Lilah dropped off Pope first then Kiara as the girl lived closer to the Camerons. She looked at JJ who was slumped in the front seat with his head leaning on the window, "I don't know why you went this crazy ass way. You can drop me off at The Chateau."

The girl's face screwed up in confusion, "The where?"

"The-just John B's house."

She watched him dap his lip over and over again with his finger as it kept bleeding. She shook her head and started to drive again after parking in front of Kie's house, "Yeah, that's not happening."

    "Uh, what? Are you kidnapping me? 'Cause if that's the case...I wouldn't. I still have my gun in the backseat."

     "No! I'm not kidnapping you. I'm just taking you back to my house. You need to clean your face."

     "My face is perfect, thank you very much."

     Lilah groaned as her Jeep made it closer to her house, "Dude, just let me clean up your lip and everything else. You can maybe shower and then you can leave." He scoffed at her words, "I am not going into the Cameron household. And, how would I get home, huh? You're driving me!"

     "I don't know! Jesus Christ, just let me help you out plus John B isn't even at his house right now so why would you go there?"

     JJ took a second to find the right words. He didn't know how to tell her that he didn't care if John B wasn't home because The Chateau was still JJ's home. More of a home than where his dad lives. But he decided to dodge the question when he realized what she said, "Wait, what do you mean John B isn't home?"

     "Oh...uh..." The Cameron girl realized she was home so she couldn't answer, "No time for that. Let's go." She put her car in park in the driveway and JJ started shaking his head immediately.

     "Lilah, I know we don't like each other but I thought you would have more respect for me than to lead me into the lions den that is your family."

     "You're so overdramatic, oh my god. I'm sneaking you in, nobody will see you."

     "The guy who almost choked me to death will!"

      "Actually, Kelce almost choked you to death. Rafe just repeatedly punched you."

      JJ looked at her with an irritated expression clouding his face as Lilah held in her laughter, "We're gonna sneak through my window. I left it unlocked so it'll be fine."

     Lilah's bay window was her key to sneaking out. Before Rafe turned out to be a sucky brother, he taught her a thing or two about being a proper teenager. Right when she hit freshman year of high school, Rafe helped her out when he got her a duplicate key for her window. He told her that Ward had a habit of locking windows in the bedrooms especially with him so he didn't sneak out so he stole the keys and made replicas.

He only did it for her. He thought Sarah would snitch on him.

     Now, Lilah used that key a lot. It helped her unlock the window when she left then lock it when she comes back from whatever party she came from. It's one of the things that Rafe taught that was actually useful.

     The two got out of the car quietly when JJ realized it was either this or walk home and he didn't hate the thought of a warm shower. They walked through the side of the house and Lilah stopped all of the sudden which made JJ ram into her. "Dude." Her body jerked forward a bit from the hit and the blonde boy just shrugged.

     "Up we go." Lilah grabbed onto the tree branch and started climbing her way up. The tree wasn't that hard to climb because if it was, Lilah wouldn't be able to do it. She had little to no upper body strength.

     JJ looked up at her impressed that a Kook could do this but then he shot his gaze to the ground realizing what he was really staring at, which so happened to be her ass. He shook his head before pulling himself up on the branch after her. The two walked across the branch to hop on the roof.

She slid open her window and crawled through while looking around, making sure her room was clear. When she realized it was, she waved her hand, tell the boy to climb through. JJ went to step on the bay window seat and immediately missed the seat leading him falling onto the floor.

"Jesus! Have you never snuck into a girls room before?!" She whispered yelled at the boy but still, helping him up from her floorboards. "No, actually. They usually come to John B's house." He dusted himself off as Lilah looked at him in disgust.

"I did not need to know that you and John B have threesomes."

"What?! That has never happened? I just sleep at John B's house a lot."

"Oh." She shrugged before shutting her window as quietly as she could. "Okay, so I'm gonna get the first aid kit then after I clean your lip cause I don't need you bleeding anywhere in my room, then you can leave, how is that?" She looked at him, waiting for an answer but he wasn't paying attention. He was looking around her room, "JJ?"

"Oh. Yeah, that sounds fine."

"Okay, just sit on my bed. I'll be right back." Lilah snuck out her bedroom door to go get the first aid kit from the bathroom. JJ looked around to see pictures everywhere around her room. First thing he noticed about the pictures was that every single photo had Sarah in it.

There was multiple photos of Sarah and Lilah at the beach, on boats, on their Kook vacations, etc. Even some with only Sarah in it. She also had photos of her family around, only five full family pictures that had everyone in it but Wheezie was in a couple more than that and she even had two with just her and Ward.

The second thing he noticed was that there were some empty spots that looked odd to him. Like there used to be a picture there but she took them down. He saw two picture frames on her vanity, one facing up that was her and Sarah once again, and another facing flat down on the desk.

He slightly lifted it up to see that it was a picture of her and Julian. They were on the beach as Julian held Lilah on his lap. JJ scoffed as he put the picture frame back down, not wanting to look at it anymore.

The door opened as Lilah walked in with a white box, "I said sit on my bed. Do you listen?"

"Never."

She laughed at his response, watching him finally sit on the side of her bed. She walked closer to her bed to sit across from him and opened the first aid kit. She grabbed the rubbing alcohol, "This might sting."

"Not my first rodeo." He shrugged, watching her hands move while she put the liquid on a q-tip. Lilah bit her tongue from asking him what he meant, she just assumed he meant he had been in a lot of fights. She wouldn't be shocked if that's what he meant.

     She started to roll the cotton onto his lip, softly, watching him wince slightly from the pain but not making a big deal out of it. JJ shifted his head to the other side but the girl in front of him grabbed his chin to turn it back, so she could see the wound clearly.

     She kept her hand on his face while JJ drifted his eyes to her face. Her tongue poked out of her mouth in concentration and she kept her eyes on his lips while rolling the q-tip on it.

     Silence filled the room while he kept his eyes on her.

     She finally leaned back into a better posture, straightening her back. She placed the now bloody q-tip on the box so she could throw it away after and turned JJ's head to the side more. She saw nail scratches on his neck, she assumed it was from Kelce when he was strangling him.

     She grabbed a cotton pad that was also in the kit and repeated the actions she did with the q-tip. "How did you learn all this?" He asked, still watching her closely as she scoff-laughed under her breath.

     "Ironically, from Rafe. He used to get into fights sometimes and I would help him. Before he...you know, turned psychotic."

     JJ slowly nodded his head, hissing as she placed the piece of cotton to his neck. Lilah felt her breath get caught in her throat watching his adam's apple bobble with a scowl on his face. She felt her hand quicken at cleaning his wound so she could be finished with this fast.

A minute later, his wounds were all disinfected. "Well, I guess I should go. To an empty house" She heard him mumble the last part underneath his breath and she realized that he was still sleeping over at John B's house even though he isn't home.

"Why don't you go to your house? Like, with you dad?"

JJ felt the world freeze when she asked that. He couldn't tell her the truth but for some reason, he wanted to. But deep down, he knew he couldn't because she wasn't one of them. She could pretend all she wanted but Lilah Cameron was a Kook and she always will be.

"My dad just pisses me off a lot so John B lets me stay at his house when I don't wanna hear his nagging."

"Oh. I guess that makes sense. Dads do tend to nag a lot." She agreed, not noticing JJ's awkward nod. A beat of silence came before JJ spoke up again, "Well, thanks for helping me. Don't know why you did it but-"

"Do you want to spend the night?"

"Uh-What?"

"Instead of walking by yourself to John B's just...stay here. No one will know plus don't you want a taste of the Kook life for the night?" Lilah sheepishly grinned watching JJ look down at the ground, seemingly in thought. She sensed his hesitation.

     "You don't have to. I-I mean, if you don't want to go to your dad's house or John B's, why not just stay here?"

     "What about your dad? Or Rafe?

     "They won't know, I swear. Plus, if you spend the night tonight, I can drive you to wherever in the morning." She tugged at her bottom lip slightly, waiting for an answer.

     Lilah didn't know why she was acting like this. JJ was a Pogue, someone she hated at that. But, now, she wasn't so sure about that. She would say she could tolerate him a bit more now and deep down, she knows he feels the same way as well, no matter how many times he denies it.

Truth was, she felt guilty if he'd have to walk all the way home by himself but she couldn't drive him home because her dad would hear her car leave.

     "You can shower in the morning and I'll get you some food downstairs? You didn't eat at the park." And at the thought of food, JJ's stomach rumbled slightly, making him realize that he hadn't eaten since the night at The Wreck where Kiara's parents gave them free food.

     "Fine. Only for the food though."

     She nodded in triumph, "I'll be back with snacks. And don't tell me which ones you want, you get what you get."

     And before he could answer, she walked out of the room. She slowly made her way downstairs and turned the corner to go into the kitchen. She felt a sharp pain in her toe, realizing she stubbed her toe on the kitchen island. "Shit!" She yelped out quietly and grabbed her foot in agony. She used the counter to lower herself to the floor so she wouldn't hobble on her foot.

     "Lilah?"

     Lilah's head snapped towards the voice to see her dad looking at her in confusion, "Dad? I thought you were asleep?" He walked over to where his daughter sat on the floor. "No, I couldn't sleep so I came down here for a drink. What did you do?"

     "Um, I stubbed my toe.." She trailed off awkwardly which made her dad laugh and reach his hand out at her. She slapped her hand into his so he could pull her up off the kitchen floor.

     "How was movie night?" He asked her while walking over to the fridge and pulling out some lemonade. She huffed as she sat down on one of the stools, "It was fine, I guess."

     "You guess?"

     "Yeah, it's just...did you know the screen got set on fire?" She asked, semi trailing off the topic while her dad poured them both some lemonade in two short glasses.

     "You're kidding? How?" He slid her glass over to her, across the island counter and she swiftly caught it. She suddenly regretted mentioning it at all because she didn't know how to tell him that she was involved in it.

     "I don't know." She shrugged and took a sip of her drink. "Is Rafe home?" She changed the topic again, watching her dad roll his eyes, "No, I'm assuming he's sleeping over at Topper's? How would I know, though? He doesn't tell me jack shit."

     "Of course he is." She scoffed into her glass before taking another sip of her lemonade. Ward looked at her with an expression of confusion mixed with concern. "Okay, sweetie, what's been going on recently? You seem pissed off, more than usual." He raised his brows as he took a sip of his lemonade.

     She bit the inside of her cheek, inhaling through her nose before exhaling all together. "I guess I'm just kind of realizing that I don't like the person I'm becoming."

     Lilah Cameron always struggled with lying to her father. She only lied about where she was going or to cover for Sarah but never anything personally. She trusted him, with her life, and that was the reason she couldn't lie to him.

     So, she thought now would be the time for a therapy session while the blonde Pogue waited for his snacks upstairs.

     Ward's face slightly dropped, now showing concern all over, "What do you mean?"

     She sighed, "The whole bitchy Kook thing. I mean the bitchy thing I could change but I'm not going to and I can't change the Kook thing either, not that I would, but I guess I just feel like I've been surrounding myself with the wrong people."

     "What made you realize this?"

     "How the guys have been acting. You know, Topper, Julian, and Rafe." She shrugged before realizing something, "Julian and I broke up. I kind of forgot to tell you, I'm sorry." But he waved his hand forward, telling her it was fine.

     "I didn't like him anyway."

     "Dad."

     "I'm serious, Lilah. Rafe and his friends are always up to no good." He scoffed and his daughter couldn't help but nod her head at his statement. "Did the boys do something stupid?" He asked another question and she nodded again while fidgeting with her nails.

     "Then, good. You shouldn't be hanging out with them anyway. You are better than that." He took a sip of his drink before talking again, "Alright, I'm getting tired but thanks for talking to me about this, Li. You know you can always come to me."

     Lilah nodded her head at her father, "Yeah, of course. I'm gonna get some snacks then head to bed."

     Ward smiled before walking over to the side of her and kissing her forehead, "Love you. Goodnight." She smiled, "Love you too." He started to walk away but Lilah stopped him, "Wait, Dad?"

     Ward looked over his shoulder as Lilah scratched the back of her neck, "You don't mind if Maia spends the night, right? Her parents are going at it again and I just wanted to help her out." She looked at him in anticipation as he immediately nodded his head, "Of course. And, I know the rules! Don't talk her parents about it, no need to remind me."

     Sarah had Scarlet to cover for her when she wasn't in the house. Lilah had Maia who was scared shitless of her and would cover for her if she needed it. Maia's parents are known as the couple that strictly stays together for business so Ward always understood when Maia "needed" to spend the night.

     Lilah laughed at her dad rolling his eyes, "Goodnight."

     She started to grab the snacks she bought when she was with Sarah this morning plus some chocolate chip cookies she sealed away yesterday after she baked. She headed upstairs with bags filling her arms. She opened the door with her elbow and used her foot to close it behind her. She saw JJ watching TV with his hands under his head and his feet crossed on her bed.

     "Jesus, took you long enough! Thought maybe you decided to eat the food yourself."

     She rolled her eyes, dropping the snacks on her bed, "Here, go crazy. And no, my dad was downstairs but don't worry, Rafe isn't home so it's just him, Rose, and Wheezie."

     JJ peeled open a bag of chips, "Why is her name Wheezie?" She just shrugged at his question, "How should I know? I was three when she was born."

    The boy began scarfing down the chips, "Holy shit. Have you never eaten a day in your life?" She gaped at him which made him laugh with his mouth full.

     "First, ew! Second, take your shoes off before putting your feet on my bed!" She huffed before yanking his boots off herself and throwing them to her bedroom floor.

     "Sorry, Queen Kook. We don't necessarily get good food intake on our side of the island."

     Lilah frowned at the comment, "What does that mean?" She watched as he swallowed the food in his mouth and let out a scoff, "Well, ever since Big John went missing, John B and I haven't eaten that much cause we don't have money for groceries every week. We stock up as much as we can then have those for maybe a month or two?"

"That's awful." She looked at him with sadness and he just rolled his eyes, "Alright, don't get sad on me. It's really not that big of a deal."

She bit her bottom lip, slightly, feeling guilty, once again, that her dad fired John B. "So you and John B are really close then?" She changed the topic, noticing that he seemed like he didn't want to talk about it anymore and to be honest, neither did she because she knew she would feel more and more guilty if they kept talking about it.

"He's my best friend. Screw that, he's my brother."

"So, he's your Sarah?

"Normal people don't say that, bro."

The girl playfully rolled her eyes with a smirk on her face, "He's your best friend but you guys respect each other like brothers do and y'all live together. That's literally Sarah and I." He popped a chip into his mouth, "Yeah, but you and Sarah are actually siblings, twins at that."

"I mean yeah, but she's still my best friend. She's the only person in my life I can truly trust with anything and everything. She's on my side no matter what. I don't know what I would do without her." She paused. "Honestly, I'd probably die. I mean, I'd have no one."

"Please, you'd have your entire family."

"It's not the same. I mean, Sarah is practically my lifeline. If I had to choose between her or the rest of my family...it wouldn't even be a difficult decision, I'd choose her."

JJ turned his head to the side to look at the girl who sat up next to him. She played with her hands that laid in her lap and suddenly, the boy could finally understand her.

"I'm the same way with John B. And Pope and Kiara. But mostly, John B. I don't know if I could live in a world without him. Sounds corny as fuck but.." JJ shrugged and Lilah looked at him, to see he was already looking at her. "I get it."

JJ kept his eyes on her for one more second before turning his head quickly to the Cameron girl's television. "Okay, random question since we are being...truthful and open? I guess..."

"What is it?" Lilah also turned her head and popped a chip into her mouth.

"Why did you and Julian break up? I saw you two talking before you know, we got jumped."

She sucked in her breath before telling him the entire story, not the summary version she told her sister, but the whole truth. Plus, she added on what he said to her while the Kooks jumped Pope and JJ. After she was done, the room filled with silence between them, only the television being heard in the background.

     "I always knew he was a dick." He shrugged and Lilah let out a laugh, "Shut up."

"Need me to punch him?"

"Not at the moment but I'll let you know when we need to tag team him."

It was JJ's turn to let out a laugh as he grabbed a ziplock bag that had cookies in it. He opened the plastic bag and took a bite out of the chocolate chip cookie, "Holy shit, these are good as fuck."

Lilah smirked as she saw that he was holding one of the cookies, "Oh, thanks! I made them yesterday." He looked at her with a confused expression, "You made these?"

     Realizing she was still in her clothes, she got up and started shifting through her drawer. She picked out some Brandy Melville sweatpants and an off the shoulder t- shirt and went into her closet to change. She had a small walk in closet but it was enough room to change.

"Uh, yeah? Is that surprising?" She talked through the door.

     "Well, did you poison them? That's more your style."

     She scoffed ad she walked out in a different outfit, "No, I didn't poison them you dick. I just like to bake. Especially when I'm stress. It's just something I've always liked doing, I guess." He stared at her and she felt herself grow unconscious under his eyes.

"Stop looking at me like that."

"Sorry, just can't believe you have a soul."

     "Andddd goodnight, asshole." She turned off her light switch and walked to her side of the bed. She saw that JJ had already gotten under her covers and she knew he was smirking in the darkness, "Um, get up. You're sleeping on the floor."

     "That is not happening. You invited me to spend the night and I said yes meaning I'm gonna be comfortable where I sleep."

     "I invited you which means I pick where you sleep."

     "Nope."

     She groaned but slipped under her duvet anyway and the two both turned their bodies to the opposite sides of the bed. Lilah huffed, "JJ, get your butt away from me."

     "Get over yourself. My butt wants nothing to do with your butt! And stop hogging the covers." He tugged at her duvet which made the Cameron girl glare and tug back.

     "Stop!" He whispered-yelled at her as the two pulled the blanket back and forth. Lilah finally gave up with a scoff and turned her body even more to the side. Nothing but the television was heard in the room.

"Can we at least turn the TV off?" He asked her and she shook her head, "Nope." she mocked and smiled herself to sleep when she heard him groan into the pillow he was laying his head on.

BEAU SPEAKS !
HELLO OMGGGGG

this chapter is so so cute and it took a little longer bc i wanted to make it perfectttt

NEXT CHAPTER IS VERY JUICY SO GET READY!!!