046
don't insult the twinkie... ever

A deafening gunshot rang through the air.

Bianca was sure she was dead. But her knees didn't buckle and when her eyes fluttered open, everyone stood exactlywhere they were.

"Alright- alright!" Barracuda Mike snapped, lurching forward but hesitating when Barry shifted the gun to him. By then, his henchmen also had their rifles aimed at Barry, "Stand down."

Bianca's chest rose and fell with heavy breaths. The air was suffocatingly thick as her eyes followed the barrel of the gun to the ugly wallpaper behind her where smoke billowed from a small bullet hole. Her gaze fell to the shell which rolled to a stop by her shoes.

Hold on... Did Barracuda Mike just defend her? Did she inhale second-hand smoke from the car? Was she tripping? Because there was no way, this man cared whether she lived or died.

Then, Barracuda Mike did the last thing Bianca would ever expect him to do.

"Put the gun down, Barry," He grumbled out. "Leave the kid out of this."

Alright, that confirmed it. Bianca was dead. She had to be dead.

The older man's eyes briefly flickered to her and did a once over, as if to check whether she was unharmed. It clicked for Bianca then, that Barracuda Mike needed out of this place just as much as the Pogues did.

Here he was, stuck cleaning up other people's messes, collecting debt. It was only a matter of time before the cops shut down his little drug smuggling operation. El Dorado and the gold JJ offered him was his one-way ticket out of this dumpster fire of a town.

But the gold came with a condition. Bianca's safety. Had Barracuda Mike returned with a body rather than the girl, he would've had to kiss his ticket goodbye. The realization made Bianca stand a little taller.

"You got what you wanted- I said put the gun down!" Barracuda Mike bellowed, deep and authoritative.

But Barry knew he had the upper hand, "Nah, nah, nah- that ain't happenin'," He shifted on his feet. "The second I put this thing away, you slimy fucks are gonna double cross me- I know how this works, Mike."

Bianca wasn't sure which was worse; that Barracuda Mike was no longer in control or that Barry was the one calling the shots.

"Now what we're gon' do is we're all gonna listen to Barry now, alright?" Barry's tongue darted out to wet his lower lip, peering down the barrel of the gun. "Startin' with you B-dog, I'm gonna need you to put your hands up, nice and slow walk over here- right here."

Bianca remained silent, her eyes flickering between Barry and Barracuda Mike. Every fibre in her body told her not to listen but the pounding in her heart reminded her she wasn't dead yet. This time, she needed to bite her tongue if she wanted to get out alive.

"Hurry up! I wanna see all y'alls hands in the air- I said hands in the air!" Barry snapped, forcing Bianca to put one foot in front of the other. "I said move! Go! Move!"

Barracuda Mike shot his men a look when they tried to reach for their guns again. After Bianca was near enough, Barry grabbed her by the arm and whirled her around so her back was pressed against him. She felt the cold metal gun against the back of her head and froze.

"Now, let me tell you what's gon' happen," Barry snarled lowly in her ear. He began walking backward, forcing Bianca to follow. "Y'all are gonna stay right where y'all are or I'm gonna blow her fucking brains out."

Bianca's feet almost stumbled as the floorboard changed to tiles. She held her breath, blindly following Barry's lead into the bathroom.

"You're fucking dead, Barry- you hear me!?" Barracuda Mike growled, his face red and scrunched with fury. "You're a dead man! I swear to-"

He was cut off when Barry slammed the door shut with his foot and locked it, dropping the gun from Bianca's head. The girl let out a hefty sigh, her shoulders sagging in relief. She whirled around to see Barry pacing, gripping his buzzed hair with the gun hanging from one finger.

"Fuck- fuck- fuck!" He cried, his back turned to Bianca.

On the other side of the door, heavy footsteps barged toward them. Before they knew it, fists were pounding against the wood, "Open this fucking door, Barry!" The knob jiggled.

Bianca's eyes flickered to the bathroom window, half-open, "Just go."

"What?" Barry turned to ask, partially because he couldn't understand a word she said over the ruckus.

"Why don't you just leave?" Bianca's eyes narrowed.

"'Cause my fucking money's out there," Barry gritted his teeth. "That's why I can't leave."

Right, Bianca resisted the urge to roll her eyes. The money he got from pawning off the Cross of Santo Domingo. Pope's cross.

"Okay," Bianca drawled, reaching for the doorknob. "Then I will."

Immediately, Barry's gun was back on her, forcing her to freeze, "Don't you fucking dare."

"Fine," Bianca lowered her hand.

Barry continued his pacing, "Alright- alright- think, think, think- fuck! Here's what we gonna do-"

"We?" Bianca scowled, gripping the ceramic sink behind her.

"Yeah, we," Barry's jaw clenched. "'Cause you're the reason I owe this guy money in the first place! What the hell are you even doing with him? Actually, I don't give a fuck- alright? You're gonna go out there and get me my motherfuckin' money-"

Bianca watched Barry walk up and down the small bathroom restlessly through a sharp glare. It was clear he wasn't going to give this up without a fight. Unfortunately for him, Bianca had a bad habit of not knowing when to back down from one.

"I have a better idea," She hummed before using the sink to give herself enough momentum to kick Barry from behind. Hard.

Bianca turned, not caring where or how he landed as she reached for the doorknob. From the other side, Barracuda Mike and his henchmen were still shouting curses.

Before Bianca's fingers could even graze the doorknob, Barry's painful grip yanked her backward. She tried to claw his hand off but it only caused them to both stumble past the shower curtain and fall into the bathtub.

Bianca's limbs crashed into the ceramic and Barry landed on top of her. She winced, her hips and ribs aching from where her body connected with the bathtub but the familiar clanking of the gun falling was the only thing that kept her going.

Barry's grunts and groans echoed through the shower as he tousled with the shower curtain. Bianca's hand fumbled with the faucet and she lurched out of the way just as pellets of water started beating down on them.

"Ah! Fuck!" Barry cursed when smoke started wafting from the bathtub.

Bianca must've turned on the hot water by the sound of the man's cries and the way he was rubbing his eyes frantically. But she didn't have time to dwell on it and instead grappled with the shower curtain.

Bianca tugged, hard, causing the curtain and the metal bar keeping it steady to fall right on top of Barry. He cried out again in agony, his skin now red and his clothes drenched in the scalding water.

"What the hell is going on in there?!" Barracuda Mike rapped his fist against the door frame. "Sweet Pea- if you can hear me, get out of the way! We're breaking this door down!"

His words fell on deaf ears because Bianca was too busy scouring the tiles for Barry's gun. The moment she spotted it, however, it was kicked across the room as the man, half tangled by the shower curtain, brought the metal bar down on her with a war cry.

A choked gasp fell from Bianca's lips as she stepped back just in time, narrowly missing the blunt end of the pole whichinstead landed through the mirror. Glass shattered by her head, and the fractured shards fell to the sink as it dug into the small of her back.

Barry pushed the metal bar up against Bianca's neck and they wrestled it between them. One particularly large piece of splintered glass managed to pierce the girl's side, causing her to cry out, "Shit-" She tried to shove him off. "If that scars, you're so dead, dude!"

Between her aching lungs from where Barry cut off her air supply with the pole and the white-hot pain across her waist, Bianca was barely thinking when she grabbed the piece of glass and slashed it across the man's cheek. He hissed and pulled back ever so slightly but it gave her enough time to dig the shard into his neck as a threat.

Barry pulled the pole away so she could breathe and Bianca's lips curled into a scowl, "Get the fuck off me right now orI'm going to slit your throat."

Barry glared above her, "You wouldn't."

"You said it yourself," Bianca bit back, her fingers gripping the glass so hard it drew blood. She pressed it harder into his jugular, enough to nick him, "Don't underestimate me."

A beat passed in which the two merely stared at each other, waiting for the other to back down. Barry's eyes flickered between hers, trying to deliberate whether he wanted to call her bluff but Barracuda Mike's thunderous booming from the other side of the doorway caused him to back off of her.

The moment he let go, Bianca winced, dropping the glass to grip her side. Her other hand tightened its hold on the sink to steady herself. She didn't dare look down at the sticky, wet substance she could feel staining the side of her top.

"Get out here, Barry!" Barracuda Mike pounded on the door. "I know places to hurt you where you'll feel pain you couldn't even imagine and still keep you alive!"

Barry watched as Bianca, unfazed by the threats, reached for the shower and turned the faucet on. Water sprayed into the bathtub, drowning out the noise, "What are you doing?"

Bianca placed a bloody hand on her lips to shush him, "Stop talking," She turned the sink faucet on for good measure. "If you want to live, shut up and listen."

Barry squared his shoulders, his grip tightening and loosening over the metal bar in his hands but the girl's stare didn't waver. Finally, he dropped the pole and it clanked heavily against the tiles. Bianca was glad, she didn't know if she could fight with him anymore, not in this state.

"Barracuda Mike is not going to stop until he has his money or until you're dead," Bianca warned lowly, trying to ignore the slick blood coating her fingers. "The way I see it- you only have one way out of this. Tell me where the money is andI'll make sure they don't follow after you," She nodded to the bathroom window.

Barry's head reared back, "What?! No way- that money's-"

"Not yours. It never was," Bianca snapped, her scowl deepening. "But right now, I am the only thing standing in between this door and those guys out there from beating the living shit out of you till they can't recognize your body in the autopsy report."

Barry shifted on his feet, "Why would you help me?"

"Because..." Bianca hesitated for a moment. "I want us to be friends..." Then, she rolled her eyes. "Sorry, couldn't keep a straight face- this is purely political. I want you out of my life."

Barry looked like he wanted to say more but Barracuda Mike yelled again, "I ain't playin', Barry! Last chance!"

"Ah- shit," The muscle in Barry's jaw ticked as he deliberated his options.

There was no way he was going to leave everything he and Rafe worked so hard for, right? Right?  But as the deafeningbangs on the other side of the door became increasingly furious, he didn't see any other way out of this.

"If you want to live," Bianca repeated, narrowing her eyes. "Listen to me."

"Any last words, Barry!?" Barracuda Mike sneered, his boot crashing against the frame of the door, causing the wood to shudder. "Alright, Sweet Pea- back away from the door. I'm coming in there in three...!"

The man reared back, his henchmen on either side of him.

"Two...!"

He charged his shoulder into the frame with a battle cry akin to a roar.

"One!"

The door ripped clear off its hinges and bounced off the blood-splattered sink before clattering to the bathroom floor. There, Bianca stood in the middle of the mess, staring with bored eyes at the fallen frame. Barracuda Mike's gaze landed on her and then the half-opened window blowing a cool draft through the otherwise steaming room.

"Shit!" The man whirled around to face his henchmen. "Go after him! He can't have gone far-"

"Wait," Bianca spoke, forcing them to halt their steps. "You don't want to do that."

"And why the hell not?!" Barracuda Mike's nostrils flared, getting increasingly agitated as the seconds ticked by.

"Because," Bianca hummed. "I know where your money is."

"We can't just let him go," One of the men protested.

"Boss?" The other piped up, waiting for instruction.

The tall, burly men sent each other weary looks, unsure who to trust. They still looked like they wanted to beat Barry to a pulp, and Bianca couldn't blame them but she also had a flight to catch. This drug-smuggling situation was extra baggage she didn't need to pay for.

Barracuda Mike sent her a hard glare which would send any other man running for the hills, "If I find out you're lyin' to help that sorry son of a bitch, Sweet Pea, then-"

"Oh, save it-" Bianca pushed past the men and into the bedroom. "I am one broken nail away from burning this place to the ground so you either go after that asshole or get your money- which one's it gonna be?" She stopped in front of the square cut-out door in the ceiling she saw earlier with a deadpan expression, "Well?"

This seemed to snap the men out of their stupor as they shook their heads. Barracuda Mike cleared his throat, "You heard the girl," He nodded toward her.

One of the men approached her with hesitation. His steps were slow like she was a wild animal.

Bianca gestured to the ceiling, "Little help here?"

The man sent one last glance over to Barracuda Mike before following her instructions. He bent down as if to give her a leg-up.

Bianca scoffed, "What am I? Five?" Her eyes narrowed. "Get on your knees."

Wordlessly, the man got down on all fours. Bianca shot another guard a look and he too quickly scurried over, outstretching his arm for her to take.

Bianca took his hand so she could step up on the other man's back. Slowly, she pulled out the key Barry gave her and skimmed her fingers over the wallpapered ceiling.

She found the indentations and using the sharp edge of the key, Bianca began cutting open the outline of the hidden trap door. Finally, she stuck the key through the wallpaper into the slot of the keyhole.

Dust sprinkled down on them as Bianca pushed open the trap door. Moments later, she was pulling out a navy blue duffle bag and throwing it to the ground. In an instant, Barracuda Mike lurched across the room and unzipped it.

His eyes found the stacks of green bills at the same time Bianca stepped back down. He began chuckling uncontrollably while the girl watched him with a scowl. She couldn't help but think after seeing piles of gold, and a seven-foot diamond-encrusted cross, this was nothing.

"Time to head out, boys. We got what we came for," Barracuda Mike zipped the bag up again and threw it over his shoulder, "Ain't you glad I brought you along, Sweet Pea?"

"Sure," Bianca deadpanned and crossed her arms over her chest.

The henchmen behind her rose to their feet, dusting off the dirt on their hands from kneeling on the ground. They fist-bumped each other in celebration before starting to head out the front door.

"You did good, kid but let's go get that looked at," Barracuda Mike nodded toward Bianca's side before following afterthem. "Can't have that little boyfriend of yours getting his panties in a twist. My neck's on the line y'know?" He rubbed the back of his head. "Come on."

Bianca finally glanced down at where the glass from the mirror cut her skin and found a hand-sized blood stain staring back at her. She swallowed down a choked whimper and just like that, the stabbing pain tripled tenfold.

"...Oh."

Meanwhile, JJ had paid Kiara's parents a visit over in Figure Eight, only to find out they were the entire reason for her disappearance. He thought they were full of shit. Never did he imagine they'd actually go through with sending her to one of those wilderness therapy camps.

But here he was, driving the Twinkie back from Kitty Hawk where Kiara was being held hostage.

The silence was getting to JJ. He was struggling to focus knowing that his girlfriend was off with a dangerous, drug-smuggling felon. How did Bianca just expect him to be okay with that? Nothing was okay about any of this.

Not Kiara's parents shipping her off, not Barracuda Mike holding Bianca for ransom, and definitely not the Pogues flying off to South America without them.

He knew if Bianca was here, she would tell him to stop being a baby and get Kiara safe first before worrying about her. JJ pressed harder on the gas and the Twinkie sped up to match his determination. If that's what Bianca wanted, then that's what he would do.

He had just come back from Kitty Hawk after pretending to be camp counselor Laura's brother to drop off a package. JJ spoke to the receptionist at the main lodge— a blonde lady with a picture of her pet cat on the desk.

He tried to deliver a message to Kiara but the receptionist wouldn't budge so he decided to work an angle. JJ pretended to be Kiara's cousin and made up some lie about how her cat, Marley, a Siamese mix, died by getting hit by a mailman at forty miles per hour.

He could only hope it would be enough to get through to her. Bianca didn't plan on leaving Kiara behind and neither did he.

JJ watched from afar as the receptionist lady left to deliver the message to a cabin. He made a mental note of the number and location before stealing a Kitty Hawk t-shirt from a clothesline and heading back to the Twinkie.

As JJ drove the van back, he searched for a place to park. It couldn't be too close to camp, otherwise someone would spot it but he needed to be close enough that he and Kiara could make a quick getaway when night fell.

JJ's eyebrows furrowed upon noticing a girl next to her bike on the road ahead. She seemed to be pacing back and forth, biting her nails. JJ didn't care enough to wonder what she was doing out here, nor did he care.

But when she jumped in front of the van, waving her arms wildly— JJ didn't have a choice except to care.

He slammed his foot on the brake and swerved the Twinkie around the girl. The tires screeched against the concrete andthe smell of burnt rubber wafted through the broken windows.

The Twinkie skid to a stop but JJ's pounding heart refused to slow. To his surprise, the girl stepped toward the van as if she had something to say.

"God damn, I don't have time for this," JJ slammed the door shut and rounded the vehicle to come face to face with her. "What the hell!? I could've run you over, man! What's your problem!?"

For a person who almost got made roadkill, she didn't look scared. If anything, she pushed her shoulders back and matched JJ's strides, "I needed to get your attention somehow!"

"My- I- what?!" JJ reared his head back. This was way too much crazy for one day.

The girl cocked an eyebrow, "You know Kiara, right?"

JJ narrowed his eyes and stopped short at her words, "Who's asking?"

"I'm a friend."

JJ scoffed mockingly, "Nice try. Kie doesn't have any other friends."

The girl almost doubled over in disbelief, "Why would I lie about being her friend, you psycho!?"

"Okay, first of all, you're the psycho who practically threw themself in front of my van," JJ threw his arms up. "And two, I don't know, probably for the same reason she's missing right now!"

"Look, all I know is that I was on the phone with her, and then I heard screaming so I rode here as fast as I could!" She crossed her arms over her chest before her tone softened. "I'm just here to make sure she's okay."

The boy frowned, "How'd you know where to find her?"

"I have her location."

JJ's gaze narrowed suspiciously.

"Don't look at me like that, Kie has mine too!" She defended.

JJ pursed his lips, eyeing the girl up and down, "What's your name?"

"Elena," She sighed, pushing her shoulders back. At least the interrogation was over, "You're John B, I'm guessing?" She nodded toward the Twinkie.

"He wishes he was that good-looking. No, uh... I'm JJ," The blond gave a half wave, scuffing his sneakers against the concrete.

"Oh... Right," Elena nodded awkwardly.

A long silence stretched between them. Elena shifted on her feet and stared at the tall sign ahead which read 'Kitty Hawk Adventure Therapy This Way' with an arrow pointing toward the direction JJ came from.

"What is this place?" Elena squinted through the sunlight.

"It's like this re-education camp run by the Moonies," JJ's jaw clenched, shoving his hands deep in his pocket. "My cousin got sent once in ninth grade 'cause he got booted for being a perv. There's a girl's half and a boy's half."

Elena didn't say much but by the way her eyebrows furrowed in recognition, JJ could tell Kiara already told her about this place. It made him wonder why she never told them about Elena before this. Not to mention, one look at her clean, white branded shoes and he could guess she was a Kook.

"They gooned her, you know," JJ swallowed thickly, turning away from the sign. "They gooned their own daughter."

"I can't believe it," Elena chewed her lower lip. "Like, I know controlling parents but this is... this is low. Even for them," She recalled when Kiara told her about the time Anna and Mike kicked her out of the house and shook her head. "Assholes."

JJ briefly glanced over his shoulder before heading toward the open van door. His mind was racing with questions, mostly about how much information Kiara divulged to this stranger but there was no time to think about that.

Elena seemed to agree because she followed after him, "I want to help," She held the van door open before JJ could shut it completely. "I'm coming with you."

JJ scoffed and rolled his eyes, "No."

He tried to pull the door shut but Elena wouldn't budge, "Why not?"

"You don't know what you're getting yourself into," JJ glared. "What we're doing is illegal, you know that, right?"

"I'm not an idiot," Elena deadpanned, still playing tug-of-war with the door between them. "You're breaking into a girls-only camp. You need my help."

JJ ran an exasperated hand over his face, "God, what is with you Kooks and always needing to prove something?"

"What is with you Pogues and thinking you're the only ones who can get anything done around here?" She shot back with a scowl.

The muscle in JJ's jaw ticked and his eyes flickered between Elena's. Despite his harsh stare, she didn't back down, "Daddy's money can't bail you out of this one if shit goes South."

"I know that," Elena finally let go of the door between them and crossed her arms over her chest. "But Kiara's in trouble. I can't just sit back and do nothing."

A couple of beats passed in which Elena was convinced JJ would laugh in her face and drive off without her. To her surprise, however, he nodded to her bicycle, "Throw it in the back and get in."

Elena bounded over to her bike and hitched it to the back of the Twinkie. She winced and tried to ignore the fact that the entire van sunk a little with the weight of it.

"How did you know I'm friends with Kie?" JJ questioned when Elena rounded the van.

"You ruined her parents' anniversary- it was kind of hard to miss, buddy," She scoffed, hopping into the passenger side seat. "Plus, this junker's easy to spot."

"Hey, do you want to be part of this plan or not?" JJ held what looked to be a t-shirt in his fist but drew it back upon hearing her words.

Elena sighed reluctantly and outstretched her hand toward him. Finally, JJ threw the scrunched-up material in her direction.

"Alright, step one- do not insult the Twinkie," He ordered. "Ever."

Elena rolled her eyes as she opened up the light green t-shirt in her hands with the name of the camp and a hideous rainbow beside it, "What is this?"

"A t-shirt I snagged from Kitty Hawk," JJ explained while she crawled into the back of the Twinkie. "I was gonna try and sneak in with it but I guess you'd be a better fit."

"You were planning on what?" Elena scoffed, pulling her shirt over her head to swap it with the camp uniform.

JJ continued rambling, her shock completely flying over his head, "Yeah, but I checked out their security and- woah, woah, woah!" He turned to face Elena but suddenly whirled back around upon realizing she was changing. "A little warning would've been nice!"

"Will you relax? It's fine," Elena rolled her eyes, pulling the uniform down. "Besides, no one asked you to turn around."

JJ kept his eyes covered by his hands despite her words, "I have a girlfriend!"

Elena crawled over the console and back to the passenger seat before pulling JJ's arms away from his face, "Send her my sympathies."

author's note. hi!!! what did u guys think of this chapter!??! barry and b battling it out??! miss elena and jj on a rescue mission?!? love u guys <333