𖤘 𝐒𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐎𝐍 𝟏

𓇼 CHAPTER 1

FROM THE BEGINNING : two : three

𓇼 CHAPTER 2 [𓆉]

POINT BLANK

𓇼 CHAPTER 3

THE LUCKY COMPASS

𓇼 CHAPTER 4

THE FORBIDDEN ZONE

𓇼 CHAPTER 5

SPY GAMES

𓇼 CHAPTER 6

MIDSUMMERS

𓇼 CHAPTER 7 |

PARCEL 6

𓇼 CHAPTER 8

DEAD CALM

𓇼 CHAPTER 9

THE RUNWAY

𓇼 CHAPTER 10

THE BELL TOWER

𓇼 CHAPTER 11

THE PHANTOM

The blonde lifts the cloth from his lap, dropping it below as the fabric lands onto my palms. I slipped my arms through the holes of my tank top, “Gotta head out in a few, I have a shift at the auto shop.”

JJ sticks his bottom lip out, frowning.“Just call in sick for today, I’m sure no one’s going to need a mechanic right now, right?” He reasoned, before placing his lips against the opening of the can. I exhaled wearily, “Yeah well, someone needs to put food on the table tonight right?”

John B balances on the tip of the roof, arms flying out from beside him, a can of alcohol on one hand, and a foot dangling off of the edge.

"That's what, a three-story fall to the deck?" Pope pressed the button on the electric tool that rested on his palms, "I give you a one-in-three chance of survival." He continues to estimate, the sun getting in his sight. John B hums, licking his index finger and holding it in front of him— "Hm, should I do it?" He wonders, glancing down towards Pope and I.

A sigh leaves my lips as I turn away from the daring brunette. JJ squints his eye to prevent the burning rays of the hot summer sun, watching in amusement as his two best friends dare each other. "Yeah you should do it." Pope agrees, lifting the tool up in the air and pointing it towards John B. "I'll shoot you on the way down."

"You'll shoot me?" John B questions, pointing his finger at Pope in a handgun motion, letting out mimicked gun noises. I shook my head, hands resting on my hip, clicking my tongue against the roof of my mouth, "John Booker Routledge, I swear to God— If you plummet to your death, I will make sure to revive you, so I’ll strangle you myself, understand?" I glared at my baby brother, earning a quick air kiss.

"They're gonna have Japanese toilets with towel warmers." Kiara complains, appearing under the many construction ladders— dropping her hands down with an eye roll.

"Of course they are. Why wouldn't they?" JJ smirks, mocking Kiara. Dangling his feet over the ledge of the wooden surface. "This used to be a turtle habitat but who cares about the turtles, I guess?" She shrugs, lifting her head up at the brunette on the roof , "I can't have cold towels." JJ jokes, pulling a giggle from my throat.

"Hey!" I forced myself to stop, although a smirk remained on my lips, "I care about the turtles!" I nodded, barely convincing Kie.

"Can you please not kill your self?" She worries, giving John B. a sloppy half smile— painted with sarcasm. I lean my torso against the white wooden railings, facing towards the salty blue sea— my denim shorts skimming up my thigh just a little.

"Don't spill that beer. I'm not giving you another one." JJ informed, sipping into his can of white claw as he gazed at my figure from behind.

"Yeah bro, you don't know how much 2 boxes of white claw-" My sentence barely made it out, John B yells, "Whoa!" Wet substances landing on my calves and a bang following after. "Oh shit." He mutters, purposefully dropping the can of beer JJ and I warned him not to.

I yelped, twirling around as I wiped the liquid with the palm of my hands. "Great job not dropping it, shit head." I muttered, loud enough to let the brunette hear.

"Of course you did like right when-"

"Smooth."

John B groans, his hands stretched in a frustrated motion. "A-plus." Pope says, sauntering towards the side of the house— getting a better view of the road side. I peek my head out the same way he did, "Dumbass." Kiara muttered to John B. My eyes rolled in disappointment to find a white vehicle, "Hey!" The doors to the car widened as a man in a security uniform pops out.

"Hey, uh- security's here." Pope announces, his breath hitches at the sight of two old men. He taps against the wooden railing, "Ah, just in time." I smiled, grasping Pope's forearm and tugging him in the direction of the entranceway. "Boys are early today." John B says from above the house, attention towards the security guards.

“Let’s wrap it up, c’mon.”

"Humpty Dumpty, let's roll." JJ exclaims, rolling away from the ledge and making his way down with John B by his side. I let out a breathy howl, "Less goo!" I shrieked, lightly shoving Kiara and Pope before me. "Let's go boys." Kiara grinned, the three of us like sitting ducks as we wait for the other two pogues.

"C'mon, c'mon!"

"Gary is that you?" JJ queried from above the lift, torso hanging over the ledge. Pope apprehensively awaited their presence to join us below, "JJ c'mon man!” He adjured. My head shook from left to right, though a playful yet mischievous grin stood upon my face. “Gary, good to see you man!”

“Is it time?” John B. smirked, flushing me against his side as we’d dart towards the rest of the pogues. “JJ!” Gary’s voice, the poor security guard, had echoed past the open doors and into the currently constructed home. “Ready to get outta here?” Propping my hand between us, he tightly threads his fingers through mine, “Hell yeah!”

“Whooo!!”

Our crew soon found ourselves scampering and dodging past the construction ladders and down the many flights of stairs— seemingly like obstacles. Shrieking and howling like wild, but free, animals— all bouncing from wall to wall as it’d echoe into complete mischievousness.

Adrenaline coursed through our veins, allowing every muscle in our bodies to act swiftly. However, our group quickly disassembled from one another, causing JJ and I to pair.

Both of the guards suddenly appeared by the open entrances, restricting us from exiting the building— one held his arms open, seemingly waiting to tackle any of us possible. “I got him!” So close, and yet so far, he managed to let JJ slip through his grasp, “Not much of a hugger man!” JJ had smirked— a fit of laughter erupted from my belly as I’d watched him veer past the man.

“C’mon Pope! Jump man!” I’d urged for him to quicken his movements while JJ and I turned the corner. My feet had stumbled against each other, sending me past the newly built fencing— however, it’d only caused me to topple against Pope’s back.

“Get up, fatso’s coming.” JJ laughed.

“Shit!” My fingers gripped onto whatever could be grasped, practically dragging the fallen boy by his biceps. “DUDE! Help yourself-“

A familiar bunky van, one I’ve grown to absolutely love, suddenly pulls into our view. Kiara occupied the back, hand resting on the door handle as she’d wait for the three of us to join her. “Bus is leaving!” The blaring sound of the Twinkie’s horn, promptly brought us to bolt past the van doors and into our escape— shoving Pope before me, I’d immediately heaved myself behind him.

“Go, go, go!” The vehicle rumbles to life beneath our feet, successfully escaping from the possibilities of serving jail time for trespassing. The pogues' laughter filled the air once again, smiles that went from ear to ear, mirroring each other. But, we weren’t off the hook just yet, nope. Gary had still been on our tail.

“Hey, hey! Hey! Hey!”

Every muscle that contained my body, throbbed with ache— however, it seemed to be yet another daily escape for us pogues. Deep puffs of air exited my lungs, as sweat trickled against my hairlines, alongside other places I wouldn’t feel comfortable naming [yikes]. I’d peer out the opening of the van, only to catch a glimpse of Gary.

“Check out Gary, gunnin’ for a raise.” Pope remarked, a teasing grin stretched upon the corner of his lips— settling against the space behind John B. JJ rises from a slouched position, “Come on Gary.” He’d add, shifting towards the vacant area besides Kie— “Wait. Slow down, slow down.” JJ insists, prompting a smirk to tug on the muscles of my cheeks— quickly sneaking a can of warm alcohol into the palm of his hands, in which he raises a brow in confusion.

I winked, shaking my head from left to right, as the two other pogues watched the scene unfold before them. JJ gripped onto the grab handle, securing himself from tumbling out of the vehicle. Gary swung his arms in the air, attempting to grasp onto the Twinkie, “Hey! You little pricks!”

Kiara’s eyes held no remorse despite her words, though her smile was a way to prove it, “You’re gonna give him a heart attack!” She’d attempted to remain as intimidating as possible. Ignored. My eyes rolled, crossing my forearms over my chest as I assured her to her dismay, “Oh please, he’s fine”.

In front of us, JJ waves the can of beer towards Gary’s towards us, seemingly taunting him—“You’re so close! You can do it!” He encouraged, suddenly tossing the beverage into the hands of the security guard— in which he'd surprisingly caught.

“There you go!”

Propping my arm over the nape of JJ’s neck, I found myself beside him— joining in on his idea of fun. He’d glance at the minimal space between us, causing me to beam at him. I’d switched my gaze onto Gary, “Aw man, they don’t pay you enough for this shit dude!” I remarked, before creeping into the gap between the front seats— slouching against the chipped leather seats, besides my little brother.

Perceiving the beautiful chaos that pervaded each corner of the Twinkie, I’d slump against the car door, so my back was pressed up against the vehicle’s barrier, and my torso towards the drivers seat— I couldn’t help but admire the little things that unfolded upon me, from the joyous laughter that filled my ears to the smiles that can be seen from a mile away. My family. My beautiful chaos.

Alright…

I suppose I shall start from the beginning… Well, not really. But ya got the point right?

….Right?

Anyways…

Welcome to the Outerbanks.

Paradise on Earth.

it's the sort of place where you either have

two jobs or two houses.

Two tribes, one island.

The briny Kildare breeze engulfed my whole being, as we’d head towards the bridge that bonded both sides of the island. I’d situate my arms against the window seal of the car, laying my forearms flatly against each other— lazily resting my head over them. I couldn’t quite pinpoint what exactly was completing this undeniable feeling of summer— but I knew, being surrounded by the people I love the most was enough for it to always be an undeniable feeling.

Say hello to Figure Eight, the rich side of the island.

Home of the Kooks.

Also, the home of snakes..

So, you better watch out, there are plenty of them.

John B guided us past the ghost of what’s supposed to be ours. And what soon will be ours. Beautifully well-kept two storied southern homes neighbored each other, each at least hundreds of yards away. Some gated. Most filled with maintenance, maids, and servants. Special servants. All while the riches bathed in thousands of gold.

So, guess where we DON’T live..

The scenery had soon left as fast as it came. The once greatly maintained island instantly shifted into a filthy low land. Debris had been dumped on the side of the road, or hanging off neighborhood trees that were neglected— just like the rest of us— and had grown a couple inches of vines.

The walls that made up each home appeared to hang on by a thread, as the wood soon decayed and the roof looked about ready to meet the ground— most of which seemed abandoned. On our side, we had a different story to tell, and I’m sure our homes made it obvious.

Goodbye land of the rich, hello South Side.

Or The Cut.

Home of the working class who make a living busing tables, washing yachts, running charters.. All the ups and down, you name it.

It also happens to be the natural habit of… drumroll please..

THE POGUES.

All at once, it seemed every piece of little adventure flooded my mind— varying from our simple hang outs on the HMS Pogue, only accompanying each other with our silence, to the chaos we’d storm up wherever we’d go. I found myself tilting my head to the side, getting a quick glance of the Pogues, as well as my baby brother.

Suddenly, I’d thought of the time we’d all tackled John B on the HMS Pogue, our laughter filled the empty marsh, as we’d settle against each other's embrace and talk about every simple thing in the world— somehow, it was everything that I’d ever wanted. Just being here, with my little poguies..

Speaking of, I should probably introduce you to one of the most astonishing—yet insane— people in the whole world… Let’s see, who shall I start with?

— Ah, yes. JJ, my little loco. The ace of the group, and the craze of every touron in the island. But, better known as JJ Maybank— and possibly the best surfer I know, just don’t tell him that. He’s about as local as they come. Latest in a long line of fishing, drinking, smuggling, vendetta- holding salt-lifers who made their living off the water, y’know the usual. 

Mild kleptomaniac… oh, and a future tax cheat.

Then, there’s Kie. My forever Pogue princess, Kiara Carrera. The richest one out of all of us, she’s got a heart of gold, and a personality of steel— Personally, that’s what I love about her. When she’s not saving turtles or listening to Marley, or getting matching dolphin tattoos with me, she hangs out with us. I’m not really sure why, though. 

Her family owns The Wreck, this Outer Banks institution. Total cash cow with the tourists— I mean I definitely get tipped more than I do at the auto shop. 

I’m gonna be honest though, I’m not really sure how her parents feel about us. Well, at least with me, I’m their waitress, a hardworking one at best… The boys however, they all got a thing for the Pogue princess, can you blame them though? Absolute beauty.

And may I present the brains of the operation? Mr. Pope Heyward. My favorite Einstein and my very own personal Spencer Reid— except he doesn’t always have an IQ of 187 and can’t read 2,000 words per minute, but still he’s my intelligent best friend.. And finalist for Lucas T. Vanderhorst Merit Scholarship.  

Despite our age difference, Pope and I are still the closest ones in the group— besides, John B and I obviously. He and I seemed to share our love for books and literature, well it’s more him than me. Little bit of a weirdo, but that’s always the best part about him. 

His father’s this legendary character, Heyward. Anything you want on this island, he could get for you— Bobby Heyward, the man of possibilities. Now, I’m not sure Heyward knew what to make of his oddball son, but it didn’t matter. He was a Pogue, just like the rest of us. 

And last but certainly not the least, my annoyingly reckless baby brother, John Booker Routledge. He’s my entire world, my partner in crime, and practically the leader of the family. And as of right now, the only person that I have. Even if I want to hold him in a choke hold for his stupid decisions, I love him with my entire heart. 

Oh, and you can’t forget the greatest Pogue of all, most may call her the Queen of Pogues.. But, I prefer to be called by my name, Y/N Nova Routledge.