning up against the clinic's sign, Gray stared mindlessly at the ground, lost in thought. Mary followed him and sat down next to him in the grass.

Mary wondered why he didn't tell her to go way or glaring at her as they sat there in silence. The emotions that she had seen in his eyes were now hidden; however, the look in his eyes remained. This was not the Gray she once knew.

"You've changed Gray." Those words pierced through his thoughts, bringing him back to reality. Mary continued to speak without looking at him, fearful of what his eyes would show. "After I married Jack, I thought that you would still be my friend, but you stopped visiting the library and eventually, stopped visiting me altogether…Why? Do you resent me? Why can't it be the way it used to be between us?"

Emotions that had lied dormant in Gray, stirred as he digested Mary's words, " I don't resent you, nor did I ever think of you as a friend." He quickly got up and walked to the middle of the street to avoid touching or looking at the woman he knew he could never have.

"What do you mean by that?" Mary asked, standing up and walking over to him. She stood in front of him, determined to get an answer.

All Gray wanted to do at that moment was to touch her lips just once. Without realizing it, he started to move closer to Mary.

For the first time, Mary saw it, the love and yearning in his eyes that she had seen so easily in Jack's. Thinking fast, she turned her head and replied, "I see…"

This caused Gray to realize what he was doing, and he stepped back. He shoved his hands in his pockets in embarrassment and self-loathing, and walked away.

As Gray turned the corner, Mary sighed in relief and walked back inside the clinic. Even though nothing really happened between Gary and her, she still felt guilty and awkward about what just happened. She wanted, more than anything, to tell Jack how she just discovered and what she felt about it, but this was not the time. She'd have to wait until later.

"Your nose is broken, but you should be okay now. You've lost a large amount of blood, so you'll need to drink plenty of liquids and make sure you at least eat something." Tim explained to Scarlet as Mary appeared beside her husband. Jack gave her a 'where have you been' look before Tim started talking again, "She should stay at the clinic tonight, but if you have something planned then just have her come by in the morning."

Before Jack could tell Tim if she was going to spend the night or not, the doors burst open tp revel a weeping Kiyoshi. Elli entered a few seconds later and apologized for not being able to keep him at the festival any longer." It's fine Elli, thanks for watching him." Jack stated as he picked up his son. Kiyoshi began hiccupping, having stopped crying, and glanced at Scarlet before hiding his face in his dad's shirt.

Briefly glancing at each other, Tim accompanied Elli up stairs to tuck their son into bed.

"Oh, is that Kiyoshi? He's so cute." Scarlet stated, not noticing that Time and Elli had left the room.

Realizing he hadn't introduced his family yet, Jack announced, "Oh Scarlet, this is my wife, Mary, and my son, Kiyoshi." Scarlet grinned and slowly tired to get up from the bed even though her head was spinning a bit. "Oh, don't get up. I think it would be better if you spent the night here. I still have a little work to do and Mary's going to make Kiyoshi go to bed soon. You could just ask the doctor to bring you to my house in the morning…Where are your bags anyway? "

Sitting back down, Scarlet laughed as she thought of where her luggage was. "Well, one's in Rose Square, and the other two are lying on the beach somewhere."

Jack handed the half asleep, Kiyoshi over to his wife. "Great, I have to get them." Jack stated rolling his eyes at his sister, teasingly.

Turning to his wife that was resting her head on top of her little boy's small head, he stated, "You should go home. You both look exhausted. I'll be there soon, okay?" Mary nodded obediently and walked out the door.

Calling out an 'I'll be right back' to Scarlet, he followed his wife out the door.

Scarlet had watched silently with a peace smile on her face as her brother had talked to his wife. It made her happy to see the way he treated her. She could only watch and hope that someday she would be that precious to someone.

Outside, Jack caught up with his wife and blocked her path. Cupping her face in his hand, he kissed her forehead and stroked her cheek with his thumb. "I look forward to seeing you when I get home." Grinning, he rushed off to get his sisters luggage as fast as he could.

Images of what happened between Gray and her flashed through her mind. Even though she knew nothing actually happened between the two of them, the feeling of guilt wouldn't subside. "Come home as soon as you can…"

Curling up for warmth, Scarlet pondered about Gray. 'I wonder where he lives. At least I know I have someone, other than my brother and his family, I can talk to. I don't really know that much about him beside what Jack has told me through his letters. Well, the more time you spend with someone the more you learn about the person, right? Oh, that gives me an idea!' Scarlet jumped out of the bed and went over to the black desk in the corner of the room. She sat down in the office chair and continued writing on the piece of paper she had used earlier.

Tim came down stairs to finish some of his paper work, and found Scarlet at the desk in the examining room. He thought, 'I guess they decided she should stay the night,' as he grabbed one of the thicker blankets from the storage closet behind the counter. He set it on the bed in the patient's room, and walked to the opened white curtain that revealed the examining room.

"When Jack comes back you can take a shower if you'd like there's a towel and thicker blanket on the bed you'll be using in the room next to the office." Slowly, Scarlet looked up and nodded with her pencil still moving, and went back to work.

Silence filled the clinic, until Jack busted through the door with Scarlet's luggage. "Hey Tim, where should I put these." Both Tim and Scarlet jumped at the sudden noise. Tim sighed and point to the corner. Jack threw the luggage in the corner. Scarlet glared at him, upset with the distractions.

"Well, I'm going to go home. See you tomorrow." Then as quickly as he had entered he left.

Tim took the opportunity to go to his office to finish his paperwork and Scarlet continued where she had left off in her writing.

After awhile, Scarlet felt sticky and putrid, so snatching her pajamas out of the suitcase and the towel off the bed, and requested Tim to lead her to the bathroom. Not bothered by the interruption, Time lead Scarlet up the stairs to a black wooden door at the end of the hall.

When Scarlet finished her shower, she followed Tim's order and drank some water out of the water bottle she'd brought from home and ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich she had saved from the boat trip. By the time she finished, it was past eleven and Tim had already retired, so she finished up the paragraph she was writing, and snuggled into the large quilt like blanket in the bed.

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Waiting for Jack to get home, Mary was watched her son toss and turn in his sleep. It was times like these that convinced her that she had made the right decision, but it tore her up inside to think that Gray was suffering from her happiness.

Having just got home, Jack wrapped his arms around his wife. Mary closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulder. "Something's been bothering me…When we were at the clinic, I followed Gray outside, because he looked upset. I asked him why we stopped being friends after I married you," Jack stared at the wall trying to anticipate what his wife was trying to tell him, "He told me that he had never thought of me as a friend…At first, I was shocked and didn't understand what he meant, but…he tried to kiss me."

"What?" Jack turned his focus to his wife, shocked at what she had just told him. He didn't expect that Gray would do that. He knew that Gray still had feeling for Mary, but he didn't think that he would act on them.

"He realized what he was doing before anything happened, but I feel like such a fool. I didn't think he felt that way about me…" For a while the room was silent, until Jack released his wife from his arms and went to the bathroom. Mary already had her nightgown on so she just got in their large bed, pulled the covers close to her and turned to face the wall.

Jack came back into the room in his boxers carrying his work clothes. He threw his clothes at the edge of the bed where Mary's clothes were and slipped into the bed with his wife.

Pulling her close to his chest, he whispered, "I sorry…I knew how he felt about you…" She swiftly turned around to focus on his eyes. "I was just the first one to tell you how I felt, and when you told me you felt the same…I doesn't matter what I say, it's selfish no matter how I word it."

Not another word was said the rest of the night. Jack and Mary were filled with guilt for not considering of their friend's feelings. Here they were happily together, as Gray fights with his emotions everyday. Before falling asleep, they secretly vowed to themselves to help their best friend.