golden wings melt like blue slushies // JJ Maybank

-Golden-

"My dad's already gonna kill me." Pope sighed. "So what's this mandatory meeting all about?"

"Might as well tell 'em," JJ said, then sat down next to Icarus on one of the logs around the sparking fire, glancing at her with lidded blue eyes. "Before we get gaffed."

"Why are you talking about violence with bedroom eyes?" John B asked with a concerned frown. Kiara just downed the rest of the champagne she'd brought with her in one go and put the glass down next to her bare feet.

Icarus tugged her sleeves down over the palms of her hands and smiled. "The guys who chased us with guns and shot me in the knee and trashed your house and also beat up that lady got killed by someone with a fishing hook and the person who killed them is after you next, but I'm going to pretend Peterkin didn't tell me that because I owe the government thirty thousand dollars so I really need this gold, because Pope got beat up by the kooks and then JJ convinced him to sink the Cameron's boat but Pope has that interview so I pretended I did it instead and got arrested also this is my last strike so if I get in trouble for something else I'm in jail. But no, go on, what were you saying?"

John B blinked a few times, and then waved a hand slowly in her general vicinity. "Uh, we don't have enough time to unpack that, so, uhm..."

The blue velvet of her pants moved as JJ bounced his leg quickly, which was pressed against her own. She pretended that her cheeks weren't warm as he spoke. "Just tell them! It's killing me, man!"

"What's killing you is all those shots you downed ten minute ago," Kiara shot back, her eyebrows raised. Pope cleared his throat and glanced down at the glass next to her shiny red toenails. She stuck her tongue out at him.

John B shook his head and started waving his hands, already pacing around the fire they gathered at. "So, the gold never went down with the royal merchant."

"Oh my god, here we go again with this!"

"No, no wait, hear him out, alright?" JJ argued, loosening the black bow tie around his neck pitifully. "It's been here the whole time, it's on the island."

"Are you serious? Oh my god!"

"I'd like to voice my scepticism," Pope spoke up, folding his arms. Icarus leant over as JJ managed to start choking himself with the black silk and held his head still. She unthreaded is bow tie carefully, smoothing out the material where he'd knotted it.

"I'm sure you would, Pope, but can I please present to you my evidence sir?"

"...Proceed."

JJ leaned forward, his head dipping close to Icarus's and making her head foggy with thoughts involving things she shouldn't be thinking about. Why did he have such pretty lips? "The fancy talk always gets him."

"Do you reckon he has a thing for being called sir?"

"Why," JJ asked with a smirk, but she could see something else in his eye. "You interested?"

Icarus squinted at him. In which multiverse did she want to pin Pope to a wall and kiss him until all he could say was her name in the way she oh so wanted to do with JJ? She didn't tell him that, though, instead she went with the simplified answer. "Uh, no."

"Kiara?"

"Nah, if we broke up then it would be really awkward and you guys have known her for way longer so you'd chose me over her and I'd just have to hang out with Mitchy all the time but then he'd get sick of me too and I'd be alone on my boat forever..."