Together

12. Concerned Parent Energy

This isn't real
It's all in my head, I can feel it
I'm imagining this
Can I wake up from this dream?
Roll over, fall back to sleep please
-Lost Kings

JJ sees Kie enter the school from where he standing with the group in the common area. His smile quickly faded when he saw her expression. She didn't seem to be aware of her surroundings, looking down as she walked, lost in thought. When she did see him her face turned up, appearing to want to put whatever thoughts or feelings she brought with her away.

"Hey," she said, hugging him a little tighter than normal.

"Sup, Carrera," he threw back, kissing her temple. "You good?"

Kie put a hand to his cheek. "Your face looks like shit."

JJ scoffed a laugh. "Yeah, yeah, so I've been told," he mumbled, thinking about the semi interrogation by Darcy earlier.

He didn't miss how she hadn't answered his question, being king of avoidance himself. He gave her a serious look.

"Really though, Kie, you alright?"

"Yeah, it's nothing, just my dad being weird," she blew off casually.

JJ wanted to inquire more but Sarah Cameron left her own conversation with John B to budge in in on theirs. She was practically bubbling.

"Oh! I wanted to ask you," she says turning to Kie who is more than happy for a change in the direction of the conversation.

Sarah pouted in JJ's direction before speaking, like he was the one that would need to be convinced. He threw a weird face at her like he was suspicious of what she was gonna say but curious enough to want to hear it.

"Can we please double date!"

JJ rolled his eyes, she was right to think he'd need to be convinced but missed the mark in thinking he would actually be swayed by her puppy dog eyes.

Kie laughed, not surprised in the slightest. Sarah was always trying to double date when they were at the Kook Academy together. She tried so many times to set Kiara up but either Kiara got out of it ahead of time or managed to slip out with an excuse before the appetizers had even arrived. She maybe got through one double date before their falling out and that being the end of it.

"Come on!" Sarah whined.

Kie looked to JJ, still mild annoyance on his features. She didn't like double dates before, but this could be different. Her date would definitely be different.

JJ saw her smile turn genuine at Sarah's request. He sighed dramatically, "Haaaaa fine."

Sarah celebrated with her own victory dance and pulled Kie into a hug as she dragged her down the hall to plan.

JJ felt his phone buzz as John B made a comment about the date better being anywhere but the Island Club. He opened the message half mumbling agreement with his friend.

Shoupe: You need to come home after school.

Involuntarily, JJ's heart started to pick up pace. He swallowed hard. Those exact words he'd seen many times before, from his dad.

He suddenly felt like the walls were closing in. Warning bells going off as he stared at the words. It always resulted in disaster when he would go back to his shack after a message like that. A smack across the face or a kick to the ribs for reasons he had no clue why always occurred no matter how innocent the message would appear.

John B placed a hand on his shoulder as he passed him to head to class, having still been carrying on while JJ was beginning to be flooded with one thought.