Coarse sand trickled through my fingers as Sam and I sat on the beach, watching the waves break against the shore. The cold, salty sea-breeze made a mess of my already tousled hair. Sam and I had combed the beach. My pack was stuffed full of shells, oysters and other oddities that I could sell for some pocket change.

"How're you liking the town so far, Max?" Sam said.

"Not got any strong opinions either way, to be honest," I said. "But it seems small and peaceful and that's nice."

Sam nudged me with his elbow. "That's Pelican Town alright. Small, peaceful, and chock-full of cute girls. I'm sure if Haley hit you with a smile instead of a snarl you'll form a real positive opinion."

I felt my face grow red. "That has nothing to do with anything."

Sam threw his arm around my shoulder and started laughing at my blush. "Sure it doesn't. I still think you should stay away from her, but I'll be cheering you on. So, what brought you to Pelican Town in the first place?"

"I used to work for Joja Corporate and," I took a deep breath. "I just burned out man. Life got too much for me."

There was something about the atmosphere Sam created that made me feel like I could open up to him. He had the type of personality that appealed to everyone. I had only known Sam for less than a day, but I felt like we had been friends for years already. Surprisingly, when Sam heard that I worked for Joja Corp, he nodded in understanding.

"I work at JojaMart and it sucks man. I can't imagine what it must be like working for the big bosses. I get what you mean about feeling burnt out, too. You need to remember to take time out to look at the clouds max," Sam looked up at the sky. "They look like big bowls of fluffy mashed potatoes."

"I think you might just be hungry, Sam," I said.

Sam flashed me a wide, toothy grin. "Yeah, that's what happens when you skip lunch and spend all afternoon beach combing with the new farmer."

"I got some spring onions. You can have one if you like."

"No thanks, bro," Sam said, making a face. "My mom likes to feed us enough of that healthy junk. Hey, I have an idea. Let's go to the saloon. I'll buy you a welcome-to-the-town lunch."

As I was quite enjoying my conversation with Sam, and not one to say no to a professionally made lunch, I said yes and we left the chilly beach behind and made the short walk over to the saloon. The building itself was one of the largest in town. It was still early in the afternoon and Sam and I were the only customers in the place. The owner, bartender, and only other person in the room, was a mustachioed gentleman with a brown jacket over a blue shirt. Sam bought us each a plate of spaghetti and meatballs and the bartender, who introduced himself as Gus, gave us our space.

"You live with your parents, then?" I asked in an effort to fill the silence between bites.

The plate of food before me had been cooked to perfection. The meat sauce was thick, the meatballs were juicy, and succulent and brought out the flavor of the pasta.

"Yeah," Sam answered. "It's just me, my mom, and my baby brother right now. Dad's off fighting the Gotoro Empire. He's due to come back sometime soon."

The tone with which Sam spoke made it clear to me that, though he was comfortable revealing this information, he didn't want to talk about his father.

"I always wanted a baby brother. Unfortunately, I was an only child. Then again, if I wasn't the only grandchild then I might not have gotten the farm," I said.

Sam laughed, sending bits of spaghetti flying. "You have a good point. There are benefits to being the oldest kid, too. I got the biggest room in my house."

"You also have to deal with a lot of responsibility."

"Yeah, tell me about it," Sam rolled his eyes. "But if someone has to work then I'd rather it be me than my mom. Speaking of which, I got to go see what my mom's up to. Take care, Max."

Sam slid off the stool and made his way to the saloon exit. As I watched him go, arms swinging freely, something clicked in my mind.

"Sam, bro. Where's your skateboard?"

Sam yelped and ran out of the saloon. Probably to the beach where he had left his precious skateboard. Belly full and thoroughly exhausted, I made my way back to my farm and sorted through the stuff I found.