Early Bird | ✓

41 | egret

❁

           JJ was grateful when school finally ended, allowing himself to dedicate his every waking moment to Lizzy and finding her. His grades slipped considerably in those final days, but he passed all of his classes and was informed by his guidance counselor that he needed to pick his senior year classes. He chose them without much thought, his mind elsewhere.

           Lizzy had been gone for a week and a half now. Each day without her left JJ more wilted and withered than the day before like picked flowers left out in the sun. In the back of his mind, he knew he was deteriorating, consumed with grief and guilt, trapped in a downward cycle that was bound to end in utter annihilation. Teagan, Reece, and Mateo tried to hold him together as best they could, but their efforts were futile. JJ didn't care about his destruction; in fact, he didn't care about much anymore unless it concerned Lizzy.

           Someone knocked gently on his bedroom door. JJ gave them permission to enter with a harsh grunt. His hand petted Shadow as though it had a mind of its own, his head focused on a picture of Lizzy that he had printed and placed at the end of his bed.

           Lauren peeked her head into his room, her lips set in a grim line. "Jordan Joseph Hale," she scolded when she saw his clothes, holey and smelling like manure, his hair a bird's nest, a scratchy stubble gathering on his chin. "What the hell are you doing?"

           JJ's eyes didn't move from the photo. "Sitting."

           "Yeah, feeling sorry for yourself." She sniffed and recoiled. "And you smell like shit."

           "Thanks," he replied drily.

           "Your mom told me you were down in the dumps." She waited for a response, but JJ remained silent. "Well, I'm here to get you out of this shithole whether you want to or not."

           Lauren reached for Lizzy's photo after she noticed it held his attention. JJ sprung from his bed and pinned her to the wall before she could touch it. "Don't you dare," he threatened coldly.

           Lauren, visibly frightened, whimpered. She'd never seen JJ act like this before. "I won't touch it," she mumbled.

           JJ loosened his grip, his vexed look replaced by a forlorn one. "Sorry."

           Lauren didn't bother saying it was fine because it wasn't. She waltzed over to his dresser and rifled through his clothes. "Go shower," she instructed, tossing the clothes in his direction. He followed her orders obediently.

           When he returned from showering, JJ couldn't find Lauren anywhere. For a moment, his heart stopped in his chest, his breath fleeing from his lungs. She's gone too, the pessimistic voice inside him said. Relieved, he spotted her waiting for him in her car on the driveway.

           "Don't do that ever again," he told her when he climbed into the passenger seat. "Please. I can't lose you too."

           Lauren quickly changed the subject to get his mind off of Lizzy: "I broke up with Mikey."

           A smile cracked onto his face, the first one in a long time—at least, it felt like a long time. "That bastard is finally out of your life?"

           Lauren backed out of the driveway. "I couldn't be with anyone who says shit about you and—" She was about to say more but thought otherwise. "Besides, he was a major dick. I just didn't realize."

           The steady thrum of the engine lured JJ into a daze. "Where are we going?"

           "One of my friends is holding this end of the school year pool party at this hotel. You know, Anna Greenwick? Her father owns all of the Greenwick hotels and she managed to let us check out some rooms for a really cheap cost. And I got one for you."