"I'd rather shoot myself then wear this." Joey gapped at the green dress Topper picked out when they stopped by a boutique so Joey could get out of leggings and Popes jacket.

"What? You don't like it? I thought you'd like it." he tried to reason as she turned to him with an offended look. "What about the orange?"

"The orange is worse." she gapped, turning so he could unzip it for her. "Let me remind you that I have to talk to my scholarship people."

"Maybe they like highlighters." he offered as she disappeared into the dressing room. "Try the b-"

"No!" she called in return, he stayed quiet and waiting for her. Minutes passed before the door opened. "This one is better."

Topper gave a smile at the caramel cardigan, light washed jeans, and black top. It was more her. "So, no neon dresses?"

"Not today." she hummed, fixing the cardigan in the mirror. "Jesus, I look Kooked out."

"It suits you." Topper smiled as he stood up. "Shoes."

Joey turned as he held out the black boots. "You know my shoe size?"

"Just eyed it." he explained with a shrug. "You have massive feet."

"Oh, how sweet of you to say." she gushed, taking the box from him. "Give me your shoulder."

He leaned down so she could hold his shoulder, pulling the boots on. "No way you got the right size."

"I'm good like that." the blonde explained as Joey walked in them. "Feel nice?"

"Feels nice." she agreed, checking them in the mirror. "Legs?"

"Fantastic." he hummed.

"Walk?"

"Ever better."

"Goes with the outfit?"

"Absolutely."

"Okay." Joey exhaled, grabbing his shoulders again to take them off. "Duke ready."

"Duke ready." he agreed, leaning down to take the shoes off the ground for her.

Topper looked back to make sure Joey was following, giving her a small smile as the morning sun shined down upon her newly bought clothes for the occasion. "What do you think?"

Joey stared up at Duke University with an exhale. "I think it's perfect."

"Just wait until you see the inside." he nodded for her to follow, Joey did so as he nudged her hand, seeing if she wanted to. Joey laced their hands together, walking through the campus together. "Thinking about signing up for anything aside from a dorm?"

"I don't know." she looked at him. "Are you?"

He thought about it. "Maybe water polo?"

She tried not to laugh. "W-Water polo?"

"I can see your face." he gapped as she started to laugh. "Joey, i'm so serious right now."

"I know, that's why it's so funny." she gave him a look as Topper only returned it with a look of defense. "Aw, it's okay. Water polo will be nice."

"Where should we start?" the blonde looked around, eyeing everyone on the campus. "Sign up for extra curricular?"

"Should probably do dorms first." Joey corrected him, yanking on his hand some so he'd follow. "What if my roommate is gross and never cleans?"

"You could always just stay with me." he pointed out. "The house is only five minutes from campus."

"Are you wild? You're wild." she gapped at him. "We'll argue and then where do I go? Be a street rat."

"Okay, so then we get you a dorm just in case but you can stay with me, in a very lonely house, most of the time." the blonde shrugged as he gave her a questionable look. "Sound good?"

Joey smiled, nodding her head. "Sounds good."

"It's like New York." Topper spoke after Joey got her dorm figured out, holding the paper as they walked inside. "Everything moves so fast."

"It looks like Harry Potter." Joey gapped as they walked down the hall, staring up at the place. "And it's so clean!"

"We should be host." Topper spoke as Joey looked his way. "Throw a party, get in good with everyone before hand."

"Now?" Joey gapped as he nodded. "A party?"

"How else will people know to like us?" Topper grabbed her hand again as Joey blinked. "It'll be fun. The house is empty, nothing valuable is there. College people love parties."

Joey frowned her eyebrows, looking toward the doors. "I've got my interview. Probably better if you do the invites, not a people person."

"I've noticed." he hummed, pulling on her hand when she went to walk away. "You're interview will be fine, okay? You've already been accepted, they just want to get to know what type of person you are."

"A toxic, never happy, complains about everything, hates the world, slightly psychotic, cleans everything, type of person?" Joey rose her eyebrows with an exhale.

"Yeah, but also hot." he shrugged, making her laugh as he cracked a grin. "You're gonna do amazing."

Joey exhaled. "Okay."

"Okay?" he hummed, hesitantly, because he wasn't sure if the train station kiss was a one time thing. Joey leaned over to peak him on the lips. "Okay."

"Josephine Findlay?" a lady in a pant suit looked out the door. Joey inhaled quickly, letting Toppers hands go as she walked over.

"To Josephine." Topper announced at the party as he held his drink high in the air, yelling over the music. "For crushing her interview and hosting a hell of a party!"

"To Josephine." the college students all yelled in return, Topper got off the chair as Joey helped him down.

"Was that embarrassing enough?" he hummed, wrapped his arm around her shoulders to pull her in.

"Very." she exhaled, her arms going around his waist with an annoying exhale. "Get your sweaty ass palm off the back of her head."

"Sorry." he moved it quickly on her shoulder instead.

"How long have you been together?" a high pitch voice rung as they looked over to a girl. Her hair was a pretty blonde shade, eyes a mix between brown and green, her skin pale but had a faint ivory tint.

"W-" Topper started.

"Eight years." Joey cut him off with a nod. "Met at a fishing tournament. I won, he was a sore loser and was a dick to me. Happy ever after."

"Oh, how sweet." she smiled. "My girlfriend and I met at a fishing tournament too."

"Seriously?" Topper gapped, because he was expecting her to catch onto Joeys joke.

"Yeah, she's around here somewhere." she looked around. "Her uncle is a professor for the Business/Commerce major if you guys want to meet her."

Topper and Joey shared a look, facing the blonde. "Absolutely."

"What did I tell you?" Topper hummed as the party came to an end and Joey quarantined herself in one of the bedrooms while he cleaned. "We got in good with professors."

"Can't believe you were the one that was right this time." she joked, patting the space next to her so he'd crawl in and lay with her. "Scale of one to ten, how bad is it down there?"

"Oh, it's horrible." he agreed. "I'll call Jessica in the morning."

"Jessica?" Joey frowned her eyebrows.

"Our cleaning lady." he hummed, laying his head on her chest as Joeys fingers stroked at his back. "Jo?"

She hummed, he didn't move. "You're my best friend."

There it was again, the realization that freaked her out last time. Joey cracked a grin. "You're my best friend too."

"When we go home...are things gonna be different?"he asked her curiously.

"Different how?" Joey wrote a J on his shoulder, her eyes were getting heavy.

"Like, with the two of us..." the blonde trailed off in questioning.

"I don't know. Do you want them to be?" she shrugged, because who they were here didn't matter. Back home, they were still a Pogue and a Kook, one still came from money while the other struggled to make ends meet, they were still completely different and all their friends hated the other.

"Not really." he explained to her honestly.

Joey tried not to smile. "Okay."

"Okay? That's all you're gonna give me?" he sat up with a look of disbelief.

"Okay, as in okay things don't have to be totally different." she explained with a small shrug, a grin on her lips. "I can still live with you."

"Very true." he agreed. "And Kelce...he'll just have to get use to it."

Joey smiled, exhaling loudly. "Okay."

Topper smiled, grabbing his phone as it went off. Joey exhaled again. "Top?"

"Yup?" he hummed, typing away.

"How come my name is your phone password?" her question made him freeze, looking her way with wide eyes. "Hum?"

"What?" he laughed. "It-It's not. It's a bunch of numbers."

"It spells out Joey." she pointed out. "When I had to find you, the night John B and Sarah left, I had to use your phone."

Topper shrugged. "It's just numbers."

Joey stared at him as Topper rolled his eyes. "Around that time was when I started to realize that you understood me, and that you were coming to me when you needed to. I don't know, it made me feel....nice."

Joey smiled, grabbing her phone. "Look."

He leaned over as she typed her password in. Topper smiled. "PPER?"

"Yeah, for the end of your name." she nodded with a smile. "Pper."

"Pper." he agreed, mocking her.

"Pper!" Joey announced, falling back on the bed again as he followed her.

"Jo." Topper shook her slightly the next morning. "Joey, we're back."

She opened her eyes, realizing she'd fallen asleep in his car. "Already?"

"Yeah." he hummed, looking at her house. "Do you just want to come back to mine?"

Joey looked around, expecting to see the pogues like they promised. She rubbed her eyes. "Mm, hang on."

"Okay." he held her hand go as she stumbled out of the car. "Do you want me t-"

She shut the door, walking up to the little cabin. She looked around the porch. "JJ? John B?"

Nothing.

Joey went for the door, thinking they'd maybe gone in. But she stoped when's he saw the window, written in lipstick, as she had done for John B multiple times to get a message to him.

Jo, we had to go. We'll be home soon, try not to worry. Everything will be okay.

-JB.

"Joey?" Topper called as he got out of the car, seeing her staring at the window. "Are you okay?"

She turned to face him with a blink. "They left me."

•

kylie speaks

well, based on how it's
looking, the third season
should be here in december!
i've had such a fun time writing
joey and i honestly didn't expect
it to do so well, so greatful for
all of you and how supportive
everyone has been. it means so
much to me and i have loved
every second of writing for my
favorite girl ever. i'll miss her
in the time being but SHE WILL
RETURN!! until then, i'm gonna
go clean my room in her honor.