JJ: Wanna go to the bonfire?

Bali: Not really, you should go have fun though.

Two simple text on a very shitty day. Cassandra was down stairs arguing with Dante, plus the issue that happened the night before. Bali felt like her head would explode and the last thing she wanted was to go be around a bunch of teenagers doing drugs, just to trigger her. Sarah had been with Topper the entire night, indicating why Bali came home.

Her feet walked down the stairs slowly, keeping it as quiet as she could and sitting down, listening close behind the wall.

"You're a liar and I can't trust you, ever." Dante spoke in anger to his wife, standing in the kitchen under the bright, head pounding, lights, "You have put us through this too many times. And with that man, of all people? His son is missing, his son hurt our daughter!"

"I love you, and I love Bali." Cassandra cried as her blue eyes glistened, "I don't want to loose my family."

"Bali can see you whenever she wants to." Dante shook his head with a long sigh, "We got married too young. Neither of us knew what we wanted."

"Oh, yeah, i'm sure that was the case." Cassandra laughed through her tears, "Let's not forget what you did to me, to our family."

Bali leaned in closer to the wall as she listened.

"I never once cheated on you, ever." Dante spoke angrily, yet had so much defensiveness in his tone.

"Like I believe that." Cassandra laughed at him, "You're just as bad as I am."

Bali backed up some, seeing the back of her mother storm past the stairs and out the door. She'd been thankful she didn't see her, waiting until she heard the car leave the drive way to emerge. Dante looked up when he saw his daughter, sighing loudly, "Sorry you had to hear all that, baby."

"What is mom talking about?" Bali got to the point immediately as she sat down at the bar. Dante sighed, "Why are both of you keeping so much from me?"

"I'm not-" he began, stopping with a long sigh and a shake of his head, "I never cheated on your mother. She accused me of doing so because of my assistant I use to have. She quite a long time ago, your mother never let it go."

"Why would she think you were cheating on her?" Bali had to ask, she knew her dad and he wasn't the type. But then again, she thought she knew her mother too.

"Because she was young, new to OBX, needed a job. Your mother suspected she'd been coming onto me, and maybe she was, but I never did anything." Dante reassured with a shake of his head, "And your mom- she isn't a bad person, and I wouldn't ask you to choose between us. We were young when we got married. She didn't have a place to go, I needed to be married in order to get the hotel. Over time we just expected it to work."

His words in hoping to make her feel better only made it worse, "So you've both just been faking love all these years?"

Dante sighed, but he was lost of words. Bali blinked, because she never thought this would hurt her. It wasn't her place to hurt, her dad and mom were the ones getting the divorce. Yet Bali felt utterly alone and pained by what was happening. She stood up to leave just as a loud knock hit the door. Bali hesitated, thinking it was her mom. Before either of them had the chance to walk over, the door swung open.

"Hi there, girlfriend and her dad." JJ gave a fake tip of an imaginary hat, "You two are looking spiffy today."

"He has a key?" Dante looked Bali's way.

"Nah, just know where y'all hide it." JJ shrugged, leaning on the bar, "Miss Bal, I have a proposal."

JJ felt like a weight lifted from Bali's shoulders, her worry and pain lifting, "Yes."

"What?" the blonde gave a odd look.

"Whatever you're gonna say, just yes, let's go." Bali grabbed his hand and her keys from the bar, pulling JJ toward the door.

"Be safe, both of you." Dante called to them.

Bali pulled JJ out of the door, shutting it quickly and grabbing her pair of shoes by the door, "Sorry to yank you around like that. I just needed out of there."

JJ cleared his throat loudly, jumping down the small steps leading up to the house, "Miss Bal, the fair maidan. A peasant has a special question to ask. Do you accept?"

His tone was the worse type of scottish, Bali laughed as she stood on the steps, a single nod to her head.

JJ fell at her feet and pulled two dead flowers from his pocket. He bowed down and held them up, "Oh, please, Miss Bal, allow me to take you on a peasant date on my peasant carriage."

"JJ." Bali laughed, nudging him with her ankle.

"Oh, do you accept?" he begged from by her feet, keeping his head down and dead flowers up.

Bali smiled as she grabbed the flowers, "I accept."

JJ smiled as he stood up, meeting her half way in a quick kiss, "Cmon now, just got her polished."

He lead her toward his skate board, pretending to open up a imaginary door, "Ladies first."

Bali took his hand and climbed up, "Why thank you, kind sir."

"Do they have garlic dip?" Bali asked as she held JJ's hand, walking into The Wreck.

"Do they have garlic dip?" he mocked her, taking a seat as she did the same from across to him, "Only the best in OBX."

Bali smiled as she looked across the table at him, "I thought you wanted to go to the bonfire?"

"No, I wanted to go spend time with my lovely lady." JJ shrugged, opening the menu to look down at it, "A first date is kinda in order."

"Well, public first date." Bali pointed out, messing with the straws and throwing one at him, "We did that picnic in the woods and were attacked by ants."

"We did do that." JJ hummed as he looked up from the menu, "You look pretty today, Bali-ali."

Bali gave a cheeky grin, "Not as pretty as you."

JJ giggled slightly, taking her menu and stacking them on the side, "Guess what?"

Bali hummed his way.

"This is my first date ever." JJ whispered her way with a flushed face.

Bali gasped, "Ever ever?"

"Ever ever." he confirmed with a nod and hands up in surrender.

"I popped your first date cherry." Bali crossed her arms with a smirk across her lips, "Is it everything you hoped for and more?"

JJ nodded, "I'm having the time of my life."

"What do we even talk about on first dates? We know everything about each other." Bali pointed out as she gave a sudden grin, "Have any siblings? Favorite food? When's the last time you've been tested? New to town? Did you grow up here?"

"What's- what's that?" JJ tried to keep track of all the questions she was asking at once.

Bali giggled, "Those are the first date questions that determine if I pretend to go to the bathroom and actually just leave you hanging or if we try for a second date."

JJ cracked a smile, "Ask me again."

"If we get married, we have to have all the garlic dip in the world." Bali spoke as the pair walked out of The Wreck together, hand in hand, a extra thing of garlic dip to go, "Like, damn, I would die for this."

"Why do you think I decided to take you here?" JJ asked her honestly, "Definitely not for the discount and free drinks after six."

Bali laughing, pulling on his shirt so they could face each other, "We should do that basic couple things were we pick one night out of the week and call it date night."

"That happens in real life?" JJ asked in disbelief.

"Dunno, we should find out though." Bali confirmed with a nod of her head, wrapping a arm around JJ's waist, "My turn."

"Your turn for what?" he asked.

"You'll see, just listen to directions." Bali nodded, getting up on the skateboard again as he climbed up next.

"We're gonna get kicked out." JJ shook his head as they walked up toward the country club most kooks attended, "Like, the second we walk in."

"Who cares? Not me." Bali shook her head and tugged on his hand, "I'm so sick of this reputation shit. I'm taking my lovely boyfriend into kook infested watered because I love him and I happen to be a kook."

JJ grinned as she drug him into the doors, mainly middle aged couples inside. JJ looked around in aw struck, never seeing the inside of this one before. From the extra clean floors to the designer plates, it was all completely knew to him.

"We can play bingo, rent a golf cart, eat again, play pool, look at the garden." Bali listened on as she looked around at the place, "Up to you, lover."

JJ looked down at her, relatively quiet, "You choose."

He seemed off and it worried her, walking through the country club and to the back doors. There'd been a large pool, illuminated in the night sky. Bali gave a tight lipped smile as she pulled on JJs arm, "If you don't want to be here, we can leave."

JJ gave a odd look, "Why would you think I wouldn't wanna be here?"

"You're just acting different. It's probably nothing, definitely overthinking, like always. I mean, look at me go, Over Thinking Bal back at it again-" Bali began to go on suddenly before JJ cut her off with a kiss to her lips. It lingered a moment before he pulled away, "Did you use my vanilla chapstick?"

"Maybe." JJ said honestly, "This place is really nice, and you fit in so well."

Bali gave a hesitant nod, "Is that, like, a bad thing?"

JJ motioned to himself, "Look at me."

"All I do is look at you." Bali shrugged with a small smile, "Who cares that you aren't dressed up in polo shirts and dress pants? Not me."

"Not you." JJ mocked with a grin, "Are you sure?"

"Am I sure that I don't care what you're wearing? Yeah." Bali had to laugh slightly, "All I care about is being here, a place I love, with you and finally getting to show off my super hot lover boy."

JJ gave a flushed grin, "Oh yeah?"

"Oh yeah." she confirmed, "Good thing you're in a white tee."

"What's that-" he began before her hands grabbed hold of him, shoving him suddenly into the pool.

•

kylie speaks

little filler chapter
with the babies.

idk why i get the feeling
that bali's favorite tv show
is The Walking Dead, season
four is her favorite season,
and daryl is her favorite
character.