"Alright!" John B clapped as he parked the Bus, or Mystery Machine, as Devyn called it, outside of his house.
"Meet at the dock in 15," John instructed, "grab your suits and some brews."
JJ let out a 'whoop' as he opened the van door, grabbing Devyn and throwing her over his shoulder.
"JJ, knock it off!" Devyn squealed, pounding roughly on his back with her small fists, although the boy wasn't even slightly fazed.
"Quit complaining, Dev," JJ scoffed, beginning to spin around whilst holding the girl, causing her to squirm against him. "I'm giving you free transportation, stop being so ungrateful."
"I live two houses down," she reminded him as he finally set her down.
The upside of living on the Cut; nobody cared what they did. Most of the Pogues came from messed up home lives, Devyn being no exclusion. She was just thankful that she lived so close to her best friend, John B, who knew a little bit of what her real life was like. Devyn Keoka was never one to talk about feelings, even after her mom died last summer. JJ swears that she didn't even cry at the funeral, which wouldn't be out of character for the girl. She always chose to focus on other people's problems instead of her own; it was how she coped.
JJ stood on Devyn's front porch, sighing as he sat beside the front door.
"When are you going to let me inside of your house again?" JJ questioned, causing the girl to laugh. Ever since her mother passed, Devyn hadn't let a single one of her friends inside of her house. Not even John B, who practically lived next door.
"Never," Devyn told him, shooting him a sly grin as she opened the front door, "be out in five, don't miss me too much," she teased, heading inside after shooting the boy a playful wink.
She closed the door quickly, making sure JJ couldn't be seen. Her house was small, consisting of a tiny kitchen, a living space barely big enough for a couch, one bathroom, and two small bedrooms. Her father had never been in her life, at least that she could remember. She didn't even know who the man was, but she tried not to let it bother her; there was nothing she could do about it. Her mom had her brother, Alex, when she was 16, and Devyn when she was 19. After their mom died, Alex was the only family Devyn had left, although to say the two didn't get along would be an understatement.
"Where the hell have you been?" Alex barked at the teen, who slipped past him and into her small room. A closet, mattress on the floor, and pictures on the wall are what her living space consisted of.
"I was fishing with John B," Devyn told him, hands shaking slightly as she rummaged through her closet to find a clean bathing suit. "I'm just changing and then I'll be out of your hair." She told her brother, slipping into a black bikini and a pair of jean shorts.
Devyn opened her door, only to be met with Alex standing right outside. He grabbed her arm tightly, causing Devyn to gasp at the burning sensation his hand was causing.
"Let go!" Devyn pleaded, jaw clenching as Alex's face morphed into one of anger.
"You know I don't like your friends," Alex said lowly, tightening his grip on her arm, which would surely leave a bruise at this point, based on the severity of his grip alone.
"You don't even know them," Devyn scoffed, attempting to free herself from his grasp, causing him to squeeze her upper arm tighter. "Alex, stop, my friends are waiting."
"Yeah, I'm sure they are," Alex growled, shoving her away from him towards the door. "Have fun with your dirty little friends, skank."
"Thanks," Devyn muttered, attempting to compose herself before she opened the door.
Alex wasn't always like this. He used to be a kind and loving older brother who would do anything for Devyn. But ever since their mom died, he had turned cruel and angry, doing everything he could to strike fear into his baby sister.
Devyn took a deep breath as she moved her wavy black hair out of her eyes, opening the door quickly and slipping out onto the porch.
"Ready," Devyn plastered on a fake smile at JJ, who stood up once she came outside.
"Took you long enough," JJ teased, trying not to let his best friend see his eyes raking over her toned, tan body, although they stopped on her bright red arm. "Hey, what happened?" He asked softly, concern filling his features at the angry handprint on her skin.
"Hm?" Devyn hummed, trying to avoid his question. "Oh, this?" She chuckled, glancing down at the swollen arm that already had shades of purple underneath. "Ran into my door, you know how clumsy I am."
"Right," JJ muttered, brows furrowed in worry. As he opened his mouth to question her further, Devyn's face lit up as she challenged him to a race, already sprinting to the Chateau, also known as John B's house, without warning.
"Cheater!" JJ yelled as he ran after her, a smile never leaving his face.
All of the Pogues knew JJ was absolutely and utterly in love with her, although Devyn was none the wiser. The group had been friends since second grade, excluding Kiara, who joined the friend group more recently. They had grown up together, been through thick and thin, and their bond was unbreakable. JJ never wanted to do anything to jeopardize their friendship. Plus, the group had rules; No Pogue on Pogue macking. JJ hated John B for that one.
"Ha!" Devyn exclaimed as she stopped on John B's front porch, arms raised in victory as JJ caught up to her, panting heavily. "All that smoking is turning your lungs black."
"Says the biggest pothead I know," JJ retorted, flicking her forehead as he let himself into John's house.
"Don't judge me!" Devyn let out a sarcastic gasp, knowing the boy would never do such a thing.
"Never, Devvy," JJ grinned, taking a pair of swim shorts from John B's drawer and changing, while Devyn helped herself to a beer from his fridge, grabbing one for JJ as well.
"Come on, J," Devyn ushered the boy, knowing damn well she took much longer than he did to get changed. "Places to be, people to see."
JJ walked out of John B's room in his swimsuit and white tank top, rolling his eyes to himself as he caught the beer the girl had thrown his way.
"All aboard the HMS Pogue."
——
Devyn sat next to Pope, her head leaning up against his thigh as the boy read, her eyes closed peacefully as she listened to the hum of the boat's engine. Pope played with her hair with one hand, holding his book in the other, knowing how much the girl loved when he did so.
JJ's jaw clenched as he watched the interaction, jealousy bubbling inside of him for reasons beyond his control. He took a pull of his Juul, puffing the smoke into the air as he did his best to stop looking at Devyn.
Kiara sat a few feet away, face buried in her phone for reasons unknown to the group, her hair spinning wildly in the wind.
"Nice haul, dude. Look at that," JJ complimented John B as he dumped a net of fish onto the front space of the boat.
"Ugh, John B," Kiara groaned, her face grimacing as the fish flopped too close to her for comfort.
"Smells like ass," Devyn mumbled, who had started to doze off thanks to Pope's magical scalp rubs.
"Time for dinner folks, back to the 'Teau."
——-
After a long night of eating, drinking, smoking, and partying, the Pogues were scattered throughout the Chateau, each member of the group at varying levels of being hungover.
"Morning, Kie, Dev," John B greeted the girls, who mumbled back in response.
Devyn handed Kie her Juul back as she looked at John B, who was staring longingly at a picture of his father.
Big John Routledge disappeared at sea nine months ago, looking for a shipwreck. John B always believed that he was still alive, still out there somewhere, and Devyn believed in John B.
She stood up from the pull-out couch she and Kiara were currently snuggled on, the former groaning at the loss of warmth due to the girl's absence. Devyn stood behind John, wrapping her arms around his stomach and resting her head against his shoulder blade. John B sighed as he placed his arms over Devyn's, squeezing her gently.
"He could still be out there, you know," Devyn told him hopefully. In reality, she truly hoped Big John was still alive; he had been as much of a father to her as he had to John B.
"I know," John sighed, giving the girl one last squeeze as he tapped his beer against the picture of his uncle who was supposed to be looking after him. "Come on," John mumbled, taking Devyn's hand in his own and leading her outside.
The pair greeted Pope, who was stretched across the couch on the back porch, using a cushion as a blanket.
John B made his way to the hammock that was tied between two trees, plopping down on his back as Devyn laid on top of him on her stomach, head resting on his chest. John had his arms wrapped around her back, one of his favorite feelings in the world. John B loved Devyn with his entire being, he always would. She was the sister he never had and he was the brother she used to have. They were family. They all were.
———
End of the second chapter! How y'all liking it so far? Just trying to build some background on Devyn before jumping right into the plot. Don't y'all worry, the good stuff is coming up soon. Please leave a comment!