"So, they keep money out here?" Pope questioned as he raised a skeptical eyebrow.
"That's what she said." Mady shrugged as she sat on the floor, watching JJ play with the gold in his hand.
He chuckled at her comment, repeating it. "That's what she said,"
"Stop," Pope frowned at him, and he quickly shut up.
Sarah glanced back at the 4 in the back seat. "I've never even heard of Resurrection Drive."
"Me either," Mady shrugged.
"That's 'cause you're rich," JJ shot back at the girls, earning a frown from them both.
Kie pressed her lips together, "You've never heard of it either,"
"Thank you," Sarah nodded at her. Mady just narrowed her eyes at the boy when he caught her glance. He smirked and she shook her head, feeling the need to look away.
She zoned out to the chatter around her while she controlled the blush on her face. She glanced out the window at the weeds and forest that surround them. This was a pretty secluded area for a warehouse...
Only a moment later sirens were blaring behind them.
"Cops? Out here?" Kiara furrowed her eyebrows, looking out the back window.
Oh shit, oh shit.
The group argued back and fourth and John B asked if JJ had brought the gun.
"No, okay? Everybody told me to leave it back at the place." He held his hands out.
"Thank god!" Kie sighed loudly.
"JJ," Mady snapped at him. "Hide that."
He nodded, fumbling with his backpack to hide the gold.
They continued arguing with eachother while he stashed it under his seat.
"How much weed do you have on you, bro?" Kiara asked the blonde.
Pope fiddled with the backpack as he frantically tried to help JJ hide it. "Get up,"
"He's walking up right now," Pope grunted as they slammed the seat shut.
Mady sat up a little straighter, fixing her hair to appear more casual. Her heart stopped when she heard the cocking of a gun.
Everyone froze, watching as a man held a gun to John B's head.
"Why don't I go ahead and see them hands up in the air, right now?" His voice was smooth as he spoke. Shivers ran down Mady's spine as she sat on the floor, frozen.
"Alla-y'all's hands up in the air, right now!" He shouted, threateningly waving the gun around. Mady watched as everyone slowly put their hands up.
"You, out of the car! Let's go!" He shouted at John B. He slowly opened the door and followed the man around the van.
JJ glanced at Mady, both their hands still at their sides. Kie and Pope looked at eachother, frightened. Mady closed her eyes, taking three deep breathes in an attempt to calm her self. Her heart was pounding in her ears and her fingertips shook.
"Let them out!" The man shouted again, distantly. "What are you waitin' on? What are you waitin' on? Let them out! All y'all."
Suddenly the door slid open right beside Mady. Sarah whimpered in the front seat, and Mady finally raised her hands as the man shouted at them from outside.
"Go on! Go on! Let's get out the car! Let's go!"
Mady swung both legs out the side, keeping her hands raised as she slid out. She narrowed her eyes at the man as he kept his focus inside the car.
"There you go, pretty girl. Here we go! Get out the car, let's go! Hurry up!" He continued as the rest of the group slowly joined John B and Mady at the side of the road.
Mady caught John B's glance as he nodded, attempting to calm her and tell her that it would be alright.
Sarah whimpered as she stepped behind John B. Mady stood infront of them, her eyes locked on the mysterious man in front of her. He wore a skull mask that tapered off just below his eyes. His greasy hair was long and pulled into a ponytail at the back.
JJ stepped out of the van last. "We're broke-,"
"Shut the hell up!" The man screamed at him, pressing the gun into his chest. "Shut the hell up!"
"Alright! Alright! Just relax!" JJ shouted back at him, stepping backwards as the man continued to push the gun into his chest. "Chill!"
Please don't test him JJ, please.
"Blow your damn head off!" He screamed again. Mady stood frozen in place as Pope and JJ backtracked. Pope backed into her, which made them both stumble slightly.
"Lay down in the ditch!" He continued to scream but Mady couldn't move. "Lay down in the ditch!"
Sarah dropped immediately, shaking uncontrollably. Before Mady had a chance to move, the man shoved the barrel of the gun into side of her head where the stitches poked out through her hair.
She nodded her head away but he dug the barrel in again, harder.
"Lay down, princess! In the ditch!" He screamed at her as the group eyed them carefully. She didn't like what was happening, clearly, but she certainly didn't need to end up dead today.
"On your goddamn hands and knees! Down!" He pointed the gun at her until she began to drop, then pointed it at each of them. When he walked back he shouted at JJ, smacking the back of his head. "Put your face on the ground!"
He eyed them all as he reached the end of the line at Mady once again. "Stay here, just like that!" He shouted at them, glancing at the small girl.
"Put your goddamn head down!" He screamed at her, grabbing a fistful of her hair and shoving her face into the dirt.
"Don't let me see you look up! All right?" He shouted in her ear before backtracking to their van. "That's all y'all gotta do." With that, he disappeared into the van.
JJ breathed heavily beside her as he squeezed his hat in his hands. Mady closed her eyes, focusing on her breathing and the throbbing in her head.
She reached slowly to feel the area around her stitches to insure they weren't ripped out. Luckily, she couldn't feel any blood, it was just pain from impact.
"It's a setup, guys," Kie whined from down the line. Her gaze landed on Mady and JJ at the end who had taken the brunt of his force.
"That old bat shanked us," Mady groaned as JJ grit his teeth.
"Fuck!" He muttered, slamming his fist into the ground. "Goddamn it!"
Mady glanced at the van quickly, then slowly moved her hand to rest on top of JJ's. Her own hands were shaking so much, but she squeezed the top of his tightly in hopes to help calm him. She glanced down the line at Sarah who looked petrified. She wanted to badly to console her best friend.
"Wait... no, no, no, no, no," Sarah whimpered. "John B... No.."
John B was slowly standing. This can't be good.
Mady watched intently as he got to his feet.
"John B," Pope hissed. "Don't be a hero, man." This got JJ and Kie's attention as they all watched him place a finger to his lips.
Mady glanced back at the Twinkie to see it rocking slightly as the man rummaged through their belongings.
She turned back and JJ met her gaze. They both sent each other a worried gaze and Mady squeezed a little tighter. JJ opened his fingers, allowing hers to interlock with his. They let their eyes linger for a moment before tearing them away to look back at John B. He was now sprinting towards the mans car.
As they watched him go inside the car, Mady groaned, putting her free hand to her face before dropping it and her head into the dirt infront of her. "Jesus christ," She murmured.
JJ glanced at her and back at the car and groaned as well. They breathed deeply, and Mady could hear someone panting down the line. Sarah whimpered as the mans voice boomed once again.
"All right, y'all stay just like that." Mady lifted her head to look at him and he cocked the gun in her direction yet again. "Unless you want your brains blown out all over this road," He shouted directly at her. She trembled as he pointed between them. "Don't move your goddamn heads, okay?"
Mady's heart rate quickened when he walked back to his car. JJ lift his head, clearly concerned about his best friend as well.
The mans car door slammed shut, and they waited, nervously anticipating John B's actions.
Mady's hands shook, and without looking away from the car, JJ flipped his hand so he could squeeze hers back in attempt to help comfort her. She breathed deeply as they both held on to eachother tightly.
The moment was short lived though, as a moment later the car was rocking and grunting and groaning filled the empty street. The front door swung open, and the man jumped out, which was followed by John B's door.
JJ jumped up immediately, running to help out John B, and Mady jumped up instinctively.
"Guys, I got the gun!" John B shouted right before a loud grunt was heard.
Mady watched as JJ took a shot at the man, but was met with a debilitating punch to the face, sending him stumbling backwards.
Mady took a shot at him next, but he shoved her hard enough that stumbled backwards and slid on the rough gravel.
Kie tried as Mady stood, brushing the dirt off and ignoring the tiny cuts up her legs. Kie took a hard hit to the stomach and gasped, doubling over.
John B took a swing from behind, digging the butt of the gun into the centre of the mans back. He fell forward, landing right beside the front tire of the car.
"I got the gold!" Pope yelled from the other side of the car, making eye contact with Mady who shot him a thumbs up.
Sarah shrieked as he fell at her feet. She grabbed the car door, slamming it into the mans body once, twice, three times.
That's my girl.
Kie, Pope and Mady each took a turn kicking him in the side before he fell against the car, panting.
"You son of a bitch!" Sarah shouted at him. Mady stood between her and Kie as they shared a concerned glance.
John B reached up and yanked the fabric that covered half his face, revealing his true identity.
"I know this piece of shit!" JJ shouted from beside Pope, sweat beading down the side of his face. "He's a basehead!"
Sarah sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Probably knows my brother,"
"He sells coke to my dad." JJ hissed. As soon as the words left his mouth he paused, glancing quickly at Mady. She bit her lip, realization hitting her.
"And my mom." She croaked. JJ's eye's lingered on her a moment as she met his gaze. John B and Pope gave eachother a, 'what?' look, and Kie furrowed her eyebrows looking at Mady.
Sarah placed a hand on the girls back. She looked as if we was about to speak, but the man below them beat her to it.
"Listen, I couldn't hurt any single one of y'all-," Which was met by JJ sending another hit to the man with the butt of the gun. Mady almost laughed at his statement. Couldn't hurt us? As if he hadn't held a gun to their heads moments ago, or threatening to blast their brains through their skulls. Couldn't hurt us.
She scoffed as everyone around her shouted for JJ to stop.
"JJ!" Kie shouted.
"Dude, chill man, come on," Pope tried to reason with him.
The man wheezed infront of them as JJ bent down and retrieved something from his pocket.
"Come on, let's get outta here." Pope tried again as he stood. Mady watched intently to see what he was doing.
He pulled out the mans i.d, throwing his tattered wallet back at him. He shoved John B and flashed the card to Mady, who nodded.
"We got one last stop," JJ growled as he began to stomp towards the Twinkie.
"Hey!" John B shouted after him.
Mady was curious to know more about the pot head who upturned her entire life.
Maybe it hadn't been him in the beginning, but it didn't matter.
She turned on her heel, walking along side JJ as they neared the van.
"Let's go see where this son of a bitch lives!" He shouted over his shoulder.
"I'm gonna remember this shit! You can't hide from me! I know exactly who y'all are! Huh, you gonna see me again! You hear me!" With that, Mady hopped in the passenger side of the Twinkie as JJ started it.
"Come on!" JJ called from the van, Barry's voice still echoing outside.
As soon as John B jumped in the back, JJ put the van in gear, and off they were.
The two teenagers sat in the front seat basking in their anger. Neither of them said a word as the drove deeply into the cut. Their memories of their destroyed families and the rejections that tore their hearts apart, sitting completely out in the open. The validation they sought for suddenly so apparent.
No one in that car could've possibly understood the connection the two teenagers had. Neither would ever admit it, but they both effortlessly hid the pain that so desperately tried to tear them apart.
In this moment, they shared a moment of weakness. No one in the car would understand, but they knew. Mady knew JJ was hurting, just as he knew Mady was struggling. They got eachother. There was just no other way to put it.