"Murder?" JD and Natalie repeated slowly, the ranger nodding some with a dark laugh, tilting his head a bit to the side as he stared them down, jade eyes almost staring into their souls as they sat there.
The forest ranger cleared his throat as he stood up, checking his watch.
"Yeah, murder. Anyways, sorry honey but my time here is over. I know you guys think I'm a dickhead but I can be a dickhead and punctual as well. If you have any other questions, feel free go pop by tomorrow afternoon" he replied, fixing his jacket as he started to walk to the door, JD quickly jumping up and going after him.
Grabbing the back of Ford's shirt, he made him stop, the detective's eyes narrowed as he stared up at the much taller male. "You can't just leave! You're under questioning, I have every right to arrest you if you leave now!" He said to him, trying to look at brave as he could though his grip faltered as he heard a deep irritated growl come from Ford, the forest ranger slowly turning to glare down at JD.
It all happened too quick for Natalie to really process.
One moment JD had Ford standing still, the next Ford had JD pinned up against the wall, glaring down at him with such an intense gaze, it made the detective for the first time feel genuine fear for his safety.
"Listen, detective, this ain't the city no more. We ain't some meek little lambs you can scare with your authority. Take your stupid cop shit and shove it up your fucking ass, you hear me? Only person who was last able to keep me from going anywhere was my old man, and that old abusive fuckhead is buried 6 feet deep" Ford said slowly to JD, the smaller male at a loss for words, unsure on how to react.
Natalie had no such compulsion.
Throwing herself forward, she leapt up onto Ford's back and wrapped her arms around his throat, pulling back hard and applying as much pressure as she could. Ford struggling as he stumbled back, trying to throw her off and evidently falling backwards. Natalie grunted as she hit the floor too but scuttled out from under Ford like a bug, quick to be ontop of him and slam a fist through his face, then hold him down by the throat.
The forest ranger coughed a bit as blood trickled down from his broken nose but he simply smirked, grabbing her wrist and pulling her in closer. "Harder Mommy~" he giggled, then shoved her off and got up, wiping the blood away as JD quickly caught Natalie, staring at Ford in disbelief.
"You're insane" JD muttered as he watched Ford dust himself off, then make his way to the door, the man taking a moment to pause in the doorway and glance back at the two of them.
"Only in the best ways, cutie."
With that, he left and disappeared into the surrounding woods, JD shaking his head before carefully checking Natalie over to make sure she wasn't hurt. "JD, relax, only thing he's hurt is my pride... How about you though? Are you okay? That all happened so fast I barely saw what happened" she said softly and he gave her a soft smile, nodding a bit as the two walked out of the house together.
"I'll be fine, Nat... I used to get beat up a lot as a kid. I know how to deal with bullies" he eventually said as they walked side by side back to the main path, Natalie raising her eyebrow a bit as she heard this. "How so? Why? Looking at you, I don't see a reason why anyone would bully you."
"I'm transgender, Natalie."
"Oh."
They carried on walking in silence for a bit, Natalie then eventually looking over at JD and saying, "I fully support you, you know. You're a very handsome man, I must admit, and I think you're doing wonderfully at the whole being-a-dude thing. I have a trans niece, I know you must have gone through a lot... I just hope you know you have my endless support."
He gazed over at her as she said this and chuckled, shaking his head a bit with a smile. "Natalie, I appreciate it but honestly?... I couldn't care less. I am who I am... I don't need someone to tell me they support me to validate me. I am unashamedly me. If someone has a problem with that, so what? I'm happy to be me... I determine my own happiness, and I dont let anyone effect that."
"You know... That's a real good thing, JD. I'm proud of you."
The two chuckled a bit and smiled at each other warmly, gently linking their pinkies together and walking in comfortable silence down the track, out of the forest and into town. To anyone else they would have looked like lovers, but to them this simply felt right.
They understood one another with few words, and had no need to explain how they felt to the other. They were simply themselves.
Stopping by Lucy's, they each got themselves some coffee and a cinnamon bun to share, then making the walk back up to the Leroy family farmhouse. "So, tell me about him. Brandy, I mean. You two seem very in love" JD said before taking a bite of the cinnamon bun, handing it then back over to Natalie who took a bite of her own and chewed thoughtfully for a moment before letting out a happy sigh.
"He's just... Perfect. He understands me so well... He treats me with such respect and kindness... It feels like I've finally met the person who completes me... I know I'm not the best person... I have my flaws... But that's okay. We all do. We all make mistakes... I'll admit, I should maybe have been a bit more gentle with him in the beginning... He looks like this big strong man but in reality, he just needs someone to hold him...." She said, gazing up at the sky with a dreamy look in her eyes as she thought of her boyfriend, a faint rosy blush on her cheeks.
JD gazed at her as he listened to what she said and started to smile, chuckling a bit and gently nudging her side. "You seem really in love, you know... I hope I get that too some day... I hope you two stay together forever!" He laughed and gently nudged her again, Natalie laughing some too and nudging him back.
The two started to playfully push one another around before racing up to the farmhouse, trying to beat the other in their race before tumbling over one another in a pile on the long grass, Natalie giggling some as Sadie trotted over and gave her owner some licks, the women gently rubbing her dogs head.
Brandy walked out in this moment and smiled warmly, walking over and carefully helping the two up, letting out a slow whistle between his gap teeth. "My m-my, y'all are f-full of twigs and l-leaves, where were y-you?" He chuckled, giving Natalie a soft kiss on the cheek before herding the two into the house where he had them sit inside, making them both some tea before sitting down with them, listening intently to what they had to say.
JD watched the couple the entire time, watching how they interacted. There was no other term for it... They fit together like pieces in a puzzle. Even distracted by conversation, they were aware of one anothers presence, Brandy holding his girlfriend's hand and brushing his thumb carefully in soft patterns over her skin, Natalie leaning lightly against Brandy's shoulder.
A tinge of jealousy sparked in JD as he saw this... Wishing desperately for a love of his own like this. He always had felt lonely... Their love only proving this more to him.
He carefully excused himself, saying he needed to get back home, walking then in silence down the dirt path after he said his goodbyes, holding his coat closer as the wind whistled by, his small figure shuddering against the cold.
He cursed as he tripped into a puddle of mud, giving a frustrated groan as it started to rain. He felt hopeless. Lonely. Desperate. He hated this... He'd been in relationships before... He always ended up being the one to cut it off since they made him anxious, stressed out. Yet when he wasn't in love, when he wasn't with a partner, he felt unwanted...
Like a stray puppy left in the cold with no home.
His chest tightened as his throat started to pain, squeezing his lips together in a tight line as he stayed sitting there in the rain, letting his hair hang low over his eyes.
'Dont cry... Come on JD... Don't cry... You're a big boy... Stop this...'
He hunched his shoulders as he started to cry into his knees, the rain soaking his clothes as he sat there, barely even noticing someone approaching him till he felt the rain stop as their umbrella covered him and they bent down, placing a warm hand on his cheek.
"JD?.... Are... Are you okay?...
"Dante?... What are you doing here?"