JJ~2

Tess didn't know what she was doing here. The day had been a mess, and her feet had carried her to the Roundview student flats without her even deciding. She knew Cook stayed here. Maybe that's why she came. Maybe she just wanted to talk to someone who might, in some odd way, understand.

The building reeked of stale smoke and something fried. She climbed the stairs and stopped outside his door.

She knocked, half-hoping there'd be no answer.

"Yeah?" came Cook's voice, muffled but unmistakable.

She pushed the door open and was immediately hit by the smell. It was like the hallway but worse-a mix of sweat, old food, and something metallic.

The room was a disaster. Clothes were strewn everywhere, takeaway boxes balanced precariously on the desk, empty bottles scattered and god knows what on the floor. Cook was sprawled across the bed, shirtless, a cigarette dangling from his lips and his phone in hand.

"Tessy," he said, grinning as he looked up. "Never thought I'd see you here. What brings you to my humble abode?"

"This place is disgusting." Tess muttered, stepping over an empty beer can.

"It's lived in," Cook corrected, sitting up slightly. "Adds character, you know?"

She raised an eyebrow at him, then perched on the edge of the bed, careful not to touch too much. "I don't even know why I'm here."

"Shit day?" he asked, taking a drag.

She gave him a flat look, snatching the cigarette from him.

"Alright then," he said, smirking. "What's got you in a mood, Tess?"

She leaned forward, elbows on her knees, and groaned. "Me, JJ and Ems walked in on Freddie and Katie. Together."

Cook froze mid-drag, then broke into a laugh. "No fucking way. Freddie's shagging Katie? What, is he completely off his rocker?"

Tess frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Tess. Freddie and Katie. Nothing about that is right!" Cook said, gesturing dramatically

"Yeah she's gonna eat him alive" she frowned "Now Emily's upset and Katie's furious all because JJ said- well he fucked up."

Cook shook his head, half-laughing. "Freds. Freddie fucking McClair, man. He's got a death wish."

"Look," Tess said, her tone defensive. "I love Katie, but I don't know why she's doing this to herself. Or him. I know she's gonna get hurt"

Cook opened his mouth to speak but Tess didn't stop "And I mean I know her, and I know she loves stirring shit up but she's clearly doing this to outshine Eff in some twisted game."

Cook looked at her puzzled. "Tell her"

"What?"

"Tell her that it's stupid. That she can't keep fucking everyone about" He said

Tess shook her head "No fucking way. She would turn it on me somehow. I'm just trying to look out for her but she'll probably think I'm jealous or something."

Cook studied her face intently. "Are you jealous?"

Tess scoffed "Of her? Of them? I couldn't think of anything worse"

He leaned forwards, watching her with an amused expression, his lips curving into a familiar grin. It was the kind of grin that made her stomach twist, like he was seconds away from doing something reckless.

"Stop looking at me like that, Cook."

"Like what?" he said, tilting his head, clearly enjoying himself.

"Like you think this is funny, or like you're—" She shook her head. "Never mind."

"It is funny," he said, still grinning. "You storm in here, all huffy puffy, to bitch about Freddie and Katie. You're cute when you're angry, Tessy."

"God, you're insufferable," she said, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, yeah," he said, waving her off. "You going to Thomas's shindig later?"

"Probably," she said, crossing her arms. "Not exactly excited about it."

"Why not?" he asked, sitting up again. "Free booze, free drama. What's not to love"

She shot him a look. "We clearly don't enjoy the same things then."

"Well you clearly need some cheering up." He replied, "The cookie monster will show ya a good time. Stick with me?"

Tess didn't respond immediately. "I dunno"

"Come on man, what happened to friends?" He pleaded

Tess contemplated it more. It's not that Cook wasn't good company; she was just scared unresolved feelings could resurface. Just being here right now was making her heart flutter, although she tried to ignore it.

"Fine" She finally decided "but i'm not doing any of your dodgy side quests again"

Tess sighed, glancing around the room. "How do you live like this?" she said changing the subject.

"Like what?" he asked innocently.

"This," she said, gesturing to the chaos around her. "It's like a landfill."

"It's comfortable." he shrugged

"Do you even know what those stains are?" she said pointing to various different coloured marks on the wall

Cook sniggered "nup"

"Right. Of course you don't" She said, rolling her eyes

She looked around at the cluttered shelves, the collection of clothes piling up and the various badly pinned pictures of Cook, JJ and Freddie. Her eyes caught on the door, where someone had scrawled Chris loves... and drawn a fish underneath it in black marker.

She smiled faintly. "Chris?"

"Hmm?" Cook asked, distracted.

"The writing on the door," Tess said, nodding toward it.

"What about it?," Cook said with a lazy grin.

"Nothing," she said quickly, shaking her head.

Tess stared at the doodle for a moment, her smile lingering. She had a feeling this was his old room. Probably just as trashed when it was his than it was now.

Cook began getting ready, searching through the sea of tops and sniffing his underarms to which he grimaced. Which was her sign to leave him to it.

"I'm just going to the loo. I'll be back" she muttered, leaving him to it

As she stepped into the hallway, she let out a breath she didn't realise she'd been holding. Cook had a way of making her feel like nothing was as serious as it seemed, like the weight of her problems wasn't really hers to carry. It was infuriating. But maybe that's why she'd come.

She eventually found the bathrooms. They weren't half bad. More decent than the school ones. She took her time reapplying her eyeliner, fixing up her hair a bit before heading back out.

When she reached his door, it was ajar. Voices drifted out.

"Now, are you coming, or do I have to keep lookout myself when I'm buying gear?"

Cook's voice was unmistakable.

"Just care. OK?" came JJ's voice, louder than she'd ever heard him, almost cracking.

"About what?" Cook asked.

"About me!" JJ shouted. "About me, you twat! You're all fucking twats!"

Tess froze, unsure whether to leave or announce herself. She didn't move, feeling like she was intruding on something she shouldn't. 

She waited a few moments before the door opened fully. Cook stepped out, grinning. "We've got pharmaceuticals to purchase," he declared, then stopped when he saw her.

JJ followed, looking rattled. He caught sight of Tess and blinked. "Oh, Tess. I didn't know you were here." His gaze flicked between her and Cook, and something dawned on him. His eyes widened. "Oh my god, did you just—"

"No, JJ. No," Tess interrupted quickly, cutting him off.

JJ stammered, "Sorry if you heard any of that shouting. I didn't mean—"

"It's fine," Tess said, feeling a pang of guilt for eavesdropping.

JJ gave her a small, apologetic smile before retreating down the hallway.

Cook raised an eyebrow at her. "What? You still up for Thomas's, or have I scared you off?"

"Shut up, Cook," she muttered, brushing past him.

---

Tess had somehow managed to end up underneath some shitty, grimy overpass. She and JJ were the lookouts. Something she had clearly said she didn't want to do before. The air was thick in the cold, a smell of piss wafting in the air and an eerie feeling she desperately wanted to escape. She shot a glare at Cook, who was already deep in a loud, animated argument with the dealer.

"Eight for one pill? I'll pay you eight for three!" Cook's voice carried, sharp and grating in the otherwise empty lot.

Tess crossed her arms, shifting uneasily at every distant sound. "So, J. How'd it go? Your mission, I mean."

JJ shuffled his feet, avoiding eye contact. "Uh, well... it didn't really go at all. Total cock-up, to be honest."

"Sorry I bailed," Tess said, her voice softening.

"It's fine," JJ mumbled. "We're... together now, right?"

She managed a faint smile. "Yeah. Together in this lovely shithole. Not exactly how I wanted to spend my Saturday night."

"It's alright, Cook says we won't be here for long" JJ said reassuringly, "well- at least once he gets the pills"

"That won't be happening" Tess mumbled, as she watched Cook negotiate, it clearly wasn't going anywhere...

She was trying to listen in on the rest of the conversation but JJ was poking her shoulder furiously

"Tess! Tess! Do you see that?" JJ hissed, nodding toward a shifting shadow.

Her stomach twisted. "Shit. JJ, we need to—"

"Cook!" JJ called, his voice barely above a whisper. Cook ignored him, still mid-haggle with the increasingly irate dealer.

Tess groaned finally snapping, "Oh for fuck sakes. Cook!"

He turned, just as the telltale shout came. "Police! Stop!"

Without a second's pause, Cook grabbed Tess's arm, dragging her into a full sprint. JJ stumbled after them, his panicked breaths echoing in the night. Tess cursed under her breath, her boots slowing her down. They reached an opening in the fencing and scurried through just in time. Unfortunately for Tess JJ and Cook kept running and running and running. Cook was racing ahead of them and Tess thought she even heard him laughing fucking Tosser.

They finally stopped in a dark, graffiti-covered tunnel, their breaths coming in sharp gasps. Tess leaned heavily against the cold, damp wall, peeling off one heeled boot and wincing at the ache in her feet.

Cook was bent over, hands on his knees, rubbing his eyes like he hadn't just dragged them into chaos. "Shit, I knew it was getting dodgy back there," he said, still catching his breath.

JJ scoffed, a rare edge in his voice. "But you still went, didn't you?"

Cook straightened, shrugging like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Had to. The gear in this town's fucking shit!"

"For fuck's sake, Cook!" Tess snapped, throwing her shoe to the ground. "Couldn't you survive one night without? You just made us run a bloody marathon!"

"That'd be no kind of night out now, would it?" he shot back, his tone maddeningly casual. "I need something to get me going."

JJ stepped forward, his voice uncharacteristically firm. "Well, I don't need it. I can go without spliff or pills-"

"Alright alright!"! Cook cut him off "And by the way that's so fucking not true"

JJ's jaw tightened "I don't drink, I don't do weed, I don't do class A..."

"You're pilled up every day, mate," Cook interrupted with a snigger. "Nothing fancy about you, so don't come it."

"Cook," Tess warned, glaring at him, but he ignored her.

"Alright," JJ began, his face darkening. "You can have some of mine, then."

"Mad pills?" Cook asked.

"Yeah. Wanna get mad, right?" JJ said, his confidence flickering to life.

Cook inspected the pills. "Stun? What do they do?"

JJ smirked, that rare confidence flickering to life. "A lot. So you have to take two or three"

Tess's stomach churned as she watched Cook tear into the packaging. "Woah, woah, you're not serious!" she exclaimed. "Cook, don't be fucking stupid."

Cook shrugged, taking the pills out individually now. "Why not? Nobody else has got anything."

"Because you don't know what they'll do, you idiot!" Tess hissed, her voice rising.

JJ grinned slyly. "Take it... or possibly you're a pussy."

"JJ, stop encouraging him!" Tess snapped, but it was too late. Cook swallowed the pills, grinning like he'd just won some twisted game.

Tess stared at them, shaking her head in disbelief. "You two are fucking unbelievable," she muttered, the disgust clear in her voice.

Grabbing her discarded boot, she stormed off down the tunnel, walking ahead for some space. Cook was bad enough on a normal day—now, with god-knows-what coursing through his veins, he'd be even worse and she didn't want to stick around to find out how much worse that could get.

Cook launched himself into the air with a ridiculous leap, limbs flailing as he landed poorly on the pavement in front of the club. Tess rolled her eyes, already regretting every decision that had led her to this moment.

"Alright, let's get fucked up!" Cook shouted, spreading his arms wide.

Tess didn't even bother responding. She turned on her heel and walked straight up the line, ignoring JJ's half-hearted attempt to call her back.

At the front of the queue, she spotted Naomi and Effy. Naomi raised an eyebrow as Tess approached.

"Did you come with them?" Naomi asked, her tone already dripping with incredulity.

Tess exhaled sharply. "Unfortunately. Cook dragged us through some dodgy overpass, nearly got us nicked, and then popped some mystery pills JJ gave him for a laugh."

Naomi snorted. "Sounds about right."

Tess leaned against the barrier, finally catching her breath. She followed Naomi's gaze to find Effy, staring further down the line. Naomi squinted. "What's she looking at?"

Tess smirked knowingly. "Freddie."

Effy didn't react, but her eyes lingered on Freddie as he leaned casually against the wall, chatting with Katie.

"My god," Naomi muttered, shaking her head. "That's fucked up. You love him?"

Effy glanced around sheepishly but said nothing.

"Oh yes," Tess chimed in with mock drama. "You love The Lips."

Effy stayed silent, shifting uncomfortably.

Naomi grinned wickedly. "Oh, my god. Go on, lie to me. I want to see this."

Tess glared at Katie from up the line. "I can't believe this new development." she said pointedly at Katie and Freddie

Naomi gasped. "It's disgusting. It's just wrong!" 

"It's like the two most opposite people in the world," Tess added

Before Naomi could respond, Thomas's booming voice rang out from the front of the line.

"Tess! Naomi! Effy! Come! You don't pay, friends don't pay!"

Thomas beckoned them enthusiastically, waving them to the entrance.

Tess groaned as they joined him. "Isn't this great?" Thomas beamed. "I sold a wacker load of tickets!"

He spotted Freddie and Katie further down the line and waved them over. "Freddie! Katie! Here, come!"

The mood shifted as Freddie approached, Effy subtly avoiding his gaze. Tess folded her arms, still fuming at Katie from their last encounter.

"Welcome, mes amis!" Thomas announced proudly. "Club Thomas is pleased to receive you!"

A chorus of half-hearted greetings followed.

Naomi crossed her arms, her tone bitter. "Aren't you gonna be bitchy to me, Katie?"

Katie hesitated, clearly disheartened. "Yeah, sure. Give me time."

"Listen, everyone!" Thomas interrupted, desperate to keep the mood buoyant. "Everything is great. Totally super great! Look, more friends!"

He pointed down the street where Cook and JJ were finally making their way toward them, Cook obnoxiously loud and drawing attention.

Freddie and Tess exchanged irritated glances.

Thomas clapped his hands together. "Wait until you see this place. You will not believe it. And the band? Formidable! Everyone is together-Panda's coming, and Emily's already here!"

Katie and Naomi perked up in unison. "Where?"