Half-Truths
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A few hours ago, he’d been curled up on the floor of the Chateau’s bathroom, dry-heaving like a loser. His throat burned, his head was pounding, and his brain wouldn’t shut up about everything he’d screwed up. Stealing from his dad, running, being a piece of shit, the fact that he’d be fucking murdered as soon as he stepped foot at his house—it had all hit him at once.
He’d shaken. He’d cried. He’d felt every bit the damn waste of space his dad always said he was.
And then he’d stopped.
Gotten up. Washed his face. Fixed his shit.
Cause JJ Maybank didn’t stay down. He didn’t sit around whining and waiting for a rescue.
He’d done it because his friends needed him. Because John B needed him. And if stealing the damn pump meant the Pogue ran again, then that was just how it had to be.
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Spring on the Outer Banks means two things: trouble and the Pogues finding it. JJ is fighting to keep it together at home, while John B is barely holding on after his father’s disappearance. Pope and Kie do their best to keep the group steady, but even the strongest friendships are tested when real life hits hard.Series
- Part 1 of Half-Truths
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But after… it stuck. Sat wrong under his skin, itching from the inside. Jaw tight, legs jittery, couldn’t sit still, couldn’t stop moving.
He’d swipe dumb shit off a counter just to feel the rush. Other times he’d grab his board and go straight for the nastiest break he could find, the kind that chewed you up and spit you out cold and gasping, more alive than ever. Some days he’d push into someone’s space, mouth runnin', beggin' for it. Go on. Swing. Just so he could swing back.
It lived there, just under the surface. Pushed and burned until he let it out. And when it did... then he could breathe. Only then did the world feel right again. For a little while.
For JJ, violence was never a choice. It was just how things are.
Series
- Part 2 of Half-Truths
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He'd hand him a screwdriver or make some smart-ass crack and Luke would see it. His boy, with his mama’s grin and his old man’s hands. He’d take JJ out fishing, even let him drive the truck down the road. Watch him ramble about surfing or some busted plan with the Pogues, and let it ride. He'd feel something settle then. Like maybe they could be okay.
But then the high wore off, or the beer ran out, or JJ broke something or mouthed off or slammed a door too hard, and it started again. Same heat behind the ribs, same fire up the neck. And Luke would snap. Because once the fuse lit, there was no stopping it. Just boom.
______
Luke raised his boy best he could – kept him fed, taught him to swing, made sure he didn’t take shit from anyone. Some days they almost felt like a team. Other days... well, he don’t like thinking about those.A look at JJ and Luke’s relationship through the years.
Series
- Part 3 of Half-Truths
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She lifted her head, the room tilting a little as she scowled at him, “You don’t get to act all high and mighty about this, Luke. I was just tryin’ to do the right thing!”
He didn't even look at her.
His eyes stayed on JJ, hands hovering, checking and rechecking, like touching him might somehow fix it.
His breathing got heavier and heavier, like he couldn’t get enough air in. Then he moved.
His fingers closed around the bottle. He ripped it off the table and sent it flying. Glass exploded against the wall. Whiskey streaked down in uneven trails
Anna blinked at the mess.“Oh, look at you,” she drawled, “So fuckin’ dramatic.”
_______________Just a little story about baby JJ and his parents. They aren't exactly cut out for this parenting thing.
Series
- Part 4 of Half-Truths
- Part 2 of Baby Shark
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Baby Shark and Other Natural Disasters by Ross38 for PrincessOfNothingCharming
Fandoms: Outer Banks (TV)
19 Aug 2025
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He groaned into the pillow, face still half buried. “If I hear that song one more time, I swear...”
“That’s not the dance!” came JJ’s voice, scandalized. “You gotta do the fin! The fin, Momma!”
“I’m doin’ the damn fins, J!” Anna yelled back, cackling like a maniac, “Doo doo doo doo doo doo…” Something glass hit the floor. JJ howled with laughter.
“Doo doo doo doo doo doo’” he bellowed from the hallway then, thumping past “Daddy shark! Grrr!”
“Fuckin’ hell,” Luke muttered, but he was grinning.
__________________The story of how JJ got his shark necklace.
Series
- Part 5 of Half-Truths
- Part 1 of Baby Shark
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JJ smoothed the paper flat again even though it wasn’t wrinkled. He looked at the red teeth, then at Dad’s face.
“When’s she comin’ back?”
“Soon.”
“Like… Before I go to bed?”
“I said soon,” Dad said, tapping his cigarette.
“Where'd she go, daddy?”
“Wherever she damn pleases. Same as always.” The smoke came through his teeth this time.
“You gonna go get her?”
“J…” His name came out quiet. “Don’t start.”
JJs shoe kicked the dirt, and it made a swooshy sound. “I just wanna know.”
“Yeah, well, me too,” Dad said. “Go play.”______
Momma’s gone, Dad’s mad, and 6-year-old JJ only wants her to see the shark he drew. The rest of the day is a mess he never meant to make.Series
- Part 6 of Half-Truths
- Part 4 of Baby Shark
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This summer was the best summer in the whole world.
Everything was perfect. Except John B had ruined it. He’d brought a girl.
Her name was Kie and she was dumb. All girls were. She screamed at spiders, had dumb braids, lame girly sandals, and never shut up. He tried being mean so she’d leave. Told her her voice was annoying—she said he was annoying. Told her girls weren’t allowed—she came back anyway.
They were stuck with her now.
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Baby Pogues fluff with a teeny bit of angst. Written for the Tumblr Happiness Challenge.🌞Series
- Part 7 of Half-Truths
- Part 3 of Baby Shark
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It worked. For a second, it worked.
JJ reached for the coil, trying to think ahead.
Scrub the porch. Dry the steps. Put the drill away. Stay out of the way.His chest felt tight. Everything was tight. He was doing all of it now and it still wasn’t enough.
He jerked the hose again and it snagged. Then it slipped. A thought, nothing more. Not meant to be said out loud.
“You could do it your damn self for once.”
At first, he didn’t even realize it had left his mouth.
The porch was too quiet.
It couldn't have carried, could it? The spigot was still hissing and water was dripping off the rail.Bootsteps stopped. Then:
“What’d you just say to me?”
__________
JJ’s twelve, and nothing he does is ever enough. Things blow up fast, and this time, someone gets him out. Peace never sticks, though – he already knows that much.Series
- Part 8 of Half-Truths
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JJ didn’t cry or yell or try to cover up. His face was all twisted up, teeth bared like he might bite someone. It didn’t look like him at all.
It scared her a little. None of it felt like school. None of it felt normal.
Pope must’ve felt it too – he was still sitting at the table, gripping the edge with his face all pale.
When teachers pulled Sam off, JJ didn’t say anything or look at anybody. Just let them drag him out. And he hadn’t been back after. She figured he was suspended, maybe also grounded. Hopefully his dad wasn’t too mad.
The sound of the hit kept coming back to her. His lip had split. He hadn’t said a word.
Nobody had even asked if he was okay.
A lot can happen in a week.
When the Pogues are twelve, there’s a fight, a party, a project, a festival -- and a few things their parents make sure they remember.
Some lessons they push back on. Others stick.
And not the ones you’d hope.Series
- Part 8 of Half-Truths
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"You’re not bad, Js.”
JJ didn’t move.
He tried to speak but the words almost choked him. “They’re just... messed up, man.They suck.” His voice cracked. “You didn’t do anything. You didn’t—” He shook his head.
“You’re like the best person I know.“
JJ let out another sob. John B pressed his forehead to his temple. “I got you,” he mumbled. “Okay? You’re not alone. You’re not.“
The crying just kept going—small, broken sounds that made John B want to punch a wall. He grabbed the back of JJ’s head and made him look.
“I love you, man,” he said, quiet and serious, "I mean it.”
His throat clenched. “So don’t say nobody wants you. I do.”
________________________That time in 8th grade when JJ took Luke's pills and scared the shit out of John B.
Series
- Part 10 of Half-Truths
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He was gone, B. At Christmas. What, you had to sit here and wait?”
John B looked up. “That's not what I'm talking about. You were there right? You saw what happened.”
“No shit.” JJ was on his feet before he realized it. “Dude came in looking for a fight. It’s like… Cut 101. You don’t throw a punch unless you want one.” He shrugged, but it came out tight. “Especially not at my dad.”
“You’d know, huh?”
The second it slipped, JB froze, like he wanted to grab it back, but JJ didn’t give him the chance. He stopped cold. Hands curled.
“What the fuck does that mean?”
__________JJ lives by unspoken rules: don’t mix the Pogues with your family, don’t cry, hit first, and for fuck’s sake never, ever piss Luke off.
Breaking one was all it took, and the rest went with it.
Now John B hates him, home is off-limits, and he’s stuck half-frozen on Kie’s bedroom floor trying to figure out where it all went to shit.Series
- Part 11 of Half-Truths
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"Swear to God, I wanted to beat that guy bloody. Break his fuckin’ arm so he’d think twice before raising it again.”
A few seconds passed. JJ’s hand had drifted from Daisy’s back to his lighter again, and the rhythmic flick-click filled the silence.
“Now I’m sittin’ here wasted with some mutt I don’t even know how to take care of.” His eyes stayed on the floor. “That’s some real Luke shit.”
John B tipped his bottle against his leg. “Yeah, well. I dragged you through swamps and graveyards, chasin’ treasure maps from a guy who bailed.” He lifted it halfway. “Big John shit.”
A look passed between them.
“Cheers to apples and trees.”
_____________Every time, it starts with a dog. At thirteen, JJ tried to help and paid for it. At twenty-three, he steps in again - and this time, he wins. But it brings everything back. One long night on the porch follows, full of too much booze, too many ghosts, and the things he and John B never said when it mattered.
Series
- Part 12 of Half-Truths
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“Can’t believe you guys.” She laughs and it is shaky. “No secrets amongst Pogues, right? Ain't that what we always say?”
Nobody answers. Nobody meets her eyes. Pope’s still tracing circles in the grease. Sarah presses her mouth shut so hard it’s white.
Kie's eyes are watering and her voice is way too loud as she turns to JJ.
“And you -- Fuck! You always do this. I'm tired of it, Jayj! Just talk to me!”
____________The Pogues made it through hell.
They won. They’re in love, together, happy - at least that’s how it should be.
But when the clouds clear and the dust settles, they’ll learn that living isn’t as simple as surviving.Set post S3. S4 doesn't exist here.
Series
- Part 13 of Half-Truths
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The next afternoon, JJ and John B went around the back of the cafeteria and hauled the trash can lid up just enough to get their hands in. The stink hit first. John B grabbed a milk carton that felt warm in the wrong way, and JJ scooped up a clump of cafeteria noodles, scraped in whatever goo was stuck to the side then dumped it all into a Styrofoam cup. He unzipped his backpack, tore the corner off a knotted plastic bag from B dock, and squeezed a lump of fish guts in on top. John B made a face. “Dude.”
“Shut up and watch,” JJ said. Ketchup packets between his teeth, ripping and squeezing until it turned into this slimy red soup.
A collection of little feral Pogues one-shots. Mostly JJ-centric, with friendship, all kinds of shenanigans and shitty parents all around.
Series
- Part 14 of Half-Truths
- Part 5 of Baby Shark
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Summary
Kie kept twisting her pen between her fingers before finally leaning over the aisle toward Pope. “JJ text you? He was talking about maybe skipping.”
“In what universe does he tell me before he skips?” Pope muttered. “His dad probably dragged him to work. Or on the water.”
“Yeah, free child labor.”
“Maybe he’s just hungover,” John B said, thumbing his phone under the desk. No new notifications. The last thing in the thread was a picture from two nights ago: a raccoon standing in a tipped trash can behind some beat-up building, eyes glowing in the flash.
JJ had slapped a caption under it: “me clockin in at Mal’s”
He stared until the screen dimmed. The raccoon kept looking back at him like it was in on the joke. If that was the last thing from JJ, it sucked.
“He’ll show,” he said to the notebook.
By third, JJ’s chair was still empty.
_______When Luke gets out of county, JJ comes back bloodied, raw, and halfway into the next bad idea.
John B knows enough to worry, not enough to fix it, and keeps trying to tell himself this is normal JJ bullshit and not something worse.
It is something worse.Series
- Part 15 of Half-Truths
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"I'm scared."
"I know. I'm coming."
Kie gripped the toilet seat and cried into the bowl. "You hate me."
The line went quiet. Downstairs, music punched through the floor. In the hall, someone laughed too loud.
"Kie," he said. "Stay on the phone."
"You hate me."
"No."
A laugh broke out of her, wet and awful. "You kicked me out."
"Yeah, well." His breath hit the phone. "You were being a Kook."
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When Kie picked the Kooks months ago, JJ made damn sure she knew there was no coming back from that.
Then it's 1:45 a.m. and her name's on his phone. And she can't feel her legs.
Series
- Part 16 of Half-Truths
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Summary
"What?"
“Hang. With us.” One hand flopped vaguely toward the windows, the houses, all of Figure Eight sliding by in big lit-up chunks. “Could be out on boats with those assholes. Eat fish eggs ‘n shit. Wear stupid white shorts. Act like… Pogues smell weird.”Kie looked at him. He smelled like blood and Jack Daniel’s and beach smoke. There were cuts on his face and he was using her shoulder as structural support.
“I’m in a truck with you bleeding on me,” she said. “I think I got over that.”
***
Truth is in the wine.
Or in JJ’s case, the whiskey.And if the whiskey had anything to say about it, the beach fight was fine. Kissing Lana Turner was fine. Bleeding on Kie was fine-adjacent. Holding her hand in Boone’s truck was probably something they could all be normal about.
Going home was the part that might be a problem.
Series
- Part 17 of Half-Truths
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One-shots, cut scenes, Tumblr prompts, and other sruff that doesn't belong anywhere else.JJ Maybank-centric, with Pogue friendship, some Jiara, and, unfortunately for everyone involved, Luke Maybank.
Ch. 1: 6:09 – Kie is home. Safe. Good. Now JJ has to face the music.
Ch. 2: Sheriff – JJ loved that rooster. So why the hell is he plucking him? Kie is not having it
Ch. 3: Scary "Scariest thing you ever saw" isn't bloody guts or ghosts for John B at 12. It's a lot closer to home.
Ch. 4: The Starter Truck’s dead and Dad went quiet about it. Eighty bucks for a starter, or free if you know which fence panel’s loose.Series
- Part 18 of Half-Truths