𝑇𝑊𝐼𝑁 𝑆𝐼𝑍𝐸 𝑀𝐴𝑇𝑅𝐸𝑆𝑆 / 𝐽.𝐵.𝑅

HACKER ON THE CUT

The Outer Banks was quiet that night, the distant crash of the ocean against the shore the only sound breaking the stillness. Most Kooks were nestled comfortably in their sprawling mansions, miles from the chaos that stirred on the Cut. But for Alex Borden, the Cut was home, despite the wealth she came from. There was something about being close to the edge of everything that felt more real, less suffocating than the expectations of Kook life.

Alex was hunched over her laptop, her bedroom bathed in the dim light of the screen. Her fingers flew across the keyboard, hacking into the system of her high school. The faint clicking echoed in the room as the progress bar on the screen filled. She was in the process of altering her grades-straight A's across the board, no questions asked.

She smirked. It wasn't that she couldn't get the grades on her own-she was plenty smart. But hacking was her thing. She was drawn to the power of manipulating systems, breaking into places where she wasn't supposed to be. And if she could benefit from it along the way? Why not.

Just as she was about to finish her task, a loud knock echoed from the front of the house. Alex froze, her heart pounding. Her parents were gone for the night, which meant no one should be knocking on her door.

She quickly minimized the screen and made her way downstairs, the hairs on the back of her neck tingling. The porch light flickered on as she opened the door.

Standing there, looking out of place but completely unfazed, were two boys from the wrong side of the island-John B Routledge and JJ Maybank. Pogues.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Alex asked, eyeing them suspiciously. They weren't the type to come over for a casual visit, especially not to a Kook's house.

JJ grinned, tilting his head back to look up at her. "Well, hello to you too, Borden."

John B stepped forward, his gaze steady. "We need your help."

"My help?" Alex crossed her arms, leaning against the doorframe. "What could you possibly need from me?"

"We need your... hacking skills," John B replied, his voice calm, almost too calm. "It's not something we can handle on our own."

Alex arched an eyebrow. "And why would I help you?"

JJ leaned in, that mischievous grin still on his face. "Because you love sticking it to people, and this is the perfect opportunity for that."

She stared at him for a moment, sizing them up. John B was the quiet, strategic one; JJ was the wildcard. She could tell whatever they were involved in wasn't legal. But that made it all the more intriguing.

"Fine," Alex muttered. "Come inside."

She led them upstairs to her room, where the remnants of her current project were still displayed on the laptop. She caught JJ's eyes widening as he took in the screen.

"Wait a minute," JJ said, stepping closer. "You're... hacking your grades?"

Alex turned toward him, shrugging nonchalantly. "Straight A's, no sweat. The school system is easier to break into than I thought."

JJ let out a low whistle, genuinely impressed. "Damn, and here I thought I'd seen everything."

John B, on the other hand, stayed focused. "We don't have time to get distracted. Look, Alex, we're in a bit of a mess. We need access to certain files-files that are hard to get without the right... skills. And you're the only one we know who can do it."

Alex's eyes flickered with curiosity. "What kind of files?"

John B paused for a moment, then said, "It's about my dad. We're trying to track something down, something big. But we're being watched-closely. We need to access some police records, maybe even more than that. You up for it?"

Alex studied his face, sensing the weight of the request. There was more to this than they were letting on, but she couldn't deny the spark of excitement that ran through her. She'd always been good at breaking into systems, but this was on another level. Risky. Dangerous. And she loved it.

"What's in it for me?" Alex asked, sitting back down at her desk, her fingers hovering over the keys.

John B smirked. "You help us, and maybe we help you with something down the line. Whatever you need. Consider it a favor in your pocket."

Alex thought for a moment, then nodded. "Deal. But if you two screw me over, I'll make sure the cops know exactly where to find you."

JJ clapped his hands together. "Sounds like we've got ourselves a hacker, boys!"

Alex didn't waste any time. She began typing furiously, pulling up the local police department's database. It wasn't an easy system to crack-more sophisticated than the high school's-but she'd seen worse. She was in the zone, her focus narrowing as the information poured in. John B and JJ watched in silence, impressed by her speed and precision.

"What exactly are you looking for?" Alex asked, not taking her eyes off the screen.

"Anything that mentions my dad's disappearance," John B replied. "We think the police know more than they're letting on, but everything's been buried."

After a few minutes, Alex hit the jackpot. "Got something."

Both John B and JJ leaned over her shoulder, their eyes scanning the screen.

"There's a flagged file," Alex muttered, scrolling through the data. "It's under a restricted access code. Looks like it's about your dad, John B."

John B's jaw tightened. "Can you get us in?"

Alex smirked. "Do you even have to ask?"

She bypassed the security measures with ease, finally pulling up the file they were after. It was heavily redacted, but the parts that were visible revealed enough to confirm what John B had suspected. The police knew more about his father's disappearance than they'd ever told the public.

"Holy shit," JJ breathed, running a hand through his hair. "This is bigger than we thought."

John B remained silent, his gaze locked on the screen. "What else can you find? Anything about my dad's last known location? Phone records? Anything that can give us a lead?"

Alex's fingers danced over the keys again, sifting through more files. The deeper she went, the more information she uncovered, each piece leading them closer to something bigger.

But with every secret revealed, the danger surrounding them only grew.

As the hours slipped by, the three of them sat huddled around Alex's laptop, the gravity of their situation sinking in. They were digging into things no one wanted them to find, and it wouldn't be long before someone noticed.

But for now, Alex was in her element, breaking into systems, uncovering truths, and-perhaps for the first time-feeling like she was part of something bigger than just herself.

Whatever they were getting into, there was no turning back.