OBX Imagines

When he pushed her away and when she pulled him back (part II) | JJ

"Have you seen JJ?"

"Uh, he was here not even five minutes ago." Pope answered (Y/N).

She had just arrived at the chateau and, after greeting everyone, there was only one person left. That person being the boy who she missed like crazy even though she had been hanging out with the Pogues everyday. JJ had been quieter, and she would even say distant, since the episode at the country club. She assumed he was probably just ashamed for crying in front of her. He usually went back to his dorky self no longer after a day, but it had been almost a week and she was dying to hug her best friend. He was there but at the same time he wasn't.

"Do I stink or something? It's like every time I arrive here he runs away."

"You don't stink." Pope assured, passing her a beer, "He has been acting kinda weird, though. He usually behaves like a kid on Christmas when he knows you're coming." he smiled, convinced his friend had some kind of crush on the girl. If only he knew.

She smiled at the comparison and studied the beer can, wondering where he had ran off this time and if she really was the reason for that.

..

JJ missed her like crazy. It had been three weeks since he had had a proper conversation with her. That is, if you can consider a hi or a see ya later a conversation. He just couldn't help the way his hands trembled, his heart raced and the way his mind went blank at the sight of her. (Y/N) was driving him insane without even trying, making him behave in a foreign way, and he couldn't stand it because he didn't know how to control or act on it, let alone stop it. It was scary. He was scared and he just wished he could at least push all of that aside and be able to hug her or even look her in the eye without having this desperate urge to kiss her and tell her how he felt. JJ felt ridiculous for not being able to even be left alone with the girl without starting to sweat and overthink what he should say. I love you and I'm an idiot and I'm sorry. If only it was that simple.

He took a glance at (Y/N) half sitting, half laying down on one of the couches as he stood on the opposite side of the porch. Kie had gone to use the bathroom and Pope was helping John B wash the Twinkie after the dark skinned boy had insisted the van needed an urgent bath. Which left the duo alone, much to JJ's distress and (Y/N)'s nervousness in making conversation after her anxiety had convinced herself that she probably had done something wrong and her best friend was still mad at her.

"So," she started, experimenting looking at him, "how've you been?"

He nodded his head, not holding her gaze for more than a millisecond.

"I'm good."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"

She scoffed, not as discreetly as she intended, making the blonde finally look at her.

"Really?"

JJ shrugged his shoulders in response, pretending to not know what she was talking about. It was stupid of him, he was aware of that. He couldn't possibly believe she hadn't noticed the way he was acting towards her. Or more so, the way he wasn't acting towards her. (Y/N) rolled her eyes after a few seconds of waiting for a proper answer, hopefully an explanation, but nothing came out of his mouth.

"Whatever, JJ." she got up and went inside. It was the first time they had such a short, vain and insecure exchange of words. The pair was always so carefree and loving towards each other, it felt so painfully out of place, like they were strangers.

But it was the way she looked at him disappointedly that made tears form in his eyes as he stared at the wooden floor. He was too stubborn to let them fall though, no matter how much it hurt to see that he was losing her a bit more every day. And it was all because of him.