Playa De Lovers || TD One-Shots

Jo x Brick ~ Missing

Requested by 

It was dark. Brick hated the dark. Not only did he have to suck it up, he needed to be a man. Fears weren't going to get him anywhere in the military, yet he couldn't help but shake almost violently as he stood at the edge of the woods.

He had a flashlight in one hand, a backpack in the other. He was alone, staring at the dark trees that towered over him in a menacing way. Okay, maybe it wasn't just the dark he was afraid of at that moment. 

"I have to do this," he told himself almost silently. "She's somewhere in there. I have to make sure she's okay."

Brick took a step forward, his foot crushing a branch which radiated a loud crack! in response. He froze, listening for anything that might come for him now that he's made himself known. 

Nearly confident that nothing was coming, he took another step, then another and so on until he made his way into the density of the trees. Brick looked back to see a pitch black void, aside from the bright circle on the ground made by the flash of his light. The cabins were nowhere in sight. 

"I'm okay. This is fine. I'm totally fine," he changed to himself. It was doing nothing in convincing him of that, but he kept doing it anyway. 

After losing the competition earlier, Jo stalked off into the woods, strictly telling everyone not to follow her. That was several hours ago. When Brick mentioned that she hadn't come back, nobody seemed to care. He cared though, and not just because it meant one of his teammates was missing. 

"It's alright, mate," Manitoba said. "She's a tough lady if I ever saw one. She'll come back."

"Yeah, if she's not back by morning, we tell Chris, and I'm sure he'll send someone to find her," Zoey added. 

It was then that Brick stood up, disappointed that his own teammates had no interest in making sure their other teammate was okay. He declared he would go find her, grabbed a flashlight, and an emergency bag then was on his way. 

His motto was "No man left behind," but he was beginning to regret his choices just a little bit. Maybe he should have tried harder to convince someone to come with him. Like Cameron or someone, anyone. 

Brick kept walking, slow and careful, constantly flashing his light at anything that looked suspicious or like it might attack him. So far, he's seen a little rabbit and a few threatening tree branches. The rabbit hissed at him and then scurried away. 

Every once in a while, Brick would stop completely. He would stand motionless and hold his breath, listening for any sounds. Footsteps, breathing, anything whatsoever. He would have been calling out for Jo this entire time if it wasn't for his fear of getting eaten. 

About the fifth time he stopped, he heard the sounds of heavy breathing, almost like something was sleeping but struggling to breath. With a large gulp, he moved towards the sound. 

"Please don't be a bear. Please don't be a bear," he mumbled as he moved closer. 

He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw who it was, but he was also immediately on his guard. 

It was Jo. It looked like she had tripped over a branch and fallen. There was blood trickling down her temple. She'd hit her head on a rock when  she fell which then knocked her unconscious. 

Brick had her in his arms with no problem, and he carried her to a nearby tree. Leaning her up against the tree as gently as he could, he took the flashlight from his mouth and used it to assess any of the damage. She had a small cut on her forehead, but that seemed to be about the extent of it. 

He grabbed the emergency bag and searched through it for anything that might help. Coming up with a cream, a sterile wipe, and a large band-aid, he slipped the bag back over his shoulder. 

"Don't touch me," Jo muttered right as Brick was about to put the wipe to her forehead. 

"Jo, you're bleeding," he said slowly, like she didn't already know. 

Her eyes fluttered open. She barely managed to glare at him. "I know. I can feel it, idiot."

"So let me help you," he told her.

"I've got it," Jo told him again. She snatched the wipe away, hissing at the motion. "Goddamn it."

Brick gave her a nonchalant look. "Told you so," he said bluntly. 

She shoved the wipe back at him. "Fine, you do it," she said. 

He gently tapped at her forehead with he wipe. He was very careful to avoid eye contact with her. "Why didn't you come back before it got dark?" he asked her.  

Her eyes closed. "I was pissed. I wandered farther than I thought I did, and it got dark faster than usual. On my way back, I tripped, and now we're here."

Once the wound was cleaned up, Brick brushed her hair out of her face and placed some cream on it. He placed the bandage over it and then sat back on his heels. "There. It's all cleaned up, but we should probably head back to camp to get it properly bandaged."

"Is there anything to help with the pain?" Jo asked wearily. 

"Uh, yeah," Brick said slowly, unsure of himself. He reached into the bag and the first thing he grabbed was a bottle of painkillers.  He read the bottle. "Looks like they're meant to help you sleep, too," he said. "They may also make you a little, uh,"--he paused--"loopy."

She grunted. "I really don't care what they do as long as they get rid of the pain." 

Brick gave her a couple of the pills and the bottle of water also in the bag. She downed both pills with one big gulp of water then passed the bottle back to Brick. "Alright, help me up, Jughead" she said, holding out her hand.

Together, they followed the bright orange ribbons Brick had tied to the trees back to the cabins. Brick could feel his heart beating at a hundred miles per hour in his chest. The darkness wasn't the cause either. It was the nonexistent distance between him and Jo. Their bodies were pressed together as he supported her and he could feel her warmth in his own body.  He wondered what Jo was thinking at that moment. 

When the cabins came in sight, Jo suddenly stopped. "Wait," she said. 

Brick stopped and lifted half his unibrow in question. "Did you leave something behind?" he asked. 

"No," Jo said, shaking her head. "I just wanted to say something."

She was acting differently, Brick realized. Even the way she was talking was off. It must be those meds. 

"Sure, say whatever you need to," Brick said. 

"I just wanted to say 'thank you'," she told him. "I didn't realize how much you cared." She looked him directly in the eye. Brick could swear he saw some sort of twinkle. 

"Uh, you're welcome," he replied. "I mean, I was worried about you."

Jo threw her arms around him in a bear hug. "This is why I like you, Brick. You're so caring."

Reluctantly, Brick put his own arms around her. "Well, you're important to me."

"I like you so much, Brick. I've never felt this way before," she continued on. Then she pulled away suddenly. She looked around her surroundings and seemed to comprehend where they were and who she was talking to. 

She lifted a hand to her mouth and cleared her throat. "I think I'm good to go on my own from here," she said, her face red. 

Brick gave a small chuckle. He leaned over, placed a soft kiss on her cheek, and said, "I like you too, Jo." Before she could curse him out or do something else she'd regret, he headed back towards the cabin.