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Chapter 12 - Rose is Jealous

The next morning, Fawna got up and looked out her window. Travis had taken very good care of her farm the day before and everything seemed to be thriving. Her tomatoes were finally ready to be harvested! Fawna excitedly got dressed and bounded out the door to get started right away. She could use the money from the tomatoes to buy a chicken!

As she picked each tomato carefully and placed it in her rucksack, Travis came up the hill to her farm. Fawna smiled and waved, running towards him with her rucksack on her back, prepared to show him her shiny, well-grown tomatoes but Travis had a very exasperated look on his face which made Fawna stop and frown. Walking behind him was Rose. She looked very angry and had her arms crossed in front of her. As they both got to where Fawna was, Rose and Travis stopped.

"Hey Fawna." Travis mumbled. Fawna arched one slender eyebrow.

"Hey, what's wrong?" she asked, looking fom Rose to Travis. Had they gotten in a fight? She thought that things went well for them on their first date, why would they be fighting?

"Rose thinks that I fancy you. I've told her a million times that you're just my friend but she won't listen. She demanded that I bring her here so you could tell her yourself, so will you, please?" he asked. Rose had tears glistening in her eyes and Fawna felt bad for her. She knew how it felt to feel as if someone you really cared about loved someone else.

"Rose, Travis is telling the truth. He's my best friend and I care about him a lot, but not the same way you do." she told her kindly. Travis gave a satisfied smile and turned to face Rose.

"You see, Rose? Fawna's just my friend, and that's all she ever will be." he said, as Fawna nodded. Rose did not look convinced.

"Really, well I heard that she's a barsinger from the city, a seductress who flirts with every guy she meets and an empty-headed bimbo like that irritating Muffy in Forget-Me-Not Valley!" Rose accused cruelly, as tears began to stream down her cheeks.

"Hey! What right do you have to judge me like that?" Fawna asked angrily, cocking one hip to one side and pouting as she always did when she was angry.

"She's right, Rose. You shouldn't say things like that about people before getting to know them." he told her rather reluctantly. Poor Travis was caught between two people he cared about. Rose angrily dashed the tears from her eyes and glared at him.

"You're going to side with her, aren't you?" she asked weakly. "Just because she's..." Rose paused for a moment, trying to think of a way to end her sentence "prettier than I am!" she finished, knowing how air-headed she sounded, which was very unlike Rose who was quite the opposite of Fawna in personality. Travis vehemently shook his head.

"No Rose! I don't think she's pretty!" he insisted and Fawna looked at Travis, feeling very hurt. Just because they weren't dating, that didn't mean he could hurt her feelings like that.

"you don't think I'm pretty?" she asked, biting her lip to keep from crying. To her, she felt as if her best friend had just told her she was ugly. Travis' eyes widened in regret and he shook his head.

"I'm so sorry, Fawna, I didn't mean it that way." he tried to apologize, but Rose had had enough of this.

"That's it!" she told him angrily. "Go be with your cutsey barsinger!" she yelled before dissolving into tears and running off Fawna's farm. Travis went after her, but paused to look back at Fawna hesitantly. She just scowled.

"Go! It's not like you want to be friends with such an ugly hag anyway!" she told him, her voice filled with hurt. Travis looked as if he was about to argue, but then just sighed, shaking his head before running after Rose to try and make things right with her.

Fawna watched him go before carrying her tomatoes to the shipping bin, tears of feeling unwanted and worthless running down her cheeks.

Chapter 13 - Rose's "Problem"

Fawna cried herself to sleep that night. She had lost her best friend because of his jealous girlfriend. What Rose had said really hurt her. It was the same as everyone else thought of her, that she was nothing but an air-headed ditz who was fit for nothing except living off of her rich boyfriend's credit cards. Maybe they were right.

"Fawna? FAWNA! Open up!" Travis' voice called the next morning, jolting Fawna out of her sleep. Fawna deliberately kept her eyes shut and did not move. She was much too hurt by the day before to make up with him just yet. Eventually, she heard a sigh from the other side of the door and heavy footsteps trudging away. Deciding that it was now safe to get up, Fawna climbed out of her bed and got dressed, walking outside.

Looking in her shipping box, she discovered that she had made quite a bit of money from the tomatoes she had grown. She had enough money for a chicken now! This lifted Fawna's spirits slightly and she collected her funds and put them in her pocket before doing her morning chores. Once she had taken care of Mutt and Martini, watered her tomatoes, and cleared her field, Fawna headed towards Mineral Town's Poultry Farm. She did not want to buy her chicken from the Farmer's Shop in Serenity Falls in case Travis was there helping his dad.

"Why hello there. You're a new face. My name is Lillia, how may I help you?" the lady behind the counter at the Poultry Farm asked pleasantly. The woman was very pretty, but Fawna noticed that she seemed rather pale and weak.

"Uh, hi. I'm Fawna. I run a farm in Serenity Falls and I'm here to buy a chicken." she announced, laying the gold down on the table. Lillia's eyes widened in recognition.

"Oh, you're the woman Rick was telling me about. Rick is my son." Lillia told her, smiling. As Fawna was about to reply, Lillia's face screwed up in pain and she doubled over coughing. Alarmed, Fawna hurried over to her, but Rick came dashing down the stairs before Fawna could do anything.

"MOM!" he shouted, kneeling beside her, his face completely overtaken in worry. Pushing his glasses higher up his nose, Rick helped his mother to the couch. Lillia waved off all of his worried exclamations.

"I'm alright dear. Don't worry." she told him gently, patting his hand. Rick did not look convinced.

"Are you sure you don't want Popuri to take you to the clinic?" he asked her. "I can run the store and take care of the chickens myself." he insisted. Fawna smiled and her heart gave a tug of affection towards this rather awkward-looking man who worked so hard to take care of his family. Lillia suddenly remembered that Fawna was there and frowned.

"Oh, I'm so sorry Fawna. You wanted to buy a chicken, didn't you?" she asked as Fawna nodded. "Rick, could you go help Fawna pick out her chicken please? I'll be alright in the store." she assured him. Rick reluctantly nodded and led Fawna out to the chicken pen. Poor Rick looked so sad that Fawna just had to cheer him up.

"Your mom seems really nice and I'm sure she'll be just fine." Fawna said sweetly, smiling sympathetically. Rick sighed and nodded.

"Yeah, I guess. I'm sorry that the second time we met had to be like that. I hope you won't think I'm too much of a worry-wort. Popuri says I am and so does that womanizer Kai she's dating. I don't trust him one bit." he said huffily. Fawna found herself becoming quite attracted to Rick, despite his outwardly appearance and awkwardness. Usually, Fawna was attracted to rich, good-looking men who had more money than compassion, so this was quite unusual for her. She laughed kindly and put a hand on his shoulder which made him jump.

"I think it's sweet that you worry about your family." she told him truthfully and Rick's face brightened immediately. "Nobody's ever worried about me before." she sighed, but quickly flashed another smile to hide her sadness. The truth was that every time she felt any kind of affection towards another guy, the memories of Greg came flooding back. The way he used to kiss her and hold her as they drifted off to sleep at night still made her eyes fill with tears of longing. Despite everything, she still loved him.

"Are you alright?" Rick asked gently. "You have a strand of hair in your face, by the way." he told her, going to brush it aside as another leap of attraction went through Fawna's body, quickly marred by Greg's face swimming around on the surface of her mind. Fawna blushed and nodded.

"Yes, just a little hot, that's all... um, can I have that chicken?" she asked softly, pointing to one that was sitting by herself in the corner of the pen. Rick frowned slightly.

"Well, then you should go home and get some water before you collapse." he advised. Looking at the chicken Fawna pointed to, he nodded. "Sure. That one's a real sweetheart. Just give her a name and I'll drop her off at your farm tomorrow morning." Fawna bit her lip, thinking hard about what to name her. Suddenly, an old Celtic ballad she used to sing at Greg's bar called "All Too Soon" popped into her head, along with the words "And the bonny new land that we shaped with our hand, it'll roll to the ocean again..." she smiled and turned to Rick.

"I'll name her Bonny." she said. Rick nodded and laughed.

"That's a good name. She'll be at your farm tomorrow. Take care now." he told her as she walked back towards Serenity Falls. Rick had been right. She had been in the sun all day and felt very faint. The watering hole at her farm was disgusting to drink since it served as her bathtub as well as her crop water. She would have to go to the Crescent Moon Bar in Serenity Falls to get some water. She knew Rose would be there but she was so weary, she didn't care at the moment. Walking through the doors of the bar as the sun began to set, she ran right into Rose who had been about to walk outside.

"Oh, Fawna!" she gasped, bumping into her. "I was just about to see you." she told her. Fawna gave her a very confused look.

"See me? Don't you hate me?" she asked. Beginning to feel angry again, Fawna scowled. "After all, I'm just a ditzy barsinger who's trying to steal your boyfriend!" she snapped. Rose hung her head in shame.

"I'm really sorry about what I said. Can we talk?" she asked. Fawna was beginning to feel dizzy from the heat and she gripped the windowsill to steady herself.

"As long as I can have some water." she replied. Rose nodded and went back inside with Fawna following to pour her a glass of water.

"Here. Water is always free, by the way." Rose said as Fawna gratefully gulped down the cool liquid. Already, her head felt clearer. Rose sat down opposite her and sighed. "Travis and I mended things between us." she began as Fawna nodded. That was good, she guessed. Travis seemed to really like her. "The thing is, I wasn't in my right mind yesterday... I had a bit more to drink than I should have." she admitted in a whisper, going very red with humiliation. Fawna raised an eyebrow.

"Something tells me that this is a regular thing." she replied as Rose reluctantly nodded.

"It is." she admitted. "Whenever I get stressed, I have a few drinks to calm myself down. Since I run a restaurant and bar on my own, I get stressed a lot." she sighed. "I know that you and Travis are only friends and that he really cares about me, but... when I get like that, I don't think straight anymore and I do and say things I regret." she said as a tear rolled down her cheek. Fawna stared at Rose, dumbfounded.

"But you were at my farm at nine in the morning! You had too much to drink at nine in the morning?" she asked incredulously. Rose wiped her cheek roughly with her palm.

"Look, I know I have a problem, okay? That's why I'm trying to apologize to you!" she snapped, beginning to cry again. Fawna frowned.

"Does Travis know?" Fawna asked quietly. Rose's eyes widened and she shook her head as if trying to shake a fly out of her ear.

"No. Fawna, I know he's your best friend but you can't tell him! He'd never want to be with me if he knew I was an alco- uh, I mean a heavy drinker." she finished, mumbling. Looking at Fawna's disbelieving face, Rose let out a sob and desperately looked her straight in the eye, grabbing her hand. "I will tell him Fawna. I will, just- I don't know how, that's all." she said. "Please don't say anything to him. I want to be the one to tell him." she pleaded. Fawna's heart went out to this poor woman and she found herself nodding.

"I promise." she said. "As long as you do tell him eventually." she warned. Rose nodded as the two women stood up and embraced. "You're very brave to admit something like that." Fawna told her truthfully. Rose gave a weak smile in return.

"If only I knew how to fix it." she whispered sadly.

Chapter 14 - A Confused Heart

Once again, Fawna was awoken by the sound of Travis' voice through the door. "Fawna! Please open the door! I'm not leaving this time until you come out and talk to me!" he called. Sighing, Fawna got out of bed and opened the door in her pyjamas. Travis looked quite shocked that she had answered him so quickly. He looked as though he had been prepared to shout and bang on the door for hours. Travis grinned when he took a look at Fawna early in the morning before getting ready. "Oh no! Your hair is messed up! Whatever shall you do?" he cried in a sarcastic tone of mortal peril. Despite herself, Fawna laughed and punched his arm.

"Oh, come off it." she told him sternly, but all the ame she strained to see her reflection in the window. "It's not that bad, is it?" she added nervously, trying to run her fingers through the locks. Travis chuckled and shook his head in amusement. Clearing his throat, Travis became serious once again.

"Rose told me that you two talked yesterday and fixed things between you. What did you say to each other?" he asked curiously. Remembering her promise to Rose, Fawna shuffled her feet awkwardly and mumbled her answer.

"Oh, well... you know, girl stuff I guess." she told him evasively. Travis frowned for a moment, but then shrugged seeming to accept Fawna's white lie. Fawna told Travis to wait a few minutes while she got dressed and just as she was tying up her farming boots, she heard another knock at the door. Opening it, she saw Rick with Bonny in his hands. Now that the chickn was up close to Fawna, the feathery animal frightened her. Fawna, just get over it! she told herself sternly. You're the one who bought the chicken in the first place! she reminded herself. Rick smiled when he saw her.

"Hey Fawna! I brought Bonny to your farm just like I promised." he told her kindly, handing the chicken to her. Fawna's eyes widened and she reluctantly took Bonny in her arms. Rick seemed to sense Fawna's anxiety and put a hand on her shoulder, which made Fawna smile unknowingly. "Don't worry. A lot of people are nervous around their first chicken, but just be kind to her and you two will become the best of friends." he told her.

"Thanks Rick." Fawna sighed gratefully. "I'll just put her down now." she said, placing Bonny on the ground outside her house.

"Uh, I wouldn't do that if I were you-" Rick began, but it was too late. Bonny had run off, clucking loudly. Before they knew it, she was on the other side of the farm. Rick turned to Fawna with a slight grimace. "I was going to help you build a fence to keep her in, but now it's going to take a really long time to chase her down." he said matter-of-factly. Fawna blushed in humiliation and looked at the floor, biting back tears. Just when she had thought she'd gotten the hang of farming, she'd screwed up again. Rick smiled and patted her kindly on the back. "Hey, don't worry. Travis and I will help you build the fence and it shouldn't take as long to catch her if we all pitch in." he encouraged her. Fawna nodded and smiled. Rick was very nice.

"Thanks." she said simply. Rick went to tell Travis who was brushing Martini about the fence and Fawna gathered a bunch of lumber she had stored in her lumber shed. Rick walked over, shaking his head and Fawna pouted, dropping the lumber to the ground and sticking her hip out. "What am I doing wrong now?" she asked, irritated.

"You're not doing anything wrong, but I have a tip that'll save you a lot of time and money." he said. "Instead of using wood to make your fences, use stones. The stones never break like wood does, it's easy to pick up and make openings to move animals in and out of their sheds, the animals can't get out and the wild dogs can't get in." he told her. Fawna smiled. That was a really good idea now that she thought about it.

"That's great! There's only one problem, though... I broke all the stones with my hammer when I moved in." she said glumly. Travis walked over with a broad grin on his face.

"Well, I only broke the big stones. I pocketed the small ones in case something like this came up." he winked. "It's not a lot, but it will hold about four chickens comfortably." he said. Both Rick and Fawna congratulated him on his excellent foresight and got to work. It was about one in the afternoon when they finished the fence situated beside the chicken coop.

"Now to catch Bonny." Rick said. "It's best if we all sneak up on her from the back so we don't scare her. If chickens get too scared or unhappy, they won't lay eggs you know." Rick advised knowledgeably. Nodding, Travis and Fawna followed Rick's example and although it took over an hour to nab her, Travis eventually held the squirming Bonny in his arms. Putting her within the confines of the fence, the three farmers high-fived each other on a job well-done.

"Well, that was interesting." Fawna laughed. "It's a good thing Travis took care of the morning chores first. Thanks for that, by the way." she told him. Rick smiled and looked at his watch.

"Oh no, I'm late!" he exclaimed. "I'm supposed to walk my mom home from the clinic today. I'll see you both later." he said, leaving the farm. Fawna smiled after him, feeling unusually warm, even for the end of the summer. Travis smirked and poked her in the side.

"Ouch! What was that for?" she muttered, rubbing her side where Travis had poked her. Travis crossed his arms.

"Rick's a nice guy. He'd be good for you." Travis observed simply. Fawna blinked a couple of times before shaking her head.

"No Travis." Fawna sighed, beginning to walk away to pet Bonny. Travis quickly fell into step beside her with his hands in his pockets.

"It's Greg isn't it? You still love him... Fawna, he's a jerk. You should-" he began, but Fawna stopped and faced Travis angrily.

"Just drop it, Travis!" she snapped. Travis looked as though he were about to argue, but thought better of it and shut his mouth again with a slight nod. "Thank you." Fawna told him exasperatedly as they finished up the day's work in silence.