[Stardew Valley] On the Edge - Shane

14

Summer continued to drag by - it wasn't Shane's favorite season but he didn't really mind it this time around. No amount of pit sweat, overtime warnings in Morris' grating voice or bites by what Marnie calls 'can't see ems' could tear him down from the high of succeeding in one thing. Aria. Though they'd both been preoccupied with their separate occupations that week - Shane still stocking endless crates of products at Joja and Aria harvesting her crops and unearthing artifacts in the mines, meeting up with her on the side of JojaMart to walk her home was undoubtedly the highlight of his days now.

On the morning of the fifteenth day of summer, Shane clocked in as normal and began pulling the designated crates over to the frozen food section. He knelt down, headphones over his ears as he began organizing and shelving the ice cream, spacing out as he worked. Stocking was a relatively mindless task that often allowed his mind to wander while his hands moved independently from his thoughts.

"I'm okay Shane, I swear. They're just little dust sprites, they sting when they hit but they're no match against my badass sword." Aria explained her bandaged up wrists distractedly, yanking a pepper from one of the many stalks lined up on her farm.

He'd offered to help gather her harvest after his shift so there he stood in the blazing six o'clock sun, holding her wicker basket as she plucked off the red fruits and tossed them in.

"Don't make me start worrying about you."

She turned around with a handful of peppers and that reassuring grin of hers and his stern look faded. Though the heat had frizzed her hair and worn her down, she looked beautiful as usual. She took a half step towards him though they were already standing close together between the rows of produce, holding a pepper up to his mouth.

"Here." She directs him, staring right into his eyes. Her smile pulled upwards into a tantalizing smirk.

He bit into it, savoring the sweet heat as her eyes seemed to glow amber in the evening sun. The only thing hotter than the blazing sun was the flicker of warmth searing through Aria's abdomen when Shane tugged her towards him by her belt loops. Heat prickled at his lips when they met with hers and spread across his tongue as it ran across her bottom lip. Trying to guess Aria's lip gloss flavor had quickly become Shane's new favorite pastime.

Hmm. Coconut.

"Let's make sure we're staying on task, Shane."

Shane blinked once at the sound of Morris' voice, suddenly conscious of the refrigerator chill blowing onto his heated up face. Now THAT'S Hot! The packaging from the frozen pepper poppers screamed at him from the wrong shelf.

The following days dragged by in a slow haze, the events of each echoing the other with slight variation in activity. Every day started with work and usually ended with hanging out with Jas and Aria, but Shane felt comforted in this new routine rather than the lonely rote from before. On that Tuesday, he found himself actually having a good time when Jas came home with an excited Vincent and Sam in tow with a mile high pile of game cartridges.

Wednesday was less chaotic. Well, sort of. The previous night had broken down the wall Shane put up with Sam over their shared interest in shitty video games. And now, he guessed, they were on speaking terms beyond the usual "hey" in the breakroom. This new alliance also came with the bonus of watching Sam subtly making obscene gestures behind Morris' back.

Thursday evening, Shane clocked out and met with Aria, who was in her usual spot on the side of the building.

"Can I show you something?" She asked him immediately, sending Shane's brain into an anxious tizzy. She didn't look angry or upset, just generally fidgety and squirmy. A nervous grin was ever present on her face, so he assumed it couldn't be too bad, whatever it was.