JJs eyes fluttered open at the sound of the birds outside, feeling utterly exhausted. For a moment he forgot where he was, a small smile appearing on his face as he realized he had made it another day. Unfortunately the events of the previous night caught up to his brain and his smile dropped almost immediately. In the span of two days JJ had lost $400 million, John B, Sarah, and June.
As the thoughts of this hit him he felt the pang in his chest and stomach, a part of him hoping he would wake up from this nightmare at any moment. He closed his eyes, imagining waking up with June in his arms and John B sleeping in the other room. June would wake up beside him, her dark hair tangled all around her and then she'd smile at JJ and cuddle back into his chest. But when he opened his eyes again there was nothing but his blanket and an empty, hot room.
He sat there for a while, his face pale as he took in the information. He ran a hand over his face and closed his eyes again, feeling the physical pain still in his stomach and chest. He thought it would go away but instead it just stayed, making him feel even worse.
After a good ten minutes of just sitting there, trying to keep his mind clear as he stared at the wall, he pulled the covers off of his legs and stood. His knees were weaker than he expected, making him sigh as he ran a hand over his face. All he could think about was how to not think about how absolutely devastated he was without them. Without her.
He walked out of the bedroom door, looking around for his dad who he figured would either be passed out on the couch or gone. Unfortunately he found out his dad was just gone, making another pang go through his chest. He couldn't help but think of Pope and Kie who were waking up right now, probably being comforted by their parents. This would clearly be something he would have to do himself.
He made his way to the bathroom, looking in the mirror and almost jumping back at the sight of himself. He was dirty, his face red and his eyes swollen from crying himself to sleep. He forced himself to look away, grabbing his tooth brush and toothpaste and brushing his teeth. The whole time all he could think about was how Kie and Popes parents showed up last night, but he had no one. No one to really truly rely on for comfort. June was that person for a while...and now she was gone.
He could feel the urge to cry again, making him slam the toothbrush down and walk out, not wanting to dwell. He knew that if he gave in to the thoughts of her that he would just break down, and there'd be no way to get back up.
He made his way to the dresser, pulling a shirt and shorts out and quickly changing, throwing his shoes in and grabbing the keys to the van. He bust through the front door, open ring the van door and getting inside quickly. As he went to put the key in the ignition he made the mistake of thinking, his chest clenching as he thought of the good time they all had in the van. Tears swelled in his eyes but he blinked them away, pushing the van door open again and leaving the keys there. There was no way he was riding in that thing. He ran back inside, grabbing the keys to the bike and quickly coming back out. June had never ridden the bike.
He turned it on, quickly pulling out of the driveway and onto the road. He didn't know where he was going, he was letting the bike take him wherever it wanted to.
The ride was actually very comforting, the wind rippling through his clothes as he focused on the bike and not his thoughts. Maybe this wouldn't be so hard. Unfortunately that mentality escaped him when the bike stopped and he realized where he was. He let out a deep breath as he looked at the large house he was parked in front of.
He sucked in a breath and shook his head, climbing back onto the bike and starting it. He sent one more look back towards her house before riding away. As he was leaving the nice neighborhood he stopped immediately in his tracks, almost flipping the bike as he kicked down the stand and got off.
All he had was anger in his heart now as he looked up at a different house. He wasted no time running through the yard and to the front door. But when he actually stood before the door it was like he couldn't raise his hand to knock. All the anger that had brought him to the door had melted away and now he was just filled with curiosity.He questioned every decision that led up to this moment and realized that this was going to happen irregardless of how long it took. He cleared his throat and lifted his hand, trying to gather up the guts to knock. Finally his knuckles met wood, making a sigh of relief leave his mouth.
He waited for a few moments before knocking again. And when there was still no answer he turned away, running a hand through his hair and questioning what he would have said anyways.
"Stupid idea man." JJ told himself, shaking his head as he headed back towards the bike.
"Uh...JJ?" He heard from behind him, making him almost jump. He turned around slowly, trying to remain calm as he looked at who stood before him.
"I need to talk to you Zach. About June. I just need to talk to someone who understands ."
"And you thought to come to me? JJ we don't like each other. I don't know if you know that or not." Zachs face was red like JJs has been that morning, making JJs tiny bit of remaining anger melt and become replaced with understanding.
"But she's...she's gone so technically theres no real reason for us to hate each other." Zach stood there for a moment, looking JJ over before pushing the door open wider. JJ reluctantly walked inside, Zach leading him through the house and to the dining room.
"You wanna talk? Talk."
