Chapter 1

After some organising of the kit and aiding poor little Tommy with unfolding the fabric, we had finally sorted my tent. Despite us all being complete strangers, I was left amazed by how generous Tom Nook had been, all things considering. Sure, it hadn't even been close to that hotel I'd hoped we'd be staying at, but at least I wouldn't be completely homeless. His ideas weren't exactly ideal as well, however if I was confident in everyone pulling together like Tom had hoped, I guess that wouldn't stop me in giving it a real go. New start and all that.

The tent itself was actually really spacious, I could have fit my old bedroom inside it. That wasn't even a joke. It had a black nylon floor and deep red walls. I couldn't even fault the colour scheme. Without even realising, I had plonked myself down right in the middle, stretching my arms out to see if I could reach the sides. I wasn't even close. I So this was really my home.

"It's not much, but we hope you and the others can make this work for a little while." Tommy said, walking around me to check how stable the tent really was; after all I did kind of leave him to it. I nodded, already visualising some sort of layout for furniture I don't even have. That was a thought. If there wasn't any shops or anything here, do goods and essentials get flown here or are we really dealing with having nothing? I tried to push that thought out of my head and rose to my feet, deciding to finally try and help Tommy. It's amazing I could actually stand in here and not even hunch over to fit. I guess I shouldn't have been so reluctant about this idea after all.

Once we had decided everything was well, we began to head back to the meeting point, with the guidance of Tommy's smartphone. As if he had been smart enough to track which way we were going the whole time. Without him, there was a strong chance I'd be lost. The sun still hadn't fully set, but the sky was getting quite dark in the meantime, revealing more of the stars. I don't think I'd ever seen the stars like this before, so clearly. Guess it was the perks of being in the middle of nowhere; no light pollution unlike the city. Tommy stopped suddenly, making me flinch. In the near distance, we could hear a lot of clanking noises and thuds. I wasn't ready to confront nature, not this soon. Tommy however was inching closer, keeping his eyes ahead at all times. That left me no choice but to follow him.

"Come on! You're meant to be staying there. Stupid pegs." As soon as they spoke, I knew exactly what we were dealing with. Without thinking, I left Tommy in the trees and came face to face with Diva, tangled in the same rope she was tried to stamp down. I wonder if she knew how silly she looked, but decided not to mention anything. Didn't want to offend a potential friend, even if she could have taken the joke.

"Need a hand?" I asked, gesturing to Tommy to come out from behind me. To give her credit, her tent was basically built. She was just a bit tangled in the ropes she hadn't gotten to straighten up. Noticing this, I could understand her frustration. Once she had noticed me, she was quick to smile and nodded quickly.

"I guess I got myself into a little mess." She said sheepishly. "In my defence, it's been years since I last built my own tent."

"Not to worry, dear. We can get this sorted, right Leigh?" Tommy responded.

"That we can."

There really wasn't that much to sort for her. We took it in turns pulling the ropes out from the mesh they were in, straightening everything evenly and trying not to collapse the tent. Then we hit the pegs steadily into the hard ground, with the help of a mini wooden mallet Diva had. Thinking back to my tent, I think Tommy used a rock he found lying around to bang mine in. Surprised that worked so well.

"Thank you, if you hadn't have come across me I would probably have been here for hours, ya know." Diva said, looking relieved she was finally settled. Now all we had left to do was head back and hope Axel's there too. No way did I want to stop and aid him as well, especially as he's all about himself and no one else. Maybe I had judged him a little too quickly, but he hadn't shown me another side of himself, so what was I to do? Wait for him to be in my good graces? Seemed a bit stupid to me. For now, my guard is up.

It wasn't hard to find the camp in the end, even when the night had crept in by the time we got back. Mainly because there was a huge, roaring fire right in the middle, and three tree logs to make benches scattered around it. We could see Axel carrying huge stacks of sticks and wood and placing them to one side. Considering how tall and bulked up he was, there was no questioning this was right up his alley for a job. I couldn't believe he had done all this; maybe Nook helped? That left me assuming we'd be the ones left to scout out some food, seeing as I don't think anyone's eaten since before our flight and that was hours ago now. I sighed.

"Guess we're going food hunting." I grumbled, not trying to be negative. I think the day had really taken a lot more out of me than I first assumed, and now that food was on the brain I couldn't help but feel a bit hungry and miffed we had to sort it.

"Oh, there will be no need for that." Tom Nook called, exiting his own tent with Timmy. "The lovely gentlemen who flew you here earlier left us a care package of meals." I could have cried after hearing those words. We're going to be alright. With that, I could finally feel all the worry and regret leave my mind and a smile creep to my face. Maybe this really wasn't the worst choice of my life. Reckless and a little unplanned, but I could work with it.

Our evening consisted of us all around the fire, eating a chicken stockpot that Timmy had heated over the roaring fire and maybe burned just a little. However, everything else had a really good feeling to it. Everyone seemed to have really taken to Tom Nook's idea of building our own town from scratch, so positivity filled the air. We had decided not to do anything major towards the town for a little while, only because Nook needed a big shipment of supplies flown over. Meaning we'd be seeing a lot more of our Dodo pals at that rickety old dock. That couldn't stop us from naming this new island though.

"Sadly, my vote for Bellsville got rejected by officials as you can't legally name a place after currency. The more you know." Tom Nook complained, looking disappointed that his great name couldn't have passed. I couldn't help sniggering a little; it really wasn't going to be a practical name, was it?

"Do you reckon Abstown would pass, WHONK?" Axel suggested. It was Diva this time I could see roll her eyes.

"Just because you have abs, doesn't mean they have to be part of everything!" She snapped at him, shaking her head at the fact she interfered with him in the first place.

"It was only a suggestion. What's the best you can think of?" He retorted. This wasn't looking too good, and of course I was sat in between the pair as they had begun squabbling. Looks like I couldn't even have a peaceful meal after tonight's events.

"I hadn't got that far..." She piped down after that. I paused for a second, thinking myself over a name. There was one I could think of, however the way I knew it was slightly embarrassing. Though it's always been on my mind since I first heard it. Maybe it was my only option, even if it wasn't completely original. What harm could it do for a shot in the dark?

"How about...Monomi." I muttered just loud enough for those two to pick it up. Both of them were completely silent, and I could feel my cheeks getting rosy again. Was it really that stupid of a suggestion? They actually hated it, didn't they?

"Hey, that's not bad at all, WHONK." Axel finally cleared the air and I was left taken aback. Did he really agree with my name choice? It wasn't even anything that special; if he had really tried without focusing on himself, he could have said something better surely.

"Do you really think so?" I questioned him, gazing up at him. He was staring down at me with that cheeky grin he had as soon as we got here. Strangely, it left me feeling good about myself; like I had found the confidence I needed to get me through. "Thank you."

"So, it's decided then. This island shall be known as Monomi. Has a nice ring to it actually." Tom Nook interrupted. I didn't realise he had been listening this whole time. I couldn't help but laugh nervously as everyone around me began clapping in celebration. But that was seriously it? One small suggestion to quell the noise and it's immediately voted as our name. Nothing like this had ever happened to me before, not even within school. Every point I made, or suggestion I had was always snuffed by something just a little bit better. Eventually, that's what made me stop and only think my ideas instead. That resulted in a lot less hurt than I cared to admit.

"As the one who gave our lovely island it's name, I would like to propose that Leigh here become a spokesperson. Someone you can rely on if you ever need help or advice." Nook continued. Was I hearing things or did he seriously nominate me for something I'm no where near qualified for. I couldn't even build a tent by myself, let alone help anyone out.

"Um, I think you've made a mistake... How could I possibly be the one person you can all count on?" I had to ask, feeling very uncomfortable in my skin. That's when Diva held my hand, moving right in front of me. It felt like my breathing had stopped.

"You've helped me." She began. "I knew from the moment you waited on me that I could trust you, even if you didn't see it." Now that I thought back to it, I guess I did see her ease into this day better after I didn't leave her behind. Though I think anyone would be grateful not to be left behind, especially on the very first day here. On one hand, I could see where she and Tom were coming from. If I had to look out for anyone, I could do that in a heartbeat because that's just the girl I am. But on the other hand, this seemed like a really huge responsibility. Personally I wasn't expecting anything to be put on me when all I wanted was to get myself together. I doubt I'm really cut out to be some sort of role model.

The more I thought about it, however, the more I became tempted by it all. This could be the beginning of my fresh start. Some sort of solitude to my unorganised chaos. As I looked at Diva, she could tell I had likened to the idea, and turned to face Axel, who shrugged his shoulders.

"You should know I don't mind what choice you make, but if you don't accept this one it would be a huge mistake. You're cut out for this." He said grinning at me. With those words I was beaming, maybe even close to crying thanks to the support of my new neighbours. They had my back, even though I hadn't even known them for a full day. All I had to do was make sure Tom had mine.

"I accept your offer. But if I need a little guidance here and there..."

"Of course, you'll have our full support if needed. We would like to support everyone here on our journey, you should know that Leigh." Tom cut me off, leaving me slightly embarrassed. I could tell he was being genuine though, not only because of his words giving everyone here a light at the end of what we thought was a never ending tunnel. But also because of how Timmy and Tommy were looking at him right now with total admiration, wanting to do their very best for us. Monomi, you had better watch out over the next few months, because our small, strong community is about to have you turned into something completely amazing. I hoped.