♙CHAPTER TWO♙
( MALIA PARRISH )
ONE: THE ATLANTIC
"i feel a rush of adrenaline"
malia didn't think twice about removing her denim shorts and john b's hat before jumping into the water beside jj as kie, john b and pope were hurrying to join them. this wasn't something a girl as privileged as malia parrish should be doing, but she couldn't stop herself.
"you think there's a dead body down there?" pope asked being the last one in the water.
"let's hope we don't end up being the dead bodies down there" malia mumbled to herself praying her friends didn't hear, considering how hesitant she was.
the five teenagers let their bodies sink to the bottom of the water where the boat was, malia squinted her pretty blue eyes as she pushed herself towards the boat trying not to let the dirty water affect her sight too much. there was no dead body in there. thank god. but the boat was empty so she decided to push herself to the surface. she inhaled a large amount of air as she looked at her friends smiling faces.
"you guys saw that?" jj asked grinning, and malia knew exactly why.
"that's a grady-white. a new one of those is like 500 gs, easy" jj explained as they began swimming back to the boat. malia was the last in as she earned a hand from pope in assistance.
"yeah. that's the boat i saw when we surfed the surge" john b explained as malia thought back to the night wondering if he was right.
"maybe it hit the jetty or something" pope suggested as malia shook her body to try and rid of all the water.
"you surfed the surge?" kie asked looking between john b and the boys, not even thinking of malia.
"we" john b stated pointing between himself and malia "surfed the surge" he clarified making the blue eyed surfer hit his arm.
"pogue style" jj said high-fiving john b "you sure all you two did was surf?" the blonde asked taking a seat behind malia pulling her into his lap.
"shut up" malia whispered hitting jj in the arm as she leaned back into his chest, her wet hair sticking to him.
"what the hell" kie muttered angrily looking between the four smiling teenagers. malia wanted to roll her eyes at how much she was overreacting, but she knew she was right.
"wait, wait. do we know whose boat that is?" pope asked as he took heavy breaths well speaking. kie and jj looked at malia for answers considering how connected her family was, she should've known something.
"no, but we're about to find out" john b said pulling out an anchor making malia shoot up from jj's lap towards the boy.
"no" she began shaking her head as she hit his arm "no one's resuscitating you, johnny" she explained as she watched him pick it up not listening.
"diver down, fool" pope saluted as john b stood to the edge.
"if you live, i'm so gonna kill you" malia muttered to herself as she watched the boy throw her a shit eating grin.
"yeah, she is" jj exclaimed happily pushing the boy down with the anchor still in his arms, the splash slightly wet the teenagers making them jump back as they stayed close enough to the edge to watch the boy.
it took around three minutes but they all sat at the edge of the boat all being able to see something moving around the bottom of the trench. john b finally submerged "that took forever!" kie exclaimed in relief.
"any dead bodies?" "looting potential?" pope and jj asked making malia roll her eyes before her and jj stuck their arms out to help the boy.
"no. but i found this motel key" he coughed as he held up a small yellow key.
"a key" malia and pope repeated at the same time causing them to share a quick confused glance.
"great! we salvaged a motel key" jj said sarcastically as he let malia help john b back in.
"guys, we should report the reck to the coast guard. maybe we'll get a finder's fee" kie offered as pope began the boat back to shore.
"yeah, and not work all summer" jj said "thanks agatha, you bitch" he joked in a tone.
――――
no one bothered listening to the teenagers at the deck, meaning it was up to them. malia sat on an emptied bucket as she let her head rest on pope's shoulder. "so, what's the plan?" he asked.
"i think i know how we're gonna find the guy who owns the boat" john b said waving the key around, malia did not want to go.
"no, we don't know whose room that is. it could be anyone" this is why malia liked pope. he was smart, safe and always thought of the outcomes. he was a realist.
"i'm in" jj said plucking the keys from john b throwing them to kie who was behind malia.
"come on. i'll be lookout" she said happily as she looked between pope and malia's reluctant faces.
"finder's fee. just sayin'" john b said patting pope on the shoulder before going behind malia and pulling her up by her waist.
an odd feeling went through the girl when he touched her bare skin, her still just being in her bikini top. she'd felt it before, sure. but with john b? no. topper, her ex? yes. it wasn't that she didn't like the feeling. but it was odd.
"up for an adventure?" he asked as he wrapped an arm around her waist leaning his face dangerously close.
"you gonna save me if this goes wrong?" she asks turning her blue eyes to meet his brown ones. john b was extremely tanned she noted. all those hours of being outside did him well.
"when do i not?" he asked rhetorically as she laughed and pushed his face away slightly with a grin.
and john b wasn't wrong and she knew it. whatever trouble the teenagers landed themselves in, it would always be john b getting them out of it or taking the blame.
――――
"i thought the chateau looked bad" malia whistles as john b's fishing boat approached the wrecked motel. hurricane agatha really did a number on the place.
"this place is a shitshow" john b said not even taking his eyes off the building once.
"motel or meth lab?" kie asked jokingly, but with the state of the place she wouldn't be far off.
"you be the judge" pope answered as they pulled the boat to the side.
"doesn't look like a place somebody with a grady-white stays" jj said as malia noticed a small boat thrown into a tree.
"no. looks like a place someone with a grady- white would get killed" pope corrected making malia nod her head in agreement.
jj jumped out with a whelp making the boat rattle a little before john b looked back at the other three who would be staying. pope noticed jj's expression and walked towards john b "hey, don't let him do anything stupid" he instructed knowing he had too much to lose.
"oh, we will" jj said making malia flick some water towards him.
"uh, be careful" kie said to john b standing weirdly close to him as she passed the keys "i mean it" she added making the boy look her down with a slight smile.
malia did roll her eyes at this. she didn't know why but she did. they all thought something was going on between john b and kie but didn't know whether it was true or not.
"yeah" he breathed out as he stepped off the boat. "anything you wanna say?" he asked stopping beside jj looking at malia.
the girl pouted her plump pink lips before tilting her head "jj. don't get caught. johnny, come back in one piece" she ordered watching as john b gave her a grin and jj sent her a smirk.
"will you give me a reward if i listen?" the blonde asked flirtatiously as he leaned towards her with puckered lips.
"i'll think about it" she joked knowing there was no way in hell she would be kissing jj today. john b rolled his eyes before pulling jj back by his shirt.
"good luck, soldiers" she saluted as they began making their way out of her eye sight. the girl grabbed kie's hand dragging her to sit on the edge of the boat with her.
――――
"just be so careful, john" jj teased as he grabbed john b's cheeks and neck imitating kie's actions.
"god, you're so weird" he pushed the boy off, finding it stupid how jj was acting given his feelings towards malia.
"what the heck was that about?" jj asked as john b kept walking not even looking back.
"i don't know. maybe she wants us to be careful" john b suggested with a shrug not thinking into it too much. yeah, kie was hot. but malia was malia.
"no malia, wanted us to be careful" he pointed out "since she heard you're being threatened with exile, she's just been, like, oh! be so careful, john b" he said beginning to fake massage the boys shoulders.
"get off" john b moaned, nearly slapping jj's hands away getting sick of his childishness.
"oh, just give me that john d already" he faked a girl voice meaning to be kie "when are you gonna swoop on that, man?" he pulled his face.
"bro, you know the rule. no pogue-on-pogue macking" john b scolded turning around watching as jj's face turned into one of excitement.
"what, so you and malia can?" he asked as his brain trailed off to all different kinds of things of the two.
"no. she's basically a pogue" john b said not revealing the real reason "besides, you're the one always hitting on her." john b argued.
"dude, of course im hitting on her. she's a super-hot, rich, surfer chick slumming with us" jj said as if it were obvious "why? i can't figure out either, but who cares, bro? i know that door's locked because i've tried it. have you?" he asked.
and jj had tried it. him and malia had tried being something, but their friendship got in the way. sure a few hook-ups here and there after she and tucker broke up but nothing serious enough to be a relationship.
"no, and i'm not trying. she's my bestfriend" john b said as he stopped outside of the room "this is it"
――――
"biggest pet peeve?" kie asked for clarification as she pulled her knees to her chest looking between pope and malia who sat in a weird shaped triangle.
"yeah" pope nodded
"easy. giving one percent to the environment" she said as a matter-a-factly
"whats wrong with that?" pope asked clueless. he may have been smart but not kie's kind of smart.
"we only have one earth, pope. we should be giving it 100 percent, bare minimum" she expliained. malia went to lie on her back getting tired of the conversation either wanting to tan or sleep.
"right. that's not fiscally sound" pope replied
"neither is destroying the planet we have to live on" challenged, malia had tuned them out so well she was the one who was able to hear the sheriffs car.
"cops" she said in a hushed whisper shooting up
"if i lose my merit scholarship, i'm gonna kill someone" pope threatened as the three tip-toed out to hide behind the fallen sign
malia tuned out the two's bickering again as the two cops spoke to a random man, him pointing up the exact spot that jj and john b had gone. she wanted to scream. she was so angry at them for pulling her into this stupid plan.
"let's go" she said urgently as she began hitting both of them in the arm, the girl taking off into a sprint to the side of the building.
"do something, do something" kie worried as she turned to pope who looked around before picking up a rock
"get back" he warned as the girls listened and stepped away from his stance
the rock didn't hit the window. it hit the ledge of the building. she would be laughing so hard right now if two of her best friends weren't about to be arrested but resisted as she gave him an incredulous look.
"didn't you ever play baseball?" kie scolded as malia quickly went to think it over. it was pope. of course he didn't.
"i was on the math team" he argued making her suppress a laugh.
kie picked up another rock before successfully hitting the window "mathlete" she muttered as malia also picked up rocks beginning to hit the window as well before the boys showed up.
john b lifted the blinds before the three of them motioned to the door inside the room and began mouthing the word cops. john b's face morphed to one of shock before dropping the curtain and disappearing.
malia grabbed the two's hands before running back to the boat. "should we peel?" kie asked in worry.
"you never leave a pogue behind " pope said turning around but his voice suggested otherwise in the moment.
"no, seriously, should we peel?" malia asked for kie this time, the girl realising how bad this would turn out if they got caught.
"maybe" pope said as his voice wavered, his head continuously flipping between the girls and the motel.
――――
"well that was fun, you could of warned us a little sooner" jj said as the five were back on the small boat back to john b's.
malia let out a loud obnoxious laugh before answering "we could've. but pope was on the math team"
"you were on the math team?" jj asked surprised with raised eyebrows.
"of course he was on the math team"