[f] Competition

                                    

                                          
Imagine type: fluff 
Recommend song: IDK ANYMORE 
Warning: none 
———
You and JJ had a ridiculous thing going on and everyone on the island knew about it. The was consistent and the teasing was ever apparent, but to actually confess to your feelings was something that was never going to happen. 
It was a bit of a competition, if anything. Whoever confessed first ultimately lost. It sounded easy, and you didn't think much about it when it started, but who could have guessed, you fell harder than you should have. 
It wasn't like you didn't anticipate it, but you went a long time denying it. And of course there was the whole 'What if he doesn't like me back?' thing at play. 
How could you tell what was part of the competition and what was true? Nothing could really be real if JJ was still sleeping around, though, you knew that much. 
"Hey, you almost done?" You heard a voice call out from the living room and you stood up from your spot on the guest bed, hastily pulling together your swim suit, lazily thrown onto the floor the day before. 
"Nearly," you yelled, pulling off clothes, bikini in hand. 
"JB said-" JJ's sentence was cut short, having midway opened the door and seeing you in nothing but undergarments. "What the fuc--shit. Never mind!" 
JJ once again disappeared behind the door, slamming it shut. Shaking your head, you continued on as you were doing. 
"You good?" You asked JJ when everyone had finally made it onto the boat. He looked at you, but turned away after half a second, fixing his hat with a sullen 'Fine'.
You pulled a face, ignoring him. It wasn't embarrassing and you weren't the least bit fazed. It was nothing different compared to a swimsuit. 
Tension seemed to replace the usual flirting as the day aged. Not a single word coming out of JJ's mouth seemed to be directed to you, actually, and if he did want to ask you something, he made sure to make it sound general, as if he was asking everyone. 
It seemed as though the unspoken competition was on hiatus. 
"It seems a little chilly in here," Kie remarked with a raise of the brows, taking a seat by you. At least you knew it wasn't all in your head. 
You roll your eyes, looking at JJ. "He's just being weird today. He saw me in my underwear when I was trying to change."
"And he didn't invite himself into your room after that?" Kie asked with a mock shock and your mouth dropped open. 
"No, of course not," you scoffed. "Why? Does he . . . usually do that?" Kie looked at you funny and shrugged. "I mean . . . to you? Or--other girls?"
"No," she finally responded once she realized your question was genuine. "But, I mean, you know how he is." 
You nodded, silently willing the conversation to end. You couldn't handle both disappointment and anger at the same time, and by now you were past frustrated. JJ clearly wasn't interested in talking to you.  
"Beer?" You offered JJ when he'd climbed back in the boat after taking a shot swim in the water. 
He paused for a moment before gently flinging his towel across the boat. "Sure," he sighed, catching the can you tossed at him. Maybe if he was drunk he would make more sense.  
You said nothing as the sun began to set, the light starting pouring over the tops of the trees. Incoherent words part of a larger conversation between the other three pogues filled the empty silence. 
"So, plans for tomorrow?" You asked, pulling the towel further around your waist to shield from incoming breeze. 
JJ shrugged, sipping slowly from his can. 
Your lips pressed into a thin line. "Maybe we could all so surfing?" You tried again. JJ hummed, neither a yes or no. 
You chewed on the inside of your cheek. Unbelievable. He was acting like a child. 
It was understandable if he felt a little awkward, but he'd seen practically every girl on the island wearing less and even so, this was ridiculous. 
Your shoulders lurched forward as the boat reached dock, swaying side to side on the water. 
Your heels hurt tremendously as everyone walked from the dock to the Chateau, and you fell into the hammock out front as soon as you became arms length away from it. 
You watched John B and Kie walk off for food, finally feeling the relief of being alone. You let your shoulders drop, swinging your legs below you, making the hammock shift slowly. 
You watched the remaining bits of sun go down, soaking in all the light you could get. You felt a dip in the hammock and didn't need to look to know it was JJ. You didn't feel the need to acknowledge him, deciding instead to watch a crow hopping along the sidewalk. 
"Did you come to see the sun set too?" You finally said first, becoming uncomfortable with the increasing tension. 
"No. I came to talk to you," JJ muttered and you nodded even though you knew he wasn't looking at you. 
You rubbed the side of your face, feeling the weight of today sinking down on you. "We really don't have to do this." 
You heard a sharp inhale on JJ's side, "Yes, we do." 
Silence. Again. It seems to be the theme of today. 
"If this is about this morning," you started, gesturing with your hand. "It's completely fine. It's no different than seeing me in a swimsuit."
"That's the thing, it is different. I can't control other people's ability to look at you in a swimsuit, but . . . I want to be the only the guy that gets to see you . . . " JJ paused, holding his breath as if he wasn't ready to say what he was thinking. "See you like that." You felt your breath caught at the back of your throat. You feel the heat in your chest travel all the way to your cheeks, the blanket of darkness masking it so even JJ doesn't notice. 
"What do you mean?" You asked like an idiot, heart beating faster and faster and you knew you just wanted to hear JJ confess in simple terms. 
"I want you." 
———
GUYS GUYS GUYS 
have you heard of shifting? It's that thing where you drift into an alternate reality or something. It seems kinda cool but I'm kinda scared... so anyways I'm gonna try it😺
Leave requests if you want:)