July 8th, 2021.
OuterBanks, North Carolina.
𓇼 𓇼 𓇼 𓇼 𓇼
The warm breeze of the wind blew throughout the Twinkie while we sat talking about how we would spend the rest of the summer together. Sarah pointed out towards the window while we had headed in the direction that the woman gave us. The area seemed sketchy, which made me become more nervous in the moment. However, JJ had a gun loaded on his hip to protect us even though it wasn't his gun — he stole it.
He dangled it around in the car which made Kiara yell at him in annoyance of how he was so careless. John B stared into the rear view mirror multiple times, noticing a sketchy car had been following us for a couple of miles but he hadn't thought anything of it until he noticed the car became more aggressive in driving. The noise of a shotgun had hit through the side view mirror that made my soul leave my body in pure anxiety. "What the fuck is going on." Pope yelled in anxiousness before John B had pulled over in hopes that the car would pass them, instead, the car pulled beside the Twinkie. A man covered his face with a black ski mask as he got out of the car and held the shot gun up towards the driver side of the vehicle, directly in John B's face. Tears had formed in the corner of my eye in the thought that this could be the last time I would see any of them if something went south. The only thing that separated John B from the shotgun was the glass of the car. Sweat formed against the back of my neck as John B stayed paralyzed. The guy had pulled the door open and yelled at John B and Sarah to get out of the car. John B and Sarah had excited the car, listening to the man as he forced them down on the ground against the leaves that had fallen from the hot summer sun. JJ held his fingers up to his mouth in a shush position as he hid the gold in an area of the car, hiding it in order for the man not to be able to find it. Kiara and I stared at another in pure fear while Pope and JJ tried to stay calm in the moment.
The back door of the Twinkie slid open to reveal the male that had gunned our best friends down to the floor. "Get the fuck out now!" The guy yelled at us as Pope had been the first one to get out. Pope held his hands up, Kiara followed after him as JJ had stared at me to make sure that I would follow the directions that the man gave us. "Where's the gold." The man asked as he hit me with the back of his gun. I held my hands above my head and looked down at my friends, scared for the life of me. JJ laid down on the ground and shook his head at me while tears started to form in my eyes. Sarah and Kiara started to form tears that I had never seen before with their eyes watching the man behind me. He held the gun to the back of my head. "One of you guys tell me or she gets shot." The man said aggressively and grabbed the back of my arm with his grip. "Please don't do this to me." I started crying and looked at my friends in hopes that one of them would do something. "Tell me you bitch." He spoke as he grabbed my face, pushing his thumbs into my cheeks and jawline. His grip against my face had grown tighter while he looked at me with anger forming in his eyes. "Please." I told him and looked in his brown eyes that seemed familiar but I was unsure in the moment. Fear overtook my body while my friends watched him grab my face with aggression. He shook his head and pushed my face away. "Get your ass on the ground." He replied and grabbed my arm again with his tight grip, shoving me down to the ground beside JJ. Tears ran down my cheeks as I had hoped for some type of miracle to come out.
My face laid against the leaf covered floor beside my friends. John B laid beside Sarah, Kiara and Pope beside them which left JJ and I to be at the end. The man started to rummage throughout the Twinkie until he found the piece of gold where JJ had hid it. Tears rolled down on my cheeks in trauma, never thinking that I would seek this type of aggression. The man grabbed the gold in his hand and pushed it into his bag. He walked towards his car and threw the bag into the car while holding the shotgun in his hand still. JJ had stood up in the moment when the man had his back turned on us, grabbing ahold of the guy and bringing him down to the floor. John B had stood up and ran towards the man's car to grasp the gold bar out of the bag he put it inside of. JJ pulled the man's ski mask off of his face and pressed his cheek against the asphalt, kicking his shotgun away from where they had been. "You motherfucker, you touch us again and I'll fucking kill you." JJ yelled at him and grabbed the man's long hair, pressing his face down on the asphalt with more aggression and anger forming in his mind. "You touch her again and I'll fucking come after you." JJ yelled at him once again and smacked the guys face against the asphalt again. Trying to knock him out from the impact of the hitting. My heart pounded out of my chest in pure fear, something that I had never felt before. John B threw the bag into the back of the Twinkie and motioned for us to hurry into the back of the car. JJ kept smashing the man's face into the asphalt in anger. The males face was covered in blood from the aggression that came out of JJ. I crawled into the back of the Twinkie with Sarah beside me, grabbing me into her grasp as tears covered my eyes.
Kiara and Pope shut the back of the Volkswagen Bus. They turned to me with fear forming in their brown eyes. Silence formed around us as we heard fighting coming from outside of the bus. Pope peeked his head up towards the window to see the male fighting JJ back, John B helping his best friend. He stood there until a silence surrounded the bus and the two boys ran to the front of the car. JJ and John B pulled the doors open and jumped in, stepping on the gas before anyone could be buckled in. Hot tears formed against my cheeks as Sarah laid her dirty hands on my head. She caressed my face in gentleness and hushed me from the tears. My body shook in anxiety from the event that had taken place. John B started to drive in the opposite direction to head back into town, wanting to protect all of us from the harm that the man could have done. "I know that guy." He spoke and wiped the back of his hand against it to remove the blood that came from his busted lip. John B shook his head at him. "What do you mean by that?" He asked and sped down the road with adrenaline rushing throughout his body. "That piece of shit sells drugs to my dad. I know where he lives." JJ spoke as anger flooded into his eyes, staring ahead of the road with his jaw clenched tightly.
"JJ, be quiet!" Kiara yelled at him in annoyance while watching Sarah try to calm me down from the trauma. JJ turned his head to stare at me on the floor of the car being held by Sarah. Tears fell onto Sarah's shirt as she held me tightly. Kiara crawled over to us while the car moved and held onto me with her hands against my knees. JJ's eyes formed softness when he saw tears run out from the corners of my eyes. My face had been a natural red color from the many tears the poured out. "It'll be okay Iz." Kiara spoke while Sarah wrapped her hands around my face to hide me from JJ staring at me. I glanced up towards him in the crack of Sarah's arm and stared at him in fear. I had never seen JJ act out in anger the way that he had done to the unknown man. I saw him get into scuffles with Kooks and even his own friends, but never in a way of aggression that was angry and able to kill one. I was more scared from the gun that was held to my back. I was more scared of that the man would find me or my friends, even my family. I couldn't bare to see any one hurt and would sacrifice myself if it had to come down to that — my life or the ones that I loved.
"We got to take her home. This is too much for her." Sarah spoke loudly to inform John B and JJ so that they could take me home. John B nodded his head while he had stayed completely silent in the car from what our group had gone through. JJ sat in the passenger seat with his jaw clenched. "I'm sorry, Isla. I wish that never happened." Kiara spoke and wrapped her arms around me with Sarah. She leaned her head onto mine like Sarah had done. I shook my head and almost felt unable to speak. My body felt paralyzed in the moment. Unable to move, unable to speak properly, unable to control the tears that fled from my eyes. How would I explain this situation to my father and mother when they saw tears form in my eyes? How would I express to them that some man attacked my friends and I in a side of town that no one should ever head towards?
The rest of the car ride had been silent. Paralyzed from speaking to another but nonetheless tried to settle me down from the anxiety that formed in the petite body that kept me alive. John B had sped most of the ride towards his home, going to allow JJ or Kiara to take me home. Once he parked in the front of his garage — he turned to me with sadness forming in his eyes. "I'm sorry, Iz." He spoke and laid his hand out towards me, resting it on my shoulder that had faced him. I nodded my head at him and stared up towards JJ, who had jumped out of the car. His eyes filled with anger from what the man had done to us but nonetheless, was genuinely upset that we all had gone through this. He opened the sliding door to the Volkswagen bus and held his hand out towards me. Pope jumped out of the car and headed into the chateau with his hands on his head in disbelief. Sarah and Kiara crawled out of the bus, watching me take JJ's hand and walk towards him shakily. "Give me your keys." He spoke and held his other hand out as he picked me up by the waist, placing me down onto the grass. John B walked towards the chateau with the bag in his hands to hide in a different place in case the man were to track us down. I pulled the Bronco keys out from my back pocket, handing them to JJ. His other hand stayed around my waist while he nodded at Sarah and Kiara. "I got her." He spoke as Kiara and Sarah hugged me with the remaining space that was between JJ and I. "We'll come visit you later, Iz." Kiara spoke and rested her hand against my shoulder with sincerity forming in her eyes. I nodded my head at them and stopped the tears from pouring out on my cheeks. Kiara and Sarah followed another into the chateau with sadness against their faces.
"C'mon." JJ told me and grasped against my waist. He unlocked the bronco that sat beside the Twinkie, pulling the passenger door open. My body had fallen weak with anxiety. "I can't let my parents know what happened, J." I told him as he picked me up by my armpits and placed me into the leather seats. He nodded his head at me and laid his hands against my knee caps. "Let me text Rafe." He spoke softly and grasped my phone out of my back pocket. Opening my phone, he went to the messages between Rafe and I — wanting to inform him on what happened much earlier.
The trees brushed against another while the warm breeze rushed through the humid air. The sun shined down on the both of us, sharing the gold color in our skin. JJ's hair blew throughout the air while he texted my boyfriend off of his phone. I stared at JJ, watching his text that was informative about the situation that took place. JJ sent the text message and handed me my phone. I glanced around the environment that seemingly calmed me down and took my mind away from the situation. "You'll be safe with him, Isla." He spoke and caressed my cheek in his dirt covered hand. I nodded my head as another tear shed from the corner of my eye. He wiped the hot tear with his thumb. "I promise you, nothing will happen to you or any of us. I won't let anything happen and Rafe sure as hell won't let anything harm you. As much as I hate saying this, I know that he'll be good for you and he'll be your biggest protector." He rambled as he took his hand away from my cheek, shutting the passenger door and walked towards the drivers side to get into the car. I nodded my head at him and bit the inside of my cheek. JJ got into the drivers side, staring the car by turning the key into the ignition. "Can I tell you something JJ?" I asked him in an fearful tone forming in my voice. He started to back out of the driveway with his foot on the break, making sure to go slowly. He nodded his head as tears formed out of my eyes again. It had felt as if I couldn't control myself from the fear that weighed on my shoulders. It felt like I was drowning in my own nervousness. "What is it?" He asked and stared at the road in front of us, heading towards the Kook side of the island before I felt my phone buzz against the inside of my thigh. I pulled the phone out and looked down at it with tears covering the clarity of my eyes. Rafe had texted back multiple times. "Tell me that nothing happened to her, JJ. Holy fucking shit. I'm on my way to her house right now." He texted which had made me more nervous to tell JJ about the night that Rafe and I had spent with another. "Rafe texted." I spoke to him to get off topic, regretting what I had wanted to tell him to avoid upsetting him even more. He nodded his head at me and glanced towards me with distress in his eyes. "Tell him I'm taking you home." He spoke and kept his eyes on the road, speeding up because there had been no traffic on the road during the moment. I nodded at him.
I texted Rafe back and told him what JJ wanted me to respond with. I turned the phone off with my eyes focusing on the road to get my mind off of the aggression that I faced. Glancing at my arm, my arm had been brushed upwards with a large dark bruise forming from the man gripping me tightly. Anger and fear flowed throughout my body from what the man had done to me and my friends. What kind of person would want to do this to teenagers?
Fifteen minutes passed.
The security guards opened the gate for the yellow bronco that they had seen multiple times for the past week. They nodded their heads at JJ as he threw his fingers up into a peace sign, faking a smile against his face. He drove down the street towards my house that sat with no cars in front of it which meant that my mother left, my father at the golf club to set up for midsummers that would be happening in a span of two days. The car that belonged to Rafe sat in his driveway beside his step mothers car. He had been standing in my driveway, pacing back and forth in anxiousness. He hadn't even left me for more than a couple hours. JJ parked the car in the designated spot that I normally parked in, Rafe watching the car stop before walking towards the passenger door. His eyes flooded with fear as he had seen my face still red from the tears that blurred my vision. He grasped his hands against my body, holding me against his while he placed me down onto the pebbled ground that led into the garage. His hand rested on the back of my head while he held me in his arms. "I'm so glad you're okay." He spoke and kissed the top of my head in front of JJ. JJ had clenched his jaw in anger but refused to ruin the moment that formed between Rafe and I. Deep down inside, JJ didn't want to see me with him although he wanted to support me no matter what. He wished that he was the one that made me feel safe in the moment.
Rafe unraveled his hands away from my body and grasped my face inside of his large hands. "You're going to be okay." He spoke and glanced down at the large bruise that formed against my arm. He glanced back up towards my eyes, moving his hands away from my face to view the darkened spots on my cheeks. He looked towards JJ, watching JJ shake his head in pure terror once Rafe noticed the bruises forming. "Let's get your inside." He spoke and turned me to face the direction of the door, watching me walk myself in vulnerability. He walked beside JJ and stared at me to make sure that I was okay. "I'm going to go after whoever did this to her." Rafe spoke and glanced towards JJ, who had stood beside him. "Do you know who did it?" Rafe asked him while his eyes followed me inside of the house after pushing the code to the keypad in. My body felt weak and sick, not only from the serve hang over but the traumatic events that had taken place earlier. "Barry, that drug dealer." JJ responded.
Rafe and JJ followed me inside the house, while I headed into my bedroom. The only thing that I wanted in that moment was to lay in bed and feel somewhat safe in the new atmosphere of my home. It wasn't the same as my old home but it became safe and comfortable for me. JJ shut the door behind the tall boy that stood behind him. Rafe clenched his jaw and pushed his fists into his pockets, anger filling throughout his body. JJ stared at him and ran his hand throughout his beach blonde hair from surfing. "You know him?" JJ asked him and glanced towards the hallway that I had walked down. JJ and Rafe followed behind me, watching me push my bedroom door open and fall against my made bed. "I've gotten drugs from him multiple times before. That motherfucker." Rafe spoke. JJ sat himself down on the woven chest with his back against the white wall. JJ shook his head, crossing his tan arms over another and stared back towards Rafe with his jaw clenched the same that Rafe had done. "Trust me, John B and I got this covered. You take care of her." He spoke while glancing at me lay lifelessly against my bed. My mind was still awake with my eyes closed, listening to them get along for the first time in history.
Rafe sat at the edge of the bed with his hand on my bare ankle after I slipped my converse off of my feet. JJ stood up from the woven chest and held his hand out towards Rafe. "Take care of her for me, please." JJ spoke and shook his hand in a firm mannerism while I had laid my head against the cold pillow. Rafe nodded his head at JJ and bit the inside of his cheek. "Will do." Rafe told him and shook his hand back in honor that he had trusted him to take care of his best friend that meant the entire world to him. JJ nodded his head again, putting his hand against my shoulder. I opened my eyes and glanced up at the blonde boy that stood in front of me. "Text me if you need anything please." He spoke once again. I nodded my head at him. "Thank you, JJ. Take the motorcycle in the garage." I told him as he started to head out towards the bedroom door to make an exit. "I will." He responded and headed out of the bedroom, walking down the hallway and into the garage. Silence surrounded Rafe and I as JJ had left the room. My body sunk into the bed with comfort, feeling at peace around Rafe.
He had glanced around my bedroom that he had never been in or seen before. His eyes stared at the photos of my friends and I that were pinned on a string against the wall. The framed portraits that were sitting on top of my dresser, alongside the picture that sat on my nightstand beside the lamp. I rolled around to face the wall that my bed had leaned up against. Gasping in pain that had formed from the deep bruise on the arm that I rolled over on. Tears started to form in my eyes from the pain that came from the sore, but also the feeling of anxiousness that ran throughout my small body that felt vulnerable. Rafe kicked his shoes off of his feet and climbed over on the side of bed that I rolled over on. His hand laid against my thigh, watching me bite down on my bottom lip in pain. "Come here baby." He spoke and lifted my head up off the pillow, laying my head on his lap. I glanced up towards him with tears running down my cheeks. His eyes stared at the bruises that formed against my cheeks from the grasp that the man had. Meanwhile, his hand had held up the bruised arm. "I'm so sorry that this happened to you." He spoke to me and stared at me in my green eyes that couldn't start to comprehend what had happened.
Sitting myself up to look at him, he stared at me and didn't break the stare. He formed a sense of sincerity and sadness in his blue eyes that were watching me. He ran his finger tip gently against the bruise that formed on my cheek. "Please don't leave me." I told him and shook my head in fear that the man would come back. He shook his head and grabbed my face within his large hands, cupping them with gentleness. "Look at me." He spoke while his eyes had watered more than normal. "I don't want to die." I told him and shook my head again. He shook his head at me and watched the tears drip into his large hands. "I promise you, I will never let anything ever happen to you." He spoke and kissed the top of my forehead. He stared back into my eyes which had caught me off guard, making me stare at him with anxiety rushing through me. I nodded my head at him and couldn't take my eyes away from him. "He told me he was going to kill me if he didn't get the gold." I told him and shook my head again in pure nervousness that he would come after me, or worse — my family that meant the world to me. He shook his head at me and kept caressing my face with his large hands.
"You're not going to be killed, my love." He spoke and looked at me with sadness forming in his eyes as he watched tears fall from my eyes. I didn't know how to comprehend what happened and I was more than scared that the man would know where I lived, alongside my friends. "It'll be okay." He reassured and ran the tears off of my face with his thumb. I nodded my head and had wanted to believe anything he had to say. "Our houses are gated. No one is coming in or out with no authority." He reassured again and watched me nod my head at him again. I formed a small smile against my face at the reassurance that he shared with me, feeling comfort in his presence. "All of this will be over with soon." He spoke and formed a sad smile against his face while looking at me with the small smile on my face. I tilted my head in his hand, watching his blue eyes glance around my face. "Let's do something that will get your mind off of it." He spoke once again. He put his hands down into his lap, watching me nod my head at him again before glancing at the tv that sat on the wall. I bent over and grasped for the remote that laid on the nightstand table beside the framed portrait and lamp. I handed the remote to him, watching him take it in his hands and direct it at the television that was mounted on the wall. The light from the television shined against our skin while he went through the channels that were on at that hour. He stopped at a random old school movie — Dirty Dancing that had been my mother's favorite movie when I was much younger. I pressed my legs up against my chest, wrapping my arms around them while I stared at the screen in front of us. He laid his head and back against the headboard with his blue eyes glancing at me once in a while. We sat in silence until he wrapped his arm over my fragile shoulders. I leaned into his chest, laying my head against his chest like I had done last night. He rested his chin against the temple of my forehead, watching the movie that played.
Silence formed around us. The silence became a sense of comfort that made me feel safe. His hand ran circles around my lower back which made me relax from the crying and nervousness that formed in my chest. Closing my eyes, I started to fall asleep in his chest with comforting thoughts running through my chest. I knew that he would take care of me. I knew that he wouldn't allow something horrible to happen to me. He was going to always be there. I knew he was, I could feel it. I started to fall asleep in his presence which made me feel more relaxed that everything would be fine. My body fell into a sleep that was more than needed, it craved it from the night before and tried it recover from the anxiety and hang over that rushed throughout my blood stream without any care.
An hour had passed until Rafe had rubbed my shoulder with soft taps. I groaned in agony from pushing down my cheek against his chest where the bruise had laid. "Shh, it's okay." He spoke to me in reassurance while he rubbed my back in order to try to get me to go back to bed. My head and eyes had ached from the immense amount of crying that created an annoying pain. My body had ached unbearably from the bruise on my arm and how the hang over affected my body with a negative pressure. "Rafe." I called out before he had laid his head against my own. He ran his fingers through my messily curled hair and stared at the television screen in front of us. "When are we going to announce that we're dating?" I asked him and narrowed my eyebrows as I tried to awaken my sleepily tired eyes. He had furrowed his eyebrows and laid his cheek against the top of my head while he stared with intent at the television. He ran his finger tips against my back, making it down to my lower back before he had drawn a circle. "When do you think the time is right." He questioned and kept repeating the pattern he had done against my back. "Can I be your date to midsummers?" I asked him and grasped my hand against his chest that had been covered with a thin white tee that came from the condo we stayed in last night.
"If this is what you want to do, I'll gladly do it too." He smiled and kissed the top of my head in a gentle mannerism to cause butterflies in my stomach. There wasn't anything that he couldn't do that would make me feel weak in the knees, just looking at him had done it to me. "We can go out shopping tomorrow for our outfits to wear." He spoke and laughed to himself because he didn't seem like the person who would want to go out with his girlfriend, to shop for an event. I looked up at him with a smile forming against my face that had seen brighter days. "You make me feel so much better." I told him and smiled at him with the dimples forming in my cheeks. He nodded his head at me. "I'll do anything for you." He reassured and kissed the top of my forehead once more. The blue eyes dazzled in the summer sun that peered down from my window. He stared at me with such love and ease forming into those blue eyes. I didn't see myself with anyone else but it did pain me to see the way that JJ had acted when he saw Rafe kiss me outside of the house earlier. It pained me to see his jaw clench and sadness form into his eyes. I didn't want to harm him, and wondered maybe if I needed to stay away for a while until he became comfortable with the situation. I sat up against my headboard beside Rafe. His legs crossed down at the bottom of the bed while he sat relaxed and comfortable. He glanced towards me with his blue eyes once again. "Is JJ alright?" He asked and furrowed his brows. He wanted to show me that he could care about people even if they didn't agree with another. It made me feel better about the situation to know that he was willing to change things that were so poorly done.
I nodded my head at him. "He's just been a little one edge since I told him that we're together but he'll get over it." I told him and glanced over at the television that was playing the same movie he turned on. "What history do you have with him?" He questioned and ran his fingers throughout his dirty blonde hair. He stared at me in curiosity. He had a right to know and I wasn't doing to hide anything from him. "For starters, JJ, John B and I have all been best friends since first grade. JJ has an awful home life which my dad ended up taking him under his wing multiple times, JJ and I have always had some special feelings for another but I haven't felt like that for a little while now." I explained to him and glanced around to avoid his reaction to what I told him. "The other day when you showed up to my birthday, he kissed me but it was just something in the moment. It didn't mean anything." I told him and glanced towards him. His eyes formed a sense of jealousy until he made eye contact with my own eyes. That left him to form sincerity in his blue eyes that hadn't left mine. "But all the things we did meant something right?" He asked and ran his fingers throughout his hair. I nodded at him and smiled at him, lovingly.
"I only want you. I promise you that." I told him and grasped his cheeks in the palms of my hands. He nodded his head while staring at me with a smile forming against his warm face. "Which sounds so cliche but I think we're good for one another. JJ and I get along but more in a friend way, I don't think that him and I would work out in any way." I told him and reassured him that nothing would happen between JJ and I. He tilted his head to the side while glancing around the room, then back down at the bracelet that he gifted me wrapped around my wrist. He took my hand into his, holding it with gentleness. "Do you mind if I ask your father for his blessing to be dating you?" He asked in a nervousness tone as he stared at me then back at my hand that he held. I smiled at him. It made me happy that he wanted my father's approval despite the fact that we already started seeing another. He wanted to make sure that my father approved and was okay with it. Which, I'm sure he would be despite the age difference of three years which wasn't much.
My hands sat in his own hands. The petite hands fit within his with much room to spare. They fit in his hands perfectly despite the size difference. In his presence, I felt more at peace and happiness. I felt safe when I was around him. I felt that I could be myself but also be able to open up my feelings to him without being judged.
"Yes, I would love that and I'm sure he would be delighted to allow you to have me." I told him and kissed the side of his cheek with gentleness. He smiled and nodded his head at me with his eyes forming happiness. "I want to right all of my wrongs and prove to you that I can be the best version of myself for you. Nonetheless, make you proud and your family. I don't even know them very well but I look forward to being able to see myself apart of the family." He spoke. "My family is broken. I don't have a mother figure beside rose and even at that, I don't get along with her like I told you on our date. My father is really only focused on Sarah. I try my hardest to be the best I can for him but I don't know how much longer I can get with him." He expressed and looked at me with a film forming over his eyes. I listened to him in depth, wanting to know how he felt but also what I could do as his girlfriend to help him out. "You can't always please everyone, but I can assure you that you'll please me and my family. You can be apart of this family no matter what. Your dad is missing out on your life but I promise you that I won't. My family won't. I'll be here for you no matter what." I told him and saw a warm tear drop from his eye from my reassurance to him. I could tell that all he wanted was to be loved and wanted — which he didn't get much of at home from his father. "We'll be proud of you, my love." I reassured him and smiled at him in a happily mannerism.
I couldn't see myself with anyone else. Despite the anxiety and nervousness that rushed through my body from what I had gone through earlier but he made me feel so much safer in that exact moment. He made me feel protected and cared about. He made me feel something that I never felt before.
It was different.
__________________________________
Let me know what you thought of this chapter! Leave ideas below too! :)