( We'll time skip about three days, enough for the two to be excited to see each other again and enough for Cole to be bored of being home! )
[DASH=plum]
Kimberly awoke in her bed, sunlight streaming in through her window and making a pattern of light on her blanket. Even though still groggy, she smiled, happy for the sun to be back. The past two days had been rainy, and the day before that was windy and cloudy. Today promised bright skies and the warm sun, which was good because Kim was working on a tan that most people here seemed to have but she was lacking. The girl slowly got out of bed, feeling in a much better mood than yesterday where she sat around the house with dark thoughts looming. Today those thoughts went away with the clouds, and even though she didn't like days like yesterday, she knew deep down that it was all a part of the process, and those days would become less and less until eventually they would stop completely.
The girl went to the restroom, did up her hair in a simple ponytail and dressed in a cute, spaghetti strap top and capri pants that came just below the knee. Kim met her aunt downstairs who smiled, noticing that she was feeling better today after going through half a box of tissues yesterday. The two women set about work on the morning chores, Kimberly slowly working her way up into the heavier farm work like moving bales of hay and a wheel barrow, but at least she could help clean the barn and collect eggs and milk the cows and goats. They made quick work of it and Kimberly left her muck boots in the barn, following her aunt back to the house to gather her purse.
"I'm going to go walk around town, need anything?" Kim asked, digging through her purse to make sure she had everything, including the low-tech but at least working cell phone her aunt got her so she could call her if she got lost of whatever. "Pick up some strawberries. We'll dip them in chocolate for desert tonight and watch a chick flick." Her aunt smiled that goofy grin of hers. Kimberly smiled and walked toward the door. "Roger that, I'll be back." She called before slipping out the door.
The walk to town was quiet, but Kim didn't mind. A little exercise and a little time to herself wasn't a bad thing. She reached town without a problem, after all she could see it all from the house so there wasn't much room for error. Kim wandered around a bit, stopping into the little craft shop named The Shaker Tree and bought herself a few new paint brushes, and talked to the cashier about acrylic and oil based paints. When she left the craft store she made her way toward the grocery store when someone bumped her. "Oh, sorry," Kimberly muttered as she looked up, searching the face of a young man she had not met before.
"That's alright, sweet cheeks, maybe you should watch where you're walking next time." He snickered, running a hand through his short, blonde hair as if only to show off his thick arm. Kimberly watched him, not finding it all that impressive, perhaps even slightly smaller than Tom who would never show off in that manner. "My name's Cole, you're new around here. I would know, I know everyone." Cole smiled in a way that was supposed to be charming but it just looked fake to Kimberly. However, Kim smiled gently. "Ah, yes, I'm new. My name is Kimberly." She said quietly. "Kimber? That's a cool name." "Kimberly," "Say, Kimber, you're really hot. Let's go catch a movie and sit in the back." Cole approached her until she had her back against the brick of one of the shops.
"No, thank you," The girl reached out and pushed him square in the chest. He backed off a bit but didn't seem fazed. He did, however, notice the stitches on her arms. Most of the other cuts were healed but the stitches would take time. "Wow, are you a masochist or something?" "W-what? No!" "Because that's really hot." "I-I already have a boyfriend!" Kimberly blurted out, and the statement finally made Cole back off but look at her suspiciously. "Oh yeah? Who?" He asked. "Tom. Tom Sheppard." His name just kind of rolled off her tongue without warning and Cole looked disgusted at the mention of his name. "Yeah, well, when you finally dump him you know where to find me." With that Cole shot her a wink and sauntered off, leaving Kimberly there try and figure out what the hell just happened.
She shook her head and hurried off to the grocery store to buy strawberries. She heard a familiar thump of a heavy tail near the door where Ralph the 'watch dog' was laying in the sun. Kimberly smiled to him and gave him a pet before entering the store with a sigh, wondering how the day had suddenly got so crazy.[/DASH]