Author's Note: Just a little story I wrote because Taro and the villagers really tick me off at the crop festival things when I don't come in first place. They get all disappointed and mad, and I'm always like "What's wrong with second place?" XD Anyways, enjoy, and as always, let me know what you think!

Chapter 1

Chelsea carried her basket of freshly picked produce into her house and set it down on her table, wiping the sweat from her forehead. It wasn't easy trying to run the whole ranch by herself, especially in the heat. But it had to be done. The island depended upon her ranch's success. She was the primary source of income for the whole island…

Talk about pressure to succeed.

She dumped her vegetables out onto her table and shifted through them, carefully inspecting each one. It was the morning of the Spring Crop Competition, and she hadto win this time. Taro, who considered himself the leader of the island (despite the fact that he did nothing…) would start lecturing her in the middle of everyone again if she didn't. That's what he had done the past 3 times she'd lost…

Well, came second. She personally didn't consider second place bad. But Taro, he wanted perfection. He had to have the satisfaction of knowing his island was the best.

Chelsea sighed and put her head down on her table.

Whoever said farm life was simple…

She glanced at the clock. It was almost ten. Almost time for the judging to start. She picked up the largest potato of the bunch and placed it in her rucksack. The rest she put back in the basket and dumped in the shipping bin on her way to the festival in the meadow.

Taro was waiting for her just outside her ranch. "Where's your crop? Don't tell me you're not entering!"

She forced herself to give him a smile, despite how badly she wanted to tell him to back off for once. "Relax, I've got it right here. See?" She pulled the potato out of her rucksack.

He nodded. "Alright. It's not too bad. Maybe we have a chance this time."

"Yeah, I hope so." She took a breath and walked with him to the meadow.

She wasn't sure if she could take not winning again…

Because she wasn't sure if Taro could take her not winning again.

x-x-x

The award for best crop was handed to…

Another island.

Chelsea took her second place ribbon and chanced a glance at Taro, who of course wasn't smiling.

"Another disappointment." He said, walking over to her.

"I came second again! Another ribbon, see?" She gave him a smile, hoping it would diffuse the situation a little. It didn't. If anything he looked even more ticked. She glanced down at her potato. "Second place isn't bad!"

"It is when there's only four of you competing!"

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Normally she would just say "Yes sir, sorry sir, I'll try to do better next time" and end the conversation.

But this time she didn't. She was tired of getting told what a disappointment she was.

She put a hand on her hip. "What's so bad about coming second? I mean, I know it's not winning, but I tried my best."

"That's the problem! You always get second, you're always fine with it, and you always say that you'll try harder next time! But you don't! You're always too busy running around with that dang boyfriend of yours!" He glanced around, hoping Vaughn was there so he could give him a good talking too as well.

"I only get to see him twice a week!"

Taro pounded his stick on the ground. "That's no excuse to slack off twice a week! Dang it, Chelsea! You're just so…lazy and selfish!"

She almost dropped her potato. "Whoa, I know I'm not the world's greatest farmer, but that does not make me lazy! And wanting to hang out with Vaughn doesn't make me selfish! I run around this island from six in the morning until six at night running a whole ranch by myself and still trying to help you guys! I work harder than anyone else on this island!"

This caused several of the islanders to turn around and glare at her.

"Excuse me? I work just as hard at fishing as you do at farming!" Denny said, frowning. A few people nodded in agreement.

"And if it wasn't for us, none of your mediocre crops would even get shipped!" Natalie added.

"Don't forget about my mining company!" Regis added, twirling his mustache. "You have yet to give me any gem of substantial quality! Why, you're lucky I pay you at all!"

Chelsea blinked. She couldn't believe everyone was turning on her like this! "Well I'm not exactly rolling in my dough! Everything I make gets spent on improving this island! Who paid for all of the roads? Or earned this island enough of an income to expand all of your houses? ME!"

Denny crossed his arms. "Yeah, well….All you did was supply some money. Who actually built all those things? Gannon did!"

Everybody nodded in agreement, patting Gannon on the back. He grinned as sheepishly someone his size could.

"Hey, let's not forget that she made 300 dollars all by herself…shipping flowers!" Regis said with a sneer.

Lanna flipped her blonde hair. "Oh please! Anyone can do that!"

"Yeah, and sprinkle some water on some weeds!" Natalie added, laughing.

"Oh, let's not forget chopping a few twigs!"

"And pulling some seaweed off of a rock?"

Chelsea's face turned bright red as all of her neighbors and so called friends started chiming in, laughing about how mediocre and easy her work was. She bit her bottom lip to keep herself from crying and slipped out of the crowd, heading back to her ranch.

She opened the door to her ranch house and sighed, glancing around. The past three years she'd lived in this run down place, and hadn't complained. She hadn't even been able to upgrade it, because all of her money got spent on everyone else.

But she was just so selfish like that.

A tear actually did escape her eye this time and she took off her rucksack, throwing it on her bed. Nobody appreciated all the effort she'd put in these past few years trying to make the island nice for everybody. All the days she'd spend running errands and collecting ingredients for Pierre and helping Elliot carry crates to the docks because he was too weak to carry them himself.

She took out each piece of her farming equipment and placed it on the floor, then took out a pad of paper and a pencil. She walked over to her table and scribbled a short note on it, then placed it on top of the farming equipment.

She glanced out the window. Everyone was probably still having fun at the festival, so now would be the perfect time to slip away…

Because she wasn't going to stay and spend any more time working her life away for people who couldn't appreciate her.

Sunny Island would have to find itself a new rancher.

x-x-x
^_^ So yep. Review and let me know if it's worth continuing or not!