Last First Kiss | JJ Maybank OBX

9. Apologies

I wake up in the morning to the smell of something burning. I sit up in bed, rubbing my eyes and shaking my head at my idiot brother for whatever he's attempting to cook. It's 10 a.m, so I decide to get up and get on with my day. I get out of bed and go to the bathroom to freshen up. I wash my face, brush my teeth, and brush my hair before making my way to the kitchen. When I open my bedroom door, the smell gets worse. I start to cough as I reach the kitchen from the smoke coming out of the oven. I see John B standing in the kitchen looking defeated, and I can't help the laugh that I let out.

John B turns around when he hears me, flipping me off. "Glad I can humor you. A little help would be nice!" he says, gesturing to the oven.

I smile and walk up to him, patting him on the back. "You got this. What were you attempting to make?" I ask.

"I wanted to make you a cheesecake to feel better, but I forgot it was in the oven and I fell asleep on the couch," he admits, putting his head down in embarrassment.

I try not to laugh, but can't help it. "You're hands down the worst cook in the world. You deserve an award for failing this miserably," I joke, and he pushes me gently.

"Shut up, Olivia. You can only cook three things: macaroni, pizza, and chicken nuggets," he replies, and I cross my arms over my chest.

"Those are three very important foods that I eat almost every day," I respond, proudly. "And at least I know how to cook at all!"

He rolls his eyes, ignoring me. "How did you sleep? Are you feeling better?" he changes the subject.

I reluctantly give him a small smile, not ready for the worried looks I'm going to get from my friends all day. "I slept great and I'm feeling fine. I don't want you or any of the others worrying about me. I'm fine," I say, moving to sit on the couch.

He looks at me concerned, not believing me. "Olivia, you're not fine. What JJ said yesterday was fucked up and you broke down. You wouldn't talk to the girls about it, and now you're shutting me down too. You need to talk to someone," he says, having moved from the kitchen to kneel on the ground in front of me.

I look away from him, blinking to try and keep the tears from falling down my face. "There's nothing to talk about. JJ doesn't think of me as anything other than a slut that's sleeping with Rafe while simultaneously throwing myself at him. He doesn't care about me. Nothing else to discuss," I reply as the tears spill from my eyes.

John B sits on the couch, taking my hands in his. "Olivia, you know that's not true. You know how mad JJ gets, and yesterday was... different. I've never seen him like that. He saw you in Rafe's clothes and just lost it. You know they've always hated each other," he says, and I scoff.

"Just because they hate each other doesn't mean he can talk to me like that. JJ is supposed to be my best friend. He's supposed to be the person that supports me no matter what. He's supposed to love me. But instead, he treated me like some random girl that wants to sleep with him. He treated me like a stranger, like I was nothing!" I yell, standing up and pacing around the room. My head is spinning as my thoughts cloud my brain.

John B sighs, running his hands through his air. "After you fell asleep, I went over to JJ's place. I wanted to kill him for the way he talked to you and the way he made you feel. When I got there, I saw a sign on the door. It was an eviction notice. He's getting kicked out of his house, Liv. Found out right before he came over here. He had received terrible news, and he came here just to find you in another man's clothes. I found him at the dock, gun sitting next to him, looking completely hopeless. He knows he fucked up, Olivia. You're everything to him. I know that now," he says, looking at me nervously, not knowing how I'd react.