SEASON ONE,
CHAPTER 5:
BEACH FIGHT
"Beat his ass, JB!"
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THE BONEYARD, which is what the beach is known as to the teenagers, is usually messy due to the many parties that are held and tourists that like to visit. But Hurricane Agatha seems to have really taken a toll on the place, not just the rest of the island. Some of the old trees that have been standing tall for ages have finally come crashing down to the friend, which only gives them all more seating areas to chat.
The group of friends set the kegger in the sand at a point where it won't topple over and spill the liquid contents everywhere. Kiara hands them each red solo cups she had brought along in preparation, making sure to set some up beside the kegger for anyone that decides to join them. They all then begin to pour themselves some drinks, starting to down it as if it's a competition between the five.
After an hour or so, the sun that was previously shining brightly in the clear blue sky is now replaced by the darkness taking over for the night. The moon rests upon the horizon as it starts to rise, stars being hidden behind the faint sight of clouds. A faint breeze can be felt against the skin as it ruffles their hair, allowing them all to cool down after having a hot day beneath the suns rays.
The boneyard is now crowded with many teenagers seeking for a good time to pass time during the night. Cups of alcohol can be seen held in hands as they proceed to let it burn the back of their throats as they down the contents, trying to get as drunk as they possibly can. It's no surprise to see that there's actually a variety of people attending; Pogues, Kooks, and Tourons (tourists).
Delilah fills two red solo cups up with more alcoholic beverage before walking away to allow the line of people to do their own thing. She scans the area to see if she can spot any of her friends, finding a particular curly haired brunette sitting on the logs as she talks a boys ear off about astrology signs. Lila just lightly laughs to herself at the sight, heading over to them both where she ducks down behind Kie and gives her a warm hug from behind.
"Oh! Delilah here is an Aries." Kie tells the boy, motioning towards the girl.
The redhead merely ignores the mentioning of her name in an attempt to avoid being dragged into a conversation she doesn't want to be part of. Instead, she passes Kie the spare cup of alcohol she had in her hands before swiftly turning and walking away in a hurry. This only leads to Delilah passing by Pope as he has a conversation to a girl about dead bodies since it relates to being a coroner. But, deep down, Del knows that he's just trying his best to keep what they found a secret and avoid the fact that it's really circling around as a thought in his mind.
An arm snakes around the gingers waist where the person then pulls her backwards against their clothed chest. She only tenses up at the sudden contact being made, afraid that as stranger is trying to hit on her during this party. Once Delilah realises that it's a pair of arms that she's familiar to being held in, her eyes grabbed up over her shoulder to see JJ standing there with his blue eyes already meeting her green ones. She relaxes at the sight of him.
"You alright?" JJ asks.
"Never better." Delilah replies, flashing him a small smile before taking a gulp of her drink.
"Sarah!" Topper shouts. "Sarah, be careful, okay?"
Nearby, Sarah Cameron can be seen sitting upon a red object that has been knocked down by the force of the hurricane from the night before. The wind is whipping her blonde hair violently to which she needs to keep pushing out of her face as she wears a wide smile, obviously happy about being in this current moment. Below the girl, Topper is trying to desperately get her back down to the ground with worry that she's going to fall and hurt herself. With each plea from the boy, Sarah only continues to keep pushing him away.
The pair are two of the most popular Kooks on the island due to how rich their families sure and the connections they have with other people. The Cameron family specifically are the most known and hence why Sarah gets the snobby title of 'Kook Princess', whereas Topper is just dating the blonde and is best friends with her older brother. The only problem with this is that they think that they're simply better than everyone else because they get what they want — you either love them or hate them.
For Kiara and Delilah, and maybe some of the boys, it's hatred. Kie used to be best friends with the girl back when she attended the Kook Academy, but they suddenly became enemies one day and no one really got there story as to why. Delilah doesn't get along with Sarah out of respect for her best friend, but also for her own reasons. The blonde would also make sly comments directed at Lila specifically for no real reason, and that doesn't sit well with any of them.
"Kie's going to be thrilled to see her." Delilah says, sarcasm laced in her voice.
"Let's not think about that right now. Enjoy the party, gorgeous." JJ tells her, holding out his hand.
The redhead flashes him a smile as she takes his outstretched hand, allowing him to lead her back over to where the main party is taking place. JJ then suddenly lifts his arm over the top of her head where he twirls the girl around in the soft sand until she's now face to face with him. A playful smirk sits on the boys face to show that he's thinking about doing something. He then bends down and lifts Ly up onto his shoulder. She squirms around in his grip to try and return back to the ground, the sound of laughter leaving her mouth with every step he takes.
John B spots the pair of them from a distance and proceeds to make his way towards them with a wide grin etched onto his face, finding happiness in his best friends. He snatches the red solo cup out of Delilah's hand where he proceeds to gulp down the rest of the alcohol that was still inside of it, trying to taunt her with the fact he's still standing right in front of her. Del only shoots JB a hard glare, which he just laughs at her in response.
Then, suddenly, fingers dig into Delilah's sides as both of the boys decided to tickle her in a playful manner, only making her squirm around in JJ's grip even more. The blond boy finally sets her back down onto the ground where her back lays flat against the floor with her ginger hair sprawled out on the sand. JJ only continues to tickle the girl while she lays there in loud fits of laughter.
"Okay, okay! Stop!" Delilah screams as she struggles for breath after laughing so hard.
JJ immediately listens to the pleas and stops what he's doing, a smile etched onto his face as he stares down at her. A hand is then outstretched towards Delilah to which she takes it and allows him to help her back up into her feet. The smile on her face disappears as she turns around to face John B, playfully shoving him before giving the middle finger for stealing the rest of her drink without asking.
Sarah and Topper can be now be seen making their way through the boneyard, eyes glued to one another as its clear they're currently in a conversation. They earn themselves a mixture of looks from the other drunk teenagers also attending the party. JJ is quick to reach out and steal one of the red solo cups out of another Kooks hands, acting as if he got it himself.
"Sarah, can I interest you in a tasty Milwaukee beverage?" JJ asks.
"No, thanks." Sarah declines.
"Oh, wow, great. I'm the one whose drink got stolen and you offer it to her instead." Delilah comments.
"I'll get you one that hasn't been contaminated with Kooks." JJ replies, winking as his hand presses against her lower back.
"Hey, you know what? I'll take it. Wouldn't want to give it to your girl when it's 'contaminated'." Topper speaks up with a hint of venom in his voice, using air quotes as he glances over at Delilah.
"That's nice, but I didn't ask you. If you said pretty please, maybe, but you didn't." JJ tells him.
"Oh, pretty please." Topper taunts.
"Sarah, you can have it." JJ insists.
Topper, after growing more annoyed by the second, lunges forwards and slaps the red solo cup out of JJ's hand and away from Sarah. The alcoholic contents spill over the both of them. JJ doesn't take this action very lightly and removes his hand from Delilah's lower back, harshly grabbing Topper by his preppy shirt and shoving him backwards with force.
John B is quick to jump forwards and intervene their aggression before a fight can properly break out. He grabs JJ by the back of the shirt where he then pulls him backwards and away from Topper, allowing Sarah to rush over to her boyfriend with worry. Pope and Kiara also come running over to the three within the same second as witnessing the scene, wanting to be their to make sure nothing can get worse and to keep their friends out of harm. Kie eyes Delilah carefully, making sure that the girl won't try to do anything drastic either.
"Dirty Pogues!" Topper shouts with the intention to provoke them even more.
The redhead, currently having anger slowly rising up inside of her, pushes past her friends and runs forwards towards the Kook. She allows her fist collide with Toppers jaw, causing him to stumble back slightly with a grunt, obviously not expecting to suddenly be hit.
"Don't fucking talk to me or my friends like that, you asshole!" Delilah spits.
Topper shoots her a harsh glare with rage flowing through his own body. He begins to move forwards to retaliate against previous actions and shove the girl backwards, but is stopped when John B takes a protective step in front of Delilah. The long haired boy shoves Topper backwards with the same force as JJ did, fuming at the fact he's trying to get under his friends skin. Kie desperately tried to pulls both Lila and JB away, while Pope continues holding JJ back.
"Guys! Guys, stop!" Kie demands.
Since Topper isn't part of their friend group and feels no need to listen to Kiara's shouts, the blond runs forwards with a raised hand and punches John B square in the jaw. This sends John B tumbling to the ground as the wet sand immediately sticks to his skin and clothing. His body splashes against the ocean waves that coming sliding up the shore of the beach, soaking into his clothing. Topper continues proceeds to kick the Pogue multiple times to ensure that he stays down, leaving John B to roll around in pain as he tries to escape the hits.
Kie's grip on Delilah's arms only tighten at the sight of the fight breaking out in front of them all, trying to hold her back more than ever as the girl struggles against the hold. A crowd can now be seen forming around the two boys in the water as it's gained a large interested to the teenagers. Chants and cheers echo loudly through the air as people begin to take sides, finding entertainment in the brawl.
Pope and JJ push their way through the forming crowd and stand beside the two girls so that they're together and the situation can be more controlled. JJ appears to be physically more relaxed since John B has risen to his feet and is currently sticking up for himself, putting up a fight in response. Though, the boy can tell that Delilah is still tense so he slips his hand into hers, squeezing it gently to give comfort.
On the other hand, Kiara and Sarah, aren't having the greatest time as the scene unfolds before their eyes. The two of them are trying their hardest to get the boys to stop what they're doing and listen to their demands before someone gets seriously hurt. However, neither one of the boys appear to be listening as they only continue to throw punches at one another and collide against the ground harshly.
"Beat his ass, JB!" Delilah exclaims.
"That's my boy!" JJ shouts as their friend shoves the Kook into the water.
John B manages to throw the Kook down into the water, slowly beginning to feel the ache taking over his body. Topper merely rises back to his feet once again, chest heaving up and down as the adrenaline pumps through his body. He runs forwards and tackles John B down to the ground once again where the water crashed over them. Only this time, the long haired boy doesn't rise to his feet like Topper did moments before. Instead, he finds himself being held under the water by the force of the blond boys hand applying pressure to his head.
"He's drowning him." Pope states, concern laced in his voice.
"I know!" Kie exclaims in frustration.
"How about I drown you like your old man?" Topper hisses to the boy being held underwater.
At the sound of that threat leaving Toppers mouth, Delilah decides that she's had enough of being held back from joining the fight. Her hand swiftly slips away from JJ's grip as her legs send her running forwards towards the pair. The three friends barely get enough time to even attempt to pull the girl backwards to safety, fingers only just briefly grazing against her articles of clothing.
The redhead, who is blinded by red as she can only feel the fury raging through her body pushing her forwards, sprint forwards towards Topper where she then tackles him off of John B. The pair land in the water as the waves continue to crash against them, wet sand beginning to stick itself to Delilah's clothing too. Shocked gasps can be heard from the teenagers as they remained circled around the scene ahead, watching intently to see what happens next.
Toppers immediate reaction is to punch the person back, not realising what exactly he had done until he catches sight of Delilah staggering backwards and away from him slightly. His eyes widen as his gaze rests on the redhead, shocked at himself for hitting a girl. However, Del couldn't seem to give a single care in the world about this and swiftly regains herself to continue the fight. With the mindset of sticking up for her friends imprinted in her brain, her foot shifts where she kicks him harshly in the ribs to keep him knocked down on the floor.
"What did I say? Don't fucking talking to my friends like that!" Delilah repeats, anger laced in her voice.
An arm suddenly snakes around the girls waist and catches her off guard as she feels herself being pulled upwards and away from the Kook. Her back collides into someones chest as green eyes travel over her shoulder to see that JJ is standing there, holding her close to his body. A gun is held in his other hand and the end of the barrel is pointed straight at Toppers head, finger threatening to pull the trigger.
"Your move, broski." JJ challenges.
Shouts can be heard from all around the group, rippling loudly in the tense air. Delilah looks over at the once large crowd to see that they've all backed away. Though, some even continue to watch from a distance, while others have physically removed themselves from the scene. It's clear that the people are all fearing the sight happening in front of them because a gun has been pulled out, almost afraid to be a witness that will be questioned by the police.
"JJ! Put the gun down!" Sarah shouts.
Delilah turns back around to see that her friends and the blonde Kook have moved closer towards the three to try get them all to calm down. Sarah's hand is held out towards JJ as she repeatedly demands for him to lower the gun. What aggravates the ginger is that she's almost treating JJ as if he's a misbehaved dog that needs to drop something from his mouth.
"Did you say something, princess?" JJ angrily asks, almost taunting her.
"We're good. We're good." Topper assures, holding his hands up to surrender. "Come on, man!"
"Delilah, get your psycho boyfriend in check!" Sarah shouts.
Fuelled with fury at the sound of the blonde girl directing the anger towards her, Delilah pushes herself out of JJ's hold on her again. She strides up to Sarah and doesn't take a single moment of hesitation to shove the girl backwards. The Kook's eyes only widen in disbelief at the courageous and aggressive action made towards her. So, to retaliate, Sarah raises a hand and slaps Delilah across the face.
"Oh, I'm so happy to go for another fight." Delilah tells her.
Delilah presses her hands against the girls shoulder where she then proceeds to shove her once again. This causes Sarah to stumble backwards and trip over something stuck in the sand, plummeting down to the ground with a small thud. However, along the way, the blonde reaches out to grab ahold of Del and causes her to then tumble to the floor too. The two girls start to roll around in the sand in an attempt to scramble on top of one another an gain an advantage to the fight — hair is pulled, punches are thrown, slaps are made, etc.
"Stop!" Pope shouts.
"Your oh-so-perfect boyfriend is the one that tried drowning my friend!" Delilah exclaims, reminding her of what they all just witnessed.
"Delilah!" Kie screams.
"May I remind you that your boyfriend is the one that pulled a gun on him?" Sarah fires back, yanking at Lila's hair.
Delilah raises her hand once again and slaps Sarah around the face for a final time, completely enraged by the whole situation that's taken place. A set of arms pull their friend off of the ground to which Delilah just shoots daggers at Sarah, holding onto Kie's arms to prevent herself from running forwards again. Sarah only returns the look before sprinting over to her boyfriend to see if he's okay after all the punches that's been made.
"Okay, everyone, listen up!" JJ yells as he grabs everyone's attention. "Get the hell off our side of the island!"
The end of the gun moves to be pointed up into the night sky, allowing two bullets to be fired out of the barrel. As soon as this action is made, the sound of more gasps and screams are heard amongst the remaining crowd of teenagers that were curious to stay and watch what happens next. They all instantly take off running in any direction that leads them away from the boneyard, not wanting to be involved with the gun. Not a single one of them found an ounce of entertainment when the anger was directed onto them, only feeling fear.
"Are you crazy? You idiot!" Pope yells, shoving the blond boy.
"I'm saving John B's life, okay? I can't just stand there and watch both him and Delilah get hurt!" JJ exclaims in defence.
"You're gonna jeopardise everything!" Pope fires back, arguing against him.
Footsteps are heard walking away from the group of five, causing Delilah to turn around and find the two Kooks removing themselves from the scene to avoid any other fight from breaking out. Their heads are turned to look at the Pogues from over the top of their shoulders, eyes narrowing to glare at them all. The redhead only sticks both of her middle fingers up at them in response.
"Lila!" Kie calls.
The girl whips her head back around to see Kiara kneeling down next John B. It's clear that he's unconscious from the way that his body is sprawled out in the wet sand and he's allowing the waves to continue crashing against him, drenching him in water from head to toe. Kie currently has his limp head resting carefully in her lap to ensure that he doesn't accidentally swallow any water and drown.
At the mere sight of this, Delilah is quick to run over to where JB lays with panic beginning to flood through her body. Her green eyes travel over the top of his clothes chest to check for any signs that will tell them he's still breathing. Fortunately, the boys chest is steadily rising and falling as usual. This allows the girls to calm down ever so slightly as their eyes remain fixated on their unconscious friend.
"Fuck." Delilah curses under her breath.
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Any arguments that wanted to be made after the whole situation that occurred just a few hours ago were silently agreed not to be said. Instead, they are focusing their attention onto helping John B recover after falling unconscious and taking a bit of a beating from Topper. Pope and JJ had quite literally carried the poor boy back to his house where Kie had placed a bag of ice onto one of his bruises — she handed Delilah one too for her cheekbone where Topper's fist had landed.
After sometime, the four friends had separated into pairs to do their own thing as they know that John B is going to be okay. Though, Pope and Kiara decide to stay by the boy's side and continue attending to his injuries in order to ensure that they can be reduced as much as they possibly can be. They had both tried to help the redhead too, but Delilah was quick to try assure that everything was fine.
Currently, Delilah and JJ have seated themselves outside on the hammock attached to two thick trees. They tried to get far from their two friends to avoid being shouted at for getting into fights today, but also because they wanted to find some quiet time under the calming night sky. The pair sit opposite one another so that it's easier to directly make eye contact when having a conversation. Contact is still being made due to the limited amount of space that the hammock provides.
"You feeling okay, Ly?" JJ asks, breaking the silence as he glances over at the girl.
The girl pauses slightly in confusion as to why he's checking up on her when he's already done so. She knows that it's a normal thing that he does when around her, but this time it seems more directed at the topic of the fights. But JJ has Delilah in many fights before. Her gaze shifts over towards him to see that his blue eyes are already trained onto her, patiently waiting for a response.
Delilah nods. "Yeah, why?"
"Two fights in one day. One of them managed to be with the Kook princess herself." JJ states.
"They didn't last long and I didn't get to throw any proper punches." Delilah tells him , shrugging it off as nothing. "Do you think JB will be okay though?"
"Yeah, he's tough." JJ replies.
Delilah nods again in response before allowing her head to lean back against the fabric of the hammock. Her green eyes travel upwards towards the night sky engulfing the air above them, noticing how the stars are lighting up the darkness — a reminder to her that there's always hope. A smile spreads across Ly's face as a calm feeling washes over her body, continuing to gently sway in the hammock with JJ next to her.
JJ reaches his hand out towards the girls leg resting where he begins to trace any pattern that comes to mind. In the other hand, a joint is held between two fingers that is only raised to be pressed against the blond lips. Puffs of smoke leave his mouth.