Anchor // JJ Maybank

18.

"Pope, we're not stealing the drone. We're just borrowing it."

It had been several minutes since they had left the resort and started the drive towards the salvage yard and Pope had yet to cease trying to convince the rest of the group to not go through with their ill-thought-out plan. JJ was busy rolling out a joint for himself and Cassidy so she was stuck with the crappy job of trying to calm down Pope. 

"Humans are the only animal that can't tell fantasy from reality," Pope muttered under his breath.

"Wait did you come up with that?" John B asked cluelessly from the driver's seat, turning around for a moment to look at Pope with astonishment. 

"Albert Bernstein came up with that, but it applies to this whole treasure-hunting thing. So, which is it? Fantasy or reality?" Pope asked turning to the rest of the group and Cassidy could see John B's face fall in despair. Cassidy knew he didn't mean any harm but she couldn't help but be annoyed with his constant pessimism. This was John B's last connection to his father and he needed all the support he could get during this time.

"Why are you so weird Pope?" JJ muttered, still extremely concentrated on his joint. 

"I think reality is entirely up to perception. Therefore, if you don't think of it as stealing, then it's not stealing," Cassidy explained, sending a small smirk before continuing, "And just because the treasure-hunting stuff is definitely out of the ordinary- doesn't make it any less real." John B sent her a grateful smile and she returned it with a thumbs up.

The van squealed to a halt in front of the salvage yard and Cassidy peered out the window at the large gate in front of them. She knew the plan, but there were so many things that could go wrong, that she wasn't exactly confident that she wouldn't be in a jail cell by the end of the day. 

"Hey, don't worry Kie. you've got this!"Cassidy called out to the girl, rolling down her window and giving her a toothy grin.

"Yeah, I know. It's not me I'm worried about," Kiara responded sarcastically, motioning to JJ and Pope who were bickering in the back of the van. Cassidy chuckled and turned back to shove JJ and Pope, signaling for them to stop. 

Cassidy watched her friend saunter over to the small booth where JJ told them the man who ran the salvage yeard would be. Cassidy watched her friend proudly as she used all the tricks she had taught her, giggling and playing with her hair flirtatiously. She could see the man get out of the booth and start speaking to Kiara outside. It was working so far. The man opens the gate from the inside and joined Kiara, both of them strolling towards the van. The group hurriedly jumped out of the van and hid behind some crates that were next to the gate, waiting for the man to get distracted so they could slip through the gate. 

"So Cass, are things better with you and Kie?" JJ pestered the girl, poking at her arm.

"Yeah, we're all good. We talked it through and we're just friends," Cassidy said happily, glad that she and her friend were back on good terms. She couldn't stand it when people were angry with her. It was just in that moment when Cassidy noticed the look of shock on Pope's face and she realized that she had never told Pope about what happened between her and Kiara.

"Wait WHAT?" Pope asked wildly, gripping onto Cassidy's arm. Cassidy giggled at the boy's response, knowing full well that he had a thing for Kiara.

"We kissed the night of the kegger and things got awkward but now things are good. We both apologized and we're back as friends," Cassidy explained smiling at the boy, not wanting him to be upset so she left out the part about Kiara having feelings for her. 

"Maybe she's just into someone else," Pope mutters, hope lighting up his face. Cassidy nudged JJ and motioned towards Pope who was lost in thought and the two of them laughed lightly. 

The security guard turned their backs to the group to inspect the tire and the group sprinted away from the crates and towards the fence which was still ajar. They barely scraped through the gate as it was automatically closing, and Cassidy was left with a large scrape from the wire on the side of her arm. Cassidy followed JJ through the graveyard, dodging all types of junk that were left to rust out in the open. The group finally got to a trailer with a padlock on the door. Cassidy bent over, resting her hands on her knees and trying to catch her breath. JJ held a slip of paper with the combinations for the padlock and wrestled with the padlock, desperately trying to open it. 

"Do you have the right numbers?" Pope asked the blond boy incredulously.

"Alright, so I might have the wrong number," JJ admitted. Cassidy rolled her eyes, could anything ever go right, she thought to herself. 

It was just then that Cassidy noticed a large dark shape bolting towards them, barking furiously. 

"Well hello there," Cassidy said calmly, kneeling down to the dogs level and putting her hand out. The dog continued to bark menacingly and the boys desperately called out for the girl to get up and run but she refused. She slowly inched closer towards the dog and got to the point where she could feel the dog's breath on her hand. The dog tentatively sniffed her hand and relaxed, stopping barking and allowing her to pet him. She sat onto the ground and the dog curled up on her lap, resting it's head on her knee. 

"Holy sit Cass, you're like the dog whisperer," JJ exclaimed, in awe of the girl. Cassidy just giggled and continued to scratch behind the dogs ears. Cassidy had never had a dog of her own, but she always loved them and they had always seemed to love her too. 

The dog had quieted and John B ended up being able to open the door by smashing a pipe against the pad lock. The boys ran inside the trailer to grab the drone while Cassidy remained outside, enamored with the dog. The boys returned with their loot and the group made their way towards the front gate with the dog trailing not far behind them. They finally got back to the gate, only to see the gate slightly open and the security guard busy flirting with Kiara. They all let out a sigh of relief and quickly ran towards the van. cassidy turned around and found in horror that the dog was following them. She was terrified that the security guard would notice,but the dog remained perfectly quiet and refused to leave cassidy's side even when they had reached the van. 

"Cass you can't just steal the guy's dog," John B exclaimed in frustration, not wanting to have to explain how the dog got out of the salvage yard in the first place. 

"It's not stealing if he wants to come with me," Cassidy said, looking at the boys with puppy dog eyes, "I've always wanted a dog. And no dog should just be used for brute force. They should get cuddles too. And I can give him lots of cuddles," Cassidy made her pitch, looking desperately at the boys and then at the dog in front of her. 

John B just rolled her eyes at the girl, knowing none of them could ever tell the girl no. "Fine. Just make sure he doesn't slobber all over my car."

Cassidy squealed in excitement and leaped into John B's arm s thanking him profusely. She then knelt down to give her new dog a big hug and whispered, "I'm going to take such good care of you." She jumped into the van, with the dog not far behind her. JJ joined her in the back and played with the dog, waiting for Kiara to come back from her flirting adventure. 

"Well, what are you going to name him?" JJ asked the girl.

"Hmmm I'm not sure," the girl said, scrunching up her face in thought, "How about Pogie? You know, like for the pogues?"

"Yeah haha that sounds good," JJ said approvingly before bending over to scratch Pogie's head, "You're one of use now."

Kiara walked up to the van, desperate to escape the man who wouldn't leave her alone. She le out a deep breath of relief when she entered the van, up until she saw the dark firgure curled up on the floor of the van.

"What the hell is a dog doing in the van?"

AN: Hey guys! I took my last exam today and I'm feeling super relieved. I hope everyone is doing well and that you guys like this chapter. Let me know what you're thinking about the story so far and what you'd like to see in the future. Stay healthy and happy:)