[ ✔︎ ] 𝐒𝐎𝐅𝐓 𝐒𝐏𝐎𝐓 - rafe cameron

2

"We are the Pogues, and our mission this summer is to have a good time, all the time."

Standing on the roof of a rich house, a dark-haired boy was holding his beer, trying to balance himself. That day, the wind was soft and the sun shine in the sky. A perfect day for the pogues.

"That's what, a three-story drop to the deck? I give you a one in three chance of surviving. But that's okay, mate. You should jump, I'll shoot you on the way down," said another teenager, smiling at him.

"You'll shoot me? Phew," laughs the dark-haired guy, simulating a gun with his finger, taking another simp of his beer.

Two girls walk out of the house, talking to each other about the Japanese toilet beach with towel warmers. How could rich people can be that rich, and that stupid ?

"Yeah, it used to be a turtle habitat!" the blonde says to her friend. "JB, what are you doing here? Can you not kill yourself?" she laughed as she put her hands in front of her eyes. It was something she hated most of all : her blue eyes were very sensitive to the sun.
It felt like the was crying every time she looked at the sun, it kinda hurt. A blonde boy who looked exactly like the girl laughed. The had the same blue eyes, the same dirty blonde hair and the same facial expression.

"Don't spill that beer, I won't give you another one." he warned.

And, of course, the brunette did. He spilled the beer. He groaned as he looked at the crushed beer to the ground.

"Of course ! Just when I tell you not to."

"There goes security!"

And the pogues ran out of the house, into an old van, laughing and goofing around. The police officer, Gary, ran behind them, but, he eventually fell.

The outer banks, paradise on earth. It's the kind of place where you either have two jobs or two homes. Two tribes, one island.

The group passed the rich side of the island, big houses, expensive boats, golf courses. It was the kind of a bitch place you couldn't go unless your family was super rich, like the Camerons. One of the most reputable families on the island.

All right. This is the figure eight, the rich side of the island. The home of the kooks. So where we don't live.

Then they passed some small old houses. We could easily see that this was the poor side. The houses were made of old wood, no pool, no spa, no quality cars and no good wifi. When you were a poor person, you worked twice as hard to get eight times less than a rich person.

And then, here is the south side of the cut.
The home of the working class who make their living clearing tables, washing yachts, organizing charters. The natural habitat of... drum roll, please...

On a boat, they were all playing together, laughing and smoking. They were having fun.

The Pogues, that's us.

The pogues, the pogies, the throwaway fishes. The lowest member of the food chain. Okay, the bad part of pogue life is that we're ignored and neglected. But the good side of pogue life? We're ignored and neglected, which means we do whatever we want, whenever we want.

The dark-haired man grabbed his net and threw it into the boat, leaving all the still-living fish flailing around. The curly-haired girl winced as she tossed a fish back into the water.

"Gross," she said.

On board of the boat was a teenager. He was blond and very tall. He was smoking and laughing. He had sunglasses and a gray sweatshirt.

This is JJ, my best friend since third grade. He's as local as they come. The latest in a long line of fishermen, drinkers, smugglers, salt dealers who live off the water. The best surfer I know. But don't tell him I said that.
Slightly kleptomaniac and future tax evader.

At a party, he walks up and hug his best friend while she pushes him away without even looking at him, continuing her monologue to a random guy.

And that's just Kiara, or Kie as we call her. When she's not saving turtles, or listening to Marley, or getting a dolphin tattoo, she's hanging out with us. I don't really know why, though. She's a rich kid, one foot in both worlds. Her family owns the wrec, that institution on the outer banks. A real cash cow for tourists. You know, I'm not really sure what their parents think of us. But, I guess we all have a soft spot for her.

As we see Kiara dancing with JJ, one of their friends smiles, watching them.

And that's Pope. The brains behind the operation, finalist for the Lucas T Vanderhorst merit scholarship. And the smartest person I know. Kind of weird. His father is a legendary figure, Heyward. Anything you wanted on the island, Heyward could get for you. Now, I'm not sure Heyward knew how to make his son an oddball, but it didn't matter. He was a pogue, just like the rest of us.

JJ dances with a girl then pushes her into the water. Just as he laughs at his own joke, the girl throws a rock at him, right in the gut.

And it's Skylar, or Sky. JJ's sister. Call her what you will, she doesn't care. She's the one of the prettiest girl on the island, everyone knows that. Pretty, but not the smartest. She doesn't think twice before doing something, so she always ends up in trouble. Even though she hates everyone, she's the nicest one in the team. If you mess with her once, she'll never forget you. Never, ever. She's like her brother, maybe a little too much like him. Sky is close to JJ, he is strangely protective of her, maybe too much.

In a wooden house, a sixteen year old boy smiles at Kie while having a beer.

And that's me. John Booker Routledge.

As he walks, he closes the door where JJ and a random girl are making out. "Dude, come on," he yelled.

And that's where I live. An old fish shack on the marsh. The castle, as my dad used to call it.

He disappeared at sea nine months ago, looking for a shipwreck. Who disappears at sea these days? I miss him. And then there's Mom. She left when I was three.

Last I heard, she was in Colorado. I think it was Colorado. And there's Uncle T. Since Dad was gone, he was supposed to be my legal guardian. Right now he's in Mississippi, building houses...which means it's just me right now, all by myself, hanging out with my friends. A few months after my father disappeared, he was presumed dead. I refused to sign the paper. Until I see a body, I will not give up.