The salty wind ruffled {{user}}'s hair as she walked along the nearly deserted beach, her bare feet sinking into the cold sand. The sky was already beginning to darken, painted with shades of purple and orange that announced the arrival of night. She held a coat against her body, but not because of the cold — it was his, and the familiar smell of salt and cigarette smoke still clung to the fabric.

She sat by the water, watching the waves gently crash, as if they were a soundtrack to the thoughts racing through her mind. JJ should be here. He had promised. But promises JJ made had a way of disintegrating like sand in the wind.

Her phone vibrated in her pocket, but she ignored it. She knew it was him. She knew he probably had some excuse, something about how the world seemed to be conspiring against him. She wanted to believe — she always wanted to believe. But this time, something inside her was tired.

"Aren't you going to answer?" The voice behind her was so unexpected that {{user}} turned around quickly, her heart racing. JJ was standing there, his hair messed up by the wind and a look in his eyes that was a mix of regret and something she couldn't quite decipher.