Together

109. Wing Man

It's like I've been awakened
Every rule I had you breakin'
It's the risk that I'm takin'
I ain't never gonna shut you out
Everywhere I'm looking now
I'm surrounded by your embrace
Baby, I can feel your halo
You know you're my saving grace
You're everything I need and more
It's written all over your face
Baby I can see your halo
Pray it won't fade away
-Always Marin

"What the fuck!" Pope gasped, climbing into the Twinkie.

"That's what I said," John B quips dryly and with no humor.

This is why JJ decided to pick up Pope after grabbing John B. After coming home and actually taking a look in the mirror at his injuries, which were more than a little he'll admit, he knew he'd need to explain to the other members of the group what happened, and the last place he wanted to have that conversation was in a high school hallway with a hundred kids he didn't give a shit about.

It really wasn't as bad as it looked after the fight, or even when he woke up with Kie earlier, but Pope didn't know that.

When he got home, Shoupe was one second away from dragging him to the urgent care, angry that he dipped in the middle of the night again and frustrated that JJ's only solution to the injuries seemed to be a bag of peas. JJ was able to hedge off the hospital by agreeing to put on a couple butterfly bandages and neopsoron.

"What the hell happened now?" Pope asks, taking a seat in the back but leaning far enough forward that he is essentially riding bitch up front.

John B gives JJ a sideways glance. He took over driving when JJ picked him up and sits in his rightful place at the driver seat. He waits patiently for his brother to explain his stupidity the last week.

"First, I just wanna say that this shit will never be happening again," JJ starts, finger raised to start his well thought out monologue of an explanation.

It's not the comforting statement he thinks it is, since Pope gives John B a look that he knows is meant to conceal his obvious doubt from him. He ignores it all the same. Whatever, let time be the judge. In either case,

"Luke and I went at it last night—"

"Excuse me?" Pope interrupts.

"—I'm fine, it's done," he continues in a calm voice, using soft hand gestures to be assuring to his brother.

"How the hell did you run into him again?" Pope interrogates. "That's definitely breaking his probation and that protection order," he educates. Pope had, of course, been looking into loopholes to get the older Maybank thrown back behind bars, and though he is in no way happy at the appearance of his friend, he's not gonna let the opportunity slide to have Luke thrown in the slammer.

"He tracked him down," John B blabs.

"Hey!" JJ complains. Not that he wasn't going to be honest with Pope, he just wanted to be the one to tell him. John B wasn't there and though he may have had a front row seat to the after party, he missed the main event and had no right speaking for him. "I'm tellin' him, God," he says with annoyance. John B raises his hand not on the wheel in surrender, and continues driving.

JJ turns back to face Pope, and retells the story, nearly word for word the same one he did with John B last night in his room. Pope, to his credit, bites his tongue several times, even though JJ can literally see the vein he's about to pop. Especially when he gets to the part about Kie being there. Pope's eyes go predictably wide, but he gives his friend some berth and allows him to talk it through.