Kathryn didn't sleep well. She didn't expect to, but getting exactly three hours of sleep isn't big on the mood, and the fact that it's her only makes it worse. All in all, she doesn't expect today to be a good day.
She watched JJ leave when she woke up, traces of her t-shirt on his cheek still from how good he slept. She would be a tad jealous if Billy's words weren't echoing in her mind. She knew that she was right; eventually, Kathryn would have to give JJ a definitive answer about their relationship. She just didn't know which one. Too much comes into play. His feelings, her feelings, the skeletons in their closets... The ghosts of parents and angry touches... JJ had had enough anger in his life, she reckons. It felt easier to let him go than to stop being angry herself. She had been trying, and knew how hard it would be.
By the time she could be considered human, he would be gone, and she'd be a monster again.
Still, there was no time to think about this right now. She was supposed to get to school, as it was the only place Henry and Max would let her go after their argument. It's a good thing she likes school, otherwise she'd have to grow a backbone and stand up for herself against a parental figure. Which does not seem like a walk in the park, after getting her mom arrested.
Again, she thinks back to the whole 'exploring a sunken Grady White' plan.
She slams her locker open, JJ leaning against them next to her, waiting for her to take her stuff before going to the long awaited history class.
"I'm not saying I'll be up," he argues. "But you can try to wake me when you wake up, so I don't have to rush out the place in the morning."
She had the bad mind to tell him that he snored this morning. Then he asked why she had been awake – if she was watching him, to which she just stared until he looked away – and then asked her to wake him when she did.
She hums. "Sure. I'll wake you up at five A.M. tomorrow."
"What?" he cries out. "Why do you wake up so early? Why do you do that to yourself? Is that a form of self-harm, should I warn Pope–"
She's about to answer something that would imply having a pain kink, which would have immediately shut JJ up, when she sees someone walk up to her from the corner of her eyes.
"Jonah," JJ lets out, faking enthusiasm when he sees him.
Josh just spares him a glance, clearly not wanting to get into all that right now. Kathryn inhales through her nose. She's going to start putting things on fire if she has to deal with anymore self-control.
"Hi, Josh," she greets, with what would be a smile.
He smiles back, dazzling. JJ rolls his eyes. "Hi Kat!"
"So, I checked, and we have Maths together?"
That's good news, she figures, because she took advanced Maths and not even Pope was in the class. She nods. "Yeah, probably. Did you need something?"
JJ's eye twitches as he thinks Josh is going to ask for tutoring. But no, surprisingly enough. "I was wondering if I could borrow your book? I don't have mine, so maybe we could share it in class?"
She narrows her eyes at him. She's not an idiot, she knows he's flirting, but it'd be too easy to say yes. There's no implications, no guilt-ridden and overcomplicated backstory, nothing but innocence. She'd be carefree.
She thinks when she says, "Yeah, sure," she says it more to that idea than Josh really.
His grin widens. "Thanks, Kat, you're the best." His eyes fall on the blonde, looking at him with a tad too much intensity for his liking. "...Bye JJ."
"Bye Jared."
Kathryn rolls her eyes as her and the Maybank kid make their way to class, the boy hot on her heels.
"It's Josh. Do you really have to be that annoying–"
"Annoying?" he echoes. "He's the one who wants to 'share your book', d'you really think that's just for studying?"
"It's not like he asked to jerk himself with it!" she retorts.
"Like you would have said 'no' then?"
She stops and turns back to him, nostrils flared and not backing down at the proximity. She's about to lash out, abruptly, but bites down her tongue. Saying no brought a rancid taste to her mouth, and she doesn't want him to feel it, it's not his fault.
But if she has to tell JJ where she stands, be it against the idea or getting together or for, she has to be more firm. And right now, this feels like a bad idea. JJ is already begging for a reason to jump Josh, she shouldn't give him one.
And she can't get with him for that. That'd be a bad reason. After Rafe tried to reason his way through assaulting her, she knows how good and bad feel. She won't let her relationship with JJ turn bad, the reasons turn ill like a wilting flower.
Even if there's no relationship at all in the end. Better it end before it goes bad, than going through the flames again.
She grits her teeth. Coward. "It's not like we're together, JJ."
He watches, bewildered, blinking as she walks in the classroom. "I know that," he says to the void, with a hint of disappointment. He does know it. She told him, again and again.
It doesn't hurt less each time.
Kie and Pope stare at the pair. "That's not going to blow up in everyone's faces at all," she lets out.
Pope sighs. "It's not like we can stop it."
"We'll tell ourselves that when I'll comfort Kat and you'll take care of Jayj."
They hurry in class. The teacher had planned a pop up quiz, which seemed pretty simple, at least for Pope and Kathryn.
She races down the sheet of questions, ignoring the emotions bubbling inside her as JJ doesn't even pick up his pen, staring at the back of her head. Embarrassing, annoying. Why was he even trying now, really?
Even then, he doesn't think he wants to stop either. Kathryn can't get away from that fact.
A man enters the room, which is distracting, because it just gets Kathryn to raise her head, and now he can see her side profile, the slope of her nose and the shape of her pinched mouth in concentration.
"Mister Sunn, can I borrow Pope and Kathryn for a minute?"
Hold up.
The two turn to each other, frowning. Mister Sunn tries to tell the man that they're in the middle of a test and they can't exactly miss it, the two teenagers listening intently.
"I'm from the Vanderhorst Foundation."
Pope's eyes light up, and Kathryn almost smiles in excitement for him. Is he going to get his scholarship back, are they here to tell him he got selected or something? It doesn't cross her mind to ask why she's in on it.
Sunn sighs, defeated. "Mister Heyward, Miss Darcy, it's for you."
They awkwardly stand up, the other two staring at them with a hint of worry as they leave the classroom, giving their teacher tight-lipped smiles. The man thanks him, before closing the door behind them.
"Good to see you, kids." Kathryn bites down the urge to say that it's a bit concerning, coming from a Christian society. "First, I want you to know how sorry I am about how the scholarship went down."
Pope makes a face. "It's okay. I kinda figured I lost it after I walked out of the interview."
"Not without reason," Kathryn chimes in, gently reminding him of that fact, and also trying to win points in the case of them funding Pope.
"Nevertheless, some of us were very impressed by your story and wanted to learn more about this Royal Merchant." He turns to Kathryn. "As we just became aware of your father's work."
Suddenly, this doesn't feel as friendly as it did, and the reason why she was brought too doesn't ring as safe for her. Not when her dad is mentioned. Her polite smile turns sour as it stays plastered on her face.
Her jaw clenches. "You heard about my father?"
"One of the benefactors heard about him, yes, and asked me to pass something along." He hands Pope and Kathryn enveloppes, respectively addressed to Mr. Heyward and Ms. Darcy. "Now I can't guarantee anything about a scholarship, but if you can get in the good graces of the family, who knows? They're very powerful."
Kathryn blinks at the brown paper, and back at the man. "I'm sorry, which family?" Which family knows about her father and the Royal Merchant, that she'd like to know.
He smiles, which makes her uneasy. "Everything is in the letter. Good luck." He shakes their hands, and the two stand there for a second as he walks away.
"That was weird," Kathryn says. "That was weird, right?"
Pope turns the letter around. "Kat."
"'They heard about your dad' okay, what do you want me to say? 'Congrats'? Nah, man, that was weird."
"Kat."
"What?" He all but shoves the letter in front of her eyes, and they fall on the small sign on the seal. "What the fuck?" This is either getting better or worse, she doesn't know, but at least they're going somewhere.
They storm back inside, a bit too quick for the teacher's liking, and sit back down, eyes frantic, looking around. The test is long discarded.
Which makes JJ think that this wasn't as normal as they made it out to be. Kathryn would never discard a chance to prove herself academically. Sure, they argued a second ago, but that wouldn't stop him from caring. She could kill him and he'd hold her through it.
"What was that?" he asks her, directly in diagonal from her.
Silent, she just shows him the seal, Kie leaning forward to catch a glimpse.
It's golden wheat. "That's the symbol that was on the gold," she whispers to him.
JJ's eyes widened. "What the f..." Too loud. Mister Sunn stares at him. "Fu... fu... fuuuudge?"
Finishing the test is a bit tricky with so much on their minds, and the second the bell rings, they're running out of the room and into the school's library.
They have a class after that – Maths, as it happens – but there's no chance that she's attending. Fuck that. No, instead, they rush through the corridors towards the library, Kie and JJ following.
"Is this a game of tag?" JJ ironises as they walk in.
Kie sighs. "I don't know."
They haven't said anything, far too engrossed in their inner questions about what the hell was that all about.
"Am I gonna have to threaten you with your protractor?" JJ lets out, a bit too loud to the secretary's liking.
"Not if you want to stay alive," Kathryn retorts.
"What's going on?"
Kie nods. "Seriously, guys, you are driving me insane."
They finally sit down at a computer, taking a deep breath to calm down.
"Okay," Pope starts, "so that guy was from the scholarship committee." He hands JJ his letter. "Read it."
He fumbles a bit to open it, and his eyes scan over it. "Out loud, Jay."
He looks at them. "I can't read cursive."
She blinks a few times at him. "You can't... You're lucky you're pretty, I'm telling you."
He smirks. "You think I'm pretty."
"Yeah, and illiterate."
"I'm trying to focus on the positive aspects of life lately."
Kie takes the letter from him, growing out of patience. "'Dear Mr. Heyward, I am reaching out because I have material evidence that can exonerate John B. Routledge.'"
Something heavy drops in their stomach. That's a bit too much of a coincidence. Her dad, the Royal Merchant, and now John B? Were they going to pull out their security numbers too?
They had to know they'd be desperate to help their friends. That's a bit too much knowledge for someone they don't know. No matter how entranced she is by the idea, Kathryn can't help but be suspicious.
"'It is of vital importance that you come and meet with me in person at my offices at 27 King Street, Charleston at eight P.M. sharp tonight. Please come alone. Regards, C. Limbrey.'"
Limbrey? She's heard it somewhere. Immediately, her eyes fall on her own letter, opening it swiftly. "Yeah, I have the same. Except–" She puts her finger under the line. "'I trust your parents have passed down onto you their talent, your help would be invaluable.'" She frowns at the letter. "What talent? Dying and abuse?"
Pope snorts, the others look at her with slight concern. "So they definitely knew about your dad."
"Yeah, and John B, and I don't like that." She shakes her head. "Man, Charleston, seriously? That's like, seven hours away, if we want to make it there by tonight–"
"We'd have to leave right now," he says, typing on the computer as he speaks.
Kie shrugs. "I have a free period."
"I don't," Kathryn says, eyes still on the letter. There's no way whoever Limbrey is, they know about her parents. About her dad and the Royal Merchant, and John B – just no way.
Except if someone was feeding them information.
JJ takes it from her. She scowls. "'Material evidence'? What does that even mean, 'material evidence'?"
"Don't snatch shit from me, it's rude. It means they can clear John B."
He blinks. "Oh, shit, then we're going to Charleston." There's absolutely no question in his mind.
She hums. "Yeah, and what are you going to wear at my funeral when Max and Henry kill me?" She sighs, closing her eyes. "God, I hope Billy comes up with whatever to cover for me, because... ugh." She suddenly looks back at Kie. "And we're definitely not going to Shoupe, no matter how shady that sounds."
"No, duh."
"Yeah, duh, you're the one who called him first."
Pope lets out a long sigh, and they all turn to him. "What?" Kie asks.
He looks back at the computer, and the man he just googled. "I'm not sure, but I think whoever this Limbrey person is, they might be related to the captain of the Royal Merchant." He looks at Kathryn. "Maybe that's why it sounded familiar."
It'd make sense. She had been reading pieces of her father's journal, so. "Yeah, so they were slave traders, that's just great." She takes a deep breath, and stands up. "Well, let's go then. If Max and Henry are going to kill me, let's at least make it quick."
Author's Note: Hahaha literally cannot wait for this plot point, bye... oh and for christmas, does some Lost At Sea chapters from JJ's point of view seem like a decent present?? And if so which chapters?? 'Cause i asked on my board but didn't get any answers so yk
Editor's Note: Hi??????? Is anyone still here???
So yeah, Kat's back I guess!!! The health thing isn't resolved but my anxiety about has simmered down, it's basically just a teeny tiny dot of like, flash of light in my eye, that's been plaguing me and not wanting to just leave, so my anxiety said 'brain cancer' but I'm ... pretty sure it's not? It's not my eye for sure, so. Yeah. That's what the emergency was lol, Kat got her anxiety from yours truly xx
But yes!!! Kat my beloved!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I missed her <33