Jogging To Relax

A short while later, Jay's heart calmed down. 

He went outside his old apartment and looked at the scenery blanketed with darkness for a while.

The life here in Iba, Zambales is not like the one in the city. 

Since this is the province, when it's already around this time, the surroundings are already very quiet here. 

This is because there's only a few places that you can go to at night, meaning, there's no nightlife around.

However, this kind of atmosphere is what calms Jay's heart. 

He can feel at peace with this kind of environment, away from the bustling and polluted city life. 

Jay felt the cold wind brush past him, bringing with it a refreshing feeling of the cold night to him. 

"Today has been really… eventful…"

Jay can't help but feel that today has been a really miraculous day to him. 

The cube, in just a short couple of hours, already brought him benefits that were unimaginable before. 

Skills? Soul talent? Money?

All of that was given by the cube all in one day. 

Thinking of that, Jay can't help but feel more expectant for his tomorrow.

…

The next day. 

Jay woke up early today to go out jogging. 

He washed his face and changed into jogging pants and white shirt before going out. 

Jay wore old rubber shoes that's been with him since his first year in college and started walking. 

The apartment that Jay is renting is actually along the highway, making it convenient for him to go here and there. 

Nearby, a sports complex could be found where most of the residents here go every day at dawn to exercise. 

That's why around this time, you will already see some people going out and heading to the sports complex.

With most of them being elderly. 

Jay arrived at the sports complex in just less than 5 minutes. 

At this time, there are already people jogging inside the oval running track. 

Jay did some light stretching to warm up his muscles before joining them in. 

The wind at dawn feels especially cool and relaxing compared to any other time of the day, perfect for working out.

As you move along, the wind continuously brushes past you, clearing your head of all your anxieties. 

Jay ran steadily for an hour before he stopped.

At this time, he is already covered in sweat, soaking his clothes wet.

Sitting on the side of the track, Jay rested for a while while watching the other people around. 

"Haaa, going out for a run at this time really cools down my nerves!"

Because of all the things that happened yesterday, Jay couldn't fully get rid of the tense and excitement inside of him. 

That's the reason why he went out for a run today at this time.

With thoughts running inside his head nonstop, working out is the only thing that he can think of. 

As he was resting, a man with a rather tall build entered the sports complex and spotted him. 

"Hey, Jay!"

Hearing someone calling him, Jay looked in that direction and saw the man. 

"Oh, Mark, you're also out for a run?"

Mark is one of the few friends of Jay in school. He is someone that Jay knew since his first year in college.

Hearing Jay asking him, Mark nodded, "Yeah, I've actually been running everyday since last week, you know."

Raising an eyebrow, Jay looked surprised, "Well, that's surprising. I've known you for three years as a lazy guy so, what made you run consistently this time?"

But just as he asked, Jay notices that Mark's attention is no longer in him. 

Following his gaze, Jay saw that he was looking at the entrance of the sports complex. 

No, to be specific, he's looking at the group of girls that just entered the sports complex. 

Jay immediately realized something. 

So, he turned his eyes back to Mark, who's still staring at those girls, and asked, 

"How long has Zia and her roommates been coming here?"

"They've been here since last week." Mark replied without hesitation. 

Jay looked at Mark and shook his head. 

"I knew it. For a lazy guy like you, coming to this kind of place so consistently is just out of character."

"So, it's all because of Zia and her roommates, huh."

Zia is a popular girl in their school, Magsaysay University, thanks to her beautiful face and outgoing personality. 

Along with her three roommates, they are known as the pretty girls of the Business Administration Department. 

However, Jay doesn't know much about them. 

That's because he doesn't really care about pretty girls at this time. 

All of Jay's time is either spent on studying or his part-time jobs. 

This leaves him with very few chances to really go around and look at beauties. 

Money before beauty! 

That is what Jay has in mind in his past years in college. 

… 

With his behavior being called out directly like that, Mark coughed and said, "Ehem, it's not like I came here just to see them, right?"

"I still come here because I want to make my body better. Seeing pretty girls is just a side benefit!"

Jay looked at him with disdain, "Who are you trying to fool?"

Shaking his head, Jay said, "Anyway, I heard you quit your part-time job? Is that true?"

Just like Jay, Mark is also someone who works part-time. Which is also the reason the two of them managed to become friends. 

However, their motivations are entirely different from each other.

While Jay is working in order to support himself, Mark is only working to buy all his desires. 

Such as toys, figures, games, and other more things. 

After all, Mark is actually from a considerably well off family and allowance is being sent to him every month for his living expenses. 

That's why there's not really any reason for Mark to go out and work. 

Hearing Jay talking about his part-time job, a look of annoyance appeared on Mark's face. 

"Yeah, I already quit that sh*tty place!"