Shane X Female Reader - Stardew Valley

Chapter 39: Not Again

You were, once again, awoken by strong storms rattling the farmhouse. Instead of ducking under the covers and blankets, however, you reached over to cuddle your boyfriend. You rested your arm on his chest, but rather than reaching him, your arm fell through to the pillow next to you.

Suddenly shocked by his lack of prescense in your bed, you sat up and looked around for Shane. The room was somewhat dark given the continual storms, but you could tell Shane wasn't there. You turned on a lamp and got out of bed confused.

    "Shane?" You called as you walked into the main room of the house. The lights were all off and he was no where to be seen. You looked outside, but it was too wet and windy to see very far or be heard.
It was a Sunday, he should still be here. Normally he would spend the night at the Ranch on Saturday and come back on Sunday, but he had stayed home yesterday due to the storms. Maybe he had gone down to the Ranch this morning to see Jas.

That was a good idea. Before you start to worry too much, you should call Marnie and ask if she had seen him. You rushed over to your phone and hastily punched in her number. An anxious breath escaped your lips as you listened to the first ring.

"Hello?" Marnie answered, sounding groggy.

You exhaled, relieved. "Hey, Marnie."

"(Y/N)?" Marnie sounded rather surprised. "What's wrong? Is everything okay?" Her voice was quickly sounding more panicked.

"Hopefully!" You laughed.

There was a pause on the other end. "Oh, uh, can I ask why you're calling this early, then?" You realized how sleepy she sounded. "I love talking with you, dear, but I'm quite tired." You looked up at clock on your wall, which read a little past four o'clock in the morning.

Realizing it was so early only sent more panic through your mind. What in the world could Shane be doing away at this hour? You turned your attention back to the phone call. "I was just curious if Shane was there."

"Huh? You mean he's not with you?" Marnie sounded surprised again. You confirmed her question. "Hmm, I'll go check. One moment." She set down the phone and you waited patiently for a couple of minutes for her return. "Hi, (Y/N), are you still there?"

"Yeah!" You answered, hoping for good news. "Did you find Shane?"

You heard her suck in a breath. "No, he isn't here or in the barn. Maybe he got called in to work early."

"At four in the morning?"

"I admit it's odd, but they have him do all sorts of strange stuff." Marnie agreed. "Go back to bed and call me when you wake up. I'll call out to JojaMart and make sure he's there in the meantime." You thanked his aunt and quickly went back to bed, positive that she would do what's best to ensure Shane's safety.

–

You could barely hear the sound of someone pounding on your door over the din of thunder surrounding the house, but it was evidently loud enough to wake you. You hopped out of bed and sprinted to open it, letting Marnie inside. She was sopping wet and her hair was a frazzled mess. She sat down her umbrella on the table and instantly started talking.

"Hello, (Y/N)." She gently grabbed your arm and lead you to your couch, where you both sat down. "I don't want to worry you, dear, but Shane isn't at work. I've called JojaMart several times. He isn't scheduled at all today."

You could feel the fear starting to set in. "Then...where is he?"

"Well, I didn't want to worry you unnecessarily." His aunt continued. "So I waited until the town businesses started opening up to go and see if he was at any of them, but no one has seen him." She was speaking slowly, trying to help you understand the gravity of her words. "I'm not sure where he is at the moment, but I'm sure everything is okay."

"Really?" You could tell you were starting to panic. "What if- what if it's happening again?" Your mind flashed back to memories of the last time Shane had been missing, finding him lying on the cliffs, drunken, depressed, and suicidal. You had to force yourself to be positive.

"Now, now, calm down." She took your hands in hers gently. "I'm sure it will all be okay. Shane has been so much happier lately and I can tell his therapy is working well."

"Still." You interrupted. "We should be out looking for him. Who knows, he might have slipped up and gotten drunk or something. We need to find him."

"I agree with that." Marnie stood back up, heading back to the door. "We need to find him." She grabbed her umbrella and dawned her raincoat once more. "I'll search the beach and the mountains. You check the Cindersap Forest." She looked up at the clock on your wall. "It's a little past ten, but I want you back here no later than four o'clock. The storms are supposed to turn absolutely horrible this evening and I don't want to have to go looking for the both of you in that weather."

"Okay." You agreed, knowing better than to argue with Marnie's plan. "That sounds good."

With that, the two of you bundled up and set out to search for Shane. You barely managed to make it off of the farm in one piece. You didn't know how your boyfriend would be able to survive in weather like this. You tried to focus on being positive, but it wasn't working very well.

Where the hell is Shane? You decided to start at the cliffs where you had previously found him, trying not to brace yourself for the worst. It was just so rainy out, and you couldn't help but have flashbacks to the last time you found him after he was lost in a storm. You tried to stifle a shudder as you pushed that memory away, it still haunted you.

How could this be happening? Everything was going so well! You finally made it through the Cindersap Forest to the cliffs where you had found Shane once before. You ran along the edge, looking around and down for any sign of your boyfriend. He wasn't anywhere to be found. "Ah!" You screamed out in frustration, letting your voice echo through the rage of the sea. "Where are you?!"

You doubled back, tracing over every possible path in the woods. Your skin was pruning from the cold rain and you couldn't tell if you were crying anymore or if the droplets on your face were from the constant downpour. You checked your watch after what felt like days of being in the storm to see that it was nearing half past three in the afternoon. You would need to start heading home, it would take a while to get back to the farm in this weather.

You finally reached your front steps, worn out and feeling defeated. You had no clue where Shane was, and part of you was beginning to wonder if you would ever see him again. You dragged yourself inside and were disappointed to see a lack of messages on your answering machine. You walked throughout the house, calling for your boyfriend, only to find that he was once again not there.

You decided to take a hot shower, knowing there was nothing else you could do today. The hot water rolled of your body, blending in with your tears as you started sobbing uncontrollably. You didn't let yourself dwell too long, so you got out and put on some cozy pajamas.

You crawled into bed alone and Pepper joined you, but for some reason it only hurt more to have him cuddle up next to you. Pepper loved to cuddle in Shane's lap, and having him snuggle up with you was just a further reminder of your boyfriend's absence. You decided to read a book to try and take your mind off of things, at least a little bit.

You were a couple of chapters into a book you had picked up a few days ago at the library when Pepper suddenly jumped out of the bed and headed to the living room. You realized he was probably hungry, being a growing puppy and all, so you followed him.

Instead of heading to his food bowl, you were puzzled as you saw him walk over to the front door and start whimpering. You wondered what he was doing, and if he could possibly smell something outside. You didn't know if you should dare open the door when the decision was made for you. The door swung quickly open and your missing boyfriend stepped inside.

✏️ A/N: Thank you for reading! Next Sunday, August 7, 2022, will release Chapter 40: The Unfinished Puzzle. I hope you all are enjoying this book and thank you so much for your support! xoxo Kira