Obx 4

Chapter 4

JJ's pov (the event)

Before the event kicked off, I pulled Kie aside for a chat. "Hey, can I talk to you?" I asked, feeling a knot in my stomach.

"Yeah, what's up?" she replied, looking at me with those big, caring eyes.

"My dad... he's back. He asked me for some money," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. Her expression shifted instantly, concern etched on her face.

"What? Are you going to give him the money?" she asked, her voice rising a bit.

"I mean... he's my dad, and he needs money so he can bail out of jail. He says he doesn't want to run anymore," I tried to explain, though even as I said it, I knew how it sounded.

"JJ, do you have any idea how much shit you went through because of that man? You don't owe him anything," she said, placing her hands gently on my cheeks, forcing me to look into her eyes.

"I know. I'm not going to give him any money," I assured her. Seeing the worry fade into a relieved smile on her face made me feel a little lighter.

"Good. Now let's go, because the event is about to start," she said, giving me a quick kiss before leading the way.

The event went off better than I expected. Everyone was celebrating us, and for once, it felt like we were on top of the world, like we had made it. After the event, some old man approached us and handed over a diary. He started talking about a Blackbeard treasure, urging us to go look for it. We exchanged uncertain glances, the attraction of another adventure pulling at us despite everything we had been through.

Back at the château, we gathered in the yard to talk it over. Kie and I were lounging in the hammock, while the others sat around in chairs.

"So... this Blackbeard treasure... you guys think we should go look for it?" Pope asked, breaking the silence.

"Don't we have enough money, guys? Like, this could put our lives in danger again, and I'm kinda sick of dangerous situations," Kie said, voicing what I was sure more than one of us was thinking.

"I'm with Kie on this one," John B chimed in. "Maybe we should just chill out and think this through before making any decisions."

We went back and forth for a while, eventually, we decided to sleep on it and talk more in the morning.

As the others headed inside, Kie and I lingered in our new room—a room we could finally call our own after so many days crashing on couches. The decorations were simple but felt like us, and having our own bathroom felt like a luxury.

Kiara's pov

I woke up to the sound of that annoying alarm blaring in my ear. Groaning, I reached over to turn it off. Next to me, JJ was still out cold, looking peaceful for once. I couldn't help but smile at him, but we both had responsibilities now.

"Wake up, JJ. We have to get ready for work," I said, shaking him gently.

"Five more minutes," he mumbled, pulling the sheets over his head. I rolled my eyes, knowing this game all too well.

I headed to the bathroom to get ready, and when I came back out, JJ was still asleep. Of course. Grabbing a pillow, I hit him, trying to nudge him awake again.

"Leave me alone," he grumbled, refusing to budge. Determined, I yanked the sheets off of him and pulled on his foot, making him tumble out of bed with a thud.

"Kieee, I just wanted to sleep," he complained, rubbing his eyes as he slowly got up from the floor.

"Did you forget that we have jobs now, bitch?" I teased, loving how we could throw around insults with nothing but affection behind them.