Lillian's P.O.V.
Snowflakes fell from the grey sky delicately and clung to my hair and eyebrows. It had been about a week since I moved from the Sunshine Islands to Bluebell and I was still working on making my small farm inhabitable. In all honesty it was in poor condition when I moved in, the house was dusty, my pipes leaked, and there were some holes in all the roofs. Thankfully the world's kindest mayor, Rutger, loaned me enough to pay the local carpenter to fix up my farm and to get my first few animals. I only had enough if my savings to make a down payment and get all my stuff here.
Every morning Eileen would come by after breakfast and help out around my farm. It was like clockwork; my alarm clock would ring waking me up, I'd quickly shower, then eat some toast and drink my coffee, and right when I finished I would hear her tired whistling as she walked down the path to my home. Today was no different. I sat on my doorstep drinking some hot coffee and watched her leisurely stroll towards me tools in hand. I couldn't help but smirk as she tried to keep the melody, but something told me she wasn't musically inclined. "Morning Eileen!" I called to my new-found friend.
"Good mornin' Lillian." She said with a yawn as she approached me.
"What's on the agenda for today?" I asked before finishing the last of my drink in one go.
"Not much honestly, I just have to patch one last hole in the roof, fix the barn door, and help you plow your fields and we're done." I giggled a little at her statement.
"I wouldn't call this little patch of grass a field." I looked over to what equated to a small garden and couldn't help but compare it to the farms back home. "Besides, it's my farm, I can tend to my own fields." I didn't want to let her know that I couldn't keep a plant alive even if my life depended on it. That was the whole reason I chose a community that focused on animals.
"Well then, if we work at the same time everything should be done by noon. Then your farm will be ready to open."
"I guess we should get to it then huh?" I asked. I rested the empty cup where I was sitting and walked over to my horse cart. After a second of rummaging through the cart I found my hoe. Eileen had grabbed the ladder that was leaning against the barn and already made her way up on to the roof. She had no problem fixing the hole, while I was fighting the frozen ground to make a flower bed. Hopefully I'd have better luck keeping something simple alive.
"You done yet?" She called from the roof, growing impatient with my slow progress.
"I guess so. I don't think I can get much done until the ground thaws more." I looked over nervously as she descended the ladder oh-so-casually, jumping down from the third rung up with ease.
"Good." She giggled and pushed her glasses back up on her face. "Then we the people stand here today to commemorate the grand opening of . . . " Her grandiose speech trailed off. "What's the name?" She asked under her breath, attempting to not alert the non-existent audience. I had to fight to keep my laughter under control, at least long enough to give her an answer.
"Sunshine Farm." I said without a second thought.
"Sunshine Farm," She repeated, pausing for a moment before she smiled. ", cheesy but adorable, I love it! Now I'll meet you tonight and we can celebrate."
"Celebrate?" I wasn't sure what she meant by celebrate but I wasn't too much of a party animal.
"Yeah, twice a season some of us young adults from Bluebell and Konohana meet at the mountain top and hang out. It's really fun, I promise." She grasped my hands in her own as she held them up between us, eyes pleading and excited.
"I thought everyone in Konohana hated us." The one thing I had heard a lot of in my time here was how much the two towns hated one another. In fact that's was the first thing out of Rutger and Ina's mouths.
"Not at all, it's really just the older generations. I forget why exactly they act like this but Rutger insists they started it." She said with a giggle.
I was hesitant for a moment but Eileen's begging face wasn't something I could say no to. Especially after she helped me out so much. "Alright." I said with a smirk. "I guess it sounds like fun." Finally getting the answer she wanted she picked up her bag of tools and turned to leave.
"You're gonna love it, I swear." She spun around to walk backwards, gave me a big thumbs up and an even bigger grin. "Mountain top, nine o'clock, don't forget." With that she began walking in a normal direction and disappeared around the bend of my walkway.
Normally it wouldn't have taken a long time for me to wash the dirt off my body and change into clean clothes, but I couldn't help but marvel at Eileen's handiwork while I showered. A few days ago I didn't have hot water, now my bathroom was the equivalent of a steam room. I never fully appreciated the indescribable beauty of hot water but I knew I never wanted to be without it again.
After my shower I wrapped myself up in my fluffy bathrobe and sat around my house for a while. I started off reading one of the many books I had gotten as a good-bye present, but seeing as Sabrina was the one who gave it to me my mind quickly wandered back to the Sunshine Islands. I missed Chelsea and her husband Vaughn most of all. She had been my best friend for over a decade and was always right down the road from me. Now she was about two hours away by both land and sea. I missed Natalie, Sabrina, heck I even missed Denny and his odd but kind ways. I smiled fondly at the thought of all of my friends and the parting gifts they gave me. Chels gave me the courage to move away and start my own life, and some cash to help with the move. Nat had given me my tools and a few seeds to start up my farm, plus a new pair of work boots.
Once my farm was more established I have to have Chelsea over for a visit as soon as possible. I stared ahead at my television as I thought, keeping the sound low.
I decided to wear my warmest outfit. It was a pair of thick jeans with a ratty old sweater I'd had for almost five years, and my work boots. I mean I couldn't think of anything better to wear, not that I had much else. Winter here was far colder than it was on my islands, so I wasn't exactly outfitted for the climate shift. I brushed through my shoulder length brown hair and pulled it up in a ponytail quickly before throwing on my coat and grabbing my flashlight.
The trek up the mountain path wasn't bad, but it snaked around various boulders and steep inclines to give the travelers an easier path. It was easy enough to follow with my flashlight to show me the right way to go. It was fairly quiet, an occasional owl caught me off guard with it's loud hoot, but the closer I got to the summit the more chatter I could hear. My stomach churned a bit at the thought of all these new people. But, these strangers were going to be a part of my new life, so I put a smile on my face just in case anyone say me.
Soon enough I could see the glow of the bonfire and some moving figures surrounding it. Under my breath I muttered a quick prayer to the Harvest Goddess, hoping that I didn't make a fool of myself and they liked me. Eileen was waiting at the edge of the party, anticipating my arrival. As soon as she spotted me she darted towards me and wrapped an arm around my shoulders.
"I'm so happy you're here. I was worried that you weren't gonna show."
"And disappoint my only friend in town?" I clicked my flashlight off as we walked closer to the group. "Please." I scoffed, my eyes scanned over the sea of people who were loudly talking. I was honestly surprised that everyone was so lively on a Monday night.
She giggled with me and led me over to a small flock of women our age. "Girls I'd like you to meet my friend and our newest resident, Lillian." I took and seat on a snow-less log and smiled sheepishly as the girls introduced themselves one by one. In total there were four other girls; Reina, Laney, Georgia, and Nori.
As it turned out Laney and Georgia lived in Bluebell with Eileen and I, while Nori and Reina live with their families in Konohana. Everyone was so sweet and friendly, it caught me by surprise. Nori told me she made clothing and worked with her grandfather, Gombe, part-time at his seed shop. Reina, who was the most stand-offish of the group, studied botany under her uncle Mako. Georgia lived on a small ranch with her father, Grady, and had a thick southern accent. Laney lived above a café with her father, Howard. I couldn't help but look past the group of women before me and at the guys who were huddled together by a small cask of cider someone brought.
Eileen caught me eyeing the hard cider and elbowed me a bit. "Try some it's really good. Reina brought it for especially for tonight."
"Yeah it's super good!" A youthful looking man hollered and winked at Nori, who in turn blushed a bit. I looked between Nori and Eileen, wanting an explanation.
"Stop eavesdropping Dirk, you're creeping out our new friend." Eileen jokingly chastised.
"He may be rude, but he's right." Reina teased, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "The cider's amazing tonight." Reina gave her friend a tiny smile before chugging some of hers.
"Well, I'm going to have to test your claims and try some then." I smiled, stood up and sauntered over to the guys.