CHAPTER 13: Groundbreaking
Six months passed. Spring arrived in the city with a burst of cherry blossoms and warm salt air.
Along the waterfront, bulldozers were busy tearing down the rusted corrugated walls of old abandoned warehouses. But in their place, timber frames and glass pavilions were already rising.
Julian, wearing steel-toed boots, jeans, and his old gray field jacket, worked alongside the construction crew, helping unload heavy cedar beams for the new youth amphitheater.
“Hey, boss!” called out one of the young apprentices—a former street kid who had graduated from the Clara Center’s vocational program. “Architect says this beam needs to align with the harbor view!”
“Make sure it faces the sunset,” Julian shouted back with a smile. “That’s where the best light is!”
Genevieve walked onto the site, holding two paper cups of lemonade. She watched Julian work with a look of deep reverence.
“The Mayor’s office wants to name the park after you, Julian,” she said, handing him a cup.
Julian wiped sweat from his brow with the back of his hand and took a refreshing sip. “Tell them if they put my name on the gate, I’ll paint over it with industrial primer.”
“Still stubborn,” she teased.
May you like
“It’s Clara’s park, Gen. And it belongs to every kid who will ever hold a paintbrush here without having to ask for permission.”
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