salt water | outer banks

1| pogue has some timing

RAFE CAMERON'S HANDS GRIPPED her waist firmly as his fingers kneaded the skin beneath. Venus Beck's hands tangled in his gelled hair, disheveling it in a way that she believed suited him much more than his previous look. The boy pressed his lips firmly to hers again and gently pulled on her bottom lip with his teeth, earning a small laugh from the girl. He grinned as he began trailing kisses from her mouth, down her cheek, and then onto her collarbone. She could feel his thumb drawing circles on her hipbone, making a light shiver run through the Beck girl. She guided his face back to her own and pushed her mouth to his, letting her tongue run across his lip.

A sudden noise of footsteps caused the two to freeze and look up. Rafe balanced himself above her carefully as they gazed out the window of the boat, looking to see if they'd just imagined the noise. A moment later, a familiar mop of brown hair walked by it. "Shit," Venus said, "it's John B."

"Damn Pogue has some timing," Rafe commented roughly, aggravation clear in his tone. He stood and smoothed out his hair quickly as he tossed Venus her shirt and put on his shoes. "Uh," he hesitated, glancing around the cabin of the boat. "Here. Go in the supply closet." He opened the door and ushered her inside. Before closing the door, the boy shot her a smile and pressed a soft kiss to her cheek. She hid quietly as she slipped the shirt back on over her bikini top, hoping that Rafe would get John to leave soon so she could get out of here without being seen by the Pogue.

"What're you doing here?" Rafe asked.

"Uh, your dad just wanted me to grab some rope. He said it was the blue one, the thousand pound limit?" Venus gulped at the description and glanced to her feet. Sure enough, the rope sat in the corner of the floor. "It's just in the supply closet. I'll—I'll grab it and go."

"No!" Rafe said loudly. "Uh, I mean—I'll get it for you. It's not organized so you might not see it," he excused, making Beck let out a quiet sigh. She could tell John B was more than confused at the Kook's behavior, but he didn't protest against it.

As she heard his footsteps approaching, she pressed her body further against the wall in the corner and made herself as small as possible. The boy creaked the door open and made eye contact with her, giving a subtle nod that made a feeling of assurance flutter in her chest. He bent down and grabbed the rope off the floor before quickly turning and closing the door behind him.

"Here," he said, presumably tossing the object at John. "Now get out." John B let out a subtle scoff. Venus waited until his footsteps tapered off to the point where she couldn't hear them anymore to peek out of the supply closet.

"He's gone," Rafe assured, running a hand through his hair before pulling the door open completely and letting her step out. She smoothed out her clothes and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "I guess this means you're gonna leave now?" He looked to the girl. Shrugging softly, she gave the boy a small smile. He grabbed her phone from a small drawer he must've hidden it in before John walked in. Rafe handed it to her, but snatched it back as soon as she made a move to take it. Venus raised an eyebrow at him as she went grab it, but he didn't let go.

"Rafe," she said in a somewhat serious tone. "I have to go sometime...I'll be back." Beck stood on her tiptoes and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek before going to walk away.

The boy took this as an opportunity to grab her wrist and tug her body back into his. During the swift movement, he cupped Venus' cheek with his other hand and pulled her in for a sweet, deep kiss. "See you later," he said once they'd pulled away.