Chapter 1: A Fresh Start
Today was a hot, sunny day in the beginning of the summer. I just moved from New York to some weird little place called Mineral Town and I was exhausted from the journey. I walked to the farm where I would be living. There was a cute guy standing outside the farm where I would be living. He had tan skin and wore a bandana on his head.
"Who are you?" he asked me. I stared at him.
"My name is Angel Mae Akahori," I told him. He looked at me and smiled, I smiled back.
"I'm Kai. I have a place down on the beach, come visit sometime," he told me. I noded and waved goodbye as he walks off.
Of course, I wasn't here on accident. A family friend had owned this farm and when he died he left it to my family. My parents both died in a car accident so I was the inheritor of his farm. I looked around. It was messy and covered with weeds and branches and rocks and stuff. I sighed and opened the door to the farm house. Jenni, my puppy, ran around my legs and ducked into the house as soon as I opened the door.
I opened a chest full of tools and threw them in my backpack so I could start clearing the farm. Jenni ran around and picked up branches in her mouth to throw into the lake. I needed something to grow on my farm so I put Jenni on her leash and went to the town.
I got lost on the way and had to ask directions from a nice young girl with orange hair and overalls. She told me her name was Ann and hopes to be my friend. I was glad I was going to make new friends. I missed all my old friends though.
A girl named Karen was in the supermarket and told me I should buy tomato seeds, corn seeds, onion seeds, and some others. I got a whole bunch because I thought I could take care of this farm for the nice old man who used to live there.
"Where is the beach?" I asked her.
Karen happily gave me the directions to the beach and I promised to come back some other time to buy groceries. It was good to know the townspeople were all so nice. The beach was close by, but I decided maybe Kai would be busy so I didn't want to bother him.
Jenni and I kept clearing the field, but it was taking forever so I took a break and had a picnic on the cleared part. Jenni took my sandwich and I had to get a new one. Then Kai came and tapped me on the shoulder and I jumped.
"How is it going?" he asked me. "Are you getting the hang of having your own farm?"
"No!" I told him, but he knew I was joking. "It's really tough to get rid of this mess that was left here. I hope I can plant my crops by the end of today, but I'm tired."
"I'll help you then." Kai began picking up branches and throwing them into the lake. I didn't want to sit there and watch him work because I'd feel guilty so I cleaned up my picnic and sliced weeds away. Soon there was enough space for my tomatoes, corn, and onions. We planted and watered them all, then set up the picnic again and he ate with me. Kai was so nice.
"Once you have some crops planted it's a lot easier to keep up with your farm," he said. I listened as he told me stories about Mineral Town. I handed him a sandwich and he smiled again.
"Everyone I've met here is really nice," I said to him as I gave him a glass of homemade grape juice. "Too bad I'll only be here in the summer. Then I have to go back to New York."
"I'm only here for the summer too," he said. "Who will run the farm while you're in New York?"
"I don't know," I explained. "I could move here permanently but then I'd have to leave all my friends in New York forever."
"Who knows? Maybe you'll like it here more." He got up and helped me put away the picnic basket. Jenni followed us.
"Thank you for helping me," I told him. I tried to pay him for helping me but he refused to take my money.
"It was no problem. It must be hard running a farm all by yourself."
"Not at all!" I told him absentmindedly. "I have Jenni to help me!"
Kai laughed and said goodbye to me for the day. I decided I didn't do too bad for my first day on the farm. Maybe Kai was right. Maybe it would be better to leave New York for good and get a fresh start in Mineral Town.
