𝐑𝐄𝐄𝐅 || ʳᵃᶠᵉ ᶜᵃᵐᵉʳᵒⁿ

|BONEYARD|

 
𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐀 𝐇𝐀𝐃 𝐖𝐎𝐊𝐄𝐍 𝐔𝐏 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐆𝐑𝐔𝐍𝐆𝐘 𝐁𝐄𝐃 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐓𝐖𝐎 𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐊𝐒.

She could hardly stand this place, honestly. Not the Outer Banks, but this stupid trailer. It was musty, people were constantly here to "talk" to Barry, and they never had any food—the fridge was only occupied by a couple of beers and maybe a fortune cookie--if your lucky.

There was a groan as she stood on her feet. She hadn't gone to bed until three last night because someone was fighting outside the trailer, and the police sirens were blaring all night long. She lazily threw on a white bikini, shorts, and some Converse—not bothering to look in the mirror, it was too early for that.

She grabbed her tote bag with her book and a few other things she liked to carry, trying to ignore the person she didn't recognize sleeping on the couch.

Making her way down the pier, honestly just trying to shake off the frustration that seemed to follow her everywhere these days, she sighed. The air smelled like saltwater, and the sound of waves crashing against the pier was nostalgic, it almost calmed her—almost.

Then, she heard it.

Laughter. A lot of it. Mixed with the distinct sound of an engine sputtering, like someone was determined to get something working that had no business being turned on. She glanced over toward the dock at the end of the pier and saw him—JJ—crouched over an old boat with an assortment of random tools scattered around him. His hair was wild as usual, half-falling into his eyes as he twisted something under the boat's hood.

It was reckless. Typical. But still, there was something about it that drew her in.

Without even noticing, she stopped walking and watched him for a few seconds. JJ didn't notice until she was right there, standing at the edge of the dock, trying to stay out of sight. But when he finally looked up and caught her eye, his grin widened.

"Well, well, if it isn't the new girl," he said, not even pausing in his attempts to fix the boat. "You need a ride, or you just come here to watch me break the law?"

She let out a small laugh, but it was more of a reflex than anything else. "What are you even doing?"

JJ shrugged as if he couldn't care less. "Having some fun. What, you scared?" he said with a small chuckle.

"I think I'll pass," When she said she needed something to keep her busy, this was not exactly what she had in mind.

JJ leaned back, taking a breather. "Bummer. Well, I wasn't expecting you to be a criminal mastermind. But hey, you should come to the Boneyard tonight. Big party, kegger, the usual chaos. You know, if you want to see what the Outer Banks are really about."

She'd heard of the Boneyard—the place where the Pogues threw down, but it felt like a whole different world. JJ's smirk didn't leave his face. He tilted his head like he was daring her to turn him down.

"It's gonna be a good time. You might just like it," he added, his voice lowering like he was letting her in on some big secret.

"I don't know. I've got a lot of... stuff to do." It was an excuse, and she knew it. I guess I'm just not ready to accept I'm actually a Pogue, she thought.

JJ laughed, clearly not buying it. "Sure you do. But trust me, you're not gonna want to miss this. You'll regret it if you don't come." He was already back to messing with the boat, like he didn't even care whether she said yes or no.

She hesitated, looking down at her phone, thinking about the trailer, about Barry still passed out on the couch. What am I really avoiding by staying in? Maybe a party at the Boneyard would be different. She was tired of just existing here.

"Okay, I'll think about it," she said, even though it felt like a half-lie. JJ didn't seem to mind.

"That's all I needed to hear," he called out with a grin. "Boneyard, 9 p.m. Don't be late, Thea." He flashed her another wink as she walked off.

As she continued down the pier, she wondered why she was even considering it. But another part of her knew that she was already part of their world, already going to the Boneyard before he even invited her.
Whether she was ready for it or not.

What was she going to wear?!