Jo's POV:
"Jo you're not going" my brother snapped at me as I frantically packed clothes into a bag
"well John B, you're more than welcome to join us, but i'm going"
"Have you even thought this through? How are you going to get there? Where are you going to stay? Where are you gonna get money from?"
"Right now the only plan is to get off the island"
"What about me, what about Pope, what about Sarah?"
"John B would you relax" I snapped "we will be back in a year and a half, once we are both eighteen CPS won't be after us anymore"
"ok and what about Shoupe?"
"What about him? I didn't do anything illegal"
"yea well JJ did"
"not really"
"what he did is considered kidnapping Jo"
"i think its more of a jailbreak than a kidnapping"
"regardless Jo it was illegal"
"So what? JJ does illegal shit all the time" I said pushing past him and out of my bedroom
"You guys aren't thinking this through. Plus if JJ gets charged running from it is a felony"
"he's not running, he's....moving"
"Jo please...think this through for just a second"
"I have thought it through John B"
"You don't wanna go with CPS cause you will be away from me and the other Pogues....yet you think running to Mexico is the answer...seriously?"
"I can call you guys"
"you would be able to see us Jo if you just went with them!" He yelled
"So what? You want me to go with them?!" I yelled back
"Well it's sure as hell better than Mexico!"
"You don't get a say in this, i'm going. If you want to join us then pack a bag and meet us at JJ's" I said storming out the door
"Jo you're not thinking this through!" He yelled after me but I just kept walking
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"You all packed?" JJ asked as I walked up to him
"yep ready to go, so what's the plan of action?"
"ok so my dad still has the Phantom out back"
"the Phantom? really? That crusty old boat will never get us anywhere"
"don't you talk about my child like that" he gasped
"ok ok sorry"
"so I gotta run out and get some fuel to fill her up and some extra tanks as well as a couple days worth of food so we don't have to stop anywhere then we will be good to go.... wait, what language do they speak in Mexico.... Mexican?"
"I don't think Mexican is considered a language" I laughed "their main language is Spanish"
"then bon voyage"
"....thats- thats not even the correct lang- ugh never mind" I said rolling my eyes
"so i'll be back in like an hour at most, you may wanna go clean some of the leaves off her.... she hasn't moved in a while" he said before pecking me on the lips and running off
With a sigh I walked over to the boat, god Luke didn't even keep any sort of tarp over it. The boat is filled with dust, dirt, leaves and ew cockroaches. Gross. God for something that JJ calls his child you would think he would take care of it a bit more. I started with a small brush and pan trying to sweep up the leaves and throw them off the side of the boat when a cockroach ran up the handle and onto my hand. I let out the most painfully girlie scream shaking my hand violently
"ew ew ew ew ew, get it OFF!"
"you know there is gonna be a lot worse than that in Mexico" Pope laughed from behind me
"Pope?" I asked turning around "let me guess. John B has sent you here to try stop me from going, well guess what Pope it's not gonna happen"
"surprisingly no. JJ asked me to drop some stuff over"
"oh.... ok then"
"so...." he sighed "you guys are really going through with this?"
"yep.... guess so" I said turning around continuing to pick up the leaves
"here let me help you" he said jumping up onto the boat
"uhhh thanks..... ya know.... you're like the first person who's been somewhat cool about it"
"oh i'm not cool about it, but i know when you and JJ get something in your heads that there is no changing your minds"
"well at least you haven't tried to stop us"
"Jo, i could lock you up with chains and it still wouldn't stop you" he laughed "it's just..... i'm gonna miss you.... we all are"
"it's only for a year and a bit"
"yea but if you stayed here it would only be for a year as well"
"but i would never see you again"
"you never know that. Plus we will never see you if you're in Mexico"
"god you sound just like my brother"
"ok ok I won't press. I just think staying here might be better.... then I can still come see you"
"yea but I won't be able to see JJ and he is leaving no matter what anyone says"
"so you're going for him?"
"what?"
"you're not going for you.... you're going for him"
"what? No Pope that's crazy, I want off this island as much as he does"
"Are you sure about that?"
"of course i'm sure"
"ok good. I'm just making sure you are doing this because you want to do this and not because you are following JJ"
"of course I want this"
"ok, well I gotta go back to work. But i'll be back before you guys leave. Sundown right?"
"yep sundown"
"see you then" he said jumping off the boat and walking away and out of sight
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Sarah's POV:
"ok Sarah you're up" Pope said as he rounded the corner
"guys this is stupid. If JJ comes back and sees us all hiding out behind his house he is gonna know something is up" I replied rolling my eyes
"he's gonna be gone for at least another forty five minutes" John B said
"ok and I also can't just instantly walk over there cause then Jo will know something is up"
"ok she has a point" Pope said
"just call her and ask her to meet you somewhere, she will say she can't and invite you over here" John B shrugged
"thats actually not a bad idea.... well done" I smiled taking my phone out of my pocket and texting her
Bold- Sarah
Italics- Jo
Hey girl, we totes need a catch up before you leave
Sarah you know i don't have time
you can't even make time for your favourite person on earth
i'm about to spend a year and a half in Mexico with him
wooooooooow rudeeeeeeeeeeee. I'm just asking for an hour
It's only three hours until sundown
can I come to you?
not if you're in on my brothers stupid plan to have you and Pope convince me to stay
"shit guys she's on to us" I said looking up from my phone
"na no way we were so subtle" Pope said
"you really weren't" we heard a voice say
"heyyyyyyyyyy Jo" I said looking up and seeing her standing above us
"really guys" she snapped storming off
"look Jo we did this out of love" Pope called after her causing her to stop in the tracks and snap her head round to look at us
"out of love?! Are you kidding me! No you all did this out of selfishness. I mean.... what's next? Rafe is gonna pop out of somewhere with Barry?"
"No that's ridiculous...... on a completely unrelated note..... I have to text someone real quick" I said pulling my phone out and texting Rafe abort mission
"REALLY SARAH?!"
"Look we're sorry! We just don't want you to leave without fully thinking through all of the options" I said
"ok option one: move in with a new family who hate me, 2: keep running from CPS scared out of my mind twenty four fucking seven or 3: Move to Mexico where I will have no worries and I will be with the person I fucking love" she snapped
"ok well you missed one very important option" Pope said
"and what would that be Pope?" Jo snapped
"moving in with a family who love you...getting to stay in the OBX with the people you love"
"yea and what about JJ, what about you John B" she said now turning her attention to her brother "great, I get to stay here in the OBX, then you get shipped off to the mainland and JJ goes to jail....sounds like a great fucking life"
"Since when is JJ going to jail?" I asked confused
"he's gonna end up there eventually lets just be honest" Jo shrugged
"yea you're not wrong" Pope laughed
"look, a year and a half that's it..... then we will be back, no worries, no mainland, no prison"
"Jo there is no prison if you don't run" John B sighed
"John B you're not talking me out of this" she snapped
"fine ok, whatever.... at least let us help clean this shit heap of a boat"
"finally making yourself useful" Jo said rolling her eyes
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Jo's POV:
"i think that's us" I said shovelling the last pile of leaves into a bag
"so you're really going through with this?" My brother sighed from beside me
"yes....I am. Stop trying to talk me out of it" I snapped
"No i'm not....it just.....i've never lived a second of my life without you. It's not exactly an easy pill to swallow" he sighed out.
"i know. It's not been an easy choice for me either. But come on, I can't keep living like this. No money, constantly on the run, never feeling safe in my own home" I tried to explain but Pope cut me off.
"And what makes you think it's going to be any different out there huh? I'm sorry Jo, i've tried to support you and i've tried to be by your side though all of this bullshit, we all have. And for what? For you to throw it all away? For you to run off and leave us? Have you even thought about how this might affect us? Or were you just thinking about yourself." he snapped
"Pope what the fuck man" JJ snapped
"No JJ, i'm sick of this shit! We have all put our asses on the line for you and this is how you thank us? You're not even going to try stay? I'm sorry. I love you Jo, you know I do, but what you're doing right now....it's selfish"
"Selfish?! Pope are you fucking kidding me? Try walk a day in my fucking shoes"
"I've walked sixteen fucking years in your shoes Jo. You're not the only one that has it hard" he said causing me to laugh
"you? Have it hard? Really Pope? You have a family, you have your merit scholarship, you have a job"
"You had all that too before you ran away from it" He screamed "you have a family Jo, we are your family. You had a great education if anything you were smarter than me before your dad went missing, you had a job too but once again you ran away. For once in your life Jo....stop running"
"Pope my dad fucking died, he didn't go missing, that shit changes you"
"it didn't change your brother" he shrugged
"BECAUSE HE HAD YOU GUYS" I screamed tears now starting to well up in my eyes. "JOHN B HAD YOU. I HAD TWO SHITTY BEST FRIENDS WHO RAN AT THE FIRST SIGHT OF TROUBLE"
"STOP ACTING LIKE WE WERE NEVER THERE FOR YOU" He screamed. "Jo....we have always been there for you. Sure, we hung out with John B more but that doesn't mean we weren't there. Who was the first one to check up on you after your dad went missing?" he asked causing me to sigh
"Sarah"
"right. Who was the first one to help you when you got addicted to coke"
"JJ" I sighed again tears now freely flowing
"Who was the first person to support yours and JJ's relationship"
"you"
"Who was the first one who drove to the other side of the fucking island to get you when your ass got snatched by CPS"
"John B"
"Exactly. So stop sitting in your entitled little bubble and open your fucking eyes. You've had a shitty year, we all have. John B lost his dad too, JJ's went to jail, I ruined my chances at getting my scholarship, Kie got kicked from the group and Sarah had to be all our fucking therapists"
"thats true" Sarah said quietly
"you're not different Jo....but that also means you're not alone" Pope sighed out.
"I never said I was alone...it's just....I can't keep running anymore" I cried
"then don't" JJ spoke up
"What?" I replied looking up at him
"don't run. Let stay here....face this battle. What's another hurdle of the Pogue life gonna do? We've faced a lot worse than this Jo"
"But JJ-"
"No Jo....Pope's right. What are we doing? One call from Shoupe to the Mexican police and we will be trailed back here and be right where we started"
"so what are we gonna do about CPS?" I asked wiping away my tears
"same thing we always do. We get our hands dirty. They hit us, we hit them"
"I'm not sure facing a felony with another felony is the best option" Pope said
"you taught me math, two negatives make a positive right" I shrugged
"yea but not in this situation" He replied rolling his eyes.
"come on Pope think about it. The element of surprise, thats whats in our favour right now" JJ said standing up
"ok so what exactly is the plan JJ" John B sighed
"well if i tell you while its half baked then you're not gonna like it"
"Honestly JJ i'd settle for a quarter baked plan right now" he replied.
"ok well.....it may involve a certain ex member of our tribe" JJ said quietly
"no....no way" Sarah snapped
"I TOLD YOU IT WAS HALF BAKED! But seriously....y'all gotta trust me"
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Kie's POV:
"Yea whatever mum" I called out before heading back up to my room. I always hated my room, it was way too fancy. God I wish i never fucked things up with Jo. Maybe the other Pogues would still talk to me if it weren't for her. I wish I could just get rid of her, none of this would have happened if she didn't have to make everything about her. I sat down and lifted my phone off the bed and saw I had a missed call from JJ and an unread text.
"Kie I need you to call me back ASAP"
Oh my god. This is it. JJ never texts me.....Maybe they broke up. Maybe he is inviting me back. Ok Kie lets not get ahead of ourselves here....just call him.
Bold- JJ
Italics- Kie
"Hello?"
"Hey...uhhhh you asked me to call you back?"
"oh my god Kie finally i've been waiting like eight whole minutes. Look I really need your help and I don't have a lot of time to explain"
"yea yea sure....what's happening?"
"I need to borrow your car"
"really JJ? You haven't spoken to me in weeks and that's it? You need my car"
"yea I know i'm a dickhead blah blah blah, we can skip all that. Jo is being chased by CPS right now and we gotta get her off the island"
"why would I help Jo? After everything she's done"
"please Kie, she really needs your help.....I really need your help"
"but why does she have to leave the island?"
"cause Shoupe is now involved and its vital that he doesn't find out. If he finds out they take her away for good and we will never see her again"
"ok ok fine i'll help....but i'm doing this for you. Not for Jo"
"oh my god Kie I cannot thank you enough"
"where do you need me to be?"
"come to the docks by John B's place"
"ok i'll be like thirty minutes"
"perfect and Kie?"
"yea?"
"you can't tell anyone"
"i'll be there in thirty"
I set the phone down and sighed out. JJ just handed me an opportunity to fix my relationship with Jo on a silver platter. Dumbass.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Jo's POV:
"Ok....so how is this helping our situation?" I asked as JJ hung up the phone.
"Because my dear Jo, I just played Kie like a fucking violin" he laughed
"How?" Pope asked confused
"ugh god do I have to explain everything. Kie now knows where we are gonna be. She also knows not to tell Shoupe. So what is she gonna do?"
"oh my god man you're a genius" John B said excitedly
"i'm still not following" I said confused
"I haven't been following for the last hour" Sarah replied simply
"Kie is gonna tell Shoupe where we are" Pope explained
"Ok....and how does that help our situation?" I asked
"it doesn't...yet. So we are gonna hide out and see how many officers show up to come after us." JJ explained
"ok.....i'm still confused" I said slowly
"we can see if we could outrun them. Just Shoupe? Easy peasy. All of the Kildare county sherifs department....not so easy" he finished
"i'm still not following" Sarah spoke up
"If it's just Shoupe we can talk to him. Come to a point of reason. If its a bunch of officers then we gotta lay low until we can get Shoupe alone."
"You worked that out just from Kie telling Shoupe?" I asked turning to John B
"i've been friends with this dick wayyyy too long" he laughed
"and you love me for it" JJ laughed.
"so this whole plan works on Kie betraying us?" Pope asked
"yep....so it will work perfectly" JJ laughed.
-------------------------------------------------------------
"JJ it's been thirty minutes and she still isn't here....plus my back hurts." I sighed.
Let me fill you in....JJ's master plan was for us to hide in a fucking tree until either Kie or the cops arrive.
"they'll be here...I know it" he sighed and sirens were heard in the distance. "right on cue" he smiled as the cop car pulled into our driveway. Ok...one cop car thats good right? Shoupe, Peterkin and Kie all jumped out of the car.
"Miss Carrera i thought you said they would be here" Shoupe sighed looking around the seemingly abandoned area.
"they are....they....they said they would be" she stuttered
"Shoupe it wouldn't hurt to have a look around" Peterkin suggested.
"fine. Kiara you stay here, i'll take the front, you take the back" Shoupe said directing Peterkin to the docks and Kie back into the car.
"ok, now is our chance" JJ whispered "sarah you're up"
"Got it" Sarah smiled climbing down from the tree.
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Sarah's POV:
"they aren't here" I said simply causing Shoupe to jump and pull out his gun "Woah Shoupe....its just me" I sighed as he put the gun back in the holster.
"Sarah I don't have time for games. You know it's illegal to call 911 for a non emergency" Shoupe snapped
"well isn't it a good thing I didn't call you" I smiled. "Look Shoupe I just wanna talk"
"About what Sarah" he sighed
"About CPS, about Jo, about John B and JJ....You can't keep doing this"
"Sarah all i'm doing is following the law"
"actually you're not. Your argument is that they are unemancipated minors living on their own correct?"
"correct" he nodded
"well technically...you guys never found a body....so maybe their dad is still alive"
"Sarah he has been presumed dead for months now"
"I'm well aware....however, there is still the slight possibility that he is alive"
"well yes...but they are still minors living on their own regardless"
"well can they not apply for emancipation?"
"well yes but that process will take weeks and-" He started to say when a loud thump was heard from behind me causing us both to turn around and see JJ laying in a heap on the ground.
"I fell from the tree" he groaned out in pain causing Shoupe to look up and see everyone in the tree.
"For fuck sake JJ" I snapped
"yea no...i'm fine" he groaned.
---------------------------------------------------
Jo's POV:
"Ok everyone down now" Shoupe yelled as Kie jumped out of the car. This time we didn't fight. We didn't argue. We gave up. This was it, no escaping now. We all climbed down the tree one at a time.
"Shoupe please I-" I tried but he cut me off.
"I don't wanna hear it. Maybank...son are you alright?" he asked looking down at JJ
"my body just contorted itself" he groaned trying to stand up
"what the hell were you all doing in a tree?" Shoupe asked
"we....we....I don't even know" Pope sighed.
"Look Shoupe you can't split us up. We will keep on running" John B snapped.
"Kids....I really wanna help you, I do. But where the law is concerned there is only so much I can offer"
"I wanna submit for emancipation" I said suddenly
"Jo as I said to Sarah that would take weeks and you would still need to come into protective custody" Shoupe sighed
"I don't care I wanna do it"
"I want to as well" JJ spoke up
"you kids are really willing to do this so you don't get split up?" Shoupe asked looking between us.
"Who needs a real family when you've got your chosen family" John B spoke up "I'll submit too"
"John B...Jo is your real family" Sarah said quietly
"ruining the moment Sarah" Pope whispered back
"we only have a small court guys....three emancipations would take weeks...if not months. You do realise you will still be split up-" Shoupe tried to explain
"no they won't" a voice spoke up causing us to all snap our heads in the direction of the sound
"Dad?" Pope asked surprised "What-What are you doing here?"
"Kie called me. Told me everything. She knew what you guys were up to and what you wanted her to do, and she also knew it was a dumbass plan" Heyward sighed
"Really?" I asked looking over at her
"please i'm not that stupid, I know a JJ plan when i hear it. It was either gonna be an escape or a fight" Kie laughed "I just had to get a few people on board first"
"i'm confused" JJ said slowly "....and maybe concussed"
"well let me clear it up for you. Shoupe, I would like to take JJ Maybank, Jo Routledge and John Booker Routledge into my custody as a foster parent until they reach the age of eighteen" Heyward stated.
"Heyward that's a kind gesture but we just need a place until we can process the emancipation" John B said
"I haven't given up on your father just yet Kid....don't you give up on him either" Heyward smiled
"so...is it possible?" Pope asked Shoupe
"well....we would need to run background checks and-"
"Run it. Run it all. But until further notice, these three are now under my care" Heyward stated simply
"well alright then. I'll notify child protective services" Shoupe smiled before calling Peterkin back over and leaving.
It wasn't long before we all tackled Heyward into a hug
"thank you thank you thank you" I squealed
"its not me you need to thank" he said looking over towards Kie "and as your temporary father, i believe you owe someone an apology"
"Kie I-" I tried but she cut me off
"No, let me talk first please. What you guys did...it really hurt me. But....I get it. I would have done the same thing....hell Jo i nearly did it to you. I was out of line, I was rude and I was a shitty friend....and i'm sorry" she sighed
"No Kie I'm sorry" I said grabbing her into a hug "we didn't even hear you out, we just cut you off which is exactly what my friends did to me and that wasn't fair. We both did shitty things"
"so are we just forgiving her?" JJ asked confused
"she just saved your ass" Heyward snapped at him
"ok but.....it's a lot to just forget" he said
"i know, and i'm not asking for you guys to forgive me....i'm just asking for a second chance" Kie replied
"third chance....you blew your second chance, remember?" JJ snapped
"JJ!" Sarah snapped hitting him in the arm
"No Sarah he's right....it took these past couple of weeks for me to realise how much of a dick i've been and i'm sorry" Kie cried
"Well i for one am ready to get another girl back into this group" Sarah smiled grabbing her into a hug quickly being joined by John B and Pope. Kie pulled away and looked over at JJ who was still separated from the group
"P4L?" Kie asked holding out her hand to JJ causing him to just look at it for a while before sighing.
"P4L" he smiled as they did our handshake.
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1 month later
Jo's POV:
"JO AND JJ YOU GET YOUR ASSES DOWN HERE, YOU WILL NOT BE LATE FOR THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL" Heyward yelled from the bottom of the stairs.
It's been a month since we moved in with Heyward and life has been amazing. JJ and I have to share a room and so does Pope and John B....John B wasn't to happy with the sleeping arrangements but I wasn't complaining. Summer was over and it was now time to head back to school.
"ugh come on JJ we gotta get up" I groaned rolling out of bed.
"5 more minutes" he mumbled into the pillow
"you've had your five minutes. Come on Heyward will kill us" I said throwing on JJ's top as a car horn honked from outside "Kie is here come on we gotta go"
"i don't wanna" he groaned
"JJ if i have to trail you to school in your underwear I will" I snapped
"i'm not going" he said rolling back over into the bed
"If you're not up in the next 5 seconds then there will be no touching for a week" I said simply and lets just say I didn't even have to start counting down before he was out of bed.
"I'll meet you in the car" he smiled
"yea thats what I thought" I laughed walking out the door and into Kie's car shortly followed by JJ.
"You all ready to go?" Kie asked
"no" JJ groaned
"come on JJ...school is fun" Pope teased
"shut up mathlete" JJ snapped
"god I can't believe summer is over already" John B sighed
"yea well we made the most of it" Pope smiled and i replied
"yeah...yeah we did. We're the Pogues...after all....the summer is ours"
(4221 words)
AN// HEY GUYS! I'm so sorry for the long awaited update but here she is. I hope you guys all enjoyed. I have no idea if this is the last chapter i'm not gonna lie but this is not the end of Jo and JJ, there will either be a new book or a new chapter so make sure to follow. As of next week I will have finished uni so i will have loads of time to write.
Anyway guys I really hoped you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing.