Sea Breeze (Elliott x Reader)

◇ Melting Snow ◇

 Y/n L/n spent most of her life in the city, sitting in a boring office wondering what life came to. She would come home to her houseplants wishing she had the time to care for them properly, throw off her shoes, woke up, and go back to work. Repeat, repeat. What was the point of all this? And was this all it would ever be? Just clicking away at a computer for a crummy company till she was a skeleton like the guy in front of her? (She was hoping that was a Halloween decoration that they forgot to take down) Winter chills filled this stupid building, and she felt too tired and sick of... all this to even start her day. As she stared at the screen she could feel old memories drift to her mind... ah, to be young and free! Running around on Grandpa's farm... If only he was still around...

 But as her mind drifted about, she couldn't help but remember that envelope- the last thing he gave her. What he told her as he did was now only a faint memory that confused her at the time, but now she felt every distant word like a knife through the chest. Didn't she end up putting that in her desk drawer? Right... here. She opened it and pushed some stuff around and there it was. A little dusty and a touch yellow, with a purple wax seal. With a bit of effort, she cracked the seal open and pulled out the letter...

"Dear Y/n, If you're reading this, you must be in dire need of a change..."

  She read through the unfolded paper with widened eyes. She always found that her grandfather seemed to understand her better than her parents or teachers- but within this letter, he told a story that fits all too close to where she was now. 

"...real connections with other people and nature..."

 When was the last time she had a proper conversation? The last time she actually sat and enjoyed the sun? Truthfully, she had always been a bit of a loner... but- can you blame her? Socializing is hard and... and she's been busy! Not to mention everyone here is pretty dead inside. 

"I've enclosed the deed to that place... my pride and joy: Westwood Farm. It's located in Stardew Valley, on the southern coast. It's the perfect place to start your new life."

 That's right... Westwood. She loved that place. Watering the plants and feeding all the animals was hard work, yet somehow at the same time was so fun. Not to mention the beach! Making sand castles and of course fishing! All the time she was told to sit still, be quiet, behave; but on the docks with Grandpa, she could've sat there for the rest of time if she could. Watching the water beneath her feet, the sound of birds, listening to all of Grandpa's stories.

 She had to be careful, less all this nostalgia make her cry. With how quiet this place was- minus the constant clicking of keyboards- everyone would hear. Hey wait... the deed? The... deed!? Does that mean...

"This was my most precious gift of all, and now it's yours. I know you'll honor the family name, my dear. Good luck."

"Love, Grandpa."

...I love you too, Gramps. Miss you.

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 She rested her head against the cool glass, which was super cool in movies and shows! But... actually... really uncomfortable. Her eyes watched the mountains rush past her. Soft greenery poked out of the thin remaining piles of wet snow, breaking free of harsh winter... waking up from icy confinement to gaze freely at blue skies. She looked up at it too, bright and blue dusted with soft clouds.

 Her clothes were a bit too heavy for the warmth of the heated bus, causing her to shift uncomfortably. Was this... truly the right decision? She had practically stood up from her chair and quit on the spot before even contacting the Mayor. She vaguely remembered him, Mayor Lewis. Gramps even said to say hi if he was still around.

 Still... she was a city girl at heart. To think she was really just- dropping everything she's ever known to run off to some... some tiny town in the middle of nowhere! It was all an act of desperation of sorts, but now she was here she was a lot less certain about this. She hardly remembered the place now, it was all sort of fuzzy. Would anyone even remember her? Would there be anyone she remembered? And... did she even want either of those things? Man... she was getting a headache from the vibrating window.

 It was a bit late now to reconsider, anyway. It's not like this bus was turning around and it's not like she could just send another letter to the Mayor saying "Oh, actually I know you said you would clean it up a little bit for me- Well nevermind! I changed my mind like a COWARD!"

 Ugh, just stop overthinking. We're going to do this, and it'll be fine.