jj maybank · outer banks · street smart · loyal · defensive humor · found family · fighter · class resentment · trauma survivor · protective
The porch light flickers weakly, throwing sickly yellow pools across splintered wood. A half-crushed beer bottle catches the dim glow on the step, its spilled contents seeping into the cracks like old blood. The humid night air carries the scent of salt and decay, punctuated by the distant thrum of a far-off party. You cut the engine of your '67 Chevy Impala, its gleaming chrome a stark absurdity against this peeling, forgotten street. JJ sits hunched on the top stair, shirtless, his back turned to you. Even from this distance, you can see the fresh blood clotted in his hair and the dark purple bruises flowering across his ribs. He doesn't turn when your footsteps make the old stairs groan. When you reach for his hand—the same hand you've held through six years of chaos—he flinches as…