Full Kook
The whole ride back to the chateau, JJ felt her stomach growled at her with hunger pains and she felt a bit lightheaded. She really needed food. It's not that she hadn't gone days without food before, she had, but she's not usually so active during that time.
As soon as they arrived back at the chateau, JJ went straight to the kitchen. All she found was a moldy loaf of bread. She decided it would have to do.
"That bread has mold on it three days ago," Pope said, disgusted as he watched her open the bread to eat.
"I'll just pull off the bad parts," JJ said as if it was normal for her to eat moldy bread. "Plus, mold is good for you. It's just a natural organism.
Pope rolled his eyes and walked over to where John B and Kie sat at the table staring at the package.
"JJ," Kie called for her to join them.
She quickly grabbed a piece of bread out and jogged over. "Yep yep let's do this."
As John B tore the top off the package, JJ took a bite of the moldy bread. Then spit it back out and gagged. It was absolutely disgusting and there was no way she'd be able to eat it. She gave up on food for the moment, ignoring her body's demands for it.
John B pulled out a large piece of paper from the package and unfolded it to lay flat in front of him. It was a map and Big John had written and made markings all over it.
"Holy shit," John B muttered.
"Oh, X marks the spot," Pope said as he pointed out one of the markings on the map.
"Longitude, latitude," John B listed as he studied and traced different things on the map. He put his hand back in the package and felt something else. "Wait, there's something else in there."
He pulled out a small black box-shapes object.
"What's that?" JJ asked, not recognizing what it was.
"It's a tape recorder, dumbass," Kie replied with a 'duh' look.
John B pushed play and Bog John's voice played out, "Dear Bird."
"Who's bird?" JJ asked.
"That's what my dad called me," John B replied. JJ tried to remember ever hearing Big John call him that, but she mostly left for home when Big John was around and when she was over, Big John mostly kept to himself.
"I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so," Big John's voice continued. "And you doubted your old man. I suspect at this moment, you're filled with guilt and self-loathing over our last fight. But don't kill your self just yet, kid. I didn't expect to find the Merchant either."
John B looked up at JJ with eyes glazed over with tears. Big John had just confirmed her suspicion that something had happened before Big John disappeared and she wished she could comfort John B right now, but he needed to keep listening to the tap recorder. Instead she sat in the chair next to him and touched her thigh to his to offer whatever comfort she could in the moment.
"You were probably right to call me out," Big John continued. "Wasn't exactly father of the decade. What can I say, kid? I could smell the barn. Now, hopefully we're listening to this in our brand new sugar shack in Costa Rica living off passive investments and pulling on permits. If not, and you find this for less than optimal reasons, Well, that's what the map is for. There she is, the wreck of the Merchant. If something happens to me, finish what I started. Go for the gold, kid. I love you bird, even if I didn't always act like it." Pause. "I'll see you on the other side."
The tape recorder ended.
The Pogues were quiet, all eyes on John B as he processed the message from his dad. John B stood up quickly and turned away to lean into the doorway. Sobs wracked his body.
JJ stood and slowly approached him, hugging him from behind. She instinctively placed a light kiss on the back of his shoulder blade, then rested her head against him. She doesn't know why she did it, she just did. John B had one hand supporting himself on the doorway, but the other reached down and interlocked with one of hers, holding on tightly.
Pope and Kie left the room to give them some space. After the sobs had died down a bit, John B sagged against the doorway and slid down it to sit on the floor. He didn't let go of JJ's hand so she lowered herself with him and he tugged her to sit in his lap, needing an anchor to reality. She let him and found herself straddling his lap facing him as he lowered his face to rest on her shoulder. She raised her free hand to run her fingers down his back in a soothing motion, while John B wrapped one arm around her waist.
She doesn't know how long they sat like that, but finally John B raised his head from her shoulder and their faces were only a few centimeters apart.
He looked like he might kiss her, and JJ almost forgot herself and let him. But he's upset and vulnerable and she doesn't want him to do something he'd regret so she squeezed his hand and moved to stand up, pulling him with her.
"You gonna be okay?" She asked him. He nodded, still watching her intensely. She felt butterflies in her stomach, but she knew she had to maintain control of herself. "Let's go rejoin the others, ya?"
He nodded and let her drag him outside to find the others. He was so quiet, and JJ prayed he would say something soon. She needed him to be okay like she needed air to breathe, and she was only just now starting to realize the extent of how much his emotional state affected her own.
She decided to think on that later as they saw Pope and Kie sitting at the end of the small pier, legs dangling over the edge. Kie strummed on a ukulele that she had given John B for his birthday one year. Kie played it when she would come over, but other than that it was never touched.
JJ dragged John B to sit nearby their friends who handed them each a beer. Nobody said anything for a good minute, and it was quiet except for the chirps of crickets and the pull and push of the waves on the shore. John B moved to sit on the ledge across from her and lean back against a pillar. JJ stayed where she was.
JJ could only thing of one thing that might pull John B from his silence. He needed something to focus on. "How much was it again?"
"400 mil," Pope answered, catching on.
"Alright, let's talk the split," JJ said nonchalantly, and in an attempt to lighten the atmosphere, "Now before we say evenly, may I remind you that I am the only one that can properly defend us from those groupers who were after us. Protection? Not cheap, okay."
While Kie seemed to know she was joking, Pope's face was worth it. "You're not trained. You've done zero training."
"YouTube, bro," she shrugged. "That's at last a five percent bump right there."
"You haven't-" Pope sputtered and JJ can't believe he actually thinks she's serious.
"Any objections? Didn't think so," JJ said, enjoying herself.
"Yeah," Pope refuted.
JJ pretended she couldn't hear. "I don't hear any so.."
Kie decided to give Pope a break. "What are you going to do with your 100 mil, Pope?"
Pope thought about it for a second, than predictably, "Pay for college in advance. And also textbooks, those are expensive."
"How about you Kie?" JJ asked, liking the turn the conversation had taken.
"Yeah, what does a socialist do when she's rich?" Pope piped up, curiously.
Kie breathed out a laugh. "Just wanna make a double album. About OBX, the Pogues.." They all smiled at that. "You know the way Catch a Fire is about Kingston. Record it at Marley Studio, Peter Tosh producing."
"Peter Tosh is dead," Pope reminded her, eyebrow raised.
"Peter Tosh is dead. I know. Spirit of Peter Tosh will never die." Kie said as she raised a beer can.
"I know what I'll do. I'm gonna get a big ass house on Figure Eight and go full kook," JJ said with a smirk. She imagined the faces of all the people that looked down on her her whole life when she suddenly became their neighbor.
"You're gonna go full kook?" Pope asked, surprised.
"Yup," JJ nodded, trying to sound serious, "Gonna get a marble statue of myself, and then I'm gonna get a koi pond." Kie and Pope laughed. "Put a bunch of those fish-"
"I'm never visiting," Kie giggled. JJ didn't actually know what she would do, but it was sweet to imagine. Her whole world would suddenly be filled with options she never even imagined.
"What are you gonna do, JB?" Pope asked John B who had been quiet. JJ listened intently for his answer.
John B took a minute to respond, but finally he looked up and caught JJ's eyes. "To going full kook." They all raised their beer cans to that.
"To going full kook!" They said simultaneously as they clanked their beers together.
JJ could feel the butterflies fluttering around in her stomach again as she took a sip of her drink. The Pogues spent the next couple hours just enjoying each other's company. John B and JJ caught each other looking at each other several times throughout the night. Something was shifting in their relationship and both were hyper aware of it. They would need to talk eventually, but when they were alone.
Pope and Kie had texted their parents that they were staying the night, so when they'd tired themselves out enough to go to bed, JJ saw Pope and Kie retire to their usual spots. John B told them goodnight as he went to use the restroom before bed.
JJ started to go into the guest room as she usually did when Pope snd Kie were there, but last minute, walked into John B's room instead and crawled under the covers. She faced away from the door and closed her eyes.
A moment later, she felt eyes on her and knew John B was in the doorway, surprised to see her there. She felt him approach and climb in beside her. Then she felt his body heat wrap around her as he spooned against her back, and one his arms wrapped around her waist.
She felt warm and let out a content sigh. She felt him squeeze her to let her know he was happy she was there, and within minutes they were peacefully asleep.