𝐋𝐔𝐃𝐈𝐂𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐒. ᵒᵘᵗᵉʳ ᵇᵃⁿᵏˢ ¹

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 08.

━ 𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴.

    "𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐁𝐈𝐆 𝐎𝐅 𝐀 fib are we talking?" I shouted.

    John B broke eye contact, looking to the floor. Jj stared at him, while awkwardly shifting his weight from the front of his feet to the back.

    It was at that point, that I'd realized what I was really doing. I had agreed to help the boy, a simple act of recognizance, and let him use my grandfather's keys for his proclaimed "secret mission", without steering straight at all. My eyes had been merely blinded by the teenage dream— meeting kids my age, escaping on a rebellious rampage, or so it now seemed.

    I'd let them take me into their van, through the town, and on their boat. All because I wanted a new experience, and all while my grandparents assumed I was at home, safe. It was worse to think about their impression of me sneaking out, then to actually get caught in the act. I had just met my grandparents, and I was standing on the verge of ruining my reputation towards them.

    As the dangerous situation caught up to me in a swirl of jumbled thoughts, I took a large step back. Almost feeling paralyzed, my eyes widened, and all I could think about was running away. Only a few seconds before I was about to make a run for it, John B lunged towards me and wrapped his hand around my wrist. It wasn't a hurtful grip, but it certainly didn't feel soft.

    "You can't tell anyone we were here," he ordered, through gritted teeth. He used strength to pull me back into the room.

    "John B, it's not that deep," Jj said, standing by one of the beds.

    "What? Am I apart of your gang now or something—" I spat back, as he closed the door behind me, "Get off of me," I jerked my arm out of his grasp, then reached up touch where he'd gripped.

    "Just—" John B spoke stressfully, running a hand through his hair, "Stay here until we're done," he locked eyes with me. "Please."

    "Done what," I asked, making it sound like a demand rather than a question, "Robbing this shit hole?"

    John B and Jj weren't looking at me anymore, and were then continuing their frantic search.

    "Hello," I said, to grab their focus, "I'd like to know, before we're caught and sent to jail," I waved my arms out, "Like, c'mon, do you even know who's room we're in?"

    Jj stopped looking around, crouching down at the small table between both beds. "Yo, dude," he shouted to John B, "Maybe... this is where they went fishing?" He pointed his finger down on what looked like a map, as his friend arrived at his side.

    I felt awkward standing at the door, with my arms crossed while they galavanted around. I figured I could attempt a second escape, while they focused on that paper, but I held my breath. A sigh fell past my lips as I trudged over to one of the beds.

    "Nah, that's off the continental shelf," John B whispered, looking confused, while shaking his head. "Nobody goes fishing there."

    I sat down on the bed, listening to the mattress creak beneath me. My legs swung, not touching the ground, and I folded my hands on my legs. John B pulled a worn pink hat out of his back pocket, and slid it on his head backwards.

    "So, does this make me a witness," I thought out loud, basically only speaking to myself. "Because it looks to me, like this is a crime," I added.

    Watching John B rush over to the other side of the room, he searched through the shelves underneath the box television. Jj shrugged his shoulders upwards, and began to search the bathroom, walking with a slight bounce. I quickly trailed my eyes up and down his appearance, looking at the muscles on his arms, his cargo shorts, and the black boots on his feet.