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Chapter 10 - Travis' Story

After finishing up the farm chores, Fawna and Travis headed towards Serenity Falls' bar just as he had promised her. As they stepped in, a brunette woman in a red tanktop and old, torn up jeans walked over and beamed at them.

"Hey Travis, who's your friend?" she asked cheerfully. Fawna noticed that the look she gave Fawna was slightly suspicious and almost jealous but she was still very polite and friendly towards both of them. Travis smiled back and Fawna noticed his eyes were a lot brighter than they were before.

"Hi Rose, this is my friend Fawna I was telling you about. She's the new owner of Tom and Rita's old farm." he introduced her. Rose nodded and smiled.

"Travis has said a lot about you. You're exactly how I pictured you." she said with a kind laugh but Fawna stll couldn't help but wonder if her words really were meant as a compliment. "There's no one here right now, business has been pretty slow today so go sit down and I'll probably be able to get your order to you right away." she said with a wink.

"Thanks Rose." Travis smiled, leading Fawna to the table closest to where Rose was working behind the counter. As they waited for her to just finish up some dishes in the back room, Travis' eyes slid from the conversation he was having with Fawna to the back door every minute or so, with a hopeful look in his eye. Suddenly, it clicked and Fawna put two and two together. Leaning closer to him and whispering just in case Rose walked back out, Fawna voiced her hunch.

"Travis, do you like her?" she asked him, nodding her head towards the door where Rose was working behind. Travis chuckled weakly with a sheepish grin and rubbed the back of his neck.

"It's that obvious, huh?" he asked, looking a little embarrassed. Fawna raised her eyebrows and nodded as Travis sighed.

"You know, I think she likes you too. If you want, I can leave so you can talk to her alone." Fawna offered. Helping friends get dates had always been one of Fawna's favourite hobbies. Travis laughed and shook his head.

"Nah, I'm not that brave." he joked. "Besides, I promised you a meal, remember?" Fawna just shrugged.

"It can always wait, and you were brave when you were telling Greg off." she pointed out. Travis scowled at the mention of his name.

"Yeah well the jerk had it coming to him. Rose is definitely not Greg." he argued back defensively. Not being able to come up with an argument against this, Fawna just sighed and started tapping her scratched, paintless, chipped fingernails on the rough wooden table. A few seconds later, Rose came back out with a pad and pencil in her hand.

"Sorry about that. I couldn't remember where I had placed my notepad and pencil fr the life of me." she smiled. "Now, what is it you'd like?" Fawna tapped her finger against her chin thoughfully before answering.

"I don't suppose you have any martinis?" she asked. Rose laughed and shook her head.

"Sorry, nothing like that around here. We do have Farmer's Delight, though. I think the name fits, don't you?" she said airily. Fawna laughed and nodded.

"Okay, one of those then and... a salad?" she asked hopefully. Rose nodded and jotted down the order, then took Travis'. He had roasted fish and a fizzy raspberry drink.

Halfway through the meal, the conversation turned towards Travis. He knew quite a bit about her, but Fawna hardly knew anything about Travis other than his dad ran the Farmer's Shop and he was a nice guy. "You know, when I first met you, you told me that you cared because you used to be like me. What did you mean?" Fawna asked him, taking a sip of her drink.

"Oh that." he said, just remembering it now. "Well, I used to live in the city too. My parents divorced when I was three and my dad took off here, leaving me with my mom. I was too little to remember and my dad never talked to me again after that, so for the longest time I was under the impression that I didn't have a dad, because my mom never talked about him." Travis said this with such a casual tone that Fawna was surprised. If that had been her, she'd have been crying right now. "When I was fifteen, I found a really nasty letter under my mom's bed while I was cleaning her room. It was from my father and he was really mad because my mom hadn't let him see ot talk to me in twelve years."

"Wow..." Fawna whispered. "What did you do then?" She wanted to hear more. Travis took a sip of his drink before continuing.

"Well, I was so furious with my mom for not telling me about my dad and keeping him away from me. We had this huge fight and I ran away. The letter said that my dad lived in Serenity Falls and I had nowhere else to go, so I trecked over here on my own. I had no money for a cab or a bus."

"You walked all the way here from the city?" Fawna asked, completely aghast. Travis nodded.

"Yup. I arrived there the next day. I knew my dad's name was Eric from the letter so I asked around and the villagers sent me to the Farmer's Shop. I knocked on the door and at first my dad didn't recognize me because he hadn't seen me since I was three. I had to show him the letter and then he believed me. He offered me a job at his shop so I could earn my keep. He's pretty hard on me and I heard he wasn't much better to you your first day here, but he's really not that bad of a guy." Travis explained. One thing still confused Fawna, though.

"Don't you still talk to your mom, though?" Fawna asked after swallowing a mouthful of salad. Travis' eyes clouded over and he cleared his throat awkwardly.

"She died a few months after I came here. We never got the chance to make up. I found out later that she'd had cancer for the last year and a half but never told me. She didn't want me to worry about her while I was there and after I left, she didn't want to force me to come home out of pity for her." he sighed sadly. Fawna bit her lip, feeling foolish for asking him to divulge this information. Travis noticed and forced a smile, patting her hand kindly.

"Don't feel bad about it, Fawna. That was ten years ago and it's not as hard to deal with now." he reassured her. "You see? I used to be like you because I left the city after being hurt by someone I loved and had a pretty hard time adjusting to the new lifestyle." he told her. Fawna smiled back and nodded.

By the end of Travis' tale, their plates had been cleaned and it was nearly one in the afternoon. Rose came up to them to clear their table. "Bye Travis. Stop by again soon." she told him sweetly, pointedly leaving Fawna out of the greeting. Travis went a little bit red at the back of his neck where Rose couldn't see and nodded. As they left the bar, Fawna turned around with a stern expression on her face and her hands placed on her hips.

"Alright, I can't watch this anymore. You need to march right back in there and ask that Rose woman out on a date with you. It's obvious you like each other." she told him matter-of-factly. Travis stared blankly at her.

"Rose? Like me?" he asked. Fawna laughed at how stupidly oblivious her friend could be.

"YES!" she yelled in exasperation. "Didn't you even notice how she kept trying to exclude me? She must have thought I was your girlfriend or something. Now get in there and convince her otherwise!" she insisted. Travis seemed very reluctant and Fawn used her last resort. She looked into his eyes sadly and pouted. "Don't you trust me? I thought I was your friend?" she asked him in a wobbly voice. Travis raised his eyebrows.

"You must be serious if you're willing to pull that ridiculous stunt on me." he laughed. "Alright, I'll do it but if I make a fool of myself you're doing your farm chores on your own for a week." he threatened. Fawna shooed him off into the bar and waited for a few minutes. Travis walked back out looking very down and for a moment, Fawna thought she had been wrong after all.

"Well?" she asked hesitantly. Travis sighed and crossed his arms.

"I hate it when you're right." he told her simply. Fawna broke out laughing and patted him on the back in congratulations.

"So, when are you two going out?" she asked him. With a sheepish grin, Travis mumbled the answer.

"Tomorrow night at the waterfall." he revealed. Smiling and still laughing at her success, her and Travis began walking back to the farm.

"See, what would you do without me?" she asked him, reveling in her moment of glory. Travis playfully shoved her in the arm.

"Don't make me deflate your head with a hoofpick." he said solemnly, but the grin that broke across his face afterwards said plainly that he was just as happy as she was, if not more.

TO BE CONTINUED...

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Chapter 11 - One Eventful Night

Travis stood on Fawna's doorstep the next night, looking extremely antsy and nervous. He was wearing a plain white t-shirt underneath a white dress shirt with the top three buttons undone to reveal the collar of his t-shirt. He had a pair of rather nice jeans on with clean blue and white sneakers. His hair was combed a lot mre carefully than usual.

"Well? How do I look?" he asked her. Fawna laughed and nodded.

"Dashing Travis. Shouldn't you get going?" she asked him, looking down at her watch. Travis nodded and flattened the collar of his dress shirt.

"Yeah, I just wanted to make sure I didn't have toilet paper hanging from my butt or something, so I came here first." he told her, which got Fawna laughing again.

"Well, you don't have toilet paper hanging from your butt, but your shoe, now that's a different story." she said teasingly, with her arms crossed. Travis rolled his eyes and kicked her playfully in the shins.

"You're hilarious." he told her sarcastically, before heading off towards the waterfall for his picnic with Rose. Sighing from sudden boredom, Fawna decided to wander around Sernity Falls that evening with Mutt. Grabbing an old rope from the shed, Fawna fastened it to her puppy's bandana to act as a leash.

"Come on boy, let's go for a walk." she told him, leading the scruffy dog off the property. Barking excitedly and wagging his tail, Mutt happily padded alongside Fawna down the dusty street. The sun was beginning to fade in the distance and there were no lights on the main street of Serenity Falls, so Fawna had to be careful not to trip over any debris or uneven footing along the path. Suddeny, Mutt stood stock still and began barking and growling menacingly. Fawna immediately became frightened. "W-what is it Mutt?" she said tentatively. Her dog continued to growl into the darkness ahead. Trying to peer into the pitch black, Fawna could just make out a figure coming towards her. Fawna's eyes widened and she clapped a hand to her mouth in terror! A mugger!

"CLUCK CLUCK!!!" a very loud, squacky sound rang out and suddenly, the figure was bounding towards her, chasing what looked to be a very feathery monster!

"AAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!" Fawna screamed for her life as both figures collided with her, knocking her and Mutt to the ground. Fawna's eyes snapped shut and she sat there, very still hoping that the mugger would just take what he wanted quickly and not hurt her, but a voice made her open her eyes.

"Oh I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there in the dark. My chicken must have run right into you." Fawna looked up to see a rather awkward-looking guy with glasses and a visor standing over her. He ent down to help Fawna to her feet and Fawna stared numbly at him.

"I- I thought you were a mugger..." she mumbled, going red from embarrassment. The man laughed and shook his head.

"Mugger? There's no muggers way out here in Serenity Falls. You must be that city-slicker who took over the farm. You're the talk of the town, Fawna is it?" he asked as Fawna numbly nodded again. "I'm Rick, by the way. I run the Poultry Farm in Mineral Town with my mom and little sister. She was the one who left the gate open and the chicken escaped." he explained, rolling his eyes in exasperation. Suddenly, he looked around and frowned. "Hey, where did Alice go?" he asked, obviously refering to the chicken. Fawna looked around as well and sighed.

"Mutt's gone, too! He must have chased Alice." she told Rick. Rick shook his head and grabbed Fawna's wrist to pull her along.

"Come on, we have to find them, before your dog eats my chicken!" he exclaimed. Nodding and running after Rick, they began to search all over Serenity Falls. Dawn arrived and there was still no sign of Alice or Mutt. They arrived back at Fawna's farm, quite upset. Fawna was crying and Rick was sniffling a little.

"P-poor Mutt." she sobbed. "I was m-mean to him and I w-wouldn't let him sleep o-on my bed and now he's g-gone and I m-miss him!" she wailed helplessly. Rick shook his head.

"My mom is going to be so angry with me for losing Alice... she came from the egg my dad gave her before he left." he sighed sadly. The two saddened pet owners trudged into the house to mourn their loss together when a very happy sight met their eyes.

Mutt and Alice were sleeping side-by-side on the little cushion beside Fawna's coffee table. It seemed as if Mutt hadn't eaten Alice after all. He had made a new friend! Fawna squealed in delight and scooped her puppy up in a big hug. "Mutt! I'm so glad you're safe! I promise I'll never be mean to you again!" she told him, as Mutt barked happily and accepted an ear scratch from his mistress. Rick was stroking Alice lovingly.

"Mom will be so happy to see you back home." he told her. Standing up, he extended a hand to Fawna and she shook it. "Bye. I'll see you around Fawna." he told her kindly and Fawna smiled. "Hey Travis." he said as he walked out the door. Travis had just shown up.

"Morning Rick." he said with a wave. Walking into the house, Travis wore a look of minor confusion. "I didn't know you knew Rick." he said mildly. Fawna shook her head.

"I didn't until last night." she replied, and she told Travis the entire story of what had happened and how she had lost Mutt and Rick and her had searched all night long. When she was finished, Travis was gaping.

"Well, it seems you had an eventful night." he chuckled. Fawna nodded, but remembered something and snapped her fingers.

"Speaking of that... how did your date with Rose go?" she asked him. Travis chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck.

"It was... nice." he told her evasively, doing a terrible job of hiding a broad grin. Fawna laughed and sat down on the bed.

"So?" she asked with her arms crossed. Travis looked puzzled.

"So what?" he asked. Fawna sighed and shook her head. Travis really was dumb when it came to stuff like this.

"Did you kiss her?" she asked, as if that had been the most obvious question in the world and Travis must be rattled in the head for not cluing in. He rolled his eyes and leaned against the wall.

"Geez, what is it with girls and wanting to know these kinds of details?" he sighed, but then he smiled slyly. "For the record, yes." he told her. Fawna clapped her hands excitedly, but then remembered how tired she was from not seeping the previous night and yawned. Travis laughed and shook his head.

"Go to bed, I'll take care of your farm for you today. Otherwise, you'll probably collapse in the middle of your field and squish all of your tomatoes." he joked.

Fawna thanked him and quickly took the opportunity to reclaim some well-needed rest. As she slept, faint images of Rick floated through her mind, puzzling her.

TO BE CONTINUED...

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Chapter 12 - Rose is Jealous

The next morning, Fawna got up and looked out her window. Travis had taken very good care of her farm the day before and everything seemed to be thriving. Her tomatoes were finally ready to be harvested! Fawna excitedly got dressed and bounded out the door to get started right away. She could use the money from the tomatoes to buy a chicken!

As she picked each tomato carefully and placed it in her rucksack, Travis came up the hill to her farm. Fawna smiled and waved, running towards him with her rucksack on her back, prepared to show him her shiny, well-grown tomatoes but Travis had a very exasperated look on his face which made Fawna stop and frown. Walking behind him was Rose. She looked very angry and had her arms crossed in front of her. As they both got to where Fawna was, Rose and Travis stopped.

"Hey Fawna." Travis mumbled. Fawna arched one slender eyebrow.

"Hey, what's wrong?" she asked, looking fom Rose to Travis. Had they gotten in a fight? She thought that things went well for them on their first date, why would they be fighting?

"Rose thinks that I fancy you. I've told her a million times that you're just my friend but she won't listen. She demanded that I bring her here so you could tell her yourself, so will you, please?" he asked. Rose had tears glistening in her eyes and Fawna felt bad for her. She knew how it felt to feel as if someone you really cared about loved someone else.

"Rose, Travis is telling the truth. He's my best friend and I care about him a lot, but not the same way you do." she told her kindly. Travis gave a satisfied smile and turned to face Rose.

"You see, Rose? Fawna's just my friend, and that's all she ever will be." he said, as Fawna nodded. Rose did not look convinced.

"Really, well I heard that she's a barsinger from the city, a seductress who flirts with every guy she meets and an empty-headed bimbo like that irritating Muffy in Forget-Me-Not Valley!" Rose accused cruelly, as tears began to stream down her cheeks.

"Hey! What right do you have to judge me like that?" Fawna asked angrily, cocking one hip to one side and pouting as she always did when she was angry.

"She's right, Rose. You shouldn't say things like that about people before getting to know them." he told her rather reluctantly. Poor Travis was caught between two people he cared about. Rose angrily dashed the tears from her eyes and glared at him.

"You're going to side with her, aren't you?" she asked weakly. "Just because she's..." Rose paused for a moment, trying to think of a way to end her sentence "prettier than I am!" she finished, knowing how air-headed she sounded, which was very unlike Rose who was quite the opposite of Fawna in personality. Travis vehemently shook his head.

"No Rose! I don't think she's pretty!" he insisted and Fawna looked at Travis, feeling very hurt. Just because they weren't dating, that didn't mean he could hurt her feelings like that.

"you don't think I'm pretty?" she asked, biting her lip to keep from crying. To her, she felt as if her best friend had just told her she was ugly. Travis' eyes widened in regret and he shook his head.

"I'm so sorry, Fawna, I didn't mean it that way." he tried to apologize, but Rose had had enough of this.

"That's it!" she told him angrily. "Go be with your cutsey barsinger!" she yelled before dissolving into tears and running off Fawna's farm. Travis went after her, but paused to look back at Fawna hesitantly. She just scowled.

"Go! It's not like you want to be friends with such an ugly hag anyway!" she told him, her voice filled with hurt. Travis looked as if he was about to argue, but then just sighed, shaking his head before running after Rose to try and make things right with her.

Fawna watched him go before carrying her tomatoes to the shipping bin, tears of feeling unwanted and worthless running down her cheeks.

TO BE CONTINUED...

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Chapter 13 - Rose's "Problem"

Fawna cried herself to sleep that night. She had lost her best friend because of his jealous girlfriend. What Rose had said really hurt her. It was the same as everyone else thought of her, that she was nothing but an air-headed ditz who was fit for nothing except living off of her rich boyfriend's credit cards. Maybe they were right.

"Fawna? FAWNA! Open up!" Travis' voice called the next morning, jolting Fawna out of her sleep. Fawna deliberately kept her eyes shut and did not move. She was much too hurt by the day before to make up with him just yet. Eventually, she heard a sigh from the other side of the door and heavy footsteps trudging away. Deciding that it was now safe to get up, Fawna climbed out of her bed and got dressed, walking outside.

Looking in her shipping box, she discovered that she had made quite a bit of money from the tomatoes she had grown. She had enough money for a chicken now! This lifted Fawna's spirits slightly and she collected her funds and put them in her pocket before doing her morning chores. Once she had taken care of Mutt and Martini, watered her tomatoes, and cleared her field, Fawna headed towards Mineral Town's Poultry Farm. She did not want to buy her chicken from the Farmer's Shop in Serenity Falls in case Travis was there helping his dad.

"Why hello there. You're a new face. My name is Lillia, how may I help you?" the lady behind the counter at the Poultry Farm asked pleasantly. The woman was very pretty, but Fawna noticed that she seemed rather pale and weak.

"Uh, hi. I'm Fawna. I run a farm in Serenity Falls and I'm here to buy a chicken." she announced, laying the gold down on the table. Lillia's eyes widened in recognition.

"Oh, you're the woman Rick was telling me about. Rick is my son." Lillia told her, smiling. As Fawna was about to reply, Lillia's face screwed up in pain and she doubled over coughing. Alarmed, Fawna hurried over to her, but Rick came dashing down the stairs before Fawna could do anything.

"MOM!" he shouted, kneeling beside her, his face completely overtaken in worry. Pushing his glasses higher up his nose, Rick helped his mother to the couch. Lillia waved off all of his worried exclamations.

"I'm alright dear. Don't worry." she told him gently, patting his hand. Rick did not look convinced.

"Are you sure you don't want Popuri to take you to the clinic?" he asked her. "I can run the store and take care of the chickens myself." he insisted. Fawna smiled and her heart gave a tug of affection towards this rather awkward-looking man who worked so hard to take care of his family. Lillia suddenly remembered that Fawna was there and frowned.

"Oh, I'm so sorry Fawna. You wanted to buy a chicken, didn't you?" she asked as Fawna nodded. "Rick, could you go help Fawna pick out her chicken please? I'll be alright in the store." she assured him. Rick reluctantly nodded and led Fawna out to the chicken pen. Poor Rick looked so sad that Fawna just had to cheer him up.

"Your mom seems really nice and I'm sure she'll be just fine." Fawna said sweetly, smiling sympathetically. Rick sighed and nodded.

"Yeah, I guess. I'm sorry that the second time we met had to be like that. I hope you won't think I'm too much of a worry-wort. Popuri says I am and so does that womanizer Kai she's dating. I don't trust him one bit." he said huffily. Fawna found herself becoming quite attracted to Rick, despite his outwardly appearance and awkwardness. Usually, Fawna was attracted to rich, good-looking men who had more money than compassion, so this was quite unusual for her. She laughed kindly and put a hand on his shoulder which made him jump.

"I think it's sweet that you worry about your family." she told him truthfully and Rick's face brightened immediately. "Nobody's ever worried about me before." she sighed, but quickly flashed another smile to hide her sadness. The truth was that every time she felt any kind of affection towards another guy, the memories of Greg came flooding back. The way he used to kiss her and hold her as they drifted off to sleep at night still made her eyes fill with tears of longing. Despite everything, she still loved him.

"Are you alright?" Rick asked gently. "You have a strand of hair in your face, by the way." he told her, going to brush it aside as another leap of attraction went through Fawna's body, quickly marred by Greg's face swimming around on the surface of her mind. Fawna blushed and nodded.

"Yes, just a little hot, that's all... um, can I have that chicken?" she asked softly, pointing to one that was sitting by herself in the corner of the pen. Rick frowned slightly.

"Well, then you should go home and get some water before you collapse." he advised. Looking at the chicken Fawna pointed to, he nodded. "Sure. That one's a real sweetheart. Just give her a name and I'll drop her off at your farm tomorrow morning." Fawna bit her lip, thinking hard about what to name her. Suddenly, an old Celtic ballad she used to sing at Greg's bar called "All Too Soon" popped into her head, along with the words "And the bonny new land that we shaped with our hand, it'll roll to the ocean again..." she smiled and turned to Rick.

"I'll name her Bonny." she said. Rick nodded and laughed.

"That's a good name. She'll be at your farm tomorrow. Take care now." he told her as she walked back towards Serenity Falls. Rick had been right. She had been in the sun all day and felt very faint. The watering hole at her farm was disgusting to drink since it served as her bathtub as well as her crop water. She would have to go to the Crescent Moon Bar in Serenity Falls to get some water. She knew Rose would be there but she was so weary, she didn't care at the moment. Walking through the doors of the bar as the sun began to set, she ran right into Rose who had been about to walk outside.

"Oh, Fawna!" she gasped, bumping into her. "I was just about to see you." she told her. Fawna gave her a very confused look.

"See me? Don't you hate me?" she asked. Beginning to feel angry again, Fawna scowled. "After all, I'm just a ditzy barsinger who's trying to steal your boyfriend!" she snapped. Rose hung her head in shame.

"I'm really sorry about what I said. Can we talk?" she asked. Fawna was beginning to feel dizzy from the heat and she gripped the windowsill to steady herself.

"As long as I can have some water." she replied. Rose nodded and went back inside with Fawna following to pour her a glass of water.

"Here. Water is always free, by the way." Rose said as Fawna gratefully gulped down the cool liquid. Already, her head felt clearer. Rose sat down opposite her and sighed. "Travis and I mended things between us." she began as Fawna nodded. That was good, she guessed. Travis seemed to really like her. "The thing is, I wasn't in my right mind yesterday... I had a bit more to drink than I should have." she admitted in a whisper, going very red with humiliation. Fawna raised an eyebrow.

"Something tells me that this is a regular thing." she replied as Rose reluctantly nodded.

"It is." she admitted. "Whenever I get stressed, I have a few drinks to calm myself down. Since I run a restaurant and bar on my own, I get stressed a lot." she sighed. "I know that you and Travis are only friends and that he really cares about me, but... when I get like that, I don't think straight anymore and I do and say things I regret." she said as a tear rolled down her cheek. Fawna stared at Rose, dumbfounded.

"But you were at my farm at nine in the morning! You had too much to drink at nine in the morning?" she asked incredulously. Rose wiped her cheek roughly with her palm.

"Look, I know I have a problem, okay? That's why I'm trying to apologize to you!" she snapped, beginning to cry again. Fawna frowned.

"Does Travis know?" Fawna asked quietly. Rose's eyes widened and she shook her head as if trying to shake a fly out of her ear.

"No. Fawna, I know he's your best friend but you can't tell him! He'd never want to be with me if he knew I was an alco- uh, I mean a heavy drinker." she finished, mumbling. Looking at Fawna's disbelieving face, Rose let out a sob and desperately looked her straight in the eye, grabbing her hand. "I will tell him Fawna. I will, just- I don't know how, that's all." she said. "Please don't say anything to him. I want to be the one to tell him." she pleaded. Fawna's heart went out to this poor woman and she found herself nodding.

"I promise." she said. "As long as you do tell him eventually." she warned. Rose nodded as the two women stood up and embraced. "You're very brave to admit something like that." Fawna told her truthfully. Rose gave a weak smile in return.

"If only I knew how to fix it." she whispered sadly.

TO BE CONTINUED...

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Chapter 14 - A Confused Heart

Once again, Fawna was awoken by the sound of Travis' voice through the door. "Fawna! Please open the door! I'm not leaving this time until you come out and talk to me!" he called. Sighing, Fawna got out of bed and opened the door in her pyjamas. Travis looked quite shocked that she had answered him so quickly. He looked as though he had been prepared to shout and bang on the door for hours. Travis grinned when he took a look at Fawna early in the morning before getting ready. "Oh no! Your hair is messed up! Whatever shall you do?" he cried in a sarcastic tone of mortal peril. Despite herself, Fawna laughed and punched his arm.

"Oh, come off it." she told him sternly, but all the ame she strained to see her reflection in the window. "It's not that bad, is it?" she added nervously, trying to run her fingers through the locks. Travis chuckled and shook his head in amusement. Clearing his throat, Travis became serious once again.

"Rose told me that you two talked yesterday and fixed things between you. What did you say to each other?" he asked curiously. Remembering her promise to Rose, Fawna shuffled her feet awkwardly and mumbled her answer.

"Oh, well... you know, girl stuff I guess." she told him evasively. Travis frowned for a moment, but then shrugged seeming to accept Fawna's white lie. Fawna told Travis to wait a few minutes while she got dressed and just as she was tying up her farming boots, she heard another knock at the door. Opening it, she saw Rick with Bonny in his hands. Now that the chickn was up close to Fawna, the feathery animal frightened her. Fawna, just get over it! she told herself sternly. You're the one who bought the chicken in the first place! she reminded herself. Rick smiled when he saw her.

"Hey Fawna! I brought Bonny to your farm just like I promised." he told her kindly, handing the chicken to her. Fawna's eyes widened and she reluctantly took Bonny in her arms. Rick seemed to sense Fawna's anxiety and put a hand on her shoulder, which made Fawna smile unknowingly. "Don't worry. A lot of people are nervous around their first chicken, but just be kind to her and you two will become the best of friends." he told her.

"Thanks Rick." Fawna sighed gratefully. "I'll just put her down now." she said, placing Bonny on the ground outside her house.

"Uh, I wouldn't do that if I were you-" Rick began, but it was too late. Bonny had run off, clucking loudly. Before they knew it, she was on the other side of the farm. Rick turned to Fawna with a slight grimace. "I was going to help you build a fence to keep her in, but now it's going to take a really long time to chase her down." he said matter-of-factly. Fawna blushed in humiliation and looked at the floor, biting back tears. Just when she had thought she'd gotten the hang of farming, she'd screwed up again. Rick smiled and patted her kindly on the back. "Hey, don't worry. Travis and I will help you build the fence and it shouldn't take as long to catch her if we all pitch in." he encouraged her. Fawna nodded and smiled. Rick was very nice.

"Thanks." she said simply. Rick went to tell Travis who was brushing Martini about the fence and Fawna gathered a bunch of lumber she had stored in her lumber shed. Rick walked over, shaking his head and Fawna pouted, dropping the lumber to the ground and sticking her hip out. "What am I doing wrong now?" she asked, irritated.

"You're not doing anything wrong, but I have a tip that'll save you a lot of time and money." he said. "Instead of using wood to make your fences, use stones. The stones never break like wood does, it's easy to pick up and make openings to move animals in and out of their sheds, the animals can't get out and the wild dogs can't get in." he told her. Fawna smiled. That was a really good idea now that she thought about it.

"That's great! There's only one problem, though... I broke all the stones with my hammer when I moved in." she said glumly. Travis walked over with a broad grin on his face.

"Well, I only broke the big stones. I pocketed the small ones in case something like this came up." he winked. "It's not a lot, but it will hold about four chickens comfortably." he said. Both Rick and Fawna congratulated him on his excellent foresight and got to work. It was about one in the afternoon when they finished the fence situated beside the chicken coop.

"Now to catch Bonny." Rick said. "It's best if we all sneak up on her from the back so we don't scare her. If chickens get too scared or unhappy, they won't lay eggs you know." Rick advised knowledgeably. Nodding, Travis and Fawna followed Rick's example and although it took over an hour to nab her, Travis eventually held the squirming Bonny in his arms. Putting her within the confines of the fence, the three farmers high-fived each other on a job well-done.

"Well, that was interesting." Fawna laughed. "It's a good thing Travis took care of the morning chores first. Thanks for that, by the way." she told him. Rick smiled and looked at his watch.

"Oh no, I'm late!" he exclaimed. "I'm supposed to walk my mom home from the clinic today. I'll see you both later." he said, leaving the farm. Fawna smiled after him, feeling unusually warm, even for the end of the summer. Travis smirked and poked her in the side.

"Ouch! What was that for?" she muttered, rubbing her side where Travis had poked her. Travis crossed his arms.

"Rick's a nice guy. He'd be good for you." Travis observed simply. Fawna blinked a couple of times before shaking her head.

"No Travis." Fawna sighed, beginning to walk away to pet Bonny. Travis quickly fell into step beside her with his hands in his pockets.

"It's Greg isn't it? You still love him... Fawna, he's a jerk. You should-" he began, but Fawna stopped and faced Travis angrily.

"Just drop it, Travis!" she snapped. Travis looked as though he were about to argue, but thought better of it and shut his mouth again with a slight nod. "Thank you." Fawna told him exasperatedly as they finished up the day's work in silence.

TO BE CONTINUED...