𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞- 𝐣𝐣 𝐦𝐚𝐲𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐤

15.

🦋☀ 🌊 - 15

"Don't let him get to your head, brother. There's three of them and two of us. That's some typical kook shit right there."

JJ's voice was low, almost casual, but Olivia could hear the tension underneath it. He was trying to calm Pope down, even though his own knee wouldn't stop bouncing.

The group - everyone except John B - had holed up in Mr. Heyward's shop. The air smelled like oil and salt, old wood soaked with years of work. Tools lined the walls, and a rusty fan clanked overhead, cutting through the heavy silence. It had been a long night. None of them had slept, just sat around throwing questions back and forth that never got answered. Eventually, Kiara and Olivia stopped trying.

Now, Pope sat at the counter with his hands clasped, staring blankly at the floor. JJ leaned back against one of the posts, pretending to be calm, but Olivia could see right through him. His jaw was locked, his eyes flicking to the window every few seconds.

"Hey, Pope! There's someone here for you."
Mr. Heyward's voice echoed from the doorway.

The second Olivia saw Officer Shoupe step inside behind him, her stomach dropped. The way he scanned the room - that practiced look that never meant good news - made her chest tighten.

"Why a cop?" she whispered to Kiara, but her friend didn't answer.

"Arrest warrant for destruction of property." Shoupe's tone was cold, procedural. He handed a folded paper to Mr. Heyward. "Keep your hands on the counter where I can see them."

Pope's head snapped up. His mouth opened like he wanted to argue, but no words came out. His eyes went straight to JJ - pure fear written all over his face.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what did he do?" Mr. Heyward moved toward them, but Shoupe didn't pause. He stepped closer, already reaching for his cuffs.

"Take a look at the warrant."

Pope tried to back away, but there was nowhere to go. The shop suddenly felt too small, every sound vanishing into static.

"Sorry, you're arresting him?" Kiara's voice cracked slightly, her hands dropping to her sides.

"JJ, what did you do? What the fuck did you guys do?" Olivia turned to him sharply. He was standing frozen behind her, his mouth tight, eyes darting between Shoupe and Pope.

Shoupe started reading Pope his rights, voice flat and rehearsed. "Everything you say can and will be used against you..."

Olivia barely processed it. Everything blurred - the clink of metal cuffs, Mr. Heyward's raised voice, Pope's shaky breathing.

"How much did they pay you, huh? How much did they pay you?" JJ finally snapped, pushing past Olivia toward Shoupe, his tone cutting like glass.

Shoupe ignored him, steering Pope toward the door.

Olivia's voice rose without her meaning to. "JJ! What's going on?"

No one answered. They all stumbled after Shoupe out of the shop, shouting over one another. The heat hit them like a wall.

"JJ, just- stop!" Olivia reached for him, but he was already storming forward.

"It wasn't him!" JJ's voice boomed over everything - over the rain, over Pope's protests. "It was me!"

Everyone froze.

Shoupe stopped mid-step, turning halfway. Pope looked stunned.

"I said it was me!" JJ's voice cracked. "He tried to talk me out of it, but I was pissed, alright? Pissed that he got jumped, pissed that those assholes from Figure Eight keep walking all over us. I lost it. I can't let you take the blame for something I did. He's got too much to lose."

Olivia's hand flew to her mouth. Her heart was pounding so hard it made her dizzy.

"JJ, what are you doing?" Pope's voice was quiet, desperate.

"I'm telling the truth. For once in my goddamn life, I'm telling the truth." JJ's laugh was short and bitter. "I took his old man's boat, too."

"What the hell?" Mr. Heyward barked, but JJ didn't even look at him.

"JJ, come on," Pope tried again, but JJ cut him off.

"Just shut up, Pope! Just shut up, man." His voice cracked. "He's a good kid. You know where I'm from. It was all me."

For a second, no one said a thing. Shoupe's hand hovered over his radio. Pope stood frozen in his cuffs, breathing hard. Kiara looked like she might cry.

JJ's eyes found Olivia's. And that's when her heart broke.

There was something in his face - not fear, not even anger - just quiet acceptance. The kind that said he'd already decided. That he knew what was coming.

He gave her the faintest nod. It was small, but she understood it perfectly: It's okay.

"Yeah," Pope finally said, his voice barely above a whisper. "It's true."

Olivia couldn't breathe. She felt herself moving before she realized it - running to JJ, throwing her arms around him. His shoulders were tense under her grip, and she knew he wanted to hug her back but couldn't.

"I'll be fine," he murmured, barely audible. "Promise."

When Shoupe took him by the arm, her throat closed. She wanted to scream, to do something, but her voice was gone.

The sound of the car door slamming was final. JJ and Olivia locked eyes one last time before Shoupe drove off, tail lights disappearing down the wet street.

Olivia stood there, trying to swallow the ache sitting in her chest. She felt empty. Helpless.

"Come here." Kiara's voice broke through the fog. She wrapped Olivia up in her arms, pulling her close. "He'll be fine. I promise."

But Olivia didn't believe it. She knew what JJ went home to. She knew what he'd take for his friends. That was the part that scared her most.

"Pope, come here," Kiara said softly, holding her arms open again. He hesitated, then stepped into the hug.

Olivia could feel the guilt rolling off him - the way he held himself like he deserved the cuffs instead.

"Maybe we shouldn't have even done anything," he whispered.

Kiara shook her head. "Hey, midsummers is coming up. We're gonna have fun, okay? Even you, Liv." She forced a smile, brushing Olivia's tears away. "We'll hang out the whole time. I promise."

Olivia nodded, but her chest still ached. The promise sounded nice - but all she could think about was the look JJ gave her before the car drove away.