wishful thinking ✩ jj maybank

chapter one

"Stop the sirens," Aurelia screams into a pillow, smashing two of them on her ears. "We know there's a hurricane, we can fucking see it!"

Kiara and JJ sit on the other side of Kiara's bedroom, watching the teenager yell. "They'll turn off soon," Kie says.

JJ sits on the edge of Kie's bed, pulling a pillow away from Elle's ears. "Where are Pope and JB?" he asks.

"Why the hell would I know?" Aurelia responds. "Probably doing something stupid."

"Stupid things—"

"Have good outcomes all the time, yes, we know, JJ," Kie says. "Elle, your mom texted you." She hands the girl her phone.

Aurelia checks the message; Come home. I'm worried about you. "Guess everything's perfect in her world, then," she mutters under her breath. "I need to go home." Aurelia slides her flip flops on. "Don't know why she'd want me to drive in a hurricane, though."

"I'll take you," JJ offers. "You can't be trusted to drive in clear weather."

Kie nods. "I'll just stay home, alone and miserable." She opens her bathroom door, turning the shower on.

That doesn't seem 'miserable.' "Bye, Kie."

"Bye, Ells."

Aurelia turns to JJ. "By the way, I am an excellent driver, just so you know."

"Yeah, okay."

They walk to the porch of Kiara's house, staring at the rain and the Twinkie, parked in the road at the bottom of the driveway. "Oh, shit," JJ says. The two share a quick glance and Aurelia throws him the keys, taking her shoes off so she won't slip while running.

"Unlock the car," she tells JJ, "and go."

As soon as she hears the doors unlock, Aurelia runs down the steps and to the passenger door, slamming it shut once she gets in. JJ gets in a few seconds after her.

"I'm surprised you didn't fall," Aurelia tells him.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," he says, starting the van.

They sit in silence for the first few minutes of the ride, Aurelia not wanting to divert his attention from the slick roads. He clears his throat. "You don't—you don't have to go home. You could come back to the Chateau. I know you don't like storms."

It's not that she's scared of the storms themselves; living in the Outer Banks, they're normal. They're just loud, and the darkness that blankets the sky during them makes her feel utterly alone.

But Lana Grubbs was rarely worried about her daughter, so, "It's okay. I'll be fine."

"Just text me if you need me, okay?"

Aurelia nods. "Okay," she whispers.

Halfway through the ride, she finds her hand reaching for JJ's. He grabs it, looking at her through the rearview mirror. Her head is resting on the cold window beside her. He doesn't miss how she flinches every time the thunder strikes.

They pull into her driveway. "And my dad will be home. So my mom will be happy. So maybe the storm won't be so bad," Aurelia says. "Maybe."

"You'll be fine." He squeezes her hand one time before she gets out of the van.

"Thanks for driving me. See you tomorrow."

"Yeah, sure. Bye."

⋆✩⋆

Fun fact; Scooter Grubbs did not return home that night. Now, both Aurelia and Lana Grubbs were worrying. The reason Aurelia's mother asked her to come home was to ask if she had seen her father at all that day—the answer was no, but she claimed that it was also because she was worried about her daughter.