New Beginnings - Chapter 1 - The Start of a Beginning

Bright, white rays of sunlight cascaded into a room of gray walls and white furniture. A white dining chair was occupied by a young woman- her fiery red hair aflame in the golden light streaming in through the large windows. The woman, Claire Dearing, cycled through a small stack of papers, dragging her fluorescent highlighter across the lines where she saw fit. Every once in a while, she would switch to a red pen, scribbling small notes in the cramped margins. The papers all differed from each other, but had just one thing in common: the words 'Job Opening' printed across the top.

Directly after the Jurassic World incident, Claire was forced into months upon months of press conferences, lawsuits, and business meetings. With Simon Masrani dead, everyone had looked to Claire to lead. She tried her best to remain calm and act as if she was in full control of the situation, but eventually that facade wore off, even with Owen supporting at her side. The traumatic events on the island changed Claire- for better or for worse. No longer wanting to be involved with the park, she (and Owen) left. They, alike to the remaining InGen employees, dropped off the face of the Earth.

Owen and Claire had moved to a small city in the middle of nowhere, hoping they would not be recognized. The pair lived an apartment: one located on a higher floor, giving them a view of the town below. The view of an industrialized city differed drastically from the lush jungle of Isla Nublar, giving Claire and Owen a further sense of security.

Now, Claire was searching for a new job- some task that didn't require her to be anally retentive and leading constantly; she was done with those types of jobs. But, she just couldn't decide what she wanted to do, although she was definitely overqualified for most of the jobs she was looking at. Owen, on the other hand, found a small job quickly, and was currently working at a local auto shop (his expertise being motorcycles).

"You wanna know what I think?" A deep, accented voice rang, jarring Claire from her thoughts. She looked up and saw Owen walking through the doorway. His green eyes twinkled as he approached Claire's seat. Claire raised her eyebrows.

"I think all that note taking crap isn't gonna help you. I mean, you're not a student studying for a test," Owen eyed her pile of marked papers and bleeding writing utensils. Claire rolled her icy blue eyes.

"Well, I think it helps," Claire defended, "How else do I find the right job?"

"You gotta listen," he started. Then, he placed his hand on his chest- right over his heart. "To this," he continued, his tone dipped in amusement. Claire scoffed.

"Alright, let me consult my heart real quick," she responded sarcastically. But, she couldn't quite suppress her smile from Owen's silliness.

"While you're at it, ask it if it would like to go out to dinner tonight, to its favorite restaurant down the road," Owen suggested, attempting to keep his voice serious.

"Hmm, my heart says it's a nice offer, but it would really like to get this job situation sorted out."

"C'mon, you've been at this for so long. And I know you're getting super stressed over this. I think you need a break." Claire paused. She looked at Owen. His expression was essentially smoldered in concern, causing Claire's heart to ache a little. She loved him so much, for so many reasons, with his huge caring nature being one of them.

"Okay, fine. We'll go out to a nice dinner tonight," she said. She smiled as she saw Owen's eyes light up.

"Yea, baby!" he shouted triumphantly, "You won't regret this, Claire."

"I'm beginning to," she sang teasingly. Owen smirked.

"Aw man, I'll even promise not to wear board shorts."

"Deal."

Owen looked around the dimly lit restaurant, watching all the customers and waiters. He and Claire had finished their meals, and were just, as Owen would say, 'chilling'.

"Not many people are here tonight," Claire observed. She was right. Other than Claire and Owen, there were only a few other tables occupied.

"Well, it is a Tuesday night. Everyone's probably exhausted from work and shit," Owen rationalized. Claire pursed her lips as she remembered her miserable job situation. "Ah sorry...didn't mean to upset you." Claire shook her head.

"It's alright," she sighed, "I just need to relax a little more." Claire and Owen were almost constantly on edge after the incident. Whereas Owen could loosened up easier, Claire was not so lucky. I guess that's what I get for being so uptight in the past, she had told herself.

"That's what I like to hear," Owen said happily, "Get all that organized, itinerary-making 'Ms. Dearing' crap out your system."

"Thanks for insulting my name like that," she said playfully, "I am still called 'Ms. Dearing', itinerary-making or not, Mr. Grady," she retorted. She looked away, expecting to hear some witty, humorous response, but her ears were greeted with a long silence. She turned back to Owen. He was looking past her, as if in deep thought. At first, Claire thought she had upset him.

"Well then," Owen said quietly, unfreezing himself from his deep thinking state. Claire mentally let out a sigh of relief. Then, he began to rifle through his pockets. What is he-

He looked her right in the eye as he pulled out a little box from his pocket. He opened it and set it on the table; the ring inside shined brilliantly, despite being in dim lighting. Claire's eyes widened. Owen's lips turned into a small smile.

"How would you like to be Mrs. Grady instead?"

a/n: so i havent written in a really long time so im sorry if its bad :( i also have never written a jurassic park fanfic and im very new to the fandom…but i really enjoyed the movie and wanted to write something for it soo yea

and i know the title is very cliche but its a work in progress...i have no idea what to name this (i have a lot of trouble naming things if you cant tell already lol)

i should also add that i have no idea what the update schedule will be for this story (sorry!)

and im sorry this is super short but i just really wanted to get this published quickly

so, sorry for all these things :s

but thanks for reading! i really appreciate it. hope to see you next time :)