A little. At first.

Jess awoke remarkably refreshed considering the terrible dreams she'd had. Stretching, the beautiful Texan hummed happily as the sun tickled her nose. She'd been able to sleep in after getting half the day off today because... Jess mood immediately dipped as she realized that it hadn't been a dream. She'd really been hit with--

"Ugh!" Not goin' there. "Gooood mornin', sunshine. Let's put all that behind us an' get ready for work!"

Talking to herself wasn't necessarily a sign of great mental stability, but funnily enough, it did make Jess feel better. Yesterday had ended terribly, but today had begun great, and Jess would make damn-- make absolutely sure it would continue great. She would laze around a little longer, get up eventually, take a shower and then spend an hour or so at the park and get breakfast at that cute little bistro there before heading to the beach in time for her shift.

It was a good plan; the lazing went well, the shower felt great, and Jess couldn't find any signs of redness or whatever she'd expected when she looked into the mirror. Apparently, there were no lasting effects, not even any of the numbness she'd felt yesterday. Giving herself a little smile in the mirror, Jess put on a little light makeup, got dressed in her work uniform and headed out.

It was a really nice day, barely a cloud in the sky, birds were singing, and the bagel Jess had bought for breakfast tasted great. For some reason, she'd had a hankering for chicken today, even though Jess normally went for a vegetarian option in the morning. She normally also didn't devour it with as much gusto as she did - not that she forgot her manners or anything, but the southern belle simply couldn't resist the taste and ate rather faster than usual.

Maybe I should go for chicken more often, Jess mused as she leaned back on the bench she was sitting on and closed her eyes, feeling the sun on her face.

She could hear children playing, couples flirting, even a few critters in the shrubs lining the path, and then, a voice she knew.

"Jess? What are you doing here? Don't you have a shift today?"

Opening her eyes, Jess saw a pale redhead in blue scrubs and a lanyard standing in front of the bench with a quizzical look on her face.

"Oh, hiya, Charlie," Jess replied with a happy smile as she got up from the bench and pulled Charlie into a hug; she hadn't seen the nurse in ages due to their conflicting schedules. That she ran into her by chance was surely a sign that this was going to be a good day. "Ah got the mornin' free, is all."

"Nice! Same here - I was actually on my way to the café you work at, you know, visit you and get some breakfast." The two friends separated and grinned at each other. "I have a late shift today, and we haven't talked in forever!"

"Y'all can say that again, sugar... it's been, what, three months? C'mon, let's talk on the way, Ah don't want to keep y'all away from breakfast." As they began walking towards the beach, Jess found her ears twitching at the sound of the small animals rustling through the shrubs to the left and right of the path.

"Thanks. To be honest, I'm starving." Rustling through her wild mane of red hair, Charlie stopped in her tracks as her stomach gave a loud rumble. "See, what did I tell you? Aaanyway, what've you been up to?"

"Oh, nothin' much, jus' workin' and stuff, Ah..." A particularly loud rustle from her right making her head whip around, and suddenly her body bounced as if on instinct. "SQUIRREL!"

With the rustling of leaves and breaking of branches, Jess crashed into the shrubbery, the terrified little critter racing away and up a small tree, leaving the bewildered Texan beauty behind, lying suspended on the abused greenery. Why the hell had she gone and done that?

"Uh, Jess? Are you feeling alright?"