Nobody knew what to do after the explosion, it was like time had stilled, it was like a bomb went off with you and your friends hiding behind the trenches. Sarah's wailing and sobbing, the radios police officers had carried on them had picked up on frequencies from other cops in the area. Shoupe had responded, informing them of what had just occurred then ushering you, your brother, Pope, JJ, and Kie, off the dock.
Sarah was allowed to stay, being as this was her property, her father's property and he was dead. She stayed in Topper's arms, teary-eyed as she watched John B walk away without a word in her direction.
What could he say? What could any of you say?
I'm sorry? For her loss, probably. But none of you would truly mean it, Ward Cameron was better off dead.
None of you wanted to leave Sarah in her home alone with her brother who had attempted to murder her not 24 hours ago, but nobody dared to convince her to go with you all.
The weekend would end and you would all have to be back in school tomorrow, spending the last day fishing by the dock and contemplating the meaning of life after what you had just witnessed.
Day turned into night, JJ and Kie went to buy beer while you, Pope, and John B, lay on the HMS Pogue. The three of you stared up into the night sky in reflection. Your brother had just confessed to him and Sarah breaking up.
"I don't get it," John B voices after minutes of silence, "I don't."
"Love is five minutes of pleasure for a lifetime of pain."
You snap your fingers at Pope's poetic words, "Jesus if you wrote a book about heartbreak, I'd the shit out of it... Did it really only last five minutes though?"
You tried to lighten the mood a little, though clearly, those weren't the vibes the two heartbroken boys were on. Lowkey, neither were you, but showing it would just open a can of worms (questions) that you weren't ready to deal with.
Pope turns his head to his left, where you lay in between him and John B, "What is wrong with you?"
"What's going on with you and Kie?" You quip, sitting up and crossing your legs with your knees outwards. You technically already knew what Kie had told you, but you wanted to hear his thoughts.
"Well, she just wants to be friends."
"Oh, death blow," John B exhales. "I'm sorry, man."
"I-I didn't even see it coming," Pope lifted and let his hands fall onto his stomach.
You pursed your lips, not knowing what to say. Thankfully, you didn't because the duo that left had just come back, tossing beer your way. You almost didn't catch yours, JJ threw it at you swiftly, and you glared at him to which he ignored you.
"What are you guys doing down here?" He asked. "Having a good cry?"
"Cry?" John B and Pope ask each other, "What are you talking about? We don't cry."
You were about to, seeing Kie wearing JJ's sweater, the size overwhelming her frame. You popped open the can and sipped on it.
"You know it's not your fault right?" She asks JB with a smile.
"You think she'll come back?"
"She's one of us," She inhales smoke from a joint, no doubt she and JJ already started smoking.
He smiles to himself, "Sarah's a pogue."
~~~
"Y/n!"
A loud feminine voice yelled in your ear, you jolted awake, your hand swinging to hit whoever disturbed you.
"Woah, chill," She steps back.
"What the fuck, Kiara," You mumble into your pillow once you saw it was her.
"It's Monday, we have school."
You wanted to die, quickly and right now, in your sleep preferably. Your bed had never felt more comfortable, you felt like you had just closed your eyes and here this bitch was waking you from your slumber.
You physically could not open your eyes, they felt permanently shut. You felt yourself drift...
"Y/n!"
"Oh my god!" You cried out, "Okay, okay, I swear if John B and Jayj, aren't getting the same treatment I'm suing."
You rubbed your eyes, feeling your eyesight get better, you needed to wash your face. You changed into jeans and a grey cotton long-sleeve, the autumn air coming in, allowing you to wear your cozy clothing without dying of heatstroke.
You wobble your way to the bathroom about to open the door when it opens for you, your eyes widen before you as a familiar blond (who you still weren't talking to) appears before you, you both switch places and you shut the door. You quickly freshened up and went back to your room, snatching up your bookbag from the floor.
"We have a geometry test in 30 minutes," Pope informs John B, dragging him along and pulling JJ by his collar into the Twinkie.
You stayed behind, catching a ride with Kie, the both of you didn't have a test in the morning and decided you can be late to first period and homeroom to buy some groceries.
Kie insisted she pays, she saw how empty the fridge was before she woke you up and wanted to do something about it.
"You seriously don't have to do that," You protest as she pulls out a credit card.
She gives you a look, "I can't just let you guys starve, now c'mon let's drop this off before we're even more late."
~~~
After school, with a full fridge, you eat a bowl of fruit you picked out at the store as Pope explains how Mr. Sunn pulled them into his classroom and gave them Denmark Tanny's diary.
"August 15th set sail from Port-au-prince on calm seas." Pope Reads, "Came upon the Spanish ship San Jose on fire, the entire deck was aflame and we could hear the screams of men trapped below. The Spanish Captain cared about only one thing; his valuable cargo, the Cross of Santo Domingo, and countless bars of gold."
"Once the cargo was on board we went to help the crew but Captain Limberey ordered us to pull bayonets and not to let any of the Spanish crew on board. He robbed them and left them to die."
"So it didn't go down off Bermuda," JJ confirmed.
"And it was a Limberey, stealing shit again," Kie scoffed.
Pope nods, "This diary proves that both the gold and the Cross of Santo Domingo were on the Royal Merchant."
"Why didn't we find it in the well then?" JJ asked. "If Denmark was able to get this bedazzled cross off of the Merchant to shore, why didn't he just hide it with the gold?"
"Because it was too big," You piece his question together. "He had to hide it someplace else, obviously."
"But where?" John B questions.
"Right before he was hung, Denmark said he'd buried the treasure at the foot of the angel," Pope explains.
"I thought this was about the key," JJ looks confused.
"Right, so what's the connection?" Kie observes.
Pope repeats the line, "'The path to the tomb begins in the island room.'"
"But what is the island room?" She rolls her eyes.
"You know what helps me figure shit out?" JJ hops up from his place on the couch on the porch, you hold your breath for what he was about to say, knowing it could be potentially catastrophic. "Smoking beers and drinking weed, the ideas just pour out of me."
"I don't think we need another one of your ideas," You look up at him from your seat.
"Not like yours are any better," He snaps back and continues his statement. "If we just sit here and try to figure this out, we're gonna get nowhere, but if we get creative and go to this bonfire tonight... maybe we'll get somewhere."
"Or, just a perfect excuse to party," You slump in your seat.
"Well, I just got disowned by my parents and I'm an official member of the I-have-nothing-to-lose club," Kie pipes in, meaning she's in.
"Pope?" JJ looks to him hopefully.
He sighs, "We're so close."
JJ kneels down in front of Pope, "Think about how much you could think if you just gave your brain a rest."
John B, JJ, and Kie give him looks of encouragement, you didn't even bother, still bitter at JJ, though you were down for a party you weren't gonna tell him that.
Pope ends up conceding, the others bursting into cheers as they make plans to pre-game. You and your friends all take shots of some cheap vodka from a corner store that you all knew didn't ID before heading to the bonfire.
~~~
Every year it was set in a small old abandoned amphitheater-like place, dozens of teens from all parts of the island, gathered here for a beginning of the year rager. Kind of like a last hurrah, though the last hurrah would have technically been the last one, point is- people went wild. In a good way.
Pope and Kie were in conversation, hopping out of the Twinkie, not looking back twice, you stayed with JJ and John B, thinking you and John B would at least stick together.
Of course, you were wrong, one of John B's old hookups had been desperately begging for his attention, not even bothering to try to hide her obviousness.
JJ gave you one look before heading in another direction with a beer he was shotgunning.
You took a breath, letting the annoyance roll off you as you went in search of a drink, JJ would find a whore to fuck as John B would, Pope and Kie will go socialize and you would drink to drink yourself numb.
You bumped into a broad shoulder when trying to weave your way through people, you meant to apologize and move on but the guy who looked over his shoulder to see who had disrupted his conversation was cute. Really cute, forget about JJ for a whole night, cute.
You replaced the frown with a sheepish smile and softened your eyes to look at the boy through your lashes, "Sorry."
"No harm done," He turned his full attention to you. "What's your name, Gorgeous?" His features made you want to say, 'Whatever you want it to be' but you held off.
"Y/n, nice to meet you..."
"James," He hit you with a flirtatious smirk. 'Another one whose name starts with J' You willed away the urge your roll your eyes. The guy had dimples, and light brown eyes that weren't usually your type but it complimented him well.
You spent a good 45 minutes talking to him, he made the conversation flow and was easy to talk to, you were surprised you hadn't seen him around or heard about him but then again he was very much the 'boy-next-door' type.
He flirted like he was into you but it teetered the line of him just being a really nice dude. It frustrated you since you just wanted a good make out, have it lead to something else maybe, but you didn't want to push and he wasn't offering.
"I was thinking maybe a weekend when you're not so busy with school, we could hang out?" He looked at you hopefully.
"I-"
"She can't," You felt the weight of JJ's arm sling around your shoulder, pulling you into him as if you were naturally a part of him. You wriggled underneath him to get out of his hold but he didn't budge, only pulling you tighter.
"Oh," James' face faltered a little before brightening up again, "No worries then. It was nice talking to you, Y/n."
It was over. He was too nice of a guy to argue with JJ who was close enough to indicate that there was something between you, even though that couldn't be farther from the truth.
"Wait- James!" You groaned and hid your face in your hands feeling aggravated at the blond who had immediately slid his arm off your shoulders the minute the brunet was gone. You were in mourning for the sweet boy you had hoped to get to know more. "I hate you."
"I send away one hopeless guy, and I get knocked down your list of favorite people?" JJ repeats the words you told him the other day before the big argument.
"No, you've been acting like the world's biggest dick, that's how you get knocked down my list." You bump your shoulder against him as you shove past him and he walks after you. "Leave me alone."
"No," He persists.
"JJ, I don't want to talk to you right now."
"That's fine because I wanna talk to you."
You falter in my steps and my eyes narrow in thought, wondering what the hell was up with him and his quick change of emotions.
"I didn't like you talking to that guy-"
"So what, you were jealous?" The nerve of this guy, "Was that what that was?"
He hesitates, "Y/n, I'm just trying to look after you."
"I don't need you to look out for me, JJ, Jesus!" My voice raises, "I don't need you!"
"You almost died the other day, and I wasn't there."
"That's not your fault as much as it wasn't mine, but if you want to hide your feelings behind some bullshit, go ahead but don't use me as an excuse. You can be Kiara's knight in shining armor but not mine."
"The fuck are you talking about?"
You felt the sting of tears hit the back of your eyes, this was not how tonight was supposed to go, "You and Kie. There is something there and while that's still going on, you are not allowed to feel upset or jealous when I talk to a guy at a fucking party."
"Y/n-"
Shouts were coming from the pit, people rushed towards the scene and you heard Sarah's voice call out John B's name. You sighed and looked at JJ who was already running into the mess of people.
Can there never be just one day, you glare into the dark sky. You had the keys of the Twinkie on you, John B mistakenly tossing them to you when you were all walking to the party.
You didn't feel like dealing with whatever was going on, so while everyone was watching what you guessed was another fight, you took a therapeutic walk to the van. You started up the engine and crossed your legs on the dash of the passenger seat.
Your friends soon joined you, Kie went into the driver's seat next to you, John B held a beer can up to his forehead on the seat behind you, Pope was across from him and JJ just walked up to the open side door.
"Well that was unexpected," He crushes an empty can.
Kie turns her head to him with furrowed brows, "Was it?"
~~~
It was silent around the fire at the Chateau. You all took in the night, not knowing what else to do. What was supposed to be a distraction to help you all regain mental energy, just turned out to be more chaos that needed to be quieted.
With all that happened at the party, you sat the furthest away from JJ on the other end of where he was sitting, you tiredly leaned your head on John B's shoulder, with your marshmallow on the end of a stick, melting in the fire.
That was until he started sporadically moving trying to get a bite of Kie's s'more and your marshmallow fell into the pit. You pursed your lips, this night couldn't get any worse.
"I have never hated you more," You tell John B who left his seat and crouched on the other side of you for something.
"I'm stealing your marshmallow," Kie warned Pope who protested.
"Hand me one, please?" You reach out to grab another marshmallow she stole.
John B tapped your back and told you all to shush, "Soembody's here."
"You don't think Topper would..." Kie sets her stick down. "Do you have your gun?"
The five of your turn toward the rustling coming from the trees.
"Oh, now she wants the gun," JJ's tone accusatory as he recalls all the times Kiara scolded JJ for having the gun.
"Oh, now you don't have the gun?"
John B calls out to the person in the trees, and lo and behold, it's Limberey's manservant- Renfield.
"You have got to be kidding me," You whisper to yourself, thinking back on how you thought the night couldn't get any worse.
The man comes out of hiding with his hands up in surrender, "Lovely evening we're having."
It definitely was not a lovely evening, especially not with him here, you all knew what he was here for. John B had tricked him and his boss into thinking they had the right key, Pope's family's key.
"Look, I don't hold judges with any of y'all, alright?" He stops a couple of feet away from the group. "But this can go hard, or this can go easy, you know what I'm here for. Let me give you a little demonstration, you see that swing?"
He points to the swing you used to sit on in your childhood, JJ or John B would push you on it, sometimes pushing so far you would fly off.
"I got the best bow hunters in the Army Rangers with me," He whistles sharply and an arrow comes flying through barely passing JJ's nose and hitting the carved tree. "Now, they're out there, they'll stick you just as soon as I say so."
JJ moves to swing at Renfield with a long rusty piece of metal but he all too soon whistles and another arrow lands directly next to JJ's foot.
The realization hits everyone at the same time it seems, you look at Pope sympathetically, these guys he brought with him were clearly good. If any of you had any tricks, one of you would get shot.
"I'm not gonna give you a countdown or any bullshit like that, I'm just gonna whistle." He stood in front of Pope, tension was heavy as he held eye contact with Pope.
Your friend looked pained as he dug into the pocket of his shorts and brought out the key with the red string, "This key belongs to my family."
"I'm losing patience with you, Pope," Renfield brings his fingers to his lips as a threat.
Slowly, Pope hands it to the man.
"You did the right thing kid, knowing when you don't have a choice is an underappreciated talent," he waves the key in front of Pope. "You be safe."
You felt like you could finally breathe with him several paces away from you all now, but Pope looked like he was about to cry and you went after him as he stormed off.
~~~
Not fully proofread but here it is