HOPELESSLY DEVOTED
an outer banks story
by -spacecadet
CHAPTER SEVEN: STARRY NIGHT
Growing up in Nashville, the night sky had always been polluted by city light.
Her first night after moving in with her grandparents, her first night away from the only home she'd ever known, her aunt Ruth snuck her out of her bedroom and down the dock. Ruth had taken some time off of work when Campbell's parents died, to help with funeral arrangements and with Campbell, and she'd stayed two additional weeks in the Outer Banks after Campbell moved to North Carolina. Knowing her niece would have a hard time sleeping, she took the girl out on the dock, armed with pillows, blankets, and hot chocolate, and they laid out amongst the marsh, looking up at the unobstructed night sky.
Campbell's little eyes widened in wonder as she stared up at the stars, far more numerous and so much brighter than any sky she'd looked up at before in her life. Ruth carefully pointed out constellation after constellation, showing her Orion, Canis Major, Perseus, and more. Constellations Campbell still sought out in the winter sky, when she found the time.
She'd drank several beers and a hard lemonade and a shot of whiskey, and her head was spinning as she laid in the grass outside Finn's garage, looking up at the stars, just as she had as a child. The seasons were different, and so were the constellations, but she was mesmerized just the same.
She rested a can of beer on her stomach, her hands holding it steady. She let her eyes focus in and out on the North Star, Polaris. A giggle escaped her lips as she re-focused her eyes on it, the brightest star in the sky. A satellite floated by, its blinking lights momentarily distracting Campbell. She briefly wondered who it was owned by, and what it was doing, but the thought was fleeting and her gaze quickly shifted back to Polaris.
"There you are."
She'd briefly registered the sound of footsteps on the concrete, and then in the grass, but she'd paid it no attention until JJ came into her view, his face hanging over hers, obstructing her view of the sky.
"Move your fat head," she said, waving him away with her hand.
He chuckled and took a seat next to her. "Words every man wants to hear."
"Well, you're not every man."
"Is that a compliment or an insult?"
She grinned. "I'll let you decide."
He rolled his eyes and laid beside her, turning up towards the sky. "What are you looking at?"
"The sky."
"Right, the sky," he said with a chuckle. "You know, this really doesn't help your whole 'head in the clouds' image."
"I hope you didn't come out here to lecture me on my focus."
He laughed and shook his head. "No, I just hadn't seen you in a while, so I came to look for you. I figured you were out here doing something like this, in typical Campbell fashion."
Campbell shrugged. "I can only handle so much people time, J. You know that."
JJ smiled and turned towards her, his gaze drifting from the sky to Campbell. "Do you want me to leave you, then?"
She quickly shook her head. "No. You don't count. You know that."
JJ laughed. "I don't count as people?"
"No, you know what I mean!" Campbell laughed. "You ... you don't max out my social meter like other people do. Being with you is like..." she trailed off, unable to finish her thought. Being with JJ was like being with herself.
"Yeah. I know what you mean," he said, turning his attention back to the sky.
Did he, though? Did he really understand what he meant to Campbell? That she would travel to the ends of the earth for him, that she would climb the tallest mountain and swim to the bottom of the sea for him. He would never understand, because he would never see her as anything other than his best friend. And she was okay with that.
She had to be.
It was too painful to think otherwise.
Drunken tears filled Campbell's green eyes, and they streamed silently down the side of her face as she stared up at the stars.
"Hey, isn't that the Big Dip -- Cam? Are you okay?" JJ had turned towards her again, and he'd instantly noticed the wetness on her cheeks. "Hey, what's wrong?"
He sat up and brought a hand to her face, gently wiping her cheek with the pad of his thumb. He was used to her crying -- he'd met her two weeks after both of her parents died, and beyond that, Campbell was just an emotional person. Still, this didn't stop a pit from forming in his heart every time he saw her cry.
"Oh, it's nothing," she lied. "The sky ... it's just so beautiful. Space is so interesting, isn't it?"
JJ knew Campbell, and he knew from the quivering of her lip and the splotches on her face that her crying wasn't the good kind. But, if she didn't want to tell him the truth, he wasn't going to pry. He wasn't good with emotions, and Campbell had a lot of them.
"Do you want to go home?" he asked quietly.
She nodded silently and turned to face him, a smile gracing her sad face. "You always know just what I need."
He smiled sheepishly. "I have lots of practice."
If he wouldn't have stood up just then, Campbell was almost certain she would have kissed him.
He reached a hand out to her and she took it, allowing him to pull her to her feet.
"Should we tell the others we're leaving?" Campbell asked, looking towards the garage.
JJ shrugged and shook his head. "Nah, let 'em figure it out." He turned to her with a smirk. "Maybe Wyatt will finally get the hint that you're not interested."
Campbell scoffed and shoved him gently as they walked through the grass, towards the road. "Jesus Christ, JJ."
He chuckled and shoved her back, sending her stumbling off the edge of the road.
She gasped as her sandals caught on the driveway and felt her body heave sideways.
"Shit, Cam!" JJ exclaimed through laughter as he scrambled to catch her before she could fall. One of his hands grabbed hers, and the other found her waist as he quickly righted her. Campbell's momentum from the fall, along with the pull of JJ's hands, sent her tumbling towards him, and despite his best efforts, they careened off of the road and into the ditch.
Campbell shrieked as they rolled down the grass, and JJ, who hadn't stopped laughing since Campbell's initial stumble, was wheezing for air. Campbell landed on his chest, in the most obnoxiously cliche position she'd ever found herself in. If her cheeks weren't already red from the alcohol, they might have flushed from the feel of her body against JJ's, from the sensation of his hands on her hips.
She looked down at him, gasping out laughs as he did the same. Their eyes met, and she swore she heard his breath hitch. Shit, no. That was her breath. She watched his Adam's apple bob up and down nervously before her eyes darted to his lips, unaware that JJ's blue eyes were on her own mouth. She cleared her throat and looked away, pushing herself off of him before Drunk Campbell could make Sober Campbell's life incomparably difficult.
"Are you okay?" Campbell asked as JJ brushed himself off.
He chuckled. "I'm fine. Are you okay?"
"I'm good."
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ author's note ✫・゜・。.
this chapter was kind of short, but i'm not going to apologize. it was cute and perfect and just how i wanted it to be. i hope it's cuteness makes up for having less words.
jj and campbell are SO DENSE, oh my god ... like they're so obviously in love with each other, right? right?!? like it's not just me, right?
anyways ...
what was the last movie you watched? i'm currently watching the princess diaries, so this question came to mind as i type up this author's note.
thanks for reading!
xx,
madi