Guilty

2

"PEGGY?"

Alex, Hercules and Lafayette's heads all shot up and glanced around in confusion. The girl hadn't reacted in the slightest, not noticing John at all. John shot up from his seat at bullet speed and sprinted to the fence that separated the two yards, throwing himself against it.
"John what are you doing?" Alex exclaimed as they joined him at the fence. John ignored him, his eyes wide in shock and his fingers curling around the stiff metal wire of the fence.
"PEGGY!" He yelled again, this time turning a few heads in both yards, including the mysterious tattooed lookalike.

Her eyes widened like a deer in headlights when she noticed the four boys watching her intently, shock swept across their features. She turned to another inmate and whispered something the boys couldn't hear, presumably a question. The girl shrugged in response and the tattooed lady sighed.
"John, that's not Peggy, she-" Alex began to mutter before John hastily cut him off.
"But they're identical," John hissed, examining the girl carefully.
"Except for the gros tattoo on her shoulder," Lafayette cut in, letting a little french slip when he couldn't remember the word for large.
"And the fact that she's a prisoner not a governor," Hercules added matter-of-factly.

She slid off her seat perched up on the table rather seductively and began to saunter over to the fence, her hips swinging with each powerful step she took, like a young lioness parading through her savannah kingdom. The boys stepped back from the fence a little as she approached, her head held high and her dark red painted lips parted ever so slightly.

"Not Peggy," John spoke quietly as she reached them.
"For you, I could be," she smirked, hooking one hand through the fence above her head and letting the fingertips of her other hand trace the wires. "Who are you handsome boys?" She asked with a gentle pout, her eyes scanning over everyone before returning to John and raking down his body, evidently making him tense uncomfortably.
"First name not, last name interested," Alex spoke firmly, taking John's hand in his and tugging it back a little.

"Good to know, Miss Maria Reynolds," she purred, mainly to John, introducing herself with a subtle hair flick.
"Well we're not here for whatever your peddling lady, just thought you were somebody else, good day." Alex shot, pulling John closer and preparing to leave.
"Woah, you just want to assume my charges huh? I'll have you know I'm no damn prostitute," she laughed bitterly, narrowing her eyes and bringing her arms down to cross them across her rib cage.

"Then what are you pursuing that isn't amorous?" Alex squinted accusingly, John shooting him a shocked and slightly annoyed glance at how rude he was being.
"An explanation as to why you were staring at me all weird and calling me Peggy?" She snapped, her eyes glaring at Alex now.
"Like I said, thought you were somebody else, now sorry for bothering you, good day." Alex huffed, tugging John away from the fence.
Lafayette and Hercules shrugged and shot Maria sheepish grins before chasing after the others.
"Nice meeting you too," she scoffed before sashaying away from the fence and returning to her table.

"What was that?" John exclaimed as Alex dragged him away from the fence. Alex mumbled something inaudible under his breath, his gaze dead set ahead as he dragged John behind him. "What did you say?" John questioned, leaning forward a little.
"I-I- you saw the way she was looking at you! I know it made you uncomfortable! I-I don't want-" Alex explained on the verge of yelling.
"Alex, it made you uncomfortable. Now she probably feels like shit after you accused her of being a prostitute! Everyone here has a story behind their sentence, you can't- I just- ugh." John gave up, shaking himself out of Alex's grip and storming off ahead.

Alex watched John storm off with a mixture of confusion and frustration bubbling in him. Hercules ran up ahead after John while Lafayette slowly made his way up to stand beside Alex.
"Why is he standing up for her? She was stripping him with her eyes!" Alex spat, throwing his hands up.
"I think there is some bottled up anger there," Lafayette mumbled with a worried expression. "But whatever it is, you must fix it soon, you can't be fighting on his birthday tomorrow,"
"His what?"

---

"Thomas, he's outside." James squeaked, his voice wavering in fear as he curled up tighter in the foot compartment at the bottom of the passenger seat.
"If he doesn't fuck off within the next minute I'll run him over." Jefferson growled quietly, reaching over the middle console of the car from where he was curled up and grabbing Madison's hand.

A figure slipped past Jefferson's window, walking straight past them. A suffocating silence fell over the car. James waited a second before speaking up again.
"Who do you think will catch us first? Him or the cops?" He asked nervously in a low whisper, sweat beading on his forehead.
"Neither." Jefferson assured him, squeezing his hand.

They waited a little longer before sharing a firm nod, signalling the coast must be clear. Jefferson slowly rose from his hiding spot, crawling up into the drivers seat and doing a 360 swoop of their surroundings. They were parked in the corner of a Walmart parking lot under a large tree, the sun slowly setting outside and giving everything a soft orange haze and glow.

"Jemmy, babe it's okay," Jefferson hummed softly, looking down at him with a reassuring smile. James hesitated before nodding, slowly slipping out of his spot and getting up to sit in the passenger seat. He was getting a little chilly, deciding to grab his sleeping bag from the back and tug it into the front, slipping his legs inside and turning himself into a little caterpillar. He knew what was coming and turned to Thomas.
"Don't laugh." James warned. Jefferson dissed him and laughed softly at the burrito sitting next to him, reaching a hand out to caress his cheek.
"You're too cute," he grinned.

"Thomas Conway practically almost murdered us 5 minutes ago and you're telling me how cute I am?" James exclaimed, his voice still slightly hushed.
"I'm boyfriend goals aren't I?" Jefferson chuckled sarcastically, booping James' nose.
"When you're not being a dick to nice people and blackmailing and framing them," James muttered with a frown. "Yes, you certainly are,"

Jefferson grinned triumphantly and leaned over the centre console, ready to connect his and James' lips when a strong thud pounded the front of the car, shaking them a little. Their heads darted up and in an instant their expressions twisted from serenity and lust into an exhibition of pure horror.
Thomas Conway stood, hunched over the hood of the car with a bloody and grotesque gash bleeding profusely on the side of his head, a baseball bat wound with barbed wire clutched in his blood-stained meaty fists.

"Play time's not over yet boys,"