“I’m almost done packing, actually,” Raven replied, thinking back to her little bedroom at the forge. “I’m not taking any furniture with me, so packing wasn’t too hard. I don’t really own too much, anyway.” Even though she had been living in Sharance for years, Raven never really kept too many material possessions, so she really only had her daily essentials left to pack.
Raven then mimicked Phillip, moving to take a sip of water. “I actually have a bag of stuff I’ll get you to bring to your house tonight, if you don’t mind. It just had some pajamas and extra clothes for the honeymoon. Then I’ll slowly bring the rest of the stuff home when I come back here for work.” She smiled. “So no need to use the horse. I got it.”
Raven then nodded as Phillip went ahead and ordered for her. “Yeah, the stir-fry would be great. Thanks Colette.” She handed the other girl the menu, then watched as she turned and walked away.
“It’s so strange to think that these people won’t be my neighbours anymore.” She sighed quietly, though it was not necessarily out of sadness. “I’ll miss this little town, but I’m excited to settle into Konohana.”
“That’s actually a really smart move.” Phillip nodded as she explained her plan. “Then it won’t be overwhelming to have all of your boxes at the house at once. You can just bring one at a time and unpack them as you take them.” Goddess, even just talking about the move was making the man quite giddy with excitement. To be finally living together, to have the love of his life be both the first person he saw every morning and the last thing he’d see at night. It was a whole different level of anticipation that he could hardly contain. Even the thought of saying goodbye to her later tonight was quite the painful thing to think of.
However, he understood the level of difficulty this was for her. Whenever they talk about the move, the woman across from him would become a bit stiffer, a little more hesitant. The stress of change can be difficult, meanwhile Phillip, because of the farm, got away with not having to move anywhere. This part always tore him up inside, if where he lived quite literally wasn’t his livelihood, he would have picked himself up and gone anywhere to make her happy. Thus, because of the guilt that was settled into his heart, he did his best to comfort her on the subject much more often then gush about it. “Well if you’re sure,” He finally spoke with a bit of a grin. “I feel bad not being able to help you more, so know you can always call on me if you need a hand.”
“Of course I don’t mind,” Phillip spoke with a cheeky smile. “I’ll pick up the bag when I walk you home after dinner.” Though, at the sheer mention of the honeymoon, the man sighed in a desperately dreamy manner. “Is it sad I’m so excited for the honeymoon?” He laughed in a worn out sort of way. “I mean, obviously I’m excited for the wedding, that’s a given. But I’m a very social person and even I’m getting tired of all the fuss and attention we’re getting. All I want is it to finally just be you and me, alone, married, as husband and wife. The tropical island is just a bonus.” His hand ran through his hair once more and he shrugged in a jokingly defeated manner. “Is that too much for a guy to ask for?”
Phillip nodded as Colette left their table, before perking up at the expression that had fallen upon his wife to be. “Hey now,” he cooed in a softer tone. “I know, it’s going to be hard, but I’m here for you and so is everyone in Konohana.” He took a long pause for a moment, inwardly wincing to himself for thinking about spilling a secret that he promised to keep, well, a secret. “Ya’know,” He spoke almost slyly. “I’m really not suppose to tell you anything, and Grandma Yun is gonna have my hide if she finds out a told you, but everyone’s been planning a welcome party for you at the tea house once you get settled in.”
Phillip once again reached across the table to take a hold of her hand, absolutely hating that this was the most appropriate form of affection he could show her in a public setting. “Take it as a side effect that comes with all of the attention around the glitz and glamour of getting married in a small town. But everyone really wants to go out of their way to make you feel comfortable and to welcome you with open arms.” He smiled to himself at the thought of all the quirky people he had come to love so much. “They’re like the closest family to me I feel like I’ve ever had, just like how everyone in Sharance feels to you. They want it to feel like you’re going from one family to another.”
Suddenly, he came back to his senses. He pulled away from her for a moment as his eyes went wide, raising both hands up defensively. “I’m serious though, don’t tell anyone I told you, otherwise you might not have a husband for very long.” He ended the comment with a genuine laugh. “Honestly though, I swear everyone has been talking about you none stop, especially Ying and Rahi. Apparently I’m not a good enough person to play with if it’s just me anymore.”
“Oh and don’t even get me started on Laney and Georgia. They live the next town over but even they’re already constantly bugging me on what kind of food you like, flowers, colors, the list goes on. Now with them, I have no idea whats going on or what they’re planning.”
