★★★
★★★
When I got to Kie's house, we were immediately wrapped up in getting ready for the night's event, and I had no time to tell her anything that had happened to me in the past few hours. She knew JJ was out of jail, and that was all I told her to make sure she didn't freak out.
I knew it was kind of pointless to rant about my bickering with John B. and JJ, so I left well enough alone. I wanted to have a nice night at this point, and going with Kie to this crazy up-scale party would be just what I needed to get my mind off of everything.
Kie and her mom had a little back and forth about the morals of the party, Kie's mom eventually winning, and then we went to pick out a dress for me once my hair and makeup were up to her mom's standards, little white flowers adorning either side of my head. The dress they found for me was a cream-colored flowy thing that had a tight upper half and breezy mesh bottom half.
It looked insanely expensive, too expensive for someone like me to wear. Maybe JJ was right, I didn't fit in with the girls that would look at this dress and find it normal to own something as elegant as it. I was used to shorts and tank tops, there was no way in hell at any point tonight I would get used to this.
They pulled out some heels too, little white heels that looked like I'd have to sell John B.'s van if I ever actually wanted to afford them. I tried not to look too shocked and received the garment from Kie's mom, going into the bathroom and putting it on. I looked at myself in the mirror and sighed. I never would've thought I'd see myself like this.
"Let me see!" Kie playfully whined from outside of her bathroom, and I snapped out of my self-induced trance for a second, leaving the room. I walked over to Kie, giving a tiny curtsy, and she smiled widely.
"Oh my god! You look so good. JJ's gonna drool over this, I swear," She said, and my smile faltered slightly. Her mom walked in again, praising how I looked and urging us to get going. "We're gonna be late girls, I'll meet you in the car," She said with a hurried smile.
We looked at each other and sighed. It was going to be a long night, we could already tell. I remembered that, of course, the Camerons were going to be there. Kie had told me Ward Cameron was being honored tonight for something I didn't care enough to find out about, and that meant his kids would be coming too.
I'd bump into Rafe at some point that night, I was predicting it, but I decided to be the bigger person. I wouldn't let him scare me anyway, he didn't hold that power over me anymore, and I was determined to keep it that way. We got in the car and drove off to the Island Club in a hurry, her mom was eager to please.
I could tell her mom had worked hard to get them into the Island Club, which was something interesting to me. Who would want to spend so much money on a dumb club? Status, I guess. We arrived in under fifteen minutes due to her mom's frantic speeding, and once we arrived, we were immediately in the middle of everything. We walked in and Kie and were offered drinks, probably non-alcoholic, but still.
I wasn't used to this type of thing, so I simply followed Kie's every move. I didn't make it look obvious though, I just took a drink when she did and walked around with her. As Pogue as she was, she was good at Kook mingling. We spotted Sarah, and naturally, Kie kept her distance. I still didn't know why Kie hated her so much, but I knew they were not on good terms.
I saw Pope and walked over to him, and he looked me up and down. "Damn, Stevie! I didn't know you were dressing up for this? Kie talk you into it?" He asked, and I smiled. With a fake bow, I swished the flowy part of my dress around a little before answering. "Yeah, she asked me to come with her, but honestly being in a dress is so fun," I said with a beaming smile.
At least Pope didn't harass me over something this small. He actually smiled and laughed positively at my answer. "Well, you look really good and you're having fun. You deserve it," He said, and I couldn't contain my smile anymore.
I pulled him into a quick hug he hugged back. "Thank you for having my back today," he said, and I lit up. I had almost forgotten Pope was nearly arrested earlier. "Oh, yeah, of course," I said in awe. We pulled apart after a few seconds and I saw JJ, and I knew Pope saw him too. His face was still fucked, and Pope would definitely bring that up with him, but I saw this as my chance to leave.
"Hold on, Stevie, wait-" He started to call after me, but I ignored him, walking away to find Kie again. Instead, John B. was in my line of sight, ushering me towards him. I rolled my eyes, walking towards him. "What the hell do you want?" I asked, and he folded his hands into a praying position.
"Please just help me," He said, and I shrugged. "Depends on what I have to do," I said. He pulled a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to me, "Give that to Sarah, okay? Tell her it's from Vlad," I snatched it from his hand and stuffed it in the top of my dress. "Why do girls do that?" He genuinely asked. "It's extra storage, why not use it?" I asked rhetorically and walked away.
With my dress flowing behind me, I made my way over to Sarah on the "dance floor", pretending to be there to dance along with everyone else. I danced closer to her until I was next to her and she looked at me like she expected something. I took out the folded paper and motioned for her to take it, all while still lightly bouncing around.
"Vlad wanted you to have this," I said, pretending I was just feeling the music and not even looking at her most of the time. We looked right at each other, however, and her eyes softened. "Vlad?" She asked with a hint of a smile, and I nodded. My heart hurt for her, I really hoped John B. wasn't just using Sarah.
It didn't matter that we weren't friends. It didn't matter that she was a Kook. All that mattered was that she was a girl with feelings, and they might get hurt. I hoped not. She smiled wider and held the note close to her, trying to look discreet, and I walked away. I saw JJ going inside, followed by Kelce and Rafe, and I knew something was wrong.
I followed them inside and saw them go into the men's room, JJ and the rest now running full speed, but I obviously couldn't go in after them. I peeked around the corner outside of the restrooms, trying to listen to what was happening inside, and when I was close enough, I could hear enough. They were fighting. Typical.
A security guard brushed past me and went into the men's room to break up the fight. Eventually, I heard JJ's big mouth again, "You're looking spiffy too, you Powerpuff Girls have fun."
"Tell Stevie I still think she's hot for a Pogue," I heard Rafe said, and my own fury almost got the best of me, but I stood my ground. I heard JJ rip away from the guard to... defend me? "You think I'm afraid of you?" He shouted at Rafe. I waited for another second, and when they came out, I panicked.
I saw the guard holding JJ's arm, escorting him out, but not before he and I could make eye contact. My eyes widened slightly and I turned around, taking off out of the club. I rejoined Kie on the patio and tried to slow my breathing. As JJ was taken out, he was obviously making a commotion, taking Mr. Dunleavy's drink and "downing it" as he announced to the surrounding party-goers.
As we watched him get dragged down the patio, he passed a blonde woman. "Rose! You look like lady liberty," He quipped, and the blood in my face drained. I looked at who he was talking to, a woman with an extravagant gold headpiece on, and I waited for her to turn around. I needed to see her face.
When she turned, I almost vomited. It was my mom. Rose, my dead mother. Here. Midsummers. At a fucking party. With Ward Cameron. A new family. A rich family.
My head began to spin, Kie started shouting to get the guard to let JJ go, and eventually, we were running off. I ran into JJ and he lifted me up, spinning me around, and I smiled at him. I pushed Rose to the back of my mind and ran off with the rest of my friends. We went to the van and took off towards Rixon's Cove, waiting for Sarah and the plat maps.
We discussed the maps and everything. John B. filled us in on where the gold actually was, and we made a plan. He announced that Sarah would be there, and of course, Kie blew up.
"This should be good," JJ said sarcastically as John B. attempted to explain himself. When we had settled down, it was time to go to the Hawks Nest. We pulled in and John B. announced that he was going to be doing this one on his own. I didn't care. Everything was beginning to blend together and become choppy as my mind still whirled from earlier.
John B. left and we were all quiet for a bit. Until I broke the ice, that is.
"I saw my mom tonight," I said bluntly.
Everyone looked at me, not sure what to make of what I had just said. "I thought-" Kie started, and as my eyes began to water, I laughed a little. "You thought my mom was dead? Yeah, so did I," I answered, and she shook her head, not understanding.
"Rose, Ward's wife. She's my mom. It took me until tonight to realize it, and I saw her tonight and almost lost my fucking mind," I said, and everyone was in shock. "Don't believe me?" I asked, taking off my locket and opening it. I saw her face, Rose, and began to cry a little harder.
She was younger in the picture, but it was 100% Rose. They all looked at the locket, and finally, JJ took it. He examined it, his facial features hardening. "How is this even possible?" He asked, and I chuckled.
"Well, she abandoned me. She wanted her perfect Kook life back, and I wasn't a part of that equation, that's all," I said, sniffing and wiping away a tear. She left me. Was my dad alive? Maybe not, otherwise, I would've liked to think they would still be together. I didn't know what to think anymore, to be honest. I felt too much.
As JJ gave the locket back and helped me clasp it around my neck, he looked at me. "I'm sorry. I was being a jerk before, I really am sorry though," He said, and I nodded. "I know you didn't mean it. I need to talk to you later though, okay?" I asked, and he nodded back.
"HELP! SOMEBODY PLEASE, HELP!" We heard a shrill voice scream. We all jumped up and looked at each other. "What the hell?"
★★★
Look at me... publishing on time and shit. Heehee. Crazy shit's going down, folks, strap in.