[center][h1][color=LightSeaGreen]Josephine Jacobs[/color][/h1][/center] [hr] [center][sub]Location [color=LightSeaGreen]Home, The Western Shore [/color][/sub][/center] [hr] All of this had been a mistake. Josephine continued to repeat this to herself as she scrolled through multiple news articles on her phone, stunned. Sometime between Thursday night and this morning, a local club had been blown to smithereens. Miraculously no one was harmed, but it was astonishing nonetheless. “[i]I must be cursed.[/i]” She thought, selfishly, “[i]This dark cloud follows me anywhere I go... [/i]” She nearly laughed out loud at her own thoughts. “[i]How foolish… thinking I could escape…Ha![/i]” Over the past couple of days, Josephine had continued minimal contact with her friends and family who tried reaching out to her. She still had not spoken to her ex-boyfriend at all. The man had been going through a rollercoaster of emotions, as recorded by his text messages to her. First, he was sweet. Apologizing and begging her to come back, giving her empty promises to be a better person. After his text messages and calls went unanswered, he became nasty. The insults flew as he called her every name in the book, telling her how he hoped that she was dead and that he was better off without her. His voicemails were just as bipolar, but she continued to ice him out, despite not being able to bring herself to simply block his number. Weak, she called herself. She heard her cell phone buzz across the new coffee table, her best friends name lighting up across the screen to indicate a text message. “Get out, get some fresh air. Things will get better, J.” She sighed as she read the message. Zoey was right. She needed to stop sulking by herself and go do something that might actually improve her new life. After a shower, first on the list was to look for a new job; she wouldn’t be able to survive on her savings for long. Downtown was likely to be a mess, but it was also the best option she had to find somewhere that was hiring. [hr] [center][sub]An hour or so later...[/sub][/center] [center][sub]Location [color=LightSeaGreen]What Remains of Club Aether[/color] Interacting With [@CaptainSully][/sub][/center] [hr] After handing in resumes and filling out applications for several open positions around town, Josephine decided to take a walk towards where Club Aether had once stood. Like many others who were gathering in the area, she was curious to see what was going on. Not to mention there was a very small, hole-in-the-wall type of coffee shop not too far from the rubble. Standing in line for her coffee, she stared out the window at the mess that use to be the club. It was unlike anything she had ever seen, which was clearly the same for many others who were rubbernecking at the sight of it. The small coffee shop was packed with watchers, and the place was clearly understaffed for the influx of people. Just as she was about to be called up to the cashier, she noticed a man standing in front of the ruins. She stared at him for a brief moment, suddenly realizing that he was the man the articles had been posting pictures of; The Owner of Club Aether, Mr. Sullivan. Her heart sunk for him as he stood there, motionless with an aimless look on his face that she recognized all too well. “Next!” “[color=LightSeaGreen]Two medium caramel macchiatos, please.[/color]” Once her two coffee’s were done, Josephine took them and crossed the street to approach the owner of Club Aether, who was just hanging up the phone and turning away from what remained of his business. “[color=LightSeaGreen]Hi, sir, uh…..[/color]” “[i]What the hell am I doing?[/i]” She began second guessing herself as she opened her mouth to get his attention. Too late to turn back now. “[color=LightSeaGreen]It just… it looked like you could use this...[/color]” She reached out her hand to give him the macchiato, “[color=LightSeaGreen]It’s a caramel macchiato… they are usually pretty strong, it’s espresso… but...[/color]” She gestured towards Club Aether and frowned, hoping she was expressing her sympathy correctly. She had never been very good at social interaction, but she certainly was empathetic towards this man. They both had to start over, in one way or another. “[color=LightSeaGreen]Coffee usually makes me feel a little better, so… [/color]” She gave him a sheepish smile. “[i]I probably look like an insane person trying to drug him right now… Idiot...[/i]” She started mentally preparing herself for utter rejection.