AFTER a day full of surfing, Eden found herself leaning against the back of the Heyward's boat, John B. next to her as she soaked in the midday sun.   For some reason she'd agreed to come along on their mission to search for the Royal Merchant and it's gold—it wasn't really like she had a choice though. Pogues stuck together, and she wasn't about to leave that money hanging around.

After about thirty minutes on the water, John B. called for JJ to stop, "Alright, JJ. Pin it here!" The blonde did as told, slowing down the boat as Kie and Eden sat beside, watching. "Alright ladies and gentlemen.  To going full Kook."

"Let's hope this works." Eden muttered, her gaze set on the drone and John B. lowered it into the waters below.  Pope was set up in front of a screen, watching intensely in case the drone were to see something, John B. watched the coordinates, and the two girls helped out by lowering the drone more and more, giving everyone a job to do.

"Alright, JJ, we're right over it. Ten seconds northwest."

"Got it!" The Maybank replied, "Ten seconds northwest."

Kie called out a small, "One hundred feet!", marking the amount down on the boat so they could keep track of how much they were dropping it.  Everything was quiet for another few minutes before Pope gasped, causing everyone to quickly turn his way in the hope that he'd spotted something.

Their hope was meant with disappointment as Pope admitted to not seeing anything, "It's nothing." Everyone gave a frown, and John B. gave a small groan, having gotten so excited. "I'm sorry, I thought...."

"Don't do that to me, man." JJ stated.

"My bad. I just thought I saw...." Pope trailed off, shaking off the false alarm and dead eyeing the screen once again as they sank lower and lower into the ocean. "And to quote the Hobbit,  'Down, down, to Goblin town. Down, down, you go, my lad.'"

"I'm not gonna ask." Eden sighed, calling out they'd reached another hundred feet afterwards, "Two hundred!" to which followed a small "three hundred" afterwards.  Despite how far down they were going, Pope had yet to find something, which was rather concerning, as a storm was rolling in as they spoke.

"The tide's turning!" Kiara yelled as she marked down the four hundred mark.  The last thing Eden wanted was to get caught in this storm, but John B. didn't seem to want to stop quite yet so, he kept yelling directions towards the blonde steering, who followed.

As the tides grew strong, the boat began to rock, putting Eden slightly uneasy.   The thunder grew louder, and the waves stronger, but John B. didn't make the call.  They we so close, but if they didn't leave soon, they'd tip.

Eden found herself holding the tether up and Kie took total control of the drone, marking down the nine hundred foot mark.  They were on the verge of flipping and John B. stated that fact, but he continued spitting directions as if they weren't. 

The current was growing stronger, and Eden was struggling to hold on to the tether at this point, the rope giving her hands a slight rug burn as it tried to escape her grasp.  Eden yelled through gritted teeth, "You better have found something!"

John B. turned back towards Pope, "You heard the woman, what do you got, Pope?  Come on man, what do you see?" He was desperate at this point.

"Nothin'," Pope stated dryly, "A whole lot of nothin'."

After a few anxious minutes of Kiara yelling what they were reaching, Pope yelled out, "I'm at the bottom! I'm at the bottom!"

"Steady here, JJ! Steady here. Quarter speed, alright?" John B. yelled, staring at Pope's screen, eyes searching for something, anything. "You should be seeing something, man."

Pope snapped, "I know, I know—wait, wait, wait....."

Eden—who'd let go of the tether—ran up to Pope's side, hands slightly burning.  Staring at the screen, she couldn't help but let out a slight gasp as the ship they'd been searching for began to appear on the screen. "Oh, shit."

"Oh, good god."

JJ yelled towards the for, "See anything?"

"No, it's a crab, JJ." Eden rolled her eyes, "Hell yes we found something!"

"It's the Royal Merchant."

Kie, John B., and Eden all started at the screen in amazement, all excited to find what would lead them to their dream of going full Kook.  Sadly, their excitement didn't last more than a couple of minutes, because as Pope steered around, they slowly noticed the absence of gold inside and around the ship.  Being disappointed was an understatement.

After their third circle around the wreck, John B. sighed. "It's not there. Look, just—just pull the drone up." He stepped back, a frown on his face. "Shit."

Pope tried not to let disappointment take over his friend, "Look, we can do another pass, recharge the battery.  We can go back down."

JJ, clearly pissed as well, spoke without thinking, stating that there wasn't a point in trying again, "Guys, we've done it three times. There's nothing there—"

"Shut up!" Kie exclaimed, voice loud.

"What? It's true!"

"The gold could be buried. We don't know!"

Eden walked over to the Routledge, who'd ran a hand through his hair, more upset then he ever had been about something. He'd been so confident in the fact that they'd be leaving with gold in their hands, with the dream of going full Kook becoming a reality.  Instead, they were leaving with frowns on their faces, and hands full of nothing. Nothing.

"John B., we don't have to give up yet." Eden muttered quietly, placing a hand on his back in comfort. She could see how upset he was, and wanted to try and get him to see that it didn't have to be over quite yet. "I mean, that gold could be anywhere in that damn boat, or anywhere around it.  Maybe we just have to try again tomorrow—"

"If it was there, it would have been found on the metal detector, okay?" John B. yelled in defeat, "Someone beat us too it."

From the front of the boat, JJ let out a quiet mutter, "Or it was never there."

And just like that, what was once a trip full of hope and excitement turned into disappointment and anger.   Eden lied her head on John B.'s shoulder—he'd taken a seat on the edge of the boat, hood drawn—and the two stayed like that in silence, as well as the rest of the Pogues.

So much for going full Kook.

To slightly lift their saddened spirits, Kie decided to drag them all to the outdoor movie event being hosted in the Figure Eight.  Eden had been in on the idea, so JJ and Pope really had to choice but to tag along.

Eden enjoyed movie nights, especially when it was with her friends. After seeing Titanic together, she'd realized how much she truly liked watching her friends react to movies—it was even more fun when Eden herself had never seen the film.  Then they all were totally unaware.

Last summer, the Pogues would have movie night at the Chateau every weekened, rotating who got to pick the film out.  It had been fun seeing what John B., JJ, Pope and Kie enjoyed.  They hadn't sat down to do it lately, but going to this outdoor movie was close enough—minus John B. He'd been rather MIA the entirety of the afternoon, and hadn't answered any of their messages.

"I'm so glad that they're still doing this." Kiara smiled happily, already feeling the good energy as she walked through the park.  Eden was next to her, leading the boys towards a good area to take a seat at. "Keep calm, carry on. Back to the OBX life, you know? Aren't you guys glad I made you come?"

"Ecstatic." Pope exclaimed sarcastically, setting up one of the chairs they'd brought.

JJ shrugged, "My couch was pretty comfy, I'll be honest."

Eden rolled her eyes, setting up the chair she'd brought right next to Kie, "Stop being dicks, you two." Sending the Carrera a smile she continued, "I for one, Kie, am very happy you invited us. You know I'd never turn down an opportunity to watch a movie, with my friends." the Bexley hung onto the final words, eyeing down the two boys.

"Thank you, Eden." Kiara gave a smile, turning towards JJ and Pope, "See? Not everyone has to have attitude about it."

After setting up, Kie went to get some drinks for the boys.  As the boys whisper away about not wanting to be there, Eden rolled her eyes at their comments, waiting for Kie to arrive back with drinks.

That was, however, until she spotted Rafe Cameron—older brother to the queen of Kooks herself—approaching the girl.  She knew the history between the two, and decided to intervene before Rafe could make Kie feel too uncomfortable.

Right as the blonde got closer to her face, Eden came up with a fake smile on her face, staring at the Cameron.  She didn't speak—she'd let Rafe make the first move, so that's exactly what he did.

"Hey, Eden." Rafe said with false nicety in his voice.  Even speaking to Rafe made Eden want to throw up.  Whether it was his hairline or the "i'm richer than you" expression that sat on his face, Rafe Cameron would always make anyone in his vicinity uncomfortable.  Eden wasn't sure how he had any friends, let alone any acquaintances.   

"Rafe," Eden replied, giving a tight lipped smile his way, one she really didn't mean. 

Rafe sent the same smile back, "How's your day been going?"

"Well, it was rather nice." the brunette shrugged, "But, then I saw your face, so now it's ruined."

Rafe tilted his head to the side, amused from the girls attitude.  "What happened to the sweet Eden from the Kook academy?"

"She realized that Kooks like you don't deserve to be treated nicely." Eden smiled, the Cameron giving an unimpressed look back at her.  

Kie shook her head, "What do you want, Rafe?"

The blonde recomposed himself, leaning back in towards the two girls with a serious stare, as if he were telling a secret. "Tell your boy that we know what he did."

"Sorry, what boy are you talking about?" 

Eden narrowed her eyes, "And did said boy do, exactly?"

"Uh, he'll know." Rafe replied simply, not answering either of their questions.  Kie gave a slightly creeped out look and walked away with the two drinks she'd purchased, the blonde calling out a small, and rather obnoxious, "Bye."

At his words, Kie muttered a small, 'Douche' and Eden stuck up the middle finger for him to see. Walking back over to their over two friends, the girls couldn't help but question what Rafe meant by 'tell your boy we know what he did.' So, when they finally got back to the boys, Kie was quick to tell them about the experience, wanting an answer. "Just saw Rafe, and he said, and I quote, 'Tell your boy that we know what he did'."

"Which leaves me questioning who did what and what did it have to do with Rafe?" Eden questioned, giving them a small look. "JJ?"

The blonde looked around, trying to spot the Cameron boy in the crowd, "Um...Where is he?"

Eden nodded towards where Rafe was standing with Kelce and Topper, the Thorton boy staring at the four of them—more so JJ and Pope—with an almost murderous look in his eyes.  Eden watched as Pope's eyes widened, and he let out a huff.

"Great, the whole death squad—ah!" JJ yanked Pope's head forward, urging him to stop staring at the three; it only made them look more scared.

"Don't stare, bro." the Maybank said, speaking rather quietly in case the boys could hear from afar. "Just warning you, bro. If they corner me, I'm coming out swinging, okay? Slice and dicin'. I'm on edge right now."

Kiara and Eden sent each other a confused glance as JJ continued to talk, still having unanswered questions running through their minds.  The blonde picked up his bag, showing it to Pope. "If that doesn't work, I got this right here."

"So, we just gotta stay in the group." Pope nodded along, "They can't come get us if we're in the group."

"Like a school of fish."

"Stay in the school. Can't leave the school—"

"I'm sorry, JJ....." the Carrera girl interrupted the two boys, staring at the blonde with a stare that almost matched the one Topper had been giving the two. She'd be going off on the boy if it wasn't a public area. "Please tell me that you did not bring a gun here. JJ, there are kids!"

JJ tried to play it off, clearly lying to his two friends, "No, Kie, I didn't bring the gun. Everything's fine, okay?" Not believing a single word he spoke, Eden snatched the bag from his side and began rummaging through it, trying to search for the cursed item.

"Wow, thank you. That's really convincing. I love that, JJ." Kie spoke with fake enthusiasm, before reminding the two boys of their top rule; no secrets between Pogues. "Founding principle, you guys. No secrets amongst Pogues. What is Rafe talking about?"

Pope leaned in, a serious expression taking place on his features, "Kie, it might go down tonight."

"What does that mean? 'Might go down tonight.' What did ya'll do?"

"Deny, deny, deny." the blonde whispered, still leaving the Carrera girl clueless as to what Pope had meant.  His eyes then glanced over to Eden, who'd been oddly silent during that whole conversation.  They widened as he grabbed it back, "Don't touch my shit, bro!"

"You're a liar." Eden replied, rolling her eyes at the blonde. In the few minutes she'd had with the bag, she'd been able to find the gun hidden at the bottom of it. She couldn't believe he'd brought the gun, even if it could come in handy.  This gun had already caused enough trouble as it was, and she was sure it would bring a whole lot down tonight. "Who brings a gun to a fucking park? This has to be your stupidest idea yet."

JJ didn't reply, and Eden fell silent too, the movie beginning a few moments later. She'd stopped worrying about the gun after the movie started; it had fallen to the back of her mind.  Kie also seemed to forget about any sort of worries as she watched contently.

That was until Pope began whispering halfway through, "JJ?"

"What?" 

"I gotta take a piss."

"Hold it," JJ replied, not wanting to expose themselves within the open crowd. It would be better if they stayed, then, Topper, Rafe and Kelce wouldn't be able to corner them.  They wouldn't ruin their reputations by starting a fight within an open area.

Pope shook his head, "I can't hold it. I drank too much soda."

"It's too exposed. They'll totally see us."

"I gotta go."

The two boys looked back towards where the three Kooks were sitting, which Eden noticed from the corner of her eye.  Pope gave a nervous look, "They're blocking the bathrooms."

"Come here. I know where."

Kie's head snapped in their direction, "Hey, where are ya'll going?"

"We gotta wring it out." JJ replied, giving a shrug.

"You gonna hold it for each other?"

The boys gave her a small look before rushing off behind the movie screen, both girls returning to the movie.  But, after about five minutes, they hadn't returned—and as Eden looked around—there wasn't any sign of them anywhere around the park either.  That's when her eyes noticed the three empty seats in the back, where the death squad had been lying low.

Shit.

Eden shook Kie's shoulder, nodding towards the back. "It's been too long for them to be taking a piss and look—" Eden paused for a moment, allowing her friend to notice the three missing boys behind them. "—the death squad has disappeared."

"Well, shit." Kiara muttered running a hand through her hair.  She slowly stood up, snatching the bag in her grasp—she was smart enough to know that the gun was inside.  Eden followed after her, apologizing as she weaved through viewers.

As they grew closer to the movie screen, Eden could hear grunting and punches being thrown, causing her to run even faster.  Even if her friends were complete dumb asses for doing whatever they'd done—messing with Kooks was a big no—she would be there by their side to fight back.  That's what Pogues did.

"Let go of him, Topper!" Kie made her appearance known, running up and smacking Topper over again with JJ's bag, trying to get the boy with frosted tips to stop harming the Heyward boy. "Fascist asshole!"

Eden ran towards the blonde boy instead, anger set in her eyes as she watched Rafe throw punch after punch to his face, Kelce holding on to him.  She began elbowing the Cameron's back, trying to get him off with whatever she had. "Get off of him you asshole! Get the fuck off of him!"

"Get out of my way, Eden!" Rafe shoved her off of him, causing the girl to fall to the ground harshly.  She let out a small groan, holding on to her side as she attempted to rise again.  Rafe ran over to Topper, grabbing Kie from his back and repeating his actions, the girl landing with a scream.

"Stay out of this, Kiara!"

Eden stood up again, holding on to her side as she ran back up to Rafe, throwing punch after punch at him.  She could hear Pope's choked gasps sounding from behind her, and prayed that Kie was doing something to help him.

Realizing she'd gotten back up, Rafe sent an elbow flying back in Eden's direction, hitting her nose with ease. Eden's hand flew up to her nose out of instinct, and she let out a stream of curse words as her nose throbbed in pain. "I said stay out of my way, Eden!"

"Don't you touch her!" JJ weakly called out, causing even more punches to be thrown at his face.  The blonde's head began lulling back and forth with each punch Rafe sent, and Eden was sure that if no one did anything, he'd end up rather injured.

Eden turned to Kie, who was holding a lighter against the screen.  The Bexley gave a simple nod to her friend, signaling that she should do it now.  That's exactly what she did, and within seconds the screen was burning.

Gasps erupted from the crowd at the sight of it, and all three Kooks looked to see the flames burning in front of them.  But, the three boys didn't stop, and Eden knew it would take some forced persusion.

So, she grabbed the gun from JJ's bag, clicked the safety off and aimed it right at Rafe without any hesitation.  Blood tricking from her nose, she held her head high and spoke, "Get the fuck out of here."

"Eden, put that down before you hurt someone." Rafe's eyes darted between Topper, who was slowly loosening his hold on the Heyward at the sight of the gun—due to flashbacks from a few days back—and Kelce, who continued to hold on to the blonde, though his eyes were locked on the gun as well. "You don't know how to use that."

"I'm not afraid to shoot you, Rafe." Eden snapped, hands slightly shaking.  The screen continued to burn behind her, and there was only so much time before the entire audience got a glimpse of what was happening. "Now, I'd recommend letting go of him right now—" she eyed Kelce, who dropped the boy at her stare, "—and getting the hell away from us."

"Okay, okay." Topper backed away from Pope, hands up in surrender. "We're good, we're all good."  As the fire burned behind them, the three Kooks walked away, seemingly proud of what they'd accomplished.

Once she was sure they were gone, Eden tossed the gun back towards the backpack and rushed over to where the blonde was panting—Kie already had a hold of Pope, wrapping an arm around him.

"Are you okay, J?" Eden examined his face, trying to get an overview of his injuries.  The night sky and the flames didn't give the best lighting, so it was rather hard for her to get a good look. 

"I'll be fine." JJ replied, eyes scanning over her bleeding nose and the bruise forming around it.  He felt awful for getting his friends involved in this fight; it had been him and Pope's mess, she didn't deserve to get injured. "How bad did he hit you?"

"Oh, I'm sure I have a bruised nose." Eden hand brushed over her bleeding nose, cringing as pain rushed through it.  Definitely a bruise—she was lucky it wasn't broken.  "You didn't have to defend me like that, it just caused you more trouble."

"You think I was gonna let him hit you like that?" JJ began walking, grabbing his bag and the gun.  The two followed after Kie and Pope, keeping their conversation quiet.  He slightly smiled as he placed the gun in his bag, turning to face Eden. "I thought you didn't like the fact I brought the gun....yet you used it."

Eden shrugged, mimicking his words, "You think I was gonna let you get killed off back there?"

"Well, you looked pretty badass, I have to admit."

Eden gave a small smile, nudging his shoulder, "Well, I learned from the best."

mara's misc

hey!

it's been a hot minute, oop.

i really hate this chapter the amount of dialogue in it is just ew.  my pet peeve is when is writing a lot of dialogue i just rlly don't like it.  i'm more of an action person.

the only thing i like is eden using jj's gun and their little interaction at the end.  me actually showing eden bonding with someone other than john b. is a once in a blue moon occasion, so ya'll better enjoy it.

anyway....

hope you enjoyed <3 see ya'll's back for chapter eleven!