𝗺𝗶𝗱𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻 || 𝗷𝗷 𝗺𝗮𝘆𝗯𝗮𝗻𝗸

- assault and kisses -

"I mean, it's obvious, right?" Melia asks, biting her nails

They were all in the Twinkie. Melia, JJ and Kiara in the back. John B and Pope up the front. Melia has her head leaned on Kiara's shoulder.

"A family heirloom. What better place to hide a message?" She explains.

"He had to know it was gonna get back to us, right?" John B says, nodding at Emilia.

Everybody else was quiet.

"Yeah. It's possible." Kie says quietly, rubbing Melia's shoulder.

Melia and John had accepted a few months back that their dad was gone, that there was nothing they could do. And then all this happens? Their not sure how to process it all, and so everybody is looking out for her and JB more than usual.

"It could also be possible that you two are concocting wild theories to help... you know, deal with your sad feels." Pope suggests, glancing around nervously.

"Bro, you know how I process my sad feels." JJ says with a grin. "Dank nugs and the stickiest of ickies-" He shrugs.

Melia chuckles slightly, lifting her head from Kie's shoulder.

"We aren't concocting, okay?" John B says, raising his shoulders. "Our dad's trying to give us a message."

"If it helps you two believe, guys.." Kiara says quietly.

"Look, w-we don't need a therapy session, okay?" Melia says, biting her lip. "We aren't tripping out." She stares down at her knees.

"It's okay to trip, Lia. But-" JJ says, looking at her sympathetically.

"Look, our dad is missing, okay?" John B snaps. "Missing."

"You guys don't know what it's like to have the person closest to you vanish." Melia adds quietly.

She lost Kiara once, then Rafe and then her dad. She had her fair share of loosing people - and if she could bring another person back, she would.

Everybody goes quiet, Kiara looks down at her hands guiltily.

"And then have no idea what happened." She tucks her hair behind her ears.

"Just wake up every morning, wondering."

Kiara looks up, "It's been almost a year.."

"Hey, he could've been kidnapped?" JJ suggests nervously, "That's definitely a possibility." He really didn't want Melia or JB to be upset right now.

They had enough going on already.

"Yeah, could be in a Soviet sub getting interrogated by the KGB somewhere." Pope says with a shrug.

"Absolutely! Uh... or, Atlantis?" JJ agrees.

"JJ. Look, what do you think the message actually is?" Kiara asks, sighing.

"Redfield." John B says, glancing out the window as he drives.

"Redfield Lighthouse. Our dad's favourite place." Melia explains quietly as they drive in past the sign.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Everybody slides the doors to the Twinkie open and steps out. They all walk to the fence in-front of the Lighthouse, looking up at it.