PARADISE | JOHN B ROUTLEDGE |

12 i hope she's deaf

"What the hell?" Kiara asked, yelling to the boys, who were watching them and laughing.

"Guys, are you serious?"

"Are you joking?"

"I'm going to kill all of you!" The girls shouted as the boys began to drive away.

"Get your asses back here!" Kiara yelled to them.

"We can't, not until y'all figure it out!" John B shouted, and Talia shook her head at him. The nerve he had, sticking her on a boat with two mortal enemies that were both currently mad at her.

"John Booker, if you don't get you ass back here right now-" Talia was about to tell him off when Sarah cut her off.

"You can't just leave!"

"There's food in the cabin, and JJ rolled a blunt!" Pope told the girls, as if that would make their situation any better.

"Hydroponic!" JJ added, and Sarah pulled off her skirt, revealing her multicolored bikini.

"This is ridiculous!"

"Well, I'd rather drown than stay here with both of you, so.." Kiara said, pulling off her shirt, and shorts. Talia just shook her head at the two girls.

"You guys are so dramatic it physically pains me." Talia muttered, watching them bicker as Sarah dived into the water, trying to swim after the boat, yelling at them to slow down.

"They're not coming back for you!" Kiara screamed at her, until she let out a yelp of pain. She began to swim back to the boat and climb up the ladder, revealing a giant sting on her torso.

"I got stung by a jellyfish, shit!" Sarah breathed heavily as she got back onto the boat. Talia stood with her arms crossed as she watched the two girls bicker once again, and she tried to figure out why she was here. The only issue she had was with Kiara, there was no reason for her to be stranded on this boat with the two of them. Sarah left to find a first aid kit, leaving Talia and Kiara alone, standing and looking at each other awkwardly.

"She swam into a manowar, I don't know what she expected." Kiara muttered, adjusting her dark red bikini top. The two stood in silence for a few moments more before Talia spoke up, unable to keep her thoughts in any longer.

"Look, Kie, I hate being like this and fighting with you." She told her, gesturing at their awkward nature that they never usually had.

"Then why did you bring her into this after I specifically told you not to?"

"Because Sarah is my friend too and she helped us out!" Talia yelled, causing Kiara to scoff. "And I don't know what happened between you two, since neither of you feel the need to keep me in the loop-"

"Tal-"

"I've had to speculate about what happened between you too, and honestly, I've come up with some pretty wild theories like-"

"I'm mad because I don't want you to leave me like she did!" Kiara screamed over her friend. Talia stopped and let her anger subside, looking at her friend with a confused expression. "What?" Kiara sighed, crossing her arms and turning away from the girl to look at the horizon.

"One day, right before freshman year, she ghosted me, for no reason. And since you two were a lot closer than you and I were, I assumed you would side with her, but you didn't. You kept being friends with me even though it cost you your reputation." Kiara said, not being able to look Talia in the eye.

"And seeing you two together today, and hearing you defend her, it brought me back to middle school. You and I have come so far, Tal, and I don't want you to be manipulated by her again." She continued, her eyes tearing up slightly. Talia sighed, running a hand through her hair. Even though she didn't know what exactly happened between Kiara and Sarah, she knew it hurt Kiara badly and that should have been enough to make her pause and think before just bringing Sarah into the group.