JJ and a Routledge

Found

As we reverse backward into a patch of dirt, I take in the Twinkie. Shit, we took way too long. Pope, JB, and Sarah were all on top of it by now, and over half of it was underwater. JJ gets out of the car first and Pope burst out in anger. "Where the hell were you guys!" 

"Paternel, complications." Kiara points at JJ who suddenly looks very guilty and mad. 

"Luke was at the Chateau." JJ grunts, taking the long rope out of the truck bed. 

"Oh great! While you were having family time with your pops, John B got bit by a gator!" My eyes widen and I examine John B's body. I quickly find the huge cut up his leg. 

"Wait for real?" The other two with me look equally as shocked. 

"Yes for real, Coral!" Pope shouts. 

"Does it look like we're joking?" Sarah gestures to John B's leg. Well, shit. 

"Okay, what the hell happened?" Kiara exclaims as we walk up to the swamp. 

"What the hell happened?" John B repeats. "I got bit by a gator!!!" Pope joins in, with JB, yelling the same thing at us. 

"I don't know why we're being yelled at, I put my ass on the line." Kiara points back to the truck we stole right under her dad's nose. 

I glance over at JJ during all this and I see him pulling at his hair, he's about to blow."You're being yelled at because it was 20 minutes--" 

"Can we stop the yelling?" I ask them, "We got here as fast as we could, okay?" Pope continues to yell over me, clearly being a little harsh on Kie. That's when JJ blows. 

"Just shut up!" Everyone goes silent. "She already told y'all to shut your mouths and yelling isn't going to get us anywhere, alright?" I see guilt flash over everyone's faces. "Seriously, guys, I can't take it anymore. Everyone just cut it out for a second." JJ goes to a nearby tree and leans against it, taking a deep breath. "Look, I just helped my dad leave this island for good. Like, he's not ever coming back." JJ shrugs now like it was nothing, and I flashback to mere minutes before when he had a breakdown in the car. "He's straight up like the Spanish. Just, 'Bon voyage'" We all give him confused looks and Sarah finally confronts him, in a whisper. 

"That's not the right language."

"All we got... And I know for a fact all I got is you guys, okay? You're it." JJ looks right at me, and I bite my cheek. "And I've come too close to losing you, all of you. I mean shit, you almost drowned." He throws his hand up at me, "You also almost got killed by a blind lady with Sarah and Kie." He points at them as well. "Pope, you were kidnapped. Sarah, you've been shot. John B, you were almost dinner for a freakin' gator, bro." His hand finally rests back down at his side. "So, this blaming each other is some Kook-ass bullshit, all right? We don't do that. All right? We're Pogues. Sorry, that was a lot, right now. I didn't mean to..." He goes quiet, and Pope smirks, looking over at John B and Sarah. They slowly put their hands together and start clapping, Kiara and I soon join in. 

"Well done," Pope tells him, still clapping. 

"I've gotta be honest," JB tells him, "That's gotta be the best freaking speech you've ever given. Also, you should think about like, a Rosetta Stone because your Spanish and French are flip-flopped." JJ shoots John B two birds, with no other response. 

"You know, we should bon voyage out of here," Sarah suggests. I've never heard a better idea in my life, and I wasn't even the one bitten by a gator. 

"Alright, let's get this damn Twinkie out of here." JJ claps his hands together, and we get to work. 

Soon enough the Twinkie was out. Sarah drove the van, John B and Pope inside with her, JJ directed on the land, with me. And Kiara drove the truck. Soon enough we were on our way to the church, an old one at that.