Chapter Text
It had been nearly two seasons since the farmer arrived in Pelican Town. She was a small girl with dark brown skin who always had her hair styled in little braids that fell down her back. Haley loved how unique the style was, but it was too obvious that the hair was fake for her taste. Real hair was very expensive nowadays, though, so she couldn’t judge the farmer too much. Haley, on the other hand, wouldn’t be caught dead with acrylic or nylon intertwined in her hair. She could only imagine how it itched-- she scrunched her nose at the thought.
The farmer attracted a lot of attention when she first arrived, but the attention quickly faded once everyone realized how closed off she was. Her secludedness gave off an air of mystery, sure, but the townsfolk quickly realized they were fighting a losing battle in getting her to open up. She stayed on her farm unless she absolutely had to leave, which exclusively would be to buy things from Pierre’s. Haley remembered seeing her at the Egg Festival, but Abby overheard Pierre telling Caroline (and Abby told Sam who told Haley-- who he was surprisingly chummy with) that she only showed up because she heard that that was the only time he sold strawberry seeds, and she left as quickly as she came.
It didn’t really matter to Haley, though. People came and went from this town all the time, craving a small town experience until they actually got it. She was surprised Elliott and Leah stuck around for as long as they did, although she suspected Elliott would be packing up and leaving soon. See, most people thought of Haley as a self-interested, conceited bitch, and while she was pretty conceited and she definitely could be a bitch, she wasn’t only interested in herself. She was a people watcher who loved to try and imagine what people were thinking as they were simply existing in the world. She’d gotten pretty good at interpreting people’s body language and actions.
Elliott, for example, came to the Valley with a sense of pride and confidence in his work. He would wander all over town, and wherever he went, he had a notepad and would be scribbling furiously. Present day, he stayed holed up in his room except for staring wistfully at the sea, no notepad in hand, or getting shitfaced at the saloon. He attempted to maintain his original disposition of pride and confidence that everyone knew him for, but it didn’t read the same. It was a desperate shot in the dark. It was a cry for help. It was tragic. Haley assumed that something caused him to lose his drive and passion. She wondered what that was.
She remembered spotting him on an especially foggy day in Spring. His auburn hair drifted in the wind. His feet were limp, dangling from the edge of the pier. The sight was so heart wrenchingly melancholy she had to whip her camera out and attempt to capture it. She had to hold her breath to get the right angle…and it was perfect. She wondered if he would think she was a total weirdo if she showed it to him when a certain athletic chump confirmed her worries.
“Why are you taking pictures of that writer dude, Haley? You in love with him or something?” She recalled Alex asking.
After nervously explaining herself, she decided against showing him the picture and took it to her room to get it developed. He would never have to know. This wasn’t total creep behavior, right? Of course not. Who wouldn’t want a girl as pretty as her snapping pictures of them and saving them simply because she thought they were interesting?
She had a similar emotion when she found the farmer, sitting similarly to Elliott-- except with a fishing rod in her hands-- at the river in the forest. This time, summer was so vibrant around her that she looked out of place looking so blue. She didn’t know if it was possible to capture the farmer’s emotion, as she was wearing brightly colored clothes. What was Haley supposed to do? Walk up to her and ask her to frown more? Ask her to hold a blue light? No, she probably would need to do some editing later to ensure audiences would understand the weight of the farmer’s emotion.
She angled herself and snapped the picture, not realizing the flash was on. Shit, she thought as the farmer looked towards her in confusion. Haley smiled sheepishly and waved.
“Did you just take a picture of me?” The farmer raised an eyebrow. She had a weird accent Haley couldn’t quite place.
Haley could feel her face turning red as she stammered. “Well-- uh-- it’s just that--”
The farmer interrupted her with laughter. Haley frowned. “I’m sorry. I don’t think I was ever able to imagine you embarrassed.”
She paused. “What do you mean?”
“I mean you just seem so…confident. Like nothing could phase you. And now you’re all red.”
The comment made Haley touch her cheeks. “Stop making fun of me…” How did she not know her name? “...You!”
The farmer raised her eyebrows. “Seriously?”
“You’re, like, a hermit. How is anyone supposed to know your stupid name?”
“Well, my stupid name is Rory.”
“Roar-y? Like a tiger?” Haley wrinkled her nose.
“No, silly. It’s a nickname.” The farmer tilted her head and smirked, making Haley’s stomach feel funny. She was about to retaliate.
“Well, who cares, anyway?” She snapped.
“Well, you seem to at least be a little interested in me. You know, taking pictures and all.”
Haley scoffed. “You’re so annoying! You’re just so quiet all the time because no one wants to hear you speak!”
“Why don’t you walk away, then? Or stop talking?” Rory’s words didn’t hold any malice. She seemed more curious than anything. Haley’s eyes flitted down to her outfit: dirty light blue overalls and a yellow t-shirt with a large yellow-ish straw hat to match. An utterly ridiculous outfit to wear. Rory’s smile deepened, sending Haley’s eyes to her lips. Damn, Rory did have beautiful lips.
What?, she thought. No. I’m mad.
“Fine, I’ll leave, you stupid tiger. Or maybe you’re more like a dog!” She spit out.
“Dogs roar? What kind of dogs are you hanging around?”
Haley shouted in frustration before stomping towards her house. Who did that loser think she was anyway? No wonder she kept to herself. She was insufferable! Maybe she was an introvert, but not when it came to being mean. She slammed the door behind her once she reached her house and flopped on the couch.
“Whoa,” her sister winced. “What happened?”
Haley blew a piece of hair out of her face. “Met the new farmer.”
Emily gave her a look. “I’m sorry-- met?
Haley looked confused. “Yeah, met.”
“She’s been here for almost half a year, Haley. You’re not being serious.”
“It’s not my fault she’s a hermit.” She whipped out her phone to do whatever she thought was more interesting at that point.
“C’mon, Hales, you’re the one that basically lives in your own world!” Emily laughed, heading back into the kitchen.
“Untrue!” Haley called out in response.
“Definitely true,” Emily muttered.
Haley pretended not to hear that. Instead, she rolled her eyes and continued tapping on her phone.
She didn’t know why she let that loser get her so worked up in the first place.