EMERY HAS NO IDEA HOW SHE AND MARA BOTH FIT ON JJ'S BIKE WITH HIM.

but, none the less, the trio skidded to a stop outside the kildare county jail. emery had called that morning to arrange the three of them visitations with john b. after a few days without him, the melville girl was definitely missing her boyfriend.

jj slid the bike around the corner, the wheels screeching to a stop. he kicked the kickstand down, he, mara, and emery all swinging their legs over the side of the bike. it was evident to the girls that jj was doing his best to look intimidating to the cops as someone who had definitely been to the jail multiple times before, and definitely not just for a visitation.

so, the maybank pulled his headphones over his head, walking towards two cops who were exiting the building with an immense amount of swagger, the two blondes only trailing behind him. they both giggled as jj saluted the cops seriously, only to flip them off as he continued inside the building.

"we're here to see john b routledge." jj announced loudly to the man behind the desk once he got inside the building.

"no music, and get rid of the toothpick." he said bluntly. however, jj's hard rock music was playing at a volume so loud that emery and mara could hear the music clearly from five feet away.

"i can't hear what you're saying, man." jj replied. "alright, these things are on full blast- that's what i'm saying, alright. i'm here to see john b routledge." the maybank repeated.

the guard motioned with his hands that jj's headphones needed to be removed at that his toothpick needed to be ditched. he then glanced to emery and mara, who were still standing a few feet away from jj.

"you with him?" the cop asked.

"unfortunately." emery replied dryly, the guard turning back to jj, who looked taken aback by the request.

"wait- music?" he confirmed, the guard nodding as jj let out an 'ahh' of understanding. "y'know i thought it was a free country and all but i guess you don't like freedom very much, now do ya, cupcake?"

"jj!" mara snapped, but the guard had already grabbed the maybank by the shoulders and pushed him into the wall.

"ah, not worth it." plumb told him as she approached from down the hall, emery rolling her eyes at the sight of the female deputy.

"good to see you, plumb!" jj exclaimed, pushing his shoulder back and pulling the toothpick he had out of his mouth. "it's just nice to have something in your mouth, y'know?"

"hmm." plumb replied sarcastically, looking between the three teens. "take off your hats and empty your pockets, all of you." she instructed.

"yes, ma'am." jj replied sarcastically, pulling his cap off his head and setting it in the wire box on the desk, followed by his phone, headphones, and everything else the blonde carried in his pockets. emery and mara placed their phones in the box and followed jj down the hall to where plumb was waiting for them.

emery had never been inside a jail before, upper class life had treated her well in that aspect of her life. it was darker than she expected, very dimly lit. the group rounded a corner, and she was greeted by a rather large man hitting his fist against the door, making both her and mara jump.

"hey, pretty girls! why don't you come in here!" he exclaimed, jj clenching his jaw as he turned towards the door, emery shoving him so he would keep walking forward instead of beating up random inmates while he was there to see his friend. emery looked the other way through a window. her eyes widening as they fell onto the mop of brunette hair sitting at one of the many metal tables in what appeared to be a cafeteria. plumb was stopped outside the door.

"five minutes each, melville, you first." she instructed, nodding towards the door. emery didn't hesitate to enter the room. john b looked up at the sound of footsteps, his previously dull eyes lighting up at the sight of the blonde in one of his baggy t-shirts approaching him.

"emery." he breathed. the melville almost immediately sat next to him pulling him close and pressing her lips against his, which john b immediately reciprocated. a loud banging on the door would've normally distracted the teens, but they didn't care in that moment.

"hey!" plumb yelled, finally grabbing the attention of the two teens. "no physical contact!"

"does it look like he's shanking me?" emery asked sarcastically, but still stood up and moved to the other side of the table. "hi." she breathed, john b smiling at her.

"hi." he repeated. "welcome to my crib."

"it's... different." the girl replied, still smiling as she looked around the room that was painted a pale grey. "how're you holding up?"

"as good as i can knowing i'm probably gonna be killed in here." john b mumbled, rubbing his eyes as the metal cuffs on his wrists clicked together. he hand dark circles under his eyes and his skin appeared paler. he looked as though he had been crying recently. emery glanced towards the door to see plumb talking to another guard while jj and mara looked around aimlessly, most likely attempting to avoid having to watch if the couple began kissing again, and grabbed his hand.

"i'm not gonna let them kill you." she whispered. "i'm gonna testify, so is sarah cameron, and my mom, and levi. we're gonna prove that jackson and ward are liars and that rafe is the one who shot peterkin. jj said the others found the gun he used, and shoupe probably sent it in if he checked the-"

"if i have to tell you no contact again, you're out!" plumb yelled from the door, emery rolling her eyes and pulling her hand away from john b's reluctantly.

"if he checked the register he should've sent it in." emery finished, john b sighing heavily.

"i really hope you're right." he whispered, looking down at the table and fidgeting with his fingers. "they cut off all the bracelets you made me when i got in here."

"bitches." emery whispered, john b laughing a little at the serious tone of his girlfriend's voice. "don't worry, i'll make you more for when you get out."

"you'd better." john b replied, he and emery smiling at each other. "i really, really missed you."

"i missed you too." emery mumbled. "and if anti-cupid over there wasn't ripping my head off every time i breathed in your direction, i'd be fixing your hair."

"thats what you're worried about right now?" john b asked, laughing at the fact that he emery's main concern when he was in jail was the tidiness of his hair.

"actually, if you look like white trash then i can sleep well at night knowing you don't have a prison girlfriend." emery replied, shrugging. "so wear it as messy as you want, babe."

"will do." john b replied with a small laugh.

"hey!" plumb yelled at the two.

"is for horses!" emery replied sarcastically.

"your time's up." the woman snapped bitterly.

"love you." emery whispered as she stood up.

"love you too." john b whispered back. jj walked past the melville girl on his way to the table, emery joining mara in the hall outside the door.

"don't stand so close to me." she snapped suddenly.

"what?" emery asked in confusion.

"i just watched you try to suck john b's face off like those freaky harry potter things- i actually thanked plumb for yelling at you." mara deadpanned while emery rolled her eyes. "i'm back with my boyfriend and i'm still third wheeling you and john b."

"you and jj could've made out in the hallway, but you snoozed and losed." emery retaliated, looking over as she heard jj and john b start laughing. she smiled at the interaction, mara doing the same thing as she glanced through a window at the two boys.

"i think they missed each other." mara muttered, emery nodding in agreement.

"what are you gonna talk to him about?" she asked.

"i don't know, i didn't really think that through when i agreed to come here." mara admitted. "there isn't really much to talk about."

"mara, he's one of your best friends." emery stated like it was obvious. "and besides, if i could find something to talk to him about, you can too."

"maybe he's had some shower thoughts since he got in." mara said, plumb calling to jj that his time was up and motioning for mara to go into the visitation room.

"another one?" john b asked, pretending to be annoyed as mara sat down across from him, rolling her eyes.

"oh, please. you've missed me and you know it." the stevens girl told her friend flatly, john b shrugging at her reply.

"not really, but i'll do my best to pretend." he replied, but was smiling the whole time.

"you look more like a washed out sewer rat that you did when you got arrested." mara deadpanned, john b scoffing offendedly at his friend.

"watch yourself!" he exclaimed, both of the teens laughing. "how're you and jj?"

"you guys didn't talk about it?" mara asked.

"jj's planning to break me out of here tonight." john b whispered.

"dumbass." mara replied. "we're doing great, by the way. you getting arrested and all has really put a damper on any good mood he would normally be in."

"yeah, that's my bad." john b replied dryly, glancing up in the doorway at jj and emery, who were talking while plum stared holes into mara and john b. "how's emery?"

"she's... not as good as she could be, but she's okay." mara told the brunette. "i don't think she's eating much, but levi's making sure she takes her meds and stuff."

"i'm glad." john b mumbled. "she said the others found the gun rafe used to kill peterkin and ward used to kill gavin?"

"i haven't heard anything about it." mara told the routledge flatly. "levi probably told her, jj hasn't really talked to me much since we got back."

"that's shitty." john b deadpanned. "he gets in his own head and thinks too much. i know he talks to emery but if he thinks what he has to say is gonna burden you, he won't talk."

"i've noticed that." mara replied quietly. "and i love him, i care about him, i really do, but how do i convey that to someone who'll barely even talk to me?"

"when he shuts down like that, he'll either talk about it, or he won't." john b explained. "you just have to give him space and time, and if he wants to talk, he'll talk. he and emery relate to each other a lot more than people realize."

"what do you mean?" mara asked, eyebrows furrowed.

"jj had really bad anxiety in middle school because of his dad, it was around that time emery started giving him some of her pills." john b told the stevens girl. "he used them for years and they worked great, he got off them last year and has been  great ever since as far as i know, emery would know better than me."

"why does he only talk to emery about it?" mara questioned further, glancing back at the twins, emery laughing at something jj said.

"emery always told me it was like climbing a mountain, and there's someone sitting at the top waiting for you. but as soon as you get to the top, that person missteps, or maybe they push you back down, but by some miracle, you always end up back at the bottom of the mountain you have to start climbing the mountain again, and it's a cycle that never ends." john b stated, glancing up at his girlfriend in the doorway. "it doesn't get easier to climb the mountain, and most times you lay at the bottom for a bit and have to muster up the strength to start climbing again in the first place."

"so you're saying jj's at the bottom of the mountain right now?" mara asked, john b nodding.

"and there's nothing anyone can do to fix it." he finished. "damn, this got depressing."

"tell me about it." mara replied quietly.

"hey!" plumb yelped, mara and john b both turning towards the doorway. "your time's up!"

"see ya." mara mumbled, john b humming in response and waving at emery, the melville girl blowing him a kiss. plumb led them further down the hall rather than back the way they came, mara and emery both looking at each other in confusion.

jj stopped short at a door where yelling could be heard from the other side, emery's heart dropping to her stomach at the face she saw on the other side.

luke.

jj and emery's father was playing basketball on the yard, the melville and the maybank watching as he picked up the ball and shoved his opponent in a fit of rage. jj suddenly began banging his fist on the door, attempting to get the man's attention.

"dad!" he yelled. "dad!"

"let's go." plumb urged, pushing the blonde boy forward.

"you are such a bitch." emery spat, she and mara reluctantly following jj who shook his head in disbelief at the woman's antics.

"i see what you did there, plumb." jj mumbled is disgust. the trio grabbed their belongings from the desk, plumb escorting them outside.

"we can walk ourselves to our vehicle." mara stated bluntly to the cop, who had a firm hold on jj's arm.

"i just have one question, plumb." jj started. "how much are you splitting with shoupe?"

the deputy shoved jj down the ramp, the boy ramming into emery, causing the melville girl to let out a small gasp as her back collided with the concrete railing of ramp. the two of them looked up at plumb, who was glaring down at them.

"you'll both be in here one day. it's in your blood." she added, turning on her heel and walking back into the station, jj shoving his cap back onto his head and glancing at emery.

"you okay?" he asked, emery nodding. the maybank chewed his bottom lip, clenching his jaw when he reached the bottom of the ramp. mara looked at him, eyes swimming in concern, but the boy only looped his arm around her waist, pulling her over to his bike while emery walked next to him.

the swagger he had walking into the station had disappeared.

his happy attitude had dissolved.

that one interaction, that one sentence said to him and emery, the sight of his dad in that yard, they had all piled up and ruined his day.

he was right back at the bottom of the mountain.

kens speaks 🪐

such a rollercoaster but i don't care atp