jarah oneshots❤️‍🩹

family

~ This one shot takes place in the end of S4 ep9

The desert stretched endlessly in every direction, a barren expanse of golden sand shimmering under the merciless sun. Waves of heat distorted the horizon, making it seem as if the earth itself were melting into the sky. John B staggered forward, his throat dry, his vision blurred by sweat that stung his eyes. His chest heaved with each breath, and desperation fueled his every step.

"Sarah! JJ!" he called, his voice raw and hoarse, swallowed by the vast emptiness. The sun bore down on him, the unrelenting heat gnawing at his strength, but the thought of Sarah and their unborn baby kept him moving. He couldn't—wouldn't—allow himself to think the worst, even though the scene of her falling overboard played on an endless loop in his mind. Her face, pale and terrified, as she struggled in the water. JJ's determined leap after her. And then... nothing. The water had swallowed them whole, leaving John B to grapple with the crushing reality that he might never see them again. His wife. His best friend. His family.

Family. The word echoed in his mind like a cruel taunt. Sarah was the only family he had left. His anchor in a life that had been adrift for so long. And now, she was carrying their child, the future he had dreamed of. "Please, God," he whispered hoarsely, the words barely audible over the wind. "Don't take them from me. Not now. Not like this."

"Sarah! JJ!" he shouted again, the words cracking like the dry earth beneath his feet. His heart pounded, each beat echoing with fear. He glanced over his shoulder, but Kie, Pope, and Cleo were barely visible now, their figures lost in the distance as they searched in another direction. They'd agreed to split up to cover more ground, but the vastness of the desert made it feel like an impossible task.

John B's legs wobbled, and he dropped to his knees, the scorching sand burning through his jeans. He clenched his fists, hitting the ground as frustration bubbled over. "Where are you?" he muttered, choking on a sob. He wiped at his face with a trembling hand, smearing sweat and sand across his cheeks.

Memories flooded his mind unbidden—Sarah's laughter, her soft smile, the fear in her eyes when she first told him about the baby, the way she made him believe in a future he'd never thought he'd have. "Please," he whispered to the wind, his voice breaking. "I can't lose her. Not her, not us."

The desert offered no answers, only the relentless glare of the sun and the distant howl of the wind. John B forced himself to his feet again, every muscle screaming in protest. He scanned the horizon, his eyes searching for any movement, any sign of them. His breaths came in ragged gasps, and his head throbbed from dehydration and fear.

"JJ! Sarah!" he called again, his voice cracking under the weight of his anguish. His hands trembled as he shaded his eyes, his pulse racing with every shadow that danced on the dunes.

"I'm not giving up," he said aloud, as much to himself as to the void around him. "I'll find you. Both of you. I swear it."

The sun hung low in the sky now, casting long shadows across the dunes. Time was slipping away, and with it, the chances of finding them alive. But John B had enough knowledge to know the dangers of spending a night alone in the desert. He'd have to keep looking the next day. He first needed to be in one piece before he could find them.

John B trudged back toward the Pogues, his body a patchwork of pain and exhaustion. His legs felt like lead, each step an effort as his muscles screamed in protest. His throat was raw, each cough sending a sharp pain through his chest. The sun's heat lingered in the sand, radiating up at him and turning the already oppressive air into an unbearable furnace.

As he neared the makeshift camp, the silhouettes of Kie, Cleo, Pope and Rafe came into view. Their faces were pale with worry. The sight of them should have been comforting, but instead, it only deepened the ache in his chest. He had nothing to offer them—no answers, no hope.