The next morning, bleary eyed and aching from spending the day swinging an axe the day before, Nora stretched out in bed. The sun was barely peeking through her curtains, so she knew she had a little bit of time left before she had to leave the warmth of her covers. Bramble was fast asleep under the table, snoring peacefully.
"Hey, you must be the new farmer! I'm Sam. Good to meet you." Those words rang around in her head, and the blond man's pearly smile seemed etched into her mind. His friends, once introduced, seemed okay if a little hesitant. It was to be expected though, it wasn't often someone new moved to town. She had then proceeded to beat Sebastian at pool, leaving all three of them (plus some people from the bar called Shane, Elliot, and Leah who came to watch) open jawed and in awe of the newcomer. So much for staying low. Getting up, Nora made her way to the bathroom, and out of habit looked out the window. The parsnip seeds were gone, in their place were tiny shoots!
Unable to control her laughter, Nora ran outside, still in her pyjamas, and knelt down in the mud next to the buds. I guess I can do this… she grinned, before running back inside to get ready for the day.
The Egg Festival was exactly as Lewis had described it. More for the kids. Bright pastel colours adorned the town square, there was even a cut out of a bunny perched in the middle of the festival. For a festival geared toward kids, there were only two present. A girl with dark indigo hair, and a boy with coppery curls. Both raced around each other, excitedly laughing away. Approaching the stall manned by the same man from the village shop, the vibrant red packaging of some strawberry seeds caught Nora's eye. 100g each. Whilst tempting, they would completely deplete the last of her money. Turning away and looking around, Nora caught sight of the three from last night, and Abigail waved her over.
"Nice to see you haven't hidden away again." Abigail snickered, as the three of them stood around Sebastian finishing his cigarette just below the square.
"Lewis invited me yesterday. Said I'm like a special guest or something I don't know." Nora shrugged. "I'm guessing we're waiting on more kids?" She asked, looking at the two running around.
"Nope." Abigail exhaled. "It's just those two, Jas is Shane's goddaughter or something, and Vincent is Sam's little brother."
"Oh, fair enough." Nora said, looking over at the two. "Bit of an elderly population then?"
"It's more that there's loads of people our age with no kids." Sam shrugged. "Though Haley is due to pop any day now" he added, looking over at a very pretty blonde woman with a bulging stomach, holding hands with a muscular man throwing and catching a gridball one headedly.
"So, is it just those two in the egg hunt?"
Sam and Abigail looked at each other and grinned.
Next thing she knew, Nora was standing in the middle of the square with all the other competitors. It was her, Sam and Abigail, Sebastian's younger sister Maru, and the two kids. Both Jas and Vincent were looking up at her with wide eyes, confused as to who the new contender was, gearing themselves to find as many eggs as possible. Whilst Sam had said the only reason they entered for Vincent's sake, Nora could tell his pride was hurt by Abigail's record of 5 wins in a row. The reigning champ was stood to Nora's left, smiling at the thought of getting another 1000g. Sebastian stood to the side, next to his sister's girlfriend, a copper haired woman named Penny, lighting up another cigarette and staring into the distance.
3….2…1… go!
The 3 minutes flew by, the kids ran in separate directions instantly, as did Abigail and Sam. Running behind the bushes in town, Nora spotted a pastel pink egg. Grabbing it and putting it into her basket, she realised she had a distinct disadvantage when compared to those who had spent their entire lives in the town. Moving behind two houses, there were two more, and before long the whistle was blown and Nora was heading back to the square.
"How did you do?" Sam asked, walking back to the square with her.
"Nine. You?"
"Five! Well done farmer" he chuckled.
Abigail was standing proudly, showing Lewis her haul as he counted them off. Jas and Vincent had 6 between them, Maru had 7. As Nora handed her basket to Mayor Lewis, Abigail was grinning from ear to ear. She must've found loads, if I managed to find nine and I've only been here a week! The scores came back, in third place was Maru. She smiled and Penny whooped her from the crowd.
"In second place is Abigail with eight!" Lewis announced, and everyone looked at her. She looked annoyed, but still smiled.
"And the winner…" oh no "with nine eggs…" please no "is Nora!" Lewis announced. Everyone looked at me. A familiar thought of so much for not getting attached rippled throughout her mind, and she walked over to Lewis. "Now, as it's your first win, we have a special prize for you!" he announced. Nora beamed.
Lewis proceeded to produce the ugliest hat that she had ever seen.
"As tradition, for your first victory, a straw hat!" he declared, unceremoniously plopping it onto Nora's head. She caught Abigail's eye. Any animosity her new acquaintance had towards the farmer's victory quickly evaporated, as peals of laughter ripped out of the punk girl's mouth. Sam was likewise in a fit of hysterics, as Jas and Vincent mourned their loss once again. Smirking, Nora made her way to the shopkeeper's stall once again. If she was going to make this farm a success and get out of here, she needed to get a move on.
"9 packages of strawberry seeds, please."