𝐂𝐑𝐔𝐄𝐋 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑 - kiara carrera¹

𝒙𝒙𝒙. 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒚 𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO RAFE CAMERON'S ROOM, AND QUITE HONESTLY, I DON'T WANNA KNOW."

Tatum sighed again at the sound of Heyward's preparation for a warning. She honestly didn't know why he gave her these strict talks anymore, because she had never once listened to a single one. Not even when she was eight and stole all the beer at her first Midsummers party. But tonight, she really wasn't going to cause any trouble. She was just going to serve food and drinks, smile and be polite, all whilst avoiding Kiara and her stuck-up, bitchy parents.

She jumped out of the truck with Pope and his dad to help take everything out. As usual, the celebration ahead of them was magnificent. But these parties were only made  for the rich to shit on the poor.

"But I so much as catch you with a lighter tonight, you dead," he warned, pointing a finger at the girl as his son handed him a tub of food. "I don't care if it's what your shithead dad tells you is right - I'm here to tell you it's fucking messed up, all right?"

"Yep," she said, joining Pope at the back of the truck, who was smirking as he handed her food.

"So I want no trouble from you, Tatum," the man went on. "And what's up with those stripper tights? You ain't a hooker."

She sighed and rolled her eyes, ignoring his comment. She just wanted to get this whole night over with, get home, get screamed at for not stealing anything while she was there, survive through seven o'clock, and sleep. Then repeat the whole thing all over again the next day. She didn't care. Her only target now was to avoid Kiara, no matter how stunning she was bound to look tonight.

She and Pope continued to ignore his father as he continued to lecture them on random things. Tatum threw her arm around her friend's shoulders, sucked in a breath and stepped through the gateway to hell.

"You did some damage," commented Pope, staring up at the construction going on on the second floor, where the walls had gone burned and crusty.

"I lost my mind," she admitted, unable to take her eyes off her destruction. "If it weren't for Thomas, I would've let myself burn to death."

Pope was completely taken back by her response. He shook his head and frowned. "Tate..."

She turned to him with an assuring smile. "Don't worry, I'm not suicidal or anything...I just go mental every few days."

"You need to see a therapist."

"If only I had to money."

After spending over an hour setting up, Tatum finally dropped down on one of the chairs. She seriously wasn't prepared for tonight. She just knew she'd end up snapping at some random rich, snobby little prick complaining that she was too slow at serving.

"There's Kie," said Pope, nodding his head into the distance.

Tatum's eyes widened. "Is she coming over?"

"I think, why?"

Without an explanation, Tatum sprinted to the other side of the yard. She didn't apologise when she collided into a group of kooks - she just needed to get away before she seen her.

Cheeful laps and whoops spread through the large as the kingdom of kooks bowed down to worship their royal family. The Camerons. Tatum didn't even have the energy to shout or throw fruit at them the way she did every other year. Rose and Ward came out first, their false teeth and smiles coming out with flashes of white to woo their large audience. Tatum had no idea what started their families' feud, but she knew Ward Cameron loved to hate her family. So did Tate, but she was allowed to. Rafe and Sarah came out next, and she was instantly reminded of the damage she made on their house. She pointed a gun at Sarah's head, not even two weeks after shooting her boyfriend in the arm. Then she set Rafe's room into flames. And no matter how hard she tried, Tatum just couldn't feel an ounce of guilt. She honestly didn't care, and she hated herself for it. Because she knew her lack of empathy only made her more of a Quinn. Little Wheezie came out next, but Tate didn't really care for her - she was too young and oblivious to have knowledge of their families' long-term argument. Though, as a Quinn, you are taught to hate the Camerons the moment you come out of your mama's vagina.

𑁍𑁍𑁍

"WANNA HELP ME OUT ON THIS MISSION?"

For hours, Tatum managed to go about her work and avoid Kiara at the same time. The large majority of kooks were assholes to her, and constantly told her how unprofessional her tights were, but she only flipped them off. She was just glad to be so fortunate to not have ran into the Carreras yet.

And she was only more grateful when, as expected, JJ Maybank sneaked up behind her. She threw her arms around his neck without a thought. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

He patted her on the back with a laugh. "Whoa. Unexpected PDA there, Swiper."

She pulled away with a smile. They were alike in the way they both despised sympathy. "Swiper?" she asked with a raised brow.

He nodded. "Yeah, you know, Dora the explorer? Because when you come here, you always steal things, like Swiper."

Tatum rolled her eyes, desperate to tell him how much she understood the problems he had with his dad, and how grateful she was that he stood up for her against the cops, despite the consequences - but she held it all in, because she didn't want to make him uncomfortable. "So, what mission are we talking about?"

JJ chucked, pulling out a note. "Our boy, John Booker Routledge, has scored himself a hot, blonde kook."

Knowing exactly who her friend was talking about, Tatum frowned. Why would John B do that? He knew how much Kiara hated her.

"We gotta pass her this note for him," he went on anyway, waving the piece of paper in her face. "Oh, and we're back in the G-game, baby."

The girl's eyes widened. He nodded. She almost squealed in excitement. She had seriously given up on the idea that she could get the hell out of OBX. But with 100 mil, she could easily fuck off to the Bahamas...and take Kiara with her. If she got that gold, she could give Kie everything she deserved in the world. A stable home, children, a good job and income - she didn't have to leave her. Mrs Carrera's words wouldn't mean shit. She could still be with Kiara. Forever.

Tatum didn't have a chance to react before JJ jumped in to mingle with the kooks so he could pass Sarah the note. She figured she couldn't follow him, considering she stuck a gun in the girl's face two days ago. A part of her was more shocked by the fact John B was dating her than the G-game being back on. Only a few days ago, he was ranting to the pouges about how she ratted him out to her father and got him fired. He really did not like the girl, and now they were hooking up? When the hell did that happen?

A tap on her back caused Tatum to break out of her thought train. "Your drink will be with you in a moment, Mrs -" But when she turned around, she wasn't faced with the woman she expected at all. It was Thomas. Her twin brother, Thomas. His eyes puffy, his face wet and bruised.

"Dad's got a kill order out on me, man."