𝟎𝟗𝟎.                                  𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐚𝐬𝐡

tongue tied ──── grouplove

☀︎ 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐥𝐲𝐧'𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐯

𝖲𝖠𝖥𝖤 𝖳𝖮 𝖲𝖠𝖸 𝖳𝖧𝖠𝖳 𝖳𝖧𝖤 𝖧𝖸𝖯𝖤𝖱𝖡𝖠𝖱𝖨𝖢 𝖢𝖧𝖠𝖬𝖡𝖤𝖱 𝖨𝖲 𝖳𝖧𝖤 𝖲𝖳𝖱𝖠𝖭𝖦𝖤𝖲𝖳 𝖯𝖫𝖠𝖢𝖤 𝖨'𝖵𝖤 𝖤𝖵𝖤𝖱 𝖧𝖠𝖣 𝖲𝖤𝖷．

Oh, regardless of how strange it was, I'd totally recommend it if any of you, I don't know, find yourselves in one...

Personally, I'm hoping to never be in this chamber again, but I can't deny how much fun JJ and I had while trapped in here. We didn't waste our time in here, knowing that we'll rarely get a minute to breathe the moment we're forced to leave this sanctuary.

I don't know how long we have left in this chamber, but I don't imagine we have much time until we need to leave. It's a shame, but the sooner we're out, the faster we can get money and be done with all this new nonsense so we can save Poguelandia 2.0 and start our new dreams.

I feel so at peace, more relaxed than ever before which is saying a lot given that I just had bubbles in my blood and I nearly died. Despite that, I'm in this state of tranquil, I swear──

"Hey, Sunny. Wake up."

I don't care how much I love him, he knows better than to wake me up from the heaven I've locked myself in. What's worse than him just calling out for me? Well, him shaking me awake, like nobody does that. "Sunny." There's still a sweetness in his pleading tone as he gently shakes at me.

Well, a girl can't ignore that, can she?

I hum, acknowledging him, but hoping he leaves me be. If he seriously wants to go again, he's going to have to give me a freaking minute because my body hurts. A lot. I'm tired and hungry. I need a minute to just──

"Brooke, you gotta wake up."

"Just give me a minute, we can..." I nuzzle my face into the pillow, suddenly wishing I had earplugs or something just so I could really doze off. "I'm tired, JJ. Just..."

"No, baby, look at me."

I squeeze my eyes a final time before I blink them open to look at him, seeing he's turned to face me. "What?"

"There was a guy in the hall just now," he tells, his voice low and panicked. "I think it was the guy." I'm hearing him, I'm just not processing his words on account of still being half asleep. "The dude from the wreck. He had a wound, right where I got him underwater with the spear gun."

My eyes dart to the window that no longer has a pillow in front of it. "Did he see you?"

JJ nods. "Yeah."

"So, he knows we're here. That's grrrrrreat."

"Your sarcasm isn't needed right now, Sunshine."

I scoff, head falling back against the pillow as my peaceful sleep is now ruined thanks to that bastard who tried to kill us. "We gotta get out," I say, knowing that the longer we stay here, the more we jeopardise ourselves.

JJ turns away from me, hitting his hand on the window. "Ma'am! Ma'am! Miss!" He continues to smack his hand against the window, hoping to catch the attention of somebody as I sit myself up. "Hello! Ma'am! Is there anyone out there?"

A nurse passes by, spotting JJ's panicked behaviour. "Hey! Ma'am, there was a dude in the hall just now," he yells, pointing and indicating at the hallway, but the woman doesn't understand as she says something we can't hear. "That man tried to kill us, okay? He tried to kill us!" He mimics being stabbed in the neck, hoping the nurse will understand, but he just looks like he wants to kill her. "Call security, please!"

As JJ attempts to keep the attention of this nurse, I move to the door of the chamber. I push on the door, feeling the weight and heaviness of it, knowing it ain't going to budge easily, if at all. I groan, still trying to shove at it despite knowing it won't move. "Dammit!"

I look over my shoulder, noticing that JJ is still focused on the nurse who will definitely not be coming to help us. "JJ, can you please help me with the door?" He doesn't listen, just continues to hit his hand against the window, but this nurse hasn't got a clue what JJ is saying. "JJ, she's not going to let us out. Just help me."

"Hey, wait! Ma'am, please listen to me!"

"JJ, come on," I yell, tugging at the back of his shirt. "She's not listening to us." Reluctantly, he moves to join my side at the door. "Help me with the door."

"Okay." We both place our hands on the door, preparing to put all our weight on it. "Two, one, go!" We push against the door, attempting to shove it open but it's not moving at all, not that I should've expected it to.

It makes sense that it only opens on the outside.

"It won't open," I groan, smacking my hand against the door. "Dammit. It won't fucking open. Why won't it open?" I drag my hands through my hair, feeling just about ready to pull my damn hair out in frustration. "Shit."

I inhale sharply, feeling that familiar tightness bloom in my chest again. I wouldn't consider myself to be claustrophobic. I mean, hello, I've been inside a drainage tunnel while it's filling with water. I am not afraid of tight spaces. Water, on the other hand? Well, that's become a fear of mine over the course of treasure hunting.

Like, I've nearly drowned several times, can you blame me for being a little fearful of water?

It's not that I'm afraid of being in here, per se, it's that there's a man outside this chamber that nearly killed us. He's too close to us, and if we aren't careful, he may just finish the job.

I can't die. I'm too pretty.

Oh, my God. Don't pretty girls always die first in these kinds of scenarios?

Oh, listen to me. I sound ridiculous.

Fuck. Ignore me.

"Brooke." I feel JJ's hands slipping into mine, his eyes searching mine as I feel myself teetering on that dangerous edge of panic. "Hey, it's okay."

"JJ, he's out there. H-He──"

"I know, Sunny. I know." His hands squeeze mine in reassurance. "Just breathe for me, alright? It's gonna be okay. You just need to keep breathing, Sunshine." I squeeze my eyes shut, attempting to focus on my breathing as I hold onto JJ's hands, using him to stay grounded. "Just stay calm, baby, we'll figure this out."

The moment JJ's hands slip from mine, I focus solely on breathing steadily, using his advice. I slide my hand against my chest, feeling the rapidness of my heart under my fingertips as my eyes blink open, watching JJ rush to the window. He's got a familiar look in his eye── that "I've got an idea" look in his eye that, more often than not, stresses me.

"Alright." He shuffles, going to lay himself down. I lean back, eyes narrowed. "I've got an idea. It's not the best, but I've got an idea."

"I never like hearing that," I breathe out, continuing to rub my palm over the beating of my heart, needing to reassure myself that I'm very much alive and very okay.

"Oh, don't lie, Sunny, you like some of my ideas."

I don't satisfy him with a response to that, and he takes my silence as a nod for him to go ahead with his idea. Sitting back, I watch JJ place his feet on the window. "Oh." I nod frantically as I realise what he's doing. "Yeah, do it. T-That'll work."

As hard as he can, JJ kicks his feet against the window, hoping to break through the glass so we can be free. He kicks several more times, doing his best to get us out of here. As he kicks and grunts, I feel the anxiety ripple off me in waves, beginning to calm down. "Keep going, JJ." I need to get out of here.

I hear a crunch, glass cracking at his feet. "Yes!" We're gonna get out all thanks to his genius idea. "Kick it harder!"

With a final bash, the window shatters at his feet. The moment the glass falls away, alarms begin to blare in our ears. I exhale a laugh, a little surprised with how he was actually able to do that. "Wow. That was good."

"Security to hyperbaric chamber," is spoken over the PA system. "Security, hyperbaric chamber."

I grasp his arm. "We gotta go, J."

He moves towards the cracked window, sliding out carefully. I scrunch my face up as I watch him, a little afraid he'll cut himself on the glass accidentally. However, he slips out the window easily, hitting the floor with a grunt.

"Get the door. Get the door!"

He rushes to the door, prying it open and freeing me from this hellish chamber that, until just now, was actually a fun place to be. JJ pushes his hand into mine, about to help me out of the chamber when the nurses rushes by.

"What the── Security! We got a runner!"

"Alright." JJ's hand slides against my face, pushing my hair away. "I'm gonna buy you some time, okay? Meet me outside."

My mouth gapes, not sure if I heard him correctly as he takes a step back, leaving me to exit the chamber alone. "Wait. What──"

JJ doesn't answer me, and instead rushes to the nurse who is calling out for security. "Oh, my God," he begins, his voice loud. "Oh, my God, my brain! We were in there way too long. You microwaved me! What are you trying to do? Fry me like a chicken?!" Two guards grasp him, forcing him back and away from the nurse. "No, no!"

I tell you, that boy knows how to act.

"All this movement is not good for him," the nurse explains. "All you had to do was relax. He was basically done until he lost his mind." I press my back against the wall, moving along as the guards yank JJ back, pulling him away.

I would help him, but he said he was buying me time. Time to do what, I don't know, but I'm going to follow his instructions.

"Wait. You know what? How 'bout you gentlemen take me out of here cause I gotta make a phone call. I'm gonna file a formal complaint." JJ's eyes meet mine as I stand behind the nurse, trying to understand him as he emphasises that particular word. "File a formal complaint."

It clicks in my head, what he's asking of me. He wants me to find a file, but not just any file. He wants me to find the file on the man that tried to kill us. I can do that. I'm sure I can figure out where that file is. I just need to get away without being caught myself.

I push off the wall, knowing what I need to do. I rush away from JJ, knowing he can handle those guards and the nurse. I run down the stretch of hallway, reaching the hospital lobby where I pass by a few doctors who obviously don't recognise me. I sidestep by a patient, heading right for the front desk.

Rounding the desk, I find a file to be sitting right there in the middle of the desk, basically begging to be snatched. I check it's the file, noticing a photo of a wound on somebody's arm. Yeah, it must be that guy's file. 

With one glance at my surroundings, I swipe the file from the desk before I rush straight out the exit door, hoping JJ will catch up with me soon before we get caught and thrown in jail for what we just did. We definitely can't afford to go back to jail, not after we've finally payed off our debts to the police.

"Jesus Christ. How do you climb up a tree in the hospital?" I'm greeted by Pope and Cleo who are sitting in Heyward's truck, obviously waiting for me and JJ. Our time in that chamber must've been very close to being up, so it can't be that big of a deal that we ditched the chamber early. Right? Like, our blood is fine... I hope.

"Guys!" I feel a burning in my chest as I fucking hate running, no matter the distance.

"Where's JJ?"

I lift myself into the back of the truck, desperate to get away from this place and never return. "JJ's coming! Just drive! Go!" I fall into the truck bed, catching my breath as Pope starts up the truck.

He presses down on the gas, beginning to bring us away from the hospital. The tires squeal as Pope spins the truck, moving to leave. I lift my head, file tight in my grip as I spot JJ running out of the building like he's on fire. "There!"

Pope begins to slow down, knowing JJ is just about to catch up. "Come on!" JJ lifts himself into the back of the truck, falling right beside me, his breathing vigorous.

"You good?" I ask, placing my hand on his arm.

"Yeah. Go, Pope. Go."

Pope hits the gas again, driving down the stretch of road and away from the hospital. "Are you guys good?" Cleo asks, looking from JJ to me, obviously trying to figure out what just happened that forced us to run out of the hospital.

"Yeah, yeah. You know that guy that was down at the wreck that tried to kill us?"

"He was at the hospital," I add, hoping I sound dramatic enough because, well, what just happened was dramatic.

"He was at the hospital?"

"Yes," we both say, still breathing heavily from the short distance run we just did. We could never run a marathon, let me tell you. "He was getting stitched up where I got him with the harpoon gun."

"I got this," I say, opening his file, eyes skimming over it quickly. "It's his file. I've got an address." I press the file against the window separating us from Pope and Cleo, letting Cleo have a closer look while Pope drives. "Downtown Pelican somewhere."

"What are we supposed to do with that?"

"Uh, pay him a fucking visit, Pope," I snipe, yanking the file back. Lightner── that's his name. First or last name, real or fake, I don't know, but I don't recognise it. "He tried to kill us. I want this guy quartered." I shake my head. "No, actually, that's too good for him. I want this guy eighthed or, uh... I don't know, sixteenthed."

Okay, so I don't know what I'm saying, but I think I'm making my point clear.

Pope's face scrunches. "That's not..."

JJ laughs, clapping his hand over mine in approval of my insane comment. "Four against one, Pope. I think we can take him. We'll be ready for him this time."

──────────────────────────

𝖶𝖤 𝖠𝖱𝖱𝖨𝖵𝖤 𝖠𝖳 𝖳𝖧𝖤 𝖮𝖢𝖤𝖠𝖭𝖨𝖢 𝖧𝖮𝖳𝖤𝖫 𝖶𝖧𝖨𝖢𝖧 𝖨𝖲 𝖫𝖮𝖢𝖠𝖳𝖤𝖣 𝖮𝖭 𝖳𝖧𝖤 𝖯𝖨𝖤𝖱．From what we can see, dozens of people── tourists and OBX's own── swarm the pier, minding their own business, oblivious to the fact that an attempted killer could be amongst them.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Cleo asks, leaning forward to get a closer look. "This is the pier."

"It was the address that was in his file," I say, looking back at the file to double check. "Hm. He might've given a fake address."

"That's what I would've done," JJ speaks.

"Yes, because you're always giving fake names out, aren't you?"

"You guys really think he's here?" Cleo sounds skeptical, not that I can blame her. We're literally at the pier, so there's no way he lives here. There's also a slim chance he's actually here right now.

"I don't know." JJ shrugs, beginning to get out of the truck. "But I need some fresh air." He lifts himself out of the truck. "Anyone wanna grab some fresh air? Might as well take a look."

I smile, holding my hand out. "I'll come."

The moment I'm out of the truck, JJ pulls me into him, arm sliding around my back. "Have fun," Pope calls out, watching as we begin to step away, all loved-up despite just spending twelve solid hours together. I just can't get enough. Sue me.

"We will!" I call back, waving. "You guys have fun too!" I'm a big Cleo, Pope supporter, so it's only fair they get to have a little bit of fun whilst keeping an eye out so we check out the scene.

I walk up the wooden steps to the top of the pier, JJ following behind me. As I walk, I feel like somebody's watching me── more specifically, I feel like somebody's watching a part of me that has my cheeks heating.

I glance over my shoulder, eyes zeroing in on JJ. "Hey." I raise a brow, watching as he practically flinches from being caught. "We're looking for a killer, and you're staring at my ass?" I shake my head, breathing out a laugh as I turn my head back to watch my step. "We just spent twelve hours together, JJ." And we were naked for the most part of those twelve hours.

"Yeah, and?" Falling up the steps that separate us, he closes the distance and smacks his hand against my ass. Hard.

"JJ! Wha──" I nearly trip over the next step from the shock, but his hand reaches out to snatch my wrist before I do so, and I'm pulled back into his safety. "You can't do that."

He frowns, arms sliding around my middle, hands splaying across my stomach. "Why not?"

"There's kids around." He looks past me, only seeing steps ahead of us, but he knows what I mean. We're about to step up onto that pier where there's going to be dozens of children who probably gag upon seeing affection in public. If only it was a weekday, there'd be no kids as school is in session.

"I ain't seeing any kids, Sunshine."

His head dips into the crook of my shoulder, his lips immediately going to kiss my neck. "I can't get enough of you," he whispers, voice tickling my skin. "You look pretty. You feel pretty."

I can always count on JJ for that── for making me feel pretty rather than just looking it.

"I love you." I take a wobbly step up, his arms still very much around my middle. "But we need to see if we can find anything, alright? We're investigating."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

We reach the top of the pier, separating from one another as we take in the scene. Dozens of people walk by us, all in their own world. I don't see the Lightner guy who, I'm afraid, would stick out like a sore thumb because of the wound on his arm from where my man jabbed him.

I'm pretty proud of him for doing some damage to the guy who was going to kill us. It was absolutely deserved.

"So, what's our plan if we actually find this killer?" I'm not sure if calling him a killer is correct as he technically didn't kill us, but he's still not a good guy. He might've killed in the past, we don't know.

"Run," JJ answers, zero hesitation. "That's── I'm kidding. We detain, extract, investigate."

"Detain? How we gonna do that?"

"Uh, I mean, we, like, sneak up on him, like spy-like," JJ suggests, bringing a smile out of me as he attempts to describe an appropriate way in which we can get this guy without, you know, being murdered.

"Okay. Spy-like. That's cool."

"We're on a date," JJ informs, slotting his hand into its rightful place. "We're on a date, spying."

"Huh. A spy-like date. Never done that before."

We've been on dates, as you all know, and each one has been unique in its own way. While the dates we've had have not been the traditional kinds of dates that couples have, they've been ours── a Brooke and JJ special.

I still think of that first ever date we had── the small picnic upon that cliff in Poguelandia when we first became partners. It was so thoughtful for him to think of something like that, to think of our first date being right then and there instead of waiting to get off the island. I think, for as long as I shall live, that date will always be the most special to me, no offence to the other dates, but that was the start of this.

I'm unbelievably lucky because I get to be the one who has JJ like this. I get to see what he's like on a date, what he's like in the mornings and evenings, what he's like as a best friend, what he's like as a boyfriend. I get to have him in a way that nobody else had, and that means so much to me.

He means so much to me, so much that I'm acting like a spy while I hold his hand. 

He pulls me along, his fingers interlaced with mine. I find that we fit one another, but I think we always have, even when we were friends. Our hands just slot together nicely, like, there's no awkward fidgeting to get our hands in the right place, they just... fit like they were meant to be joined together.

"What you thinking about?" JJ asks, looking out for this Lightner guy whilst keeping a hold on me.

"Just how I'm so incredibly lucky."

He breathes out a laugh, fingers squeezing against mine. "I'm the lucky one, Sunny."

"No, I'm the luckiest," I insist, leaning my head into his shoulder. "You're just so── Oh, my God!" I release his hand as I spot something familiar. Well, more specifically, somebody familiar. I'm already moving away from him, heading off in the direction of that little girl with the brown hair and blue eyes.

"Wha── Brooke!"

"Matilda!" Ignoring my boyfriend, I rush up to the little girl, finding her to be sitting cross-legged on the decking with a blue snow cone in hand.

I haven't seen Matilda since the ceremony when she waved at me from the back of the crowd. I think she'd been alone that day after having snuck out of her house. I didn't have the chance to ask her, and I sadly haven't seen her since on account of nearly dying and being caught up in another treasure hunt. But now she's here.

Her head lifts, eyes widening as I rush to join her, beyond thrilled to see her. "Brooke?"

"Hi, kid." I crouch down beside her.

She laughs, her smile infectious. I think she's just as happy to see me as I am to see her. "Hi. What are you doing here?"

"Oh, I'm on a date." I shrug, looking over my shoulder as JJ begins to move towards us, looking so confused. I just ran away from him to talk to a little girl, he probably has questions. I mentioned to him how I became friends with a six-year-old, but I think he struggled to believe me. Now I have proof. "What are you doing here?" I ask, looking back to her.

"Grandma isn't doing well, so the nurse wanted me out of the house," she tells, staring at her snow cone. "I went to your treehouse, is that okay?"

"Yeah." I nod, a tightness forming in my chest as I realise she was all alone in that treehouse, that she didn't stop by our house just to check if we were in. She didn't have to be all alone. "Yeah, that's fine. Are you here alone? Do you have any friends here with you?"

Her head shakes. "No."

"You wanna hang out with us?"

"Uh, Brooke, I──"

Her eyes widen, that smile of hers hard to turn down. "Really?" Her eyes flit up to the boy that stands behind me who is unbelievably confused. "You're on a date."

I shrug a shoulder. "JJ doesn't mind, do you?" Looking up at JJ, I can see that he's more confused than anything else. He wouldn't say no to a six-year-old girl who is all alone, but I know he also wants to just spend time with me and ask who the heck this child is that's crashing his date.

He clears his throat. "Uh, no. You can, um... yeah, you can hang with us."

I stand up, holding my hand out to pull Matilda up and off the floor. Once she's stood, her hand leaves mine and points towards JJ who is still trying to figure all this out in his head. "I'm Matilda," she chirps.

"Um..." JJ looks to me, looking almost afraid to shake a little girl's hand. He then turns back to Matilda, staring at her hand. "Okay. Uh, yeah." He takes her hand, shaking softly. "JJ."

"I know." She pulls her hand back, smiling innocently. "You're the one who spelt sanctuary wrong."

JJ's mouth gapes, unable to utter a single word. "Wh──" He exhales a laugh, not knowing how to react. He looks to me again, hoping I can break this silence he and Matilda have between them. She's very well spoken, so well spoken that it's not surprising she freaks out other people who aren't so well spoken, no offence to JJ. "Brooke?"

"Sorry, he's not very good with..."

"Children," he interjects, staring at the girl like she's a figment of his imagination. When I first met her, I truly believed my head had made her up, that I was going crazy, but she's very, very real.

"I'm six," she counters.

"Yeah, that's a..." He hums, nodding along like he'll be able to shake this girl away. "Okay."

"Okay. Come on."

Matilda walks in between JJ and I, a ball of sunshine as she practically skips along. She's yammering a mile a minute, talking about anything and everything── about the sea, about the birds, about the freaking fence. She's got a collection of random facts stored in that head of hers, and now she's just relaying said facts to us.

She's entirely oblivious to JJ who is waving his hand at me to get my attention. "What is──" He points down at the little girl, her hair wild like she's not washed it or styled it. It makes me question how shes been living since the last time I saw her, and if she's been at the treehouse more than I realise. "What is this?" JJ speaks quietly, not wanting Matilda to hear.

It's hilarious to see him react in this way to a small girl who is entirely harmless. I mean, come on, he's freaking out over a child.

My nose scrunches. "What?"

Her head lifts, staring right up at JJ who is still pointing at her. "It's rude to point."

"Where'd you hear that?" he asks.

"It's just common sense," she bites out. "Just like it's rude to stare, it's rude to point." Her fingers reach up, pinching his pointer finger. "Rude."

He pulls his finger back, once again looking to me like I can wave a magic wand and wish Matilda away just for his sake. Sorry, this is too entertaining to pass up. Watching JJ interact with a child who quite literally appeared out of nowhere is too funny to ignore. He's literally itching to get away from her, looking almost downright terrified of her.

Matilda still holds her snow cone, not eating it. "Do you want me to get you something else?" I ask, seeing a couple vendors where I can probably scrape together some money to buy her something she'll actually eat.

"No. I'm not hungry. I just wanted to see what the fuss about snow cones was."

"And what's the verdict?"

She hums. "Not that cool."

"Well, they are cool," JJ jokes, but he doesn't earn a single smile or laugh from Matilda who just stares at him blankly. "Snow is cold── Cool? Nothing?"

"Nuh-uh." She shakes her head, going back to staring at her snow cone.

I reach out for JJ's hand, pulling him closer to me as Matilda begins to walk up ahead. She's minding her own business, lost in this world of her own while I attempt to bring back to this world── our world. He's just staring after Matilda, obviously trying to figure her out. "Are you okay?" I ask.

"Why are you friends with a six-year-old?"

While I told him that I befriended a six-year-old last week, he doesn't know the extent of the friendship we've created. He doesn't know that she calmed me down from one of the worst panic attacks of my life nor does he know about her coming to the treehouse to draw and talk with me after said panic attack. He only knows that I talked with a child and that we got along.

I explained to JJ that her mother had died, and that we were just there for each other, acting as each other's safe space. I just never explicitly told him that I literally confided in this child and told her a lot about myself, about my family and friends while she listened and then told me about herself.

I now know she's hiding herself at the treehouse, perhaps more than I realise, and I need to try and rectify that.

"Would it be weird if I brought her back to the house?" I ask, ignoring JJ's previous question of why I'm friends with her as I'm ninety percent sure it was rhetorical.

"You wanna bring her back to our house?"

"She's alone, JJ," I whisper, knowing she can't hear us as she runs ahead, going towards the furthest railing. "I'm not saying she stay at our house, I'm just saying that she could hang out at our house for a little bit, maybe for the rest of the day. I don't like that she's all alone."

"She said she has a grandma. Won't she be worried about where she is?"

"She's ill, and you heard her, the nurse told her to leave so the grandma can rest." I sigh, hating that she can't even turn to the only family she has left. "Foster care is going to take her away, JJ. Her grandma is sick── too sick to take care of her, and that's not fair, so I-I just wanna help in any way that I can."

I don't know why I'm so insistent on helping, maybe it's because I see a bit of myself when I look at her. I've been that same lonely, little girl who just needed somebody to turn to. I've lost people, she's lost people. I think having her around is a nice distraction from all the evil hardship in the world like this bastard who wants to kill us.

JJ sighs, hand squeezing mine. "She's a cool kid, I swear," I assure, watching her turn around to look at us as we move towards her. Despite all she's suffered through lately, her smile remains wide and joyous.

"Yeah, she's really cool," JJ comments, tone sarcastic.

"Uh, guys." We stop in front of Matilda, noticing that she's not looking at us but rather past us at the scene behind. "There's a..." She lifts her hand, pointing in between JJ and I. "That man has been following you for a while."

We look to where her finger points, noticing him── the man who tried to kill us. He's heading straight for us, walking quickly and assertively, looking just about ready to finish the job. "Shit." I turn to Matilda, looking at the railing we stand by. "Hey, kid. How do you feel about jumping?"

Her face scrunches. "Uh..."

"How about you feed your snow to a bird?" JJ suggests, holding his hand out.

"They can't eat it. They──"

"Kid, I promise I'll explain, but we gotta go."

I look over my shoulder, seeing that Lightner is moments away from getting to us, and I ain't about to let him hurt Matilda or JJ. I'm sure he wouldn't actually hurt a child, but I'm not taking any chances.

Turning back to Matilda, I see her placing her snow cone down "for the birds" as JJ suggested, and then she's pushing her tiny hand into his so he can lift her and himself up onto the railing.

I pull myself up, standing on Matilda's other side. "You ready to jump?"

She nods, looking a little unsure, but she slides her other hand into mine, now holding onto me and JJ. With a final nod to one another, we jump off the railing, ignoring the fact that Lightner just reached out to try and grab us.

We plummet to the water, sinking underneath quickly. My clothes cling to my body, my hair sticks to my face, but at least we made it out alive. I lift my head from underneath the water, spotting Matilda leaning into JJ, their hands still intertwined.

His other is around her back, keeping her upright and floating. I smile, reaching out to place my hand back into Matilda's. "Good job, kid." We then peer upwards to find Lightner cursing us out. I laugh, feeling great relief despite being in water again. I swear, I don't like fucking water.

"That was fun!" Matilda cheers, looking like she wants to go again and again.

"We gotta warn Pope and Cleo," JJ says, beginning to move out of the water with Matilda still keeping a tight grip on his hand.

Just as we reach the shore, we spot Pope and Cleo who are waiting for us, likely already aware of who was up there. "Bring it in! Come on!" We exit the water, joining them with a new friend, you could say.

"We gotta go now! We saw the guy! He's up on the pier!" Pope tells us like we didn't just fucking jump off the pier to escape him. "Who's this?" he asks as we begin to head back to the truck, walking quickly as to avoid Lightner catching up with us.

"Did yous just pop out a child?"

I stare at Cleo blankly. "No."

"Who is this?" Pope asks again, this time looking at JJ.

I open my mouth to answer, but Matilda beats me to it. "Matilda," she chirps, smiling up at Pope who opens his mouth to respond, likely to offer his name but she's talking again. "You're Pope and Cleo, I know."

Pope looks at me and JJ, and we both just shrug. "I'll explain later. We gotta go."

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❀ soph speaks

hey matilda is here again!!

my uni work is angering me so i just constantly procrastinate to write this story

thankyou for 2.5million reads on this story,, that's crazy to me i appreciate you all <3

thankyou so much for reading!!