The next day came, specifically at 6:55 a.m. when the alarm dragged Sean forcibly out of the dream he was having, which involved an ex-girlfriend, a library, and, for some reason, a giraffe.  Instantly he regretted telling Beth about his morning run--it made it quite difficult to roll over and go back to sleep when he'd already committed himself to it.  So he dragged himself out of bed, waking up by degrees as he stumbled over to the bathroom to splash some water on his face.  By the time he'd doused himself with a light spritzing of aftershave and rubbed antiperspirant under his arms, he was already feeling more alert.<br/><br/>Throwing on his favorite pair of gym shorts, a T-shirt, and some jogging shoes, he made his way down through the house to the beach.  The morning sun was already above the horizon, but the world was so peaceful and still he just had to take a moment to bask in the beauty of it all.