Us | A Stardew Valley FanFiction

Chapter 11 - Fall 16

"Sadie," Sam wheezed through sporadic, shallow breaths. "I think that animal from last week is on the loose again. I swear, it chased me all the way to the front door."

Alex's stifled snicker did not go unnoticed by Sam or myself, the sound causing Sam to give me a knowing glance. "That's crazy," I shrugged. "It must live here."

As if on cue, the front door once again swung open, revealing a disheveled Haley holding an armful of random items. "Sam!" She screeched, dropping everything to the floor. "What the fuck is wrong with you? You left me to carry all this shit and chase after you?! Who do you think I am?"

"I said we were playing tag," he whispered, his voice almost inaudible.

"Tag, my ass!" she groaned, now kneeling down to pick up the mess. "I did not agree to that. And for the record, you're a damn idiot—a slow one at that. I would've caught up to you if I didn't have a million pounds worth of stuff in my hands."

Sam shot me a wink as Haley continued to mutter under her breath, now trying to reach a jar that had rolled beneath the couch. I rolled my eyes, looking over at Alex, who still wore a goofy smile.

"Alright, you two," I laughed, feeling more and more like their mother with each passing second. "We should probably get going. Did you find enough for the display?"

"Did we find enough?" Sam scoffed. "We found more than enough. We've unearthed a winning collection, Sadie Simmons. Have a little faith."

With Sam's cocky attitude, and Haley's clear annoyance with him, I didn't dare ask what they conjured up. Guess Lewis will be the judge of that.

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The Towne Square was bustling with life, a rare occurrence in the bubbled world of Pelican Town. Unfamiliar faces littered the area, the shrieks of children and faint carnival-esque music wafting through the air—an environment that invited a feeling of nostalgia to wash over me.

"Get a load of this, Sade," Sam called from in front of me, rushing over to the Test Your Strength booth. Visibly struggling to even pick up the mallet, his movements were quick and careless as he slammed it onto the stone plate. The indication bar lurched slightly, not moving upwards at all beyond that.

"You're like a wet tissue, boy," the man sighed as he leaned down to inspect the results. "I almost need a magnifying glass to see that. Get out of here, kid—you're wasting my time."

"Asshole," he muttered, trudging back towards the group defeatedly. Alex and Haley suppressed giggles as I gave him a pat on the shoulder. "You'll get 'em next time, tiger," I teased.

"Whatever," Sam pouted, grabbing the bag full of goodies from Haley. "He'll regret that when we win best grange display. We'll be, like, local celebrities or something, and he will wish he hadn't said that to me."

I nodded along to his story, the tale slowly becoming more and more ridiculous. His talking continuously decreased in volume, eventually reaching a mere mumble as he emptied the bag in front of our bare showcase box. Slimy, dead fish and jars of aged fruits were some of the more gruesome picks, a great contrast to the gems and artisan products that accompanied them.

"So," Haley said, elbowing me playfully. "What do you think? First place material?"

I chuckled, and so did she. "Yes," I said, my words genuine. Though initially questionable, the diverse array beautifully embodied all of the areas of hard work that we had put into the farm. "I think it's perfect."

The stands of our competitors were already complete, each one focused on the specialties of the townspeople. Pierre's booth, located directly to our left, displayed vibrant, almost unreal produce—produce that I liked to think I sold to him. Marnie was clearly our opposite neighbor, the space full of commodities hand crafted by the livestock on her ranch. Beside hers was Willy's, a sight which rendered me thankful that Sam and Haley only chose one gross, smelly fish. His was packed to the brim with them.