saltwater | outer banks

10| michelob and white claws

DESPITE THE SUMMER AIR, Venus still felt a wave of chills come over her body.

She nervously tucked a piece of hair behind her ear as she looked at the view below her, then to the drunk friend standing beside her.

"It's not bad, I promise! Topper and I jumped earlier, I was scared too, but it's fun," Sarah assured, holding the girl's hand tightly. "Don't you do stuff like this with JJ and them all the time?"

The Cameron had somehow persuaded the severely intoxicated girl to climb onto the roof and jump off into the pool. And although the idea sounded fun at first, she now looked down at the concrete that surrounded the pool and all she could think about was the possibility of splatting against it if they jumped wrong.

"Jump off of a mansion into a pool?" She sent a look to Sarah. "Not exactly."

"I've seen you surf some of the craziest waves that you literally could've drowned in, and this is what scares you?"

"Dying at Topper Thornton's house isn't what I want to be remembered for." Venus tugged her hand away from Sarah and grabbed the red solo cup that sat on the roof at her feet.

"You're so dramatic," Sarah laughed, watching as the blonde downed the remaining contents of the red cup. "Are you really gonna make me drag your ass in there?"

"No offense, Sarah, but I don't think you could drag me if you tried." The Beck girl tossed the cup back towards the window they'd climbed through to get on the roof.

"How about a bet, then?"

"What kind of bet?"

"If I get..." she trailed off, looking down at the people below them. "That guy"—she pointed to a dark-haired boy in a blue button-up shirt—"to come up here and jump with you, then you have to do it. If I don't, then I'll give you fifty bucks."

"We don't even know him," Venus laughed, giving her a disbelieving glance. "You're about to be out of fifty big ones, Miss Cameron."

"Mhm, I'm sure." Sarah turned to go back through the window. "Don't you dare move. I'll be back with him in, like, two minutes."

Venus held her hands up innocently before carefully taking a seat on the roof, watching as her friend retreated further into the house and out of view.

She began to watch the party lazily as she waited and tried to count how many times the random guy in yellow shorts could jump in and out of the pool without getting tired.

More than two minutes passed.

She looked at the blue watch on her wrist and first thought of going after Sarah, but then inwardly debated on going to find Rafe, who she realized she hadn't seen since he left to go change clothes.

"Where the hell are you?" she mused, turning to crawl closer to the edge of the roof.

Her eyes scanned through the crowd and groups of people, but never once did they land on the boy she was looking for.

The guy Sarah had gone to retrieve was gone and there was no trace of him or her in the crowd either, telling Venus that they'd at least made it back inside.