haven murphy had nothing to lose. everything was different after sarah cameron's birthday party, the night her father died. haven just didn't feel right in her own skin. then, on a whim, she befriended pope heyward and got sucked into a wild goose h...
IT FELT LIKE HAVEN had only been asleep for a second before JJ was frantically shaking her awake. Early morning sun was filtering through the window, the sky a bright shade of pink that told Haven she'd only been asleep for an hour or two. She'd expected this; the sudden panic that came with daylight, the realisation that they were sitting ducks with Kie and Pope still having the boat, but she had hoped for a couple more hours of sleep first. Still, she didn't protest when the others all started moving to head outside. She simply ducked back into John B's bedroom where she'd left her clothes, quickly pulling on her skirt and boots while deciding to just leave his shirt on.
"It's way too early for this," she muttered as JJ dragged her out into the yard where Arden was trying and failing to sooth her squealing daughter. The sound of Logan's cries had Haven rubbing her temples, her head throbbing like someone had taken to it with a hammer. "Your kid's hurting my head, JJ."
"Well, if you hadn't gotten so wasted last night, that wouldn't be a problem."
"Oh, like you can talk."
"Guys, come on," John B cut in suddenly. "I see the boat. They're back."
At that, JJ took off running down towards the jetty, forcefully bringing Haven along with him. She heard the others following behind them, Logan's sobs finally falling silent as Harlow took over for a stressed out Arden. Still, every little sound ― the cracks of branches beneath their feet, their footsteps pounding on the jetty, JJ's voice shouting for Kie and Pope to keep the boat running ― echoed around and around in her head, like sitting beside a blaring speaker at a party until everything was so loud; your breathing, your heart beat. You were the music and the music was you. That was how Haven felt then, like she was every bit of pain beating in her skull, wanting to be set free.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Kie frowned as she spotted JJ and Haven marching towards them.
"We're dipping," JJ announced, not giving much more of an explanation as he hopped into the boat and turned around to help Haven then Arden and Logan in.
"Why? What are you guys talking about?"
Nobody answered them at first. Haven had taken a seat at the back of the boat, closing her eyes as the sun continued to only get brighter by the second. Arden was trying to give Logan her bottle with Harlow sitting anxiously at her side. John B and Sarah were only just making their way down the jetty, John B with his arm around Sarah's waist as she struggled to run with her wounded hip. Pope and Kie were both left incredibly confused, still pleading for an explanation in the midst of it all.
"Where did you guys go? What happened last night?" John B asked them instead, letting go of Sarah so that JJ and Harlow could help her down into the boat.
