𝐽𝑈𝑆𝑇 𝑁𝑂𝑇 𝑌𝐸𝑇 / JJ MAYBANK

𝟺𝟼

THE TRUTH

"Do you think he's still awake?" I ask as JJ and I stand outside the Cameron house.

"I don't care, let's wake him up then." he turns to me. "I want clarity. I don't want any more lies, I—I want him to know."

I smile a little. "But do you think this is the right time?"

"There is no right time for this, Mia. I want him to know that all that I said wasn't true. Besides, he's still mad at me and— and I don't want everyone to hate me anymore. So I'm trying to fix that."

JJ looks up at a window. "Is that his room?"

I shrug. "Let's hope."

JJ picks up a rock and throws it at the window. After a few seconds, we both see John B looking out the window. He looks down in confusion, but JJ just waves him down.

-——

"What?" he asks in a low tone.

"I, um... we-" JJ takes a breath. "Look, bro, what I said wasn't true."

John b looks at JJ in confusion. "what are you talking about?"

"The other day, when— when you saw the two of us-"

John b sighs. "Oh my god, JJ, I don't want to talk about it. Not now."

"No, no listen to me, okay? I said that it all meant nothing, that Mia meant nothing to me. But that's not true." JJ looks briefly at me with a smile, then back at my brother. "Like it or not, I—I love her, man."

John b's eyes flit back and forth between me and JJ.

"And that's no bullshit. I want you to know that, that she's not another number to me. She's special to me, and—and I'm gonna protect her no matter what, bro."

John b goes through his hair, looking up. "That is some bullshit, JJ. I know you. I know exactly how you treat girls, and you don't do that to my sister!"

"JB, he-" but I am interrupted.

"you think that?" asks JJ.

"yeah, JJ. That's what you do. You sleep with some girl a few times and then move on to the next. You're gonna leave her alone." says John b excitedly.

JJ looks down at the floor in disappointment. It hurts him to hear this, because after all, he knows full well that he's done this to me before.

And it hurt me. And hearing it again hurts me all over again. Also that my brother doesn't know. But I believe JJ. I believe him that he will never leave me again.

"That will never happen again, John b. I swear."

John B looks at JJ with wide eyes. "Again?"

"Shit." mumbles JJ. "I—I mean... god, what am I doing here?" he mumbles, then looks up at John b. "I've done this before. What you just said, I—-I've left Mia before. The first time. But— but I'll never do that again, because— because I didn't know who she was yet—"

"You've got to be kidding me, JJ!" John b looks at me. "Come on Emmi, you can sleep here."

"What?" JJ looks up, confused.

"No, no. I don't want to sleep here." I say, confused.

"You want to stay with him?" says John b loudly. Silence.
"Okay, fine." John b looks at the two of us, then goes back into the house.

"John b, man, I—" says JJ but John interrupts him. "Just shut up, JJ!"

"Fuck." mumbles JJ.

"Now he hates me too."

"He'll get over it, babe, I'm sure he will." JJ takes my hand and we walk back to the chateau.