RIVER | JJ MAYBANK

NINETY

MEE-MAW

"Let me know if I'm hurting you." Sarah spoke as she sat Heyward down to clean his wound. He looked as if he was bleeding from a head injury which made everybody worry about him and how he'd attained the injuries.

JJ had gotten the call in the bathroom that Heyward had been badly injured and the Pogue's had rushed to Pope's dads shop. It was awkward between JJ and River, it was also strangely tense between Pope and JJ because he was upset about him hurting River and him seemingly liking Kie without telling anyone else.

"I came as soon as you called." Silas spoke heading over towards Pope. He'd called him on the drive there to tell him that he knew about the deal and to see whether everything they'd been through together was also a lie.

Silas had admitted feelings, only a slight, but enough for Pope to get a giddy feeling in his stomach.

The boys engulfed in a hug but guiltily he came back towards River and allowed her to continue to hold onto him like some sort of support.

"You're doing fine." Heyward groaned as Sarah used a large square plaster to put on the man's head wound. "Thank you, darling." He spoke as the girl rested her hand on him softly.

"Pop, what happened?" Pope questioned standing forward with River still clutched to his side.

"Oh, I should've known better. He came in just as I was about to lock up. Caught me by surprise. Once he had me down, he put his knee in my chest, and he asked me about that drawing you showed me. And in case you're wondering, I ain't tell him nothing." He explained.

"We never doubted that, Sir." River spoke up, JJ noticed that her voice sounded frail as if she'd been crying which matched with her red rimmed eyes and the stains on Pope's shirt that she was still clinging to.

"Now did you track it down?" He asked giving River a thankful smile, Pope nodded and handed Heyward the key.  "Shit, boy, you should've gave this to me. I wouldn't have had to take a beating. What's the big deal? It ain't worth anything. Why they want it so bad?" He asked his son intently.

"I don't know. First, I get this letter telling me that I need to go to Charleston. And then I meet a rich lady who wants me to give her a key that I didn't even know was in my family." Pope responded exasperatedly.

"None of it makes sense." Kie whispered shaking her head. River couldn't bare to look at her anymore so she focused in on her hands and the more she did that the more sick she ultimately felt.

"We'll don't y'all sit here whining about it. Figure it out!" Heyward shouted and Pope was quick to interject,

"No. I'm just going to give the key to that lady. It's not worth-"

"No, no, no. Did I raise you to back down from a fight, boy?" Heyward asked and Pope found his eyes wandering over towards Silas, his clothes seemed overly dark as if he was in some sort of mourning- maybe it was over his relationship with River.

"No, Sir." Pope responded not breaking his stare with Silas once which made the brunette boy smirk in his place, he looked down at his fists that were a little smashed up because he'd hit a few walls angrily.

"Well, all right." Heyward spoke catching onto Pope's eye line and realising a whole load about his son that he'd never really taken into account before. "Now I didn't think about it before but now I'm interested. Well? Did they say why they wanted it?"

"Something about an old cross." Pope responded he looked across at River who had pulled backwards to get some air, she knew that it couldn't have been a coincidence that it was her last name but there was something tying her to all this. "I think it might be some kind of lost treasure."

"You know who you should talk to?" Heyward asked he'd also glance across at River who's last name was the topic of conversation, "Your great-grandmother, Mee-Maw." He spoke and Popes eyes widened in shock as if he should've thought about it before.

"Okay, Pogues, we're going on a trip. Get your stuff and meet back here tonight." Pope responded standing up and looking at the others who saluted and agreed to the time.

River pushed herself away from the Dock and started to walk hoping that she'd lose the others behind her but she underestimated Silas' ability to run and he caught up quite quickly.

"Can we talk?" Silas asked he was trying to be all humour and light because he felt guilty about the outcome of the deal he had made with JJ, "Come on River, I know you miss me."

"I only miss peace and quiet." River responded back quickly she turned a corner and continued to fast walk.

"You can't ignore me forever." Silas added skipping along next to her and River turned to angrily speak to him but she caught a smell of one of the fish shops and gagged she pulled in a barrel and vomited into it looking around to check no one had seen her, "That a new thing?"

"No." River scoffed carrying on walking rubbing the corners of her mouth to sweep the remanence of sick away.

"You're a fraction too young to fit the teenage Pregnancy stereotype. Statistically it occurs between 17 and-"

"Shut it." River cut off, it was getting harder to stop herself smirking and she couldn't stay angry at him, "I'm not pregnant." She stated, "I'm not my mom." She snapped.

Silas laughed as he walked past a shop and peered inside of it curiously before flashing River a look.

"If you're so sure, take a test and prove it." He shrugged, "I'd offer to play a roulette game with you but I don't think that's how it works." He laughed but his brow was raised.

"I don't have time for this." River hissed getting an anxious feeling in her body, "Stop playing, okay? I get that you're trying to make it up to me but I'm not in the mood. JJ kind of told me he likes Kie." River paused "Sorry, I don't know why I told you that- you don't actually care about me."

"Angelica." Silas tutted, "I actually care about you, silly. Hence the reason your kids gonna call me uncle." He joked reaching out and pinching her stomach, "I'll meet you back at yours." He winked backing up into a pharmacy store.

wrote by lucidgravity