JUST as Eden had been a day or so prior, she was sitting by the edge of the HMS Pogue, bracelet kit in front of her.  Currently fixing up something for John B.—something to lift his mind off of his father for a moment—she let the sun bake down upon her back, listening in to whatever her friends decided to speak about.

John B. was steering the boat, Pope at his side as Kie and JJ sat with Eden on the edge.  The FedEx envelope was tucked right beside John B. to keep dry.  The map inside was the one key to the locked location of the Royal Merchant, and they couldn't risk losing it.

Currently, Eden and the Pogues on their way to Figure Eight—a hotel in Figure Eight, to be more specific—in search of some sort of wifi or service.  Even though it had been a few days since Agatha tore through the OBX, the Cut had yet to receive their phone service back.   The other side, however, had—thanks to the fact that they had back up generators.

Why a hotel? Well, Eden suggested the idea, based on the fact that Isla and Tom Bexley—more so Isla, if she were honest—could care less about her friends.  Heck, she was sure that her mother wouldn't even let them in if she tried to invite them, she'd faint at the sight of their sweaty appearances and dirty clothes.

Kie's parents would also be rather against the idea of letting the boys inside their house, so Eden suggested the next best thing:  A Kook hotel, where no one would question, nor would they care about five Pogue teenagers.

Eden always enjoyed rides on the HMS Pogue.  It gave her time to relax for a bit, to enjoy the ever growing heat that the summer sun granted, and the breeze that the wind allowed to pass through as they drove.  Eden could sit with her friends and soak up the remaining summer feeling.  

Even if the Pogues weren't speaking to one another—like now—the HMS Pogue made that okay.  It gave them a space where even if they were in silence, lost in their own thoughts, they could still be each other's company.

JJ spoke up, nodding towards an incoming boat, "You guys see that? That's the Malibu 24-MXZ, the worlds finest wakesetter.  "Number one in luxury, quality, and performance.  200K, easy."  The five all glanced towards the incoming boat in a dead panned stare.

"We picked the wrong parents." Pope muttered, hand meeting the back of the drivers seat.

Kie's voice turned sour as she spoke next, eyeing the passing boat. "I hate to break it to you guys, but that's Topper and his girlfriend."

At her words, Eden looked through her sunglasses, rolling her eyes as Sarah Cameron removed her own pair, scanning over the small boat with pursed lips—and a stare that screamed the word Kook—before turning away as if the Pogues weren't there at all.

"You don't have to act like you don't see us, bitch." Kiara called out, giving the blonde girl whose boat had passed an annoyed glance.  Sarah's snide probably had something to do with the words that John B. and Eden had spoken the day before, but Eden truly didn't care if she hurt the Kooks feelings.  Someone had to put her in line for snitching on John B.

"Kooks never change." Eden pushed her sunglasses up her nose, allowing the sun to beat down on her chest as she looked up.  Kooks would always be Kooks and Pogues would always be Pogues; it's just how the OBX worked.

The rest of the ride back to the chateau had gone smoothly, and now, Eden found herself back inside the Twinkie.  Heading back to John B.'s place had been full of dicussion about their plan, and now, heading to the hotel, they had everything set.

Driving up into the parking lot of the Figure Eight hotel, JJ pulled out his gun. "Alright, keep a look out.  We're behind enemy lines."

"Yo, come on, man." John B. took the keys out, giving an annoyed look over at the blonde boy beside him.  He was this close to just taking the gun away because of all the trouble it's caused already. "Just put it back."

"Are you serious, JJ?" Eden gave a narrowed eyed glance at the gun in his hand, watching as he loaded it up.Just like her friend, Eden was about to take the gun away like a mother scolding a child.  There was no way they were about to bring a loaded gun into a Kook hotel.  It wouldn't end well.

"Yes, I'm serious, Eds." JJ replied, "You can never be too careful."

Pope hopped out of the van, coming up beside the Maybank's widow. He leaned against it, giving JJ a dirty look. "Hey, I predict that bringing a weapon to a four-star hotel  will likely cause more problems than they solve."

John B. gave a thankful look, "Thank you, Pope."

"I swear to God, I'm gonna throw that thing in the ocean, JJ." Kie popped up between the two boys, speaking in an annoyed tone as she threatened the guns reappearance. "Put it back."

At her words, John B. picked the gun up by the barrel, placing it back into the glove compartment before any Kook or Touron could hear or see what was happening.  JJ gave a sigh, "You can't pick up a gun like that."

Eden tossed up a hand,  tapping her foot impatiently, "We can do gun safety 101 later, boys.  Get out of the car."

"Can't forget my badge." JJ grabbed his ID from the dashboard, hopping out from his side of the car.  "Professional busboy."

The group of five entered the hotel through the kitchen, aromas of food surrounding them.  JJ greeted everyone inside as if he personally knew them before leading the Pogues through the detailed hallways of the hotel.

After a few moments, JJ unlocked the door to a room filled with computers.  All three boys were quick to rush over to them while the girls followed after more slowly.  Unlike their friends, Kie and Eden still had service—in the comfort of their own homes, at least.  Even if the two would rather leave that side of them untouched, being half Kook did have its perks.

"Sweet lord, the internet!" Pope exclaimed, rushing over to a computer with urgency.  He took a seat and logged in, "I've missed you."

"Let me get in there.  I gotta check out my Insta models." JJ sarcastically spoke, coming in between Pope and Kie who'd situated themselves in front of one of the computers.  John B. was on the opposite side, sorting through his bag to find the map.

"The inner Kooks coming out of you, J." Eden gave a small laugh, placing her hands on the back of Pope's seat. The blonde smacked her shoulder lightly, and shook his head at his words, causing her to slightly smile in return.  

John B. set down the map in front of Pope, "My dad's map."

"Coordinates, please?"

"34, 57' 30" north." John B. read off of the map, which labeled the coordinates in thick black marker. "75, 55' 42" west."  

At his words, Pope typed in the coordinates into the search bars, awaiting where the computer would send them to.  A small sound and a red location marker popped up, causing all five of them to look.  John B. was the first to speak up, "Okay, boom, continental shelf right there."

"Okay, well, if it's off the deep end, it's not gonna be much of a treasure hunt, is it?" Pope stated, glancing at the screen.   As the screen slowly zoomed in, footsteps and voices were heard outside, causing all of them to get even more impatient.

Slowly but surely, the screen zoomed in enough to show the depth level, and as it did, Eden perked up. "Well, it's on the high side."

"It's only 900 feet." John B. agreed, causing Pope to give him a small look.

"That's not too deep." JJ added.

Kie looked up at the blonde, "Is that doable or something?"

 "Yeah," JJ nodded, "Totally doable."

Eden shrugged, "Not by diving means, of course, but if we can find some sort of equipment or something to send down, then I guess there's no reason we shouldn't be able to do it."

"Will we be taking your personal submarine?" Pope asked, eyebrows raised.

John B. ignored Pope and turned to JJ instead, "How do you know this, Mr. Dive Master?"

"The salvage yard." JJ replied as if it was obvious.  The rest of the group gave a slightly confused glance and he slightly smiled as he continued on, "They got a drone that can drop 1,000.  It has a 360 camera and everything.  It's for, like, deep dives and stuff.  It's exactly what we need."

"And can your dad get his grimy little hands on that?" John B. asked.

"Didn't your dad get fired?" Eden questioned with a small look, unsure on how they'd retrieve the drone without someone on the inside.  Not like Luke would have helped them anyway—not without making sure he got some of the money aswell, which would never have happened—but at least with him they stood a chance.

"Well, yeah, my dad's grimy little hands got his ass fired. I guess the salvage captain frowns on showing up shitfaced, turns out." the blonde frowned, shoving his hands in his pockets before perking back up, noticing the fallen mood. "But the drones there.  It's in the impound yard out back."

Kie spoke up, "How much did you say was on the Royal Merchant again?"

"Four hundred mil." Pope, John B., and Eden all spoke in unison, the dream of getting that cash rushing back to the front of their minds.  Going full Kook was their goal, and Eden supposed there was only one way of getting there.

As Pope rushed to the door, blocking it as Kie replied with wide eyes, "Four hundred million dollars?" The Carrera sure as hell wasn't going to let the opportunity of finding that cash go to waste, so she rushed over to the door.

"No. Absolutely not. Absolutely not. No!" With ease, Kie pushed Pope's arm down, escaping through the door, disobeying what the boy had just said.

"Absolutely yes." JJ mimicked the boy, shoving Pope away as he followed after the girl.  Pope gave a defeated look as John B. shrugged and walked out as well, finally glimpsing over at Eden for some sort of agreement.

Eden came up beside him, giving him a look. "Well, are you in or are you out bubs?"

Pope groaned, "Can't we do anything legal for money?"

Heading back into the Twinkie, the Pogues concocted a new plan, one that would get the drone in their hands.   It was simple; the two girls would distract the guards with some stupid problem, and the boys would sneak around and steal the drone. Though it was simple, one wrong move could screw it all up.  If the guards caught the boys—especially JJ—the drone would be gone.

So, when the Twinkie came to a halt, Eden and Kiara both hopped out. Eden was sure they'd be able to do this without anyone messing up, but with the Pogues, you never knew what to expect.  

"Hey, don't worry." John B. stuck his head out of the window with a reassuring look, "You got this."

Kie slightly smiled, pointing towards the boys in the back of the van, "It's not me that I'm worried about."

"Don't fuck it up." Eden waved, following after Kie towards her dad's SUV and boat trailer.   For the plan, the two girls had to slightly flatten the tire, just enough so that they'd have to ask someone to fill it—someone like the security guard.

So—as quietly as possible—Eden let out a small amount of air from the tire using one of Kie's hair clips before following after the Carrera girl as she approached the security desk.   Eden could see there was a man inside, hopefully he'd fall for their innocent smiles.

"Hello!" Kiara called out, waving her hand in the air with a bright smile to gain the attention of the man inside.  She called out another greeting before the guard noticed them, leaving his area to come and meet them in front of a chained fence.  

"Can I help you?"

"Hi! Um, actually I have a flat tire." Kiara's voice lifted an octave, and she spoke in such an innocent tone—as if she wasn't helping to steal an object from the place.

Eden finished off, trying to sound innocent as well.  She flashed a smile, "We were hoping that maybe you'd have something to help us out.  Would you?"

He hesitated a moment before giving a small nod, "Yeah."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

The guard turned, walking back to find some supplies, and Eden looked at her friend with a more genuine smile.  She held out her hand, and the two did the ever so famous Pogue handshake—slapping their hands together twice before snapping—in victory.

"It's too easy." She muttered afterwards, causing Eden to slightly laugh.   The two then went quiet again, watching as he hit a button to open the chain fence, an air tank and pump in hand.  Kie put on a smile again, leading him towards the flattened tire. "It's just this back one right here.  I mean, it must have been a slow leak or something."

As the guard took a look at the tire—Kie was standing right in front of his view towards the gate, in case he were to look that way—Eden looked towards where the boys should be hiding out, and nodded her head, giving the go signal they'd agreed on earlier.

Now, all Eden could do was hope the boys did this right.

"Probably just been sitting in the yard too long." the guard looked at the wheel before pausing a moment. "Yeah, I-I got this."

Eden gave a thankful look, "Thank you, sir."

As the man worked on the tire, both girls kept giving each other glances, looking back towards the salvage yard every few seconds as well.  Whenever he'd catch them, they'd make some stupid comment or make sure he was doing okay.  She wasn't too worried, yet.  They still had time to get the drone.

It wasn't until a dog started barking that a full sense of worry took over.

At the sound of his dog, the man looked up from the tire with a confused and slightly panicked look, "You two hear that?"

"That dog?" Eden asked, trying to sound as if she didn't have an idea as to what the dog was barking at.  She'd bet her money that JJ hadn't thought about a dog, and that they'd be caught out by it.

"Oh, Tebo's got somethin'" the man stood up, concerned.

Kie immediately tried to get him back to working on the tire.  The longer she could hold him off, the better. "It's probably just a raccoon, maybe. Y'know? Nothin' to worry about."   For the third time, the man hesitated as he knelt down again,  the Carrera reassuring him with a, "Yeah."

Kiara looked at Eden before crossing to the other side of the car, pulling a hair clip out of her hair as she did.  Eden stood looking at the man, trying to cover for her friend who was trying to buy time by flattening another tire.

But, the man was smarter than that, and quickly gave a narrowed eyed glance when he realized she'd disappeared.  The sound of air hissing gave an even more suspicious cover, and he looked at Eden with a suspicious look,  "Hey, where'd your friend go?"

"Oh, uh, she's just looking around—"

He clearly didn't buy her lie and rushed over to the other side, watching as Kie pulled her clip from the tire. "What are you doing?"

"This one looked a little low, too—" Kie tried to lie her way out of it, but the man had already realized what was going on and rushed back through the chained fence, both girls calling after him to stop.   When they realized he wasn't going to, Kie let out a huff of frustration.

"Well, shit." Eden muttered, hopping into the passenger seat of the truck. "Let's hope they had enough time."

Driving back to where they were supposed to meet up, Eden watched as they came in view of the Twinkie.  Pope was the only one sitting inside, clearly anxious about where his other two friends were. 

Once the truck had been parked, Eden ran out with Kie, stopping in front of the Twinkie door.  Pope slid the door open, and the brunette was quick to ask questions about where John B. and JJ were.  They'd gone is as three, and now, only one was found.

"Pope, where are Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb?" Eden raised a brow.  The boy gave a small shrug and Eden sighed as if she was an angry parent, "Didn't I tell you not to fuck this up? We only had one attempt at this—"

Kie cut her off, "Are they still at the yard?"

"I don't know." Pope shrugged again, "There was a dog, and John B. ran off and hid.  The dog ran off after JJ and I haven't seen them since.  I decided it would be best if I came back here and hoped for the best."

"I'm not even gonna ask why he hid from the dog." Eden muttered, "Did you at least get the drone before the dog caught you?"

"No, as it turns out, JJ had the wrong code." Pope sighed in response.  The two girls both gave each other a look, pissed with the boys.  They had one job, one simple plan to follow, and somehow they'd managed to screw up.

The three then fell into silence, waiting for John B. or JJ or appear.  Lucky for them, the latter showed up only a few moments later.   He had a small smirk on his face as he ran up, clearly proud of whatever he'd accomplished.

"Where have you been, and why is John B. not beside you?" Eden questioned, arms crossed in front of her chest.

"I just got myself out of trouble." JJ replied, "And John B. hid from a dog, he could be any—"  At his words, John B. was heard coming out of the bushes with a almost cooler like box rolling behind him, another plastic box in hand.

"You get it?" Kie asked, hoping for a yes.

Lucky for her, John B. gave a small smile, "Yeah, I got it."

"That's my boy!" JJ cheered, giving the brunette a pat on the back.  Eden, Kie and Pope gave a smile, happy that even if the plan didn't go as planned, they ended up with the item of desire; the drone.

After the small celebration, Kie perked up. "Who wants free food?"

The group of five walked into The Wreck a few moments later, rather hungry after the day.   Eden didn't have breakfast, either, so she was more than hungry.  She was starving, and the smell of everything cooking up in the restaurant wasn't helping.  She was hoping Mr. Carrera would give in, as he usually ended up doing.

Trying to convince even more, Eden followed Kie up to her father to see if she'd be able to help.  As the girl walked over to hug her father, the Bexley gave a friendly wave to the older man, "Hi, Mr. Carrera."

After a small discussion on how they didn't do too well that day, Kie gave a frown. "Guess now is not the best time to ask for free food for me and my friends." Her lips perked in a smile, trying to plead with her father as he sighed.

"Look at them. They're greedy pelicans." Mike eyed the three boys in the middle of the room, all three eyeing the food as if they'd never seen anything as good. "I thought I told you to stop hanging around these guys." He eyed Eden, "You too, Eden."

"Well, everyone at the Kook academy hates me, Dad." Kie replied.

"'Cause you never gave them a chance." Mike countered back, "And, Eden doesn't hate you."

"Eden doesn't count, she's half Pogue too." Kie got a little harsher with her words as she spoke on her time at the Kook academy. "And, I did give them a chance.  They got stuck up on me.  I mean, they care more about shoes than surfing.  What am I supposed to do with that?"

Kie turned to look towards the boys, "These are my friends.  Plus, you can't let Eden starve, because she's the only one at the academy who actually likes me."

Mr. Carrera sighed, "Look. Well, I got to throw it out, might as well take it."

Kiara hugged her father, "Thank you!"

The two girls rushed back over to Pope, JJ and John B. with the good news.  The five of them then sat at the nearest table, eager to be served.   As Mike was serving mostly leftovers, it didn't take long for plates to be placed in front of the five teens.   The boys were quick to stuff their faces with french fries, and Eden probably would have gave a grossed out look if she wasn't doing the same—she ate with more slowly, though, savoring the taste, considering she was used to this type of food.

The five of them chatted and laughed throughout their dinner, blocking out the sounds of other people inside.  Eden loved when it was just her and the four of them, being themselves and having fun.  She'd always cherish those moments, because you never knew when one could be the last.  With senior year creeping up, those moments would grow shorter and shorter, until everyone was separated and grown up, where they only chatted through face times and text messages until they could see one another again.

Towards the end of dinner, Kie had started dancing around the table, clearly in a good mood.  Eden smiled as she watched John B. follow after, twirling her around before the two began to go side to side together.  Eden was glad that there was no awkwardness between the two; they were still the best of friends.

But, Pope seemed rather upset as he watched them dance together.  He had a frown, and eyed them as they moved in sync with each other.  Eden noticed a lot when it came to her friends, and definitely noticed the glances Pope had been sending Kie's way.  She didn't want to assume anything when it came to the Heyward, but she'd known him long enough to know when something was up, and if it were up to her, he had a crush on Kiara.

Eden wouldn't be surprised if he did.  Everyone in the Pogues had at some point—Eden was sure she had herself sometime back in middle school.  It must hurt Pope to see her interacting with his best friend, who he thought stood a better chance at her than he did.

After a few minutes, John B. eyed Eden and gave her a look that beckoned her over to dance.  Giving in to her friend, she set her drink down and came in between the two dancing teens.  Kiara smiled at the two as she walked back her seat, letting Eden take her spot.

After setting down his drink, John B. intertwined a hand with hers, slowly spinning her around, just as he had with Kie.  Eden couldn't help but laugh as he put his hand in her face, waving his arms up and down.  She responded by moving her body to the music, which he followed with.  Eventually, they ended up hand in hand again, John B. slightly dipping her soon after, which caused Eden to let out an unexpected laugh.

"My turn!" Kie called after he dipped her, pushing her chair back in and grabbing Eden by the hand. "My turn to dance with my favorite girl."

Eden narrowed her eyes, but the corners of her lips were upturned, "Your favorite girl, huh?"

"Yup, you're my favorite girl. You think I'm gonna choose to dance with them over you?" Kiara smirked, wrapping a hand around the brunette's waist. 

"Rude!" JJ and John B. spoke in unison as the brunette sat back down in his seat, all eyes on the two girls now that they had the floor to themselves.   The two girls swayed back and forth in each direction, hands intertwined, bright smiles on their faces.  

Giving the two a few minutes to dance, JJ stood up and walked over to the dance corner, hand  out towards John B., "You guys were amazing, but I think me and John B. can top that.  What do you say about sharing this dance with me, Mr. Routledge?"

John B. took JJ's hand, placing the other to his heart in a dramatic sense, "I'd be honored, Mr. Maybank."

"You're so cliche!" Kiara cheered, taking a seat once more. Eden laughed during the entirety of what John B. and JJ called a 'dance'.  It was one hell of a performance, she has to admit.  With John B. dipping JJ, the blonde shaking his ass and basically every other dance move you could imagine, it caused lots of laughs between the two girls, eventually ending it the four of them all dancing together.

The only one who'd stayed quiet and in place the entire time was Pope.  Despite all the fun his friends were involving themselves in, fun in which he could join if he pleased, Pope stayed silent, watching from a distance.  

JJ noticed at some point and even asked, "Come on, Pope! Join the dance circle, show us your moves.  I know your hips don't lie."

Pope didn't accept, "I'm good, continue on."

Eden gave a surprised look, "You sure?"

"Yeah, continue on. I'm good." he nodded, trying to give a weak smile her way. Despite trying to act like everything was okay, Eden could tell that he was clearly upset; his smile didn't meet his eyes the way it usually did. Whether it was about Kie or not, Eden wasn't sure.

Whether or not Pope was lying, the group of four continued to have fun; dancing and drinking to their hearts delight until eventually, Mr. Carrera kicked them all out.

mara's misc!

boo

this is a lot of random episode filler, so it's not really an interesting chapter if i'm honest.  but, oh well.  i still had fun writing it.

oh, and i've finished season three now, (i finished it a few days ago, actually).  it was.....mid.  i have a full review if you want to take a look at that, but sometimes it just didn't feel like obx anymore. everything felt off, but the ending made up for it, (i guess???)

i'm not completely sure where i want eden to go for season three, but i have a few ideas. there were some scenes where i could totally picture her, but others i just couldn't.  i still have a million years before we get to s3 tho, so.....

anyway, hope you enjoyed <3