——

"Welcome to Crackhead Wasteland," Sarah commented while the van clambered down the dirt road. "I don't know about this, man." Pope sighed.

"Dude, why are we at Barry's?"

John B glanced at JJ for an answer as the blonde parked the van and reviewed the license he stole from the basehead. He started to open the car door, "This'll only take a second."

"Why don't you take that second and think this through?" Emelina asked him from the backseat. JJ whipped his head around and with an emotionless expression he said, "You don't know what you're talking about."

She flattened her lips, watching him exit the van without another word. John B rolled the window down and peeked his head out, "Where're you going?" he asked.

"Yo soy Justicia," JJ answered and quickly entered the home.

Emelina sighed and already felt stressed. "Did you glean anything from that?" Pope asked, his shoulder sticking outside the van a bit due to the sliding door being opened.

"You know somebody should probably—" Kiara's words faded into nothing when John B opened the passenger side door to let himself out. "Yeah, I got it." He slithered his way into the house and the van became quiet.

Emelina was the first to break herself free from the cramped area. The second she got a sense of the outside air, a huge sigh was released. The debate on whether or not to storm in the house or not did cross her mind, but she didn't want to anger him more.

"E, are you okay?" Kiara placed her hand on her shoulder and gave her a look of concern. Emelina nodded once, "Yeah, but you shouldn't be asking me that."

"I don't know what his deal is." Kiara crossed her arms. Sarah and Pope joined the two and stood outside, waiting for the boys to return.

"All right, so we're looking at about four grand each for reparations for putting us through that bullshit." JJ pulled himself out of the house with a fresh duffle bag in his hand. John B soon came out after him.

"Sorry about that, y'all." JJ finished, counting some cash he pulled out of the bag.

Kiara spoke up, "So that's what we're doing now? We're robbing drug dealers?"

"This Barry guy's gonna find out. And he's gonna come after us." Sarah butted in. Emelina nodded and looked at JJ, who wasn't amused at the lack of appreciation for what he did.

"Yes, he will. Okay, this is not the time to start wilin' out." Pope said. JJ cut in, "How'd you like havin' a gun pulled on you?"

John B pushed himself in front of JJ, "Relax."

"He had it right here on you, bro." JJ mimicked the gun with his finger and pointed it to his friend's head.

"Look," John B slapped his finger away, "We've gotta go get the gold, okay? Just give me that shit. We're putting it back."

John B grabbed the duffle bag from JJ's grasp, but in return, JJ slammed him against the van. "Do you feel like a tough guy? Huh?" John B taunted, "What are you gonna do when he comes after us?"

"We punch him in the throat," JJ answered. Emelina rolled her eyes, but the highly strung feeling in her gut never went away.

"Yeah, good fucking idea, JJ." John B replied. JJ snatched the bag back from the brunette boy, "I'm not putting it back."

JJ stepped into the van and placed himself on one of the opened seats. None of them dared to join him, and he noticed that. "You guys getting in or what?"

It was silent. He waited a few seconds before leaving the van again and staring at them all for answers. "What?"

"We're sick of your shit." John B replied. "Oh," JJ scoffed then proceeded to nod, "my shit?"

"Yeah. Yeah. Your shit." he said again. "Yes," Kiara intruded in, "Your pulling guns on people shit."

"You acting like a maniac—"

"Okay, Pope, I took the fall for you, man! You know how much money I owe because of you?" JJ interrupted Pope. Pope widened his eyes, "I'm gonna pay you back, and I didn't ask you to do that!"

"I just did! Pay it back." JJ stepped forward. "Right here, right now, by myself."

JJ turned his head, "You know what? That's exactly what I'm gonna do." He leaned into the van and grabbed the bag to hang on his shoulder. "Go off by myself."

"JJ—" Pope began to follow the walking boy, but John B pulled him back. "Hey, wait, man."

"Just let him go," Sarah said. All of them watched JJ moved on his feet further and further away.

"He shouldn't be off by himself," Emelina told them.

Kiara spun around to glance at her friend. "What difference would it make? His pride is so big he will never put that money back."

"You don't know if you don't try." Emelina sighed and began stepping away, but Kiara's hand pulled her arm back. "What are you doing?! He wouldn't listen to you. Hell, he'd listen to Sarah more than you." she told her.

Emelina didn't respond but her offended expression was noticeable. Kiara frowned, "Look, I know him. It'd be better off to let him deal with his shit on his own."

"Just wait for me." Emelina released herself from Kiara's grip and charged after the blonde boy. She called out his name and he didn't turn around, so she suspected he was ignoring her on purpose.

"JJ..." she breathed out once she caught up with him. She turned her head and saw her friends standing next to the van with annoyed faces, but she didn't care. Their figures were small due to how far away they were.

"What?" JJ snapped and whirled his body around to face her. She gulped when staring into his angry eyes and began questioning why she ran after him. Maybe listening to Kiara was the right move.

"Where are you going with that?" she asked him, pointing to the duffle bag that was still wrapped around his shoulder. "I'm going to make things right." he answered.

Emelina scoffed, "Right? How is stealing from a drug dealer right?"

JJ grew quiet but the displeased look on his face never went away. She knew him long enough to know what he will say. Their countless arguments always pinpointed to the one thing she's known for. "You just don't get it, do you?" JJ asked.

She crossed her arms and shook her head slightly. "Enough with the Kook bullshit, JJ. Put it back."

"I'm not doin' that," he replied.

"You are becoming exactly the type of person my mom tried warning me about... Prove me wrong." she told him, hoping to get a reaction out of him.

JJ closed his eyes and clenched his jaw, taking in her last statement. He opened them once more after consolidating his thoughts, "I have nothing to prove to you." he said at last before spinning around and storming off into the wilderness.

She stood there for a good minute to process what happened. Eventually, she made her walk of shame back to the group that waited for her.

"What did I say?" Kiara said as soon as Emelina was close enough.

"Shut up, Kie." she replied and sat in the passenger's seat to avoid sitting next to either one of them on their way back home.

§

"Look, he'll come around, all right? It's... He's doing a JJ thing." John B said aloud as the rest of them sit at the empty restaurant of The Wreck.

Emelina paced back and forth in front of them, feeling worried for her blonde friend. "You don't think he'll go home, do you?" she asked no one in particular and stopped herself from moving around the room.

"There's about a zero percent chance that JJ goes home," Pope answered her, leaning his arm on the window as his eyes trained outside.

It was silent until Kiara spoke up and looked at the brunette girl. "Wait, how do you know about his home?"

Emelina scrunched her eyebrows in confusion, wondering why she'd ask that question. She was about to come up with a lie until John B cut in, "I told her."

"Oh," Kie said quietly.

Emelina silently thanked him with her eyes and pulled out a chair, sitting in it to ponder for a moment. Maybe she's showing too much care for JJ and Kiara is suspecting something is going on between them, even though Emelina keeps telling herself there isn't... Right?

She pulled herself out of her thoughts when Pope stepped away from the window and started speaking, "Okay. It's too dangerous to pawn this thing off piecemeal. So our best bet is to go down there and get the rest of it. Bring it all up at once. Put it in—in a safe or a vault or something. I—I don't know. Just until we can find someone who won't rip us off."

Everyone started to nod. Pope continued, "I can figure it out tonight. I can get it all done and we can be out there as earliest as tomorrow morning."

"All right, let's do it." John B said.

"Easy."

Sarah glanced at her boyfriend, "What about that thing with my dad?"

John B looked down and muttered, "Shit."

"What thing with her dad?" Emelina asked. John B peered up and looked at her, "I have to go fishing with Ward." he answered.

Pope rolled his eyes and sighed, propping his hands on the table. Kiara raised her eyebrows, "You can't get 400 mil 'cause you're gonna go kill fish?"

"Look, I have to go." John B replied. "Blow it off. It's 400 million in gold!" Pope told him.

"Make something up," Kiara said. John B shook his head, "Look, I—I have to, okay? He... he saved me, all right? And if it weren't for Ward, I'd be in foster care. So... I have to go. Plus, it'll be better to do it at night. Right?"

He took a quick look around for everyone's faces and they silently agreed with him.

"Fine. Fine, go fishing." Pope nodded.

"And at least JJ will probably have washed up by then," Kiara said. Emelina nodded and sighed, "Hopefully..."

——

a/n: omg thank u guys sm for 2k views already that's insane i really appreciate it and please comment so my ego can be boosted <3