Another day the same as the last. Wake up at the last possible minute. Stay in bed for five more. Regret that choice and rush around a cramped studio apartment covered in clutter to run out the door at the last second. Ignore everyone and everything she passed to go to a tall unfeeling building of glass, stone and steel. Any color the outside world held was washed away with grey walls and blocked by dust covered windows that had likely never been opened after being installed.
Inhale.
Exhale.
She sat at her desk staring at blue pages with white lines though she saw nothing. The sound of her own breathing consumed the space where thoughts should be. The chatter of soft distant conversation among coworkers was slowly drowned out as a buzzing, ringing grew ever present.
Inhale.
Exhale.
What was she doing again? Right. Reviewing the latest schematics. She still needed to finish that report that was due and the mail room was a mess. Why was that her responsibility again anyways? Last she checked she wasn't a secretary.
Muffled words tried to push through, and as if some invisible force snapped their fingers, the ringing stopped and her breathing wasn't the loudest noise in the room anymore.
"Olivia?"
"Hm?" The brunette turned to face the source while blinking away the glazed expression that plagued her grey eyes, only for her shoulders to drop as she saw her boss staring at her with a less then impressed expression.
"Nice to see you joined the land of the living again," He joked though his arms remained crossed. "Where are you at with the Caymen's project?"
"It's on the to do list. Should have it done in a few weeks," Olivia answered before shifting to move one blueprint off her desk in favor of digging up another.
"It was due two weeks ago,"
"That was before they changed their parameters for the project," She countered as her tired expression shifted to a repressed sneer. Anything closer to glaring would just get her fired. "They're basically asking us to draw a red line with green ink. It doesn't work that way. I'm a work horse, not a work unicorn. I can't make the impossible, possible. I need a few more weeks to figure out the physics behind the device they're asking for."
"Well, find your horn then because I need a unicorn. Higher up says the dead line is three days," Her boss quipped back though in a momentary pause softened eyes seemed to hold a semblance of sympathy. "Look I'll add Steve to the project. See if you can bounce some ideas off each other and get this done asap. Shelve everything else."
That only meant she'd have another tight deadline later…. "Yes sir."
Inhale.
Exhale.
Just as her boss promised, extra hands were assigned to her project. It took the whole day and then some overtime to get caught up on the ins and outs of the deal, leaving them with two days to finish the work. Joy.
Olivia made her way home the same way she left, ignoring everything and everyone she passed until she made it back to the cramped apartment. Four walls, a window and discount furniture were as much as the cheap Pokyo apartment allowed for.
"I'm home," she announced to no one and silence was earned in response.
She stared blankly once more staying by the door while trying to think of what to eat. Instead of heading for the kitchen she slowly reached her hand into her coat pocket and pulled out her cellphone. A few taps and pokes later brought up a contact number labeled as 'Mom'.
She counted the dial tones until a fuzzy static told her the call was accepted. "Hey mom?"
"Hey sweetie what's up?"
"I don't think I can do this anymore." Olivia admitted.
"huh?"
"I think I want to quit my job." She meekly spoke as she allowed her free hand to try and hide her face. She was too old to be making this phone call. "I don't know how quickly I can get a new one though."
"Ohhh. Okay what happened? You know what. Give me some time I'll be right there. We can talk about it and I'll make you something to eat, how does that sound?"
"I'm sorry,"
"Don't you be sorry, I'll be right there." Her mother insisted. The compassionate voice stayed on the phone the whole time and just that quickly a knock was heard at the apartment door.
As soon as it opened a rather short woman, who was still an inch or two taller than Olivia, walked in. Grey streaks in her hair and laugh lines on her face showed signs of a life well lived and her determined expression and posture showed signs of many more to come.
"My little olive," The woman cooed as she immediately embraced her daughter who started to cry. "You had a rough day huh?"
"Yeah," She sniffled. "Work is just. It's getting to me."
"Yeah that happens sometimes," the mother agreed. A few minutes passed before Olivia managed to calm down enough that her sobs turned to an occasional sniffle and hiccup. "Do you want to go sit down?"
"Okay… Sorry about your shirt," Olivia replied as they walked into the apartment to sit down on the convertible couch bed.
"Oh it's fine. Shirts dry," her mother insisted and sat next to Olivia, making sure to hold her upset daughter's hands as olivia leaned to rest her head against her mother again.
"How do you and dad do this? I'm not even 30 yet and I want to retire." She mumbled into her mother's shoulder. "Did I choose the wrong field? I thought I liked engineering but the longer I stay at this company the more I hate it."
"Well, your father got lucky with that job on the military base,. and I certainly didn't do this. Your father and I ran off and got married young. Then I had your brother, and you." She listed off. "I grew up on a farm and never really got to do the whole college thing. I wish I understood better so I could help you."
"It's not like you caused any of this." Olivia countered. "It's my mess. I need to fix it but. I just feel like I want to run away. I don't want to hate waking up anymore. Theres something I'm supposed to do. I know it I just." She paused to take a breath as she realized she was starting to get upset again, causing her to speak too quickly. "I don't know what it is."
Her mother simply nodded as her gaze drifted away.
"I know I'm too old to be asking for help, but can I move back in with you and dad for a little, while I look for a new job?"
"You know you're always welcome with us dear," Her mother hesitated again before returning her attention to Olivia in full. "but, If you're willing to hear me out, I have another idea."
"I am all ears for ideas that get me out of that office," Olivia affirmed.
"Well, Like I said I grew up on a farm… And when your grandfather passed away, the land was given to me to look after it."
"…. You own a farm?"
"Technically, you do." Her mother admitted.
Olivia stared in stunned silence. "I what."
"It was your grandfathers. And after having a falling out with my mom I didn't really want to go back… I think he knew that. The few times we visited before then, well your grandfather took a shine to you. But you were too young to be a landowner when he passed. So he left it in my care for when you're old enough to decide what to do with it."
Confusion caused Olivia to blink rapidly as she processed this new information. "I own a farm?"
"Yeah. Last I heard the village it's in has seen better days. I was actually thinking about bringing this up to you, it's possible to sell it. The mayor and some company have both approached me with offers since I'm still listed as the steward until we officially transfer the deed over to you." Her mother further explained.
"Where is it?" Olivia asked as she tried to wrack her brain for memories of ever visiting a farm. There was one memory and it was fuzzy at best. She couldn't have been older then four or five at the time.
"Coral Island," her mother answered. "So. Back to the idea I had… You probably won't get much for the land as it is. The house hasn't been touched for at least twenty years, if it's still standing. But, a year on a tropical island, working on a garden maybe even trying farming or anything else that catches your interest. There are worse remedies for burn out."
"You mean it?" Olivia asked as her mother put a bigger picture into perspective. Selling the land would get her some money but. That land was a retirement package in its own right. She just had to fix it up and she'd have a place to live. No rent. Some bills but nothing she couldn't afford with a little work.
"If you want to try it I see no reason to stop you. Your father and I gave our blessings to your brother when he moved off to New Frisco. You'd still be closer than he is." Her mother joked.
The weight on her shoulders suddenly felt a little lighter, and yet, guilt still remained. She'd be leaving her parents behind. No option to call for help and have mom show up less then an hour later. No warm hugs. And mom mostly stayed home, who would she spend time with aside from dad…
"I know those pretty blue eyes," Her mother said as she moved to hold the side of her daughter's face. "Stop worrying about me. If you want to go, then you should. If I wanted to be selfish and keep you all to myself, I wouldn't have mentioned it."
"Are they blue still? Thought they turned gray a while ago." Olivia asked in an effort to avoid the rest of what was said.
"Hmm. No there's still blue in there, they just need a bit of light and fresh air," Her mother jokingly replied before nudging her. "And I think they'd be happier looking over a resignation letter. What you do after is your choice my Olive."
One satisfying, I quit, and two months later Olivia found herself sitting on a strange wooden boat that somewhat resembled a chicken. She wouldn't have believed it existed if she wasn't sitting in it.
While she appreciated the silent company of the ship's captain, the peace and quiet came to an end when the boat was docked.
"Hello, Olivia!" Greeted a rather pleasant old man wearing a green sweater vest over a tan button up shirt that was decorated with a green palm tree design. "Welcome back to Coral Island, you're new home! It's been a long time, Olivia. Good to see you again."
Oh gosh, she knew him? "Yeah, so good to see you too." Olivia agreed while doing everything in her power to avoid using names.
"I can't remember the last time we had a visitor, Heh Heh!" he happily announced.
Oh boy. No pressure. "You know I can't imagine why, it's such a lovely place." Hopefully.
"I trust you had a wonderful journey with Mr. Wataru," the pleasantly plump older man asked.
So that's the captain's name. Good to know. "Yeah, It was safe and comfortable." She agreed while still subconsciously trying to figure out why the front of the boat had a woven wicker basket style chicken head on it. Not the most important question to have but it still plagued her.
"Great! I expected nothing less from Mr. Wataru. He's the best sailor you could ask for." The man complimented while Mr. Wataru was busy tying down the boat to the dock.
"I completely agree," Olivia replied, knowing no other sailors it wasn't really a contest in her mind.
"You must be quite tired from the journey. Let's head over to your new place!" He offered while gesturing down the dock towards the beach.
"Yeah, I am pretty tired actually," She agreed and followed after while wracking her mind for a name. Curse her four-year-old self for not paying attention. The trip through town gave no further enlightenment to the subject as well, though a stone sign reading 'starlet town' was enough to tell her the name of her new home.
"Alright, the floors are done!" shouted a voice in the distance. A man in a brown jumpsuit with a bandana over his head was standing on a small porch area of a house that was neatly nestled not too far from the river bridge they were crossing.
A woman in overalls with her long hair pulled back into a single braid, looked like she was about to respond before noticing Olivia approach with the large mystery man. "Oh my. What a coincidence." She mused instead. "We've just finished patching things up here. Is this the new farmer?"
"That's right. Olivia, this is Dinda and Joko." The sweater vest wearing older man answered. "they're the local carpenters."
"It's nice to meet you," Olivia greeted as she could already feel her social battery dwindling.
"Nice to meet you, Olivia," Joko said in turn.
"Hello Olivia, its always exciting to welcome someone new to our little island." Dinda added with a warm smile that could rival the morning sun.
It was then that she realized what was said before and remembered her mother's warning. The house hadn't been touched in at least twenty years. "Wait, did you guys fix up the house?"
"Indeed. Olivia this will be your new home. It's a bit rundown but,"
"Ahem, excuse me, Mayor Connor. Did you just say we did a poor job here?" Dinda asked as her smile fell to an indignant sneer and she shifted to hold her hips.
Thank you! Olivia mentally cheered as she finally had a name. Dinda was quickly becoming her favorite person.
"Eh? Ah, no. I mean," Mayor Connor stumbled over his words in an effort to think of what might appease the upset carpenter.
And just that quickly Dinda and Joko started laughing. "Don't worry. I'm just joking." With that Dinda shifted her attention back to Olivia. "Unfortunately, we could only patch up the roof so it doesn't leak and replace some of the rotten wood. If you want more renovations you can visit our shop and house in the hillside north east of here."
"That's amazing, thank you. I will absolutely do that," Olivia replied while looking from the carpenters and the house. She was stunned by the kindness and almost scared to ask if she could pay for the work they already did. Roofs could cost thousands and she had maybe three hundred dollars to her name after all the fees from moving here.
"We won't charge you for it," Joko said, seemingly reading Olivia's mind. "But you'll need to gather the materials yourself. Once we restore the foundation, you can decorate the house the way you like. We put a list of instructions in your mailbox."
It's official, these were the kindest people she'd ever met. They weren't going to charge her for the roof and they're willing to work at cost to help her further? The stark difference from the empty void of her old office job to the vibrant kindness of this village was honestly overwhelming. "Yeah. I'll make sure to read them. Thank you again."
"Well then, it's about time we head home. See you both around." Dinda announced.
"Take care, Olivia, and good luck," Joko added and gave a wave before walking away with Dinda.
Olivia and the mayor waved back and once the carpenters were out of ear shot, mayor Connor spoke up. "As you can see, people are very excited that you're here. Doubly so for Sam. You should pay him a visit once you're more settled in. He's the owner of the general store in town."
It was at this point Olivia realized something was off. What did her mother tell this guy. Why were they so excited for her to be here?
"And that," Connor gestured out to a rather densely covered area of trees and vegetation. "is the field where I'm guessing you'll spend most of your time."
Olivia stared at the 'field' as horror set in. Ooooh. Oh no. It was huge and there were piles of trash everywhere that wasn't covered in fully grown trees and weeds. That was a field? What were they expecting her to do with this exactly? She worked a desk job and had no muscles. She was expecting to garden, a little.
"Once you harvest your crops you can put them, or anything else you have to sell, here in this shipping bin." Connor explained as he walked over to a large chest by the house that could easily hold four to five hundred pounds of food on a bad day and more on a good one. "I'll ship the contents overnight to the appropriate stores in town and you'll receive the funds the following day. It's a small town so it won't take long to get everything where it needs to be."
Oh they expected her to FARM farm. Like. Not a garden farm. Oh no.
"I'll be going now so you can get some rest," Connor happily said as he was oblivious to Olivia's current panic.
Mooom, what did you tell him. Olivia mentally screamed.
"Oh, since you just got here, you probably haven't bought anything you need for farming yet," Connor pointed out as if he only just thought of this. "Here's a little something from the town to get you started." He said as this was clearly a premeditated gift. He walked over to the side of the house and came back with a plethora of tools. A hoe, a watering can, a sickle, an axe and even a pickaxe and some seeds. "If you need anything else, I'm at your disposal. Come to me with problems, questions, some mean Sake, Heh heh!"
"You're too kind, thank you so much." Olivia forced her words through her equally forced smile. She was definitely going to have questions and certainly problems too. "I'll do my best." After a quick phone call home.
"Welcome home Olivia!" Connor happily said before leaving Olivia to panic and wonder what exactly she just got herself into.
A few weeks and a few bruises later, the field was cleared enough for the provided seeds to be planted. It wasn't much but The seeds were in the ground. So she'd accept that as progress. She'd even managed to meet a good number of the locals. It was hard to imagine such a small community existed. Less than one hundred residents yet it felt so alive… but also empty. Like more people were supposed to be here.
As she walked further into town for the day, distant murmuring filled the air.
"What on earth?" She cautiously followed the sound to find the more of the citizens gathered outside of a newly constructed building with a freshly unveiled sign that read Pufferfish. She recognized that logo. "Oh no."
"You're not welcome here!" one of the citizens angrily shouted at the teal haired woman who stood in front of the building next to the mayor.
"Hello all," the woman greeted with a gentle and pleasant smile that felt unsettling amidst the chaos around her. "Passionate residents of Starlet Town. All this… commotion. It's unnecessary. Pufferfish isn't here to do anything destructive. Quite the opposite, actually. We're here to bail this town ou-"
"Enough with the lies, Ms. Pufferfish," said an older woman who stepped forward from the crowd. Her quiet voice and calm demeanor exuded a commanding sense of wisdom that caused the crowd to quiet down without a need to shout. "We can all see what you're here for."
"You can call me Karen. And please do elaborate, Ms.?" Karen paused waiting for an answer.
"Betty," the greying woman answered with a serene smile that faded as quickly as it appeared. " The oil spill that reached our town last year was your doing!" she boldly proclaimed. " These old bones have seen enough of your atrocities."
Olivia winced. Old bones or not, even she'd heard of Pufferfish's historic negligence. It got to the point where her old company refused to work with them any more because they didn't want the bad press of designing equipment for them.
"We don't want an oil drilling company around Ms. Pufferfish." Added another citizen who was wearing a thick soot covered apron over their clothing. "Please stop now and take the drilling away from here."
"I'm afraid it isn't up to you. But yes, yes. We hear you," Karen insisted while contradicting herself. "We're an oil-drilling corporation, but things are not always as one-sided as Ms. Betty suggests."
Olivia's wince turned to a grimace. No they were actually pretty one sided, there were a whole bunch of stories about not being surprised if a snake bites you. And lets be honest, the pufferfish is an adept mascot. You can eat it but it can kill you.
"We don't need your dirty-"another islander started only to be cut off.
"If I may, Red shirt. We can make coral Island lively again by bringing in tons and TONS of our workers here." Karen insisted. "Once we turn the museum into a storage facility for oil, expand drilling sites to the lake and across the beach. See where I'm going here?"
Olivia's expression dropped further. How was it possible to be this bad at reading the room? The villagers said they don't want her here at all why would they be okay with the idea of her expanding and taking more space!
"I can see plazas with vending machines around town" She started but realized her mistake and quickly corrected it. "Parks. Many of our workers will want to relocate to this dying town. Pufferfish can help coral island become a magnificent oil town, you see. Creating jobs and attracting our internal talents." While the crowd was still fed up with her they let her continued a bit longer. "In no time, you all will see this town alive again. Picture this: Pufferfish workers everywhere, chilling by the pier. Inside Fishensips. Enjoying life!"
The mention of the local tavern was enough to start the crowd up again. "Wait, red shirt?" the guy from before sneered.
"Look at the big picture here." Karen insisted as she once again ignored the man who happened to run the tavern she was just boasting about. "Let's face it. Nobody cares anymore about this. Uh. 'Charming' little island. Let us bail you out. Expand our operations here on Coral Island's coast. That will make the island a world-famous oil town. We're putting YOU on the map. All you need to do is say yes."
"And by bailout, you mean drilling around the island?" yet another islander asked with a note of disgust.
"Pufferfish's investors will make a hefty profit. Do the math. It'll trickle down to you people."
Okay that's enough. "Hey, I'm pretty good with math, and listening as it happens. One plus two says your math is off. No one cares about this island? Well, I do and so does everyone here. It's why they're here." Olivia argued, earning a few cheers from the others. "That seems like a whole lot more than zero. Makes me wonder if your trickle-down math is just as poorly counted."
Mayor Connor's expression dropped in shock as the crowd grew angry again, "Folks, let's cool our heads. Nothing will be solved if we act out of emotion." He tried to reason and mediate the uneven sides. "Ms. Karen, thank you for your time."
"Our door is always open Mr. Mayor," Karen insisted.
With that the mayor motioned and urged for the crowd to leave. Though Olivia remained locked in a staring contest with Karen. After everyone else left Karen slowly approached still smiling as calmly as before.
"Olivia right?" Karen asked causing Olivia's expression to melt from anger to confused concern. "Oh, I know you. Pleased to make your acquaintance. No need to be confused. You don't know me." She spoke with out a need to listen just as she did before. "I'm Karen. I'm with Pufferfish corporation."
"I gathered," Olivia answered still unimpressed.
Karen heaved a tired sigh and her smile dropped to an almost sympathetic and concerned frown. "Olivia, this island is dying. We both know it. These people. They're just in denial. We should just make the best of it."
Mom did say the island was in bad shape… wait. "You tried to buy my farm."
"It's been sitting there for years. Unused. With no purpose." Karen replied and the once sympathetic pout turned to condescension. "You're hurting them by being here. When you realize that. My offer still stands. I'll buy the farm."
"Over my dead body," Olivia quipped back before turning to leave. She'd been here for less then a month. It made no sense to be this mad but she was. These people, this place, there was something special about it and she wanted to protect it. For all it's short comings, she finally felt alive here. Her eyes didn't look grey anymore and she was never giving that up.
For the rest of the day Olivia worked with a fury driven fervor. Ground was tilled, trees were hastily chopped down, earning her more bruises, and with what little money she had left she purchased more seeds which were planted and watered.
Ugh, Watering. It was taking so much time each day. How did grandpa take care of such a large field? Olivia wondered as she achily trudged over to her bed and crawled in. Maybe she over did it…
She didn't spend long on that thought as she slowly drifted off to sleep. The peaceful darkness her eyelids granted her slowly faded away as she dreamt of a warm glowing light.
"c-n-y—h-r-?"
Olivia grumbled and rolled over in her sleep. Dreaming of a voice though she couldn't quite make out what it was saying.
"Olivia, try to focus on my voice," requested gentle and elegant words that echoed in her dreamscape.
Her nose twitched before nestling her face into her pillow.
"Good. Now, listen closely," It continued as the warm light shifted and swirled before exploding into a whirlwind of soft pink petals. "The sacred trees… Please visit any one of them. Find them around the island." The petals continued to swirl as they fluctuated with the words as if they were the ones speaking. The petals began to glow once more causing the sleeping woman to wince as it grew blindingly bright. Images of different trees came to mind but only one looked familiar.
She'd seen it while walking through town once. It was in the middle of a park but it looked disgusting so she never bothered approaching it.
"Touch the tablet to summon them…" the visions faded as the darken void illuminated by petals returned in it's place. "They will open your eye."
Eye? Eyes? This was a weird dream…
"You are my hope to heal the island," the petals insisted. "Now wake up, and go, Olivia."
As soon as the instruction was given, her body complied causing her to jolt awake and look around. Only to slump back onto her bed, hold her face and groan.
"I knew I was going insane from burnout, but it seems too soon to be hearing voices," Olivia's complaining was muffled by her hands. She tried to close her eyes and go back to sleep to no avail. She was still very awake and was seeing the same trees again.
Frustrated with this she tossed her covers to the side. "You know what. Fine. We're going to go find the tree I dreamt about. There's going to be nothing there," She insisted to herself as she got dressed and grumpily made her way to the door. "And that will prove everything is FINE and I'm not crazy!"
She slammed the door shut behind her, ignored her oversized garden for the time being, and made her way into town. Yet the closer she got to the park, the more her foot steps slowed. What if she wasn't seeing things… What if something was actually trying to talk to her through a tree. What if it was tricking her and the tree is actually cursed?
She took a deep breath to steel her nerves. It's fine. There's no such thing as ghosts, or spirits or monsters. She just had a weird dream because she over worked herself. Its. FINE.
Olivia stood in front of the tree and looked it over. "if you do something spooky I swear to-," a swirling wind cut off her words as she reached out to touch the tablet and in that moment a giant figure stood before her.
Her mouth stayed open from shock, holding the unfinished word in limbo. That. What was that?
What ever she'd summoned seemed just as terrified as it began to scream and ran away.
"Hey,"
Olivia snapped to face where the new voice came from to find a blond man with a bit of scruff growing on his face. He was wearing a simple white button down, beat up loafers and brown jeans that were slightly rolled up.
"hm? Um sorry. I'll move." Olivia offered, assuming she was in the way.
"You're fine, I just wanted to check on you. You seemed kind of out of it." The young man replied before offering a hand. "You're from Pokyo right?"
"Yeah, that's me. New farmer," She nervously replied and accepted the offered handshake while still trying to process what she just saw.
"I came from a metropolitan area myself. The big apple. You've heard of it I'm sure." The new face explained. "Anyhow, my name is Scott. Welcome to town! Don't be a stranger."
The casual conversation was oddly helping her not freak out as much, "Well, same goes to you then. I've been here a while now and this is the first I've seen of you."
"Ah, that. Yeah," Scott cleared his throat. "Needed some time to myself after the museum artifacts all got sold off."
Oh, she stepped on something sensitive. Good job Olivia. "That explains the closed sign."
"Yeah… well, the town needed the money so. Not much that could be done about it. But this place is rich with history. If I look hard enough, I'm sure I can find artifacts to replace what we got rid of."
"Good luck with that, and If I manage to find anything interesting, you'll be the first person I go to." Olivia offered in parting before pausing. There were a lot of different kinds of museums and there was no chance she was going to randomly trip over a Monet. "What exactly would work in the museum?"
The question earned a short chuckle in response. "Just about anything really. We have a decent size aquarium for salt and freshwater fish. Theres a terrarium for insects and any historical artifacts would be beyond anything I could ask for."
Olivia nodded. Artifacts might be a stretch but bugs and fish were easy enough to come by. "Consider me recruited then. See you around. Scott, right?"
"Yep, See you around, Olivia."
