Together

113. Don't do anything stupid, Jay

You're the one I wanna talk about, talk about
Had a few but you knock 'em out, knock 'em out
Might just let you meet my mama now, mama now
Might just let you lock it, lock it down
—Becky G

Christmas in the Outer Banks isn't any different than any other part of the world, JJ supposes. Kids still believe in Santa, people hang lights on their houses, and school is shut down for basically a month which he didn't mind.

It basically took over all of December and you couldn't go anywhere without hearing Mariah Carey's "All I want for Christmas" or seeing varying displays of and actual people dressed up like Santa Clause. Stores were flooding you with so many adds for gifts it was like drinking from a fire hose any time you turned on the TV.

However one difference, for them at least, was that the Pogue boys were never too fond of the gift giving and receiving part of Christmas. Part of it was never really having any money to do it and the other was that picking something out for your friends could be kinda weird for guys.

It wasn't just the gifts that the Pogues were without on either, with most of their parents being absent or less than friendly in some cases. Christmas for them was just another day and nothing to get hot and bothered over if Santa didn't show up at your house.

Kie was used to having presents under the tree and loved ones around to spend time with. Her parents liked decorating the house together and cooking meals and baking cookies. She basically lived in a Hallmark movie for a month.

She always knew that she was more well off than her friends, but she had no idea how different they were until one year in sixth grade when it became obvious that she was significantly different than her friends when it came to the holiday.

She came back to school from the break, walking up to the Pogues in the hallway with a large smile, and asked what everyone got for Christmas. In the past all the boys had great times, she thought. They always said they did at least. But that year JJ and John B didn't give her the same recycled tale of fishing with their fathers or JJ's dad letting him have a swig of beer just because.

Instead they both just shrugged noncommittally, while Pope talked about some of the books his mom picked up for him. When pressed about how they spent their time off, John B just said he hung around the house with his dad, who mainly locked himself in his office to study maps or something, and JJ just avoided the question altogether. Neither felt comfortable talking about it and the subject was quickly changed.

It was Pope that pulled her aside and gave her more insight into their friends avoidant behaviors. No one but John B really knew how bad things were for JJ then, and he wasn't having the easiest time with his own father.

Big John started going more than a little treasure hungry, and his obsession was starting to get out of hand, leaving John B to fend for himself most days, so screw Christmas traditions, right?

Pope had been to JJ's house a couple times and only told Kie that he likely wasn't having the same happy holiday that she was, stating that his dad left on a job and he was alone.

Pope always knew that JJ and John B embellished their past Christmas's a little when it came to comparing their experiences with their Kook born friend. He guessed they just weren't in the mood to try and pretend otherwise this year and politely asked her to not bring it up again.

Kie was appalled. Heat flooded her cheeks when she thought about how she basically came ready to brag about how she got a new surf board and talk about how she watched Christmas movies all day with her parents (she was going to turn her nose up at the last part even though she secretly loved it). She wanted to die of mortification and she hadn't even shared that with them, feeling like asking at all was enough insensitivity for a life time.