La Luna | JJ Maybank

Eight

Topper had been gifted a new boat by his mother at the start of summer. It was partly in exchange for him spending time with his cousin over the summer, but also so that Cynthia Thornton had a subtle way of showing off her money to the island. Topper wasn't complaining, he'd wanted a new boat for months, plus it wasn't like spending time with Luna was chore. In fact right now, as he, his girlfriend and his cousin all sailed down the water alongside the docks of Kildare County he was actually quite enjoying himself.

Luna herself had positioned herself more towards the back of the small boat. She didn't know much about boats, other than they were way too expensive, and honestly didn't really care. The brunette was just glad she could have a relaxing hour lying under the sun after the chaos that had been the last few days. Luna was definitely also pleased at her slowly tanning skin. She was no where near as pale as she had been when she arrived, and felt glad that at least in that sense she was fitting in more.

"You can come sit up front Lu." The delicate voice of Sarah Cameron floated down to where she was lay, eyes closed and deep in thought.

"No I'm good," She hummed back. As much as she loved the two, she didn't really want to sit and watch them get weirdly close to each other.

"Uh oh, pogues at 12 o'clock." Topper muttered under his breath. Luna so badly wanted to say something, but figured they'd avoid another argument without her input. Instead she propped her body up with her elbows and looked in the direction her cousin had whispered.

Sure enough it was the four she'd spent her evening with. They were floating along with laughs and smiles, clutching bottles of beer and making faces at each other. She felt a little bad for thinking it, but she found herself wishing she was there with them rather than stuck third wheeling whilst Topper got everything ready for the kook party that evening.

As they drove past, Luna waved at the four. She heard Kiara's comment directed at Sarah, but the girl then smiled at Luna so she figured they were still cool despite her sneaking off that morning.

"Hey Luna, jump across to us." John B shouted across. Truth was he liked the girl. He liked her humor and her attitude and her whole vibe in general. Despite having an odd first few encounters he wouldn't mind her spending more time with the gang. He especially figured they'd be more fun than spending the whole day with an asshole like Topper and a brat like Sarah.

Luna sat up a little straighter- the offer was very tempting. However, she glanced quick to her cousin, who was looking at her with a mild irritation, and decided she probably shouldn't give him a reason to be in a bad mood. "It's okay I got a busy day, thanks for the offer John B!" She shouted quickly back.

John B shrugged from his position behind the wheel and gave her a friendly wave anyway, along with the others. It was only JJ who didn't, instead staring daggers right at her and her cousin. Luna didn't bother wasting her energy on him, just turned her wave to a middle finger before lying back down. Dick.

**

What Topper hadn't told his cousin that morning when he excited her with promises of alcohol and dancing and fun, was that she'd be taking part in an island litter pick. She didn't mind, of course, believing it was all for the good of the planet, but a little warning would have been nice.

"He's a pogue, at the end of the day. I mean you can say we're all just people or whatever, but it's a totally different mindset on the cut." Topper's voice echoed as he walked up the sand with Sarah. She had told Luna that John B had been fired because his dad had somehow found he'd taken the scuba gear. At first the golden-haired girl thought it might have been the brunette who told Ward, but it made no sense really, and Luna showed no indication of lying when she said she had nothing to do with it. Luna personally believed that Ward Cameron had just checked the cameras. Obviously the generators were down in homes at the time, but the boat had it's own power supply. Then again, she didn't really know much about boats to know if they'd be on or not.