Besotted Devotion

one

***draft-not edited. You will see grammar mistakes, spelling mistakes or even weird wordings. English is not my first language, so keep it in mind.

It was seven in the morning, and Jade was making her way downstairs towards the kitchen. Normally at times like these, she would be in her bed sleeping like a baby, but ever since they moved to the outer banks—her body had been accustomed to waking up as soon as daylight hit the ground. Or maybe it has something to do with the fact that her friends, the pogues, had spent the last four months dragging Jade out of bed to hang out with them. What can Jade say, they're persistent.

Cass was already up too, sipping her morning coffee like the true caffeine lover she is. Jade greeted her with a hug before examining the bag of breakfast Cass had set on the kitchen island. It was literally a bag of breakfast, it was enough to feed five people, aka Jade and the pogues. It had become a morning routine for Cass, packing extras knowing a certain blonde boy loved her cooking. Jade glanced at her with a smile, both of them already knew that JJ would eat up the cheese and ham croissant in minutes. Jade thanked her heartily when suddenly, she saw movements from the corner of her eyes. 

She gasped in horror, their backyard was a disaster! The hurricane from the night before had left quite a mess. There were branches and leaves littered everywhere, including the pool. However, that’s not the only thing that caught my eye, there were at least a dozen men and women working, walking around with wheelbarrows and rakes, cleaning our backyard. "Where did you find these people?" Jade couldn't help but ask.

"Well, while you were hanging out with Kie and the boys, Rose invited me for tea. She recommended me yesterday. These storms happened more often than you think, these helpers are basically on their speed dial." Cass sighed as she approached Jade, standing next to her while they watched the men and women working. “Looks like your friends are here.” Cass pointed her manicured finger towards the end of the dock, rolling her eyes with a smile when the kids were waving aggressively at them. Jade’s eyes lit up, quickly grabbed her backpack along with the breakfast bag. “Can you tell them to stop kidnapping you? I can’t even hang out with you anymore.” Cass pouted as she walked me out. Jade couldn’t help but snicker at her antics, knowing Cass just wanted someone to go shopping with. “Come back early, okay? I'm so alone in this house." Cass sighed dramatically before giving Jade her water bottle.

Jade laughed at her little performance, “I promise, okay?” She pecked her stepmother’s cheeks goodbye and went outside. Jade ran past the workers and her dad’s yacht, straight into Kie’s arms who were standing on the dock. Jade giggled as Kie spun her around lightly, before slowly setting me down. "Good morning, guys!" Jade exclaimed brightly. Kie still had her arm around my waist, guiding me towards the boat where JJ stretched out his hand for me to take, but not before cupping his hands to shout a good morning at Cass. Everyone laughed when Cass nonchalantly waved her hand before going inside the house, leaving JJ with a small pout at her rejection. “Serves you right for flirting with someone’s mother.” Jade slapped the back of his head when he mumbled ‘stepmother’. 

JJ rubbed his head, whining. “It’s not my fault she’s hot.”

“I’ve seen so many hot dads around here, but you don’t see me flirting with them.” 

“That’s because you fucked the next closest thing; their sons.” Jade quickly shoved him, telling him to shut up with laughter bubbling in her throat. “You’re the closest thing to Cass, so…” One minute JJ were wiggling his eyebrows suggestively, and the next with him feigning a wince when Jade slapped his arm dismissively.

“Hey, boys.” Jade finally greeted the others as she took a seat in between JJ and Kie. John B and Pope nodded at her with a smile as he started to drive the boat away from my house. However, Pope’s smile was a bit shyer than John B’s. Jade was still in awe by how shy he was around her, even after spending so much time together the last four months. "So," Jade made myself comfortable between Kie and JJ before opening her container and offering them the croissant, "What are we doing today?" Jade asked them as Kie handed her a bottle of beer, one which Jade preferred instead of the usual cheap beer. John B did once mentioned that her 'kookiness' shines bright when it comes to alcohol.