Faded Heart

XXVII. Keep Yourself Alive

The sun was beginning to rise on the island as JJ and I made our way through the woods hand in hand. I was a little nervous about leaving the safety of our friends since my parents knew where we were, but he assured me that we'd be okay. After finding that my dad was at the house, JJ has been super protective of me. So, I don't think he'd do anything that would put us in danger.

"JJ, can you tell me where we are going?" I asked, as he dragged me along behind him. I watched as his backpack bounced up and down as he continued to lead me. The two of us were supposed to go to the Wreck for breakfast, but on the way there, JJ suddenly changed his mind. Instead, he told me he had a much better idea.

"It's a surprise." He smiles back at me, squeezing my hand tightly as he swings it back and forth. My stomach twists at the thought of what JJ would consider a surprise. That word could mean anything in his personal dictionary.

There were still a million questions running through my mind as I continued to walk along the path. I wanted to trust JJ, but the impending doom of my father lurking made it very hard for me to.

JJ stops, turning towards me, "Relax, Em." He says, running his hand through my hair and planting a kiss on the top of my forehead. He was giving me the intimate comfort I needed, but I still wasn't sold. "There's no need to worry that pretty little head of yours. I know what I'm doing."

"Just for the record, I hate surprises." I mumble as the two of us begin to walk towards the unknown destination once again. We were deep in the forest, far away from any sign of civilization.

"Hey, you're the one who said you wanted to go on adventures. So, just consider this date an adventure. Not a surprise."

I was surprised that JJ had remembered what I said about going on adventures. That night he was falling asleep. I didn't think he would actually remember the conversation, but from the looks of it, he remembered exactly what I had said. It was really nice to think he'd actually cared enough to pay attention to things like that.

"This is a date? Since when did JJ Maybank do dates?" I tease. JJ wasn't the type of guy who took girls out on dates. This was very unexpected from him, but I appreciated that he was trying for me.

"I went on plenty of dates. You act like girls weren't fighting over me." He laughs. It was just like JJ to say something like that. He was always way too confident in his ability to get the ladies. As much as I didn't want it to bother me, the idea of JJ being with anyone other than myself scared me. He could never hold his attention on one girl for too long, so what makes me any different? It was stuff like this that made me scared for the future of our relationship. I didn't want to end up with my shattered when I was trusting him with it.

"I'm not going to mess this up." He sighs, as he begins to slow down. As per usual, I think he could tell that I was getting in my head again. He could easily read me like an open book. "You're not just any girl to me, Emerson Slaney. You deserve a first date."

"JJ." I stop him, pulling him toward me and wrapping my arms around him. He immediately follows suit, "I appreciate you trying, but I don't need us to be like every other stereotypical relationship. I just want us to be us."

"Too bad we're already here." The chuckles, planting a kiss on my lips before pulling away and making his way towards an opening in the trees. I couldn't make out what it was, but there was an open field.

After a few moments of trying to catch up to him, I am greeted by a familiar grass field. This was home to the familiar abandoned school yard Hollis used to take us to play at when we were kids. This place brought back so many memories for me. The last time we were here was a few days before she died. Hollis sat on the rusted swings while JJ and I climbed on the monkey bars. I remember that she was quiet that day, it was almost like she knew something was going to happen to her...