𝐂𝐑𝐔𝐄𝐋 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑! [𝐉𝐉 𝐌𝐀𝐘𝐁𝐀𝐍𝐊]

chapter seven.

CRUEL SUMMER!
chapter seven.

( maybe just the way we're different could set me free. )

Life doesn't give you many opportunities to revisit the choices you make. Whatever the circumstance may be - second chances are always rare to come across.

Though I hardly ever doubt myself, recently I made a choice. An interesting one, at that. Normally, given the option between being able to work alone or having to entrust that others will keep up and work with me - I'd easily choose the former.

As crucial as this circumstance may be, I had already made my choice and agreed to work with JJ and his friends to find the gold. Perhaps it isn't the most beneficial choice, nor the most practical. If anything, I distinctly remember not even calling it a choice, but a compromise - but nonetheless, it's a compromise that I made. I had accepted that.

Despite this, by some twisted fate, I somehow find myself faced with an infrequent second chance.

Knowing what I do now, that the gold is on the island - it could be another opportunity to do what I should have in the first place. Find the gold alone.

When JJ called me earlier today, irate and displeased, I was already expecting his call. He told me that they found the wreck of the Royal Merchant - but there was no traces of the gold. Over the phone, he had sounded almost apologetic. His voice had wavered with a mix of exasperated anger and unconcealed disappointment, like he was the one responsible for letting me down.

And really, there was no need for him to be so... penitent. It isn't his fault, so there was no reason for him to act like it.

"It's bullshit. Someone must've beat us to it - or it was never there in the first place. M'sorry, Kai. Really."

I found myself eager to hang up the call once the words left his mouth, an uncivilized desire to put an end to his apologies, and the odious sincerity behind them.

He didn't seem convinced when I told him it was okay, that perhaps it just wasn't meant to be. Either way, I didn't give him any moment to further question me, uttering a brief goodbye and not allowing him to return the pleasantry before promptly ending the call.

Now, hours later, I click the pen held in my grasp, stilling my knee the moment I notice it's persistent bouncing. I know that I'm not under any obligation to tell them. Not so long ago, I wouldn't have even considered it. It would've been my secret to keep, to ensure I remain one step ahead of the game, just how I've always liked it.

Getting out of this godforsaken island is the goal I've had from the start. It's my sole objective, and the reason why I need the gold. If I keep this new information to myself, it would be nothing personal. It's simply what would benefit me and what I'm working towards. I know this.

But. It feels different now. Inexplicably. Infuriatingly.

It feels a little bit heavy, to be keeping this to myself. Heavy in a much too spiteful way. It's taunting. And there's no good reason for this weighted burden. It's aggravating to no end.

I've tried to work out why. The most logical reasoning is the obvious one. I can recognize that even with just a fraction of the money, it would still be more than enough to execute what I want. I don't necessarily need the entirety of the treasure for myself.

There's also John B, and the fact that this whole treasure hunt is his fathers' life work. It's what he left his son as his legacy. His dying wish. And Pope, too. He's right, textbooks are stupidly expensive, and so is that autopsy school I've heard he endlessly brings up.