A/N: Drama ahead!

"Billy! Go long!"

Sam's yell rang loud and clear over the bustle of the LaMontagne backyard. The whole family was outside, enjoying the beautiful Louisiana evening with plenty of fun and laughter. William and Sean, Juliette's husband, were grilling away, preparing a right feast of food for the family that just seemed to grow every time they gathered.

"Throw to me Uncle Will, to me!" Bailey-Rose shrieked as she ran beneath the ball her dad and her uncle were tossing back and forth. Charlotte, who had perked up after a short bout with an ear infection, was giggling as she toddled along behind her cousin, her chubby little legs working extra hard to keep up with the excited seven year old.

"Dinner's up in five!" William hollered across the backyard, catching everyone's attention. "Kids, time to go wash up!"

A flurry of excited shrieks filled the yard as the kids all raced towards the house, Sam bringing up the rear as he shepherded them inside to wash their hands. Will straggled a few feet behind, tossing the ball onto the grass as he walked up beside JJ and put an arm around her waist, pecking her cheek. She smiled, leaning into his side momentarily before Janine turned and beckoned them over.

"Here we go... all the fixin's! Help yourselves, before the gremlins come and put their grubby little hands all over it all," she chuckled, stepping aside as they all moved in.

A few minutes later, the kids were back, and everyone was sitting around the outdoor table, eagerly digging into the feast that had been in the works all day. A gentle chatter filled the table, punctuated by the occasional shriek of laughter from the kids at the end. JJ wasn't overly hungry, but she forced herself to eat, not wanting anyone to be any more concerned about her than they already were.

"So JJ, how's your mom doing?" Charlie's wife, Madeline, asked as she cut open her bread roll. JJ had only met Madeline a handful of times, but from what she knew of her, she had come to like her.

"She's ok," JJ said softly, managing a smile as she pushed her salad around at the edge of her plate. "She's down in Florida visiting my brother at the moment... she just tries to keep herself busy"

"That's important," Madeline said. "I remember my mom said it helped her to stay busy when my grandmother passed away"

"We've been prayin' for your family, from the very beginnin'," Charlie cut in, leaning across his wife to grab the salt shaker that was sitting in front of her. "I know y'all have been through a lot, we just hope some of it is going to be taken away from you soon"

Unsure what to say, JJ nodded; she wasn't religious, and while she knew some of Will's family were, she just couldn't reconcile the things her family had experienced with an all powerful being. "I... thank you, that's... that's very kind"

"You just have to trust in God," Charlie added.

JJ narrowed her eyes. "Trust?"

Charlie smiled. "God has a plan for everyone... you just have to trust that he's leadin' you down the path intended for you"

JJ bristled, suddenly feeling a fire burning inside her. "Oh really? Well, I find it hard to trust a god who thinks that letting a ten year old find her sister dead in the bathtub with her wrists slashed open is a great plan," she spat before she could stop herself. The table fell silent, all attention suddenly on the petite blonde towards the centre. She was painfully aware of the shocked expressions that crossed Will's family's faces, but anger was brimming over faster than she could contain it. "Especially when he then compounds it by letting that same kid watch her father die from cancer eleven years later. So, I'm sorry, but I can't find comfort in some ethereal being who thinks my family's pain is a necessary path"

There was a stunned silence before Will rose up out of his chair and pulled her to her feet. "Inside," he hissed under his breath, guiding her back towards the house even as she wrestled free of his grip, both of them leaving his family in a state of complete shock.

When they reached the kitchen, empty and quiet, JJ wheeled around, her eyes shooting daggers at Will. "What? Want me to control my feelings? Want me to sit there and be the perfect, silent future wife? Subservient?"

"Fuck sake Jayje, you don't have to go on the defensive all the time," Will said exasperatedly.

"Well you didn't have to drag me into the house like an alpha male-"

"I know you're hurtin', JJ, but that doesn't give you an excuse to be an asshole and just trauma dump on my entire family," Will spat, his face set in complete anger. "Those little kids out there did not need to hear about someone havin' their wrists slashed open"

"Oh, but its fine for me to have to live with that image burned into my brain for the last twelve years?" JJ shot back, her eyes flashing dangerously.

"No! I'm not sayin' it's ok, and I wish it had never happened because I know how much it hurt you, but god, JJ, there's a time and a place to bring it up. You've been nothin' but miserable since we got here, and it's not like you're goin' to great pains to hide it! My parents, Bailey-Rose, my whole family was so excited to see you again and celebrate the holidays, but you've not even attempted to act like you're enjoying being here," Will exclaimed, walking around the kitchen counter and placing both hands down on the bench top as he looked across at his fiancé.

JJ rolled her eyes. "Message received, Will, I'll try and censor my feelings because god forbid I have emotions other than happiness when I'm around your family-"

"That's not what I'm sayin'!" Will yelled, lifting a hand and slamming it down on the counter. "Jesus Christ, JJ, you need a fucking shrink or something!"

"What, because I have feelings that aren't happy, I'm some crazy person who needs a shrink?"

"Would you stop putting words in my fuckin' mouth, JJ!" Will yelled. "You need a shrink because you can tell yourself you're fine all you like, but you're not! I know you're not religious, and I know it's hard to believe in a god when horrible shit keeps happenin' to you... but my brother is religious, and it brings him a lot of comfort, and he's just tryin' to reconcile that with what you're goin through"

"Well it's a fucking cop out, Will. Trust that I'm going down a necessary path? I don't care what kind of comfort religion brings anyone, that's a pretty shitty thing to say to someone who's grieving"

Will exhaled heavily, straightening up and running a hand through his hair. "I'm not going to fight with you-"

"You already have, Will!"

"Just shut up and listen to me, ok?" Will cut in fiercely. "I'm done arguin', because we're just goin' to go around in circles. You're not gonna listen to me-"

"I don't have to listen to you! You don't own me or control the things I say-"

"JJ, for fuck's sake!" Will yelled, pushing away from the counter and turning to face the cabinets behind him. He buried his face in his hands, his shoulders heaving as he took a few deep breaths to try and calm himself down. "You're not hearin' what I'm sayin'," he said heavily from beneath his hands, slowly turning back to face her. "You're angry, and you're hurtin', and you're lookin' for a fight so you can let it out, but I'm not gonna be your punchin' bag tonight, ok? You're puttin' words in my mouth and you're paintin' me to be some dominating asshole that you and I both know I'm not"

As he spoke, some of JJ's defensiveness began to radiate off her, her body slowly relaxing as she withdrew from her stance.

"I want you to apologise to Charlie, and that is the only thing I want you to do," Will said carefully, pacing his words slowly so as not to speak with the anger that was still brimming inside him. "But most of all, I want you to talk. I know you're not ok, and you know what, JJ, that's ok. I'm not expectin' you to be alright. But if you keep bottling it up until you snap like this... JJ, I can't deal with that. I can't live wondering when you're going to blow up next"

JJ stood silently before him, unmoving as she took his words in. Then, without any warning, she turned on her heel and headed towards the front door.

"JJ!" Will called after her, but barely a second later, he heard the door open and close. Closing his eyes, he let out a heavy sigh, leaning forwards and resting his arms on the counter. The sliding door to the backyard slid open in the next room, clicking closed before someone made their way slowly towards the kitchen.

"Everythin' ok Billy?"

Lifting his head at his mother's voice, Will shrugged. "I... I don't know. She's... she's hurtin', Momma, and I want to help her, but she won't let me. I just... she keeps lashin' out, and-"

"It's alright," Janine said gently, reaching out and covering her son's hand with her own. "We know JJ. She's got a heart of gold, and we all know she doesn't mean what she said outside... but, we also understand. Maybe not so much Charlie, but the rest of us... we know it's hard to reconcile religion and faith when you keep experiencin' tragedy, and... I don't really blame JJ for bein' upset"

"I just... I hardly recognise her lately. The girl I fell in love with was so sweet, and loving, and... lately, all I get is anger and pain"

"Grief is difficult, my boy. It can tear people apart before they have a chance to start buildin' themselves back up. JJ's a tough girl... she wouldn't be where she is today if she wasn't. But she's experienced a lot of pain in her short life. You just have to remind her that you're there for her. Give her the space she needs to heal and help her through the hard days"

"I'm tryin'," Will said softly, his face suddenly showing how exhausted he was. "I really am"

"I know," Janine replied, patting his hand. "I know"

It was late when JJ quietly let herself back into the house, closing the door behind her and flipping the lock over so it was latched. She turned, intending to head for the stairs, but instead, she nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw William coming into the foyer from the kitchen.

"Oh my god," she gasped, her hand flying to her chest.

"Sorry, sorry," William chuckled softly, slowly approaching and leaning against the end of the banister. "You alright? The city can be awful scary place after dark, we were all pretty worried about you"

"Yeah, I'm ok," JJ said quietly. "I didn't go far, I just... I needed some fresh air"

"I get it"

A silence fell between them, hanging in the dark spaces of the dimly lit entryway. And then JJ felt hot tears spilling down her cheeks, forcing her to drop her face to try and hide them, but before long, they were accompanied by heaving sobs.

"I don't know how to get past this," she admitted through tears. "And I'm hurting everyone around me but I don't know how to stop it"

She wasn't expecting it when William approached her, wrapping her into a tight bear hug, the kind of hug only a dad could possibly give. All it did was reduce her to more tears, while at the same time, provide her with a comfort she had sorely missed in the months since her dad had passed away.

"Grief sucks, JJ, and there's no timeline for it. Sometimes you'll grieve for a few weeks and then you're ok, and sometimes it's three years down the track and you still can't look at a picture without bein' reduced to tears. And either of those is ok... you don't have to make yourself better, or pretend you're ok. You just have to know when to call time, and say that you've had enough for today and you need a break. You've been go go go since your dad died, and I think what you need is to actually allow yourself the space you need to sit with everythin' that's happened," William said gently.

They were interrupted by a noise on the stairs. JJ lifted her face, her eyes locking with Will's as he slowly made his way down to them. She brought a hand up, wiping away her tears as William dropped the arm around her shoulders.

"I was worried about you," Will said quietly. "You were gone for ages"

"I know," JJ sniffed. "I'm sorry"

"It's... it's fine... I'm just glad you're safe," Will replied, holding out a hand to her. She accepted it, moving towards him as William gave them both a small smile and retreated back to the kitchen. In silence, the two of them made their way up the stairs to Will's room, JJ still wiping away her tears as he closed the door behind them. They stood there for a moment, before Will brought his hands to her shoulders.

"No-one is upset at you. We know you're in a tough place," he said gently. "I just want you to promise me you're goin' to talk to me when you're havin' a bad day... I can't help you if you don't"

JJ nodded, sniffing as he straightened up and pulled her into a hug, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"I love you so much, JJ... don't you ever forget it"