XXVI.   i'll look after you

      Oddly enough, Bridger felt safer sleeping in the booth of The Wreck than he did his own bedroom.  They didn't have a choice in the matter of recollecting to the restaurant. The sound of police sirens going off all night and all morning kept hom from being able sleep. It gave him a headache. Slowly, his eyes cracked open and burned from the yellow light that came through the glass windows. Kiara laid on the other side of the booth, still sound asleep, while Pope took the liberty of sleeping on top of one of the tables with stacks of napkins under his head to act as a pillow.  They were all miserable.

Cracking his aching bones, Bridger sat up in the booth and looked around, his eyes squinted and puffy. He saw JJ standing by the window and he listened to the god forsaken sirens. His hair was pushed back by the red cap he wore. A worried frown settled on his face as he stared outside. Bridger got up from the seat and walked up behind him, leaning his head down and kissing his cheek. "Morning." He greeted quietly.

JJ looked away from outside and smiled at him. "Good morning."

He stood behind him and wrapped an arm around his shoulder and the other around his torso, laying his chin and on his shoulder. "How are you feeling?" He hummed, practically feeling the anxiety he was feeling.

JJ shook his head and sighed with defeat. "I'm worried," he admitted. "I feel kind of helpless y'know? He's out there alone. He's my best friend."

"Hey," Bridger spoke and patted his chest with his hand. "You're doing everything you can to help him get out of this. You're a great friend, J."

He looked at him again and smiled. "Thanks, babe." He titled his head and kissed his cheek, the brunette smiling in return and rested his chin back on his shoulder.

Pope got down from the table he was sleeping on and joined the couple, passing by a still sleeping Kiara.  "He's pinched for sure, man." JJ spoke, his nerves not settling down. He held onto Bridger's arms, trying to bring himself some kind of comfort.

"No, they wouldn't still be patrolling if they caught him." Pope contradicted.

"What if they're looking for us?" Bridger asked,  looking between them at the sudden thought.

Kiara, finally waking up, sat up from the booth and joined in on the conversation. "He's right. We were in that car, too." She informed, agreeing with him.

After a minute of silence, Pope's shoulders slumped.  "Well, if we're gonna be outlaws, we might as help John B."

He walked away and went to retrieve the keys to JJ's dirt bike from his backpack. "So, find him before they do?" JJ questioned, but received no response. "Pope?"

Bridger narrowed his eyes at the boy's negative attitude. "You good, bro?"

"I'm gonna get gas for the boat," Pope answered,  disregarding their questions, and headed to the back door.

"B-Be careful, okay?" Kiara let out a little shaky.

Poor turned and faced them, his eyes darkening at the girl. He ignored her and looked at the boys. "Meet me at the dock at three. Don't be late." He stated harshly and fled the restaurant.

The remaining three looked at each other,  exchanging confused looks. "What's up with him?" Bridger voiced.

Not answering, Kiara rushed out of the restaurant to follow him. JJ blinked. "Am I missing something?"

"Apparently."

They followed them outside Pope reved the engine of the bike to block out Kiara's voice. Bridger and JJ leaned over the railing of the back deck and watched. Each time she tried to speak to him, Pope reved the engine and glared at her before finally taking off without a single word.

There was silence, and Bridger being Bridger, he had to interrogate. "The fuck did you do?" He asked loudly so she could hear him.

Kiara turned back around with a fallen expression. "Not now, Bridger." She ignored his question.

They looked up when they heard a helicopter and saw the transportation flying above them. "Who the hell is that?" JJ voiced.

Bridger groaned. "Don't tell me they brought someone in for this whole thing."

"Knowing them, they probably did." Kiara groaned. She came walking up the steps and back to the restaurant. "Come on. We've got work to do."

"Yes ma'am." He replied with a teasing grin and walked behind her.

They began to fill boxes and boxes worth of food and water for John B and Sarah to take while he was gone. Bridger noticed Kie's off body language. The silence was eating at her. She toyed with a bag of bread she had gotten off the shelf, and she looked up at them. "He told me he loved me," she admitted, causing Bridger to look up and meet her eye. "When we were at Sarah's, he was high and told me that he loved me."

Both Bridger and JJ looked at each other, feeling shocked. "Oh. Well, uh—" JJ stammered, not knowing what to say. "What did you say?"

"I told him that it's not gonna happen."

The other boy sucked in air through his teeth. "That's harsh, Kie." He cringed.

She scoffed. "Oh, shut up." She paused, her eyes looking down at the counter and then lifted them back up, frowning in guilt. "You think so?"

"Believe me, Kie, I know how it feels to be heartbroken," JJ expressed, looking over at his partner who shot him a nasty glare. "What? I'm not lying."

Bridger rolled his eyes. "Listen, I might not have known Pope for as long as you guys have, but—" he started to say, directing his statement to Kiara. "I can see that he's a lover, not necessarily a fighter. He's just mad right now. You can't really blame him."

The girl frowned again, chewing on the inside of her cheek. "I know." She muttered, the guilt eating at her again.

"But it's not your fault. You can't help how you feel," he continued, having more to say. "You can't tell somebody you love them without meaning it. You'll feel like complete shit. You haven't found that person yet and that's okay. There's no rush. Pope will understand."

The two stared at the speaker in shock. It wasn't known to anyone that Bridger was somewhat of a poet. He liked to read. Inez liked to read also, that's how he got into it. He had gotten better at knowing what to say to people to help them. JJ stared at the boy with love, feeling bad that he had taken a jab at him. They worked so hard to overcome the past, it was unfair for him to throw it back in his face.

Kiara offered him a small in gratitude. "Thanks, Bridge. That kinda helps."

He bowed slightly. "You're very welcome."

"Is that going to be enough food for them?"

"I mean, for a couple of weeks, and that's all they need, so. . ." JJ trailed, looking between her and Bridger.

"They'll be okay. Sarah's a light eater." He nodded along.

He said it so loosely, but on the sense, Bridger was scared. He was scared of losing his best friend. As much as they didn't want to admit it, Sarah and Bridger were not like the Pogues. They didn't grow up with their lifestyle. The Pogues, they knew what they had to do to survive and make a living. The pair of Kooks didn't have to worry about stuff like that and Bridger was afraid Sarah wouldn't know how to handle being away from her home. A couple weeks was a long time. A lot could happen and he was scared that something bad would happen to her.

Kiara looked back up at them, mainly at JJ. "Look, I think I actually hurt his feelings."

They followed her out of the building with the boxes in their hands. "Look, don't beat yourself up too much. He's completely changed his feels." He assured her. "The past 24 hours have been like Jekyll and Hyde."

"More like Dog the Bounty Hunter," Bridger opposed and they walked around the but doing to Kiara's car.

"I hate to admit it, but I miss the old Pope. At least I knew what to expect from him."

The sight of Kiara's very angry mother made Bridger stopped in his place and he awkwardly looked down at the box in his hand. "Where you been?" Anna questioned her daughter, throwing her hands up.

Kiara took a step back, not expecting to see her mom there. "Uh–I'm fine. I slept here," she excused and pointed to the restaurant.

"Well, we were up half the night, scared to death, lookin' for you," Anna spat, resting her hands on her hips. "Where you even gonna tell us?"

"Well, I'm telling you right now!"

Mrs. Carerra looked from her daughter to the two boys who awkwardly stood in the back. "All right, what the hell are you three up to?" She accused.

"I'm sorry, Miss Anna. We just gotta go." JJ told her, wanting to leave as soon as possible.

"Sorry, Mrs. Carrera." Bridger cringed.

"No—"

"Sorry."

"No, I'm sorry. Absolutely not." Anna argued but the teenagers were already moving to get into the car. "Have you heard what's going on?"

"Mom, I'll explain later." Kiara glossed over and tried to get part her mom.

"Have you seen the storm coming in? This is not safe."

"I'm sorry, mom. I have to go!"

"These cops are armed, Kiara. You're going to get yourself shot." Anna nearly shouted as Kiara got past her. She quickly got in the front seat and argued with her mother.

Bridger sat in the backseat and silently listened, feeling bad that they were putting the mother through this. His eyes flickered to Kiara as she sped away, her face scrunched up as she tried not to cry. He leaned forward and put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, it's okay. She'll understand."

"She won't," Kiara denied with a shake of her head. "She never does. Neither of them do."

"You're helping your friend. If they don't understand, then we do."

She let out a breathy sigh and glanced over her shoulder, sending him a small smile in thanks.

The drive to JJ's house was silent. Bridger kept his eyes on the back of his head, knowing exactly what he was thinking about. It had been days since the boy had been home. He hadn't spoken to his father since what happened after they left Barry's. The scars were still visible and Bridger fought himself to not tell Kiara to turn the car around. He didn't give a shit out the boat. He didn't want JJ to ever go back to that house.

But John B and Sarah needed help and for once in his miserable life, they knew Luke Maybank was the key; literally.

JJ stared at the broken home from the passenger seat. "Home sweet home," he uttered, chewing on his tongue to keep from frowning.

Bridger leaned up in his seat, sticking his head between him and Kiara. "Hey, do you want me to go with you?" He asked softly.

He took the cap off his head and shook it, his mop of hair falling. "No, baby, that's okay. This'll only take a second." He dismissed and got out of the car. They watched him walk up to the door and he turned around, giving them a small, unconvincing smile before walking inside.

Kiara glanced at the other boy. "Are you okay?" She asked, seeing the look on his face.

Bridger shook his head and looked down at the middle console. Dread and indigestion fused in his blood.  Just knowing that his partner was in the same house as that monster made him want to burn the whole place down. His love for JJ burned so bad that it physically hurt. It hurt him to know that he had to live the way he did with a man that was supposed to love him, but didn't. Luke Maybank was a piece of shit, a total waste of space.

Yet in some bizarre way, he had to thank him, because if it wasn't for Luke, JJ wouldn't exist. The only good thing the man ever did in his life was create JJ Maybank and Bridger thanked God that he made him for him. If Luke wasn't going to cherish him, Bridger sure as hell was.

"I hate this," he muttered, responding her question. He glared at the house. "I hate him being in there. All I want is to be able to pull him away from that piece of shit in there. He doesn't deserve to live like this."

Kiara listened to him express his feelings in sadness.  She nodded slightly. "Y'know, I always hated you,"  she confessed, making him point his eyes in her direction.  "I thought you were just like everyone else, you and all your Kook guy friends. I had my suspicions that there was something going on between you and him, I just could never figure it out. He always walked away when somebody mentioned your name. He always looked so angry. When I found out what happened, I think I hated you even more because he's my best friend and I love him."

Complete guilt filled his body and he nodded, looking down at the console again. 

"But things started to change," she continued. "He started smiling again, and not that usual stupid ass smile he always had, but, it was a happy smile. I never saw that smile before. He was actually happy again and he wasn't faking it this time. Do you know why?"  She glanced at him. "Because of you. You've given him something that he's never had before—"

Bridger closed his eyes, feeling his face heat up with tears of sadness.

"Love."

JJ spent his entire life being compared to his father.  His dad was a thief, a drunk, and a complete and total mess. Everybody just assumed that his only child would be just like him, so JJ did everything to convince them that he wasn't but it was still not enough, and it got to the point where he didn't care what people thought of him because they were always going to assume the worst. He wanted to believe that there was a better place for him outside of the Outer Banks, a place he could go and get away from his father and all the shit he had been put through. But JJ knew better. He was a screw up and he would always be a screw up.

But Bridger's love was enough to make him think differently. He tried so hard to get JJ out and convince him that he was a better man than him father would ever be. In a way, he understood because of the situation with his own father. He felt like he was a screw up, too. Bridger convinced himself that he didn't need anybody because he didn't want anyone to get close to him. Everything in his life had been taken away because of it.

But now, he had a second chance, and JJ was his second chance just like Bridger was his. They had each other. They were each other's way out of the cycle. "I'm sorry for all the shit I put you guys through, especially him," Bridger spoke again wholeheartedly. "But I love him. I'm always going to love him."

Kiara grew a smile. "I know."

After what seemed like years, JJ finally came out of his house. The door swung open and he trudged down the steps with his fists clenched. He got back in the car and Bridger and Kiara stared at him, waiting to see if he would say anything. "How'd it go?" She asked carefully.

Instead of answering, he held up the keys that he successfully got. When he sniffled, Bridger leaned up again. "Hey, what happened?" He asked, his tone hardening.

"Nothing, baby, it's all good." JJ responded and looked at him with a smile. He was lying. His blue eyes were glossy with tears. It made the brunette bare his teeth until they felt like they were going to break. "Smile,  would ya? You're too good looking to get frown lines."  He said playfully, trying to hide his pain.

Bridger managed to crack a smile but it was very subtle. Kiara drove them away from the house and he got up from the seat slightly, enough to press his lips to JJ's temple, giving him all the love he could before the blonde broke completely.