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ch.1


Lost in the middle of the Pacific ocean, there is a small island recently discovered. This island is now home to about 100 people who decided to live a fresh new life in this strange and distant land. The ones who discovered this island is Mark, the lonely drifter, and a small family that got stranded in the island years ago. Although they had every right to leave the island and return to their old homes, they decided to stay and live in the island instead. Mark is a farmer who brings in the mayor profits of the island, and the family that arrived with him decided to run a shipping business.



After years of hard work, the island known as Sunny Island became a famous land where people can start over new lives. Many settlers brought their families along with them, and started many businesses of their own. Many of the settlers are farmers, ranchers, and miners who were inspired by Mark's hard work to develop an inhabited island into a grand and peaceful village.



Our story begins in Summer where Mark wakes up in the morning. He gets up from his bed and stretches his arms to greet the sunny day. Just as predicted, no rain or drizzle. It's going to be a wonderful sunny day working with his crops and animals. The first thing he does in the morning is go to the bathroom and checks himself. His blond hair is messy like always from the tossing and turning while he slept the night before. Nothing a comb and some warm water cannot fix.



He takes some water in his hands and splashes it on his face. He may feel a bit groggy from the sudden wake, but he finds no redness behind his green eyes, so there is no need to worry. He is healthy enough to work the day without worries.



After a quick shower, he heads back to the bedroom where he has his clothing set up for the day. Like most farmers, he wears a pair of overall pants over a white shirt, a bandanna around his neck so prevent dirt from getting into his shirt, red and black gloves, and heavy black boots. But just for a taste of fashion, he wears a brown leather jacket over his shirt, and a blue hat turned backwards. He keeps a puff of blond hair popping out of the opening of the hat for good measure.



He takes another look in the mirror before he heads out. After a second careful inspection, he balls up his fist and cheers himself for luck. This is his usual normal morning routine to tackle the day without worries or regrets. He is now ready to care for his farm, and help the village develop a little bit more with the help of his many friends that settled into Sunny Island.



The first thing he works on are the animals. He lets his cows and sheep out to the sunny pasture so they can feed on fresh moist grass. As they are grazing, Mark takes a moment to pet and milk the cows or sheer the sheep if he could. As he is passing through them, he speaks to them giving compliments on their development. Somehow, the cows and sheep can understand Mark clearly, and respond to his words of kindness.



The next place Mark handles are the chickens. Like the cows, he lets the chickens out into a special pen he divided away from the cows so that they can peck for worms in peace. As they are outside, Mark picks the eggs one by one as quietly and quickly as he possibly can. He then leaves some feed in the bins for the chickens so that they can eat later.



Now that the animals have been taken care of, Mark begins to focus on the crops in the farm. Unlike the animals, this is the most time consuming and tiring part of his job. But even so, he still happily works as hard as he could for the sake of the village. First, he tackles the Summer crops that grow in his field. Some of the corn is ripe, so he picks them and readies them for shipping. He does save some of the corn for cooking. After picking any other harvests, he waters the plants using a watering can equipped with some wonderful stones.



Wonderful stones are rare magical crystals that increase the effectiveness of the tools that he owns. Without them, there is no way that he could have developed such a large farm without spending the whole day on it. It is not sure where they come from, but there is a villager in the island that finds them, and sells them to the farmers in the island.



He also owns a greenhouse in his ranch that he uses for growing Fall crops all year long. The reason he chose to grow Fall crops is because he needs to harvest plenty of yams for a specific person who lives in the island. After picking and watering the crops in the greenhouse, he moves his attention outside to the mushroom racks and the rice paddies.



By now, his farm work is done. He checks his watch and sees that it's now noon. There is another thing he usually does as a daily routine. He runs back into his home, and rushes into the kitchen. At this point, he needs to rush if he wants to arrive at his special place at the right time.



He goes into the freezer, and pulls out a fish he had caught the night before. After a couple of years living alone in the island, he has learned how to cook quite well. His main specialty is cooking fish and yam recipes which he learned from a friend who owns a diner in the island. It takes him about an hour and a half to cook his famous fried fish over rice with yam pudding. A very tasty and nutritious lunch for fish and sweet lovers.



After packing and wrapping the lunch he prepared, he rushes out of the farm, straight into the village. At exactly 2:00pm, a beautiful young girl roams the village to get a bit of exercise. This girl is Lanna Songstress, a famous pop idol who settled into the island about 2 years ago. Ever since she came to the island, Mark made a habit of bringing her some lunch every day at 2:00pm. He knows that her favorite food is fish and yam pudding, so he became quite good at making her favorite meal.



As he watches her walking around the village, he can't help but to admire her beauty. Her shimmering golden hair that reflects the light like a golden fleece flows down below her waist. She has very light creamy skin tone that is completely flawless. Her large round chocolate brown eyes hive her a sweet look to her when she smiles. Lanna typically wears a green dress decorated with black frills and a single rose under her neck. A green and frilly hair barret with two red ribbons rests on her head gives her an added cute charm.



This girl who is world famous for her singing and dancing is the girl that Mark admires the most. He is aware that he is just an ordinary farmer, and she is a pop idol. He feels that any form of a serious relationship is impossible between them. But he does wish that he can go on a single date with her, even if it's just once, he'll be happy.



Gathering all of his courage, he approaches Lanna with the lunch in his arms. No matter how many times he has done this in the past, he still gets butterflies in his stomach whenever he approaches her. He walks up slowly and says, ?Umm. . . Hi Lanna.?



She turns around to find the nervous and shy farmer behind her. She then gives him a gentle smile and responds, ?Hi Mark! What can I do for you today??



?Well. . . You see. . . Umm. . .? are the only words that come out of his mouth. Even though he has done this so many times already, just being around this stunning beauty leaves him speechless. After taking a deep breath, he pulls out his gift and says, ?I made you some lunch today! I hope you'll accept it. . .?



Just like every day, Lanna accepts his gift with a smile and says, ?Thank you Mark. Your fish and yam pudding lunches are always the best!?



Hearing her compliment makes him feel happy and proud. The next thing he tries is something he does often, but not on a daily basis. He is embarrassed to ask such a question, especially to a famous idol like Lanna Songstress, but he always finds the courage to do so. So he asks, ?Say Lanna, I have the rest of the afternoon off. So I was wondering if maybe we can go on a date today if possible??



Lanna smiles for him as she says, ?Aww, how sweet. But I'm so sorry, I have a lot of work to do today, so I can't. But thanks again for the lunch, I look forward to it.?



?I understand. . .? said Mark as he takes a deep breath.



Then they said their goodbyes and parted ways. And so starts another one of Mark's daily routines. After seeing Lanna, he heads over to Luke's diner to have a meal. After cooking for Lanna, Mark has no energy left to cook something for himself, so he feels quite happy that there is a diner in the island he can go to. But like many days, he carries a disappointed look on his face. He sits on his usual seat close to the counter, and rests his sad face on the table waiting to be served.



Moments later, Luke comes out of the back to take Mark's order. So he asks, ?So Mark, what'll you'll have today??



?The usual. . .? answered Mark in a sad tone.



Luke sighs and says, ?Let me guess, that Lanna girl turned you down again. Am I right??



?Oh, leave me alone.? said Mark leering back at Luke. ?What do you know about it anyways??



?Well, I know that you've been trying to get that girl to date you for about two years already.? Mark sighs again, just about everyone in the village already knows that Mark is the only person in the village stubborn enough to keep asking the same girl out for so long. Luke then places his hand on Mark's shoulder and says, ?Listen to me friend. I think it's about time you let this fantasy of dating an idol go. Maybe if you're rich and famous, then I can see you having a fair chance with her. But lets be realistic here.?



Mark knows that he's right, but giving up on that dream was something that he was not willing to do so easily. So he looks away across the room so that he could get his mind off the topic. But as he looks away, he notices something interesting in the diner.



Sitting across the room, he sees a very attractive girl he has never seen before. A young girl about his age sits on a table enjoying a casual meal by herself. She has medium long honey brown hair that reaches to her shoulders, and sapphire blue eyes that bring out contrasting beauty. Unlike most girl in the island, this new girl is wearing semi-tomboyish clothing with a yellow shirt, blue jean shorts, red work boots, and an orange jacket. Another interesting feature is the orange-red bandanna she wears on her head.



Curious to know more about her, Mark points at the girl and asks Luke, ?Hey, who is that girl sitting over there??



?Oh her?? said Luke looking into the direction Mark is pointing at. ?I think her name is Chelsea, she's new to the island. I think she arrived yesterday to start a farm of her own.?



?A farm? By herself? Wow, that's impressive!?



Luke grinned and said, ?Why don't you go over there and talk to her? I'm pretty sure you two can talk about a lot of things, like farming and stuff.?



Mark sighs and lays his head on the table again while saying, ?There is no way I can do that. After all, I have no luck with women, I'm sure she wouldn't want to talk to someone like me.?



?Suit yourself.? said Luke as he walks back to the kitchen to prepare Mark's food.



Without his noticing, the young girl named Chelsea had already started walking towards him. She stops next to him, and hopes that he'll notice her soon. After a moment, Mark looks up, and sees Chelsea standing next to him. This sudden shock causes him to jump up nervously out of his seat.



Chelsea smiles cheerfully and says, ?Hi there. Are you Mark, one of the founders of the island?? Mark nods, but doesn't say a word. He is too shocked to believe that she actually is talking to him. Before he could do anything else, she takes his hand, and shakes it while saying, ?Wow, I can't believe I am meeting THE Mark. I'm like your biggest fan!?



?Me?? asked Mark in a nervous tone. ?You're my fan? But I'm just a farmer, not a famous guy.?



?But I read all about all of your accomplishments. You, with the help of a small family, took an inhabited island, and turned it into a new home for people who seek a better life. Doing something like this is not something anyone can do!?



Mark's face turns red in embarrassment. He had no idea that someone had written something about his accomplishments in the island. Chelsea then continues, ?Because you've inspired me so much, I decided to come here, and start a farm of my own! It's not an easy job, but remembering how hard you had to work to get this island going will be the inspiration I need to keep working.?



?I see, that's so great.? said Mark casually. Chelsea may be quite energetic, but Mark feels that this girl is someone he can get along with very well. ?So, how is your farm doing? It must be a lot of work for just one person.?



Chelsea sighs and says, ?It is a lot of work. I just started yesterday, but it's a lot more to handle than I ever thought. The digging, planting, and watering drains so much energy!?



?Well, you know. . . I do have a lot of experience with farming. I could help you out on my free time, and give you advice??



?You you mean you'll become my farming coach?? asked Chelsea. Mark nods happily, and she jumps for joy yelling, ?Thank you so much! I knew that you were a nice guy!?



And so they parted ways as new friends. Chelsea told Mark how to get to her farm before they left the diner, and told him that he could visit at any time. What sort of new relationship will Mark and Chelsea develop?



End of Chapter 1.