𝐹𝑜𝑜𝓉 𝒾𝓃 𝐵𝑜𝓉𝒽 𝒲𝑜𝓇𝓁𝒹'𝓈 || OUTERBANKS

-16-

•Midsummers•
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"Hey guys, so like, my dads already gonna kill me. So what's this mandatory meeting about?" I asked throwing a stick onto the fire.

"Might as well tell her, man, before we're gaffed" JJ spoke from next to me.

"You ready for this?" John B asked looking me dead in the eye, before turning to look at Kie.

"Yeah" She replied.

"So, the gold never went down with the Royal Merchant"

"Oh, my God. Here we go with this again" Pope sighed.

"No. All right, wait. Hear him out, all right?" JJ shushed, as John B out a ginger to his lips.

"It's been here the whole time. It's on the island"

"Are you serious?" I asked, looking around the group confusedly, JJ and John B both nodded so I sat back slightly "Oh, my God"

"I'd like to voice my skepticism"

"As always" I sighed.

"I'm sure you would, Pope, but can I please present you with my evidence, sir?" John B asked standing up infront of us all.

"Proceed"

"All right. So, in my backpack, I have a letter from Denmark Tanny."

"Who the hell's that?" I asked, looking at him confusedly.

"Denmark Tanny was a slave that survived the Royal Merchant wreck. Check this out." He mumbles the last part as he handed me a sheet of paper. I unfolded it and scanned my eyes over the paper.

"Okay, slaves weren't mentioned as crew members on the ship, but my dad, he found the complete manifest. That was his big discovery"

"So Tanny used the gold from the Merchant to buy his freedom. After that, he bought his farm. Drumroll, please, because that farm is... Tannyhill Plantation"

"Tannyhill?" I asked raising my eyebrows, looking at him in disbelief.

"Yeah. So after that, he used his money to free even more slaves, and then he sold a shit tonne of rice, which pisses off all the white planters, and then they decide to lynch him. So on the day they were coming to get him, he writes a letter to his son as a farewell, and in the last line of that letter, he leaves a coded message about where to find the gold" He spoke walking toward me with a massive smile, which I mocked, looking around the group.

"Where?" I asked isn't he same tone mocking his smile.

"Harvest the wheat in parcel nine, near the water. Except.... there's no wheat. You see, wheat is code for gold. Check this out. The gold is in parcel nine, near the water" He spoke as Kie let out an amazed laugh.

I smiled big looking at the note after Pope passed it over to me.

"Holy shit"

"All we need is an original survey map of the property, and we've got the gold."

"Okay, so this might have a small chance of being actually true" Pope sighed looking up as JJ got up and hugged John B.

"I am a genius" He smiled cockily.

"Dude, it's like King Tut!" Kie laughed.

"Woah! Fire fire, be careful we are near a fire" John B spoke rapidly as JJ picked him up in a bear hug.

"I'm so proud of you right now"

"Thankyou. That's really sweet of you"

"Okay, so, guys. What's the plan?" Pope asked .

"Good question. So, Sarah Cameron's coming tonight, she's gonna bring an original survey map—"

"W-wait what?" I stopped him.

"Hold on" Kie shook her head.

"Sarah? Wh-why Sarah?" I asked, I knew it probably meant nothing but I couldn't help but feel a tad jealous.

"Um..."

"This is gonna be good" JJ spoke, moving up and away from me slightly.

"Sarah, um, she— she got me into the archives in Chapel Hill yesterday, and that's where I got the letter"

"You were in Chapel Hill with Sarah Cameron?" I asked in disbelief, as I shook my head.

"Cody could've got you into the archives John B, her brother donated like half of their shit, why Sarah?" Kie argued.

"Yeah, um—"

"He was mackin' on her" JJ spoke to which my head snapped back up to look at the young brunette.

"I wasn't macking"

"You were totally macking Sarah Cameron"

"I wasn't macking in her, okay? I was using her for access" John B argued looking at me.

"Which Cody could've gotten you"

"There was access, all right" I mumbled looking over to the side.

"Did you tell her about he treasure?" Kie asked.

"I was just trying to get into the archives"

"Is that a yes?!" Kie asked angrily.

"-I— I left out key details"

"Yo, what?" I sighed leaning back shaking my head and face palming.

"You let a Kook in on our secret?" Kie shouted.

"Cody's a Kook" That sentence alone was enough to make everyone fall silent.

"....Thanks John B, really. Did me running off from my family with four Pogues at a huge event infront of everyone my family has ever known, not enough for you?" I asked in disbelief, getting up and walking. John B always called me a Pogue, no matter what, he never ever saw me as a Kook, that's why it hurt so bad.

"I'm sorry, Cody.." He spoke as everywhere went silent, the only thing heard was the crackling of the fire and the crickets.

"Yeah I'm gonna go, oh wait now I don't have anywhere to go" I sighed tearing up. It hurt when John B said that. All my life I've tried to get as far away from being a Kook as possible without hurting my family, and now I finally gave up and hurt my family, I'm still a Kook in their eyes.

"Cody wait" JJ spoke reaching out to me. I kept my head down shaking it.

"No JJ." I spoke pushing his arm away as I walked past him.

"Just stay Codes. Please. I didn't mean it like that, I meant— I'm sorry I don't know what I meant. I just.... I was trying to get my point across and I said something stupid"

"It's not the fact that you said it John B" I sighed turning around, we were now away from the group, and further in the woods, the light of the fire sill gave us the evil it's to see eachother, "It's the fact that, no matter how many times I try to prove it to you, I'm still a Kook in your eyes. No matter what I do to get away from that title. You'll always see it..... and that... that's what hurts"

I then turned around and walked away, leaving the young brunette to explain to the others.