Good Time All The Time
John B hated when JJ went home. But she had to keep DCS off her ass. John B understood this because he also had his own problems with DCS which were steadily growing. Big John is still missing. Uncle Teddy's absence as his guardian was starting to be noticed and John B was worried they'd stop believing his excuses of why Uncle Teddy was gone at the moment or why he couldn't make a meeting.
John B is walking on thin ice with DCS and he's afraid it's going to break soon and he'll be forced into the foster system.
JJ has been lying to John B. She goes home to make sure that Luke Maybanks sees her enough he won't come knocking at the chateau. She doesn't want John B to get hurt because of her. She tells him it's because of DCS but DCS has never cared about her. Never looked twice at her situation because JJ always lies and they are the Maybanks, a whole new level of low in the eyes of people, even on the cut. So they allow themselves to turn a blind eye to her and she's mostly okay with that. Mostly.
The past year she's mostly avoided Luke when she sneaks home but the times she doesn't, she always stumbles back to the chateau where John B patches her up and takes care of her. She can see the relief when she comes back, but then the horror when he sees her bruises, and the anger when she won't let him do anything about it. She hates seeing it so she usually looks away and avoids his eyes.
Secretly she thinks she's not worth the trouble anyway. She doesn't tell John B that though.
John B and JJ just met up with Pope and Kie and are lazing around a construction site for new kook houses. Kie's return to the group is welcome as JJ likes having another girl around even if Kie always rolls her eyes at her antics. Kie never gave details but she basically went full kook for a minute and after some kind of fallout with her new rich friends she realized she was truly a Pogue at heart and grew a whole new hatred for kooks. After a heartfelt apology to the group of course she was welcomed back. They don't talk about it tho because it still stings a little that she wasn't around during the hardest year in their lives. JJ sometimes sees guilt in Kie's eyes though and so she forgives her silently.
JJ sat on a ledge, beer in hand, while Pope stood nearby looking up at John B who is currently balancing on a beam also with a beer in hand and while JJ's heart is anxious of him falling, she laughs at his antics.
"That's about what, a three story fall to the deck? I give you about a one-in-three chance of survival." Pope called up to John B. Pope always the smart one.
"Hm." John B puts a finger to his mouth and tests the wind. "Should I do it?"
"Yeah you should jump!" Pope jokes. "I'll shoot you on the way down"
"Oh you're gonna shoot me?" John B smiles and points one of his finger guns at Him.
Pope laughs, "Yep" as John B makes shooting sounds.
"They're gonna have Japanese toilets with towel warmers" Kie announced coming around the corner after her tour of the house.
"Of course, why wouldn't they?" JJ replied as if that's a normal luxury people buy.
"This used to be a turtle habitat" Kie replied dispassionately "but who cares about the turtles I guess. She moved to stand by Pope.
"I can't have cold towels" JJ said sarcastically.
"Can you please not kill yourself?" She called up to John B worriedly.
Secretly JJ thought the same thing but instead she called, "Don't spill that beer! I'm not giving you another one." She took a large swig of her own beer. Of course then John B drops his beer, nearly falling off the beam. "Woah! Oh shit" he gasps catching his balance.
JJ calls, "Of course you did right when I told you not to"
"Smooth" Kie frowned.
John B groans in annoyance.
"A!" she laughs.
"Dumbass" Kie mutters.
Pope turns around, peers over the ledge at the road and catches sight of a security guard getting out of his car.
"Hey!" The security guard yelled up at them.
"Hey uh security's here!" Pope says quickly toward them. "Let's wrap it up."
"Boys are here early today" John B says from his beam, like they don't need to get moving.
"Humpty Dumpty, Let's roll!" JJ calls up to him as she rolls off her ledge ready to book it.
They hurriedly start climbing down from the house and JJ recognizes the security guard making his way from the car.
"Hey Gary, is that you?!" She calls out to him.
The four pogues shout and laugh excitedly as they run down the stairs and out of the door towards the Twinkie.
"Hey stop!" Gary yells at them.
He's close now and JJ feels his arms almost grab her but she manages to evade and keeps running. "Not much of a hugger man!"
She sees Pope running not far ahead of her and yells "Go Pope! Go go go go go go!"
They hop the fence, Pope falling onto the other side. JJ just barely able to make it over on her shorter legs. Good thing for the running start.
Pope pulls himself off the ground and they keep running.
"Hey come back here you little pricks!" They can hear the security guard yelling from behind them.
The horn of the Twinkie honks. "Bus is leaving!" John B's voice rings out from inside.
"Come on guys! Whoo!" Kie laughs as Pope and JJ throw themselves into van through the sliding door. John B presses the gas.
"Hey!" They hear as Gary who is a pretty heavy set man chases after on foot, sweat dripping from his face.
"Look at Gary gunnin for a raise!" Pope laughs!
JJ is laughing while watching Gary chase after them "Wait. Slow down," she says as she grabs a beer and pulls herself to hang out the side.
"You're so close! You can do it! There you go!" JJ cheers at Gary and throws him the beer which nearly hits him in the face but he manages to block with his hands. "They don't pay you enough bro!"
"JJ stop!" She hears Kie complain and JJ laughs as she pulls herself back into the Twinkie.
"Oh come on. That sort of initiative is just begging to be punished," she laughed and Kie shook her head though a smile rested on her lips.
Gary falls behind and the pogues continue laughing and having a good time.
JJ looks around at her friends and feels content. She looks at John B who is laughing at something Pope said and decides their mission this summer will be to have a good time all the time.
