Shane X Female Reader - Stardew Valley

Chapter 20: The Perfect Pair

After your delicious homemade breakfast, you decided that it was time for you to take care of the farm. Shane had quickly volunteered to take care of your chickens. He explained that it was one of the jobs he did at Marnie's Ranch to help foot his rent, but he loved it so much it didn't feel like a job anymore. So Shane headed out to your meek little chicken coop and you headed to your gardens to tend to the plants.
    After a couple of hours in the hot sun, you went back into your home, completely dirty from laboring the Earth, but Shane was nowhere to be found. You were shocked and worried. You ran out to the chicken coop and as you approached, you heard a faint tapping sound coming from inside. "Shane?" You opened the door. Your boyfriend was hammering a long wooden dowel rod horizontally into a corner of the coop. You looked around and saw that the other corners each had several of the rods added as well. Additionally, there were boxes with fresh hay inside. He had also added what looked like two small ladders with a piece of wood holding them together like a trapezoid in the center of the room.
    "What is all this?" You asked him as he turned around.
    "I noticed your coop was missing a couple of things that chickens need to be happy." He smiled nervously. "I thought I would go ahead and add them for you since you were busy with the plants."
    "Aww, thank you, Shane." You walked over to him and gave him a hug. "You didn't have to, you know."
    He kissed the top of your head. "I wanted to. For you and these little guys." Almost serendipitously, a chicken hopped up onto his shoulder. "A happy chicken is a healthy chicken, as they say."
    You petted the chicken as you leaned against Shane's other side. "So, what did you add?"
    "I put a few roosts in the corner for them to sleep on." He pointed to the dowels in the corner. "And then I added some nesting boxes over there for them to lay eggs in." He gestured to the boxes with straw. "And finally I added a little jungle gym for them. After all, chickens like to play, too!"
    "This is amazing." You smiled from ear to ear. "I never knew chickens liked all this. Thank you so much. Plus, I'm done with my chores so much earlier today because of your help. We're the perfect team."
    "Always. That's what a boyfriend's for, right? To make life better?"
    "Apparently, in my case." You grinned. "Now, let's go get cleaned up."
    You and your boyfriend headed back into your house to get cleaned up from your time working on the farm. "Do you want some tea or a snack?" You asked after you had both washed up and you had put on better clothes.
    Before Shane could answer, a ring came from your telephone. You walked over and grabbed it while Shane patiently watched to see who was calling. "Hello?" You answered.
    "Hi, (Y/N)." Marnie's warm voice replied. "I was going to walk back up to talk, but I've gotten in my cardio for the day." She laughed. "I was just calling to see if Shane will be home for dinner. You're both welcome, of course. We're having salad, glazed yams, parsnip soup, and pink cake for dessert. It's a favorite treat in our house, a real Valley specialty. Have you ever had it?"
    "No, I don't believe so." You made a goofy face at Shane to keep him entertained. "It sounds delicious though." You enjoyed watching Shane's face as he tried to decipher who you were talking to.
    "Well, then you must come!" Your boyfriend's aunt insisted. "Tell Shane you need to be over here at 6 tonight. He likes to doddle on." You heard her chuckle on the other end.
    "I'll be sure to tell him." You winked at your boyfriend, sending him further into confusion.
    "Perfect. See you tonight, then. Oh, and Mayor Lewis will be joining us, I hope that's okay." She continued.
    Mayor Lewis? Interesting enough. "Of course. I'll be glad to see him." You said goodbye to the kind rancher and hung up the phone.
    "Who in the world was that?" Shane asked from the couch.
    You walked over to sit with him. "Your aunt. It seems she's roped us into dinner tonight."
    Shane laughed. "Makes sense now." It felt so good to see him look so alive compared to when you first met, even in little moments like this. "Did she say what we're having?"
    You relayed the menu to him. "She also said that Mayor Lewis is coming over..."
    "Oh, that's normal." Shane laughed. "Don't tell anyone, but...they're kind of a thing..."
    "Huh." You were surprised, but you weren't shocked. "I guess I could see that." You two quickly moved on to other subjects before you determined it was time to get ready and head back down to Marnie's.
    You went into your room to change and Shane took the bathroom. He only had his jersey and the shorts he had worn to the game since he had gotten the pajama shirt muddy while working with the chickens. "Hey," a soft knock hit your bedroom door.
    "Yes?" You replied timidly, standing naked in your room, debating what to wear. You grabbed a blanket to quickly cover yourself up in case he walked in. The door stayed closed as Shane continued.
    "If you haven't already gotten dressed," He whispered through the wooden barrier, "I think you should wear the pink dress that you wore when we went on that picnic. It looked really good on you." He paused. "Only if you want though, don't worry if you-"
    "Will do." You cut him off. "I couldn't decide what to wear anyways. You threw on the short spring dress he had asked for. He was right, it looked good on you. You added a touch of makeup and a few clips to your hair before opening up the door.
    "Wow." Shane breathed as he looked you over. "You look great."
    "Thanks for the recommendation." You winked. "Now, we better get going before we make Marnie mad." He eyes glanced back up over you in the dress he had picked. "Or before we get sidetracked." He subconsciously bit his lip.
"Shane!" You swatted his arm teasingly. You loved the way he looked at you and the effect you had on him. You were sure that he knew you did.
    You and Shane left your little farmhouse and walked together through your farm, hand in hand until you reached his aunt's ranch. Shane cordially opened the door for you and led you inside. "Y/N!" Marnie smiled as she waved you into her home. "Come on in! Shane, you too!"
    She quickly gave you a hug before turning to her nephew. "It feels like forever since you've been here." She laughed as she pulled him into a hug.
    "I live here, Aunt Marnie." Shane shook his head as he hugged her. "It's only been since yesterday morning."
    "Well alright, but it feels like it's been much longer." She laughed as she broke their hug. While she was only his aunt, it made you happy to see that Marnie cared about Shane as a mother would. "Well, let me go tell Jas that you're here; go on into the dining room." She began walking towards the girl's room. "Dinner's almost ready."
    You and Shane headed into the dining room where the mayor of Pelican Town was waiting patiently. "Good evening, Mayor Lewis." Shane nodded as he took a seat at the side of the table.
    "Good evening." You echoed as you sat next to your boyfriend.
    "Good evening to you both as well." The twenty-term mayor smiled. "It's really nice to see you've found some company in the Valley, (Y/N). Pelican Town is gorgeous and surrounded by all the beauty of nature, but it's best appreciated with another."
    "I'll cheers to that." Marnie said from behind you. "Stardew Valley has some of the best scenery, only made better when you're in the arms of someone you loved." You had never taken either of the pair to be particularly poignant, but it was a welcome side of them to see.
    The serenity of the room was quickly disrupted by the abrupt and cheerful entrance of Shane's niece, Jas. "Shane!" She ran up to him and jumped into his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I've missed you so much!"
    "I've missed you too, Jas." He looked over at you and smiled. "Remember I have to spend time with (Y/N) too, now." You felt a tinge of guilt at the fact you pulled Shane away from his family, but you knew he loved spending time with you and didn't mind.
    "Hi, (Y/N)!" Jas waved at you. It was such a turnaround from the shy girl you had met a few weeks back.
    "Alright, Jas, let's give them some space." Marnie interjected, picking up the girl and setting her in a chair at the end of the table.
    "I'm really excited for dinner, Marn." Mayor Lewis smiled. "Glazed yams are one of my favorite foods."
    Marnie walked over to the kitchen and started to bring in pans of delicious smelling foods. "I tried to include something that everybody would like." Marnie smiled at her little family. "Glazed yams for Lewis, pink cake for Jas and me, (Y/N), I wasn't sure what you would like, so I thought soup was a good guess, and for Shane-'' She paused for a second before hurrying back into the kitchen. "For Shane I picked up some wine." She returned with a bottle, four wine glasses, and a cup filled with a carbonated red drink and a striped paper straw. "Just this once." She winked at you as she passed around the glasses. "Jas, I made you a Cranberry Candy."
    The little girl's eyes lit up as her aunt handed her the vibrant drink. "Cranberry Candy was one of my favorite treats when I was little." Mayor Lewis chuckled. "Truly a Pelican Town specialty."
    Marnie ladled out the soup and everyone grabbed sides. The meal was absolutely delicious, probably one of the best you had since your move from the city. If dating Shane involved a lot of home cooked meals courtesy of Marnie, there were no complaints.

✏️ A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Nothing too crazy happened, but the plot will definitely thicken in the near future. Speaking of the near future, next week's chapter, Chapter 21: Life Goes On, will be released next Sunday, March 27, 2022. I hope you enjoy! Also, I just want to say thank you so much for all of the support I've received on this story, it's been truly amazing! This is the 20th chapter and it's crazy to think we've come this far. We're far from done with these two lovebirds though, so look forward to many more chapters to come! Thank you so much!