stevie | outer banks | JJxOC

35- the Twinkie is a rust bucket

"Are you sure he got everything?" Kie asked after John B solemnly explained that Ward knew and the gold was gone. After exploring the Crain house John B and Stevie stumbled home with their defeat hanging over them to find JJ and Kie waiting on the jetty. Stevie caught JJ's eyes and her heart skipped a beat. She was happy to see them but she knew JJ would feel defeated too about losing the gold.

"Every bar." Stevie sighed as she remembered the empty well.

"The whole enchilada," John B started to yank his cast off his hand, "It's not like I expected some happy ending or some shit," He was so frustrated he threw his cast across the jetty towards Kie.

"John B," Kie was concerned about his arm.

"What kie?" John B was so exasperated he couldn't be bothered to argue. The loss made them all feel groggy and tired, "it's a hairline fracture, Stevie had worse injuries than me."

"Yeah but I'm still limping bro," She pointed at her leg which was still wrapped up in a bandage. JJ turned to look at her. She felt terrible because her brother was right next to her but JJ made her so excited her stomach did flips.

"You're such an idiot," JJ said, referring to the damage on her leg.

"I'm not dead yet," She smiled back optimistically. Then Kie saw it again. There was something. The same little something that bugged John B when they were young, Kie saw the extra level above their friendship.

"Ok, no, seriously," Kie wanted to get to the bottom of it and see whether her and Sarah's theory was accurate. "What is going on between y-"

"Guys," Kie was cut off by the sound of Pope's voice in the distance, "Oh, god. I ran all the way here." Pope panted, his hands on his knees as he crouched over for breath. Glistens of sweat sat on his forehead and there was a wet line down his back from the excessive running.

"How was the interview?" Stevie smiled at the boy hoping it went well for him.

"Don't ask." Pope was still panting.

"You did do the interview right?" Stevie asked, getting increasingly concerned. When Pope looked up with a guilty and awkward smile Stevie scoffed. "Pope you did not run out of your interview."

"I had to be here," Pope defended himself. "It's for John B. And you."

"I don't care!" Stevie raised her voice, "This is for you, just be selfish for once. Go back. Finish the interview. Please."

"It's done," Pope shook his head. "I'll have other chances like you said."

"You don't get chances by throwing the good ones away." Stevie sighed.

"Look this is about the gold," Pope concluded and John B's ears perked up. "Before my interview, my dad said he was going down to the private airstrip to cut palms for Cameron's big plane. Because it was too heavy and needed a longer landing strip to take off. So, I'm there sitting in my interview thinking to myself, "Hm. Why would Cameron need a longer airstrip to take off? What could be so heavy to weigh it down?"

As Pope explained, Stevie could so the gears turning in everyone's heads. The thought process. The thinking. The conclusion. It was too heavy and that could only mean one thing. "Gold." JJ summarised for the group, and by Pope's silly but excited reaction, he was right.

"Guys this is our chance, but it leaves tonight, and we have to go now"

...

"Ok, so what actually is the plan?" Stevie asked once the teens got to the fence of the airstrip. JJ had ranted about making Ward beg for mercy then leaving to the Yucatan but standing on the other side of the chain link fence made all that seem very difficult to pull off.