A Broken Story

2.1 Destiny, maybe?

That night has left a big impression on Jack and spurred on new resolve in him to better himself but you don't just become a better person overnight. Slowly, his apartment started to look less like a dumpster and more like something that can actually be lived in and that man in the mirror started to not look so pathetic.

He has taken a particular liking to running lately, the park turned into a favorite to do it. The early hours of the weekend mornings had been a normal sight to him now with his trainers on and ear buds in his ears. But that morning he decided to take a detour and started running down the boardwalk, running pass some food vendors setting up shop and the always welcome sight of pets running along with their owners before finally stopping at a bench overlooking the beach.

Catching his breath and looking at his sports watch, "5 kilometers in 30, not bad." Letting down his arm and turned his focus to the beach. There's still a pang of sadness when he's looking over the beach, the memories he made with Clare still clung on to his mind. But the sand, the tides, and the sea breeze were still a nice sight.

While there were some people on the beach and on the boardwalk, they were mostly just minding their own business and melded into the background for him but there was one person that stood out, someone who was picking trash along the beach. The short brown hair while wearing the jacket and backpack combo, he couldn't have mistaken her for anyone else. Andy decided to approach, picking up a can of soda on his way, "Do you need help?" He asked, "Seems like you missed some."

She let out a long breath, "Look, I don't need anyone commentating over when I'm trying to save the planet while you..." She finally stood straight and pointed the trash picker at the man talking to her, "Andy?" She said in disbelief, slightly lowering her trash picker.

"Thought it was you." He said with a smile, "Nice seeing you again, Jenna."

"I didn't think I'd ever see you again." She realized that she was still threatening him with the picker and lowered it down, "Oh, sorry about that."

"Well, Haverton isn't exactly a big city." His smile grew a bit wider, "It's good to see you again, how have you been?"

"It's good to see you too, I've been... okay. My friend let me stay in her apartment as long as I help her a bit with rent." She put her picker away and brought up the trash bag in her other hand up to Andy, "Mind putting that can here?"

He dropped the can in the bag, "That's good to hear. So, any reason you're picking up trash on a Saturday morning?"

"Just doing my part to save the earth before my morning shift at the restaurant starts."

"So, you got the job there? That's awesome."

She let out a small giggle, "Yeah, real highlight of my life. It's not glamorous work but it pays the bills." She tied up the trash bag, "Hey, my shift's about to start but it ends at two; do you want to hang out later?"

Andy's face lit up for a moment, "Yeah, sounds great. But I should probably change out of these sweaty workout clothes. Meet you at the restaurant when you're done?"

"Yeah, sounds good. I need to throw this out and open up shop anyway." She slung the trash bag over her shoulder, "I'll see you later."

"Later." Andy wasted no time in running back to his apartment, excited where this moment would lead him next.