riptide- outer banks

seventy-six | a people, not a place

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It was dark out and John B was still not back. It'd been hours since Shoupe had taken him, meaning that he was in custody. And he was not getting out. JJ lay in the hammock a few feet away, completely out of ideas. He'd thought of everything and nothing had been something Logan had wanted to try.

So it was a miracle when Sarah finally called him. He'd tried apologizing to her, but she'd shut him down; she wasn't mad at him. That had been a relief, but so was finding out she was going to get John B out to find his dad. She had a plan—one that involved Topper—that would hopefully have him released by nightfall. So they were waiting.

Logan and Kori were sitting on the edge of the Cat's Ass, a couple hundred feet away from JJ as they waited. They hadn't gotten any news yet, but they were as patient as they could be in a time like this. It'd been quiet, too, not much to say from anyone. Especially considering there were only three of them and two were secretly dating, the other the brother of one of them.

Kori suddenly turned to Logan, smirk enveloping her lips. "What is your favorite feature of mine?"

Logan's brow raised, smile lifting either side of his mouth as he met her gaze. "Your eyes."

Her brow immediately came together, expression faltering as she leaned back. "My eyes?"

"Yeah." Logan admitted, smile dissolving into more of a smirk. "When the light hits 'em just right, you get these little golden specks with the green. It is..." He paused, nose lifting up to the sky. "Really, really pretty."

There was a beat.

Logan's brow knit together as he noted her expression. "What? You don't like your eyes?"

"No, it's not that. It's just—" She dropped her gaze. "I have my dad's eyes." She breathed out, locking back onto his stare. "And I hate that. I've always hated that. It's just one more thing making me feel like I'm like him, you know?"

Logan gently shook his head. "You're not. You're you. Your eyes are yours. Not his." He paused, moving his knee to lightly hit hers. "And I kind of like your eyes."

Kori couldn't help it but smile. "Well, you wanna know what my favorite feature of yours is?"

His gaze narrowed at her.

"Your smile."

Either side of his mouth curled up, eyes briefly glancing down before locking onto hers. "What, do...sparks fly and fireworks go off when I smile?"

Kori rolled her eyes, head shaking at him. But she was grinning. Grinning at the joke. Grinning at the smile on his face. Grinning at him. "Maybe." She admitted, gaze lifting as the backdoor opened and Pope, Kiara, and Cleo appeared on the steps. Her eyes lit up as she hopped off the hottub. "Pope! Cleo!"

Logan just watched as she ran the rest of the way to Pope and Cleo—having not seen either of them since getting back—and excitedly jumped into Pope's arms. JJ got up, too, making his way over to the three of them while Kiara made her way to the Cat's Ass. He hadn't failed to glare at Logan the entire way there though.

Kiara sat down next to him, not bothering to say anything. They just sat there, eyes unfocused as the others caught each other up on what'd happened. It was comfortable, the two of them sitting there. And it almost felt like deja vu. Like they were back on Poguelandia again.

"Hey, Kie." Logan finally said, turning to her.

"Hey, Logan." She echoed, meeting his gaze. "How're you and Kori?"