safe haven - jj maybank / rafe cameron

nineteen

"it was an early morning." I murmur as I remember struggling to even get out of bed. "a nap sounds amazing."

JJ's place was closer, so we walk hand in hand while talking about what we should do after the nap. when we reach his house, he pokes his head inside first. "good, no one's home." he tells me before pulling me into the house behind him.

as I survey the living room, I feel nauseous about the amount of beer and pill bottles. it had been a very long time since I'd been here. "JJ-"

"it's okay." he interrupts me, grabbing both sides of my face to make me look at him instead of the room. "I'm okay, Lyv. it's just a little bit of a mess right now."

I can barely make myself nod. the idea of Luke doing anything to JJ... it made me furious, and sad at the same time. "you know you have a home with me right?"

the words sound so serious leaving my mouth, but they were true. if he ever came to my doorstep, he would always be welcome. no matter what. he didn't deserve the cards he was dealt and I always want to be his escape.

JJ doesn't say anything, but his eyes soften. before I can continue he kisses me gently. both of his hands hold my cheeks as he pulls away for a second. "you're so beautiful." he whispers. the affection behind his words just makes me want him even more.

"kiss me again. please."

"please?" and there's the teasing JJ I know. I roll my eyes and chuckle, but I'm smiling at him. while he's laughing I lean forward and run my tongue along his jaw, immediately making his laughter halt. "fuck me." he mutters, drawing out the u.

"what's the magic word?" I joke as he takes a deep breath. his hands are a little tighter on my face now, and my heart is ready to burst through my chest.

"pretty please."

————

I don't know how long we slept, or how long we slept, but I wake up to my phone pinging multiple times in a row. when I see the name on the screen I practically slam my phone back down. JJ was fast asleep next to me with an arm draped over my waist, so I turn to focus on him.

god he was handsome. all the pogue boys had some boyish charm and attractiveness, don't even get me started on my eighth grade crush on John B. JJ however, he was something else. "are you watching me sleep?" he murmurs with a groggy voice, and I smile. "kind of creepy, Lyvia."

"you look less angry when you sleep." I say as I push a strand of hair out of his face. his eyes open when he raises an eyebrow. "what? you're angry a lot of the time."

"it's all that pent up sexual frustration. you have to help me keep it in check." he tells me, and his face is dead serious. I laugh at the crazy boy in front of me. "let's get up and get out of the house. I wanna practice my shooting."

"your shooting?" I question while he climbs over me and out of the bed. when he grabs his backpack I sigh. the fucking gun again. "well, at least I can't complain that you're practicing."

"thank you!" he throws his hands in the air, and I giggle. "everyone else gets so pissy about it."

a few minutes later, I'm watching JJ as he uses a teddy bear for target practice. my phone is still buzzing in my pocket but I knew who it would be, so I don't touch it. suddenly, I hear footsteps coming from around the house. "JJ!" Pope yells as he walks up to us. I stand up from the ground when I see the terrified look on his face. "JJ! JJ!"

the blonde finally turns to see Pope standing there as I ask him, "what's going on?"

"they know." Pope tells us, and JJ removes his shooting earmuffs to listen again. "they know."