SCOOTER'S ROOM
❝ god, you really need to get laid. ❞
The marina is bustling with activity when we waltz up to the small structure that the Coast Guard set up as their makeshift disaster relief headquarters. Men, women, children, and even pets crowd the docks in need of food, water, shelter, medications – you name it. My heart feels heavy at the sight of all the people here to seek help.
It's decided that John B and JJ will go in while the rest of us hang back. I can hear the commotion from where Pope, Kie, and I stand just outside the entryway. People are shouting above one another and arguments are breaking out. The only voices I can clearly make out are those of the Coast Guardsmen loudly requesting that everyone patiently wait their turn. Nobody seems to listen, though. Desperation brings out the worst in people.
My eyes follow my brother and best friend as they weave through the mob and approach the counter. I can see John B's mouth moving, but I can't hear his voice over all the noise. Suddenly, one of the Guardsmen raises a palm in front of his face and I can hear loud and clear as he shouts for him to calm down, then returns his attention back to a pair who are bickering in front of him.
John B looks around for a moment before seemingly giving up and making his way around the other side of the counter where JJ is. He plucks a pen that the blond is playing with from between his fingers and sets it down on the countertop as he walks away from the scene. A smile creeps onto my lips as I watch JJ sneakily pocket the pen before following after him.
He just can't help himself. It's not like anybody's going to notice anyway. There's a cup filled with, like, fifty of those pens.
As the boys approach us, I raise an eyebrow at JJ, letting him know I witnessed his little heist. He runs his tongue along his bottom lip, grinning with not even an ounce of shame.
"Well, that went well," Pope deadpans.
"What was all that about?" I nod in the direction of the quarrel John B had been ignored over.
He shakes his head as he shrugs his shoulders. "Something about doggy diabetes." I let go of an amused hum in response. Would've never guessed that one.
"So, what's the plan?" JJ speaks up.
John B fishes our latest discovery from his pocket, waving the key around as he says, "I think I know how we're gonna find the guy who owns that boat."
Ever the voice of reason, Pope is quick to object. "No, we don't know whose room that is. It could belong to anyone."
"He's right." I nod my head, feigning agreement, but really, I'm just teasing him. "Could be Pablo Escobar or some shit." Pope doesn't find this funny. He narrows his eyes at my nonsensical comment and breathes out a phony, sarcastic laugh.
"Pablo? I'm in." JJ snatches the key from John B's hand and tosses it over to me, and I hand it off to Kiara because honestly, that shit is so filthy it freaks me out.
"Come on." Kiara dangles the key in Pope's face as she speaks, "We'll be lookout." She spins on her heel and follows along after JJ who's already headed back to the boat.
Pope doesn't budge, still unconvinced of this so-called plan. I'll be honest, it's not much of a plan at all, and it's a bad one at that.
John B brushes past the boy, patting his palm against his chest as he walks by. "Finder's fee. Just sayin'. And, hey, at least you'll only be an accomplice."
Being the only two left standing in place, I lock eyes with Pope, giving him a light nudge on the shoulder. "You know what, P? Maybe we'll find a body."
That should do the trick.
I can visibly see his resolve soften at the idea, his knees buckling slightly as he throws his head back with an irritated groan. He's giving in.
I can't blame him for his uncertainty about the whole situation. I'm having some second thoughts of my own. What if someone's in the room? What if we get caught and arrested for trespassing? But the what-ifs apparently don't matter, because those other three idiots are going to do it anyway.
If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.
Linking arms with Pope, I give him no other choice but to join me in acquiescence as I drag him along behind the rest of our friends. "C'mon, bubba."
"Man..."
❛ ━━･❪ ❀ ❫ ･━━ ❜
Turns out I was right to be wary of the state of the motel based off the key we found. The keychain is dingy, but not nearly as dingy as the building it belongs to.
We all stare straight ahead in horror and disgust as we approach the site aboard the HMS Pogue. There are tarps covering holes in the roof, the tall sign that would normally let you know you've arrived is fallen in the grass, and trash is littered around the property and along the edge of the bank.
Lovely.
I try to remind myself that a hurricane just rolled through, but something's telling me that this place didn't look too different even before Agatha paid a visit. The white brick walls – at least I think they're supposed to be white – are stained a light shade of yellow, and the grass and shrubbery are wildly overgrown. That doesn't just happen overnight.
JJ blows out a low whistle as he prepares the bowline. "I thought the Chateau looked bad."
"This place is a shit show," John B adds with a subtle nod.
Kiara glances between Pope and I, her face scrunched up in distaste. "Motel or meth lab?"
"You be the judge," Pope jokes.
"Call me crazy, but I think I'm gonna have to go with meth lab." It genuinely wouldn't surprise me if the rundown establishment is really just a big ass trap house.
"Ding, ding, ding." Kie points to me in agreement.
"Doesn't look like the type of place somebody with a Grady-White would stay." John B's observation seems rather accurate.
"No. Looks like the type of place someone with a Grady-White would get killed," Pope states firmly. I would argue that his observation is even more accurate.
Something's just not adding up in my brain. What business would the owner of a boat like that have at a place like this? I can't quite piece it together just yet, but whatever it is, I guarantee it's some shady shit. I'm starting to think we should've just listened to Pope and stayed out of it.
John B carefully steers the boat up onto the bank as JJ speaks, mimicking yet again the sound of talking through a radio, "This is your captain speaking. HMS Pogue coming in for landing." He lets out a loud cheer as he hops off the bow and onto the grass.
I waste no time in joining him. If we're going to stick our noses where they don't belong, I'm not just going to sit on the sidelines and watch. But just before I can step off the boat, my brother places a heavy hand on my shoulder, spinning me around to face him.
"Where do you think you're going?"
"To fucking Candy Land." My tone is sarcastic as I roll my eyes. "Where do you think I'm going? I'm going inside."
"I think you should sit this one out. We don't know what we're getting ourselves into and I don't want you getting hurt."
"Aw, that's sweet, JB." I pout my bottom lip at him. "But I really don't care." Without allowing him another opportunity to protest, I whirl around and jump down to stand beside JJ, who's tying off the boat to a tree root that's protruding from the ground.
John B's eyes squeeze shut as he lets go of a sigh. He has to know better by now than to argue with me once I've made up my mind. It's a losing battle. He steps forward to join JJ and I on land, but this time, Pope stops him before he can exit the boat.
"Hey."
"Yeah?"
"Don't let them do anything stupid." The Heyward boy gestures to where JJ and I stand side by side.
I point to myself with a surprised look on my face. "Me? Stupid? Never."
"Oh, we will," JJ assures the opposite of Pope's request as he does the Pogue handshake with me.
John B shakes his head vigorously. "I'm not making promises."
"Yeah, I know," Pope drawls out as he sinks back into the captain's chair.
Kiara steps forward towards John B with a look of concern on her face – an expression that she seems to have for him more frequently these days. "Uh... be careful." She offers him a small smile as she hands over the key. "I mean it."
Be careful?
You don't hear that one often amongst our group. Not because we don't care about each other's well-being, but because doing dumb shit is kind of our thing. Is Kie really just giving him a friendly reminder or is there a deeper meaning to her words?
My brother does a double-take and chuckles nervously as he steps off the boat. He pats JJ's shoulder and nudges me as he walks between us. "Let's go."
I glance up at JJ as we both turn to follow John B, and a perplexed look is shared between us. I can tell he's thinking the same thing I am.
That was suspicious as fuck.
The three of us make our way through the tall grass towards the building, maneuvering around moldy mattresses that were discarded into the yard. There are a few housekeepers and guests that linger around the property, but no one seems to bat an eye as we ascend the busted and rusted stairs to the second floor.
My brother and I pay close attention to the room numbers as we walk, making sure we don't miss the one we're looking for. Meanwhile, JJ does what JJ does best – he goofs off.
"Just be so careful, John," he mocks Kiara's words as he caresses JB's face.
John B slaps his hands away. "God, you're so weird."
"Yeah, what the heck was that about?" I chime in, curious of what my brother might have to say about his interaction with Kie.
"I don't know. Maybe she just wants us to be careful." He shrugs. He's a terrible liar.
"Maybe she just wants you to be careful." I wiggle my eyebrows suggestively as I nudge him with my shoulder.
"Since she heard you're being threatened with exile, she's just been, like, 'Oh! Be so careful John B.'" JJ massages his shoulders. "'Just give me that John D already!'" He attempts to say the words in a girly, sultry voice.
My face contorts as I cringe. "That's giving me second-hand embarrassment. And – hold up – the John what?" The joke almost went right over my head, but when I caught it, I nearly vomited. "Please don't ever say that again."
JJ flashes me a naughty grin, ignoring my request as he continues on with his spiel in John B's ear. "Like, when are you gonna swoop on that, man?"
"Bro, you know the rule. No Pogue-on-Pogue macking."
That's the only rule amongst us Pogues. With our raging teenage hormones, it's necessary to keep ourselves in check. I, for one, am grateful for the rule. It simplifies any confusion about JJ's feelings for me. It doesn't matter because it's not allowed. Easy peasy. That's the whole purpose of the rule in the first place – to preserve our friendships over anything else. So far, it's been working out for our group just fine.
"Besides, you're the one who's always hitting on my sister."
"Of course I'm always hitting on her. She's hot," JJ states as if it's the most blatantly obvious fact known to man, an unwavering certainty in his voice.
"Do you have a death wish or something, bro?" John B glares at him, but he just ignores him, his eyes focused on me.
"Stop talking out your ass," I tell JJ. He's probably just trying to get a reaction out of my brother and I, and unlike John B, I refuse to give him what he wants. I fight the blush that threatens to paint my cheeks red, but the heat keeps rising to my face and I'm sure I've failed.
"I'm dead serious." He shrugs. "Hottest girl I know."
JJ's called me hot, sexy, beautiful, gorgeous – anything you can possibly think of – a million times before, but it's always obvious that he's just playing around. But it doesn't feel like that this time. I study his face. There's no hint of his usual flirtatious smirk, and his eyes don't have that playful sparkle in them. He just looks serious, like he's just being honest.
So, um... thats new.
JJ Maybank, my best friend and the island's very own bad boy heartthrob, thinks I'm hot. Like, for real. Disregard everything I said about my confusion being simplified. I'm confused as fuck. What am I supposed to do with this information?
"Watch your mouth, dude." John B takes a step ahead of us and starts walking backwards, pointing at JJ with narrowed eyes. "You need help. Not, like, a little bit of help. You need a lot of help. It's like every girl who just has a heartbeat, you're like—"
I tug on my brother's shirt, cutting off his rambling. "Guys, I think this is it." I'm clearly the only one that's paying attention because we've reached the very last door, and it reads, '229', matching the number on the keychain.
JJ impatiently pushes past us and knocks on the door, making a funky little beat that John B bops his head to. I side-eye my brother's off-tempo movements. White boy with no rhythm. Shocker.
"Housekeeping!" JJ calls out in a high-pitched voice. He knocks a few more times before shuffling over to where I'm peeking through the window. He gives the glass a couple taps as well.
It seems as though no one's inside. I can't see anyone, and with all of JJ's knocking, any possible inhabitants of the room were given more than enough opportunities to make their presence known.
John B removes the key from his pocket. "Should we try it?"
"Yeah." JJ gives the green light. "No persona aquí. No power. No security cameras. No one's gonna know."
"No hay nadie aquí," I correct him. "That wasn't bad, though." I giggle at the goofy smile he wears in response to my words of praise. He's clearly pleased with his attempt.
He's constantly asking me how to say random words and phrases in Spanish, which I'm more than happy to teach, being proud of my Puerto Rican roots and culture. And throughout the years, he's picked up quite a bit. He understands more than he can speak, and what he does say isn't always grammatically correct, but he's always close enough that I know what he means. He's learning, and I'm a proud teacher.
Once John B unlocks the door, he allows JJ and I to enter first while he follows behind. We all just stand there for a moment, just inside the entryway, staring blankly at the room before us. It's a little underwhelming at first glance. It's just a dingy room at a dingy motel with dingy keys – a little messy, but overall, boring.
I'm not quite sure what I was expecting to walk into. Maybe a crime scene with a body on the floor?
God, I'm turning into Pope.
"Huh. Okay." John B shines his flashlight around the room, allowing us to fully take in its contents, which isn't much. There's a duffel bag on the bed closest to us and another one on the luggage rack by the door. "Check the bags. See if there's a name on there somewhere."
While the boys begin to search through the luggage, my feet carry me between the two beds to the unorganized pile of papers and random items on the nightstand. I rummage through the clutter, only somewhat listening as the boys call out their findings.
"Got a jacket."
"Denim slides."
"No name on the jacket. It's a nice jacket, though."
"Definitely over fifty. He's got New Balances."
In the top drawer of the nightstand, I find a prescription bottle. I hold it at eye level and shine my flashlight on the label to examine it. "Got some Viagra. That's cute. The name on the label's scratched out, though."
"My man's keeping busy!" JJ cheers as he comes to stand beside me. He looks over the papers for a moment before pointing to one of a few sticky notes on a map. I raise my eyebrows with a shrug, letting him know that I think it could possibly be useful. "Yo, dude, come here," He calls out to John B. "Maybe this is where they were fishing."
"Let me see." John B stands on the other side of me, peering over my shoulder at the coordinates scribbled on the sticky note. "Nah, that's off the continental shelf. That's Big Swell. Nobody fishes there."
A small piece of paper partially tucked under the telephone catches my eye. I pick it up and read the numbers '61666' silently to myself. I turn around, my eyes scanning over the room thoroughly when I notice a small safe under the dinosaur of a television that sits atop the dresser.
I lightly kick my brother's leg to get his attention, and hand him the note, pointing my chin in the direction of my latest discovery. "Try the safe."
He nods and makes his way across the room. "Coffee?" He jokingly asks in a poorly executed British accent, gesturing towards a dirty coffee pot that someone clearly used but didn't clean.
"Yeah. Standard," JJ continues the bit in the same accent. "Tissues for when you get lonely." He points his flashlight at a tissue box that's not far from the coffee pot.
"Oh, is that what you do when you get lonely?" I ask teasingly, knowing for a fact that he isn't talking about crying, not from his eyes anyway.
"Wouldn't have to if you'd come help me." He flashes me a naughty smile and pairs it with a wink.
"Dude, what the fuck?" John B practically shouts as he kneels down in front of the safe, glaring at the blond boy and causing him to hold up his hands in surrender.
I roll my eyes, making my way into the small bathroom to continue my search. "You really are disgusting, JJ. You know that?"
"Oh, come on. You walked right into that one," he laughs. He's quick to follow me, coming to stand behind where I'm standing in front of the sink.
"I'm starting to think you might actually have a death wish. He will kill you."
He leans in behind me, holding my gaze in the filthy, smudged mirror, and whispers in my ear, "At least I'd die happy."
I force myself to give him an unamused glare, even though I really want to smile. I keep my voice low, so my brother doesn't hear. "God, you really need to get laid. You sound desperate." I turn around to face him, our faces being much closer than I was anticipating. Looking up at him through my lashes, I tease, "Poor JJ. Has it been a little while since you got some action?"
He runs his tongue over his teeth and takes a step closer, pinning me in with his hands on the porcelain sink behind me as his light eyes bore into my dark ones. "Oh, trust me, Princess, I get plenty of action."
Holding my breath and chewing nervously on the inside of my cheek, I no longer feel as confident as I did just mere moments ago. I'm fully aware he gets lots of action. I've heard him talk about his sexual endeavors with the other boys, and I've heard whispers of his experience from girls at school.
In all honesty, I'm the one who needs some action. I haven't had sex since I broke up with Rafe. And considering our relationship was one that very regularly involved sex, four months is a long time to go untouched.
I can't help the brief moment of wondering what JJ's hands would feel like on my body, his cold rings against the warmth of my skin. If it was just the two of us in this motel room, I probably would've folded and let him bend me over the sink. And obviously, it would be just sex. No strings attached. No emotions involved. But he doesn't need to know what I'm thinking, so I push the intrusive thoughts aside.
"Really? I would've never guessed with the way your little friend made an appearance last night when all I did was breathe." I gesture downwards with a circular motion of my finger. "You seem pretty deprived to me."
"'Little' isn't the right word and you know it." He practically growls, his hips pressing into mine, causing my lips to part with a tiny gasp. He's right. I do know it. It looked like it was far from little. "I could prove it to you sometime, if you want." His eyes drift down my body before slowly working their way back up and settling on mine again.
I'm not exaggerating in the slightest when I say my heartbeat just teleported between my legs. I didn't realize just how needy I am until this very moment. First him calling me hot and now this? It feels wrong to say – because it is so fucking wrong – but I just want him to touch me. Somewhere. Anywhere. Everywhere.
I roll my bottom lip between my teeth and whisper weakly, "Stop, J." I don't care if I just made it obvious that I'm turned on. I don't have enough self-control for whatever the fuck this is.
I can see it in his eyes as something switches in him, like he just realized he may have taken it too far. We flirt and tease each other literally all day, everyday, but this is the first time either of us have actually gotten this worked up. This is the first time I've actually considered doing something about it.
This is exactly why we have a rule.
He runs a hand through his hair and takes a few steps back, looking down at the ground, and I feel like I can finally breathe again. I watch as he turns around and begins to look around the bathroom, pretending as though nothing just happened. It's probably best that way. I don't think I want to talk about it.
"Ooh!" He grabs a small toiletry bag off a shelf and begins digging through it. I've never been more grateful for his short attention span than I am right now.
"Did you find anything?" John B's voice calls out to us. I don't say anything. I'm still too flustered. My shaky voice would be a total giveaway.
"Just this really awesome Dopp kit you won't let me steal." JJ doesn't even bother looking up as he picks through the bag's contents.
"Yeah, 'cause we're not stealing shit."
JJ looks back at me with a sly grin as he slips a travel-sized Old Spice deodorant stick into his pocket. It's like a gift sent from heaven, his signature scent. I smile back and pretend to zip my lips shut, then lock them and throw away the key.
Just play along, Mari. Nothing happened.
JJ exits the bathroom, and I hang back for a moment to collect myself. I take a deep breath as I stare at the wall across from me. I think I understand now why Pope was so uncomfortable after he saw Kie and I kiss. The feeling of arousal for your best friend doesn't feel good, in case you were wondering. It feels filthy, disgusting – like I need to bathe in bleach, wash my mouth out with soap, and head to the nearest church for a confession.
"Punching shit at random," I hear JJ speak over the beeping from the buttons on the safe. "That'll definitely work."
My jaw drops and I quickly rush over to my brother, watching in awe as he enters the numbers '1123, 1124, 1125, 1126' and so on. He's quite possibly the dumbest creature on the planet.
I press my fingertips to my temples and squeeze my eyes shut as I speak through gritted teeth. "John B..."
"What?"
"The note," I breathe out, gesturing towards the paper in his hand, the one I gave to him for a very specific purpose. "The numbers. You didn't try them, did you?"
"Oh, shit." His eyes widen in his moment of sudden understanding. "That's for this?"
"Why the fuck else would I give it to you?" I pull at the roots of my curly hair.
"I don't know! I just— I thought—"
"Shut up! Stop talking. Just try it." There's absolutely no way in hell I'm actually related to him. I refuse to believe it. I make my way over to JJ by the nightstand again, puffing out my cheeks as I exhale. "If anybody asks, I don't know him."
"And ya'll say I'm the dumb friend." He scratches the back of his head in disbelief.
I pat his back supportively. "That's really just because you're blond."
He scoffs and looks down at the map again, his focused eyes glazing over the information scribbled onto the sticky notes. With the beeping of the safe sounding off in the background, he begins to ramble, just thinking out loud. "I don't know... I don't know about the second one. These coordinates, they— Wait! My cousin said you could catch swordfish here."
"Which cousin?" I raise an eyebrow at him. "The EMT or the one who's always so chronically high he thinks you're his sister?" I've warned him on multiple occasions not to believe a word that comes from the mouth of the latter.
Before he can answer, John B's voice fills the room. "Guys?" We both snap our heads in his direction, having momentarily forgotten about the safe as we were too caught up in our side conversation. "You're gonna wanna see this." He holds up a wad of cash. Hundred dollar bills to be exact.
My eyes land on the safe. Inside of it is even more money and... no fucking way. A gun.
A normal reaction would be curiosity, or slight apprehension, or maybe even some demented form of excitement. Judging by the look on my brother's face, he's experiencing all three, but the sight only makes my stomach churn. The stacks of Benji's paired with a deadly weapon confirm my suspicions. This shit is definitely sketchier than we're prepared to deal with.
I glance cautiously over at JJ, knowing that with his limited supply of self-control, the chances of him doing something completely unhinged right now are high.
I'm right, as always.
His jaw drops as he rushes over to the safe. Shoving John B aside, he surprisingly bypasses the cash, and not so surprisingly, snatches up the gun and waves it around like a child.
"JJ!" I shriek and shrink back as he haphazardly handles the weapon.
"You grabbed the gun. You grabbed the gun." John B panicks. "Put the gun back, JJ!"
"This is a SIG Sauer. This is a fucking spendy gatt, man!" He completely ignores our protests as he points the firearm aimlessly around the room. "Bam! Bam!"
It's official. I'm best friends with an idiot.
"JJ, stop fucking around!" I step away until my back hits the wall.
"Just take a pic of me. Right here." He poses with the gun as if he's Liam Neeson in Taken. "Mari, come here, get in the pic. Do something badass."
I rear my head back. "What the fuck? No!"
"You want me to take a picture of you?" John B deadpans, his body language completely void of any emotion. It's as if JJ's ignorance flushed all the panic from his system, leaving him just annoyed. "Wanna make our own incriminating evidence? Is that what you're talking about?" His words wipe the smile right off of JJ's face.
"He already got his fingerprints all over it!" I flail my arms as I freak out. "I think that ship has sailed."
"So, I can keep it, then?" JJ asks excitedly, causing my brother and I to look at each other in disbelief.
"No!" We shout simultaneously.
Suddenly, there's a tap at the window behind me. I quickly spin around and peek through the blinds as both boys scramble to my sides to look as well.
"Wait, what was that?" JJ asks, not being able to see past my brother and I.
My eyes find Pope and Kiara in the patchy grass just below us. They're both bouncing around on their toes and flailing their arms, pointing towards the front of the motel. It's a pretty funny sight, actually. I would laugh if it weren't for the fact that they seem to be mouthing something important.
Cob? Like, corn on the cob? No. Top. Topper? As in Topper Thornton? That prissy Kook with the flip flops? What the fuck is he doing here and why should I care?
Holy shit. Is this his motel room?
John B bolts away from the window, causing both JJ and I to flinch at his sudden movement. He jumps up on the bed closest to the door and runs across the mattress like he's at a trampoline park. When he reaches the other window, he peeks through the blinds, his body stiffening as he whispers, "Cops."
Ohhh. Cops, not Top. That makes much more sense.
After my brief moment of realization, the panic sets in and fear floods my bloodstream. Of course I've done risky things before, illegal things, even. I've hung out with the Pogues all my life, it comes with the territory. But surprisingly enough, I've never been caught.
"No, no, no, this isn't happening," I mutter, my fingertips digging through my curls and pressing into my scalp.
While I'm stuck in a state of shock, the boys don't waste a second. JJ runs back to the safe, closing it up so it looks like we were never here, and John B begins working on the latches on the window behind me. He slides it open just as JJ comes rushing over to me, snapping me out of my daze and pushing me towards the window my brother is currently climbing out of.
"Go, go, go!" He whisper-shouts.
A man's voice calls out from behind the door. "Kildare County Sheriff's Department!"
John B finds his footing on a small ledge of roofing and outstretches his hand for me, helping me out after him. JJ follows suit, scrambling out quickly as we hear the door unlocking. He shuts the window behind him as swiftly, yet as quietly, as possible.
I shuffle along the ledge, coming to stand with my back against the wall to the right of the window, while John B faces the wall on the left side. With nowhere else to go, JJ positions himself in front of me, our chests pressed together. He leans forward with his hands on the brick on either side of me, using his body to shield me from the view of the window.
Basically, I'm pinned in. This feels familiar. Like, less than ten minutes ago, familiar.
I let out a shaky breath as I turn my head to look at my brother, who's leant over ever so slightly to peer through the window, his eyes wide at whatever it is he's seeing.
"Sir?" I can faintly hear a woman speak.
"Everybody's gotta dip their beak."
I have to stifle a scoff. The officers are taking the money for themselves. Am I surprised? Not even a little bit. The entire justice system is corrupt.
Fuck twelve.
"What the fuck?" JJ whispers.
I look down to where our friends have returned to the boat, watching us anxiously. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice a black object sticking out of JJ's pocket. "JJ— the gun?" I whisper to him, eyes filled with worry. I can't believe he really took it.
He reaches to stuff it further into the pocket of his cargo shorts, but moves too quickly in his nervous state and accidentally knocks it out. It tumbles down the roof under our feet before smacking against the dumpster below with a loud bang.
The three of us freeze, but only for a couple seconds. We all jump when the blinds shoot open. JJ presses his body tighter against mine, desperately trying to keep us both out of the officer's sight. My back begins to ache from the pressure of it against the brick, my erratic breathing the only sound that can be heard amongst our silence.
I look up into JJ's eyes, seeing a hint of fear swimming in his ocean blue irises – an emotion he doesn't emit often. Our faces are no more than an inch apart as he brings his finger up and places it against my lips to hush my heavy breathing. Holding his own breath, he rests his forehead on the wall beside my head.
"Alright. Let's go. No one's here."
JJ lets out a sigh of relief, his breath fanning my neck. I feel the pounding in my chest begin to let up, my heart resuming its normal pace.
That was a close one.
Once we're sure the coast is clear, we all climb down from the ledge. The boys help me down, as my short stature makes it a much more daunting drop. JJ makes sure to grab what he's now calling his gun before we take off towards the HMS Pogue, and the five of us peel away from the scene.
"Well, that was fun," JJ chuckles as we boat back through the marsh. "Could've warned us a little sooner."
"We would've, except Pope was on the math team," Kie voices disappointedly, side-eyeing the Heyward boy.
John B scrunches up his face. "You were on the math team?"
"You don't remember?" I can't believe my brother's lapse of memory. Boys don't pay attention to shit. "What's forty-six times thirty-nine? Go!" I decide to quiz the brainiac, making sure his skills are still fresh.
"One thousand seven hundred ninety-four," Pope rolls his eyes as he speaks, clearly not enjoying the fact that the nerdiest point of his life is the current topic of discussion. He didn't even think about his answer, leaving me in utter shock. I just assume he's right. He always is. And I don't care enough to fact check him. "The cops took everything like it was a crime scene. Did you guys find anything?"
"Did we find anything? No, I don't think so," JJ drawls out sarcastically as he pulls the gun and a wad of hundreds from his pocket. I shake my head. I didn't realize he had stolen money too. "Oh, yeah, we did." He smiles like a kid on Christmas morning.
"Dude, what?" Kiara gasps.
Pope shoots up from his seat. "What the hell? Why would you take that from a crime scene?"
I hear John B laugh under his breath and I shoot him a glare while Kie chastises him, "Are you serious?"
"Dude, chill. Come on." JJ rises to stand with Pope. "It's better than the cops having it."
"I'm gonna lose my merit scholarship."
"Hey, hey, hey." The blond raises the barrel of the gun to Pope's lips as he shushes him. "At least you have us, right?"
Pope pulls away from him with wide eyes. "I'm living the nightmare."
You and me both, Pope. You and me both.
"Did you at least check the safety on that thing?" I call over to JJ.
He looks down at the weapon in his hands, his eyes widening as he realizes that the safety is, in fact, off. He fumbles with the gun clumsily, switching the safety into the 'on' position and flashing me an embarrassed smile.
❛ ━━･❪ ❀ ❫ ･━━ ❜
"Who's that?" John B asks curiously.
Sitting around with some kids from my brother and friends' school, we watch as a body is retrieved from a fishing boat that just docked at the marina.
"It's Scooter Grubbs," a younger blonde girl that I don't know responds to his question. "He was out during the storm. Check out this pic I got." She raises her phone for us all to see. "Dead body."
I cringe when my eyes land on the photo, taking in the sight of the man's corpse, swollen from the water. Why would anyone want a picture of that?
As my body tenses beside him, JJ reaches out and shoves the girl's phone away. I give him an appreciative smile.
I've seen Scooter around before. He wasn't all there, and as mean as it sounds, he was a bit of a bum, but he was nice enough. It's not necessarily shocking that someone like him would do something as irrational as take a boat out during a hurricane, but still, I'm surprised to hear how he met his end.
"Scooter!" An older woman comes running down the docks, almost collapsing when she reaches the body laid out on the gurney. "Scooter? Oh, God!" She sobs, her shaky hands gently caressing the dead man's face.
I recognize her as well. She's Mrs. Lana, Scooter's wife. I don't know too much about her, but I've always wondered how a seemingly well-rounded woman like her ended up with a deadbeat like Scooter Grubbs. But you know what they say. Love is blind.
I feel for her. I really do. I can relate to her pain.
I remember the day of my mother's funeral, seeing her body lay lifeless in that casket. Up until that moment, I hadn't cried much. Not because I wasn't sad, but because I was in too much shock to react fully. But seeing her like that – her skin pale and not even an ounce of life upon her face – there wasn't even a hint of the beautiful soul that once inhabited the corpse in front of me. That's when the reality of it sunk in, and it felt like my world was crumbling to ash around me.
I remember how my knees buckled, and my father was the only reason I didn't collapse to the ground. He rushed over and wrapped his arms around me before I could fall, and gently lowered our bodies the rest of the way down as I cried in his embrace on the floor.
Now, I can't help but think, what if that was my father's bloated body being salvaged from the water instead? What would I do, then? The thought makes my stomach twist.
"What kind of boat did he have?" JJ asks the blonde girl, his voice pulling me out of my thoughts.
"Somehow, that dirtbag copped a brand-new Grady-White. Everyone's out looking for it."
author's note:
no lies were told. mari's hot. screw jj, i'll take her instead.
but shit's starting to get crazy!!! and the sexual tension???
also, her teaching him spanish??? him showing an interest in her culture??? that's top tier bf material right there.