THE boys still hadn't returned.

The sun had long passed it's peak—it had been a pretty sunset, and managed to make Eden's night slightly better—the snacks had been eaten down to scarce amounts and JJ's joint had been passed between the three girls until it was down to nothing but the filter.  

The three Kook girls sat against the edge of the boat beside one another with nothing but a lamp to provide light.  The blunt had affected all three of them, but Sarah had clearly never smoked something as hard—or hey, maybe she's never smoked at all—because ever since starting the blunt, the girl hadn't stopped asking stupid, pointless questions, which got more stupid and pointless the higher she got.

At first, Eden found it slightly amusing, watching the blunt take effect on Sarah.  The questions started out general and they took up the time—the Bexley had answered why she made bracelets (because why not)  whether she's a cat person (dog, by a long-shot) and whether or not she thought Jack could fit on the door with Rose (yes and no). 

But now, after an hour or two of questions, Eden was starting to get annoyed.  Had she been so.....ditsy during her first high? Did John B. and JJ have videos of her like this? She hoped not, and would gladly delete them if she did. 

A drunk sounding laugh fell past Sarah's lips as she looked towards the sky, "Wow. Hey, guess what? Would you rather have—I was imagining you two like this just now and it was pretty funny.  Would you ima—would you rather.....have nipples for eyes or eyes for nipples?"

Holy shit she was high.  Eden couldn't help the laugh that left her lips, because this question was honestly funny.  She'd never seen the Kook so care free.   Kiara on the other hand didn't seem interested in the slightest, causing the Cameron to continue talking at the silence that she was given, "Imagine if you get really old and your nipples—your boobs get saggy and your nipples, if they were your eyes, you could see if your shoes were untied."

Neither Pogues replied, and Sarah started shaking her head, realizing it was a dumb question.  Kie then turned to look at the Kook, asking in an annoyed voice, "Is this like your first time smoking or something?"

"No." Sarah said flatly, before speaking up yet again, "Hey, guys—"

"Oh my God. Enough of the 'hey guys' bullshit." Kiara looked past Eden to meet Sarah's gaze, "Why'd you do it?"

"Why did I do what?"

"Do you seriously have no clue what she's talking about?" Eden pressed, raising a brow.  It had been the elephant in the room—the reason they were stuck on the boat in the first place.  The Bexley prayed they talked the tension out because if not, she'd been trapped with them for nothing.  

Kiara stated, "We were best friends.  We—we stole beers from your dad's fridge, we watched movies together, we cried about boys.  And the next thing I know, I'm watching your birthday party happen from Instagram."

"It was one party." the Cameron defended.

"You invited everyone except her." Eden pointed out, staying on her friend's side.  Sure, it was a birthday party, a singular party that Kie had been uninvited to, but everyone had been there.  People whom Sarah had never talked to, who she hated—everyone.  "Yep, we counted.  While you were popping bottles of champagne with your Kooks, me and Kiara were naming everyone off."

Kiara added, "And then you told everybody I was the reason the party got busted."

Sarah crossed her arms, feeling rather ganged up upon by the two Pogues, "Okay, well who else would have called the cops?" 

"You never asked. You just let the rumor go that I was a rat." Kiara sounded rather upset retelling the story, the way she was called names. "You were my best friend and then you ghosted me, and I don't even know why!"

The boys called Kiara's freshman year her Kook Year for a reason.   While Eden only hung out with John B., JJ and Pope despite being in the Kook Academy—none of the teens deserved her attention, let alone wanted it—Kiara spent all of her time Sarah and had completely ditched the Pogues, minus Eden of course.  

"She ditched the Pogues for you, Sarah."  Eden spoke up, even though she was just there to hold the peace, "And that's saying something.  You meant the world to Kiara and then you dumped her ass.  What could she have possibly done to make you dump her entirely?"

"You liked me." Sarah stated after a moment of silence.

"What?"

As if ashamed about what she was going to admit, the blonde turned away. "When people get close to me, I feel trapped.  And.....I bail."  Sarah looked at Kie with a sad gaze as she explained, "And I blame them for it.  I'm really sorry.....and I miss you."

Listening to the girls words, Eden heard no kind of sarcasm.  The Kook was being sincere—she really did miss Kie.

"Do you think there's a chance that we could be okay again?" Sarah asked quietly.

"Honestly...." Kie trailed off, solemnly replying, "I don't know."

Eden was there to see how much Sarah had hurt the Carrera.  Kiara hadn't been herself for weeks after their friendship was broken, and had showed up at the Bexley's doorstep multiple times in tears wondering if she wasn't good enough.  And while it was nice to see the Cameron being so sincere, admitting that she was sorry about their past......Eden didn't blame Kie for still holding it against her.

"I'm going to bed." the curly haired girl muttered, standing up and walking away from the edge to wear the boys left three pillows and three blankets.   The other two girls watched as she retreated, still slightly upset.

Sarah let out a sigh.  She regretted dropping Kiara, and it hurt even more that she probably wouldn't get the girl back—talking about their friendship was like rocky terrain.  It hurt to walk through, but it was necessary to cross if they wanted to get to clearer land. 

"You really hurt Kiara, Sarah." Eden spoke quietly, not wanting the Carrera girl to hear the conversation fully.  The tension was already in the air, and the last thing she wanted was for Kie to be mad at her too. "You should have seen her face when you asked her to save baby turtles.  I've never seen her so happy."

"I know," the Cameron frowned, "I—I really miss her.  I don't have any.....friends like that.  They all want to be close because I'm Sarah Cameron or because my brother is Rafe, but with Kiara I just felt like me.  I want her back.  She actually cares."

"Which is why I think she'll forgive you." Eden stood up, "Kiara still cares about you—whether or not she wants to admit it.  She misses you too." 

"She does?"

"Mhm." 

The Bexley then left the Kook and headed towards where Kiara was lying.  The girl laid on her back, looking at the stars above—probably in her own head, thinking about the conversation she'd just had. 

While Eden wasn't apart of their drama, she thought it had gone rather well.  Sarah Cameron had apologized and admitted to wanting to try again, and while Kiara Carrera hadn't accepted it.....yet.......it didn't end in them harming one another.  They'd spoken on the elephant in the room and while still enemies, the air in the room felt a little clearer.  The tension wasn't as bad.

Sarah soon joined the two Pogues in their sleeping area, lying down without a word.  She covered herself up and closed her eyes.  From beside her, both Kie and Eden stayed awake, the two girls looked at one another.

Kiara's eyes slightly softened. Should I forgive her?

Eden sent a knowing look.  She really hurt you, Kie, but I know you miss her.

The Carrera girl then flipped back onto her back. "Hey, Sarah?"

"Hey, Kiara." the Cameron muttered in response.

"Promise me that you won't bail on John B.  He's not just.....some other guy.  And he really, really like you."

"I won't."

Eden gave her own small request, "I know I already gave you this talk but, please promise.  John B. can't take another heartbreak."

"I promise." 

"Thank you." 

Kiara turned back to face her friend, meeting her gaze.  Wanna tell her?

"Fuckin' go for it." the Bexley whispered, her lip twitching upward in a small smile. 

The Carrera girl gave a nod before speaking again, "Also....I'm sorry I called the cops.  Eden too."

There was a brief silence before Sarah finally replied through a laugh, "I knew it.  I knew it.  And Eden? I thought I could trust you! You bitches."

"Hey, we needed to get sweet revenge somehow." Eden laughed, the other two girls erupting into a fit of giggles. She felt relieved that the Cameron and the Carrera were back on the same page—that the tension was gone.

"I told you!"

"You—you should have invited me!"

"So you called the cops?" 

"Yes!"

"What else were we supposed to do?"

The girls continued to laugh and Eden felt something of a friendship beginning between the three.  Kiara, Sarah and Eden; the Kook Trio.

Finally, after a night of bonding, giggles, and sentimental convos, the boys returned.

Eden hated to admit it but, their plan worked.  Sarah Cameron and Kiara Carrera were on good terms again, and while it took a year and multiple arguments to get to this point, Eden was proud to see them smiling and laughing together....with her.

Yeah, Eden Bexley was on good terms with Sarah Cameron too.  While she'd never done anything personally to Eden, she'd vowed to never become friends with the Kook unless something was to change between her and Kie, and something did.  Once you got to know her, the blonde wasn't too insufferable, and it was an added bonus that Sarah happened to like the Bexley in return.

Currently, she was on the edge of the boat, watching as the sun rose.  Always being one for sunrises and sunsets, Eden had gotten up after seeing 5:30 on her lock screen.  She'd gotten a poor amount of sleep—turns out the cabin of a boat was not very comfy—and decided that seeing the sunrise was worth the hour or so of sleep she'd be missing.

It had been a nice one—the sun had painted the sky a deep orange, the light reflecting off the water in a bright array—and Eden enjoyed watching it, as she always did.  The sunsets made her feel calm, and were a great start to the morning.  Definitely a plus of OBX life.

  As morning grew nearer, both Kie and Sarah joined the Pogue—Kie first, then Sarah, who was probably used to at least three more hours of beauty sleep—sitting in utter silence.  It was a good silence though.  Not one filled with tension and unspoken thoughts.

Utter silence until another voice sounded, "Uh-oh! "

Eden's gaze quickly fell on the incoming boat—the HMS Pogue.   From the front, Pope yelled, "You forget your keys or something?"

John B. added, "You guys need a tow?" 

From in between Eden and Sarah, Kiara gave an unimpressed look, "Don't give them the satisfaction that this worked."

"Absolutely not." the blonde agreed.

Nodding, Eden remarked, "We'd never hear the damn end of it."

Gaining up on Heyward's boat, the brunette could finally get a good view of her friends.  John B. stood in front of the steering wheel with a smug look on his face, noticing the way all three girls sat next to one another looking civil.  He honestly expected something along the lines of Kie and Sarah sitting on opposite sides of the boat, Eden sitting on the edge with JJ's joint between her fingers, a tired mother expression on her face.

"You gotta admit it was kinda funny." the Routledge had a shit-eating grin on his face as they neared.

Eden scoffed, "Maybe for you."

"John B." Kiara greeted firmly.

"Uh, what's that?" the boy raised a brow.

"Mastermind, huh?"

"I'm always plannin'."

Standing up with an eye roll, the Carrera muttered, "Some patriarchal bullshit."

"Yeah, that sucked." Sarah nodded.

JJ tossed a rope at Eden, who swiftly caught it with ease, "You still love us though, right?"

"A little less after this." the Bexley caught the rope with ease and tied Heyward's boat to the HMS Pogue.  Of course she still loved her boys—even if she was still slightly mad that they'd forced her into an event such as being stuck with two enemies on a boat for twenty-four hours.

"Yeah. Whatever." Sarah crossed her arms over her chest tightly, trying to act annoyed. 

John B. kicked his feet up against the steering wheel, putting his hands behind his head.  Whether or not they were happy, something had changed between the two girls.   And in his books, that was a win.  Looking at Sarah, he asked, "Hey, you still hate me?"

"A little." the blonde replied, sending him a look, "We're gonna get you back when you least expect it."

Kie nodded, "Watch your back boys."

"There is nothing we do better than revenge." Eden slightly smiled, thinking back to when her and the curly haired girl called the cops on the Cameron's birthday party.  Sweet revenge at it's finest.

Pope was open to the challenge, "I for one am welcome to that challenge."

"Me too." JJ agreed.

"So, did you guys....you know." 

Kiara shot the Heyward a look, finishing for him. "Reconcile our differences?"

"Mm-mm." the Kook shook her head, running with the act they had agreed upon.  Eventually, the boys would realize they had indeed succeeded in getting the two friends back together, but until then, the girls could have their own fun.

"Not even close." Eden gave a solemn shake of her head. 

Sarah continued, tilting her head to the side as she tried to find the right word for what she meant. "But we're......willing to work together."

"If—" Eden added, shooting John B. a cross look, the plan having been his, "—you promise to not pull shit like this again." 

A victorious smile made its way on to the Routledge's face as he took in their words.  While not friends, they were willing to work together to find the gold and honestly? That's all he needed, "You know what? That's victory."

Pope raised a hand for JJ to take, "Wiggedy-wiggdey-wiggedy!" 

"Know what it was guys?" JJ stated, watching as the three girls looked at each other with light smiles, "Hydroponic."

"Don't say that."

"Alright, shut-up." John B. pushed his sunglasses upon his head, sending a sharp glance to the two boys behind him.  He then looked at the three girls, "You guys ready to jack some loot?"

"Full fucking Kook." Eden smiled, jumping on to the HMS Pogue with money on her mind. 

mara's misc!

hello <3

once again, me and stokesfilms have struck up another deal (as one does). please go read all of kensies books (especially waves bc i get a little part in it, as well as it's the book we deal over) and give her a follow while ur at it.  ly  kens <3

i don't really have anything to say on this chapter!

hope you enjoyed <3 see you back with chapter 19!!