the slums || jj maybank

twenty-five. photographs

twenty-five. photographs

Skye woke up in her bed, but she wasn't alone in it. 

 After arriving back at the Chateau, John B excused himself to bed since he had had too much to drink and was starting to get a headache. Kiara and Pope headed to their respective homes since they had things to do in the morning.

 Skye was sitting in the living room with JJ, and neither wanted to address the night they had had a few days ago. Instead, Skye rose from her seat and joined JJ on the sofa. The sexual tension got the better of both of them, one thing led to another, and the next thing Skye knew, she was naked in bed with JJ.

Currently, she was wrapped in the white comforter, dressed in JJ's oversized, gray, sleeveless shirt. She also had on a pair of underwear.

She reached over and grabbed a white envelope out of the small drawer in the nightstand. She opened the envelope, pulling the pictures out. Next to her, JJ lay still asleep with soft snores escaping his lips. She looked over at him and smiled at the shirtless boy sharing a bed with her. She shut the lamp off that was on the nightstand; the room was lit by the sunlight coming through the window shades.

She then began to flip through the stack of old pictures. On top, she found a photo of her with her childhood best friend, Amy Adams. They were both about thirteen in the picture.

Oh, Amy. The pair had been extremely close-knit in their youth, their mothers having been best friends. When Amber's mother tragically passed, however, the friendship just wasn't the same. Furthermore, Amy had become everything to Amber that the pair swore, hidden in the confines of Amber's bedroom, they would never be. She had become distant, the pair only associating to smoke or drink. They would catch each other at a party or a large gathering and pretend they hadn't missed a beat. They had virtually become strangers.

She then placed the picture in the back of the stack and looked at the next. It was her, her blonde hair light. She was smiling next to her mother, their faces pressed right next to each other. She was about ten years old in the image, the ladies sitting on a large boat.

"Did you dye your hair to hide?" JJ asked, his voice slightly deepened from the long night of rest. He stretched his arms out, letting out a yawn. Skye jerked lightly at his voice, barely noticing the boy awaken at her side.

He sat up slightly, propping his body upon his right elbow. He faced the girl, watching her flip through the images.

Skye let a small smile come to her lips. "Yeah," she began. She then decided to unload a little bit. "But it, uh, it wasn't just a disguise. My dad, he always made sure there was never a hair out of place. It had to be perfect. He said that if I was going to do something, it and to be the best. And he wouldn't let me cut my hair; he said I looked like Barbie and that's how it should be."

  JJ nodded his head and didn't say anything. He placed his left hand on the small of Skye's back, rubbing with his thumb.

She flipped through a few more photos, before setting them on top of the envelope and on the nightstand.

"Amber Byrne, right?"

The question made Skye's heart sink in her chest. The beating picked up to a pounding that she could feel in her entire body and hear in her ears.

"What?" The words came out quiet as if her throat had dried up. Truthfully, it felt like it did. She didn't look at JJ, but she could feel him continuing to rub her back in slow, peaceful motions. His actions felt contradictory from his words, all due to the name he muttered. Skye's cheeks heated up, the blood rushing to her face. She felt lightheaded, only focusing on the sudden pounding in her head.