"Friends for now"
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When the kook princesses were feeling down there were two things that always made them feel better: stealing beer from their parent's refrigerators and watching Gilmore Girls reruns on Netflix. And on this day both girls were in need of a pick me up.
Sarah was waiting for John B to make a decision if she could be involved in his treasure hunt. Of course she wanted John B to pick her, she was his girlfriend after all. But then there was Kiara, badmouthing her every chance she got. Sarah is a strong girl and she can deal with Kiara's constant need to shit talk her. The two of them were friends, now they're not. But Sarah wasn't prepared to let the girl get territorial over her boyfriend.
Then there was Emerson, who had been putting up a strong front since they left the chateau. But in her case she needed to figure out if she could trust JJ after finding out what he said about her. Part of her wished she could hate JJ for what he said but she couldn't. All she could do was think about him. But it wasn't allowed. If her mother found out she slept with a pogue she'd be sent off to boarding school until college then she'd marry Rafe, just like her mother planned. Then her night with JJ will only be a memory.
"Aw see, that's the kind of love I want," Emerson pointed out as they watched Jess give Rory an umbrella inside Luke's diner.
"We all need a Jess in our lives," Sarah commented as she took a sip from her beer bottle.
Emerson went to take another sip only to remember she had finished her beer a couple of minutes ago. "I'm out, do you need anything?" She asked as he picked up a couple of empty bowls that used to be filled with popcorn.
"Nope," Sarah replied, holding up her bottle which is still half full.
"Pause it before the theme song comes on," Emerson said, pointing a finger at Sarah before getting up and going to the kitchen.
She tossed her bottle into the recycling bin before walking over to the fridge. Just as she opened it a knock came from the window beside her. She turned and saw JJ and John B waving to get her attention from outside. Emerson groaned before walking to the door and opening it.
"What do you guys want?" She asked.
"We want to apologize," John B said, taking the lead. "Is Sarah here?"
"Living room," Emerson answered before John B snuck into the living room. Emerson looked at JJ realizing the two of them had been left alone.
"Listen Emerson," JJ began, "I'm sorry about what I said. They were just on my back about the whole thing and I panicked."
"I get it," Emerson told him, which made a confused expression appear on the boy's face. "If Scarlett or Topper had asked me what I was doing with you I probably would've reacted the same way," She continued. This was one of the few things Emerson had come to realize while she thought about her situation. "Yeah it hurt like hell to know you said that..."
"And I'd take it back if I could."
"...but I get it," She said and JJ let out a sigh of relief. Emerson let out her own sigh before continuing, "I am willing to forgive you, for saying you were just using me and everything. But I just can't... right now. Everything in my life is turning upside down and I really need for you to understand this and not be mad-"
"I'd never be mad at you," JJ told her, but Emerson scoffed knowing he had already been mad at her plenty of times already. "Well... I won't be mad at you for this."
Emerson nodded understandingly then held her hand out to JJ. "Friends?" she asked, even though it wasn't what she wanted. She wanted JJ, but she didn't just want to be another hook up to him, she wanted more than that. So until he's ready for more, she's going to find a way to be just friends.
"With benefits?" he replied, making Emerson laugh. God, he loved her laugh. He loved seeing her smile and he loved being the reason that she smiled.
"Friends for now," She said with a small smirk, implying that other things could happen. Emerson lowered her hand but before she could say anything else JJ pulled her into a hug.
The young kook didn't realize how much she missed being in JJ's arms until that hug. She didn't realize how safe she felt in his arms, and for a moment she didn't want him to pull away. In fact she didn't plan on pulling away until she heard clapping coming from the other side of the room.
She and JJ pulled away from each other then saw Sarah and John B standing at the entrance to the kitchen. Sarah lightly hit John B for ruining the moment, but it was too late.
"That was beautiful, truly," John B said, clapping his hands again. "But can we please go fishing?"
"Fishing?" Emerson asked as she glanced at the three other people in the room.
"Fishing," John B told her with a bright smile.
The four had taken Heyward's boat out onto the marsh for the afternoon. Pope claimed he joined them later but there had been no sighting of the boy since they left.
The kook princesses were happily doing whenever they spent a day on the water. They laid out on their towels soaking in the afternoon sun. The smell of crisp air and the saltwater brought them comfort as the boys splashed around in the water. Little did the kooks know that the boys' plan was going perfectly.
"Come in the water," they heard John B yell, causing them both to sit up.
They glanced at each other, having an entire conversation through only a few expressions. "Let's go," Emerson said as she stood up. She held her hand out to her best friend who happily took it.
"We have pogue boyfriends," Sarah whispered, just loud enough that neither of the boys could hear her.
"You have a pogue boyfriend," Emerson clarified, making Sarah roll her eyes. "I have... you?"
"You always have me," Sarah laughed.
"Hey!" John B yelled, catching their attention again. "You comin' in or what?"
The girls jumped into the water, splashing the boys in the process. Sarah immediately swam over to John B, holding onto him. Which of course left Emerson and JJ treading water on their own. They looked at each other, sharing an awkward smile.
Both of them knew how much they wanted to be in each other's arms, to feel each other's skin, but they couldn't. JJ wanted to respect Emerson's decision, no matter how much it angered him. What he didn't realize was that Emerson was simply trying to respect his boundaries, because she knew that if she pushed him he'd bail.
In order to try and get rid of the awkwardness Emerson lightly splashed JJ, with a smile on her face. He chuckled to himself then splashed her back. They continued until they were into a full blown splash fight. The sound of their laughter filled the air and suddenly they felt normal, the awkward tension disappearing as they laughed.
JJ swam towards the kook, he ducked under the water confusing her for a moment. She swam in a small circle, looking for the blonde pogue but didn't find him. Just before she could panic she felt JJ's hand on her waist and before she knew it she was flying through the air and landing a few feet away.
"You ass!" She yelled once she reemerged from the water. JJ just laughed and laughed. Emerson's annoyance even earned laughter from John B and Sarah.
"Oh I got you good," JJ sighed in content.
"You're so funny JJ," Emerson mocked. "You should start up an act."
JJ swam back over to her, and put his hand on her waist pulling her closer. "I'm sorry princess," He said softly.
For a moment Emerson found herself wanting to lean into JJ, just for a moment. Emerson cleared her throat then pulled away from the blond pogue. "I'm gonna get a beer," Emerson announced, then swam back over to the ladder. Everyone watched as she climbed up, not saying anything.
"I'll go check on her," Sarah said to John B before following after her best friend. When Sarah climbed onto the boat and glanced around, finding Emerson searching below deck. "You okay?" Sarah asked, as she slipped her shirt back over her head.
"I'm fine," Emerson replied with absolutely no hint of any emotion in her voice.
Sarah sighed, seeing where this was going. "Don't do this."
"Do what?" Emerson asked.
"Shut down," Sarah replied, causing Emerson to scoff. Once again, she wasn't very good at accepting the truth. "Any time..."
"Don't."
"...you feel overwhelmed or scared you just shut down," Sarah continued, ignoring Emerson's interruption. "Rafe and JJ, your parents-"
"This has nothing to do with them," Emerson said and Sarah finally stopped to listen. But before Emerson could continue explaining the roof above them shut leaving the two kooks trapped below deck. "What the fuck?!" Emerson shouted as she moved past Sarah and slammed her hand on the roof.
"Hey!" Sarah shouted, as she began hitting the roof as well. "Let us out!"
"JJ I swear to god!" Emerson yelled as she hit the roof.
"Hello?!" Sarah yelled but there was no answer. Only the sounds of hushed whispers and rushed footsteps as the boys ran around. After another ten minutes of trying to get the boy's attention the girls gave up. They sat down with their backs against the wall, the hot air around them making them sweat.
"I swear when we get out of here I'm killing both of them," Emerson said as she readjusted her position on the floor.
"I'll get rid of the bodies," Sarah added then Emerson lifted her fist, the two sharing a fist bump despite their uncomfortable position.
"So I shut down?" Emerson asked, genuinely wanting to know.
"Yeah," Sarah nodded. "Then two days later you'll be at a party drinking the night away and acting like nothing happened," Sarah explained. Emerson knew this was true, she did have a tendency to try to forget anything bad that happened to her. It was easier for her that way. "I should've known this would happen the second you mentioned Nick."
"You caught that huh?" Emerson asked, then Sarah nodded. "Everytime I think I'm over it..."
Sarah turned to look at her best friend with a sad look in her eyes. "What did Kiara do exactly? You never actually told me."
"Uh..." Emerson paused, she really didn't want to talk about this. Everytime he got brought up she'd find a way to change the subject. "It doesn't matter."
"Clearly it does," Sarah interjected. Sarah let out a sigh, knowing that Emerson wouldn't continue the conversation, so the blonde kook switched gears. "Did you ever love Rafe?" She asked, "I mean after Nick left?"
"I think that there were moments where I thought I loved him," Emerson answered. "In a way, I do love him, but I don't think I was ever in love with him."
"That's not a bad thing, E," Sarah told her.
"It was. It was really bad," Emerson replied. "I wanted to be in love with him, so badly. I would've given anything to be in love with Rafe."
Emerson shook her head at the thought then sat up pounding her fist on the door again. She didn't expect anyone to open it, but it did. Only problem, it wasn't John B or JJ who opened the door, it was Kiara.
"Oh you've got to be kidding me," Emerson scoffed as she climbed out of the hold.
"What the-" Sarah said once she saw Kiara standing above them. She quickly followed Emerson out, the three girls running to the edge of the boat. "Guys!" They saw John B and JJ swimming away towards the HMS Pogue, it was at this moment they realized this was their plan all along.
"Are you serious?" Kiara yelled out to her best friends. "Get your asses back here!"
"We can't," John B yelled as he climbed into the smaller boat. "Not till you three figure it out."
"JJ I swear to god-" Emerson began to yell.
"I will kill every single one of you!" Kiara yelled over the kook princess.
"Y-You can't just leave," Sarah shouted, hoping to reason with the boys.
"There's food in the cabin, and JJ rolled a blunt." Pope yelled at the girls giving them a thumbs up.
"Hydroponic!"
"This is ridiculous," Sarah scoffed as she began to take her clothes off, Emerson copying her shortly after.
"Well, I would rather drown than stay here with you two..."
"Be my guest," Emerson said as she pulled her shirt over her head.
"Yeah, maybe you'll finally shut the hell up," Sarah agreed.
"You don't even know where you're going," Kiara told the two kooks.
"Does it look like we care," Sarah snapped back before jumping into the water.
"Good luck with the oyster beds," Kiara said sarcastically before Emerson followed her best friend into the water.
"John B!" Sarah called out. "Wait!"
"JJ come on!" Emerson pleaded as the boat started to drive away.
"John B, you asshole!" Sarah yelled as she swam out further.
"They're not coming back for you," Kiara yelled at the kooks.
As the boys continued to drive away JJ waved to the three girls. "Love you guys! Bye!" He shouted.
"Sarah come back," Emerson said, once she realized that the boys weren't coming back for them.
The brunette started to swim closer to her best friend as Kiara watched them brom the boat. Suddenly the sounds of Sarah screaming filled the air as she went under water.
"Sarah!" Emerson shouted as she swam closer.
"What?" Kiara asked in annoyance.
"I got stung by a jellyfish! Shit," She cried out as she made her way back over to Emerson. "Ah!"
"Dramatic," Kiara scoffed.
Emerson helped Sarah get back over to the ladder, her eyes widening when she saw the sting left behind on Sarah's stomach. "Oh that's not good..."
Sarah couldn't help but cry as her hand ran over the sting. "Shit," She breathed out.
"Well, you swam right into a man-o'-war," Kiara said, trying to prove that she knew more than the two kooks did. "Don't know what you thought would happen."
"Shut the hell up Kiara," Emerson said as she followed Sarah up the ladder.
"Yeah, thanks for your help," Sarah said as she winced in pain. "Ow," She breathed out, moving to sit against the edge of the boat. The wall holding her upright. "Shit."
"Does it hurt?" Kiara asked, not bothering to hide the smile on her face.
"I thought I told you to shut the hell up," Emerson snapped.
"Hey, Em. You know what they say..."
"Nope. Mm-mm," Kiara said, shaking her head.
"... about curing jellyfish stings?" Sarah continued. "You have to pee on me."
Emerson let out a sigh, shaking her head. The girl would gladly take a bullet for Sarah Cameron, so what's a little pee. "You're lucky I love you," Emerson said as she put her hands on the waistband on her swimsuit bottoms, ready to pull them down.
"No," Kiara said, grabbing Emerson's hand to stop her. "I have a better idea."
"Don't touch me," Emerson said as she pulled her hand away from Kiara. Emerson walked towards Sarah, helping her up before the three of them went to the back of Hayward's boat.
Neither of the kooks expected this to happen. Them on a pogue's boat, with the girl they assumed they'd never be friends with again. It was unheard of in the kook chronicles.
"It's for the pain," Kiara said as she pulled out the joint.
"JJ, bless," Sarah breathed out.
Kiara put the join between her lips as she lit it, taking a drag from it. The two hooks watched as she took another one and just when it seemed like she'd hand it off to Sarah she pulled it back. "Actually," She spoke before taking yet another drag.
"Really?" Sarah scoffed as she took the joint from Kiara, putting it between her lips. Sarah inhaled deeply, waiting to feel the pain go away.
"Go easy," Kiara warned as Sarah continued to inhale. "It's JJ's cousin's Cripple."
When Sarah pulled the joint out of her mouth she immediately began to cough, the sight making Kiara roll her eyes at the kook. Emerson didn't say anything as she took the joint from between Sarah's fingers, bringing it up to her own lips.
Emerson inhaled deeply waiting for all her problems to disappear.