T W E N T Y - O N E

If you gave someone twenty-four hours to watch JJ's daily routine and then asked them if they thought he'd be a good father they'd laugh in your face.

This is what his day looked like:

1. Wake up at midday.

2. Drink a beer.

3. Have a shower.

4. Maybe show up at school.

5. Come home and smoke a blunt

6. Have a nap.

7. Hang out with his friends and get even more drunk and high

8. Fall asleep in the wee hours of the morning, then rinse and repeat.

JJ was a trainwreck, and that was putting it lightly.

He had a criminal record; petty theft, and not to mention the felony destruction of property.

He was dependant on drugs and alcohol to get him through the day.

And he had anger issues.

While you have to take ownership for your own actions, some of the blame - especially when you're young - can be shifted on how you grew up. And who you grew up with.

And JJ grew up in just about the worst environment you can.

Luke was an impressively bad father, he beat his son black and blue, he stole from his son and genuienly wouldn't have cared if JJ died.

And JJ hadn't seen his mother since he was a kid, Ola fucked off with some rich man and the last he knew she had more kids with him.

He didn't have any parents he could emulate. He didn't have good parents, he didn't have siblings, unless you counted the half-silblings he never met, he never met his Aunts or Uncles or cousins.

It was just him.

Big John also wasn't an upstanding father, for just about the entirety of John B's life he was off in his own world searching for the gold. And John B's mum died when he was a baby.

Heyward was a good father, but the problem was Heyward really didn't like JJ so he never saw that side of Heyward. Pope's mum was nice though, but he never really saw her.

As for Kie's parents, he could count on one hand how many times he'd met them.

So when he got that text that informed him that he not only got someone pregnant, but that he got Otto pregnant he was terrified.

He was cold, distant and a absolute dick to her.

And what it took to snap him out of his shitty behaviour was watching her get torn apart by her ex boyfriend - an ex boyfriend JJ knew the history with - but even that wasn't instantaneous, it took him over twenty minutes for him to get out the car.

To say he liked Otto was an obscene understatement, while he didn't know it quite yet, he was completely in love with her.

He cared about her more than he cared about himself, he would've done anything for her.

For months Otto was all he thought about, he spent as much time with her as he could. And when she wasn't there he thought about what made her laugh or smile, what she liked and didn't like. He thought about how she made him laugh. He thought about her sarcastic, dry sense of humour, and the way she perfected the glare.

He also thought about that night. He only remembered bits and pieces but everything he could remember was euphoric.

But as soon as she told him that she was pregnant all that stopped. But it didn't really stop, he just ignored it.

Turns out he wouldn't do anything for her

But now she was standing right in front of him, minutes after he threw a toddler like temper tantrum.

Right there was girl that consumed him.

Even when he pretended not to care.

"What do you want JJ?"

The words bounced around his head, what did he want?

The idea of ending up like his father was an idea that made him sick to the stomach. He couldn't continue the cycle; he couldn't be the same angry, drunk, abusive man his father was. But the answer to that was simple, all he had to do was not hit Otto or the baby. That, he decided was simple.

He didn't have to be the best father the world had ever seen, he just had to not suck.

But what he hated more was the idea that there would be someone in the world that shared his DNA that he didn't know.

He knew what he wanted.

So he told her.

Otto didnt smile, she didnt really do anything but nod.

Otto never got inside her house so she still had the extra copy of the ultrasound, she pulled it out of her pocket and put it onto the kitchen counter.

JJ looked at it, he expected to not be able to make out Jack shit, but there, clear as day, was a baby.

"If you actually want to be involved you have twenty weeks to get your shit together."

"Is it a boy or a girl?" He asked.

"I'm not finding out." She said curtly.

"What does this mean?" He asked, looking up from the black and white picture.

"I have no clue." Otto said before walking out the destroyed Chateau.

She had done what she promised, she had calmed him down, and he was for the most part calm.

The pair of expectant parents didn't avoid each other anymore, their relationship was by no means fixed. Just because they could be in the same room together didn't mean they were back to the way things were weeks ago.

It probably wouldn't ever be the same.

They drove to school in the objectively hideous combi, Otto now had front seat privileges as she was pregnant.

Which meant she sat beside JJ.

And after school they all began to congregate at the Chateau once again, JJ had managed to clean it up to the point were is looked better than it was before.

Otto took her rightful place in the hammock once again. JJ, cautiously began to use his foot to push it gently back and forth as he used to.

He held his breath when he began to do it, half expecting for Otto to tell him to fuck off.

But she didn't. She shuffled and got herself comfortable.

Otto relaxed in the hammock as the group talked, they talked about school, the people at the school, and then moved onto the of the impending baby.

Although JJ and Otto stayed out of the conversation and the four spoke about - that's right, Kie and Maria got back together - it.

After a while they began suggesting names to the parents, one of which was asleep in the hammock, the soft sway never failing to send her to sleep.

JJ always knew exactly how hard to push it, as much as she'd never admit to it, he was good at it.

Pop suggested the name Francis, after himself.

Kie suggested Pogie, the horrific suggestion woke Otto up, "Over my dead body." She said hoarsely, before promptly going back to sleep.

A few more names were talked about, none of which JJ or Otto liked.

"I cannot believe you two are having an actual, human baby." Belly said, her legs thrown over Pope's lap.

"Well I sure hope it's human, if I pop out a ferret I will kill myself."

JJ snorted, as did a few other people.

"But let's be honest, if it was going to be anyone in the group it was always going to be JJ." Kie smirked.

Everyone seemed to agree on this and JJ rolled his eyes, he wanted to bring up John B and Sarah but they always steered clear of the topic so he refrained.

After the sun got close to setting Otto decided it was time for her to go home, JJ offered before anyone else could. Otto agreed and the got into the combi.

"Have you thought of any names?" He asked, trying to make conversation.

"All I know is I don't want Francis or Pogie."

There was a few seconds of silence, "I don't want it to have my last name." He said as the drove in the direction of Otto's house.

Otto smirked, "Oh, trust me, it was never going to have your surname. I'm doing all the work, I get the credit." She was half-joking, she really wasn't going to give the baby JJ's last name, but him not even wanting to made her think.

She knew why JJ didn't want the baby to have his surname, it came with all these presumptions and expectations. Negative expectations.

As he arrived at her house he killed the engine and looked over at Otto, he still couldn't get over how beautiful she was. She turned to look at him, "Thanks for the ride." She gave him a soft smile and got out the car.

Walking into the house her mum was in the lounge room and gave Otto a confused look, "Thats JJ's car."

Otto swung her house keys around her fingers, "It sure is."

"Does that mean he wants a part?"

"He does. But he needs to get himself sorted, he's a complete mess."

Laura smiled, she really hoped he did get his shit together. It was clear under all the messiness that was JJ's life he was a good person, he had good intentions even if they came out wrong.

"I'm finishing the granny flat, I thought you and the baby might want some extra room. It's close enough that if you need any help you can just walk back to the house." Laura had been thinking about it even before Otto was pregnant, it would've been her dream as a teenager.

Otto smiled, it was a perfect idea, "that sounds great, thank you."

•

The hammock scenario always makes my heart so warm. I have no clue why I find it so cute but I really do.

Also finally the JJ Maybank redemption arc is in place.