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"Yeah, she does look at you with heart eyes."
- John Booker Routledge
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[present day]
After the boys stranded the girls on Heyward's boat, they went back to the Chateau to have a 'guy's night', as John B called it. Pope started a fire, JJ rolled a blunt, and John B grabbed the beers. They spent the night talking, and joking around, like old times, before their treasure hunting days.
"So, you gotta explain this Sarah Cameron thing to me." JJ says, sitting forward in his chair.
"Yeah, how exactly did that happen?" Pope asked.
John B smiles at the mere mention of the Kook's name. He glances down at the beer in his hand before looking between his friends. "I honestly wish I could tell you...but it caught me by surprise...her too. I was running from DCS, I stole Jorge's bike, and tried to chuck a chained fence. I failed..."
"Obviously." JJ jokes, Pope chuckles.
"Sarah saw it happen, I asked her to help me out. She drove me to her house, cleaned me up in her dad's office. She started telling me about Denmark Tanny, and I connected the dots. She came with me to Chapel Hill 'cause I needed her to get in, like I said...and, I don't know, man. She's different than what I thought she was." His smile widens, as he continues. "She's not some stuck up kook princess, she's...she's funny, and smart, and she doesn't care that I'm a pogue with nothing going for me, you know...it was one of the best days I've had in a long time — if not ever."
JJ smiles to himself, his gaze dropping to the floor, as he thinks about Abby. John B looks over to the blonde, smiling knowingly. "What about you and Abby, man?"
JJ shoots his head up, shrugging. Pope chuckles. "Yeah, and when exactly were you gonna tell me? Not that I didn't already figure it out, 'cause you two were not discreet, like, at all—"
"Alright, alright..." JJ says, waving him off. "I don't really know, either." He says, responding to John B's question. "Like you said, these things just happen."
John B and Pope exchange smiles, shaking their head. "Yeah, no, not for you and Abby."
JJ furrows his brows. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"She's had a crush on you for years — she told me herself." Pope admits.
"And so have you."
JJ shakes his head, chuckling. "Nah, man. I don't have crushes."
"Whatever you wanna call it, man." John B says, rolling his eyes. "Doesn't change the fact that you've been friends for years — it's different for you two. Especially after this last year."
YOU ARE READING
In the Dark ~ j.m¹
RomanceAfter being abandoned by his mother at a young age, left to deal with his abusive father, JJ Maybank feels like he was stranded out at sea during a terrible storm, fighting to make it through each day. Even though he meets the Pogues at a young age...
