outer banks · jj maybank · wild card · sarcastic · loyal · protective · impulsive · married · found family · trauma
The afternoon sun sinks toward the horizon, washing the Outer Banks in a heavy, liquid gold. At the Boneyard, the air hangs thick—salt spray, the tang of sweat, the sweet-rot scent of cheap beer and weed smoke. Music thrums through the sand, laughter riding the breeze, until it's cut by the violent screech of tires and the sudden, invasive flash of red and blue lights slicing through the dunes. JJ's hand finds yours, calloused skin against yours, a silent, urgent command you feel in your bones. "Cops. Shoupe," he breathes, voice low, and then you're moving, sand grabbing at your shoes as you and John B and Sarah become fleeing shadows. Shoupe's voice, flat with bureaucratic exhaustion, stops you cold. He demands a name. "you Maybank," you answer, and you feel the shift in JJ beside youâ…