NINETEEN BAD IDEA
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That was how they ended up on the ruins of what had probably once been a strong fort, overlooking the coast and confused as ever. Alisha seemed even more annoyed at being along for the ride, but she had asked for this and it wasn't Norman's fault if she was confused. He tried to hide this part of his life as of late from his friends precisely because of situations like this. Their "inner circle" was getting too big, too fast.
Looking down at the map, Pope tried his best to make sense of things, "We're in Battery here, so if this is parcel nine, then it's somewhere northeast of here."
"Somewhere over there?" Kie asked as she pointed to the middle of nowhere. Helpful, as always.
Pope nodded, "Right."
"Over there?" JJ questioned, sounding annoyed, "Guys that's a subdivision, that's not Tannyhill."
"Tannyhill Plantation was the whole island," John B explained, "It got sold into smaller pieces over time."
"So, we're just looking for an old stone wall," Pope observed.
Norman scoffed, "Great, that narrows it down so much."
"Dude, shut up," John B retorted, shooting the boy a glare. Clearly, he still held some feelings of resentment from Norman's outburst earlier which was irritating. Understandable, but irritating.
The dark-skinned boy shook his head, lifting up the map to show Norman, "Nah, it actually does narrow it down, look. We know the general area of it because it's marked right there. We just need to find out which of our roads can get us there."
"Oh, that is much easier than I thought," the boy shrugged as he looked at the markings on the map, "Sick, let's get on the road then."
"Can we like just drop me off? I'm way too confused and also... it's cold," Alisha cut in with an annoyed tone, "Rocky, I love you, but I'm not down for the weird treasure hunt stuff."
"Typical rich bitch," JJ muttered under his breath to which the short girl glared at him. Immediately the blond raised his hands in surrender, "Sorry, sorry."
"Damn straight," Alisha shot back as she crossed her arms, "So... do I seriously have to stick around?"
Norman sighed, "It's like... insanely out of our way. You can't just stick around for one day... for me?"
"You can't pull the fucking "for me?" card that's so mean! Now I have to say yes!" she exclaimed in frustration, but there was a sort of softness to her tone that gave away the fact that she wasn't as angry as she wanted them to think she was. After a moment of Norman clearly not budging, she sighed, "All right, fine. Let's go, I guess. Is this really what poor people do for fun?"
"No everyone can crash their daddy's Benz on the weekends, Alisha," JJ remarked as they all took off towards the van, taking their respective places. Since Pope was the navigator he took his place in the passenger seat while the rest of them piled into the back. "Ugh, this van is getting crowded."
"Tell me about it," Alisha, who was squished in between Norman and JJ, muttered regretfully.
Things were quiet as they drove, safe for Pope giving John B directions as best he could. It was odd to think how close they could be to the gold. After so much had happened in just a few short days, it was surreal to think of the gold as something real, something tangible. Granted, Norman knew none of that gold belonged to him. He had enough money, it would be awful of him to take it away from his friends that actually needed it. He could play the spoiled rich boy all he wanted, but he wasn't going to be that much of an asshole.
"Okay, so the road should split here. All right, you're gonna take a left," Pope instructed as John B veered down the road, definitely driving faster than he should.
Looking out the window, JJ noted, "That looks just like a stone wall to me."
"But is it the stone wall we need?" Norman asked as he observed the wall next to the road.
Pope nodded, his expression dead serious, "This is it."
"Not the Crain house," John B groaned as the doors opened up and they all left the van. Norman stumbled slightly as his foot hit the dirt road, but before he could call, John B caught him but let him go almost as quickly. Norman didn't say anything as he brushed himself off, but the look in the boys' eyes when they meant said everything they needed to.
Kie sighed as she looked over at the residence, "You've got to be kidding me."
"Literally worst-case scenario," added the blond.
"What's up with this place?" Alisha asked, "I don't think I've ever heard of it."
Norman shrugged, "Yeah, me neither."
"I heard that Mrs. Crain buried her husband's head on the property," JJ explained, "She's absolutely nuts. Definitely a murderer, too. Apparently, her husband haunts the place."
"Ghosts aren't real," Norman scoffed.
"We don't know that for sure!" the boy defended, "Either way, it gives me the fucking creeps."
John B sighed, "Well, let's go."
With a collective groan, they headed towards the house. This was probably one of the dumber things they had attempted to do during this treasure hunt. Breaking onto some psycho old lady's property really hadn't been on Norman's to-do list today yet here he was. He knew he should have left by now with how painfully obvious it was that John B didn't want him here. Norman wished he knew what the hell he was still doing as they stepped through the overgrown grass and weeds. He couldn't stop thinking about what Sarah had said to him after John B fell. I think he was trying to hide the fact that it was you. Maybe John B had been overcompensating after Norman just about outright rejected him -- multiple times now. He wished he hadn't been too blind to realize that he hadn't been alone in his feelings, but now it was too late. John B hated him. Probably for real this time, too, which made everything worse. Everything had been so much easier when Norman could have just pretended it was nothing and that he was straight, but as Alisha had suggested, he let himself try. Now he couldn't turn back. He liked John B. Of course, the only time he was finally okay admitting that to himself was when the boy absolutely hated his guts.
As if the boy had been reading his mind, John B breaks through the awkward silence of the group to whisper to Norman, "I don't hate you, you know."
"Could have fooled me," Norman scoffed to which the other boy glared at him, letting a small chuckle fall loosely from his lips.
"I just... am mad about Sarah. She told me she kind of talked to you after I passed out and that... well, she said it's okay. She said she forgives me for using her as the last resort, whatever the fuck that means," John B sighed, "I think... I think I only kissed her because I was pissed at you. Which was stupid and caused a lot more trouble than it was worth."
Norman shrugged, "You're lucky she still cares about you. At least you can admit that, though. Doesn't make it any less of a total dick move."
"Asshole," the boy muttered, but there was a small smile on his face regardless.
"Your nicknames for me are really getting less and less creative," the boy joked and for a moment he almost forgot where they were. They were definitely still on the lawn of an allegedly murderous old lady, but it was nice to not think about that for a moment.
Kie interrupted their conversation with the question, "Look, you guys know whose house this is right?"
"Oh, yeah, no, I do," JJ scoffed, "and I'm not happy about it either."
John B cut them off to say, "Honestly, I don't really believe the stories about this place. I mean, seriously, guys? They're old wives tales she probably created to keep kids from breaking into her property."
"And look how well that worked," Norman said with a laugh.
"Ugh, there's so many fucking mosquitos," Alisha complained, "John B, if I have to buy bug bite cream after this, you better fucking pay for it."
"Yeah, sure thing," the boy laughed.
"Okay, okay, but what stories have you heard?" JJ asked Kiara more than anyone since they seemed to believe the urban legends the most apparently.
Kie immediately wracked her brain for stories as she told JJ, "The one where she killed her husband with an ax and that she's been holed up ever since. On certain nights, when the moon is full, you can see her through the window."
"Is she a fucking werewolf?" Alisha questioned with a raised eyebrow and uncertainty in her tone. "Ugh, either way, this is a bad idea. We should just go."
"It's not funny, this is all true!" JJ exclaimed as they trekked through the property, "I swear to God guys this is all real! I knew Hollis, jeez."
"Wait, you knew Hollis Crain?" Pope asked, his voice sounding worried, "How did you know Hollis Crain?"
JJ shrugged, "She was my babysitter, man, told me all about it. Told me the truth... about her mother and what happened in this house. So, as a kid, she heard all the stories that her mother killed her father and she was a murder and all. Hollis didn't believe it. Until that night."
"What night?" John B asked as now all of them were utterly hooked on the story. Maybe it was the haunting expression on JJ's face, but Norman could feel goosebumps rising on his arms. Maybe this was a bad idea.
"It all came back to her," the boy explained further, "When Hollis was six-years-old she heard her parents arguing downstairs. So, she goes downstairs to see her mom washing her hands in a sink... full of blood. Her mother just says that she cut her finger. The next morning, she says she and her father have split up. But then, Hollis noticed something. Her mother going into the parlor constantly, in and out in and out with plastic bags. Weeks pass and Hollis decides to use the outhouse. And as she's using it she looks down and there, in the outhouse, is her father's head looking back at her."
"Oh, fuck off," Alisha exclaimed.
"God, you are so full of shit," John B teased, "I almost believed you, too."
JJ, however, wasn't breaking. "I swear to god, I'm serious."
"Did she call the cops?" asked Pope.
The boy shook his head, "She didn't have time."
As he said this John B pushed forward but JJ stopped him with an arm on his chest. With a sigh, he asked, "What?"
"Are you sure you wanna do this? She's an ax murderer. You have a cast on."
"I don't give a shit if she's an ax murderer!" John B exclaimed in an odd outburst of frustration, "I got nothing to lose! You coming, or what?"
Norman sighed, he knew this was a terrible idea, but looking at the utter conviction on John B's face he knew he couldn't say no. The things he was willing to do for a stupid crush were insane, but here he was. So, he stepped up ahead to where John B was standing and motioned forward.
With a sigh, Kie joined them. "All right, come on."
This had "turn back now" written all over it, but here they were, moving forward. Definitely going to turn out horribly. Oh, the things Norman did for this boy.
i cant believe I'm on chapter nineteen as someone who never gets very far into her books this is kind of insane like this is probably ended around chapter 30-35 so it's crazy to think that I'm over halfway done