Chapter Text
Erin watched as the town she lived in for her whole life fades away in the distance. In a blink of an eye, her past was literally behind her. She had received a letter from her grandfather, stating that he left his old farmhouse to her. It was odd, as she had never expressed interest for it, but for some reason, it felt right. She felt like it was a gift from Yoba, a new start. She turns to sit forward, leaning her head back against the seat, as the sun slowly began to rise. In the corner of her eye, she saw as a sign that had passed, stating that a town called Pelican Town was a few miles away. She could not tell how far, as the sun was glistening, reflecting against the sign. She sighed to herself and patted her bag, knowing what she was doing was for her own good. Erin had grown to resent living in the city, working for a company that did not respect her. While the pay was decent, the job absolutely sucked. She hated her coworkers, her boss, and even began to despise the consumers before she decided to call it quits. Even if it wasn't the job, it wasn't like she had other reasons to stay in the city. It was hard for her to make friends with her work schedule, so she didn't bother with it.
Erin didn't know when she fell asleep on the bus, but she was quickly awoken by the force of the bus stopping hastily. She stood up from her seat and grabbed her bags. She thought that she had more assets to her name, but it was quickly proven wrong when she packed everything she owned into two large duffel bags. As she gathered her bags, she took in the scenery that was right outside the bus window. The trees had started to gain their leaves, and the flowers had finally begun to bloom. She realized that she probably looked odd, staring out of the window. Erin walked outside the bus, bags in tow, and was greeted by two of the townsfolk. She recognized the older gentleman, as her grandpa would always describe him in their letters to one-another.
"Erin! It is great to finally meet you. Your old man would always talk about you when I would visit his farm. He said you were determined in your job, which is what shocked me as you chose to move here. Regardless, I cannot wait to see what you do with the Ol' Cits Farm, if you ever need help, I am sure one of the other townsfolk would be happy to help! This is Robin, our town carpenter," Mayor Lewis states, a bit wary of how things will turn out.
"Ah yes, you must be Lewis, I have heard so much about you. I cannot wait to get started on the farm!" Erin replied, her mood a bit soured by the older man's comment. Robin, sensing a bit of hostile tension, inserts herself into the conversation.
"Well, I would love to give you a tour around your grandpa's- I mean, your new farm! Here, let me help you with your bags," Robin offered. Erin gave her one her bags, but stated she could carry one, as it would lighten the load. Mayor Lewis huffed, and turned away, making his way back into the main part of town. Robin and Erin make small talk on their way to Cits Farm, and Robin mentioned a few of the townsfolk she knows.
"Honestly, I was afraid of moving here, meeting new people has never been easy for me. I worked as a lab technician for a pretty... interesting company and it was a bit difficult to make friends at the company. I am hoping that being in a small town will help me make more friends, as my grandpa always said that Pelican Town has always been a close-knit community," Erin mentions. Robin smiles softly, hearing the words of gratitude.
"It is great being in a small town, the community here is great! I moved here a few years ago with my family. My son, Sebastian, plays on his computer most of the time, so it might be rare to see him. My daughter, Maru, is a nurse at the doctor's office in town. I am so proud of her and how far she has come, she would make a great friend, but as her mom, I may be biased. Oh! Speaking of doctors, our town doctor, Harvey, is a great man, you should meet him! Demetrius, my husband, is a biologist, I am sure that he would love to meet you and trade 'science secrets.'" Robin jokes, giggling at her air quotes. "Pierre and Caroline run our local grocery store. Gus owns the Saloon in town, and Emily helps out there. It is great to go there on a Friday and mingle with the others. Oh! And Marnie owns the farm south of yours, so if you ever decided to raise animals, it would be good to meet her. Her nephew, Shane, does the heavy lifting when he isn't at Joja. Please don't even get me started on Joja and Morris and the whole debate... I'm sure you'll hear about it from Pierre," Robin stops in her tracks, and they find themselves standing in front of the rundown house.
"Woah, this farm might need some serious work," Robin states, staring at the overgrown debris. She turns to Erin and hands her the other bag. "But I am sure you can handle it, your grandpa always called you a hard worker, and this farm will need it. Anyway, I better get going so I can run my shop. If you ever need help, do not be afraid to come and ask. You're a part of the community now, and we always help each other. I'll leave you be, let me know if you need anything, Farmer Erin," Robin smiles, emphasizing the farmer.
And with that, Robin left Erin alone on the farm. She set her bags down on the porch and began to look around for a few minutes, taking in the landscape. It was a pretty standard farm in her opinion; it had two small ponds, quite a few trees, and a broken-down greenhouse. North of the farm, there was a cave, but it was too dark to look in. She wandered back to the farmhouse eventually. She grabbed her bags and made her way inside. In her new house, there was a box television that looked older than her, a bed that seemed freshly made, yet still had a layer of dust on it, a nice table and singular chair, and a cozy fireplace nestled in the corner. Erin felt a tang of pain, staring at the singular chair. She should have visited her grandpa more, especially near the end of his life. It's too late now, she understands that, but she is still wondering what could've happened if she had visited him sooner rather than later. With a huff, she set her bags on the table and unloaded everything. She set up a few paintings she had brought with her, as well as the limited number of photos she had of her and her family.
After Erin was done, she noticed a small box near the bed. She reached for it and opened it cautiously. Inside, there were fifteen parsnip seed packets and a note. The note was from Mayor Lewis, which she laughed to herself at. For an older man, he still could not hide his disdain for new people. She sighed and went outside, looking at a small chest near the mailbox. She sighed, wondering what else was hiding among the farm. She slowly opened the box, preparing for something terrible. To her surprise, there was an axe, a hoe, a shovel, a pickaxe, and a watering can. She began to ponder but then decided to begin her farm early. She picks up the shovel and decides to start her farm a few yards away from the farmhouse. She picks a few holes, trying to equally space each plant away from each other. After she is done planting her parsnips, she waters them using the watering can.
"I hope I make a difference here, or I was better off staying in the city. I'm not sure how Grandpa handled all of this, but Robin seemed a bit confident in me, I don't want to let her down," Erin wipes the sweat from her face. "I should probably go into town and buy more seeds, I'm sure I'll need them."
Erin sets her shovel and watering can down and began to walk into town, collecting different forageables on her way. The first place she stopped at was the doctor's office. With this heat, it would be good to be familiar with them in case she gets sick. When she walked in, a wave of air conditioning and the smell of lemons flooded her senses. At the front desk, there was a girl in a nurse's outfit, and she assumed it was Maru, based off of her and Robin's discussion earlier.
"Hi, Maru, right?" Erin asked, tilting her head slightly.
"Hello, and yes! I am Maru, I assume that my mom had talked about me?" Maru replies, her smile beaming.
"Yeah, she talked about how wonderful you are. However, I better get going, I am trying to meet as many people as I can today. I hope to see you later so we can talk more," Erin returns the smile and waves goodbye. After she exits the doctor's office, she makes her way around town, greeting everyone she can. She ended her day sitting on a bar stool at the Saloon, getting an early dinner. At around five thirty, she felt pretty confident that she had met almost everyone. She was surprised when she watched as a taller, dark-haired man walked in and stood near the bar. No one greeted him besides the blue-haired bartender, whom she knew as Emily. Emily waved at him, but he just gave her a small nod. However, for them, it seemed like a language, as out of nowhere, Emily gave him a beer. Erin felt as if she was staring into his soul, so she looked down at the bar, hoping he did not notice her odd behavior. After a few minutes, she paid for her dinner and got up. However, instead of leaving, she walked over to the man she hadn't met yet.
"Hey, I'm Eri-" she barely got through her greeting before he interrupted her.
"I don't know you. Why are you talking to me?” The man said, giving her an odd look.
"Oh!" Erin felt caught off guard. "I was only introducing myself. I didn't mean to be rude."
"Well, you should have tried better then, I want to be left alone." He stated. "My name is Shane, now leave me alone."
Erin took the hint and walked away, leaving the Saloon entirely. She began walking home, until she heard footsteps behind her. She turned around to find the source of the noise and found Sam walking up to her.
"Hey, I heard you were talking to Shane," he inquired.
Erin huffed a laugh out, before softening her gaze. "It wasn't much of a conversation, he interrupted me, implied that I was rude, and told me to leave him alone."
Sam shook his head, not in disbelief, but in disappointment. "Yeah, that is Shane alright. He is not the best person to interact with. Trust me, I work with him. It is better to leave him alone rather than continue to talk to him. I just wanted to let you know that you didn't say anything wrong, that is just how he acts."
"I guess, I just thought some people would be nicer than how they are in the city, but that is okay. I better get going, it is getting late." Erin acknowledged and waved goodbye.
Sam stood still for a moment before asking if he can walk her home. Erin, being welcoming to the idea of making friends, accepts, and they walk to her farm together. Before they even left town, they were joking around with each other. Shane was on his way back to Marnie's when he heard them together. He just shook his head and continued walking home.
It was a quarter until nine pm when Erin and Sam reached her farm.
"Thank you for walking me home, as well as the advice. I'll try to listen, but I am a bit stubborn about this situation," Erin admits, sighing.
Sam laughs in response. "Trust me, I understand, I have tried to talk to him a lot, but I continue to fail. Maybe you'll have more luck. Anyway, goodnight, Farmer!"
"Goodnight, Sam," Erin states before walking inside. They both wave to each other and Erin shuts the door, getting ready for bed. When she's finished, she lies down on the softer-than-expected bed and gets some rest, wondering about what tomorrow will bring.