𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥𝗬𝗗𝗔𝗬, 𝟮𝟰/𝟳

Chapter 18

By the time we arrived home after the bonfire, it was nearly 3 AM and I passed out on the porch wicker couch. I had a very dreamless sleep, which meant I'd been plainly exhausted from last night's Kook vs Pogue fight.

"WAKE UP—!"

I shot up, blinking groggily at the figure that stood over me. It was barely daylight outside, but of course the birds where chirping. Because I was out on the porch, everyone else had (smartly) chosen to sleep inside John B's place.

"Sarah?" I mumbled, wiping the eye boogies away from my eyes. "What a minute—Sarah!" I jumped up, suddenly fully awake.

"Took you long enough," she crossed her arms. "You sleep like the dead, and drool."

"Oh, Sarah!" I nearly knocked her over as I squeezed her into a hug. "I'm so sorry, about everything. About your—your dad, about John B, are you alright?"

"It's fine," she said generously.

"Sarah, stop. I've been so stupid. Tell me how your feeling," I tugged her to sit down beside me on the couch.

"Not—not now," she looked around nervously for the others. "I've got news, anyway. Is Pope here?" She said worriedly, and from that I gathered that it was important.

Once I awoke the others and we all circled around the kitchen for breakfast, Sarah started to explain. She said how these people had showed up, holding an ancient looking key — we quickly realized it had been Renfield and ol' crazy Limbrey—and how they'd started tearing her house down looking for strange clues.

"And you knew this, how exactly?" John B spat. He was never like this, he was always so sweet to everyone. But to Sarah, and after the whole fiasco from last night, he was in a sour mood.

"Because! I saw them there!" Sarah said, fists clenched. "I'm just trying to help Pope." AKA, I'm not here for you John B, so fuck off.

"Well, let's head over there, then!" I wisely directed the conversation into safer waters.

↬——✾——↫

We drove over to the Camerons, ignoring John B's and a bit of JJ's protests that Sarah was leading us into a "trap", which the rest of us snapped back at them that they were being idiots. Apparently, after a lot of searching for clues, we figured out that Limbrey and Renfield were headed to a graveyard. We drove over to the graveyard, only to find that Rafe was there with them.

We dove into the bushes, hiding as Rafe, Renfield, and old lady Limbrey un dug a grave (Cecila's, Denmark Tanny's wife who'd passed away), only to find that it was empty. They rudely left the grave out, not evening bothering to pay the body respect, the least amount of respect nessescary by even burying the damn thing, before hopping in their Porshe SUV's or BMW coupes and driving away.

Pope immediately dashed toward the open casket, and fell to his knees, overcome with emotion at seeing his ansestors open grave, that was rudely tossed aside without an ounce of respect.

"Pope, I'm sorry," I said as we all kneeled beside him, staring at the bones of Ceclilia Tanny. "What should—what should we do?" I layed a hand on his shoulder.

He rudely shook me off. "We have to burry her again."

I mean, okay, I got that Pope was having a moment. But did he have to take it out on me? Like I was trying to be there for him, and he couldn't even control his own emotions for two seconds before snapping back at me? Like what the fuck had I ever done to him.

I took a calming breath. Calm the fuck down, I told myself. I was overreacting as much as he was, and it was childish. Pope at least had an excuse, he was seeing his long lost ansestor's grave for the first time. And me? What was my excuse—I was upset because the real boy I wanted wouldn't even talk to me?