riptide- outer banks

ninety-nine | what if it lasts?

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Luke had his arm around Carrie, a grin encasing his face. He took a swig of his beer, head immediately shaking as someone made a stupid comment. One out of the twenty-three that had already slipped out of the mouths of the surrounding inebriated teenagers. That's how it usually went for a Friday night party at the boneyard.

They'd been there a few hours now, an inky hue blanketing the sky. A bonfire had been lit some time ago as well, an orange hue illuminating the beach. The kooks were further out, not daring to intermingle with the lower class. That is, except for Anna and Mike. They'd run off well over an hour ago. Not that anyone particularly cared.

Carrie sure didn't. Were they still friends after two months of knowing each other? Yes. Were Mike and Luke on better terms now because of her? Yes. Did that mean that she or Luke cared what he was doing every waking second? Absolutely not. She had her own life and her own problems; those superseded his trivial little ex-best friend problems.

"Oh, whatever. You're only saying that because you can't catch a hint." Carrie remarked, decidedly joining the conversation.

Luke chuckled, grin only growing as he glanced at her and took another sip of his beer. "She got you there, man."

It was quiet momentarily before a soft voice seemed to cut through everyone and everything. "C?"

Carrie felt her breath hitch in her throat as her gaze snapped to her right. Looking beyond the few teenagers blocking her line of sight, she found the person that'd just spoken. She found her best friend. Dropping her drink, she bolted towards her.

Larissa caught her best friend as she slammed into her, swaying to the side from the force of the embrace. She just smiled, emotions completely overtaking her. It'd been two months since she'd seen Carrie and she couldn't have been happier to see her.

"I can't believe you're really here." Carrie expressed, pulling away to grip either of her shoulders. "Like in the OBX. This is crazy."

"C, I literally told you I was coming. Don't act so surprised."

Carrie simply responded by throwing her arms around her for a second time. She just couldn't believe it. Larissa and her dad had come out for business, but it wasn't just a conversation over the phone. It was reality. They were together again– even if it was just for the weekend.

Separating, Carrie let out a breath. "I am so happy you're here. I missed you."

Larissa smiled. "I missed you."

A whistle sliced through the air, pulling either girl's attention to the boy walking up to them. He gave Larissa a once over, eyes trailing up and down her body. "Hey. You new here?"

Carrie's face contorted as she rolled her eyes. "Screw off, Bryce. She doesn't want to talk to you."

The boy in front of her just laughed. "Well, I wanna talk to her."

"Well, I'm sorry. I don't really give a shit. Screw off."

Bryce's face hardened as he took a step forward. "What'd you just say to me, bitch?"

"I said 'screw off.'" Carrie enunciated.

There was a beat.

Then, Bryce scoffed. But it was too late. The words had already left her mouth and the damage was already done. The anger was already being fueled. His hand was already wrapping around her bicep. Before he could so much as do anything to harm her, though, a pair of hands was propelling him backwards just so that he could be socked in the face.