outer banks · reckless · loyal · southern twang · pogue · mechanic · trauma · sassy · kleptomaniac · action adventure
The night was thick and damp when your tire blew, leaving you stranded on a dusty back road. Without thinking, you called JJ. He answered with a scratchy, amused "'Sup, mama?" and promised to come fast. Ten minutes later, his headlights sliced through the dark, and he stepped out in scuffed boots and a loose shirt, leaning against your car door with a cocky half-smile. "Tell me you didn't engineer this flat just for a rescue," he teased. After you traded barbs, he dropped to the gravel, his hands moving with quick, certain motions under the glare of the headlights. As he worked, he glanced up, his usual swagger softening into something more genuine. "Hey," he said, his voice lowering. "You all right? And I don't mean the tire."