written in the stars - a topper thornton fanfic (outer banks)

t w e n t y t w o

song: 'say yes to heaven' by lana del rey

one year ago

'You should come out on the boat with me someday,' Topper said to Genevieve as they were sat on the beach one evening. 'We could go out far enough that nobody would see us. I could teach you how to dive.'

'Diving?' Genevieve asked. 'I didn't know that you could dive.'

Topper shrugged. 'It's not something I do often, but I can.'

Genevieve nodded, glancing out across the ocean. 'We'd have to go out really early and come back late.'

'I know,' Topper said with a sigh. 'What would you tell your parents?'

Genevieve smiled. 'Mum knows.'

Topper's head whipped around. 'She knows?!'

Genevieve laughed softly and nodded. 'She was on the porch when you dropped me home one evening. I had no choice but to fess up. Apparently she had her suspicions long before then, but I don't know if I fully believe that.'

Topper let out a low whistle. 'Whoa. And... she was ok about it?'

Genevieve nodded, resting her head against his shoulder. 'I knew she'd never have an issue with it. She was just grateful it wasn't Rafe who was dropping me home.'

Topper laughed. 'I'll take that as a compliment, I guess.'

Genevieve smiled softly as she looked over at him. 'How come you hang out with him so often?'

Topper sighed and looked up at the stars. 'I don't know. I truly don't.'

'He's not really one to let people out of his life, I guess.'

Topper looked over at Genevieve. 'That's exactly it. Even if I did try and drift from him, it would be no use. That doesn't mean that every time I see him I don't want to beat the shit out of him for what he did to you.'

Genevieve smiled sadly and gazed out at the ocean. She shrugged. 'He could have done a lot worse. At least JJ and them were there. If I'd been alone...' her voice shook slightly as she spoke.

Topper looked over at her and took her hand in his. 'I know,' he said with a sigh. Hearing JJ's name reminded him of seeing JJ holding Genevieve's face in his hands, looking at her with such care, such love. Topper's jaw tightened at the thought of it. It was plain to see that JJ was in love with Genevieve, and Topper wondered if Genevieve genuinely didn't realise it, or if she was choosing to ignore it. He took a deep breath and looked out over the ocean, forcing himself to push those thoughts from his mind.

two weeks later

Genevieve's head rested against Topper's shoulder as they sat on his boat, watching the sun go down. They'd been out at sea almost all day. Genevieve didn't know where exactly they were, but they were out far enough that nobody should have been able to find them.

'Thanks for showing me how to dive, Top,' Genevieve said with a smile.

Topper looked down at her with soft eyes. 'Thanks for coming out here with me.'