PINK SKIES ༯ J.M 4

☾ turning the page

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chapter 2
turning the page
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Aria could feel her hands shaking as she directed her family's smaller boat towards the Pogues dock. She could see the group, standing around JJ's new property.

The place was run down, things lying everywhere. But it was perfect for the Pogues. The would transform it, the Pogue way.

She docked her boat, tying it to avoid losing it. She wiped her hands on her jean pockets, the small bag slung around her shoulder as she approached her friends.

"Aria!" Sarah waved, her round lips curving up into a smile. "We were wondering what was taking you so long."

Aria tucked her hair behind her ears, forcing a smile.

The group stared at her, sensing her tension. They eyed one another as she stood before them, silent.

JJ cleared his throat, glancing down at the calculator. "Well, good news. Our joint balance is one point one million, seventy-two thousand, five hundred and forty-nine dollars."

For the first time since their treasure hunts began; the Pogues finally got what they earned. The gold of El Darado, the lives they risked and lost, it finally turned into something.

The term, 'to going full Kook', was now just beneath the surface.

"Yeah, about that." Aria finally shook out of her own head as she dug in her bag. She grabbed the large stacks of cash before dropping it on the wooden table.

JJ stared at it, dumbfounded, along with the others. "That's your share, isn't it?"

Aria nodded, toying with her fingers. "No, yeah. Look, I don't need it. You guys should put it towards making your business."

The terms Aria was using throw them deeper into confusion. The way she spoke; made her sound like she wasn't going to be apart of Poguelandia.

"This is yours, too."  Kie furrowed her brows, earning nods from the friends around her. "You do have a say."

But Aria didn't have a say. At least not anymore.

"No, I don't actually." Aria stifled an awkward chuckle. "It's been a lot of fun, guys. But, I'm out."

Aria struggled all morning in thinking how to tell the Pogues she couldn't hang around them anymore. Her mother made it seem so simple.

But as a Campbell, sometimes, the easiest way to say things is just simply ripping the bandaid off.

"You're out?" John B repeated, his lips in a flat line as the stares from her friends made Aria feel small. "Sorry, can you elaborate?"

"I just need to be there for my mom right..."

"So, your mom is putting you up to this?" JJ cut the girl off, shaking his head in frustration. "Just tell her no."

JJ Maybank did not understand this side of being a Kook. He though the did, but he didn't. JJ didn't understand the legacy of being apart of the Campbell family.

"She didn't put me up to anything." Aria lied through her teeth. She couldn't tell the Pogues the truth.

The thing about the group of Pogues, they'd go to extreme lengths to protect one another. And Aria knew they'd dig her hole deeper if they knew the truth.

"You're a Pogue, Aria." JJ ran a frustrated hand through his thick blond locks. "You know it."

"I'm not, JJ." Aria knew JJ would be the hardest to convince, and she needed to put on the show of her lifetime. "I'm a Kook. I always will be."

She fell silent, and so were the others. The silence was deafening, narrowing eyes on the dark-haired girl. Aria held them together, every one of the Pogues had a role in the group. And Aria was blowing up in their faces.

"Keep the money. Put it towards building your business. You need it more than I do." Aria crossed her arms over her chest. "I don't want to hang around you guys anymore. Sorry."

Aria knew she was giving a shit apology. She couldn't hear them respond, her wall was breaking. She turned on her heels, walking at a faster pace to the parked boat.

"No, hey." JJ was hot on her heels. Aria expected her, she knew he wouldn't let her go without a fight. JJ stood in front of her, his fingers digging into her arms to keep her in place. "What the hell was that?"

Aria looked up at him blankly. "It doesn't need an explanation, JJ. I have somewhere to be, can you move?"

"No." JJ stood in her personal space, her eyes avoiding his gaze. "Just talk to me, Ari."

"I did." Aria spat, moving back a step. His hands fell down to his side with defeat. "I can't do this anymore, JJ. My father is dead, and it's my fault."

JJ shook his head. "That isn't your fault. He saved your life. You would've died, Aria!"

"He was there in the first place because of me!" Aria shot back, her brows screwing together in anger. "Can't you see that? I can't do it anymore. The treasure hunting, the adventure." Aria paused, looking down at her feet. "Us."

"Us?" JJ repeated. "You're breaking up with me?"

Aria sighed lowly, she could feel her shame surfacing as she held back a whine. "Yes, JJ."

"What can I do?" JJ practically begged.

JJ's image of building this new life for himself and his friends wasn't complete if Aria wasn't beside him. None of it made sense to him. Her sudden switch, he knew Belle Campbell was behind it.

"You can leave me alone." Aria said coldly, slamming her palms in his chest gently as his hands scrambled to catch the ring she dropped.

JJ glanced down at his hands, holding the ring between his finger as he turned over his shoulder. Aria was giving up on him, she was walking out of his life, just like everyone else had.

Aria could feel the tears free falling as she worked to untie the knot that kept the boat afloat. Her hands were sweaty and shaking as she climbed into the vessel, refusing to look back as the water splashed behind her, her boat creating small waves.

She brought her hand to hair, removing the thick clip as her hair moved with the wind. The silent tears falling down her red cheeks.

Aria Campbell had officially succumbed to her parents. Even her father in death, stopped her from being with the Pogues.

aria is in her bitch era
IK ITLL WORK OUT