Pooks

Chapter 8

You're looking out at the marsh. There's something so peaceful about it. It's simplicity offers a massive amount of comfort. You don't have as good of a view from your place, there's trees and overgrown grass in the way at yours, but John B's goes right up to it. If you wanted to you could sit on the bank with your feet in the water. He also has a pier that goes all the way down into the marsh where he keeps his boat, the HMS Pogue. You haven't been on it yet but him and JJ have promised you a boat day asap.
It's quiet, you can hear crickets and the water calmly passing you by. You look down at JJ who's still lying down, he's fallen asleep. You look at him for a second, you know that exhaustion all too well. Not so much from your own experience, your mom was never around long enough to argue with. But you recognise it from Rafe. It's a type of exhaustion where no matter how tired you are you can't sleep. Countless times I've caught Rafe in the gym or driving around aimlessly after fighting with his dad but when you meet him he falls asleep almost instantly. It's like your unconscious knows you're free to relax now because you're with someone who calms you. It's hard to explain because you're not even aware it's happening. All the pain and angry energy that's built up inside you slowly leaves your body when you're with them and your body finally allows you to rest. That makes you smile, you're glad you can offer that to JJ he needs it. I'm sure all the pogues are the same for him, like he said P4L is a family.
Your phone buzzes, speak of the devil.
Yeah wanna go for a drive?
You knew Rafe would be up, midnight is the new 10 o'clock you're still surprised John B was asleep when you first got here. You reply to Rafe:
Yeah
You quietly get up and look at JJ. He's using his arm as a pillow, it's still warm but you feel bad just leaving him there. You walk over to the shack where the surf boards are and grab a jacket that someone's left on the random chair. It's John B's, you walk back over to JJ and place it over him. He's out cold, doesn't even flinch. You run out to the street and wait for Rafe. He'll see you as he pulls up and that way Barry won't know you snuck out. You really need to stop sneaking away from people when they fall asleep.
You're not waiting long, Rafe pulls over in his car and you get in. "What are you doing waiting on the side of the road?!" You roll your eyes and put your seatbelt on.
"Where we going?"
"You know where we're going" Rafe speeds off his engine definitely waking JJ and John B up, fucks sake.
You get to your spot but stay in the car. It's not as warm as usual tonight plus Rafe's car seats are super comfy. Rafe turns off the engine and turns to you "so what's going on with you? You're sneaking off in the middle of the night then messaging me if I'm up?" He's smiling but you can tell he's being genuine. You don't look at him, he knows when you're lying so you need to keep this as truthful as possible without telling the truth...
"I just uh didn't feel great so I went home. Been asleep all day so couldn't sleep now" you say still avoiding eye contact.
"Mhmm" he says, he doesn't believe a word you're saying.
"Guess what though" you've gotten pretty good at changing the subject recently. "I got a job, Heyward's. Just helping out when they need it" you finally look at him smiling.
"You- Yn if you need money I-"
"Rafe" you put your head back on his seat. "First off no, I'm not taking anything from you. Second I don't need the money, Barry's given me everything I need it's just something to do-"
"Yeah I'm sure the drug dealer can sort you out with spare cash" Rafe says under his breath.
"Hey!" You raise your voice slightly, he's the one not looking at you now. "That's still my brother and also the guy looking after me-"
"Yeah because you wouldn't let me!" He raises his voice louder than yours. You're face is stern at him but he's still not looking at you. Too much has happened in the last 24 hours to be dealing with this. The text, John B's dad and the boat, constantly lying to the pogues and Rafe if I have to have this argument with Rafe AGAIN my heads going to explode. He doesn't listen! He thinks he knows what's best for you just because he's older than you. You get out the car and slam the door as hard as you can and start walking away. You know you're over reacting but I already have a list of crises I need to deal with I'm not adding another one to it. You hear Rafe get out too because you hear his door close. "Yn! Where are you going he shouts" but you don't stop or turn back. Suddenly you want to be as far away from Rafe as possible. You pick up your speed and continue walking down the hill. you know Rafe won't let you out of sight, he's either going to come after you and he's much faster than you are running is pointless or he'll get in the car and drive after you. You jog down the hill so you're out of sight and see a motorbike approaching. You know you shouldn't but you stick your thumb out and the bike pulls over. You know you only have have seconds till Rafe shows up. The guy flicks his helmet up so you can only see his eyes. "Where to?"
"Anywhere"
"Get on" he pulls his helmet back over his eyes and you get on the back of his bike. You hold on as tight as you can, you've ridden bikes loads with Rafe and Barry but never without a helmet. This is one of the stupidest things I've ever done but you're angry. He revs his engine just as you see Rafe coming down the hill. As you drive past him it's as if you're in slow motion. You make eye contact with him and when he realises it's you, you see his face change. If this was a cartoon steam would've shot out his ears. You've never seen Rafe look like that before, you don't even know how to describe it. But within a second you're gone. Rafe has to run back to his car, turn it on and follow us and this bike is quicker than a car. Once you realise Rafe's not catching up to you your stomach drops.
Who the fuck is this stranger I'm holding onto? He's going fast, maybe even faster than Rafe drives and you're in shorts with no helmet. If I die tonight I take full responsibility, I'm being an idiot.
You can barely open your eyes the bike is going so fast. You don't know the cut as well as you know Figure 8 yet so you have no idea where you are. You try look for a building or something you recognise but it's too blurry. Eventually the bikes speed slows and comes to a stop. You jump off, you don't care where you are but you should lose this guy. "Thanks" you say acting as if you know where you are. His engine is still on but he lifts his helmet so you can see his eyes again. You try see if it's anyone you recognise but it's useless, plus it's dark it could be anyone under that helmet.
"Anytime baby" he says. Gross, you take a step back from the bike and he speeds off. You're glad he's gone but now you have to deal with the fact you have no idea where you are. Your phone is buzzing, it's been buzzing since you got on the bike.
You hang up the incoming call from Rafe and get a glance at the texts just before another call comes through. There's loads:
YN WHAT THE FUCK
YOU'RE AN IDIOT WHERE R U
I SWEAR TO GOD YN
ANSWER THE PHONE!!!
You don't get to read the others because he keeps calling you. You let it ring, putting your phone back into your pocket. Barry's will be the first place he looks, you can't go home. And going to John B's is too risky, he'll see you and then all hell breaks lose. You walk down the street trying to make out where you are. You're walking for about five minutes, your anxiety increasing by the second when you notice Mrs Edwards house, from the deliveries with Pope. If you remember correctly that means Heyward's is right around the corner. You start jogging until you're there, thank god for Pope. You go up to the shop, it's empty and dark. The doors are locked there's no cars about. You're still not tired, you walk over to the river that runs right past the shop and sit down on the pier that's built right there. You hang your legs over the side, your legs too short to touch the water. You swing them back and forth watching the ends of your laces get wet in the river. Your phone is still buzzing, you should probably answer it. It's not fair what you're doing to Rafe but he needs to get it. He needs to start listening to you. You can't keep having the same argument over and over. Thinking about it again makes you annoyed all over again, you let the calls go to voicemail.
You've never done anything like this to Rafe before. You usually get along so well but it's like ever since you moved to the cut he's extra worried about you. He knows Barry wouldn't ever do anything even if he doesn't like him or what he does. Your phone buzzes but it's not a text. You know how you have different vibrates for different apps, it's not the text one. You pull your phone out of your pocket and a call comes through from Rafe. You hang up and see you've got an Instagram message. It's from Kie but you can't see what it says. You tap on it opening up a new chat with her.
Um wtf were you doing in Rafe Cameron's car?
Oh shit. I didn't even see her, she must've seen us when he picked me up. You remember driving past The Wreck, a restaurant Pope told you Kie's parents own. Can't I ever get a text with some good news nowadays?!  You have to hang up on Rafe again before you can reply. What do you even say to that?! It's over, the games up. You're finished.
You feel hot tears start to run down your cheek and your phone screen blurs as your eyes start to fill up. Rafe's fuming and Kie just saw you with a Cameron. This is it, it's over. You ring her, maybe she'll let you explain yourself. She answers
"Kie?" Your voice is shaky and it's obvious you're crying which you hate
"Yn? What's wrong?" She sounds genuinely concerned which you weren't expecting.
"I-" there's a golf ball in the back of your throat now and it's hard to get the words out. As you're speaking to her you can still feel your phone blowing up from Rafe.
"Hello? Yn what's going on?"
"I'm at Heywards, I have no where to go can you pick me up?" Kie doesn't ask any more questions.
"Stay there, I'm on my way" you hear noise from her phone which must be the sound of her getting up. "Are you on your own?"
"Yeah" your voice is still shaky and small. You're terrified of what's about to happen.
"Okay, just stay on the phone with me. Heywards is 5 minutes from mine" you nod even though she can't see you. You hear her get into her car. She keeps repeating to just stay on the phone and that she's coming. That would've made you feel a lot better if you didn't have to tell her everything you're about to. Just like she said she's there in five minutes. You see her car pull up and she spots you and hangs up the call. She runs out the car leaving her engine on and door open. You stand up and walk over to her. "Yn what the hell? What's happened? What on earth were you doing with Rafe Cameron?" Everyone talks about Cameron's like their celebrities, saying their first and last name like it's a title. The golf ball in your throat has grown now and you can't get any words out. Your phone is buzzing in your pocket and Kie is about to turn on you. It's happening, your heads about to explode.
You start crying, you can't help it. Kie tries to comfort you but you stop her knowing she'll regret it once you've told her everything.
"You shouldn't have come" you manage to say.
"What? Why? Yn what's going on?" You take a few steps back from her, tears still streaming down your face.
"Kie-" how do I even tell her? She can see you're struggling and she walks over to you and takes your wrist. You both walk over to where you were sat by the river. She sits down and you copy, both of you hanging your legs over the water this time. This would be so nice if you knew everything was going to be okay. But it's not, you're about to lose the pogues. You take a deep breath and close your eyes "Kie there's a lot you don't know about me" your eyes are still closed. You don't want to see the disappointment in her face when she hears this. "I didn't want to tell you guys because..." you trail off. You open your eyes, you can see she's looking at you but you just look at your feet hanging over the water. "Well because I loved hanging out with you guys, and I've never had friends that I'm so similar to before" tears drip onto your legs.
"Yn" Kie's voice is gentle. "You're one of us, P4L remember?"
"You wouldn't say that if you knew the truth" you say finally looking at her. She frowns at you suddenly worried what you're going to say. "Will you promise me something?" She doesn't say anything, that's fair. "Will you let me finish what I need to say? Just... don't leave before I finish" she nods
"Okay, I promise." You bring your feet from over the edge and turn to her.
"I grew up on Figure 8. My dad left when I was a kid and we recently found out he left us in huge amount of debt. My mum had to sell the house and then she left too. She moved to the mainland and now I'm living with my brother on the cut" she doesn't look too disappointed yet, but you haven't got to the good part. Pope told you about how Kie's a rich kid because of her family business so what you've said probably isn't too much of a big deal to her... yet. "I never really fit in over there, I'm not like them they care about parties not surfing" Kie actually smiles at you which makes you lose your train of thought.
"Yn it's fine, I couldn't relate more. You don't have to try and explain I get it" she's smiling like she's relieved. "I know you're not like those other guys on Figure 8 anyone can see that" she pauses and her smile subsides. "But what the hell were you doing with Rafe Cameron?" You look at her, here goes nothing.
"Kie he's not what you think" he face instantly changes, as you speak she looks more and more disgusted. "Kie you know me, maybe not for long but you just said yourself you can see I'm like you. So trust me" her face doesn't change but she lets you finish. You take another deep breath. "Rafe and Sarah are my best friends, they practically raised me. With my dad gone and my mom emotionally checked out since I was 8 they were all I had" her eyes twitch revealing she feels sorry for you but she's not over the Rafe and Sarah part yet. "They're not what you think, they're not their dad Kie" you stop speaking. Is there even anything else to say? Kie is quiet, she's staring at you like you've just told her you killed someone. "I didn't know how to tell you guys, we got on so well I didn't want to ruin that" Kie finally looks away towards the water, her mouth still wide with shock. She finally speaks
"I don't know what to say" your heart drops, even if they don't hate you it's never to be the same.
"It's fine, you can go" you swing your legs back around the side and tears start running down your cheeks again. "I understand, it's okay. I knew it wasn't going to work out, I don't fit into kooks or pogues." Maybe I can move to the main land? You'll have to give up surfing and live with your mom but it has to beat the feeling you have right this second.
"You don't chose to be a pogue" Kie says, to your surprise she's still sat next to you. "You either are a pogue or you're not" you look at her confused by the point she's trying to make. She shrugs her shoulders and ever so slightly smiles "you're a pogue, nothing changes that." You look at her in disbelief. "The guys know that too, I'll help you figure out a way to sort this" she says. "I'm not going to lie to you they won't like it, JJ and Rafe have a history" oh shit I forgot about that. "But once a pogue always a pogue" she's smiling at you even more now and you find yourself smiling too. You sniff and dry your eyes with your arm.
"Now I'm the one who doesn't know what to say" you laugh and she giggles too. She hugs you and the sick feeling in your stomach is gone. "Thank you Kie" you say as she hugs you before she pulls away. She smiles at you like it was obvious all along. You knew P4L was a family but you didn't realise how deep it runs. "Hey Kie?"
"Yeah?"
"What actually happened with Rafe and JJ?" Her smile disappears almost instantly, you feel your phone buzzing in your pocket still. It's been buzzing non stop you got used to it for a second.
"Well I don't know the full thing" she shuffles where she's sat to turn to you. "But it was right after John B's dad went missing there was a massive fight. I don't even know what caused it but Rafe" her eyes dart to yours as she says his name "pulled a gun on JJ. Shots were fired JJ said the bullet grazed his leg. He ran for his life. After that there's just been something every time they see each other, kooks vs pogue wars practically tripled that summer alone, they can't stand the sight of each other. One time a group of kooks came into The Wreck and Rafe was with them. Before we knew it him and JJ were beating the crap out of each other. My dad had to stop them from killing one another until the cops showed" she looks at you "I don't know how we're going to tell JJ."
Rafe? A gun? No way. There's no way. Rafe would never do that, he just wouldn't. Kie wasn't there maybe she has the story wrong, rumours spread like wildfire around here that story could easily have been exaggerated. One thing's for sure though, Rafe and JJ aren't ever going to be friends.
"There's no way" you look at her "Rafe wouldn't do that, I know him" she shrugs her shoulders
"That's what JJ said" JJ must've exaggerated the story. There may have been a gun but there's no way Rafe tried to kill him. He hates pogues as much as JJ hates kooks but he wouldn't kill one... right?
You feel your phone still buzzing and remember the fury in his face when you drove away on the bike. You start to panic and Kie notices.
"Hey!" She puts her hand on your arm. "Look I'm not saying Rafe's a good guy, but don't freak out. You know him better than us and I don't know, maybe JJ doesn't know what happened as much as he thinks he does" that must've taken a lot for her to say but even you can tell she doesn't believe what she's saying. You appreciate it all the same plus she's right, JJ must have the story all wrong. "What's that noise?"
"My phone" you pull it out, Rafe's still ringing you. She sees his name on your phone and instantly looks uncomfortable again.
"What happened? How come you're here anyways?"
"I uh..." now's not the time to tell her you got into an argument with Rafe, just when you're trying to convince her he's a good guy. "I did something really dumb to piss him off" you smile "I think it worked" Kie laughs and stands up.
"I'll wait in my car, answer the call then I'll drop you home" she leaves. She's right, you should answer him. You answer the call but don't say anything
"Yn?!" Rafe sounds like those 911 calls you see online, like he's just found a dead body or something, out of breath and panicked. You instantly feel awful, he was only ever trying to help you.
"Rafe-"
"Yn what the fuck!" He's not shouting, he barely even sounds angry. He sounds relieved. "Where are you?" He's still out of breath, god knows what he's been doing.
"I'm sorry I-"
"I don't care. Where are you?" Okay now he sounds kind of pissed off.
"I-" you hesitate. You can see Kie's car but all the lights are off so you can't make her out.
"Where are you?" He asks again.
"Heywards" you say. He's not going to stop until he sees you, he wants to make sure you're not with that guy. He hangs up the call and for the first time in like 45 minutes your phone isn't buzzing. Seconds later you hear breaks screeching and a car engine approaching loud and fast. Rafe must've been looking for you, you knew he wouldn't go back to Figure 8 before seeing you anyway. He stops the car next to Kie's but doesn't notice her as her lights are still off. He gets out slamming the door just as you did and runs over. "Are you fucking insane?!" He's shouting. Great first impression this is having on Kie.
"Rafe-"
"No!" he shouts again. "You have no idea what you just did, that could've been anyone on that bike!" Rafe runs his hands through his hair, even though he's losing his shit you can tell he's still holding back most of what he wants to say.
"You need to listen to me when I say I'm fine!" If we're gonna do this, let's do this. Rafe looks at you like you're speaking another language. "We can't keep having the same argument over and over" you avoid Barry's name incase Kie can hear you, I'm sure she's listening especially seeing as she doesn't trust Rafe. Rafe walks over to a bench on the side of the pier but stands next to it. He's too angry to sit still. He puts both hands into the railing and pushes down into a press up position. You walk over and that's when you notice his hands. His knuckles are red raw and he's squeezing the metal railing as hard as he can. He's still out of breath. He pushes himself up his head still hanging down as he pants. After a few seconds his breathing steadies and he lets go turning to look at you. He walks over but you take a few steps back, you need him to hear what you're saying. You speak quietly so Kie can't hear you from the car "Barry is my brother, he'd never let anything happen to me and you know that Rafe. So can you just trust me?" Rafe doesn't answer but now sits on the bench, his knee shaking like he's waiting to be called into an exam. He puts his elbows on his knees and covers his mouth with his hands. "you need to trust me on this, if not it's going to push me away" now you've got his attention. He looks at you suddenly still. You couldn't ever imagine not being close to Rafe but based on tonight you clearly can't keep having this argument with him. "I'm sorry for getting on the bike" you know that's what he really wants to hear. "I shouldn't have done it, I just with the text and everything else arguing with you make my head feel like it was going to explode." Rafe says nothing but his breathing is steady now and he's stopped shaking with rage. It's quiet for a minute until he finally speaks.
"What text?" You look at him confused.
"Huh?"
"You just said 'the text'"
Fuck. Did I?
"I uh..." you take another deep breath, why is everything coming out tonight? "I didn't really feel sick this morning" Rafe stares at you waiting do you to finish. "Someone sent me a text, Barry thinks they're going to black mail me" Rafe stands up before you finish your sentence, he looks angry again.
"Who? Show me" he holds out his hand to see the text but you take a step back.
"Nothings happened yet, I just I didn't know what to do"
"Why didn't you tell me?" You look at him afraid you'll piss him off for the third time tonight.
"Because..." You think about what Kie said, about Rafe and the gun. You look at him, you've known him almost all your life. You trust that even if Rafe was involved in something that he's still the good guy you've always known. "Because I was scared of how you'd react" Rafe shakes his head.
"React to what?" You look at him, you didn't think you were crying but you feel a tear escape your eyes and roll down your cheek. Rafe notices and instantly eases up. His shoulders relax and the frown in his eyebrows softens. "Hey" he walks over and wipes your tear with his thumb. "Whatever it is I promise I won't get mad. You can always come to me remember?" You remember when Rafe made you promise to call him after the beach fight he also said he wouldn't get mad if you needed him not to. Let's see if he really meant it.
"The friends I've made here... you don't like them. And I didn't know any of it when I first met them but now that I do you need to know they're not who you think. Just like you're not who they think" Rafes hand drops from your face but he just listens, he's preparing for the worst you can tell.
"The person in the text knows I'm lying to you about who I've made friends with. And that I'm lying to them about knowing you. Barry is the only one who knows I know all of you which is why I went to him." Rafe still says nothing. "They're my friends and they're good people, they mean a lot to me Rafe" you feel more tears roll down your cheeks but Rafe doesn't seem to notice this time.
"Who?" He asks softly but you can hear the quiver in his voice.
"Do you promise to not hate me? Or get mad!" Rafe nods but the fact he didn't say 'yes' makes you think otherwise.
"The pogues... John B, Pope, Kie..."
"And JJ?" he finishes your sentence. His eyes stare at you full of fury but he remains calm. He sits back on the bench and his nose scrunches up along with his mouth.
"Rafe?" He looks at you from the bench but you don't go any close because you're worried what his answer is going to be to your next question. "Did you try to shoot him?" Rafe's face instantly falls
"Of course that's what he said" he throws his arms up into the air then slaps his knees
"No! He didn't tell me, he doesn't know about you" You could tell that hurt Rafe, you're not ashamed of him but everything's so complicated now. "I just heard" Rafe nods and walks back over to you.
"Do you think I tried to shoot him?" He's as close to you as he was when he wiped your tears, looking down at you with his deep blue eyes to see if you believed Kie.
"No" you say firmly and that's not a lie.
"Good. Because I didn't" Rafe looks to the side then back to you. "One of the other boys had the gun, I had no idea they had it until it was pointing at your new pogue boyfriend" I'm gonna let that slide just for now. "There was a fight, the kooks were out numbered so he pointed it at the pogues. I grabbed the gun as he was pointing it at JJ but I was a second too late and a shot was fired. I managed to stop him hitting anyone but I was the one holding the gun when JJ turned around and because he's a pogue he thought the worst." You're relieved, not that you ever thought Rafe tried to hurt someone but just the confirmation he has no idea about the gun in the first place makes you feel so much better.
"Who's gun was it?" Rafes eyes drift back to yours
"It doesn't matter. You just need to know it wasn't mine and I didn't try to shoot anyone" you can tell by the way Rafe's talking you're not getting any more of an answer than that. "After that kooks vs pogues got so much worse and now it takes nothing to start a fight."
You look back at Kie's car, the space is empty you didn't even see see leave. You check your phone quickly, there's a message from her:
I could see you guys needed to talk. I could also see he cares about you. I'm not saying I like him but I trust you. We'll figure this out P4L xx
Kie's message makes you feel 10 ft tall but then you're brought back to reality as you look up and remember there's a very pissed off Rafe stood in front of you.
You walk past him and sit down on the bench. All the emotion since your alarm went off has exhausted you. Rafe sits next to you and puts his hand on your knee. "You know I could never hate you right?" He says, there's no rage in his voice anymore and when you look at him he even smiles.
"I'm really sorry I ran off"
"Yeah if you ever do that again there's gonna be hell to pay" he says, he's definitely not joking.
"I could never hate you either" you say, because it's true. At one point Rafe and Sarah were literally all you had, nothing breaks that bond. You rest your head on his shoulder. You can't believe Rafe and Kie know everything but what's even more shocking is it went well, kinda. Something tells you it's not going to go so well when the others find out... especially JJ. You've heard the way he talks about kooks, as if they're not even human.
"You want to stay mine?" Rafe offers but you can't. You need to be there when John B sees the paper to see if its an innocent insurance claim or something much bigger.
"I should probably go home" you say lifting your head off his shoulder.
"Okay, I'll drop you" You get into Rafe's car and he drops you home. You told him you snuck out and to just pull over in the road and you'll sneak back in. You never told Rafe about the paper you stole from his dads desk, one thing at a time. You're about to get out the car when Rafe stops you "Hey, I've got this business trip next week. Sarah's coming she's bringing some boy. Do you want to tag along? Just like old times?" You look at Rafe and smile.
"Isn't there a line of girls just praying you'll ask them that very question Mr Rafe Cameron?"  Rafe rolls his eyes then looks back at you.
"Now why would I want to waste my time with some air head gold digger when I can have way more fun with you?" Rafe's right, you two do have loads of fun when you go to the Bahamas with him.
"Okay, I'll go" Rafe smiles as you answer him and you jump out the car. You turn back to him before you close the door. "Wait, is it Topper that's going with Sarah?" Because if it is no way am I going.
"Nah" Rafe turns his engine back on. "Some new boy, she said I don't know him" That's weird Sarah hasn't mentioned anyone to you.
"You're sure?" you ask, if I turn up and Topper is there waiting to come I'll be turning right back around.
"Yeah" he laughs because he knows you're not Topper's biggest fan, he just doesn't know the truth why. "I wouldn't let him come, I know you don't like him. I'd rather you came than him any day" Rafe makes you smile, you really don't deserve him even though he can be annoying at times.
"Okay, I got to go I'll see you later" You look back at him once more "Rafe, about everything I told you, just wait until I've told the guys okay? I don't want any more arguments" Rafe's smile fades but he still nods at you.
"Hey about that text too. Don't worry, no ones gonna do shit to you okay?" You nod at him this time. "Just make sure you actually tell me next time, we'll sort it" Rafe winks at you before you close the door and drives off. You watch his car speed down the road when-
"Yn?" You turn around to see a tired JJ. He doesn't look angry, he must not have seen who was in the car.
"Hey, sorry I-"
"Have you been crying?" He walks over to you. Gee, do I look that rough?
"I uh had an argument with my friend, but its okay now" you smile at him. He points to the road
"Was that them?" JJ looks unimpressed, he even hates Rafe when he doesn't know it's Rafe he hates.
"Yeah, but it was my fault I over reacted to something" you walk over to him, he looks better than when you saw him earlier. You're the one who looks like they've just been crying and shouting now.
"So he made you cry over it?" JJ isn't smiling. "Is this the surf board friend?" You take a deep breath, I need to be careful with my answers I can't slip up. I don't think I could deal with another person finding out the truth tonight.
"No- I mean yes it was him but he didn't make me cry. Like I said I over reacted to something" JJ isn't convinced but it's enough for him to stop asking questions. "Can I stay with you guys tonight?" JJ perks up instantly. You realise Rafe dropped you here and JJ doesn't know you live next door so you need to make it look not totally random that you got dropped back here.
"Course you can Tiv" you follow him back into John B's yard. "Did you put the jumper over me?" It takes you a second to remember what JJ's on about. Sitting on the bank with JJ feels like days ago now when it was only about 2 hours ago. I really need a chill day.
"Yeah" you laugh "I felt bad just leaving you there" you smile and follow JJ inside. "You can take John B's room, better than the sofa" he says.
"Oh, where is he?"
"Off with some girl he's recently become obsessed with" That explains why it was so quiet when you first showed up here, you knew there was no way John B would be asleep before midnight.
"I'm okay on the sofa" you say as you kick your shoes off.
"Suit yourself" JJ says lying down on the other sofa, you're in the same places you were when you stayed over last time with JJ. "Keep me company is it Tiv?" You just smile and lie down on your sofa. You turn to your side so you're facing JJ who's already looking at you. "Are you sure you're okay Yn?" It's weird hearing him say your actual name.
"Are you?" You remember how sad and tired JJ looked when you first saw him tonight after he had been arguing or worse with his dad.
"You don't need to worry about me" he says calmly.
"P4L" you say looking at him closely to see his reaction. JJ smiles and closes his eyes like you just won and argument.
"P4L" he repeats.
"JJ?" He opens his eyes. "Do you really mean that?" He frowns unsure what you're on about. "For life? You haven't even known me that-"
"It doesn't matter" he says closing his eyes again. "Once a pogue always a pogue" he says it just as Kie did, like its written in stone.

Let's hope he means it.