𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐬𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐥𝐲

thirty-four: It's Gone.

KAI was now sitting on the dock at the Château, looking at John B who had finally come home after telling them that all the gold was gone, that Ward took all of it. "You sure he got everything?" Kie asked the boy laying down.

"Every bar. The whole enchilada." John B says before grunting as he slips off his cast. "Look, it's not like I expected a happy ending or some shit." The boy said as he tossed the cast.

"John B—" "what, Kie? It's a hairline fracture. Who cares?" He looked at the girl sitting side by side with Kai. "You should care. Your arm's gonna be messed up for life." Kie said and John B raised his arm. "It's fine. See?" He says before wiggling his fingers and Kai just crossed his arms.

"Guys! Guys!" Pope is panting as he came running down the dock. "Oh! Oh! Oh, God. I ran all the way here." Pope says, bent over as he breathed heavily. "You alright?" John B asked the boy who was out of breath. "How was the interview, Pope?" JJ asked and Kai glanced to the boy. "Don't ask." Is all Pope says before he grunts softly.

"JB... Look, I'm sorry, dude. About everything." Pope said as he looked at John B. "It's fine." The laying boy says. "But-but I don't have a lot of time, and-and I have information that is tactically relevant. So, before I had my interview, my dad said he was going down to the private airstrip to cut palms for Cameron's big plane. Because it was to heavy, it needed a longer landing strip to take off. So, I'm there sitting in my interview, thinking to myself, hm, why would Cameron need a longer airstrip to take off?" Pope asked rhetorically. "What could be so heavy to weigh it down?"

John B sits up and JJ looks over. "Gold." He says. "That's right." John B said as Pope flailed his arms around before pointing at the blond. "Exactly. Guys, this is our chance, but it leaves tonight, and we have to go." Pope told the group.

"Guys, we can't give up now." Kie says as she got down from the rail with a smile and Kai looked over at John B. "What's the plan, John B?" He asked and the brunette boy looks up at him, "we're gonna steal that shit back." He tells them.

"Let's do this!"

"Come on, boys!"

In the van on the way there, JJ was loading his gun. "We go in there, guns a-blazin', make Ward Cameron beg for mercy, abscond with as much gold as possible and vámonos, get the hell out of there." The blond boy says. "Send that shit right down the Intracoastal." John B says, looking at Kie in the passenger seat. "Wait for the weather." The girl says with a smile. "Exit to Cuba."

Kai looks at him, "Cuba?" He says, confused. "No, man, Xcalak, Jewel of the Yucatan. Lobsters so thick, mangoes, and no word for money." JJ says now and Kie smiled big, looking at Kai before looking back to the front of the van, at the road.

"Let's do this shit."

The group arrived to the private airstrip, running over to the fence as soon as they got out of the van. "What's the plan? Broad strokes." Kie said as they all stand along the fence. "I don't think we got that far." John B says as Pope looks through the pair of binoculars he grabbed from the van.

"They're loading up the gold."

John B grabs the binoculars and looked through them. "There's Ward." John B says and after a while, he lowered them. "What? What?" Kie said to the boy staring straight ahead. "It's Sarah." She says making the three boys to his left look at him. "She's with him?" Pope asked right away.

"Wait a minute... He's hurting her." John B said and they all look to him again. "What?" Kie sounded worried. "What?" Kai asked, also concerned but a little bit confused. "They're fighting. Holy shit." John B said before running to the van. "Wait, so she— what?" Kai said as Kie looked through the binoculars and John B got into the van. "Hey! What are you doing?" Pope asked.

"John B. Where are you going?" Kie said and they run over to the van. "Hey! Hey! Hey!" The boys shout but John B just put it into drive, all of them shouting for him to stop but he just drove right past the fence and followed the airplane that had taken off, driving down the airstrip.

The group were now in one of the airstrip hangar when they heard a plane. They watch Ward's plan fly right over them. "There goes the gold." JJ said and Kai turns to the others. JJ kicked a nearby plastic yard chair. And Pope was angry, like super pissed. "Shit!" He screamed as he picks something up, throwing it as he shouts, "fuck!"

"Pope!" Kie said and the boy ignored her, picking up a bat and hitting a box over and over with it. Kie watched in worry mixed with fear as JJ and Kai stood there, watching in shock. But they don't say anything and let Pope smash things out of anger and let it all out. "Pope!" Kie says and Pope just throws a garbage bin, yelling out.

"Pope!" Kie shouts and Pope was done, walking over to the bench, hyperventilating before he sit down, looking like he was about to cry. "Pope." Kie says, taken back by the boy's outburst. "Yeah, dude. I was wondering when this was gonna happen." JJ says as he walked over before holding out a juul. "A little weed never hurt no one."

Kai nods. "Some words I live by..." He says and JJ smirked at his boyfriend before glancing back at Pope. "JJ." Kie said, clearly not allowing it. "Relax, Kie." JJ just says to the girl.

"You know he doesn't smoke." Kie said but Pope surprised the other three as he takes the extended out item in JJ's hand. "Well, maybe not until today." JJ says before sitting by Pope.

Kai went to sit on the other side of him as Pope stared at the pod. "Pope. Yeah, what is that gonna help?" Kie asked the boy who looks up at her. "I lost my scholarship. Walked out in the middle of the interview. Every... it's gone. It's not gonna happen." Pope says as he shakes his head.

"You did that for us?" Kie asked him. "No. Not for us." He said as he stood up and faced her. "For nothing." He says and JJ stood up. "Kai and I are here for you, Pope. Welcome to our world, okay?" JJ pats the boy's chest gently.

"JJ..." Kie says and Kai stood up. "What? He's right, Kie. It doesn't matter anymore." He said as Pope now leans against a pillar, raising the juulpod to his lips. "You don't have to do that." Kie said and Pope looks at her. "What do you care?" He said and they look over to the noise they heard of someone coming and saw it was John B.

"Dude! Dude, you good?" JJ rushed over and so did Kie. "Oh, my God! John B!" She said as she did, Pope and Kai right behind them. JJ grabs John B's arm, raising his hand covered in blood. "Is this yours?" He asked and Kai gasped softly.

"Who's blood is that?" He looked up at John B who didn't even speak. "Hey, you okay, man?" JJ asked John B, his arm on the boy's shoulder but John B still didn't answer or even look at them. "John B, are you okay?" Kie asked, worried and then the group quickly hide together when they hear a siren and see a cop car driving by.

authors note ward cameron can c h o k e honestly, i hate that man, he irks me.