P4L, carpe diem (JJ Maybank)

050 !!

We sat in Shoupe's office, as JJ unraveled the gun from the bandana.

Me and Kie looked like we crawled out of the sewer (which we very much did), and Pope and JJ looked regular.

Shoupe looked down at the firearm, then at us. "So y'all are telling me this is the firearm Rafe Cameron killed Peterkin with?"

I nodded my head, vigorously. The officer's had gotten me a bottle of water, since I was still a bit shaky.

"That's exactly what we're telling you, Shoupe," JJ explained.

"and the exact same firearm that Ward just used to kill Gavin," Pope added. Shoupe didn't look completely convinced.

"I-uh—" he sighed, "and where's that corpse again?"

Kie and I scoffed. "Did you look?"

"I checked the hospital. I went by his house. He was out," Shoupe explained, leaving me dumbfounded.

"No shit, cause he's dead!" JJ shouted at him, as Pope held him back.

"Shut up, JJ!"

"Listen to yourself! It makes perfect sense!" I yelled.

"Just because he's not in his damn home does not mean he was a victim of homicide," Shoupe added and I scoffed again.

"Well, we just told you he's murdered so OF COURSE he wouldn't be at home. The timing ISN'T a coincidence," I scolded, beginning to feel faint again. "Are you at least gonna send it in for ballistics and shit, or are you gonna sit on your ass?"

"He'll sit there and wax that damn mustache!" JJ angrily yelled, "is that even real?"

"I'll wax this—" Shoupe said, standing up and trying to talk to JJ.

"Shut up, JJ!" Pope scolded my boyfriend.

"It's not fair, Shoupe!" I said, standing up from my chair as Shoupe opened the door for us to leave.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Did I hurt his feelings?" JJ asked, scoffing softly.

Pope turned back around to JJ. "Shut up!"

"Get out. I got work to do," Shoupe demanded us, as I began to walk towards him, unsteadily.

"Are you serious?" JJ scoffed again.

"Y'all are smelling up my office."

Kie stood up. "Did Ward bribe you? This doesn't make any sense."

JJ went to my side, holding me up steadily. "You ain't gonna do shit," JJ muttered, as he helped me out.

"Turn your back, Shoupe. Turn your back just as you turned your back on my brother AND when my father went missing!" I exclaimed, walking away.

~|~

JJ took me back to the Chateau, so I could get a shower and get to bed. After I got a nice shower, I got out and got into my PJ's which didn't seem that much different from my day clothes.

I popped into my room, looking for the boy. "Jayj?"

He was nowhere to be seen.

I walked out into the deck of the house, and saw him lying on our hammock in the yard. He seemed peaceful, just watching the marsh and listening to the ocean.

I walked slowly walked towards him, slowly.

I looked at him on the hammock, lying down beside him.

"How ya feeling?" He asked me, letting me lay on his arm.

"Like I almost drowned," I chuckled.

"Sorry to break it to you—" he began, teasingly.

I turned on my side, looking at him. He continued to look away from me. "Look at me," I told him.

Hesitantly, he looked down at me. "I'm sorry about yesterday night. I went a bit far. I was just stressed and I was just...determined to help my brother."

"Yeah, I am too, Princess. We both said shit. I just want to stay here with you. Okay with that?"

"Always," I muttered, scooting closer to him. He wrapped his arm around me, rubbing his fingers against my side. I turned onto my stomach and laid my leg onto his body, my hand on his chest. We looked back at the ocean.

He looked down at me, so I looked up at him. "Do you wanna dance?" He asked out of the blue.

I laughed. "Now? There's no music," I said.

"So," he groaned, standing up and holding his arms out to me, "what."

I grabbed his wrists, as he tugged me up.

He hummed a certain song as he danced with me. He pulled me closer towards him, dancing in circles.

He picked me up at the waist, twirling me around like a rag doll. I laughed with him. He looked at me, putting me down, and I did anything every single girlfriend would've done: I kissed him.

After awhile of just dancing together, we both agreed it was time to get some sleep, in which he carried me inside and threw me on my bed and jumped on top of me playfully.

~|~

The next day, we sat in school, in the middle of a history test.

I continued to look at JJ behind me, who wasn't even trying. He made a paper airplane out of his test, and was looking out the window.

I softly chuckled, as I continued to look at my test. I heard the door opened, and looked up at a very distinguished looking man in a suit. He had a light brown envelope in hand, which I could make out to read "Mr. Heyward".

"Mr. Sunn, can I borrow Pope for a minute?"

"We're in the middle of a test right now," Mr. Sunn whispered back.

"I'm from the Vanderhorst Foundation."

That turned Mr. Sunn around to Pope, with a smile. "Mr. Heyward, it's for you."

Pope looked back at me, and I smiled at him, giving a small thumbs-up.

He stood up, and walked out of the room with the man.

...

Pope basically ran/walked/strutted back into the classroom, with the light brown envelope in hand. He looked shocked and sat back down in his seat.

"Okay, what was that?" I whispered, leaning over to him.

Pope showed us the front of the envelope, which was stamped with a nostalgic symbol. The wheat symbol from the Royal Merchant's gold.

"Is that the wheat symbol?" Kie muttered.

I looked back at J, waving to get his attention. He looked up from his paper airplane, his test and squinted at the stamp. His face glowed as soon as he realized what it was.

"What the f—"

Mr. Sunn turned around for one, the yelling in the middle of a test, and two, the almost-swearing.

"Fu...fu...fudge."

"Smooth, Maybank," I whispered at him.