Cheer Up!

The next day was the start of fall. I spent the whole day getting my fall crops planted and watered. The following day, after a quick watering of my field and checking on my chickens, I headed out to the pier to do some fishing, where I ran into Pascal.

“Hey there, missy!” he called out, fiddling with his pipe. “Winds have finally calmed down, so I’m making ferry trips to Toucan Island now.” He eyed my fishing pole and continued. “Good fishing to be had there. Mahi mahi, manta rays, and all other sorts of fish.”

I was enthused at the idea of such promising waters, so I boarded up on the next ferry, which was leaving in 15 minutes. I briefly considered the fact that I was leaving the island without telling Luke, but it wasn’t like it was a long trip. I would be back that evening, so it should be fine.

As the boat bobbed over the seas, I encountered another person on the deck. She was tall, with long red hair and exotic features. She wore dancer’s garb, and although she looked pretty unfriendly, I approached her nonetheless and introduced myself.

“Hi, I’m the new farmer on the island, Angela, and- “

She cut me off abruptly. “I know who you are,” she said rather icily, and I was taken aback. What had I done to this girl? I didn’t even know her. As the ferry docked, I discreetly inquired with Pascal as to her identity.

“That’s Selena. She hails from Toucan Island, but she’s been making the trip back and forth for some years now. Not as much lately, though. Not since last year.” I mused this information, still clueless as to why she was so rude to me. Perhaps she just didn’t like people. I then disembarked and set out to explore the island for the best fishing spot.

In my explorations, I found some pineapples growing in the wild, as well as all sorts of neat things washed up on the beach, including some coral and a black pearl. Coming to the island was turning out to be a very profitable idea! I finally ended up on a small dock overlooking a peaceful lagoon, and I sat down and started fishing. True to Pascal’s word, the waters were brimming with fish for the catching. I caught 7 mahi mahi before the sun started to set. I went ahead and finished up, getting ready to take the ferry home. Pascal had told me that it left at sunset, so I wanted to get there ahead of time so as not to be left behind.

I waited on the dock as the sun dipped below the horizon, but the boat never came. It became dark outside, the only light illuminating the beach coming from the tiki torches lit along the coast. I started to become worried, and when I spotted a middle aged woman hauling up a crab net some distance down the shore, I hurried over to her.

“Ferry boat? It’s already come and gone!” she replied, and my heart filled with confusion and worry. Pascal had said at sunset, and I was waiting long before sunset…did I misunderstand him? And how would I get home?

“Does the ferry boat ever dock somewhere else on the island?” I asked the woman, who had told me her name was Sue.

She shook her head. “No, just there on that dock. I don’t think he’ll be coming back…” She must have seen the panic in my eyes, because she spoke up comfortingly. “My husband Samson and I own the Pineapple Inn. We’ll put you up for the night.” I accepted gratefully, and as soon as we got inside, I inquired about a phone. They told me that they didn’t have one, and my heart sank.

“My…my husband Luke will be so worried,” I sighed.

I was startled to see both Sue and Samson freeze and then turn and look at me with curious eyes. I assumed that they were just surprised that someone as young as me was married, until Sue piped up.

“Did you say Luke? You’re married to Luke?”

“Yes…we got married about a week ago…” I said apprehensively, wondering why this was so interesting to these people.

Sue and Samson looked at each other, then Samson clucked his tongue and shook his head. “Oy, mama, I wonder if our little Selena had something to do with the ferry leaving unexpectedly early today?”

“Ay, papa, I was worrying the same thing.” I looked back and forth between the two of them, dying to be clued in on whatever they were talking about. Sue turned to me. “Did you meet our daughter Selena on the boat ride over today?”

I nodded. “Well, sort of…she was kind of rude to me, to be honest, and didn’t even give me her name. The ship captain told me who she was later.”

Sue sighed. “That sounds about right…anyway, well, I don’t know how to put this…but Selena and Luke were boyfriend and girlfriend for about 3 years.” My heart felt heavy at this revelation, which I admonished myself for. That was in the past…but still, it gnawed at me for some reason. I hadn’t even known Luke for two full seasons, and now there was this girl who had dated him for six times that amount of time.

Samson spoke up. “Our Selena is quite a temperamental girl - great for her dancing, not so great for people that have to deal with her. I know both mama and I have gotten into terrible arguments with her. She’s just one of those who likes to argue, it seems.”

Sue nodded. “Well, Luke, that dear boy, as I’m sure you know, is a pretty easy going fellow. It was fine when they were younger, but as they became adults, her temper got even more fiery, and it’s against his very nature to wallow in strife like Selena does. So, he finally told her it was over.” Sue sighed as she folded some towels. “I don’t think Selena ever got over him, though. They broke up about a year ago, and she’s been sulking and hiding out here since then. She just started going back to your island two days ago.”

My heart filled with anguish. Great. This was my worst nightmare. My husband of 5 days had an ex-girlfriend who was apparently still in love with him and vindictive enough to pull strings so that I was stranded on an island overnight with no way to contact him. Wonderful. My mind roiled with what Selena, who was surely in Waffle Town right now, was doing or was planning to do. My mouth went dry and I swallowed hard when I remembered how she had looked in her dancer’s garb - sensual, feminine, and seductive - and then I glanced down at my own less feminine figure.

I ate the dinner they shared with me in a daze, my thoughts still consumed with worry. I slept fitfully, awakening several times and gazing out the window, longing for the sun to rise. When it finally did, I dressed hurriedly, thanked Samson and Sue copiously for their generosity, and went out to the dock to await the ferry.

It didn’t arrive until 9 am, and I fished halfheartedly to pass the time. As soon as Pascal lowered the wooden ramp, I scurried over it. He beamed at me. “Well, did you enjoy your stay on the island?”

I gave a little laugh. “Well, it was certainly unexpected…Pascal, why did you leave early? I was at the dock before sunset, but you had already left.”

He stared at me, uncomprehending. “Miss Selena told me that you were staying overnight, and that you said to go on ahead. Since you two would have been the only riders, I went ahead."

I shook my head. "I didn't want to stay...she must have gotten," I hesitated, "mixed up." Pascal apologized profusely, but I waved it aside, since it wasn't his fault. He quickly steered the ship for home, and I started to feel a little better as I saw the coast come up on the horizon.

I disembarked as quickly as I could, then rushed for home. I tumbled through the door, and a pitiful sight awaited me there. Luke was at the table, slumped forward, his head in his hands. As I came in, he looked up, his cheerful face uncharacteristically serious with worry. It dissipated into relief, and he jumped up as I stumbled forward, falling into his arms.

"What happened? I was so worried!" he breathed into my hair. "You never came home, and I looked everywhere; I called the Mayor, I called the Sundae Inn, but no one knew where you were. Pops and Bo looked in the forest, and Owen even went down in the mine and looked for you." He squeezed me tighter. "Where were you?"

"I rode the ferry to Toucan Island," I felt his body stiffen up at those two words. "I got stranded there, because someone told Pascal I was staying, and he left with the ferry early."

He gave a dark laugh, something I had never heard from him before. "Let me guess who that someone was. Selena?"

I looked up at him, nodding. He cursed under his breath, and I spoke. "Her parents put me up for the night and told me everything. About how you guys used to go out, but you broke it off and she never got over you."

He took a deep breath. "I knew something was wrong because when I was running around looking for you, I ran into her. She was all purring like a damn cat, and suddenly way too friendly." I shivered a little. Just like I had expected her to do.

"And what did you do?" I asked, a little afraid of the answer.

"I blew her ass off! I told her that I didn't have time to argue with her, my wife was missing! Of course, she got that old familiar mean ass look on her face, but I was already half gone." He inhaled sharply. "Damn, I always knew she was a crazy bitch! What the fuck?"

Still holding onto me, he moved over the the phone to tell everyone I was all right. His first call went to his dad. "Hey Pops, I found her...Stranded on Toucan Island." He gave a low laugh. "Yeah, how did you guess?" When he got off the phone, he muttered, "Even Pops knows how crazy Selena is...when I mentioned Toucan Island, his first thought was that she was involved." He proceeded to call the Mayor, Owen, and Sundae Inn. When he was done, we went and laid down on the bed together for a while, both just feeling relieved to be back together.

After a while though, he had to go to work. They had a big project at Brownie Ranch, and he needed to help his dad, or otherwise he would have just stayed home all day with me. He promised to return as soon as he could. I set to work on my farm, and a couple of hours passed. I guessed that Luke might be coming home for lunch soon, so I turned to go back in the house. As I did, I spotted Selena coming up the path from town, and I winced. Part of me wanted to tell her off for everything she had done, but a bigger part of me hated conflict. I hurried for the house and tried to get in before she could reach me, but those long dancer's legs were too swift for me.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't 'Mrs. Luke.'" She gave a dark laugh, and I shivered a little. "Don't go fooling yourself. Everyone in this town knows that Luke and I are meant to be together. You're just a fling; a little rebound thing to make himself feel better until he finally reconciles with me." I just stared up at her in horror. Why was she saying such awful things? I tried to convince myself that she was wrong, but her exotic almond shaped eyes bored into my brain, making me believe her. I could feel tears welling up in my eyes, and she laughed again. "Lovely! That's it, cry me a river, you ugly little thing. Go ahead and give up now while you still have some dignity left. Because I won't rest until he's mine again."

I struggled to speak. "Luke...loves me," I insisted, though my voice sounded weak and unsure.

"Oh, you believe that just because he tells you? That idiot would tell anyone that he loved them, as long as they were making him come." I flinched at her words, which she seemed to enjoy. "Oh yes, did you believe that you were his first? No, my dear, that honor belongs to me. His first...and his last. Don't you forget that." I stood frozen in place as she turned and departed, her hips swaying from side to side triumphantly, but I was shaken to reality all of the sudden, and I bounded down the path after her.

"Hey! Hey!" I shouted at her until she finally turned around. She had a slightly bemused look on her face, but she waited for me to speak. "You...you're the one who should give up now. You're making a fool of yourself, you know. Luke doesn't care about you anymore."

Selena laughed. "Oh please. He will always care for me. Much more than he could ever care for you, you ugly little thing. I mean, look. You're supposedly married, but where is your wedding ring?" I looked down at my hands in instinct, but of course there was no ring there. "That's right, no ring. It's because he knows you're just temporary. Now, the wedding ring he buys for me will be just glorious..."

Indignation broiled up in me. "He doesn't like you any more!" I remembered something he had said, and blurted it out as well. "He said you're a crazy bitch!"

Hatred flared up in Selena's eyes, and before I could react, her hand had made contact with my face, hard. I reeled for a moment, in shock from the pain of the unexpected slap. I lost my balance and tumbled backwards into the dirt. My hand flew up to my cheek, and I could feel wetness there. I drew my hand away and stared at the blood on my fingertips. I glanced up at Selena, who was seething at me, and noted the many rings on her fingers, one of which must have cut my cheek.

"Don't you ever fucking call me crazy!" she hissed, her eyes wild with anger. I scooted away a little in the grass, and tried to stand. As I did, I saw Luke walking down the path with a concerned look on his face. When he saw me on the ground, he broke out into a run.

"What the hell is going on?" he yelled as he charged forward. Selena tried to play innocent, but Luke saw the scrape on my cheek as well as the redness starting to spread there.

"She...she slapped me," I whispered as he helped me to my feet, tears forming in my eyes once again. Luke wrapped his arms around me, and murmured comforting things to me. When he spoke again, his voice was more audible, and it was directed to Serena. He did not look at her as he spoke in a colder tone that I had ever heard him speak.

"Selena...any feelings I had left for you as a friend are now totally gone. You've so crossed the line. I don't wanna ever see your face again. Do you hear me? Never again." I could see her as she recoiled at his words, then turned down the path and fled.

Luke took me to the clinic and had them check out the scrape on my face just in case, and then we went home. Once the door was closed behind us, I burst out into tears. Luke came forward. "Oh, honey, it's okay. C'mere." He wrapped his arms around me, and I told him everything Selena had said to me. He sighed heavily.

"She's so wrong," he said. "We were just kids...and besides, she didn't even seem to like me all that much back then! It's amazing that she's trying to act like she cares so much now, because all she was ever doing was trying to change me. Always telling me to calm down and shut up, and acting irritated at every little thing I did. Honestly, I did us both a favor when I broke up with her. She doesn't want to me with a guy like me, and I definitely don't want to be with a mean girl like her." We sat down on the bed, and he sighed again. "And about the other stuff; don't worry about any of that. It's totally in the past."

I fidgeted a little, playing with my hands. "So...did you...did you really...?"

He rolled his eyes, getting my meaning. "Unfortunately." I made a little grimace, and he hastened to continue. "But, but, it wasn't anything like this! It didn't even happen all that much, and when it did, it was mostly just her yelling at me for doing everything wrong. She called me 'you idiot' way more than she ever called me by my name." He looked at me, his golden eyes getting slightly serious. "You know, that's one of the, like, million things I love about you, Angela. You always treat me so good. Everyone else on this island, it's always 'dumb ol' Luke' this and 'stupid Luke' that. 'Don't let Luke play with us, he'll mess everything up!' It's lame as hell to be treated like the village idiot all the time. But you, you never treat me like I'm dumb."

I spoke up softly. "Well, you're not dumb...I think everyone mistakes your enthusiasm and cheerfulness for goofiness."

He grinned. "Yeah, I guess that's it. I don't hate anybody for it, I just wish that for once they would give me a chance. That's what's so awesome about you...you were new to the island, and you just got to know me for me, and not as 'dumb Luke.'" He touched my hand, stroking it lightly, and I looked down on the ringless finger, wincing a little when I remembered Selena's words. As if he read my mind, he piped up. "Oh yeah, and about wedding rings...I was gonna surprise you with that for your birthday in winter, but you know what? We can go tomorrow and have Mira make us some." He grabbed my hand and looked into my eyes. "You know that I don't think you're temporary, right? Today, tomorrow, ten years from now, I'm still gonna love you. Even 100 years from now!" The earnest look on his face melted my heart, and I gave him a grateful smile, leaning in for a kiss.