Deep Water [OuterBanks]

28: lost and found

Alana Kessler never would've imagined that she'd ever be ankle-deep in a ravine, though it seemed like the universe was set on proving her wrong because there she was (with her friends of course), stepping down into the murky green rainwater in search of a rather specific Glock 17. The midday sun was scaling tall against the cloudless heavens, and as a result of the storm from the previous night, a thick humidity had evened out over the island; which unfortunately only made wading in the bacteria infested water feel all the more repugnant.

"This is the north drain. It should've gotten washed into the gully." JJ was saying as he stood next to his girlfriend, his black work boots submerged in the drainage. The boy was dressed typically in his red baseball cap, a pair of cargo shorts, and a navy t-shirt—his ringed index finger trailing from here to there as he traced the route in which the gun had likely taken. "So, if it got pushed out from this drain, it would've been pushed out to, like—"

"Somewhere in this trash." Pope Heyward finished for the blonde, motioning to the abundance of plastic waste piling near the drain pipe's opening.

"Correct." JJ affirmed with a brief nod, while Alana surveyed the heaps of sodden bottles and bags, not really looking forward to the idea of having to sift through it all barehanded.

"Oh my God." A breathy sigh fled Kiara's lungs from where she stood on the thin slab of concrete framing the narrow pipe. "People who use plastic should be shot." She groaned over the chatty seagulls and seemingly perpetual trilling of biodiversity.

"So pretty much the entire population." Alana commented, having smelled the conversation from a mile away. Whether it was in line at a grocery store, or simply refusing a straw for her açaí refresher, Kiara Carrera never missed a beat when it came to sticking up for planet earth.

"You know, personally, I love plastic." JJ shrugged, tossing an empty milk jug to the side as he began rummaging through the debris. "I use it everyday, love the stuff."

Kiara's face twisted with disapproval. "Okay, well hopefully you recycle it and don't just let it flush into the ocean." She articulated, and Alana cracked a smile as JJ avoidantly scratched at the back of his neck, knowing damn well that he'd never recycled anything a day in his life.

"I thought you'd say something like that, so...I brought trash bags." Pope inherently reached into the back pocket of his shorts, retrieving the roll of bags.

"Did you just proactively protect the environment?" Kiara asked dramatically, her cheekbones pasted high with a smile—both genuine and heartfelt, yet it didn't reach her eyes.

"Maybe." Pope replied, the both of them giving each other looks now, only to be interrupted by JJ, who was too much of a goofball to simply watch the exchange silently.

"You want us to leave you two alone, or what's going on?" He sang, his eyes—as blue as the Celtic sea squinting in resistance to the bright sun as he slipped one of his defined arms around Alana's shoulders, pulling her in close.