❁Secret Princess❁ 〈Outer Banks ⇀ JJ Maybank〉

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten
Airing out Grievances

Word Count: 6.5k

I leaned my head on Sarah's shoulder, playing with a couple strands of her hair.

We headed back to the Chateau after finding the well at Mrs. Crain's house. John B had left us for a couple of minutes, picking up Sarah. Of course, none of us knew he was doing that. Except me.

Currently, Sarah and I sat on the couch while John B was on the armrest. JJ was in an armchair, Pope sitting on a stool right next to him.

Kie stood up from her seat, not happy Sarah was here. "No effing way! You brought her here? So what? She's in on this now?"

John B glanced at Pope, who shook his head. "I dunno." He didn't want to be roped into this argument.

"Look, all I care about is her cut comes out of your share." JJ piped up. He wasn't helping anything. As usual.

Everyone ignored him, including Kie. "You know, I don't remember taking a vote. We did that with Adara."

Sarah furrowed her eyebrows and bumped my head off her shoulder, looking at me.

I sighed and shook my head a little. Right now was not a good time for that story. I would most certainly break down or something.

"This is our thing." Kie continued. "A Pogue thing."

Pope thought it was wise to chime in. "I gotta say, I'm just a tad uncomfortable with all of this."

"Thank you!"

"When are you not uncomfortable?" John B did have a bit of a point.

Pope knew that was true, but he was going to defend himself. "I dunno. I rode here on the back of JJ's bike pretty comfortably." 

JJ nodded a little. "That's true. Most relaxed I've ever seen him."

I had only been on the back of JJ's bike once. And I was scared shitless. It was fun, but I have never clung to anything or anyone that hard in my life. He wouldn't stop teasing me about it for days, joking about how I gave him a bruise from my iron grip.

I didn't notice I was smiling until I felt my lips falter.

John B didn't exactly like the fact he was basically being teamed up on. "That's cute, guys."

I raised my hand a little. "If I may..." I was cut off immediately.

"You know we were all extremely comfortable until you brought her." Kie snapped her head over to Sarah.

Sarah finally spoke up for herself. "Stop talking about me like I'm not here!"

"Then leave." It was as simple as that in Kie's mind.

Sarah scoffed and looked at John B and me. "I told you."

"Told them what, exactly?" Kie looked between the three of us. "That you're a liar?"

Sarah was ready with a comeback. "No, that you're a shit-talking bitch."

Oh boy. That was a trigger for them to go at each other's throats. It made me very uncomfortable to just be sitting here, listening, and doing nothing at all about it.

While they attacked each other verbally, JJ and Pope started making hushed bets on who was going to win this fight between them. That just made me feel even worse.

I got up from the couch and started to walk out of John B's little patio area. I couldn't take all this fighting between the people I care about. This is one of the things I never wanted to happen, yet here we are.