𝐅𝐨𝐨𝐥'𝐬 𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐝: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐧𝐮𝐬 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬

Intro

‧₊˚⋅📃✎ᝰ..𖥔 ݁

Josephine knew it annoyed them sometimes.

The constant click of the shutter. The way she was always framing moments, always capturing something—even when they weren't ready. She could tell by the way Kiara would groan and shove her hand in front of her face, or how Pope would roll his eyes and mutter, "Seriously?" under his breath.

She knew what they thought. That it was invasive. That not every second needed to be saved. That some moments—especially the stupid ones—were meant to fade.

Like that time John B tied his shirt around his waist, shoved balloons under it, and did a dramatic impersonation of their fifth hour teacher. It was funny in the moment. Hilarious, even. But he hadn't expected it to be immortalized—until the photo showed up weeks later on Josephine's bedroom wall. Right next to a photo of JJ drooling during movie night and a blurry snapshot of Kiara and Sarah singing into hairbrushes with dirt on their noses.

And sometimes it stung. Seeing yourself through someone else's lens. One wrong angle, one unguarded second, and suddenly everything you hated about yourself was staring back at you.

But Josephine didn't see it that way.

To her, every single memory—awkward or beautiful, painful or joyful—was worth keeping. They were pieces of a story. Their story. Unedited and real. A messy collage of all the little things that made them who they were.

She took photos because she was terrified of forgetting.

Because people leave. Because time moves on. Because one day, everything could change.

And when it did—when the house went quiet and the laughter turned into echoes—she wanted to have something left. Proof they existed. Proof they mattered. Proof they loved.

So yeah, maybe she was a little relentless with the camera.

But one day, when they were older, or apart, or gone—those photos would be everything.

And she knew, even if they didn't say it now... they'd be glad she kept them.

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Hi friends!

I can't believe the Fool's Gold Series is almost complete. Just one more season to go, and the story of Josephine and all of her Pogues will come to an end.

I'm beyond grateful for the love and support you've all shown me along the way. I'm so proud of this story and of how much I've grown as a writer. Knowing that you laughed, cried, yelled, and fell in love with Josephine, the Rhodes family, and this reimagined world I created from a show I obsessed over means more than I can say.

That being said... I'm a psycho that's written about this story more than you can even imagine.

Welcome to Fool's Gold: The Bonus Chapters—a standalone collection filled with extra scenes that didn't make the final cut, original first drafts where key moments played out differently, flashbacks and POVs you've seen before—because I think it'd be nice to have them all in one place—and new ones you haven't, and even glimpses into the future of what happens with Josephine & Co. after the treasure hunt (for my eyes only until the series ends).

I will be posting everything (sporadically) in chronological order, starting off with the night Chris and Elena met—because I love them.

You are totally not obligated to read each and every chapter—feel free to skip through if there are certain things you'd like to read! There is an index in the next part for that exact reason.

Again, thank you! And let me know if there's anything you'd like to read that's not found here!

♡ Ash

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Cover: by me
All gifs and graphics used in this series are made by me as well

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