Ghost of You || JJ Maybank x Reader

the place where i belong

"Y/N. JJ." You turned at your brother's voice to see him holding a piece of paper in his hand. Your boyfriend, however, was face-first into the fridge. "What is it? Snack time? What are we doing?"

"You know what, I feel very judged right now," JJ defended himself before taking a bite out of the chicken wing regardless. "There's an entire bird in here that'll just go to waste, okay? I'm not gonna let that happen, it's not like I'm stealing it."

You tuned him out as he continued to justify his time in the fridge. Taking the piece of paper from your brother's hand, you analyzed the sketch in front of you. The name Solana didn't ring any bells, but you were sure it was important nonetheless. John B nudged you to read the newspaper clipping he'd found.

"Local expedition team departs for South America," You read aloud. The group photo in front of you didn't help point in any direction. You honestly had no idea what you were looking at. This is why your dad never needed you when it came to treasure hunting.

"Holy shit. Neville," Your brother blurted out. "The last thing Sowell said before he died was 'Neville'. Neville, meaning-"

"Right there." JJ's grease-covered finger reached over your shoulder to tap the unfamiliar face of the owner of the name. "Neville Persaud, expedition guide."

It took the boys a minute to catch up, figuring out that Neville was the only remaining individual on the expedition to be alive. Obviously, you would have to find him to get some answers on where exactly to go. The hard part was where to even start.

--

JJ had theorized that he might possibly know where to find someone related to Neville Persaud. John B had no choice but to trust him and followed his directions. You, however, decided it was nap time and the Twinkie was always the best place to crash during a road trip.

You weren't sure how long you were asleep, evidently long enough that they found someone who knew where to find Neville. You were rudely awakened by the slamming of the van door rattling you from your sleep. You shot up with a gasp, turning to see JJ and John B staring back at you amusedly.

"Goddamn you two," You murmured as you sat up fully and rubbed your eyes. Nothing like a literal jumpscare to get up and moving. With a huff, you pulled yourself off the seat and took JJ's outstretched hand to climb out of the Twinkie. The sun burned your fresh eyes causing you to curl into his side to hide as he shut the door again.

"Sleep okay?" His whisper was gentle as he kissed your head, holding you to his chest so you could try and wake up fully. You nodded against his t-shirt and tried to clear the sleep from your mind.

"If you two are done macking on each other, we have to find Neville."

You removed yourself from JJ, making sure to flip your brother off before lacing your fingers with your boyfriend's and following them through the tree line until you hit the water. "Ah, what the hell are we doing?" You stopped short when there was no boat in sight.

"Why do you ever doubt me?" JJ joked as he walked straight into the water, his hand tugging yours until you lost your balance from trying to stay dry and stumbled in. You cursed at the idea of wet socks in your shoes (not that it mattered because you were soaked) as John B followed in behind you. "Alright, so we're looking for... a houseboat."

The water was just above your knees at this point as the three of you scanned the open water. A look to the sharp right revealed exactly what you were looking for.

"You think he's there?" You asked as you watched the boat for any sort of indication of someone's presence.

"Only one way to find out. Neville! Hey! Neville!"