downgrade // jj maybank (obx)

i. twenty-seven - cheat

i. twenty-seven - cheat

"How's your mom?"

Violet sits on the edge of the cold hot tub, dangling her feet in the still water below. The air remains noiseless - only the sound coming from Kie and Pope's subtle murmurs and movements from afar. On a normal day, Violet would be the first to volunteer to help her friends in any way she could. However, she has no idea how to help Pope build the gold hoisting contraption, and besides, she's deciding to enjoy a few peaceful and relaxing moments alone with the boy she's currently confused about.

JJ sits to her left, his knee propped up on the tub's edge whilst his other leg sways in the water like Violet's. His hand drags through the ripples like a slow-chugging boat, distracting himself while he waits for a response from the stunned girl. 

Violet smoothes out the white fabric of her frilly shirt, wiping the slight moisture off of her wet hands. She's unsure of how to answer the question, considering it's been two days since she last spoke to her mother. She's been so distracted over the abundance of events that have occurred in the past twenty-four hours, that she hasn't even had the time to sit down and process the news of the adulteress in her lineage.

Violet blinks at the boy, unsure of whether this second is the right time to come clean or not. He looks so content with the beauty of the day that she's worried one wrong piece of information could ruin it for him. She wouldn't want to ruin his mood again.

She clears her throat, returning her gaze to the darkened water. "I don't really wanna talk about it."

JJ frowns, tousling his blond hair as he readjusts his backwards cap. "Why not?"

"Because..." Violet trails, watching her legs swish around in the water below. "It's a touchy subject."

JJ nods unknowingly, not wanting to pry any further. "I see."

The two sit in silence, both in their own world as they fiddle with the sea of chlorine in front of them. Violet's mind races with bubbling thoughts and feelings that she had worked so hard to keep under wraps. Her mother did something absolutely unforgivable - there's no doubt in her mind - though maybe talking about it would be able to help process her feelings towards the situation. After all, what has she got to lose? It's already happened.

"She cheated on my dad."

JJ's eyes widen, entirely shocked by the news. For starters, he's surprised that Violet could even bring herself to tell him the fact, considering she often has a hard time telling him other things that seem to be happening in her whirlwind of a life. Yet she spoke so effortlessly over a bombshell of a sentence. 

"What?" JJ manages to conjure, picking his jaw up off of the ground.

"Apparently some repair guy came to fix her car a few months ago," She stares off into the distance, scrunching her nose in disgust. "And they've been together ever since."

JJ's sits in silence, unsure of what to say in this situation. It's easy to tell that the girl is very displeased with the whole scenario - there's no doubt in his mind. 

"Shit," Is all he can say.

"Yup," Violet's stare into the abyss is cold and emotionless. "Which explains my dad's heavy drinking. He probably couldn't handle the fact that his beloved wife was being unfaithful."

If JJ has learnt anything from living with his dad, it's that shit people tend to blame their shit behaviours on things that were out of their control. Instead of handling situations like normal people, they turn to drinking and drugs to cope with the uncomfortable feelings. He knows it's true because sometimes... he catches himself doing it.