Coffee and Spice | Harvey | Stardew Valley

-11-

"So, what do you think?" Emily asks, stepping back from her colorful display of gems and crystals.

It had taken Emily and I nearly an hour to get perfect, but the hard work was worth it: her setup is undeniably eye-catching. A quick survey of the other booths in the town square shows a variety of products for sale including crops, crocheted blankets, fresh-baked goods, and even livestock. Emily's table location is smack-dab in the middle of the farmer's market, making it impossible to miss. But just in case, Emily's striking red dress dotted with sequins is a spectacle in itself. It shimmers brilliantly in the sunlight every time she moves. People can't help but to turn their head as they pass by.

"No offense," Hailey begins, peering her button nose down at the gems and crystals as though they're live bugs. "But what are these supposed to do?"

"Lots of things," Emily says, a familiar look of intensity coming over her face as it always did when she got into a discussion about one of her interests. "They have metaphysical properties and some of them can even facilitate healing. You can wear them as jewelry or keep them in your pockets. Some people even sleep with them under their pillow at night."

Hailey looks like she's about to deploy one of her characteristic snarky comments, but then she notices the adoring look on Emily's face as stares down at her collection. Hailey's eyes soften, making her look less severe than usual. "That sounds really cool, Em."

"I know!" Emily clutches one of the gems to her chest and turns to me. "Thanks for helping me set everything up, Caira."

"Hmm?" I say absently, my eyes sweeping over the crowds strolling around the booths. "Oh, no problem."

"Are you looking for Shane?" Emily asks, catching on to my abstraction. "He's not a morning person. Plus, he was really out of it when he left Gus's last night - as per usual - so I doubt he'll be here. I'm not a huge fan of mornings either, come to mention it." She stifles a yawn.

I had not, in fact, been looking for Shane at all. Instead, I had been surreptitiously stealing glances at every passing face for a certain doctor - one that I was sure would make an appearance today given how rarely exciting events occur in our small town.

Judging by the position of the sun directly overhead, it's been a few hours since the start of the farmer's market. And still no sign of Harvey. I didn't know if his absence made me sad, relieved, or a little bit of both. But I did know that I was way too keyed up just standing around. My heart kept seizing in my chest every time I got a glimpse of someone that even slightly resembled him. This was the start of a very complicated friendship, indeed.

"I'm going to walk around real quick, but I'll be back soon." I'm careful not to look in Emily or Hailey's direction while I speak. If any vestiges of my conflicted thoughts are visible on my face, I don't want to have to explain it to them. I couldn't even understand it myself.

I slip through a break in the crowd and disappear among the mass of people before they can respond. Emily can hardly complain though, I had arrived here at the crack of dawn to help her set up the table and arrange her display. The buses started arriving a few hours later, spilling out an astounding number of visitors for the farmer's market. According to Emily, this event was a new addition in Pelican Town and had been proposed by Mayor Lewis as a way to revitalize the economy. News must travel fast among the valley; nearly every available inch of the pathways are crammed with gawking travelers.

The faces of strangers are broken up occasionally by the familiar one of a neighbor, but most of them are manning their stations, so to speak. Everyone wants to cash in on this opportunity. I had thought about having my own table, but I wasn't established enough on my farm yet to provide a worthy number of products.