Chapter 10

The next day, Popuri and Karen wakes up late after a night of celebrations. They both freshen up a bit before they head out to take a walk around the island. The island has many different things to do according to the brochure. Both of them are very hungry, so they ended up eating at Luke’s Diner for brunch. As they eat, Popuri and Karen start to debate weather Luke is a better cook than Doug and Ann.

After they finish eating, Popuri and Karen decide to take a random walk around the island. They meet many of the island inhabitants including Vaughn and his wife Sabrina. They also meet plenty of other tourists who has traveled from far away to experience island life.

As they continue to explore the island, Popuri’s pink hair catches Mark’s eye. He is making his daily deliveries across the island, but he decides to put that aside to say hello. “Hey Poppy, how are you today?” called Mark trying to get her attention.

Popuri looks to Mark’s direction and smiles for him, “hey Mark! How’s the farm doing today?”

“It’s doing great,” answered Mark. He then notices Karen and asks, “so, who’s your friend?”

“This is Karen, my sister-in-law.”

“Your sister-in-law? I didn’t know you were married. Is that why you came to the island? For your Honeymoon?”

Popuri blushes a bit as she answers, “no, Karen is married to my brother. I just came to Sunny Island to see my chickens.”

“I see.” Mark then turns to Karen and shakes her hand, “it’s nice to meet you.”

“The pleasure is all mine. I can really tell why Popuri never mentioned meeting someone as cute as you,” said Karen.

Popuri nudges Karen a bit. Mark laughs cheerfully, then says, “hey, I got an idea. Since we are all friends now, how about I invite you two to our Winter Snow Festival tomorrow?”

“Snow Festival?” asked Popuri and Karen.

“The Snow Festival is an island tradition. We celebrate it by working together to make the biggest snowman we can build. After that, we light a bonfire so we can warm up and dance. The islanders has elected me to take charge of the festival this year, so a ton of people are going to be there. Will you two join us?”

“Of course, it sounds like a lot of fun,” cheered Popuri.

“Good! It starts tomorrow at noon. I look forward to seeing you two at the meadow by then.”

Popuri nods. Mark then says his goodbyes so he can finish his deliveries for the day. Mark and Popuri wave goodbye at one another as Mark walks away. Once he is out of sight, Karen nudges Popuri and asks, “okay, spill! Who is that guy?”

“He’s Mark, he owns the farm where my chickens are staying at,” answered Popuri.

“I know, but I’m trying to figure out why didn’t you mention him sooner. He’s way too cute! That blonde hair and green eyes are way too sexy,” said Karen.

Popuri nudges Karen back asking, “what are you saying? Did you forget that you are a married woman?”

“Oh, I am not talking for myself. I don’t see a ring on his finger, and you just happen to be single. Not to mention that Mark is calling you by a pet name, what’s up with that?” explained Karen giving Popuri an accusing look.

Popuri’s face turns red with embarrassment. She then holds her rosy cheeks as she yells, “Karen! What are you saying? He lives here on the island, I live in Mineral Town. There is no way I can see myself dating him.”

She then looks to the direction where Mark walked off to and continues, “I mean, he is very good looking. He kinds looks a bit like Muffy, I wonder if they are related somehow.”

“Who’s Muffy?” asked Karen.

“Just somebody who lives in Forget-Me-Not Valley. Anyways, we should get going! There’s plenty to do, and I want to try everything the island has to offer.” Popuri grabs Karen’s arm and runs off to some random direction before she brings up another discussion about Mark.

As they continue to explore the island, Karen stops as soon as she sees someone familiar. The young lady has long blonde hair and chocolate eyes with an aqua green dress. Karen’s eyes glow with excitement as she says, “oh my goodness, that’s Lanna Songstress, the famous pop idol!”

“Wow, you’re right! I wonder if she lives here on the island or is she a tourist?” asked Popuri in an excited tone.

“Who cares? Come on, we need to get an autograph! Everyone else in Mineral Town is going to be so jealous when they find out that we met her in person!”

Popuri nods in agreement. As she is about to approach Lanna, a young man named Denny walks up to the pop idol bearing gifts. Popuri stops and grows sad watching Lanna and Denny flirt with each other cheerfully. Denny has many characteristics that remind Popuri of Kai. They are both tall, dark, and handsome young men who wears a purple scarf on their head. They can even pass as brothers. Watching Denny and Lanna together breaks Popuri’s heart as she begins to step back away from them.

“What’s wrong?” asked Karen.

“Nothing. . ,” answered Popuri in a depressed tone. “You know what? Why don’t you get that autograph all by yourself, I just remembered something very important and I have to go. I’ll see you back at the hotel!”

She then turns around and runs off hoping that Karen didn’t notice the tears she was trying desperately to hold back. It has been quite some time since she even thought about Kai. She thought that she was over him already and ready to move on. But seeing Denny and seeing herself in Lanna reminds herself that she isn’t ready to let go of her past.

Once Popuri stops running, she finds herself once again at a beach. This beach may look different than the one in Mineral Town or Forget-Me-Not Valley, but the feelings are all the same to her. No matter what beach she is looking at, she can imagine Kai just drifting in on his boat to take her hand. No matter how many times she tells herself that he is not coming back, the feelings in the back of her mind continues to hold on to that belief. These thoughts always makes her feel abandoned and alone.

There is a large boulder that is half buried into the sand nearby. Popuri isn’t ready to head back to the hotel, so she takes a seat on it so she can stare at the ocean for a while. The air is starting to get cold as the sun is beginning to set, but her mind is too preoccupied to care. She just sits there for hours sighing and watching the waves crash and retreats back to the sea. The beach goes dark, and Popuri continues to sit there wiping away the tears that drip from her eyes. She has no idea if she is crying, or her eyes are irritated from the salty sea air. In the end, it makes no difference to her.

Later that evening, Mark walks into the beach ready to do some night fishing in the ocean. He quickly finds Popuri’s pink hair billowing with the wind as she sits on the boulder. He can’t see her face, but he can tell that she is staring into the ocean sadly. He walks up to Popuri, but she doesn’t even notice him. Her mind has once again drifted off far away looking for something that will never come.

“Are you okay?” asked Mark.

Popuri snaps back to reality and looks back at Mark. She dries whatever tears that are on her cheeks and responds, “nothing’s wrong, I’m fine. I just needed some fresh air, that’s all.”

“Okay then,” answered Mark. He then puts his rucksack on the ground to retrieve his fishing rod. As he is putting it together, he says, “I’m just going to fish here for a bit. If you feel like talking about it, I’ll be right here.”

Popuri nods quietly. A few minutes later, Mark casts his first line out to the ocean giving Popuri plenty of space. They both remain quiet as Mark waits for something good to nibble on his line. Mark catches a few fish within an hour, but nothing impressive. Just the average sized fish good enough to make some tasty sushi. As Mark waits for his next catch, Popuri looks at him for a while. Even though they haven’t said anything to each other for the past hour, she starts to feel a bit more comfortable. He is standing there keeping her company but not pushing her to talk about her problems. Most other men would be pushy and ask her to talk, especially Jack who would bring gifts and asking her out despite her feelings for Kai. Mark is different, he is giving her the space she needs while being there in case she needs him. She appreciates that.

“Hey, can I ask you something?” asked Popuri.

“Sure, go ahead,” answered Mark as he continues to focus on his rod.

“Have you ever met someone named Kai?”

Mark lowers his rod as he thinks about his answer, “Kai. . . Nope, can’t say that I do. The island does get a lot of tourists, especially during the summer. Chances are that he might have stopped by.”

Popuri shakes her head no, then looks to the corner of the beach saying, “if he was ever here, I’m sure he would have set up a café over there.”

Mark looks to where Popuri is pointing at, but sees nothing. At that point, he figures it would be a good time to stop fishing and go back to the farm. But before he does, he wants to talk to Popuri some more. “So this Kai person, is he someone special?”

“He used to be my boyfriend. I loved him very much, but we broke up two summers ago. I thought I was over him, but turns out that I was just lying to myself.”

“What happened, if you don’t mind me asking?”

Popuri sighs before she explains, “a lot. People didn’t trust him because he travels a lot. My brother especially hated him. He opened in my hometown, and he would come by each summer to run his business. He is free as a bird, and I wanted to be like him. He then left town forever leaving me behind. I wanted to go with him, but he told me stay with my family. Beautiful dreams, he said. Goals and paths? I could have given all that up for him. Now I am just sitting here all alone.”

“Is he wrong though?” asked Mark.

Popuri looks up at Mark curiously wondering what he meant. He then looks away while scratching his cheek saying, “don’t get me wrong. I don’t know what happened between you two. But what I can tell is that he was thinking about what’s best for you. It may not be the best way, but I feel that his heart was in the best place. He knows that you have all these dreams and goals, and he didn’t want to take them from you. I personally think that was pretty cool of him. Even though he’s not here with you right now, you still managed to get here to see your chickens. That alone is pretty amazing, and I’m sure he would agree too. Don’t you?”

What Mark said puts a smile on Popuri’s face. She never thought about things that way. She has been so upset about the break-up, that she never took a moment to see Kai’s point of view. How he feels and why he chose to do what he did instead of what his heart wanted. Kai loved her dearly, but he let her go so she can be more than a cook’s wife. Thinking about it that way puts her in a better mood.

“That is my dream,” Popuri remembers Kai saying that night he left. “I want you to stay here with your family and create your own path.” Ever since Kai said those words, Popuri went on a journey of growth to figure out what she wants to do with her life. She never realized that she was on that journey, and she has Kai to thank for it. In a way, Kai has always been with her in this journey.

Mark then extends his hand to Popuri saying, “come on, it’s cold tonight. I’ll walk you back to the hotel if you want.”

Popuri nods, then takes his hand. Her hand feels warm and comforting as it rests in his. He helps her off the boulder, and they walk back to the hotel. The walk is quiet, but refreshing and relaxing. Everything Popuri needs to feel good happened in that moment when their hands touched at the beach. Even after getting dropped off at the hotel, Mark and Popuri don’t say anything to each other. They just wave at each other until Mark heads back to the farm.

As Mark returns to his farm, Popuri stands there at the entrance to the hotel trying to process what just happened. Once he vanishes into the night, Popuri places her hand on her chest. Her heart is beating strong, this only happened when Kai was around. She sighs as she quietly admits to herself that she may be falling for Mark. But even as she does, she tries to remember that Mark and Popuri live very far away from each other. Popuri lives in Mineral Town, Mark lives in a farm in Sunny Island. Even though she knows this, it doesn’t change how she feels about him. She sighs deeply wondering what should she do about her feelings. For now, she returns to her room and falls asleep.

The next day, Popuri and Karen head over to the meadow at about noon. The meadow is completely covered with fresh undisturbed snow, which is perfect for building a snowman. All the island residents are already there waiting for Mark to start the festival. The day is sunny, the temperature is mild, and everyone at the meadow is ready to get the Snow Festival started. Even Popuri and Karen are getting excited to participate.

Mark walks up to the center of the meadow to start his speech. He clears his throat before announcing, “okay, listen up everybody! Today is the Winter Snow Festival, thanks everyone for coming. I know everyone here at Sunny Island knows what we are gong to do today, but this year we have a few guests with us. So I’m going to be explaining what we are going to be doing with them. We are all going to pair up and collect snow. Once you collect enough snow, please roll it to the middle of the meadow so I can use it to make the biggest snowman we can build.

“Once the snowman is built, we’re going back to town to warm up at the bonfire. We’re going to end things with a bonfire dance to celebrate the season of winter. This is not a contest, there is not going to be a prize. Let us all take our time, work together, and have fun. So, show me some of that Sunny Island energy and cheer with me. Are we ready to build this snowman?!”

Everyone at the meadow cheers loud and proud before scattering around to find a partner. Most of the islanders pair up with their family members or lovers to collect snow. Vaughn pairs up with his wife Sabrina. Lanna pairs up with her boyfriend Denny. Popuri asks Karen to help her collect snow for the snowman. Mark stands in the center of the meadow ready to receive the giant snowballs to make the snowman.

As Mark waits for everyone to bring him snow, a young girl named Chelsea approaches him and offers to pair up with him. He kindly declines, but Chelsea grabs his arm and begins to tug at him insisting that they work together. As Mark and Chelsea continue to debate with each other, Popuri hears the commotion between them. She looks back at Mark who is being pestered by Chelsea. She drops the snow she had in her hands as she watches them.

Popuri sighs as she continues to watch Mark and Chelsea. She can clearly tell that Chelsea likes Mark. The smile she is giving him as she tugs his arm in a flirtatious manner trying her best to spend time with him. She can clearly see that Mark isn’t interested in Chelsea. Even so, Popuri can’t help but to be a bit jealous of her. She will only be in the island until the end of winter, while so many other girls will be there with him all year long. She keeps reminding herself that they live too far apart, but she can’t help how she feels.

Karen notices Popuri staring at Mark and Chelsea. Karen can tell that Popuri is keeping her distance, but wants to get close to Mark. She quickly gets an idea to help her sister-in-law out. She bends down to grab a handful of snow. She then forms it into a small snowball and hands it to Popuri. Popuri stares at the ball wondering what is she supposed to do with it. Karen then nudges at Chelsea’s direction and winks. Popuri smirks as soon as she realizes what Karen wants her to do. So she raises the snowball over her head and takes aim at Chelsea and tosses it. But her aim is very bad, and she ends up hitting Mark on his head instead.

Mark looks back wondering who threw the snowball that knocked his hat off. He finds Popuri laughing sheepishly sticking her tongue out. Karen is hiding behind her, completely embarrassed at what Popuri did. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to do that,” said Popuri looking silly.

Mark smirks playfully back at Popuri before he grabs a handful of snow. He then tosses it gently towards Popuri’s direction. She laughs and runs off to the side, forgetting that Karen is behind her. The snow lands on Karen’s face, making a goofy “splat” sound. Everyone at the meadow laughs seeing how silly Karen looks with snow on her face.

“Sorry, I was aiming at someone else,” said Mark between laughs. Even Popuri is laughing hysterically as the snow drips off Karen’s face.

Karen grunts angrily. She then scoops up another handful of snow, and starts packing it as hard as she can. She giggles fiendishly as she takes aim at Mark readying her pitch. Mark cringes nervously as he watches the baseball sized snowball ready to be thrown. As soon as the snowball leaves Karen’s hand, Mark rolls out of the way. She misses Mark, but ends up smacking Chelsea in the forehead instead knocking her into the snow. Karen shrieks, then runs to Chelsea to see if she’s okay. The other islanders also check on her. Everyone lets out a sigh of relief as soon as they see that Chelsea is okay.

“Snowball fight,” shouted Mark.

Before anyone realizes it, the meadow became a battleground. Everyone creates forts or walls to hide behind to throw snowballs at each other. Everyone completely forgets about the snowman, they are having way too much fun. As the rest of the islanders are preoccupied with each other, Popuri and Mark are having their own battle throwing snow at each other playfully. They run and chase each other laughing like small children playing in the snow.

The islanders continue to play for the rest of the afternoon. As the sun begins to set, everyone realizes that most of the snow has been used up and the snowman is still not made. Everyone decides to work together as a unit and collect the remaining snow to finish the snowman. They only had just enough snow to make a normal sized snowman, but everyone is happy with it. It will stay there standing until spring comes to melt it.

Once the night arrives, everyone moves back to town and circle around the bonfire. Everyone warms up while Popuri and Karen hand out hot chocolate. Popuri and Karen feels a bit guilty about starting the snowball fight, but things worked out in the end. Everyone talks about how much fun they had this year at the Snow Festival, and wonders if maybe they should have a friendly snowball fight every year.

Once everyone is nice and toasty, they all get up to end the festival with the bonfire dance. They all line up in a huge circle and dance the night away staying close to the bonfire. Mark and Popuri spend the evening dancing together while Karen mingles with the other islander girls. She became quite popular because of that snowball fight. Everyone laughs as they have a good time until the fire burns out.

The festival ends later that evening, and Mark volunteers to bring Popuri back to the hotel. Even though things got a bit crazy at the Snow Festival, everyone had a good time. Even Mark and Popuri had more fun than they expected. But the festival is over, and they will need to retire for the evening. They both stop in front of the hotel and look at one another for a while.

“Well, here you are. Back at the hotel safe and sound,” said Mark.

“Thank you, I appreciate it. I’m not used to the island just yet, so I might have gotten lost,” answered Popuri trying her best to make small talk.

They both stay quiet for a while. They know that they need to say goodnight, but they don’t want the night to end just yet. They both have something on their mind, but are too nervous to say something. When they try, they just end up cutting each other off and laugh. They know that Popuri needs to return to Mineral Town before spring, but it doesn’t change how they feel about each other.

“So. . . Where’s Karen?” asked Mark.

“She’s with Lanna and the other girls. She really impressed everyone with that pitch,” answered Popuri.

Another moment of silence happens. At some point, Mark takes a deep breath and finds the courage to take Popuri’s hand and say, “listen, I know that you’re leaving the island eventually, but I can’t seem to get you off my mind. I know that this is awkward, but I really like you.”

Popuri blushes a bit as she answers, “I really like you too.”

Mark then dares himself to pull Popuri closer and kiss her. Popuri is quite surprised, but she wraps her arms around him and kisses him back. Her heart is beating hard for the first time in a while. They both know that they live very far away, but neither of them cares at that moment. They have the whole winter to figure out what they are going to do with these feelings.

As soon as they let each other go, Popuri looks up at the hotel and says, “would you like to come up to my room?”

“Are you sure? What about Karen?” asked Mark.

“She’s not coming back tonight, don’t worry about it,” answered Popuri. They then hold hands as they enter the hotel together where they will spend the night. Even though they know that their time together is temporary, both of them want to spend it getting to know each other. Popuri might have come to the island looking for her chickens, but she also ends up finding something just as precious.