Sunshine in the Rain

17. Pawn

I wake up in my bed. Not the bed at Tannyhill, my bed. At my house.

I go to sit up but pain hits me and someone pushes me back down. My abdomen is wrapped but it hurts.

"Chill out cupcake." He says. I look over and see JJ smiling down at me.

"Hey." I say.

"Hey." He says. "How you feeling?" He asks.

"Like I was shot by a shotgun." I say. JJ laughs a little and gets in the bed with me and kisses me. I smile a little and then kiss him back.

"Kie just melted down the gold and we're about to go to the pawn shop if you're in." JJ says.

"Hell yeah. Let's get this money." I say. I sit up but the pain from side spreads throughout my whole body and I groan a lay back down.

"What's wrong?" JJ asks.

"The pain." I say. "I-It hurts." A tear falls down my face. JJ hugs me and helps me up. I wince in pain. "Ow. That hurts." I say.

"Come on, let's just get you to the car." JJ says. He grabs some pain meds as he helps me out to the car.

"Hey look who's awake!" JB says. He smiles at me and I smile a little back. "You feeling alright?" He asks.

"It just hurts when I move." I say. JB starts driving and I take the pain meds in the van.

When we get to the pawn shop, we all walk inside and JJ goes to the front desk.

"I see you buy gold." JJ says.

"That's what the sign say don't it?" The lady asks.

JJ shows the lady the gold and the lady doesn't believe him and starts doing a softness test and the acid test.

"Looks like someone tried to melt it down." The lady says.

"Well my mom has all of this jewelry and said that it was best to consolidate it." JJ says. He puts air quotes in the air with his hands.

The lady weighs the gold. "7 pounds of gold?" The woman asks. "Thats a lot of earrings."

"Well, it's kinda hard. Seeing her fall apart with Alzheimer's." JJ says. He sniffles. I'm behind a shelf and I laugh a little.

The lady goes to talk to her boss and she comes out. In the end, if we want the money, we have to drive out to some warehouse.

We are all sitting in the Twinkie and listening to some music. JJ is in the back with his arm around me. My head is laying on his shoulder.

"How's your side?" He asks me.

"It still hurts but I'll be fine." I say.

Then we hear cop sirens. "Really, cops out here?" JB asks. He pulls over.

"Shit JJ. Hide the gold. Hide your weed." I say. I help him shove his weed into his backpack and put it under the seats.

Then I hear a gun cock and see a man with a bandanna aiming a shotgun at my brother. I freeze.

"Get out of the car!! Hands up!! Let your friends out!!" He yells. JB gets out of the car and lets us all out. We all get out of the van. "Get on the ground!! In the ditch!!" He yells.

I am shaking and breathing super fast. I get on the ground next to JJ and he holds my hand.

The guy starts going through the van and tears fall down my face. Then JB gets up and hides in the guys car. I look over at JJ and he sees that I'm panicking and that I'm barely breathing.

"Hey, you're okay." JJ whispers to me. "You're gonna be fine." I nod my head but I still can't breath and I keep panicking.

After the guy gets in the car, John B attacks him and then JJ gets up. They both start fighting him and I sit on the ground, hyperventilating. My side hurts like hell, there's a dude with a gun fighting my brother and the love of my life, and I'm getting dizzy on the ground.

After they knock the guy down, JJ grabs JB's bag. Then JJ looks over at me and helps me up. "Hey, are you okay?" He asks. He hugs me.

"Yeah." I say. "They fucking set us up." I say.

JJ starts yelling. "We are gonna steal some shit!"

"Stealing from a drug dealer?!" JB asks.

"Hell no." Pope says.

Later, JJ wins the argument and we drive to Barry, the drug dealer's house. JJ runs in and runs out with a bunch of money.

"JJ put that back!" JB says. "He knows who we are."

"John B! I'm sick of this shit!" JJ yells. "Aren't you guys?!" JJ yells.

"JJ, I'm sick of it too but really? This is a drug dealer." I say.

"I know Ash!!!" He yells. I flinch when he yells at me. He walks away.

I chase after him. "JJ Maybank!!" I yell. "Get back here!"

He stops and looks back at me. "What Ash?!" He yells. "What?! Do you want me to stop doing what I want because you think that I love you?!" He yells. "Because you're wrong." He says. He has tears in his eyes as he starts walks away.

Tears fall down my face. He doesn't love me. Why did I think that he ever did?

"Well JJ, I'm so sorry that I fucking love you!!!" I yell. He stops dead in his tracks with regret in his eyes.

"I-" JJ hesitates but then shakes his head. "Never mind." He says. He walks away. I storm back to the van.

"Ash-" Kie says.

"No Kie!" I say. "Just don't." I go and sit in the passenger seat of van. Tears fall down my face.