"Hmmm? What are you telling me?" Chase asked, only half able to pay attention to Kathy while he worked.

"The new girl, the one that just started up the farm," Kathy repeated, enunciating each syllable to make sure Chase heard all of them. "Renee and I finally talked her into coming here tonight."

"Why would you do something like that?" Chase asked, enunciating his own syllables.

Kathy rolled her eyes, "Because she's new, and we want her to feel at home. You know what it's like to be new; it can be very difficult to make new friends."

Chase sighed, "I guess I just don't see what this has to do with me…"

"Just make sure you're on your best behavior," said Kathy. "I don't want her to get a bad impression of the people here."

Chase crossed his arms, "Oh, and what makes you think I'd be the one to give off a bad impression?"

"Because…" Kathy said. She opened her mouth to continue, but struggled a bit before she finally came up with something. "Because you're a snarky little jerk, that's why! You might end up hurting her feelings if you're not careful. She hasn't learned to ignore you yet."

"Yeah, sure," said Chase. "But you've got bigger problems to worry about – looks like Owen's had too much to drink again."

"What?" Kathy shrieked, spinning around so quickly that she almost fell over. Sure enough, there was Owen, sitting at his table in the corner, crying like a giant baby. Like a super hero, Kathy quickly darted over to rescue her boyfriend.

I don't know what she sees in that guy, Chase thought as he went back to chopping onions. What an idiot…

The bell above the door chimed, pulling Chase out of his current train of thought. He heaved a heavy sigh as he sat down his knife and approached the counter, ready to serve the new arrivals.

"Welcome to the Brass Bar," he said unenthusiastically. "I have no idea what today's special is; may I take your order?"

Renee giggled, "Oh Chase, you're so funny…"

"Yeah," Luke agreed. "He always says the weirdest things. He's a riot!"

Chase glanced up at his customers, noticing for the first time a new face; he knew right away that it was the new farmer Kathy had been talking about.

She wasn't what Chase had expected. When he heard the word farmer, he automatically pictured blue denim overalls, flannel shirt, and work boots. He had pictured a bigger girl, with a build similar to that of the drunken blacksmith blubbering in the corner.

The girl in front of him, however, was about as far from that as possible. She wasn't muscular, but curvy, and her skirt showed off her rather shapely legs. Her auburn hair was fashioned into an odd style that sort of… poofed around her head. Her large brown eyes were magnified even more by glasses.

"Hikari, this is Chase," Renee said sweetly. "Chase, this is Hikari."

"It's nice to…" Chase trailed off, noticing that Hikari was staring at him, and… smiling. He felt his cheeks growing warmer the more she stared, her smile growing wider and wider until Chase thought it would engulf her entire face. "W-what?"

At last, she laughed, covering her mouth with a dainty hand, "Nice hair clips. Did Kathy lend them to you? They really bring out your eyes."

Chase's jaw nearly hit the floor. Was she teasing him? There was no way…

Renee gasped, "Hikari!"

"Hahaha, burn!" Luke cheered, holding his hand up for a high five. Hikari jumped into the air and slapped his hand roughly.

Wonderful, Chase thought, glaring at them. A smartass. Just what we need around here.