PRINCESS [Sarah Cameron] ON HOLD

Five

Wheezie shakes her head before putting on a falsetto voice. "Nope. She was all, 'Parker, what are you doing here?'" Sarah then jogs over to join her boyfriend and sister, clueless to the conversation they were holding before.

Topper glares over at the blonde Maybank girl, realizing that he might have some competition for the heart of the Kook Princess.

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"I mean, it's obvious, right?" The group looks over at John B, who is pacing on the porch of the Château. "A family heirloom. What better place to hide a message? He had to know it was gonna get back to me, right?"

Parker shrugs, a joint hanging off of her lips. "I guess, Johnny. Who knows." Pope looks over at the girl, seemingly frustrated at her for encouraging his insanity. "It could also be possible that you're concocting wild theories to help, you know, deal with your sad feelings."

JJ then sits up from where he is sitting and snatches the blunt from his sister's mouth. "Bro, you know how I process my sad feels. Dank nugs and the stickiest of ickies, that's how I do it." He gestures with the joint right before Parker snatches it right back from out of his hands.

John B shakes his head insistently, which makes Parker drop her head back against the porch couch. "I'm not concocting, okay? My dad's trying to give me a message." Kiara nods, clearly unbelieving but still trying to support the brunette boy. "If it helps you believe, John B."

John B starts to get frustrated with his friends not believing him. "Look, I-I Don't need a therapy session, okay? Look, I'm not trippin' out." Parker and JJ look at each other, worried about the state of their best friend. "It's okay to trip, bro, but--"

John B slams his hand into the frame of the porch. "Look, my-- my dad is missing, okay? Missing. You don't know what it's like to have the person closest to you vanish and then have no idea what happened. Just wake up every morning wondering." 

Pope exasperatedly states, "It's been almost a year." Kiara looks over at Pope with a pointed look before saying, "Hey, he could have been kidnapped. That's definitely a possibility." JJ nods adding, "Yeah, could be in a Soviet sub getting interrogated by the KGB somewhere." 

Parker nods enthusiastically. "Ooo, like Stranger Things! Minus the sub, I guess." The all look over at Pope, waiting for him to continue it. He rolls his eyes before saying, "Absolutely. Uh... or Atlantis."

John B smiles slightly, feeling a little more supported by his friends. "JJ. Look, what do you think the message is? Redfield." He thinks for a second before snapping his fingers. "Redfield Lighthouse. That's my dad's favorite place." John B looks over at JJ and points at him. "Right. You're gonna post up and look out for bogeys, okay?" 

JJ looks at him confused. "Wait... why me?" Parker pats her brother on the back, about to break the news to him. "Cause you're not coming, Jayje." He looks at her, offended. "Okay, hey. How do you know his plan? And also, why not?" John B puts both of his hands out, lifting one into the air, and then switching like a scale.

"There are independent and dependent variables. You're independent. We don't know what you'll do." Clearly annoyed, JJ pushes his best friend away. "Shut up!" John B rolls his eyes and tries to get everyone to listen to him. "Listen to me for a second. Pope, Parker, you stand look out with JJ. Okay? If we get split up we meet back at JJ's house."

Pope nods in agreement, saying, "Great. I'm gonna work on my merit scholarship essay, and I'm trying to keep felonies to a minimum." At the same time, the twins whip around and snap, "All right, would you just shut up already?"

John B shakes his head exasperatedly and confers with Kiara about what they are looking for.

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