my always addiction ☞︎𝕛𝕛 𝕞𝕒𝕪𝕓𝕒𝕟𝕜☜︎

𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿

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I watch as Zia dives into the water, gripping onto the shirt she had once threw onto the floor in front of me. Kie follows her.

"Um.. what was that all about?" Pope asks, also watching Z.

"I don't know. But I liked it. A lot." I had dazed out at the sight of Zia in her black bikini.

Zia and I had always been friends, and we had always had some stupid flirting banter. We didn't always get along, but we still loved each other. And the flirting has always been a joke, nothing more. But lately, it's felt like something more. I don't know how to explain it, but it's like we aren't joking anymore.

Not like I would ever try and date her or anything. Don't get me wrong, Z is hot, and cool, and basically perfect.. but there's a rule.

A dumb as fuck rule that Kie made up like four years ago when we wouldn't stop hitting in her.

It didn't prevent us from hitting on her, but it just prevented us from getting any further with it.

That's why I was so happy about the bet, because maybe, if I got Z to fall for me, the Pogues would lift the rule.

I don't know why I feel like I have to protect Z, but I just do. Like if I don't, something will happen. Something bad.

John B snaps me back to reality when he clears his throat.

"Um, yeah. So.." I trail off.

"Alrighty, yeah. So uh.. when you're down there, you look for the cargo hold." Pope says to John B.

I pick up a lock pick and raise it to John Bs' face.

"You stick this thing inside, twist and pull, okay?" I say as I mimic the movements.

"Twist and pull, okay." John B repeats.

"My dad moved weight back in the day." I shrug.

"Who didn't?" Pope says rhetorically.

Suddenly, Kie and Z emerge from the water.

"Hey!" Z gets our attention.

"I tied my shirt to the anchor chain about ten feet down, it's where you need to make your safety stop." She says as she swims toward the boat.

"Cool." John B replies.

"Keep an eye on this. You need to make sure you have enough air to decompress." Pope says, holding the meter up to John B.

"Okay, how much do I need?" John B asks.

"Unclear. Breath as little as possible." Pope says flatly.

"Think zen, you know?" I tell him, imitating breathing through the mask.

"Yeah, got it." John B says as he puts on all of the gear.

"If we get caught in the marsh, we're basically screwed. So... you better get a move on." Pope tells John B.

"Copy that." He replies confidently.

"Be careful down there. If there's a dead body, leave it." Zia says as she dries her body off with a towel.

A smile breaks on my face while I watch her.

"Will do." John B salutes her.

"Diver down?" Pope asks as John B stands on the nose of the boat, ready to jump in.

"Diver down." John B repeats. 

"Wait!" Zia shouts.

We all snap our heads to her.