HOPELESSLY DEVOTED

an outer banks story

by -spacecadet

CHAPTER TWELVE: HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Campbell woke up to the smell of cinnamon rolls.

The smell of hot baked goods, sweet icing, and spicy cinnamon instantly brought a smile to her face. It carried years of good memories, of her grandmother, of her birthday, and of every other special occasion Campbell had since she moved to North Carolina.

Usually, Campbell found it a little difficult to get out of bed, nestled underneath all of her blankets. Today, though, the sun was shining in a way that beckoned her to get out of bed. It was her seventeenth birthday.

She dressed in a pair of cut-off jean shorts, a crocheted yellow tank top, and her favorite pair of sandals, with her swimsuit underneath. She braided her hair in loose pigtails down her back, and spritzed on her favorite perfume, one she only used on special occasions -- like her birthday.

Campbell was so excited to spend the entire day with JJ. She spent most of her days with him and the other pogues, but JJ always made her birthday special. Birthdays were kind of their thing: before they met, JJ's birthdays had always been pretty shitty, so Campbell made it her responsibility to make sure all the birthdays he had with her were exceptional. In turn, he tried his best to do the same.

She headed downstairs, entering the kitchen to the sound of plates clinking and bacon frying. A heaping pile of freshly-iced cinnamon rolls sat atop the table.

"The birthday girl!" Campbell's grandmother squealed as Campbell entered the kitchen, pulling the girl in for a tight hug. "Oh, look at you! Seventeen suits you well."

"Happy birthday, Campbell," her grandfather grunted from the coffee pot as he poured himself a mug. He poured a second mug, handing it to her.

The back door opened, the one that led from the garden into the kitchen, and Ruth walked in, chatting with someone behind her. Campbell watched in shock as the second person was revealed to be JJ.

"And here's my beautiful, freshly-seventeen niece," Ruth quipped, pulling Campbell in for a side hug, which was as much physical affection as the woman ever cared to show. "Why don't you two go sit down?" She nodded towards Campbell and JJ. "We'll bring the rest of the food out in a second."

Campbell was surprised to see JJ at her house already, though she knew he enjoyed Marie's cinnamon rolls as much as she did. She didn't like seeing him so chatty with Ruth, and she desperately hoped Ruth hadn't said anything too embarrassing.

She and JJ headed towards the table. He pulled her into a side-hug, a smirk on his face as he said, "Happy birthday, Cam."

"A side hug? On my birthday?"

"Hey, a hug initiated by me is rare enough, isn't it?" JJ rolled his eyes, but he turned and pulled her in for a real, full-frontal hug.

Campbell tried not to look like a total fool as her heart rate skyrocketed, and her face smushed into JJ's t-shirt. He smelled good, freshly showered, like his body wash and deodorant. She pulled away before she did anything too embarrassing. Besides, the last thing she wanted was for Ruth to walk in and see the two of them like that.

Marie and Ruth came out with the food, bacon and cinnamon rolls and a heaping pile of scrambled eggs. Clyde fell in behind them, a bottle of orange juice in one hand, his coffee and a newspaper in the other.

"Clyde, no reading at the table! It's Campbell's birthday!"

Clyde sat down, the paper still in his hands. "And I'll be informed of local news on Campbell's birthday."

They ate and chatted in the usual way, discussing non-birthday things, like the local surf report from Clyde's newspaper, what seafood Marie had gotten cheap from Heyward's Seafood (and what she planned to make with it), and whatever Ruth was working on remotely -- a lot of legal jargon Campbell didn't understand.

After eating, Campbell and JJ headed towards the beach, surfboards in hand, a bagged lunch lovingly packed by Marie slinging over Campbell's shoulder. What she didn't know was that Ruth had snuck a couple cans of Clyde's beer inside, something that would come as a pleasant surprise after hitting the waves.

When Campbell's arms and legs felt like jello, she and JJ headed back to the sand, where they lounged on beach towels and ate the sandwiches, chips, and cookies Marie packed them.

"Oh yeah," JJ said, rummaging through the pocket of his cargo shorts. "Happy birthday, by the way."

He tossed her a small cardboard box, taped together with duct tape.

"Oh wow. Some wrap job," Campbell laughed as she opened it. She ripped open the box, rolling her eyes at what was inside. "Marijuana? For moi? On my birthday? You shouldn't have."

"Oh, it's nothing."

"Got a light?" Campbell held the joint out to him.

He pulled a lighter from his pocket, along with something else that he hid behind his back. He lit the joint, waiting as Campbell took a long drag, then handed it to him. That was how it usually went, with the two of them. Campbell took a singular, long hit of the joint, leaving JJ to finish up the rest. He couldn't complain about that.

JJ reached around his back, grabbing the small, nicely wrapped box he'd also brought along. He slid it into her lap, feigning attention on the joint.

"JJ, what is this?" Campbell said, inspecting the box, wrapped in a beautiful flower-printed paper.

"You didn't think this was all I was going to give you, did you?" He wiggled the joint between his fingers.

Campbell's entire face flushed, from the bottom of her chin to the very top of her forehead. She carefully ripped through the wrapping paper, her hands shaking slightly as she realized it was the kind of box jewelry came in.

JJ wouldn't give her jewelry for her birthday, would he?

Because if he did, that would mean ...

No.

It didn't have to mean anything. Friends could give each other jewelry. She'd been making JJ friendship bracelets out of embroidery thread for as long as they'd been friends, and he wore them until they fell off. Jewelry didn't have to mean anything. There were several on his wrist right now.

Campbell silenced the thoughts in her head and opened the box.

Nestled in the tissue paper sat a tiny golden seashell: a necklace. Campbell steadied her shaking fingers as she lifted the delicate charm out of the box, a gasp escaping her lips.

"Oh, JJ..."

JJ nervously ran a hand through his hair beside her. "W-what? Do you like it?"

"Oh, JJ, of course I like it," she continued, breaking into a huge smile. "It's beautiful. I love it." Her eyes drifted to JJ's, and as her gaze settled into that baby blue, she almost added, and I love you, too.

"I just saw it and ... well, it reminded me of you." JJ turned away from Campbell so she couldn't see the sudden flush that had taken over his face. The sun must have been getting to him, because he couldn't think of any other reason his face suddenly felt warm.

"Thank you, JJ. I love it." Campbell pulled him in for a tight hug, trying not to focus too much on the feeling of his bare skin against hers. "Will you help me put it on?" She asked sheepishly as she pulled away.

"Sure." JJ gently took the necklace from her hands as Campbell pulled her hair up, turning her back to him. His fingers brushed the back of her neck, sending a jolt of electricity down Campbell's spine. His hands suddenly felt tingly as they came into contact with his best friend's sun-kissed skin, sending a wave of confusion through JJ's brain.

He fastened the clasp quickly and pulled away, tucking his hands back into his pockets. "I'm glad you like it. Happy birthday, Cam."'

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ author's note ✫・゜・。.

in honor of OBX season FOUR coming out tomorrow (!!) i thought it was high time i published a chapter. here you go, another one of my faves. jj maybank is so far gone for campbell sheridan, and he doesn't even realize it.

how infuriating.

i hope you enjoyed this chapter, and happy OBX watching! 

xx,

madi