XXIII. rearview mirror smiles

Bridger was beginning to grow concerned as to why Sarah and Kiara were taking so long. The longer he was in the basement, the more anxious he was getting that something would pop out and try to kill him. They waited impatiently for John B as he continued to search since the well. Bridger's hand was throbbing in pain.

"John B, you okay?" Pope called out, leaning over the well.

"See any bones?" Bridger asked.

Before anyone could say anything else, faint screams could be heard and as they got closer, Bridger realized it was Kiara and Sarah. The two girls came running into the basement. "Guys! Guys!"

"Whoa, what happened?" Pope asked in a panic.

"Mrs. Crain, she's up there!" Sarah breathed heavily.

"She tried to kill us with a fire poker." Kie added and doubled over to catch her breath.

Bridger started to panic again and he paced back and forth. "Oh shit."

"We locked her in the parlor but we gotta go!" Sarah nearly shouted in a full panic.

"That's code red!" JJ announced.

"John B!"

"John B, get up here!"

"Get back on, man!"

They started shouting for the boy and all gathered around the rope. Together, they yanked the rope back and grunted. Unfortunately for them, the rope came loose again and made them stumble. "Jesus fuck!"

They scrambled to their feet again and circled around the well, looking for the sight of John B. "Where the hell is he?" Kiara quickly asked.

"What's he saying?" JJ asked after hearing John B's muffled yells.

"JJ! Pope! Kie!"

"Yo! He's drowning! We gotta pull him up!" Kiara panicked and grabbed the rope again.

"John B, get back on the rope. We're gonna pull you back up, okay buddy?" Pope called out to him and they collectively gathered around the rope again. 

Together, the group began to yank back the rope again. Bridger grunted loudly and used all the muscle mass he had, all while his hand was starting to bleed again. Suddenly, there was a gunshot in the air and his heart leaped out of his chest. "What the fuck!"

Automatically, they dropped the rope in fear of being hit. "She can't aim for shit!" Kiara said while ducking down.

They grabbed the rope again and quickly yanked it back until John B popped over the edge, revealing himself. Mrs. Crain shot at them again and Bridger dropped the rope. "Fuck this!" He cursed.

"Bridge, no—"

JJ stopped after his boyfriend sprinted out of the basement. Mrs. Crain shot at them again and he gave up, running out as well after everyone else.

"Crazy bitch!" Bridger's voice echoed outside.

They group sprinted back to the van. Bridger was the fist to slide the door open and jump inside, collapsing onto the floor. "Jesus H. Christ!"

Quickly after him, the others began to pile in and JJ fell inside, colliding with the Kook and their heavy breaths mixed together. "Where is he?" Kiara frantically asked and looked around, seeing that John B wasn't with them.

"Shit, what if he was the sacrifice?" Bridger asked with wide eyes.

Sarah hit him on the shoulder. "Shut up, Bridge!"

"Why are we always getting shot at?" Pope yelled as he was equally as panicked as his kook friend.

"Always?" Bridger repeated in fear.

Sarah's eyes saw John B jumped over the fence and make his way to the van. "John B!"

"Drive, JJ. Drive!" Both Kiara and Bridger shouted and he scrambled to the driver's seat.

John B dived into the van and JJ quickly drove off. He was covered head to toe in mud. "Oh my god!"

"Guys, oh my god!"

"Are you shot?"

"You good?"

"What the fuck did you guys drag me into!"

The group shouted over each other as JJ drove like a maniac. "I think i'd know if I was shot, right?" Kiara announced.

"Crazy ass old bitch!" Bridger cursed loudly.

"You look disgusting!" Pope cringed as everyone finally noticed how awful John B smelled.

"God, you smell like ass."

"You look like a walking infection, dude."

"What the hell just happened?" Sarah gasped.

"All time Pogue Hall of Fame, baby!" JJ cheered and threw his fist into the air.

"Hell yeah! That bitch is possessed." Kiara shouted.

"That bitch can't aim." Sarah laughed out loud.

"That bitch is lucky I didn't shoot her!" The Kook boy exclaimed and felt himself shake from how high his adrenaline was.

Kiara's eyes watched as John B pulled something out of his pocket and they caught the sight of the gold color. "What is that?"

They looked at John B again and Bridger sucked in a breath. "No fucking way."

"No, you didn't!" Sarah laughed with a large smile on her face. "No, you didn't!"

"We did it, baby!" John B bellowed.

"No, you didn't!"

"I did it!"

"Holy shit, we fucking did it!" Bridger shouted and he and Pope started hitting each other's shoulders in excitement.

"Holy shit! Holy shit!"

"Whoo!"

"We fucking did it!"

"That's gold!"

Kiara held her arms out. "Wait, wait! Guys, we're gonna be rich!"

"Like Kook rich!" Sarah nodded quickly.

"Full Kook!" Bridget shouted at the top of his lungs.

"Full Kook! Full Kook! Full Kook! Full Kook! Ay-ay-ay! Whoo!"

Bridger laughed like a maniac as he watched the group of Pogues yell and shout over their finding. He went quiet and laughed with them, knowing it wasn't his money and that he didn't need it. He would be supportive anyway.

Bridger watched JJ with narrow eyes as the blonde melted the gold bars. "Are you sure you're doing this right?" He questioned.

"Do you not trust me?" JJ asked, taking his eyes off the gold for a split second.

"Is that a trick question?"

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, I know what I'm doing, babe.  I took a welding class."

Bridger gave him a look. "You took a welding class?"

"Yes! Sorry if you don't have those at your fancy Kook Academy."

He stood up and looked over his shoulder. "Nope, we sure don't. We just have ugly ass uniforms and a water polo team."

JJ snorted. "Water polo?"

Bridger flexed his muscles that appeared through his white T-shirt. "Gotta keep up with the muscles somehow."

They watched as the gold melted perfectly and Bridger and Pope fist bumped, feeling the victory. He kissed JJ on the back of the neck. "Good job, baby."

After they got the good melted down, the group collected inside the Twinkie and started making their way to the pawn shop. His mood shifted when JJ figured out he had to be the liar. "Good afternoon, ma'am." He greeted the woman at the front desk.

"Afternoon." The woman said back monotoned.

"I see you buy gold."

"That's what the sign say, don't it?"

Bridget walked with the others around the shop and let JJ work his magic. He watched them carefully, trying not to look suspicious.

"Well, I sure hope you buy a lot of it, because I'm about to blow your mind," JJ stated and put his backpack on the counter.

"I ain't got much mind left to blow, so have at it." The woman sassed.

JJ placed the bar of gold on the table. "How about them gold apples?"

"Oh, my god." Bridger mumbled to himself, praying that he wouldn't screw it up.

The woman looked at the bar of gold in disbelief and back at him with a chuckle. "That ain't real."

"That ain't real?"

"It can't be!"

"Feel how heavy it is," JJ insisted.

The woman listened and tried to pick up the gold bar, only to see how heavy it actually was.

"Mhm. Mhm! Let's get some light on that."

Sarah stood beside Bridger as they watched the scene. "You have faith in him?" She whispered.

Bridger nodded. "Of course I do. Just hoping he says something stupid to throw her off."

JJ and the woman kept going back and forth. ". . . We ain't done the acid test yet." She told him.

"Ooh! The acid test," he declared and looked back at his friends. "My favorite, guys."

Bridger chuckled slightly and walked past a display case. His eyes landed on a specific item and it made him pause. He looked in the case and then over his shoulder, then at the case again.

"Ma'am, I'm telling ya, this is as real as the day is long," JJ continued to try and sell.

"It looks like somebody tried to melt it down." She pointed out after seeing the melting job.

JJ paused for a minute and his eyes flickered to his boyfriend, who gave an encouraging nod. "My mom. She had all this jewelry lying around the house and she thought it was best to–to melt it all down. To 'consolidate' it."

Bridger and Sarah looked away, trying to conceal their laughter.

The woman out the gold bar on the weight scale. "Seven pounds? That's a lot of earrings."

He paused again and tried to come up with an excuse. He looked at Bridger again and a light bulb went off. "Okay, to be honest, ma'am. . . it's really hard to see my mom fall apart with Alzheimer's,"

Kiara pulled a face. "Alzheimer's?"

"She uh. . . She always told me it was her last memorable wish to. . ." He paused. "To uh, for me to have enough money for a ring," he motioned to Bridger. "For my soon to be fiancé."

All eyes fell on Bridger and his went wide out of his head.

"F-For an engagement ring. It was her number one wish. . . s-she most likely won't get to attend to wedding." JJ continued and there was a crack in his voice.

It went silent as a mouse as everyone waited for Bridger to speak. The Kook quickly went and stood next him, wrapping his arm around him. "Yes, that's right." He said with a convincing smile.

The woman looked between them. "Fiancé?"

Bridger raised his eyebrows. "Yeah, got a problem with that?"

"Course not. This is America," she stated, even though she didn't believe the story. "Give me a minute."

She went into the back room and Bridger turned to JJ, looking very impressed. "Okay, Oscar nominee."

He smiled brightly and they high fived.

Sarah was the first to approach them, her own eyes wide. "I'm sorry, fiancé?" She emphasized.

"Engagement ring?" Kiara followed, her voice going high.

Bridger went red. "Uh. . ."

"That's right," JJ said with no shame. "How's it feel that I'm first one to be engaged?"

"Like I'm still dreaming." Pope muttered from where he was standing.

Sarah's face lit up. "Oh my gosh, Bridger! Are you serious?"

He glanced at his boyfriend and cracked a smile. "As a heart attack."

Kiara let out a quiet squeal. "Holy shit! That's–That's awesome!"

Even thought they knew they wouldn't be getting married for a while, Bridger and JJ knew they didn't need all the formalities. They loved each other. That was all they needed, really.

JJ quickly shushed them when the woman came back to the front. "So, I, uh. . . I talked to my boss. And, uh, this is what I can do," she started to explain. She had written a number on a piece of paper and slid it over.

JJ looked at the paper and gave her a look. "Fifty thousand?"

"Yeah, that doesn't really cover the ring that's in my head." Bridger followed, poking himself in the head.

"Ma'am, I know for a fact that this is worth 140, at least!"

"Well, sweetie, you in a pawnshop. This ain't Zurich. Do I look Swiss to you?"

"Ninety, or we walk." JJ negotiated.

"Seventy. Half price. . . and um. . . I don't ask questions about where you got this." She leaned forward and whispered.

Bridger took the lead and leaned forward, looking for her in the eye. "Seventy five and I don't go around telling people the pawn shop lady turned down a gay couple looking to buy an engagement ring for each other."

He and the woman stared each other down, and the others widened their eyes. JJ smirked heavily, finding him to be extremely hot right now. Bridger slowly grinned and glanced at him. "What do ya say?"

"I'm gonna need that in large demonstrations, please." JJ declared.

The others smiled at the statement and the woman's eyes flickered to them. "Well, here's the snag. I don't have that much denominate. Not here, anyway. I can write you a cashier's check."

JJ scoffed. "Cash. . . No ma'am, I want the cold hard. That's what the sign says. Cash for gold. That's what I expect. I'm gonna get it in cold hard."

"Well, I have to send you to the warehouse. I have the money there. Is that all right?"

Bridger stared at her oddly, finding it off putting hoe dismissive she was being. He glanced over his shoulder at Pope and Kiara, but they only shrugged.

JJ stared at her. "Where's this warehouse?"

After getting the directions, the crew exited the pawnshop and JJ let out a loud holler. "And that's how it's done!"

They piled into the van again and cheered in victory. "I'm still in shock. Engaged?" Sarah announced with a large smile.

Bridger shrugged. "I mean, nothing's really any different. I already take care of his stupid ass."

JJ's jaw dropped and he kicked his leg with his foot. "Says the one who always insists on it."

"I think it's great!" John B chimed from the driver's seat. "At least we know someone can handle JJ's bullshit."

Everyone bursted into laughter and JJ looked at them with a slacked jaw. Bridger smiled and winked at him, feeling as at peace as ever.