zia
"Wise men say... only fools rush in." I sing quietly as Kie strums the chords on her ukulele.
I'm sharing a hammock with JJ, whose arms I'm wrapped in. I felt warm, and calm, and relaxed while I was up against his warm skin. He's playing with my long brown hair while I rest my head on his chest. His heartbeats in my ear, which sends a calming sensation throughout my body.
"But I can't help falling in love with you."
"Shall I stay?"
"Would it be a sin if I can't help falling in love with you?"
I finish the first verse, and Kie takes over.
"Like a river flows"
"Surely to the sea"
"Darling, so it goes"
"Some things are meant to be."
She finishes, and I go on with the song.
"Take my hand"
"Take my whole life too"
"For I can't help falling in love with you"
I glance up, only to see Pope staring at Kiara with warm eyes. Too bad she cant see it, since she's so occupied with her ukulele. I smile, and lightly tap JJ on the shoulder. All while Kie strums a few chords.
JJ turns his head down and looks at me, and I quickly point to Pope.
He looks over to him, then back at Kie, and smiles. JJ brings his head down to mine, and whispers in my ear.
"They're totally gonna get married." He whispers quiet enough for only me to hear. I let out a soft chuckle and rest my head back down, allowing JJ to rest his hand on my back.
"Like a river flows"
"Surely to the sea"
"Darling so it goes"
"Some things are meant to be"
Kie and I join in together, but when it comes to the final verse, she leaves it to me.
"Take my hand"
"Take my whole life too"
"For I can't help falling in love with you"
"For I can't help falling in love with you."
I finish the song, and John B claps obnoxiously while Pope whoops and JJ yells.
"Amazing!" John B yells.
"Encore!" JJ shouts.
"Perfecto! Muah, muah!" Pope yells in some accent.
I let out a laugh and Kie smiles as she sets down her ukulele.
The boys finally settle down, and the world falls silent. All that can be heard is the waves crashing on the shore and the seagulls caw.
I begin to doze off onto JJs chest, only for Pope to interrupt.
"You guys really think it's out there? Like no bullshit?" Pope asks the group.
"My father thought it was." John B replies.
"But do you?" Pope further questions.
"After hearing his voice on that tape, I think I do." John B reveals.
"Only one way to find out." Pope says.
"Look, we're gonna find it. Even JJ believes." John B smiles.
"Oh my God, JJ. Do you really believe?" Pope asks in a shocked tone, causing me to laugh.
"Totally. Wait. Are we talking about 4 mil?" JJ beams.
"400 mil." I correct him, speaking into his shirt.
"I'm gonna dream about shipwrecks." JJ says as he lightly turns over, being careful not to move me to much.
"Good night Bird!" JJ calls out to John B.
"Good night Bird Shit!" Pope adds.
We all share a soft laugh, and eventually fall asleep.
•••
*Dream*
I walk to my front yard, only to see a big blue and white SUV. I ignore the strange thing and walk inside anyways.
"Hey, Jasper!" I kneel down and scratch the beagle behind his ears.
"Macy, I'm home!" I shout as I toss my keys onto the counter and my backpack onto the couch.
"In here, Zia!" I hear her yell from the kitchen.
"Are you cooking? Thank God! I'm starving! I didn't get a chance to stop by Heywards and pick something up. What are we hav-" I stop mid—sentence as I walk into the kitchen door way, taken aback by the two cops sitting at my dining room table. They're accompanied by a lady dressed in a fancy black suit, and Macy holding a napkin to her nose.
My heart immediately stops.
"Macy? Who's this?" I refuse to step any further into the room.
"Zia- Zia, this is, um- this is officer Williams and officer Cheepker. And- and this is Ms Layla. She works for DCS." Macy says with a shaky voice and tears streaming down her face.
I almost can't form a word, much less a sentence.
"Why are they here?" I ask with an attitude, keeping my eyes locked with officer Cheepker.
"You're not from around here, are you?" Officer Williams questions me.
"Why does that matter?" I say flatly.
"Just that you're a long way from home, it's all." He shrugs.
"I'm gonna ask one more time, why the fuck are you here?" My voice began getting shaky.
"We're here to take you back to South Carolina. Back to your family." Ms Layla chimes in with a kind voice.
I sharply inhale at the mention of that place. My heart begins beating fast, and my palms start to sweat. I slowly begin to shake my head, and step backwards out the door.
"No. No. No." I whisper shakily as I step out, the people at the table begin to stand up, all attempting to follow me.
"Now, Ataraxia. Just calm down." Officer Williams says as he steps closer to me.
"No. No!" I begin running out of the house, leaving everything behind.
"Zia!" I hear Macy shout from the kitchen. I then hear everyone's feet hitting the ground, chasing me out the door.
I practically break the front door when I slam it back. I run down the porch steps and don't stop. I can't think of anything other than hiding. I need to hide.
I need my vape.
I need a vice.
I need to calm down.
JJ.
I begin bolting down a long dirt road, and eventually meet JJs house.
I knock on the door aggressively, but no answer.
I knock again. No answer.
But I don't give up. I run to the side window, or JJs bedroom window, and knock with much power.
JJ sits up from his bed, and opens the window.
I climb in quickly and slam it shut.
"What are you doing?" JJ asks, looking me up and down.
I ignore his question and pull him in for a hug, knowing that I'll calm at his very touch.
"Woah, hey." He hugs me back, resting his head on mine.
My heartbeats fast as I clench into his shirt, making sure he'll never leave.
I practically melt into his arms, and relax. My breathing settles and my eyes close.
"You okay?" He asks, but I can't find the words to speak.
He gives up with the questions, and just hugs me.
Our calming moment is soon interrupted by a loud knock at the door.
"Kildare County Sheriffs! Open up!" My eyes shoot open and I step away from JJ.
"Shit." I mutter.
"Z, what'd you do?" He questions putting his hands on my shoulders to keep me from flipping out.
"I- I-"
"Open up!" The sheriff yells one last time, before a loud bang is heard from the inside.
"Z?" JJ asks loudly.
"I'm not Z!" I yell as the familiar Officer Cheepker kicks down JJs door, pointing a gun right at me.
•••
I jolt up from my sleep, breathing heavily.
I'm panting, and looking around John Bs front yard, making sure there's no one around but the Pogues. It's completely dark out, unlike earlier when the sun was almost set, and stars covered the sky.
What the actual fuck.
Why the fuck was JJ in my dream?
Better yet, why the fuck did I dream about DCS?
Thanks a lot John B for getting those fuckers into my self conscious.
JJs still laying next to me, but my jolt seems to wake him. He sits up and rubs my back.
His touch causes me to jump, still not fully recovered from his appearance in my dream.
"Hey, hey, hey." He whispers, pulling me in. I still breath heavily.
"It's okay, it was just a nightmare." He whispers in my ear.
His whispers calm me, and I don't breath as heavy.
"Okay?" He lightly kisses my cheek.
"Yeah, yeah. Okay." I say breathlessly.
I rest my body into his, his arms wrapped around me.
"Want to talk about it?" He whispers.
"No." I shake my head slowly.
"Alright." JJ says quietly.
I look back at him. Even in the moonlight, his eyes still glisten.
Oh my God, I'm getting so cheesy.
He's looking at me with tired, yet pitiful eyes.
"Come on, lay back down." He smiles, laying back onto the hammock.
I do the same, but he stops me mid-way.
"Wait." He harshly whispers.
"What?" I question, stopping immediately.
He leans back up, and cups my cheek in his hand, pulling me in for a kiss. Our lips lock, and my heart skips a beat. It's like every time I kiss him, it feels like the first time. It still sends shocks down my spine, and butterflies to my stomach. But it's a feeling I love. A feeling I get a high from. I'd much rather get high off of JJs kiss or touch then weed.
Our kiss goes on for a moment or two, but it wasn't long enough. He tried to pull away slowly, but I lightly grab the back of his neck, and pull him closer, locking our lips once again.
He smiles into our kiss, and his hand begins to slide down my neck, only stopping once his hand is around my throat. I can feel his cold rings around my neck, and goosebumps arise on my arms.
My head starts to clear, and instead of thinking about that stupid nightmare, I'm thinking of JJ. I'm thinking of us. If there ever will be an us.
Interrupting my thoughts, Pope lightly snores, causing JJ and I to jump apart.
Once we realize that Pope is in fact asleep, we let out a quiet laugh. I look down at his hands, noticing all of his rings.
"We should probably get to sleep." I say, still admiring all of his rings.
"Yeah." JJ lays back down, and pats a spot on his upper chest, signifying I lay my head on it. I smile and lay back down.
I begin to drift off listening to the calming noise of his heartbeat.
"Night, Z." He whispers.
"Night, J."
•••
"All right, JJ. Pin it here." John B demands.
"Roger that!" The blond yells from inside the captains room.
"X marks the spot." I say.
"All right ladies and gentlemen, to going full Kook." John B says as he lowers the drone into the ocean water.
We wait a little while for the boat to wade around and wait until our boat is right over where The Merchant should supposedly be. While we were waiting, I decided to go hang out with JJ in the captains room.
"All right JJ, we're right over it! Ten seconds northwest!" John B yells.
"Got it! Ten seconds northwest." JJ quietly repeats.
"One hundred feet!" Kie yells, marking on the side of the boat with a piece of chalk.
Is it really there? Isn't this wreck like a million years old? Some super old explorer guy probably found it already. I get John B wants to find it for his dad, but what if it's not there? What if John B never finds it and this was just a waste of time?
"Do you really think it's there?" I ask JJ, pushing myself off of the bench and walking over to him.
"Realistically?" He asks.
I nod.
"No."
I let out a breath.
"Me neither." I shake my head, looking out at the ocean.
"Really?" He asks, shocked at my reply.
"Yeah. What are the odds it's out there after all these years?" I ask, trying to make a point.
"I know, I know. I just, expected you out of all people to believe it." He shrugs.
"I get it. But I try to stay optimistic about the possible things, not the impossible. There's no point in that." I tell him, Kie calling out the four hundred mark in the back.
"Don't get all poetic on me there, Z." He says with a smile. I scoff and walk over to Kie.
John B calls out to JJ, giving him more and more directions of how to position the boat.
"JJ, keep going!" John B yells.
"Okay, 700 feet!" Kie grunts as she tries to keep the tether in place. I quickly run over to help, gripping into the bright yellow tether.
"JJ, hold it steady!" John B demands.
"Okay, 900!" I shout to John B, watching as the little red line goes down the tether and into the water.
"JJ, we'll turtle in this storm!" John B yells, getting my attention. I remove my attention from the tether, and look up to see a huge black thunder cloud coming right towards us.
"Shit." I mutter.
"920!" Kie yells, reverting my attention back to the tether.
"Pope, how are we doing?!" John B shouts.
"Almost there!" Pope replies.
"There too much current, we're gonna lose it!" I yell, struggling to keep the tether in its specific area.
The next two minutes are filled with John B shouting countless directions, and Kie yelling out higher and higher numbers. But all of it ends when beeping is heard on Popes nerd machine.
We all run over to Pope, and begin to look at the screen, probing him to see if he sees anything.
"It's the Royal Merchant." Pope says breathlessly as the large boat wreck appears on the screen.
My heart plunges to my stomach, and I'm in shock. I really didn't think it was there.
Everyone stays silent, waiting for Pope to move the drone to the other side of the boat before celebrating.
Pope slowly moves the drone around, revealing the inside of a hollow, gold-less, thousand year old boat.
Kie and Pope let out a loud sigh, and I walk back to the captains room to tell JJ the news.
"Well, we found the Merchant." I say happily.
"Really?!" He gets excited, and turns his hat around.
"But we didn't find the gold." I say with a disappointing tone.
"You could've led with that." JJ sighs and turns back around, continuing to steer the boat.
"We can.. we can go back down!" Kie yells optimistically.
"We've down it three times, there's nothing there!" JJ yells, his mind cleared of all possibilities of the gold being there.
"The gold could be buried, we don't know!" Kie yells back.
"If it was there, it would've been found on the metal detector, okay?! Someone beat us to it." John B shuts down the argument and sighs, plopping down in the seat. I watch as hope fades from John Bs eyes, and he looks out at the ocean. It really breaks my heart.
"Or it was never there." JJ mumbles, aggressively yanking the wheel.
"Do you always have to have the last word?" I ask, sitting down on the bench.
"'Do you always have to have the last word?' Yes, yes I do." JJ mocks me, keeping his eyes on the water ahead of him.
The boat ride back was quiet, other than the quiet sounds of thunder erupting from the cloud not far ahead of us.
•••
"I'm so glad they're still doing this. Keep calm, carry on. Back to the OBX life, you know? Aren't you guys glad I made you come?" Kie asks happily as we walk to a spot on the grass and set down our chairs.
"Ecstatic." Pope says flatly.
"My couch was pretty comfy, I'll be honest." JJ says.
"I was perfectly happy laying in bed listening to music." I shrug as I sit down on the blanket Kie lied out.
I began taking out the snacks and candy out of my tote bag, setting the gummy bears in one pile and the peach rings in another. I rip open a bag of peach rings and bite into one as I hear JJ and Pope whispering about something.
"Want a soda, Zia?" Kie asks.
"Yes, please." I reply, watching her walk away to the drink stand.
"We're in the middle of Kooklandia. This is the last place I wanted to be." Pope harshly whispers as he sits down in the chair.
"Shut up, Pope." JJ demands.
"What are you two whispering about?" I whisper, throwing the rest of the peach ring in my mouth.
"They know! Rafe and Topper- they know I sunk the boat." Pope answers aggressively.
"What- how do they know?" I ask.
Pope shrugs his shoulders with wide eyes.
"We'll be fine, you need to chill, man." JJ tells him.
"Okay, okay. Shut up, Kies coming." I whisper harshly as I see Kie walking towards the blanket with three Pepsi's.
"Just saw Rafe.." She says, causing my eyes to widen in shock, same with Pope and JJ.
"And he said, and I quote, 'tell your boy we know what he did.' What is that?" Kie asks angrily.
Just fucking great.
I shoot JJ a quick glance, only to see him scratching the back of his neck with a flustered face, searching for an answer.
"Where is he?" I chime.
Kie points to the bathrooms, and our head whip around. Rafe, Topper, and Kelce were blocking the bathrooms.
Smart.
"Great, the whole death squad." Pope says right before JJ hits him in the back of the head and tells him not to stare.
"Just warning you guys, if they corner me.. I'm coming out swinging. Slicing and dicing, I'm on edge right now." JJ says with confidence. I snort at his statement.
"Something funny, Z?" He asks.
"Yeah, just that you think you can take them all at once. Very cocky, there JJ." I say, popping a peach ring into my mouth.
"Yeah well, if my fists don't work, I got this right here." JJ lifts up his backpack.
He. Did. Not. Bring. The. Fucking. Gun.
While I'm internally flipping out about the gun, Pope is rambling on about fish and school.
"I'm sorry, JJ. Please tell me that you did not bring a gun here." Kie says seriously.
"JJ, there are kids!" I say loudly.
"Guys, I didn't bring the gun. Everything's fine, okay?" He says, attempting to calm us. There's something I know that JJ doesn't, I can tell when he lies. He looks away a few times, and his nostrils flair.
And during him saying that sentence, he glanced at the soda stand twice, and his nostrils were flared.
And although JJ almost always calms me, this time it was not working.
"That's really convincing, I love that, JJ." Kie deadpans.
"Founding principle guys, no secrets amongst Pogues-" Kie says.
Well, when I do tell them about South Carolina, I know Kie will be pissed.
Let me rephrase: IF I do tell them about South Carolina.
"What is Rafe talking about?" She finishes.
"Kie, it might go down tonight." He says, leaning across me and putting his hand on her shoulder.
"What does that mean? 'Might go down tonight', what did y'all do?" She begins to get loud.
"Kie, it's nothing. Let's just watch the movie." I try to diffuse the situation as Pope leans back in his chair
I go back to my peach rings, praying to fucking Ariana Grande that the gun will not be used tonight.
•••
THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH FOR 1K READS IM SO HAPPY THANKYOU
Yes yes ik I'm sorry for stopping in the middle of the movie scene but this chapter was getting kind of long and I haven't updated in a little while so just enjoy this and I'll try to get the next chapter up soon