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(S1 E7)
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Parker wakes up in an unfamiliar place, making her sit up quickly. The sudden moment causes her head to pound, and she lets out a groan as she flops backwards.
From next to her, she hears a laugh that makes her stomach fill with butterflies, and Sarah moves into her line of sight. In her hands is a glass of water and some Aspirin.
Parker makes grabby hands at her girlfriend, causing Sarah to laugh again. She moves forward and passes of the items in her hand, and Parker quickly places the pills in her mouth and takes a big gulp of the water to wash them down.
She lets it sit for a second before downing the rest of the water, wanting to wash the sour taste out of her mouth. Sarah sits down next to her on the bed, placing her hand on the taller blonde's back and rubbing it comfortingly.
"How are you feeling?" Instead of answering, Parker turns slightly and places her head in the crook of Sarah's neck. "I'm sorry. I'm so, so, sorry." Sarah wraps her arms around Parker's neck and runs her hands through her hair soothingly.
"It's okay, baby. It's okay. I'm here." Sarah continued to hold Parker and run her hands through her hair until the Maybank girl finally calmed down once again, and the two of them lie back together.
As they lay there, Parker remembers that she doesn't really know where she is. "How did I get here? Also, where is here?" Sarah turns to face her girlfriend. "We're at my house. John B drove us over here because you have to fish with my dad tomorrow. Today is a rest day for us."
Parker hums in understanding, bu then groans when she fully processes her girlfriend's words. "I don't wanna go fishing tomorrow," She pouts like a toddler.
Sarah giggles at her girlfriend before pulling down Parker's jutted out lip. "Too. Bad." She pokes Parker's nose to punctuate her words, and the taller blonde scrunches up her nose adorably in response.
The couple sits back on the bed together, and Sarah grabs her laptop. "Wanna watch something?" Parker nods, basically snatching the device and pulling up a movie, but refusing to show Sarah.
Sarah plays along, not knowing what kind of movie her girlfriend would pick, but when she sees the screen, she would have never guessed it in a million years.
"You like Clueless?" Parker nods enthusiastically, stating, "Yeah, it's my second favorite movie of all time. It's so fucking good!" Sarah laughs at her excited answer, then catches what she had said. "What's your first favorite?"
Parker seems to have the answer on the tip of her tongue, quickly replying, "The Shawshank Redemption." Sarah gives her a look that makes Parker let out a giggle. "I know they're super different, but I love them both very much. Don't attack me for my movie tastes!"
Sarah shrugs her shoulders, backing off. The two of them settle back into her bed and get comfortable, excited to watch the movie.
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Parker groans as her alarm goes off, and when she looks at her phone, she can see that it isn't even 4 am yet. She tries to roll over, but then she finally notices the weight behind her, realizing that it is Sarah.
Sarah wakes up with the alarm as well, and when Parker tries to roll over, she shoves her towards the edge of the bed. She grumbles, "No. You promised you would go, so you're going." Parker groans in response, but doesn't fight her girlfriends rule.
Sarah watches as Parker gets dressed, not being able to keep her eyes away from her gorgeous girlfriend. As Parker throws on her brother's shirt, she notices the watchful eyes of the Cameron girl on her.
"Whatcha looking at, Princess?" A blush took over Sarah's cheeks as she gets caught, but the grin that Parker gives her makes her feel warm and fuzzy inside and makes her forget about the embarrassment.
Parker goes into the bathroom connected to Sarah's bedroom and brushes her teeth before walking back out and pressing a kiss onto Sarah's lips.
"I'll see you in a bit, yeah?" Sarah nods while biting her lip, making Parker smile sweetly at her. The tall blonde exits the bedroom, and when she walks downstairs, she bumps into John B.
The two fist bump before heading out the door and down to the dock that was housing The Druthers. They begin to get everything set up, hoping to get Ward in a good mood for this trip, as they want to make a good impression on the man who had taken them in so kindly.
"Mornin', boss." John B's statement makes Parker look up, and she sees Ward making his way down the dock. "Yes, it is." He then looks at the two kids, smiling at them. "Look at you two, already at work."
Parker hops down from the boat, making her way over to Ward. He grabs one end of the last cooler on the dock and she grabs the other, grunting under its weight. They both heave it onto the boat before climbing up next to John B.
"Guffy said he got into it pretty good just north of Big Rock," John B notifies the older man, hoping they would go somewhere in a more contained environment. "Guffy, huh?" Ward scratches his beard, thinking about it for a second. "With the mouth on him, there'll be fifteen boats up there already. I say we go south. Swansboro Hole. It'll just be me and you two down there. Sound good?"
The two friends share a look before nodding, and Ward claps his hands in finality. "All right, let's do it!" He starts up the boat and pulls away from the dock, missing the two Pogues less then enthusiastic repeat of his words.
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As the sun rose, the three of them made their way to the spot that Ward had suggested. It was signifigantly further out than Parker had expected, which made her begin to feel slightly uneasy. She choses to ignore it and to just enjoy the trip with her best friend and her girlfriend's father. While they motor, they hang out in the top cabin on the Druthers. Ward had begun to drink, with John B and Parker taking turns refilling his glass.
"We picked a good one, didn't we?" The two Pogues murmur words of agreement, nodding their heads. Ward lets out a content sigh before glancing at his empty glass. "Hit me again."
When John B grabs alcohol and a box of grapefruit juice, Ward gestures for him to put the grapefruit juice back. "Ah... you know what? Hold the grapefruit juice on this one. Let's get this day on it's feet." Parker cringes slightly, the older man's statement and actions reminding her slightly of her father.
Ward thinks for a second before adding, "In fact, you know what? Pour yourself and Parker one..." Both John B and Parker look at the man with shocked expressions. "We're, uh... We're--We're 16, sir." John B stammers out.
Ward rolls his eyes dramatically. "John, I know you guys are 16, okay? It's okay. It's just one drink. We're out here in the ocean. These are almost international waters. We're celebrating. Just one." John B reluctantly agrees, but when he shoots Parker a look asking if she wants one, she shakes her head to the negative.
"See, here's the thing. I don't know if you know this, but you're about to be fishing with a Grand Knight of the Rhododendron." John B and Parker share a confused look, immediately lost. "I know you don't know what that is, and it doesn't seem like a big deal, but... to me, it is, it means I'm a... I'm a trusted member of this community. That means a lot to me. Trust." John B nods his head, going along with the mans words, but Parker can't help but be reminded of the similarity to the conversation they had had when Ward had fired her. He was trying to get something out of them.
The older man lifts up his glass in a gesture for a toast. "Here's to trust, you guys." John B clinks his drink with Wards, and Parker clinks her water with his as well. They both echo the man's statement nervously before taking a sip.
John B winces at the drink, and Ward lets out a laugh. "You okay?" John B nods, coughing slightly. "Yeah. No, I'm-- I'm-- Yeah." Ward nods his head, lifting his glass once more. "Wait, I got one more. One more, I promise." The two Pogues share another look, but Ward just focuses his eyes on Parker. "I hear your girlfriend is pretty nice."
Parker can't help the grin that finds its way onto her lips at the thought of Sarah. She lifts her glass up and says, "To Sarah." The man and the boy echo back the sentiment, and they all take another sip.
Soon after, they arrive at their destination. Parker and John B pull out the fishing rods and begin to bait them, pull chairs over to the edge of the boat so that they can sit while fishing. Parker casts her line, hoping to catch something good. She usually goes fishing with the boys, and they typically get a decent amount of fish. She sits in that same spot with the same bait for quite a few hours, but nothing bites.
"Anything?" Ward asks. John B, who is in the same situation as her, replies, "Nothin'." Ward sighs, disappointed. "Three hours trawling, one hour out here. We're getting skunked, guys. Not a damn fish. I guess Guffy was right, huh?" He glances around for a second before continuing. "You know, half the time I don't even care if I find fish. I Just like bein' out here."
Parker nods along, knowing just what the older man means. A sad smile spreads across John B's lips. "That's what my dad used to say." At the mention of Big John, a similar soft smile forms on Parker's face. She can't help but miss the man, as he acted as more of a father to her and JJ than their actual father ever did.
"John B, Parker, I wanna be real honest with you right now. I'm gonna ask you to do the same for me." John B still seems to be lost in his head when he nods but Parker immediately becomes suspicious at the Cameron man's words.
He takes a step in front of the two teens. "First thing I have to do is apologize to you." This is not what Parker was expecting. Her and John B share another one of the many confused looks they had already exchanged today before looking back at Ward. "For what?"
He steps even closer, as if he has a secret to hide from the ghosts of the open water. "I told you to stop lookin' for the Royal Merchant gold. And you didn't. Goddamn it, you found it." He chuckles but the other two don't join in.
Parker hides her shock as best she can, and she glances at her hands to avoid eye contact with Ward. John B is the first to speak next. "I wish." Parker nods, muttering, "Could be rich right now." The three of them chuckle awkwardly, but Ward is still giving them a conspiratorial look.
John B clears his through nervously, and Ward takes this as he opportunity to continue pushing. "You can play it that way if you want. I won't force your hand. But I know that you did. Yeah... And it's amazing. Sincerely, it's unbelievable. A hundred and fifty years, people been lookin' for that goddamn gold. None of 'em could find it. You found it. Here's the thing, son. Finding it? That's where the fun ends. That's where all your problems begin. Ones you haven't even thought of. I mean, excavating it. You're probably trying now. If it's in water, how do you get it up? If it's on land, on somebody's property, and they catch you trying to take it? That's theft. Jesus, son, we are talkin' a massive amount of gold, John. You guys are sixteen. How are you gonna transport that gold? How are you gonna turn it into something in your bank account, something you can spend? See what I'm saying? See the difficulties? This is what I'm talking about. The real truth, the hard truth is that, John, right now... you are way over your head. You need me. Let's do this together. I can make all those problems go away. That's my job. You and I will figure out an equitable split. I know you didn't do this on your own, that you have friends that helped you, so we cut them in. Don't be so nervous. It's okay, all right? I'm just here to help you. All you gotta do is trust me. What do you say? Wanna do this?"
The two young Pogues share a glance, knowing that they can't reveal their secret. They hold eye contact for a moment longer before they shrug, scarily at the same time. "We don't know what you're talkin' about."
Ward's face begins to turn red, and Parker can tell that he is holding back his anger. He moves his gaze from John B over to her, but she just shrugs again. "Okay. Okay, you two. Okay. All right, all right. We can play it that way. I think very quickly you'll come to realize there's really no other choice. I mean, I know, right? I know that you have it. I know that you've had a little taste of it. I know a submersible went missing from the salvage yard, right? I know maybe that's how you got it out of the water. If it's on land, I know that you've been all... all around the Eight recently, okay? I know maybe it's something to do with Redfield. I know you asked for the map from Sarah, so I gave you the map from Tannyhill."
Parker's head snaps in the direction of Ward, who she had been avoiding looking at. John B looks at him, confused. "What did you just say?" Ward looks at him, a little lost. "I know-- The map of Tannyhill." Both John B and Parker shake their heads.
"What-- what did you just say? The other thing." Ward goes through what he had just said in his head, not knowing what John B was asking about. Parker steps up next to John B and begins to question the man as well.
"How do you know about Redfield?" Ward opens his mouth to let out an excuse but the only thing that escapes is a dry chuckle. John B takes a step forward. "Unless you have my father's compass." Ward tries to deny it, but John B ignores him and continues to put the pieces together in his head. "And if you have the compass, then you knew to search for it, right?"
Ward decides to go with disbelief, scoffing, "Do you hear how crazy you're being?" John B nods his head, but it's clear that he knows Ward is lying. "Yes, yes. I'm listening!" Ward's next denial sounds a lot shakier, as he can see John B's anger rising to a dangerous level. "You sound crazy."
"Redfield! You said Redfield, did you not? 'Redfield' was the last message my father left before he disappeared. You know about his disappearance, don't you? Don't-- don't-- don't fucking lie to me, Ward. I can see that you do. Let's see what the sheriff has to say about this." John B and Parker back away from the man and head towards the cockpit, ready to drive the boat away from the middle of nowhere. "Goin' home."
Parker's anger isn't as visible as John B's, but that doesn't mean that she's any less angry. They walk towards the throttle and get everything ready so that they can motor away. John B reaches for the throttle but the sound of metal clanging makes him freeze. Both teens turn around slowly, and there behind them, is Ward standing on the ladder with a fishing gaff, a crazy look in his eye.
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A/N: Y'all school is so stressful so chapters are gonna be so inconsistent for a while. I hope y'all understand. Hope you guys like this chapter!
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