Heavenly ✶ JJ Maybank

EPILOGUE

It turned out meeting the Pogues was the greatest thing to ever happen to Nova Van Kirk. Now if you went back in time and told that to the naive girl who's only goal was to please her parents, then she would've simply laughed in your face. She never thought a group of kids from the wrong side of the tracks could bring her so much joy and comfort. She didn't even think it was remotely possible for some strangers to give her everything she needed. As a girl who had everything at her own decree, from diamonds to designer clothes, and a secure future set in stone because of her family name, she didn't think she needed anything else. But it turned out, that void Nova felt in her chest from the moment she lost her brother was easily filled in by the Pogues, each of them bringing their own sprinkle of magic into Nova's incredibly dull life.

     John B dragged Nova into the kind of adventure that every kid dreams of at least once in their life. Finding the Royal Merchant and it's treasure was a pipe dream, but one Nova gladly followed. He gave her the excitement that brought colour into her black and white days. Kiara showed her that although being a Kook and befriending a group of Pogues gave you a bad reputation, it also allowed you to be free from the shackles of perfection that were placed on many Kooks from the moment they took their very first breath. Pope made Nova laugh the most. She enjoyed his company and she admired his aspirations. She could listen to him talk for hours about things that would have never even crossed her mind.

Then there was him. JJ Maybank was different from all the others. There was always a spark in him that allured her in a way Nova couldn't explain at first. That very first night in the chateau — that moment when they first connected — was a night Nova would never forget. JJ made her feel alive again after what felt like forever trapped in her own cage of solitude. And when she broke his heart, shattering it into a million little pieces, she became suffocated in eternal desolation, and truth is, Nova felt as if she was never going to reach the surface again. That was until their paths crossed again, and this time, they never left each other again. Between the late night conversations underneath the stars and the longing stares whenever they found themselves in the same room with their friends, it was no surprise that they poured their hearts out to each other on that cold night filled with chaos, the fear of their friend possibly going to jail taking control of their emotions. Then they sealed the deal with a single kiss.

     But while the couple endured their highs, they were also forced to face their lows. Losing John B Routledge and Sarah Cameron in that storm was an unforeseen tragedy that caused a ripple effect in Nova's life and the lives of her friends. They were all pulled underneath the waves of grief and sorrow together, and with the eyes of their enemies on them at all times, the group had to stick together, now more than ever. And then the unthinkable happened — something that left Nova and her friends in a state of shock — each of them reeling from the next hurdle throwing into their chaotic lives.

Nova's brother, Riley Van Kirk, was alive. He never died that night. It turns out he was more connected to the mystery of the Royal Merchant than anyone ever anticipated. He witnessed the murder of John B's father, and when he tried to rescue the man, Ward Cameron threatened to kill him too. Riley spiralled into a dark abyss of depression and addiction. But the white powder could only suppress those dark thoughts for a short time before he drifted back to reality once again. There came a moment when he just wanted all those terrifying thoughts to stop, and so he tried to take his own life, but failed in his attempt. And when he woke up in that hospital bed with his mother and father begging and pleading to know why he would try and destroy himself this way, that was when Riley Van Kirk realised he couldn't conceal the truth anymore. Together, Ethan and Allison Van Kirk hatched a plan to protect their son. They would send him away to rehab on the mainland, they bribed the doctors and nurses that treated their son in the emergency room, and they would fake his death to make Ward Cameron believe the boy was dead and gone while they gathered the evidence to prove Ward was a murderer.