everything about you •• jj maybank

forty three

We ended up at the tarmac after promptly discussing the escape plan for when we got the gold. We decided on Yucatán, naturally, thanks to JJ.

Our spirits were high when we pulled up to a wired fence and filed out of the car. But when the door to the Twinkie slammed shut, and I saw the gun tucked into the back of JJ's waste-band, a deep, hollow, and unsettling feeling formed in the pit of my stomach.

I grabbed JJ's arm, pulling him back.

His ocean blue eyes travelled back and forth between mine. His pupils were large and full, an intensity pooling in them that I had come to know.

"What?"

"How about we leave this back for now?" I suggest softly, pointing to the gun. He opens his mouth to protest, with no surprise, and I shake my head. "Come on. I have a bad feeling we are about to cause some trouble and that's the last thing we need right now."

He sulks in front of me, but his eyes search mine, and I know he can tell something is up. I'm nervous, it's easy to tell.

"Please, let's just not make this worse for John B."

Sighing, he pulls the gun from his waist and nods. His hand moves to my arm to gently push me aside and he secures it in the van, where hopefully it cannot be found.

I thank him silently, and he gives me a sarcastic smile back.

When we get to the others, John B is looking out in front of him through a set of binoculars. Chain link fences are all around us, locked securely with no way for us to get into the tarmac.

"I guess we really didn't get so far as to come up with an actual plan, did we?" I laugh dryly, my hands holding onto the fence, eyes straining as I try and look in front of us.

"They're loading up the gold," Pope announces from beside me, his voice low.

"You see anybody important?" I whisper, my hand over my head to shield the sun.

"There's Ward," John B confirms.

I groaned softly in response, knowing it only makes it harder for us if Ward is here.

A few moments pass by, John B concentrating deeply in front of him, and the rest of us just waiting for him to give us any more information. We stood impressively still, not wanting to cause any sort of commotion or distraction.

Suddenly, John B dropped the binoculars from his gaze, his face painted in intense concern.

"What?" Kiara and I speak at the same time.

With one breath, he confirms our suspicions, "It's Sarah."

The hair raises on my arms instantly. I share an anxious look with Kiara. She chews on her bottom lip, and I feel her hand reach for mine, our fingers webbing together messily.

"What's she doing? What's going on?" I wonder, my free hand fiddling with my necklace. He doesn't say anything, and I huff, reaching over to rip the tool from his hands.

"Seriously, Josie? Come on, give it back," he whines, reaching forward.

I slap his hand away, the two of us fighting over the binoculars as I try to get a clear view of my friend.

"Knock it off, John B!" I seethe in a hushed voice, "I can see her talking to some of the guys out there."

He settles down, and I practically hear him roll his eyes beside me, mad that he didn't get his way.

"Okay, Ward and her are walking towards the plane now," I narrate quietly for the others.

It all looks so civil at first. Just a father and daughter doing some work together. He walks her towards the door but she brings herself to a halt, and though I can't see the expression on her face perfectly, I can tell she isn't doing this on her own free will.

Before I can fully process what's going on, Ward is picking her up, forcefully. She fights back and I shake my head quickly.

"No, no, no. John B, he's hurting her!" I announce, everyone's energy completely shifting with my words.

"What?"

"He's hurting her. You've got to do something!"

I bring the binoculars down from my face and turn, but he's already gone running towards the Twinkie.

"John B, where are you going?" Kiara calls out for him.

The four of us have fully shifted our focus to John B as the engine of the van revs deeply. My stomach drops, and we all loudly voice our disapproval when we realize what he's about to do.

"Hey, hold up, dude!"

John B presses on the gas, and the old volkswagen jolts forward. Rushing to get out of the way, JJ screams, "John B, don't be a hero dude!"

But it was too late. JJ could barely finish his sentence before John B was breaking through the fence at full speed. The sound of metal ripping apart, and chunks of chains flying around us takes my breath away.

We all chase after him, screaming for him to stop and come back.

"You're going to get yourself killed, John B!" I shout as loud as I can along with the others, but I know he can't hear us. Even if he did, he didn't care.

My hands are shaking, adrenaline coursing through my veins.

"What the hell is he thinking?" Kiara spits, her head shaking in disbelief. "What the hell just happened?"

I bring my hands to my head, breathing heavily as I pace back and forth, not taking my eye off the Twinkie. "Guys, what are we supposed to do?" I looked to my friends, all three of them just as dumbstruck as I am. "JJ?"

"I- I don't know."

My hands dropped to my sides, a desperate scoff bubbling from my throat.

"You don't know? Don't you always have some sort of plan?"

The muscle in his jaw jumped, his hands clenching and unclenching.

"Well, I don't right now. Okay? How was I supposed to know he was gonna do that? Huh? You're the one who told him to do something!"

"I didn't mean crash through the fence and drive into the tarmac while the plane is taking off!" I shout, my head turning to find the Twinkie, but it no longer being in my sight.

"Shit," JJ cursed under his breath. He took his left hand, and roughly ran it through his blonde hair, tugging on the ends, "What are we supposed to do?"

Kiara took a step closer to us, forcing a deep breath from her chest before speaking, "I don't know but yelling at each other isn't going to help anything."

JJ's eyes met mine again, and he nodded slowly, "You're right, you're right."

I sighed, shaking my arms out and nodding my head along, "Yeah. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry, too."

The words were simple, but for some reason, felt a lot heavier than they were meant to be. Our gaze on each other lingered on, and strangely, I felt a lot better.

Pope and Kiara clung onto each other now, in desperate attempts to find comfort. None of us knew what to do, and we were frozen in time, wondering what was going to happen with John B and Sarah.

In the midst of our silent worry, the echo of police sirens invaded the world around us, catching our attention, and inducing more panic.

Pope was the first to speak up. "I can't get arrested."

"I'm on probation," JJ added quickly.

Kiara took a deep breath, pulling us all together, "Look, we're no good if we're all in jail."

With a shared glance of approval, the four of us took off running, completely unaware of the mess that was to come.