Truth Comes Second

Be Safe

Author's Note: So sorry I take forever to update! My life is so crazy between work and school and the other stories I'm currently working on. I hope you all enjoy! Your support is the greatest thing ever!

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Julie's POV:

Carrie didn't leave her room for the rest of the day. I wasn't going to complain. I knew once I saw her again she was going to want to talk about the meat, and that was a conversation I'd like to avoid.

Jimmy and I spent the rest of the day together in bed. I couldn't believe how much I missed the familiar warmth of his skin against mine. It felt good to be able to rest my head against his chest and hear his strong rhythmic heartbeat. We whispered each other, and made sure that Carrie would not be able to overhear us.

I made us sandwiches and brought them back to the room. We ate in silence, and when Jimmy was done he looked over at my window. The sun had set, and my lamp was turned on to cast shadows over my room.

"I should probably get going soon," he told me.

"No." I wrapped my arms around him. "Please stay."

"It's too dangerous to. You'll be in trouble if they find me in your room."

"But I don't want to lose you again."

Jimmy grazed his fingers down my jaw before tilting my chin up with thumb. His soft brown eyes stared down at me. I was afraid to blink. My eyes burned as I felt the tears build up.

"I promise you won't," he said. "I'll come back."

"I'll fix this for us," I told him. "I'll convince them Tommy is to blame."

"If not I'll figure something out. No one will tear our family apart."

I buried my face into Jimmy's chest. He ran his fingers through my hair and he pressed his lips against the top of my head.

"Wait a bit. There'll still be too many people on the streets," I said.

"Okay," he agreed. "Now, tell me the story again."

Jimmy and I went over what we agreed what went on in that house. If Jimmy was arrested, his story would be a duplicate of mine.

--

If we weren't woken up by Hunter's crying, Jimmy probably would have stayed the night again. I dragged myself to Hunter's room and picked him up. I soothed him until he calmed down. Once he stopped crying, I brought him back to my room.

Jimmy had pulled his sweater back over his head. He looked in my mirror as he combed his hair with his fingers. He tried to pull his hair down over his scar. His lips lifted into a bittersweet smile when he saw me. Hunter was sucking on his chubby fingers.

Jimmy reached out and took Hunter out of my arms. He held him up over his head. Jimmy's hood fell back as he looked up at Hunter kicking out his legs and throwing his fists around. Both of them were laughing, but my motherly instinct kicked in and I was afraid that Jimmy would drop Hunter. I was relieved when he rested Hunter on his hip.

"I'm going to miss you two," Jimmy said.

"Please come back soon," I said.

"I will."

Jimmy bounced Hunter up and down and mumbled to him. I couldn't understand what he was saying, but I assumed that it was something cute.

That's when something caught my eye.

Something was sticking out of his pocket, and I reached out and grabbed it. Jimmy's eyes grew big as he watched me pull it out.

It was a gun.

I almost dropped it on the ground. I tightened my grip around it so that I wouldn't drop it. If I dropped it would it go off? I didn't know and I didn't want to find out.

Jimmy must have had this gun since he came here. How come I never saw it before? He must have had it hidden in his sweater. He had only been wearing his T-shirt since he came into my room.

"Julie-"he started to say.

"Why do you have this?" I cut him off.

"Just in case," he said. "I didn't know how long it would take to find you, and I didn't want to get caught."

"If cops see that you have this they'll shoot you."

Jimmy didn't say anything. He looked down at Hunter to see he had fistfuls of Jimmy's sweater and started sucking on his sweater too. He kissed Hunter's temple before handing him back to me. I carefully place the gun down on my bed before I cradled Hunter in my arms. Jimmy swooped down and shoved the gun back into his pocket.

With my free hand, I helped Jimmy move his hair back down over his face. He threw his hood back over his head and leaned down to kiss me.

"I promise I'll be back soon," he whispered. His warm breath tickled against my skin. "Be good tomorrow. I love you."

"I love you too. Be safe."

Jimmy climbed out onto the balcony and I started to cry as soon as I shut the door.

--

Jimmy's POV:

I kept my gaze down on the ground as I walked down the sidewalk. The wind was whipping against my face, and the hood of my sweater flew back. I had to hold it in place.

I couldn't remember where I left Steve's car, so I had to wander around for a bit. Trying to think about where I parked the car was a good way to keep my mind occupied. I kept thinking about Julie and Hunter. I needed to get them to a safe place, and I knew that here with those cops constantly questioning her. It felt so good to be with her again. Her vanilla perfume seemed to linger on my clothes.

My fingers had gone numb by the time I found the car parked in the large parking lot. I pulled the keys out of my pocket, and hit the button so that the lights lit up. I reached out and opened up the door.

"Hey!"

My heart pounded in his chest and he wrapped his fingers around the cold metal of the gun.

A figure came from the shadow. It wobbled forward, and I squinted to get a better look. He had a large coat on, and a silver cane in his hand.

It was Tommy.