Heavy • Outer Banks

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"I've been waiting for you," I say in the moment Tom opens the door. He looks at me and remembers the talk we are supposed to have

"Uh... I think we have to leave it for another day." I look at him pissed. "Sorry, Char, but I'm going out in a little while."

"I don't care." he looks at me, confused. "I'm done with this. I don't care if you have other things to do. I don't recognize you anymore, Tom."

"That's not my problem, Char. It's who I am now."

"And I don't have anything to do with that, that's right. But I need to know what you're doing with your life! JJ carrying a gun, you needing to be incognito, why!?" At this moment, I sit down on the sofa, trying to avoid some tears to stream down my face. I'm just tired of growing apart from him.

"Hey, look at me." He grabs my face gently. "I've never seen you like this since what happened back in California." He wipes away my tears.

"My life is nothing without you!" I say sobbing. "I can have the best of friends, an amazing boyfriend, but it is nothing without you, Tom. You're my family. I can't loose you too."

He doesn't have to say anything else, he just hugs me, and we stay like this for a while. When he let go of me, I notice he's also trying no to cry.

"I'll try to explain most of it, but I don't have much time." I guess I'll finally know the truth. "Remember that I told you, John B's father had gone missing?"

"Yes, it was shortly before we arrived here."

"The day after Agatha, we went fishing and found a boat wrecked, Scooter's boat. At that moment, we had no idea he was dead. There, we found a key to a motel room, from where JJ took the gun."

"And you didn't you stop him from doing it? He almost killed Topper with that gun."

"We tried, Char, but he's strong-minded. And don't ever think he would do anything to Topper. But moving on, we went back to the marsh and found a compass that belonged to JB's father. It led us to Redfield lighthouse, but JB understood now that Redfield is also the maiden name of his great-great-grandmother."

I was trying to process all of that. It was not as simple as I was expecting it to be. "Wait, but are you looking for something in specific?" I decide to ask.

"JB's father disappeared looking for The Royal Merchant, a shipwreck with 400 million dollars worth of gold on board."

"You're going on a treasure hunt?" I question, and he nods. "That's... sick!"

"If it sounds like too much money for us, for them it means the world," Tom explains and makes a brief pause. "And I guess that's it!"

Yet, I feel like that's the short story. "You're my twin, Tom, I know when you're hiding something," I tell him. "There's more than that to the story."

"I'm not sure I'm comfortable telling you." I frown. "You will kill me... but whatever. So, we aren't the only ones looking for the Royal Merchant. Two guys followed us trough the marsh the second time and shot at us. Those same men invaded John B's house and almost got us."

"I knew it was dangerous, Tom!" I'm apprehensive. "You can't hang out with them, you'll end up dead."

"Now you're just overreacting. It was not that bad, and it wasn't none of them's fault, and you know it."

"What else happened? I'm pretty sure it wasn't just that."

"John B got arrested, and then he was chased by the two men again and got electrocuted. He survived thanks to the compass. He also got fired by Ward Cameron" He's telling me this, and someone knocks on the door. "It must be them; I'll have to go."