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"You know, hurricane season is my favorite season," John B says as he and I sit on the beach a few mornings later after a sunrise surf session. It was just us that morning — Sarah had gone out of town for a few days to visit family, Kie and Pope had been doing their own thing for a couple days, and JJ had to work early this morning and wanted the extra sleep. It had been a while since I had hung out alone with John B, and I had welcomed the opportunity when he asked if I wanted to surf with him.

"That's not something many people would say," I chuckle.

"I know, I mean it's not like I like the hurricanes, but these waves, it's so fun to surf when somethings swirling out in the ocean," he explains.

"Agreed, however, I hate when you guys surf the surge. Scares me to death."

"Is it 'you guys' or just one guy?" he teases.

"All of you! But him the most," I admit.

"You know, he really loves you," he says, looking over at me.

"I know. I love him, too."

"I love Sarah," he says, turning his gaze back towards the sun peeking up over the horizon.

"That's great, JB," I say sincerely.

"I haven't said it yet," he says. "I'm scared to."

"Because you're scared she won't say it back?" I ask.

"Exactly."

"You've been together longer than JJ and I have, and the first time we said it was a while ago."

"You and JJ are different," he scoffs. "You were cosmically destined to be together."

I laugh. "Maybe. But listen, if you love her, you should tell her. You can create the perfect romantic moment to do it, or you can do it on the fly when you guys are doing something mundane, but you should tell her. Don't let fear keep you from telling her how you feel."

"You make it sound so easy," he says with a sigh.

"It is that easy. You probably should've had this talk with JJ, he's the one who said it first," I tell him. "Maybe he has some pointers," I joke.

He chuckles. "I wanted a girl's perspective though. And I know you've had that situation go both ways - where you responded the same way, and where you didn't."

"Well, you already know I said it back to JJ, but when Tyler said it to me the first time, and I didn't say it back then, or ever," I add, shrugging my shoulders, "I just told him I wasn't there yet. So it's not like I ran screaming off into the night. If Sarah isn't ready to say it, you have to be okay with that. Just... think about that. If you say it and she doesn't, do you think everything will fall apart?"

"No, I mean it would hurt my feelings, but I wouldn't like, break up with her or anything," he says.

"Is there anything in you that makes you think she'll say it back?"

"Yeah, I mean the things she says and does, like, I feel like a spark there or something. I don't know. It sounds stupid when I say it out loud," he sighs.

"If you feel it, say it. If she says it back, that's fucking awesome, and if she doesn't, you have to know she really, really likes you. She's happier with you than she ever was with Topper. Trust me, I saw them together all through ninth and tenth grade."

John B nods. "I'm gonna do it. Soon. I don't know when, but I'm gonna do it. I want to tell her," he says definitively.

"Awesome. Let me know how it goes."

******************************
That afternoon, it's so hot out that any outside activities seem undesirable. JJ had invited himself over to my house after getting done with his shift at the garage. He's stretched out on the couch as I occupied one of the recliners, trying to find something on tv for us to watch.

"This heat today is no joke," he says as he pushes a hand through his hair. "I only worked eight to noon and I was drenched by the time I left."

"It's the beginning of August in the south, what do you expect?"

"I dunno, maybe to not sweat my ass off while I'm standing still," he says.

I hear the side door open and see my mom walk into the kitchen from outside. "Hey you two," she says as she swipes her hand across her forehead. "It's a hot one out there."

"Yeah. That's why we're inside," I tell her.

"Do you need something to do?"

"Is that your way of asking if we'll do something for you?" I ask.

She laughs. "Yes. I've still got things to do down in the fields, but we're getting low on groceries. This heat is zapping me of all my energy and I'm going to be too tired to go to the store this evening. Would you two go shop for me? I already made a list, and my credit card is right here," she says, holding it up.

I look over at JJ and raise my eyebrows. He shrugs. "Okay, we'll go. Give me the list."

"Thank you," she says as she brings the list and her card over.

JJ and I drag ourselves off the furniture and venture out into the sweltering heat. I toss him my keys as we head to the Jeep.

"You're letting me drive?" he asks.

"You were going to pout if you didn't get to," I say as we climb in.

He gives me a rueful smile as he starts up the engine. "You're right."

We head into town and find it dead. The heat is apparently affecting everyone; no one wants to be out and about on this miserable day. "I can't wait until this next big storm rolls through, fuck this heat," I say as he turns down the road where the grocery store is located.

"When is it supposed to hit?" he asks.

I shrug. "The next day or two, I guess." I pull at my shirt, which is stuck to my skin despite the breeze blowing though the Jeep. "I'm going to have to get a house up north or something. I'll be like the opposite of a snow bird."

"The fuck's a snow bird?"

"You know, the old people who have winter houses in the south because they hate the cold. I think I would love the cold."

"It gets cold here," he says as we pull into the parking lot of the store.

"I'm talking about real cold. Like with snow and everything. I've never seen snow, but it looks like it would be pretty. I want to try snowboarding."

"You want to leave behind beach life?" he asks.

"Not forever, I just want to visit somewhere with a real winter. All we get is like fifty degree temperatures and rain."

"We'll go one day, then. To the mountains somewhere. You'll just have to keep me warm at night," he says with a smile.

"I think I know of some ways," I say, returning the smile.

We walk into the grocery store and grab a cart. I look down at the list. My mom has organized all the items we need into categories, and the categories are in the order in which we'll find everything in the store. She's made this incredibly easy for us.

Because of my mom's organization, it doesn't take us very long to shop. We're in and out of the store in a little over an hour, laden down with food for my family for the next week. We're loading the last of the bags into the back of my Jeep and laughing over another domesticity joke JJ has made when a voice startles us from behind.

"What, you living with your little girlfriend now?"

We turn around and meet Luke's glassy eyes. He's a few feet away from us, but even from here, I can smell the liquor on him.

"No," JJ says, turning back to the cart and putting more groceries in the trunk.

Luke watches his son for a moment before he turns his gaze to me. "Still haven't figured out what someone like you sees in him," he says.

I scowl at him. "Of course you haven't," I say forcefully.

He laughs. "You got a smart mouth like his momma. I think we all know what happened to her and her smart mouth. Hope that doesn't happen with you," he says with mock sincerity. "You wouldn't be as pretty with a black eye."

"I'd never hurt Sunny. I'm not nearly as big of an asshole as you are," JJ says, straightening his posture.

"You want to come a little closer and say that, boy?" He squares his shoulders and takes a step closer to us.

"JJ, come on, we need to go," I say, gently tugging at his arm.

"You better listen to your pretty little fuck buddy, you wouldn't want your old man beatin' your ass in front of her, would you?"

JJ clenches his fists at his side as he tightens his jaw. "JJ," I plead with him.

"Go on, go with her back to her fancy house on Figure 8," Luke says.

"JJ, lets go," I say urgently. They stare at each other for another tension filled minute before he breaks eye contact first and climbs into the driver's seat, slamming the door once he's in the vehicle.

Luke gives me an amused look. "He listens to you better than he listens to me."

"Wonder why?" I retort. I wheel the cart around him and shove it into the cart return next to my car. I brush past him, bumping his shoulder with mine as I head to the passenger side of the Jeep and climbing in. JJ has the steering wheel in a death grip.

"What did he say to you?" he asks through gritted teeth.

"Nothing of importance," I reply.

"Sunny."

I sigh. "He said you listen to me better than him, so I said 'wonder why?', and then I put the cart away and got in the car."

"I would never hit you, Sunny," he says, his voice full of emotion.

"I know you wouldn't," I say, reaching over to pull his hand from the steering wheel. He lets me take his hand, and I give him a reassuring squeeze. "Come on, take us back to the house."
*****************************************
JJ is in a mood the rest of the afternoon, no doubt from the run in with his dad. By evening, I still haven't gotten him to shake it.

"Why don't we take a drive, get some food?" I suggest as he stares at the tv without actually watching it. His eyes flicker to me for a moment before looking back at the tv. "Come on, please?" I lean over to his side of the couch and kiss his cheek.

"Fine," he says with a sigh. I pull out my phone and quickly text my mom, who's still out on the property somewhere, to let her know we're heading out for the night as he pulls my keys from his pocket. He hands them to me. "Not in the mood to drive."

"Okay," I say, turning the keys over in my hand. "Come upstairs with me real quick so I can pack my bag."

"You're staying with me tonight?" He perks up at the idea.

"Of course I am," I say. I grab his hand and pull him up off the couch. "Come on."

After going to my bedroom and throwing some things in my backpack, I'm ready. We head out to the Jeep and I immediately head East, going to the one place I know that will calm him. When we arrive at the Gold Coast, the smallest hint of a smile appears on his lips. I grab an old blanket from the back seat and tuck it under my arm before leading us out to the deserted beach. I spread out the blanket and plop down. He sits beside me.

"I wish I'd never have to see him again," he says after we've sat in silence for a few minutes.

"I know," I say softly. I take his hand in mine. "Do you ever think about looking for your mom?" I ask carefully.

"Of course I've thought about it, but she doesn't want to be found," he says sadly. "She left us both for a reason."

I frown. I had met her a few times in my life, when I was much younger. I only remember snippets of her; she had the same blue eyes and the same shade of blonde hair, although hers was much tamer. She had always seemed sweet, but was always kind of timid if his dad was around. When I found out she had up and left one day while we were at school, I had instantly hated her. JJ had been absolutely crushed. She didn't say goodbye, didn't leave any kind of note, and no indication where she was going. She was just gone.

"Maybe now it's been long enough? I bet she'd want to hear from you," I say.

"She doesn't want to fucking hear from me, Sunny," he snaps, pulling his hand out of mine. "That has been made very clear. If she cared about me, she wouldn't have left me with that asshole."

"I'm sorry," I say, not knowing what other words to offer up.

His angry expression softens a fraction. "Look, it's fine, okay? I'm used to it now."

My heart aches for him. My parents have always been so supportive and loving and providing; I can't imagine what it must be like to live a life where I didn't have that safety and stability.

I reach out for his hand again, and he lets me thread my fingers through his. "Well, I know it's not much, but you have me."

He leans into me, placing his head on my shoulder. "You're all I need."

I turn my head to place a kiss on his forehead. "I'll always be here for you," I promise him. "I hope you know that."

"I do," he says. He tightens his grip on my hand. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

We sit in silence for a while, watching the waves crash against the shore. The sea is growing choppier, indicating the storm John B and I were talking about earlier is looming closer. I think back to the conversation he and I had early this morning.

"John B is going to tell Sarah he loves her," I say, breaking the silence with a change of subject.

"He hasn't yet?" JJ asks, clearly welcoming the new topic. He sits up straight and looks over at me.

"That's what I said. He said he was afraid to tell her. We were talking about it this morning after surfing."

"Been there, felt that," he says with a grin.

"I told him he should've talked to you about it, since you were the one who said it first."

"I wouldn't have had any good advice. I don't know shit about relationships. I would've just told him to nut up and do it," he says with a chuckle.

"Just because I'm your first actual girlfriend, that doesn't mean you don't know anything about relationships."

"No?"

"You're the best boyfriend I've ever had," I say with a smile.

"I've met all your other boyfriends, that's not saying much," he teases.

"You never liked anyone I dated," I say.

"I like your current boyfriend," he says with a smirk.

"Oh, do you, now?"

"Yeah, he's a bit of a loose cannon sometimes, but he's incredibly attractive and I hear he's amazing in the sack," he says.

"JJ!" I laugh, shoving his shoulder. He laughs with me.

"I'm hungry," he says after he calms down.

"Me too. Let's go get food and go home," I say, standing up from our spot.

"Okay. I'm driving."

*****************************************

After grabbing a quick meal at the Wreck, we head back to John B's for the night. He's there when we arrive, and he's alone.

"Hey JB, how goes it?" I ask.

He tears his eyes from the tv and looks up at us. "I told Sarah I loved her today."

"And?" I ask anxiously.

A huge grin takes over his face. "She said it back."

"Aww, I'm happy for you," I say sincerely.

"Me too," he says, unable to wipe the smile from his face. "I'm actually going to pick her up soon."

"Are you coming back here? Do you need privacy?" I ask. JJ startles me by pressing an icy beer can against my arm. "Dude!" I exclaim. He holds out the beer to me, and I snatch it away.

"We had plenty of privacy earlier," John B says pointedly, and I giggle. "But yeah, I'm bringing her here. Just wanted to chill with her tonight, settle into this whole 'I love you' thing. Now that it's out in the open it's like... different. In a good way."

"Little John B is in love," JJ teases.

"Shut the fuck up, JJ," he says. "I don't make fun of you."

"Both of you quit," I warn the boys. "Neither one of you has room to talk about the other. You're both simpin' for your girlfriends. It's precious." They both give me a look. "Really, though, just be happy for one another. No one ever thought either of you could hold down a serious relationship, and look at you now!"

"Thanks, Sunny," John B deadpans.

"She's not wrong," JJ says with a shrug.

John B sighs. "Okay, okay. I'm going to go pick her up. No funny business while I'm gone," he says as he stands up and fishes his car keys from his pocket.

"No promises, man."



AN: okay so this was a big writing weekend for me... I just had so many ideas I needed to get out. Is this how real writers feel? 🤪 also 4K reads, omg! I'm so excited people are reading this story, because I love writing it. I already have the rest of the chapters (tentatively) planned and my mind is already swirling with new story ideas. I friggin love writing about JJ! But I might do a Rudy story? Idk yet. Anyways, happy reading and THANK YOU FOR 4K READS!! ❤️

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