This is Me Trying ⭑ Rafe Cameron

forty one

CHAPTER FORTY ONE
[41]
song: boys in the wood by black lips

They sailed down the river in silence for a long time. Everyone exhausted from a day spent traveling and running. Though the engine of the boat was loud, Cleo had found a way to fall asleep, her head tilted back and resting on the edge of the boat.

Everyone else, however, was wide awake. Eyes peeled. On too high of alert to let anyone rest, even for a second. JJ sat at the nose of the ship, steering. While Kiara and Pope sat at the other end and talked.

Cassie sat on the ground next to Rafe, who had been fidgeting with the straps of Cassie's backpack at her side. She hadn't told anyone she had a gun, because she wasn't planning on getting it out for any reason. Maybe she should've given it to her brother, but she didn't want to put that burden on him, either.

"How's your head?" Rafe asked after a while. His voice was low so he could keep the conversation between them.

He was referencing Cassie's motion-sickness induced headaches she usually got. But she'd thought ahead and took medicine before they got off the yacht this morning. "It's fine." She looked at him.

Cassie caught glance at everyone as they carried on about their conversations. Watching as Pope and Kiara laughed and exchanged whispers. She looked over to JJ, who sat up at the boat by himself.

"I'm glad that you're here." Cassie added, confidently. "It's nice, actually. To have all my people in one place. We're missing two, but. The idea is there."

Rafe smiled, just barely. Something you could only see if you were looking for it. It was clear then that he wanted to kiss her, their backs against the same wall of the boat, their heads turned toward each other.

But he didn't. He glanced up at JJ, then refocused his gaze ahead, giving Cassie a weak pat on the leg.

Cassie felt it, too. That urge to lean in and kiss him. She was thankful he had as much awareness that she did in that now wasn't the time or place. But she wondered if it would ever be.

"Hey," JJ starts. "Hey, hey—"

This got everyone's attention, that familiar frantic voice that came from him only when something was really wrong. It even woke Cleo.

"That's the first boat we've seen this entire time." JJ points forward, but turns around to look at the rest of his crew.

Cassie turned around and pushed herself up to her feet, going to join her brother at the nose. She brought John B's fishing hat back onto her head after letting it dangle from her neck by its tie, using it to block out the hot sun above her.

Miles down the river, JJ spotted a small fishing boat. Cassie followed his gaze over to it, squinting to try and see who it was. "You think it's John B and Sarah?" She asked, looking back over to him.

But if that were the case, he'd look excited, relieved. Instead, he was deep in thought, trying to calculate their next move. "No..." he got out quietly.

Pope had gotten to his feet. "What do we do?" He asked.

"Hold on." JJ announced, before yanking the steering wheel in the other direction.