Chapter Text
The bus ride was long and exhausting. The road from Zuzu city to a small town buried in the mountains called Stardew Valley was long. A young man sat in his seat staring out the window, his eyes scanning the scenery of what would be his new home.
Stardew Valley was a place he visited once or twice before when his grandfather was still alive. He had distant but close memories in his heart.
His eyes fluttered open and closed as he stared off into the valley. He looked down and checked his watch.
“4 hours left.” He mummered to himself.
With four hours left on this bus ride, he decided to rest his eyes.
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The bus shook softly as it came to a halt. Waking him up from his rest, his eyes opened, and he looked out his window. He noticed two figures standing outside on the cobblestone sidewalk. He scanned the two; they looked so familiar, yet so new to him. He stood up, grabbed his few belongings, and made his way off the bus. Before he could turn around to thank the driver, the bus sped off quicker than it had driven the whole trip.
The older gentleman spoke first. He was a shorter man with short gray hair and a large gray mustache to match. Wearing a brown hat, with a green collared shirt and brown suspenders.
“ Ah you must be the new farmer! It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Lewis, Mayor Lewis.”
Lewis held out his hand to shake the others, and the farmer took it. Lewis's hand twitched under the farmer's grip.
“ A strong grip just like your grandfather had!” He let out a chuckle before his lips fell into a frown. “ You do have my sincerest condolences for your grandfather. He was a great man and I'm sure you will do as many or more great things than he did.”
The farmer smiled as he heard the man praise him. He nodded softly and thanked Lewis for his kind words.
A woman stepped forward, an older woman, maybe in her mid 40’s, she reached out and took the farmer's hands into her own. Her hands were rough and calloused as if she worked every day of her life with no breaks.
“Oh my, how you have grown! I remember when you were just a little kid running around Pelican Town with everyone!”
The farmer looked a bit shocked at this woman. He knew he had visited Pelican town a few times before with his grandfather, yet he didn't remember everyone and their names. Only fractions of small, blurry memories he could recall.
The woman looked as if she realized what was going through the farmer's head. She let out a soft huff of laughter before smiling.
“oh I know it was so long ago, you probably don't remember me. My name is Robin. I'm the carpenter of Pelican Town. I live up in the mountains with my kids Sebastian and Maru!... Oh, and my Husband Demetrius.”
Her tone seemed to change throughout her words, but the Farmer didn't seem to pay too much attention to it. Though the names she said seemed to ring a bell in the back of his mind, he didn't have the energy to recall the memories from so many years ago.
Lewis took notice of the farmers' draining energy, and he smiled. “You head to the farm and rest up, my boy. The farm is to my left. Your grandfather left you everything on that farm, so the house and everything in it are yours. Go rest for the night, you have a long day tomorrow.”
The farmer nodded and said his goodbyes before grabbing his bags and making his way towards his new home.
When he walked onto the property and looked at just how Mother Nature took over; Rocks, tall grass, and trees littered the once open farm plot. Memories of his time here long ago flooded through his mind.
Memories of running around the farm with a purple-haired girl made his lips curl into a smile. The two of them are playing with one another without a care in the world. He let out a pleased sigh before trudging through the grass to make his way to the cabin.
Once in, he set his bags down near the door and looked around. The cabin was small and cozy: It felt like a home he had never had before.
He took his shirt off and tossed it to the floor, dropping himself onto the bed. He was developed in a cloud of dust as laid on the bed. He let out a cough and quickly stood up, dusting himself off. He let out a sigh and smiled to himself. His new life was just beginning…
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A couple of weeks had passed since the farmer first arrived in the valley. His farm started to grow, as did his bonds with townsfolk. He worked on the farm, swinging his axe against a tree. His breath was Shakey and beads of sweat dripped down his body.
He was lost in his own thoughts as he cut the tree, swinging the axe back and forth. He was dragged out of his thoughts when he heard a voice, a woman's voice. Of someone clearing their throat. He turned around and noticed the familiar figure standing at the entrance of the farm; it was Robin.
He smiled, wiping the beads of sweat off his forehead, resting his axe against the tree he was cutting.
“Ah! Hello Robin! sorry I didn't hear you if you were calling me” He spoke happily yet with a low tone.
Robin was standing at the entrance with a smile on her face, her cheeks flushed red, but the farmer imagined it was just from the heat of the sun. She walked closer to him and began to speak.
“Youve been with us for a couple of weeks now, and I wanted to check on your progress,” she started. She looked around and noticed just how much work he had done. The tall grass had been cut, and some trees had been chopped down. She noticed a pile of logs off by the house where he had been collecting the wood he chopped.
“I also wanted to let you know if you ever need anything built id gladly help you out. I'm permitted by the town to build new structures, such as coops, Barns, and silos. If you need it, I can help.”
The farmer watched Robin as she spoke, nodding along with what she said, grateful he had someone to turn to for help in the town.
“Thank you, Robin, I appreciate that!” He moved closer, unaware he was flustering her with each step. “Hmm… I don't think I'm ready to start raising animals, a silo might be a good start to prepare, though!”
Robin watched as he continued to step closer to her. There was something about him that was so strange-So different. The way he looked down at her with care and admiration, the way he spoke to her like she was there and present, was something she was unused to. Yet she loved it and craved more.
Robin quickly looked away with a nervous smile. She hesitated over her next words. “...well, I'll let you get back to work.”
She backed away and went to walk off the property, stopping in her tracks to turn and look at the farmer.
“Oh! By the way. Mayor Lewis wants you to think of a name for your farm! so get to thinking,” She said with a smile and a wink before walking off. Leaving the farmer alone.
He thought for a moment. Standing in his own comfortable silence as he considered a name for his new home.