Spring 3rd
When John woke up, the world outside his window was pitch black, and the sound of rain was pattering against the glass. He yawned, throwing on his clothes with his eyes still half-closed.
He stepped onto the porch and saw just how dark the sky was. Raindrops smashed against the ground, splashing up countless tiny sprays of water. The splatter dampened the cuffs of John's pants as he stood beneath the eaves.
The moist, vaporous air rushed toward him, making the temperature feel several degrees colder instantly.
The spring rain was like silk, silently moisturizing all living things.
Since it was raining, he was finally spared the chore of watering crops. John decided to stick to his routine and head out the north exit to forage first.
His luck seemed pretty good today; he stumbled upon a Wild Horseradish almost immediately. (Although the TV Fortune Teller had predicted bad luck again, he decided to stop checking it. It didn't seem very accurate or useful anyway.)
Because of the rain, the town was quiet. He didn't run into many villagers along the way.
John grumbled internally: The NPCs all know to stay inside and minimize activity on rainy days, so why am I out here running around? This is totally unfair.
Moreover, there were no umbrellas or rain gear in this game. He didn't even know if his character could catch a cold or get sick. That would be ridiculous.
While passing the Community Center, he spotted a Daffodil.
A Daffodil was a solid find; it was a universally liked gift for most of the villagers in Pelican Town, perfect for building friendships.
He marched to Pierre's General Store to buy more seeds.
Crap! He forgot Pierre is closed on Wednesdays! He should have stocked up yesterday.
Now his only option was JojaMart.
Absolutely not. For the sake of justice and fairness in this video game world, he had to boycott Joja. He firmly refused to give them a single gold piece. He wanted to personally witness the demise of the Joja Corporation.
Defeated on the shopping front, he headed to the Museum and handed the artifact he found yesterday to Gunther, the curator.
Stepping back out into the rain, he saw Penny sheltering under the library eaves.
Poor girl, he thought. He walked over to strike up a conversation. "Hello. I'm the new farmer, John. Are you here to read?"
"Hello, my name is Penny," she replied gently. "Yes, I love reading. Reading allows me to catch my breath from the busyness of life."
"Haha, 'A heart filled with poetry brings natural grace.' That quote describes you perfectly."
Penny blushed. "You flatter me."
"I have work to do. Let's talk another time."
"Mhm." Penny watched him go, already starting to look forward to meeting this enthusiastic young man again.
John arrived at the Beach and cast his line.
After only two casts, he saw bubbles gurgling up on the water's surface to his left. Naturally, he couldn't miss such a golden opportunity. He quickly reeled in his line and sprinted over.
Fish bite incredibly fast in bubble spots.
He successfully pulled up two Sea Jellies. This item seemed quite valuable.
John checked his backpack—it was nearly full. He prepared to head into Willy's Fish Shop to sell his catch, but just as his hand reached for the door, the clock struck 5:00 PM. Willy had locked up.
What now?
Go home, of course. If he kept fishing and caught a new species, he'd have to trash items to make room. It wasn't worth the hassle.
He rushed home in a mild panic, dumped his inventory into the chest, and then immediately sprinted toward the Sewers in the forest to check for Spring Onions.
Holy moly, running back and forth across the map like that had him sweating buckets.
Finally, just before the sky went completely dark, he managed to gather several Spring Onions.
Returning to the farm, he glanced at his energy bar. It was still more than half full. He decided to chop some wood.
He needed 300 pieces of wood to repair the bridge at the Beach tomorrow, which would unlock the tidal pool area for foraging.
He selected a few trees near the farm entrance that were blocking his view.
As tree after tree crashed to the ground, his energy bar gradually depleted.
When the clock hit midnight, overwhelming sleepiness struck. John stumbled into the house, collapsed into bed, and pulled the covers over his head.
During the night, the recipe for the Furnace was unlocked.