Ellie
Ellie groaned when Rufus started crowing right outside her window. She rolled over just enough to yell at him, half-laughing and half-exasperated.
“Rufus… why are you such a butthole? Go harass your wives!”
Rufus crowed again, louder this time, like he owned the place.
She dragged herself out of bed while the coffee brewed, pulling on her jeans and boots while she was still half-asleep. The rich scent of coffee filled the kitchen, finally waking her up enough to face the day. Ellie clicked her tongue as she grabbed a snack from the cupboard. “Coffee and a MoonPie, breakfast of champions,” she sighed.
By the time she stepped outside, the sun was already filtering through the oak trees. It was only 8:00 a.m., but the air was already heavy, and she knew it was only getting hotter.
She walked through the barnyard, scattering chicken feed as she went. Rufus watched her, standing guard over his girls while they clucked and scratched at their breakfast of cracked corn and whatever insects they could spot. As she gathered the eggs, she made a mental note: put chicken feed on the list.
She turned to look at the hens, shaking her head. “I thought y’all were chickens, not pigs!”
Evidently, Rufus took offense. Just as she turned to leave, the rooster came after her. Ellie whirled around, grabbing a rake from the corner of the barn and brandishing it like a noble knight ready to strike. Rufus came to a dead stop, staring at her like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar.
“Rufus… we’re gonna have rooster dumplings if you don’t get your heart right!”
She moved on to the rest of her chores, feeding the horses and brushing them down. Looking at the state of the floor, she muttered, “Have you ever considered hiring a maid, guys?” She added cleaning stalls to her ever-growing list and let the horses out into the pasture.
The two little donkeys, Eddie and Hazel, followed her every step. They nudged her from behind and nipped at her shirt until she finally gave in, pulling out two big apple slices.
“Here, you little beggars,” she teased, tussling their manes. Hazel, big-bellied and soon to foal, waddled away contentedly with her treat.
Next, she checked on the herd of Black Angus cows—the real money-makers for the farm. She leaned on the fence, watching the calves run and play. Their mothers nudged them away when they got too rough or called out when they wandered too far. Nearby, young birds chirped for breakfast in their nest while their mother tirelessly flitted back and forth, carrying seeds and insects to her hungry chicks.
In the distance, Mr. Thomas worked his field on an old John Deere, setting out rows for a new planting and trying to beat the noon sun. The tree swing squeaked softly in the breeze, sparking a memory of when she was six years old. She could almost feel her dad pushing her in that swing while her mom sat on the porch painting a portrait of them—a birthday present that still hung proudly above the fireplace.
She smiled softly. She loved this place.
Back in the barn, she milked the Jersey cow while Rusty, the big yellow barn cat, purred and wove circles around her feet. Ellie carried the milk inside, setting the jug carefully in the fridge. Sliding into a chair at the kitchen table, she called in her order to Mr. Barton at the feed store. It was the usual order, with an extra bag of chicken feed added to the tab until next week. He promised it would be stacked on the loading platform waiting for her.
Ellie sighed, thinking about her college friends on summer break. They were freshly graduated and ready to start their city lives, yet here she was on the farm. She was living the dream her parents had instilled in her, tending the land and making sure everything thrived.
The deal with her dad had been simple: she had one year to prove she could make it work. One year to keep the farm alive and show she could manage it—maybe even make it better. She thought about the help-wanted ad she’d posted on the feed store corkboard. She couldn’t do it alone; she needed help.
One year. That was all she had to prove she belonged here.
