vibrant

twenty; black and white

As Jj drifted off, his breathing evened out as he fell asleep, Ophelia stayed awake. She couldn't even think of sleeping.

She stayed up, and she cried.

The blonde girl found herself moving away from Jj, getting as far away from him as she could as tears streamed down her face. She held her hand over her mouth so the sounds of her sobs wouldn't wake him.

Ophelia wasn't sad. She was angry.

Silently, she found herself swearing as the hot tears rolled down her cheeks. She cursed the stupid treasure hunt they were on,  at Barry, she cursed at Jj's father, and she even swore at whatever higher power there is for letting Jj endure more pain than he's ever deserved.

Eventually though, she fell into a restless, dreamless sleep.

Until the slightest bit of sun started to peak through the curtains.

Ophelia gets out of bed, walking carefully on her tip toes as she grabs the first pair of shorts that she finds, slipping them on and leaving the room. Quietly, Ophelia pads through the house until she gets to her backpack. Pulling out her sketchbook and her coloured pencils, Ophelia heads outside in the dim morning light, the sun barely peeking over the horizon.

Ophelia walks out to the dock and sits against one of the posts, one of her feet dangling over the edge. She brings her hair over one of her shoulders before she opens her sketchbook to a new page.

Then, as the sun ascends into the sky, Ophelia starts to draw it. She finds peace as she moves her wrist, filling the page with bursts of oranges and yellows, she almost doesn't hear the footsteps approaching.

"You're up early," Jj says, his voice rough from sleep.

Ophelia turns to face him, a small smile on her face, "Yeah, I couldn't sleep."

"Move up," Jj instructs, and Ophelia listens, scooting forward slightly. Jj sits behind her, positioning Ophelia so that she's between his legs. Once he's situated, Ophelia leans back into his tank-top-clad chest, a sigh of content leaving her as Jj's arms wrap around her, "Everything alright?" Jj quietly asks.

Ophelia nods, closing her sketchbook and setting it beside them, "Yeah, just wanted to draw this," She mutters, her eyes looking over the horizon, which is becoming more alive with each passing second. She marvels at the colours lighting up the sky, a dreamy smile on her face as Jj's arms tighten around her, "You know, there's a reason we don't see the world in black and white. This is it."

She feels Jj plant a string of tired kisses up her neck, making her lean her head back against his shoulder and hum in content. Jj mutters a response against her skin that she doesn't quite catch.

They sit there like that for a while, and Ophelia is so relaxed that she momentarily forgets about everything that could possibly go wrong. The hunt, the fact that she hasn't been home in days, and everything else. Nothing seems to matter besides this sunrise, and Jj Maybank.

"Did you know the sun is halfway through its life?" Ophelia quietly asks, earning a small hum from Jj as he rests his head against hers, "It's four and a half billion years old."

"You sound like Pope."

"That's the most romantic thing you've ever said to me," Ophelia sarcastically chuckles, "Now I'm in the mood."

"Really?"

"No, Jj."

"Dammit," Jj mumbles, chuckling and earning another light laugh from Ophelia, "Sometimes I forget you're a bit of a nerd."