The Stargazer (Shane/Harvey X Reader)

Rebirth

Spring

Two weeks. That's all the time it took to begin your transition to a more fulfilling way of life. On Monday, you extracted yourself from the databases on your work computer, effectively removing you from Joja Co. . On Tuesday you marched proudly into your boss' office and slammed the required termination documents on the desk. You quit without a second thought, ignoring how your stomach flipped inside out.

    Then you were back in your apartment. The bold action you'd taken surfaced through your mind fog of rage and ambition. We're you doing the right thing? Could you really survive, leading a life like this? You wondered if it was all worth it, if you could even support yourself. What if the farm was in poor condition, or you couldn't learn the physical labor?

    But the seeds of a new way had been planted. Survival isn't what you'd find yourself in. You'd be living life.

    Every piece of furniture in your apartment reflected the sterile emotions that the city conditioned you to. They couldn't come with you. To start a new life of love and joy, you had to start fresh. So, you sold everything to your neighbors in the building, spending the last few days of winter emptying out the apartment. In the end you were only leaving with three boxes and a suitcase. Even the majority of your clothes, except a few very special pieces, were too suffocating in the presentation of a lone corporate life. The majority were tossed away with your furniture.

    Living in the city, you never needed a car. You'd always waked everywhere or, if you were feeling glamorous, would splurge on a taxi. Stardew Valley was only about two hours away from Zuzu, not far enough for a flight. The day before you left your apartment for good, you walked to the bus station and purchased two one way tickets to Pelican Town. One seat for you, the other for the three boxes you'd assumed would only fit beside you, not in the luggage carry. The small paper slips felt like heavy weights in your hand when the cashier handed them to you through the slot in the window. This small piece of paper was your permission slip to start over, to get yourself out of the dead end you'd cursed yourself with.

    Spring had finally broken through the ice of winter, the day was chilly but tolerable. Just how the flowers would bud and the trees would sprout tiny leaves, you decided the day to leave for Stardew on Spring 1. A day you could feel connected to the replenishing of fresh life, you too would bloom brightly and glow. When you'd arrive, the landscape would feel alive and lush, welcoming you to a new life.

    Monday Morning, Spring 1, the day everything changed. Your apartment was bare, but seemed reflective of the same cold emptiness it had before the furniture was gone. It looked the same, still sleek and spotless. But unloved and stale. You stood in front on the door facing into the space. This was the first home you had tried making for yourself, even if it rejected your living in it. This is where you'd brought home Indie, taught him to sit, and fed him off of your plate. This was the place where men who didn't love you would slip out before the morning came. You'd wake up to find only Indie in your bed, then months later not even him. This place, it felt like the tomb of hope and life.

    The heavy front door fought against you as you propped it open with the heaviest of your boxes. You lugged everything into your hallway, needing to catch your breath between trips. The man who'd always lived a door down from you was standing waiting for the elevator in a fresh pressed luxury suit. His eyes followed you in distaste as he watched you struggle while wearing a sloppy travel outfit. No help was offered, he enjoyed seeing you overwork yourself, as if it were some punishment for abandoning this life.

"Good morning!" You cheered to him, "Beautiful day out isn't it?"

     He sneered in disapproval and disappeared into the elevator.