𝐍𝐎 𝐁𝐎𝐃𝐘, 𝐍𝐎 𝐂𝐑𝐈𝐌𝐄 - kiara carrera²

𝒙. 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓'𝒔 𝒃𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓

"WE'RE HERE!"

Tatum groaned and rolled over her other side at John B's sing-song voice. The sun tried burning through her eyes and she just wanted it to go away. She just wanted everything to go away. When he tried shaking her awake, she pushed him away without any of her usual strength.

"Tate, the boat's run out of gas - we need to go," John B said, attempting to shake her awake, but everytime he moved her, she only dropped again. "Tate, the police could find you here."

"Tate needs sleep," she moaned again, her eyes refusing to open up to the screaming sunlight.

"Tate has been asleep for twenty-four hours," stated Sarah, growing worried for the girl.

With an exaggerated sigh, John B heaved Tatum over his shoulder, ignoring her sleepy commands to put him down. If he did this any other day while she was trying to sleep, she would've hit him. Jokingly, of course. But she would've hit him. Today, however, she was too tired to even raise her voice. That was what worried John B the most. "Come on, let's get some food, huh? Some burgers, maybe?"

"I don't want any food," she mumbled, dangling over his shoulder with her eyes shut. If anyone seen them, they'd think she was dead. "I want to sleep."

The married couple stopped walking at her words and turned to each other with matching frowns. They weren't used to this; they didn't understand what was going on; they didn't know what to do. But Tatum was exhausted. They didn't know if it was mentally or physically, but she was exhausted. And it scared the crap out of them.

"Can you really not do this?" asked Sarah out of concern, looking at the girl, who was somehow almost asleep while hanging off someone's back.

Tatum could barely shake her head. "No. Sleep."

John B bit the inside of his cheek, struggling whether to force her to come with or to leave her on the boat. If they took her with, that would risk her freaking out or snapping, and he didn't want to stress her out even more. And if they left her, the police could find her or she could hurt herself. And because he had no idea what was going on with Tatum, John B had no idea what to do.

Thomas would know how to help. He always did.

However, John B would rather his sister murder a million people, or even kick the living shit out of him, than ever harm herself. That was why he decided to carry on trekking through Charleston with a passed-out girl slung over his shoulder. He knew it looked really bad, but there was no way she could walk herself in this state of mind.

As they searched the large, rich town for anything they could snatch and steal, Tatum stayed asleep, occasionally groaning in answer to the upbeat questions her friends kept on trying to ask. Even when TJ tried to reach for her and out of Sarah's arms, she stayed asleep.

They needed Kiara. Kiara was the only possible solution to this problem.

If it were any other day, Tatum Quinn would be prancing around this town with grins and giggles, pointing out every single beautiful thing she could see to Baby TJ. She would pick-pocket every person that went past, and she would sing her heart out and dance along to the music the homeless played, dropping her stolen money into their nearly-empty jars. And when they found a restaurant, she would suddenly turn into a raccoon and dig out every little piece of cheese in sight.

However, today was not any other day. Today, Tatum was not her usual, energetic self. To John B, it felt like she was back to being the zombie-like girl she was back after her first breakdown the pouges were able to see. He wondered if there were any times she did this before. Every few months, she'd miss school for, like, a week or two. But that was because she was out robbing kooks with her family, right? Suddenly, John B was questioning everything Tatum had ever said or done. All her random disappearances, all her sickness bugs...Obviously these mood swings were nothing new, as Thomas already knew how to deal with them. Was he and the rest of their friends really that blind to not notice them? Or were they just not as noticeable before she killed someone for the first time?

"We gotta get some food," he stated, jogging up marble steps into a garden area of a fancy restaurant with the girl still hanging off him like a sloth. "Follow my lead."

Using the overly demanding baby to his advantage, John B strolled past a waiter and a dining couple, knowing exactly what TJ would do. As expected, the young Heyward leaned out of Sarah's arms and grabbed a fistful of the waiter's shirt, dragging both the man and the wine glasses to the ground. However, the red liquid was not wasted at all. No, because now the man, who was previously enjoying a lovely meal with his wife, had red wine all over his designer clothes.

And not even this made Tatum laugh. Laid across John B's shoulder, the girl stayed undead.

When the man stood up to begin complaining about the 'accidental' spill, TJ, proving that he was very much his sister's brother, slapped him across the face with a bubbly giggle.

"Are you really gonna shout at a baby?" questioned John B when the man's face went furious, and the waiter began muttering words over a walkie-talkie (probably speaking to his manager).

Before things could get any messier, John B and Sarah ran away, each carrying a Quinn sibling in their arms. Knowing he did something funny, TJ proudly clapped his hands together and tried getting his sister's attention by leaning over to pull her hair. But she didn't even flinch.

"The sooner we get the gas, the sooner we get Tate back to herself," John B said confidently at Sarah's worried look. Because he had to be confident about this. There was nothing else to be. He couldn't be pessimistic about this - not when it came to Tatum and her mental health. It felt like they were constantly going in circles. Happy, angry, psycho, depressed - the cycle went on and on and on. And the only resolution they ever came to was Kiara Carrera. She was the one thing holding Tatum back from insanity. If Tatum ever lost Kie, she'd lose herself. She'd go crazy. And if she could be a whole serial killer with her, what was she capable of without her? The thought truly terrified John B. "Did you get it?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Sarah, pulling TJ away before he tore out a chunk of Tatum's hair. She dug her hand down her shirt and pulled out a few twenties. "You mean this?"

John B grinned. "Tatey taught you well."

"I'll sugar mama you."

"I was hoping you would say that."

a/n: im really sorry i didn't update yesterday, my dad relapsed, which set my mum off, so me and my brothers had to leave and go to my nanas and the rest of the day was just really hectic and i had to be there for my little brother and now things are just crazy so i haven't had the chance to write

so, yeah, im sorry this chapter isn't the best but ive really not been okay. i promise the next ones will get better because so am i :) i love you guys <33