happy place || jj maybank ON HOLD

chapter four

"I think I'll just head back home." I spoke quietly to John, meeting awkward stares as I entered the house from his three friends.

"V, you can stay if you want." He spoke back, also in a hushed tone.

I looked back up to his friends, Kie and Pope seemed to look down, guilty, but JJ kept his stare on me, no emotion on his face.

"No, no. It's fine, really." I smiled at John, "my dad left a bunch of papers and stuff at the house that I thought meant nothing but I couldn't throw them away. I brought them with me I think I'll go through them, see if anything's there that can help." I smiled up at John, before hugging him.

"Oh, so she's in on this all now?" JJ spoke up.

"JJ, cut it out, dude. What's your problem with her?" John argued back.

"John, really I think it's best if I just go." I said, wanting to avoid problems. If I argue with his best friends I know it will become impossible for me to help him.

"I don't have a problem with her, I just don't understand why you're involving a girl you just met yesterday. She doesn't even know what this is all about." He responded to John's questions.

"Girl he met yesterday? And I don't know what this is all about?" I spoke up, laughing at the irony of his sentence, saying I had no clue what this was when he didn't even know that my father was just as involved as Big John. I walked toward the blonde haired boy, feeling a need to defend myself.

"Vienna," John warned, grabbing my arm before I got closer to him. "Come on, I'll take you home."

"Oh shit, Vienna? Like Vienna Miles?" JJ spoke, his face changing dramatically. Going from no emotion to surprised, as he look away from me to John.

"Yeah, JJ, you dumbass. Vienna Miles." John shook his head.

"I'm sorry, what am I missing?" The girl spoke up. "I'm Kiara, by the way, you can call me Kie."

I sent her a small nod and soft smile.

"Shit, dude I thought you made her up." JJ laughed, sipping from a beer. I turned my nose up at the fact he was drinking beer at 10 am.

John shook his head again at the boy, "Guys this is Vienna Miles." John introduced me to his friends. Now that he kind of had to explain who I was, thanks to JJ. So much for 'introducing myself only if I wanted to'.

"William, the guy who was here with my dad all the time, is her dad. Vienna and I grew up together, she was here every summer and most weekends, until her family stopped coming here when we were 7."

I nodded and smiled at them, suddenly feeling anxious. I hated new people and I hated meeting new people. I hated everything that went with it.

If I have learned anything in my life, hellos create inevitable goodbyes.

"John, I think I just want to go home." I told him, hoping he was understand I was uncomfortable with this. So much has happened in the past 24 hours, all I wanted to do was go home and be alone.

"Yeah, of course."

With that we made our way out of the house, to the van and down to road to my house.

"I'm sorry, V. I know I said I'd give you time to think about if you wanted to get to know them."

"It's okay, all you did was introduce me. If I don't want to be around I can still do that."

He nodded at my words, but I could tell he wasn't happy with them. I know he wants me around and to help him with this. I know he's been waiting for me to return.