You lose count after your fourth rock.

It skips once, twice then sinks with a soft plunk into the sound. You sigh, brush your hands off on your jeans, and glance over at JJ.

He’s standing just close enough to hear you breathe, spinning a smooth stone between his fingers like he’s trying to distract himself from something heavier.

“You suck at this” he says, grinning without looking at you.

You bump your shoulder into his. “Shut up.”

He finally throws his rock, and it skips clean five, maybe six times before it sinks. Show-off.

“That’s what I thought” he says, all smug confidence.

But there’s something quieter behind his eyes. You can feel it, even if he won’t say it out loud. You both go quiet for a second. It’s not uncomfortable. It never is with JJ. But there’s a weight to the stillness now. A tension that’s not quite sharp, but definitely there.

You glance at him. He’s chewing on the inside of his cheek, eyes fixed on the horizon like it’s safer than looking at you.

“You good?” you ask softly.

JJ shrugs, but his shoulders are too tight. “Yeah. Just… thinkin’.”

“Dangerous.”

That gets a laugh out of him quick, real. “Shut up.”

But he still won’t look at you.

So you push, gently. “About what?”

His jaw ticks, and he finally flicks a glance your way. “I don’t know. Stuff. You. Us.”

“Us?”

He gestures vaguely between you. “Yeah like.. Never mind, forget it.” And just like that he throws another rock acting like it’s nothing.