Isn't it weird how things change all the time, yet somehow always stay the same? Isn't it magical in some ways?
"Morning Kie"
John B walked through his home, an old fishing shack on the marsh which they all called the Château. It was not too far from the shack where Myra and JJ lived with their dad. John B's father, who had been missing at sea for nine months by now, was the one who came up with the name. He had always told his son that it didn't matter how big and fancy a house was, the important thing about it is the people inside of it making it feel like a home, thus making their humble little place a real chateau. It was still true, even if John didn't know where his father had gone. The people inside of his old home still made it feel like just that, a home. So much had changed since last summer, yet somehow their group stayed pretty much the same. JJ still got his foot stuck in everything he tried to climb over and he still couldn't tell a good idea from a bad one. Pope still worried about pretty much everything, and he rarely got as much sleep as he surely needed. Kiara still ignored the fact that her parents wanted her home on figure eight, and she rocked the same sea shell ankle bracelet as last year. Myra had gotten a year older, as all of them, but she still carried herself with the utter most ease. John still held his friends closest to his heart.
"Morning" Kiara mumbled from where she was laying on a pullout couch, a blanket barely covering her legs and the rays of the bright sun slipping through the blinds of the nearby dusty windows. The teenager remaining in the household wasn't one to keep up with the constant need to be cleaning after himself and his friends, thus letting the dust and the empty beer cans collect everywhere. He had better things to do, more important matters to attend. John B grabbed a bottle of beer from the fridge, opening it and clinking it against a picture of his uncle holding a fish that hung on the wall, before taking a big sip. A true champion's breakfast, or something of a poor man. Since his father had vanished, his uncle had became his legal guardian, though John hadn't seen him in months. He was supposedly somewhere in Mississippi right now, building houses. A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do to eat right?
"Hey" John hummed as he walked out onto the screen porch, seeing Pope laying on the couch there, barely awake. "Oy" Pope mumbled, reaching his left hand up to make a quick handshake with John. "You'd sleep alright?" John asked as he stopped by Pope, glancing out at the yard before the cabin as he slowly sipped on his beer. "Yeah" Pope shrugged, sitting up a little stiffly. The couches around the chateau had been occupied by sleepers in need for years, so they were all rather comfortable by now. John's glance travelled further down the yard, seeing Myra sitting down by the wharf leading to the lake. "How long has she been up?" John asked quietly, a little surprised to see her awake given the time she must've gotten back last night. Pope sat up a little further before he turned to look in the same direction as his friend, taking notice of JJ's little sister sitting all alone, her messy blonde hair blowing in the slight breeze. "I don't know" Pope shrugged his shoulders, "I didn't see her go out there"
John nodded his head gently, keeping his eyes on her as he pushed the door to the screen porch open and walked out. "Good morning" he called out loudly as his bare feet walked down the yard, making Myra turn around, seemingly having been lost in her own world down by the water. "Morning" she said swiftly, smiling warmly towards him. "When did you get up?" John asked, making his way over towards her before sitting down next to her. "Like half an hour ago or so" she mumbled, gazing out at the glittering water "the sun drew me out here"
The sun had always been calling Myra.
"Sure looks like it's gonna be a nice day" John agreed, taking a sip from his beer, holding the bottle out to her to offer her some "how was work?". She glanced at the dark brown tinted glass bottle in his right hand, taking it as she looked up at him, putting it to her lips to get a taste. "It was alright" she spoke after having swallowed a mouthful of cheap beer "I had to stay until two thirty though". It was often like that. She had worked at the hotel and island club last summer too. Most kooks didn't fancy a summer job so they left all the long shifts to the pouge kids. The kooks her age had more important things to do, like going to their summer houses in Bahamas or Spain or whatever. Or travel through Europe just before a nice relaxing beach trip to Florida.
"That sucks" John sighed, taking the beer back from her "did JJ pick you up?". She nodded her head, glancing in between the boy with the unruly brown hair and the lake before them. "He did, he took the Twinkie, didn't he tell you?" she questioned, her eyebrows raised. That would've been typical of her brother, it was like he thought that the rules of society didn't apply to him. Like he was immortal. "Yeah, I gave him the keys at like... midnight" John shrugged, taking another sip of his beer "or something like that"
The mild forenoon air made its way in between the two of them as they sat quietly on the wharf, their feet dangling off of the edge. John drank his beer and Myra glanced out at the glistening water, longing for a swim. Neither one of them spoke, she didn't feel like it was necessary. She was comfortable in his silence, she had always been for all the years she had known him. He was like a second older brother to her, one a little less dysfunctional than her actual older brother. John had always been there for her, no matter what. He would always listen without interrupting her, offering up some honest and helpful advise to her troublesome mind. Whenever she fell off her bike as a young kid and scraped her knees, JJ would hold her hand as John came running with bandaids. When the scraped skin later turned into cuts and bruises, John was always there with a bag of ice and a comforting smile. He would throw a blanket on her when she looked cold and he would try to pull lame jokes as she was in a bad mood. She could always call him and he'd be on his way to pick her up, no matter where she had gotten herself stranded.
John seemed lost in thought, his gaze flickering between his hands and the sky. He had a lot of things going on, Myra knew that. She could sense the way his heart beat heavily inside of his chest. It hadn't been easy for him since his father had disappeared. His world had been turned upside down, the solid ground beneath him shaken. She remembered the day he came stomping home to the chateau in a horrible mood so clearly, throwing an empty beer can as hard as he could onto a nearby wall before slumping down onto a couch, head in his hands. He had been completely drained, heartbroken and angry. It was exactly three months to the day after his father's disappearance and the police had officially presumed him dead. JJ and Myra had been hiding out at the chateau all day, not wanting to be home since their own father, who was barely alive himself, was in a terrible mood after having lost badly at a poker game the night before. John B had been asked to sign the papers of his father's death, having refused to do so before getting up and leaving the police station without speaking another word. JJ had packed a bag with beer, sandwiches and fish bate and him and Myra had taken John out onto the marsh to try to cheer him up, to try and distract his wandering mind with some fishing. JJ was a great friend like that, quick to give up anything at any given moment for those who mattered the most to him. He would've done anything for John B, everyone knew that.
The DCS had been on John's back ever since then, wanting to move him to some nice foster family on the main land. They made it seem so comfortable and safe, like a white picket fence dream. There was no way John B was going to let them take him away, they all knew that. He wasn't about to give his home and friends up to go and live with some strangers. He wanted his normal life, he needed to stay home for his father, for the day he finally comes back home.
"Hey" Myra mumbled after a while, leaning over a little as she broke the silence between them,
"are you okay?". She seemingly pulled John out of his array of distant thoughts, his brown eyes meeting her light ones. "Huh?" he mumbled, blinking his eyes as he gazed at her. "I asked if you're alright? You look a little..." she trailed, looking at him "down in the dumps or whatever". John hummed something inaudible, chugging the last of his beer before putting the bottle down on the wharf. "Yeah I'm fine, I just have that DCS meeting later today and I'm not really feeling up to going" John admitted, leaning back onto the palms of his hands. "Right" she said, nodding her head "that sucks". John nodded once, his lips pushed together as he glanced up at the clear blue sky above them, "yeah it kinda does"
The day went on, John still being in a odd mood and JJ trying to cheer him up with his silly and stupid antics, as per usual. Pope went to help his father with some deliveries on their boat and Kiara had to hit up her family's restaurant, leaving Myra with the two boys. They stayed outside, enjoying the warm summer air and hot sun. She went for a swim, jumping into the water from the dock. JJ, who was sat trying to fish with John B, groaned loudly as she went under the surface. "Cut it out stinky" he called out as she went up for air, pushing her wet hair out of her face "if you haven't noticed, we're trying to catch some dinner here and you're scaring all the fish away". She laughed, floating on her back, "JJ it's like a thousand degrees outside right now, if I don't get to swim in peace I might actually die... or kill you"
Her comment made John B chuckle a little, a half hearted smile spreading across his lips. A little joy was finally breaking through his gloom. JJ wasn't as pleased as John though, glaring at his younger sister as she playfully splashed water at him, "you're so fucking dramatic". Another chuckle slipped past John's lips as he reeled in his fishing line. He had seemingly given up on trying to catch a fish. "She's dramatic?" John questioned with a funny look upon his face, nudging his best friend "have you heard the kook girls around here? That's dramatic JJ"
JJ rolled his eyes, a goofy smile pulling at the edges of his lips. JJ wasn't one to hold grudges, she knew that as she splashed water on him a second time, making John B laugh again. "Stop, stop" JJ whined, trying to smack her with his fishing rod. She quickly swam out further into the marsh, laughing as JJ shook his head. "Hey, I need to get going" John then said lowly, patting his friend's shoulder before he got up from where he had been previously sitting right next to JJ on the wharf, "but you two can hang around here if you want to". The playful vibe in the air shifted into something different, making Myra swim back towards the dock. "Do you want us to come with you man? We could, you know" JJ urged, turning to look at his friend, his eyebrows furrowed together. He knew John all too well, he could read him as an open book. It had been like that since they first met in the third grade, they had clicked together so effortlessly from the beginning. Like it was a grand plan of the universe that the two of them would meet and become the best of friends. One couldn't possibly be without the other. "Nah it's good" John B huffed, looking away as he pulled a hand through his rather long brown hair.
Myra reached the dock just as JJ nodded, reeling his fishing line in. She rested her forearms onto the old wood of the wharf, glancing up at the tall brown haired boy. He looked a little miserable, like he had about a million other things that he would rather be doing on this sunny day than going to that stupid meeting. He was doing fine on his own, with his friends, he didn't need any help from the DCS. They were wasting their time on him, he thought. The brightness of the afternoon sun made Myra squint her eyes a little as she glanced around. "You sure Johnny boy?" JJ asked, reaching his hand out to Myra to help her get out of the water. She took the help, stepping up on the dock, water dripping by her feet. John's gaze swiftly danced over her before he looked away, clearing his throat, "yeah Jay, I'll be fine, I promise"
She sure hoped so.
Later that evening they all met up by one of the beaches down by the cut, wanting a calm night together. JJ and Kiara had started a small bonfire with driftwood that they had found laying around, which they all sat around laughing and chatting. Myra reached her hands out, feeling the warmth of the fire upon her skin. The crackling of the fire slowly burning low mixed so effortlessly with the peaceful sound of the waves gently rolling onto the shore and the joyful conversation of her friends. For a short moment it was pure bliss. She could've stayed in that moment forever it felt like.
John B had walked off a couple of minutes ago, sitting a little further up on the beach. JJ had tried to talk to him, but he had been unsuccessful. John B had gently turned him away, wanting a quiet moment alone. His DCS meeting hadn't gone as well as he had thought it would. He had been hesitant to tell the group about it, not wanting to worry them, but Kiara had managed to pull it out of him. John hadn't been able to fool the social worker as easily as he had thought he would, feeling the weight of the harsh reality suddenly hit him. It was so heavy on his tired shoulders. His father was god only knows where and the DCS were coming to his messy teenage inhabited home tomorrow to meet his uncle who hadn't been there in years, and there was nothing he could do about it. Nothing.
Myra glanced away from the fire to look at him, taking notice of the worry that was laced upon his face. She got up, earning a concerned look from her older brother. "Where you going?" JJ questioned, nodding his head for her to sit back down again. "I'll be right back, I'm just gonna make sure that he's alright" she hummed, eyeing JJ seriously as she nodded her head towards John B. JJ sighed, nodding his head once before he gazed off towards the fire, pushing his lips together, "be quick, I don't really think he's in the mood to talk to anyone"
Myra stuck her hands into the sleeves of her hoodie, dragging her bare feet through the sand up to where the troubled brown haired boy was sitting all alone. Tall grass surrounded him and he had his knees pulled up, arms resting on them. "Hey" she said gently, sitting down in the sand next to John, making him look up at her. She didn't want to annoy him, yet she felt the need to remind him that he was not alone in all of this. "Hey" he said even quieter back to her, blinking his eyes, as if he was a little surprised to see her there. "I'm sorry your DCS thing didn't go as well as you had hoped today" Myra hummed, clasping her hands together on her knees. She couldn't really imagine the way he must be feeling right now. Her own father wasn't exactly an angel by any means, he could barely be called a father honestly, but at least he was alive and she knew where he was. She could always find him, if she desired to. The same could not be said for young John any more. "Yeah" John muttered, trying to play it off like it was nothing. He gazed off, swallowing hard before he forced a smile towards her. He was like that, stubbornly kind and welcoming, not wanting people to see him hurt.
They sat in silence for a moment, listening to the distant laughter and crackling of the fire in the background. She reached over, carefully laying her left hand on top of his right one, making him look back at her. She wanted to offer him a bit of comfort, she wanted to try at least. She knew he must have been feeling lonely these days without any family around, even if he was constantly surrounded by his friends. It had always been him and his dad, for better and for worse, but mostly better. She had never seen anyone be as close and open with their parent as John B and his dad were. It was everything she had ever wished for herself and her brother, but knew that they would never get. Their father is a lost cause. "You'll be alright" Myra said softly, leaning her head onto John's upper arm, "we'll make sure of it, you know that right?". He let go of a breath he had been holding in, resting his head on top of hers, "yeah I know that, Myra, I know"
"Hey John B! Stinky! Get down here!"
She sighed as JJ's voice broke the comfortable silence that had surrounded them. She knew how weary her older brother was about his best friend. JJ had a hard time dealing with bad or negative emotions, finding all types of sorrowful or worrying kind of emotions to make him uneasy. The mopey look upon John B's face didn't strike JJ right, he felt compelled to pull his friend out of it as soon as he could. John B sighed, lifting his head up. "Coming!" he called back, glancing down at Myra with a faint smile, "duty calls". She laughed, pulling her hand away from his. She watched him stand up and brush the sand off of his legs. He reached his hands out to her, the warm smile still apparent on his lips. She grabbed a hold of his hands as he helped her up, his eyes lingering on her for a second more. She brushed the sand off of herself before she tucked her hands back into the sleeves of her hoodie, a comfortable habit of hers. "Are you sure that you're okay?" she asked the boy once more, still worried about him. "Yeah, I'll be fine, I promise you, I'll figure it out" John assured her, nodding his head as he smiled, "let's go". John looked past her, nodding his head towards the group down by the small bonfire. Side by side they walked back, knowing that JJ wanted them all to be together.
"You good?" Kiara asked John as the two of them got closer. She was one to worry too, often even more than Myra, who was usually rather carefree. Kiara was the kooked out pouge that made sure all of them didn't die, at least when Pope wasn't around. She possessed this almost magical ability to be able to calm JJ down from his crazed thoughts and ideas, which was often very useful. "Yeah" John repeated himself, thankful that his friends cared so dearly about him while at the same time getting a little tired of the relentless questions. There's always bigger problems than what he faced, nevertheless he didn't want to think about it, not even for a second longer. "Anyone up for a late night swim?"