𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐞〚𝚙𝚘𝚙𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚢𝚠𝚊𝚛𝚍 〛

Chapter 32: I'll Kill Him

Delilah twisted the throttle on Rafe's dirtbike, a faraway thought reminding her that she would soon have to start paying for his gas. 

Her already tired mind was on the verge of exploding, but she knew she would be able to hold on. She had to. 

As the wind rushed into her eyes, she regretted the fact that she had left her goggles at home, her eyes prickling with tears. Were they tears of exhaustion, fear or pain? She wasn't exactly sure. It didn't matter, Delilah knew that the moment she stepped off the bike, the tears would be wiped away nevertheless. She wouldn't allow herself to cry, not when it was time to act. 

In the darkness of the night, she was a mere flash of light. The smell of the motor heating up, paired with the sound of its echoing roar managed to soothe her ragged breathing. Here, at least, she controlled every single one of her actions. The motor worked just as it was supposed to be, pushing her onwards. If she tried, she could even convince herself that everything was fine. 

But as she neared JJ's house, seeing the flashing lights and hearing the blasting music over the sound of the motor, she knew something was up. She leaned the dirt bike against a nearby post, hurriedly going through the yard until she reached the back of the house and stopped dead in her tracks. 

The entire place was lit up, different colours wrapping around the posts of a terrace that seemed much too new for Luke Maybanks. All at once, the colours changed, flashing like a disco ball. 

Delilah blinked, unsure if she was dreaming or not. The entire scene was surreal.

"Yeah, that's right! Disco mode!"

At the sound of the exclamation, the girl spun around, finally taking in the sight of the huge hot tub throning in the middle of the lights. JJ lounged inside of it, his sunglasses placed crookedly on his nose as he chugged on a bottle of champagne.

"You like this, don't you Delilah?" he laughed, pointing at her.

What is this? she wanted to ask, but the words died in her throat. Something was wrong. 

Pope and Kiara were standing by the side of the hot tub, staring around in astonishment. They weren't amazed, no, far from it. Discouragement was more appropriate. 

Kiara was staring at their friend as if trying to comprehend what was going through his mind.

"You could have paid for the restitution!" angrily shouted Pope, rubbing his jaw as he tried to control himself. He sounded like a father scolding his young son, something that seemed to get JJ's attention. "Or help us pay for equipment to get the gold out of the well. No, no, scratch that. This money was for you, to get you out of trouble!"

"Okay, well, you know what? I didn't do that," yelled JJ, throwing off his glasses along with the carefree attitude he had forced himself to wear. "I got a hot tub for my friends!" 

The blond boy got up, pushing himself off the side of the hot tub, revealing the lower part of his torso. 

Kiara's breath caught in her throat, her eyes widening in shock. Pope was frozen, as if his entire body was refusing to respond when seeing what had happened to his best friend. 

JJ's body was peppered with bruises ranging from purple to yellow. He was trembling, gesturing around him with disbelief as he tried to explain himself.

"You know what?" he laughed, breathless, staring at her for support. "Screw friends. I got this for my family! I got this for you." He grew quiet, trying to refrain from showing what he was truly feeling.

Inside Delilah, something snapped. She was shaking from limb to limb, her mind refusing to think. Her heart was tearing in two. 

It wasn't humane for him to go through this, it wasn't right. And she had enough of it.

"Where is he?" she growled, the only response her mind would allow her to do without going feral.

She hadn't spoken very loudly, but the entire backyard was suddenly silent. It was almost as if the wind itself was holding its breath.

JJ attempted a weak smile, trying to get back into the character he had created. He knew exactly who she was talking about. "Somewhere. Inside, maybe, I don't know. I don't care."

It was a lie. She could feel it at the very core of her bones. The sentence only confirmed what she had been thinking. Luke Maybanks had done this. 

The fury she felt in her chest spread to every other part of her body.

"Where is the damn gun," she hissed, knowing she looked positively terrifying. "I'm going to kill him myself."

JJ's baby blue eyes were fixed onto her, as if he was fascinated by her reaction. He didn't seem to understand how someone could care so deeply for him. 

She couldn't see Pope's reaction, blinded by the helpless rage she felt. 

The dark skinned boy himself didn't know what to think. This wasn't a side of her he'd seen before. He'd never thought she could talk about murder so coldly.

Is this the girl you're in love with? asked a snide voice at the back of his mind.

Then again, hadn't he thought the same, the first time he'd known about JJ's abusive father? She didn't seem to care about the law, about anything standing in her way. She would protect her friend, no matter what. That took courage, more courage he could ever gather. 

Delilah couldn't think straight, marching for the front porch, where she'd put away the gun last time. She barely heard JJ as he called out to her.

"Del... Delilah, please," he choked, reaching out for her.

The hand that has been about to load the gun fell limply to her side at the desperation on his face. Tears blurred her vision. 

The hollow pain in her chest throbbed as JJ scratched at his chest, as if he could claw out the pain he was feeling.

"I couldn't do it," he croaked. "I... I was gonna kill him."

The last remainder of his facade was crumbling. He didn't need her to kill his father. He didn't need her to get revenge. He needed her presence. He needed the presence of his family. They needed to show him that he wasn't alone, that they were there for him. 

Her legs had gone numb as she stepped over the side of the hot tub, getting into it fully dressed. She wrapped her arms around him, cradling him as he broke down.

"I just wanna do the right thing," cried JJ, tears running down his cheeks as sobs racked his body.

Kiara had joined them, gently rubbing his back. "We know."

The movement only seemed to worsen his cries. 

Pope arm's held them all together as he whispered words in his brother's ear, letting him know that they wouldn't leave, that everything would be fine. 

Delilah bit her lip to stop herself from crying. She wanted to help him, she wanted to help him so badly. 

The rage she had felt died down, morphing into something she couldn't describe. So, she closed her eyes, squeezing JJ closer to them. 

If this was the only thing she could do, she wouldn't abandon him. Revenge could wait.

A/N I don't know about you guys, but this was the most emotional I've ever gotten in the entire show. Even writing the scene was something. 

Sorry for the late update, thank you so much for continuing to read!

-Aella