a Stardew Valley fan fiction: The Proper Care and Feeding of Souls

Chapter 7: The Warmth of the Sun

"Some souls just have a different effect on us..and whether it be their laugh or their smile or just the presence of them, we are changed forever."

- Michael

SAM

Don't you love spring? Like the way the sunshine just radiates with possibility, right? It's my absolute favorite. Today, the sun's shining like that. Makes you love life.

Abigail and I drug Sebastian down to the beach to soak it all in, a rare occurrence, really. I mean, he'd spend his entire life avoiding the sun (and people) if I let him. But, I don't.

I even got him to toss around the ball with me in the sand, which is what we were doing when I saw her. Off in the distance, a girl sat on the far edge of the beach, staring out into the ocean. The funny thing is she was too far away for me to really tell what she looked like, but the moment I saw her sitting there, this crazy anxious, excited feeling flooded my body.

"Hey, do you know who that is?", I kept my eyes on her, but tried to act chill and not betray my body by revealing the butterflies fluttering within. Sebastian paused and followed my gaze.

"Who? Oh yeah. That's Grace," he mumbled all nonchalantly.

Wait, what?!

"Oh. Yeah. That's Grace.?!", I mocked. "Dude, seriously? How do you know her?" The nerves might've leaked out a bit there. Heh.

SEBASTIAN

It'd crossed my mind that Sam would go for Grace. Even though she was a bit of a mess every time I saw her, there was just something about her.

Grace and I connected. Don't think I'm some fuckin' male chauvinist asshole or whatever, but I feel like she's mine to protect. Like, she trusted me with what she told me and I didn't take it lightly. No way would I let anything bad happen to her.

I know Sam and Abby better than anyone else. They've been my best friends as long as I've known them. Here's what I know about Sam: Sam loves people, like as much as I despise them, he loves them. He is the most genuine, kind guy. Who fuckin' knows why we're even friends. Sam's never been in love - or even had a girlfriend for that matter. Girls come here on vacation and fall into the orbit of the blonde-haired, blue-eyed local. He draws people in like that. They flirt, maybe kiss him, but that's it and then they leave. Sam's a good guy, my best friend. He deserves better. I knew I had to protect Grace, but I also knew Sam could probably give her something else she really needed that he needed to...something I couldn't give.

I smirked, made eye contact with Sam, and lofted the ball as hard as I could about a foot over his head. It sailed across the beach, landed, and then tumbled right in front of Grace.

GRACE

As I sat in the sand with my knees pulled up to my chest, I couldn't help feeling flooded with gratitude as I took in the beauty of the valley that day. The ocean, a surreal blue, with its gentle lulling waves, the sky, painted with white fluffy clouds, and in the distance, the cliffs lined with a forest of deep green trees.

I could hear some locals playing catch on the other side of the beach behind me, so I wasn't completely taken by surprise when the ball tumbled in front of me. A few seconds later, a shadow cast over the ball and I looked up to meet its owner.

My heart skipped a beat at first. Before I even saw him, I felt him. It felt like the sun was shining through him, just for me. He emitted this energizing warmth that made me want to be near him. Then, I saw him. His startling blue eyes had a depth of kindness to them like he was the one who would always take the new kid under his wing at lunchtime. He had a boyish grin, mischievous in a way that made me want to be a part of whatever he was up to. His blonde, tousled, sun-kissed hair was spiky and untamed. It hung just out of his eyes. His jawline stood out, distinguished from the rest of his face. It was not sweet and kind and loving like the rest of him. It was strong, sexy. He made me nervous, in a good way.

"Hey". His voice was as sweet and warm as the rest of him. "I'm Sam."

Hoping my voice wouldn't betray me by revealing my nervousness, I responded with just one word to test it, "Grace."

"Yeah, that's what Sebastian said." He replied, glancing back where he came from.

Sebastian? I looked back and sure enough, there was Sebastian leaning up against an old run-down shack, a cute girl with purple hair leaning next to him. He caught my eye and gave me a nod. I tilted my head a bit in response. When I looked back, Sam had sat down in the sand next to me.

"Small town...so, everyone talks....you've been here a few weeks now, right? How have we not met?!", Sam acted like he was genuinely bummed that it had taken this long.

I smiled and shrugged in response. Trusting my voice a bit more, "I've been a little reluctant to venture out, I guess." Sam nodded.

"Ralph was your grandpa...." He half asked, half stated. "When I first moved here, he used to always take me fishing." Sam looked up into my eyes and he smiled. I felt his smile move through my body. It brought with it a wave of peace and well-being that made me feel something I hadn't in a long time..happy.

Sam continued his story, "I was like 11, and every Saturday at sunrise, he'd be knocking at my window - "SAM! SAMMMY!" he'd yell. "get up! get up!...we gotta get 'em early!" Sam chuckled. "those mornings were the best..."

I smiled at his memory and thought of the days grandad would take me fishing, too.

"Thank you for telling me that. I miss him", I said.

Sam sparkled his eyes and smiled again.

"Me, too", he said quietly.

My insides lurched in a way they hadn't in a very long time.

"Hey, Grace?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad you're here."

Me too, I thought. My cheeks ached from smiling but I wasn't going to stop.

Sam grabbed his ball and stood up to leave. He held my gaze for a few seconds and I felt like I could've dived right into the depth of his luminous blue eyes. He flashed one last smile my way, turned, and walked away.

I turned back to my view of the ocean, replaying the entire scene in my mind as one does in these types of situations. Part of me wanted to leave, but my legs felt like jello and I one hundred percent could not trust them to carry me back to town, especially knowing that I'd likely have two to three pairs of eyes on me the entire time. So, I dug my toes into the sand and stayed put.

After that night, I never thought I could be with a man again. I just honestly couldn't even bring myself to stomach the thought after what had happened to me. There were a lot of ways that I could feel myself healing since I arrived here. The night terrors seemed to have stopped. I was rebuilding my confidence, and starting fresh. The trauma that riddled my body was easing its grip on me. I was starting to feel out who I was and who I wanted to be in the after. Dating was not even something that had crossed my mind. I knew I wasn't ready for it, but I knew one thing with certainty. I couldn't wait to be near Sam again.

Heliophilia: (n) 

desire to stay in the sun, love of sunlight