ISSUES II outer banks

family

"Friends are the family you choose."

❥

"Okay, the guy was someone working as a part of the committee of the scholarship. Look at this, read it", Pope tells us as we enter the library and gives the letter he got earlier to JJ. "Dear Mr. Heyward, I am writing this to you because I've got evidence that John B is innocent. It is very important that you visit me personally in my office in Charleston, tonight at eight. Come alone." "Charleston? We would have to drive there right now", I mumble wondering if we could even make it on time. When Pope finds a connection between the Limbrey's and the captain of the Royal Merchant, we decide to go home quickly so we can take the car and drive to Charleston.

"You can't go to Charleston, you have to be in school tomorrow!", Anna complains as soon as we ask her if we could take the car. Great. "It's our chance to finally prove that John B is innocent!", Kie raises her voice and I already know how this is going to end. A discussion between Anna and Kie only ends in a fight. "Anna, Christian, please. I know you want the best for us and we really try to concentrate on our lives but right now, this is important to us and we have to prove his innocence. No one else would help us", I try to persuade them calmly.

"To prove his innocence doesn't even help him anymore", Christian yells as well, "He's dead. Dead. You have to accept it!" "Christian. Christian, stop it", Anna tells him but damage has already been caused. John B is alive but still it hurts to see how insensitive Christian is dealing with the situation. "Listen to me, girls. I understand you. What you're going through is incredibly hard." "Do you?", Kie mutters. "Yes, of course. All that we say is that we're worried because you spend all of your time with those boys."

"Mom, those are not just random boys that I've found on the streets", Kie shouts, "Would you rather have Iz and me hanging out with kooks or what? Rafe Cameron?" "They're our best friends since kindergarden", I state instead and try to suppress the feeling that is building up inside of me.. disappointment, "Our only friends."

"I understand that but you are not the cute little girls to them anymore!" "We're pogues mom, sorry!", Kie underlines as we grab our bag and walk to the entrance to the garden. "No, you're not because you're living on Figure Eight and don't run away!" "We're still one of them. You're just so scared of us being around them because a Pogue got you and your sister pregnant and then you had Iz and I. What a shame."

Well, it's harsh but sometimes I feel like it's the truth. Our parents try too hard to make us someone we're not supposed to be. "Kiara, are you being serious? This isn't fair! Now stop walking away when I'm talking to you and look at me!", Anna raises her voice even more, "I'm so done with this bullshit. The best option is for you Kiara is a boarding school and Isabella, maybe you should live your parents in New York again. You can get away from the Outer Banks this way."

New York? They want me to leave. They offered me a home and I didn appreciate it and now they think that sending me back to my parents is the best options. My parents who were the first ones to send me away because I was too much of a troublemaker. Kie and her parents still discuss while I'm already done with it. They said what they had to say and they wouldn't take it back. "Look at your lives, you're ruining it!", Christian yells just as we sit down in Heyward's car and JJ stands up.

"Good to see you again, Mr. and Mrs. Carrera." "Hi, Ma'am, Sir", Pope greets them awkwardly, "I promise to bring them back before nighttime securely." "Listen to me, girls. If you want to leave, leave. But if you're not here tonight, you don't have to come back at all", Anna shouts angrily and I gulp. I thought living without parents is hard but now I lost the only guardians that I had left. "She bluffs", JJ thinks but I'm not so sure about it. I know that they're serious.

❥

"My parents are so paranoid that one of us could be with a pogue as if that's the worst that could happen." "I thought they liked me", JJ shrugs and I think back to when he drunk a beer with Christian. I liked how they were having a good conversation but now that we spend so much time on helping John B, they think we waste too much time with the Pogue-life. "At least there's good weed at boarding school", JJ jokes but I roll my eyes. Not helpful.

"I'm not going to a boarding school. They would have to kidnap me." "Well, I say.. we smoke one on that first." "Hey, Kie, Iz. Have you tried calling John B on the phone?" "About a million times-" "That's pretty often." "It's always the same woman from a hotel." The others were didn't stop talking while we were driving but I was still thinking about what had happened between Anna, Christian, Kie and I.

What if we leave? What about JJ, Pope, John B and Sarah? Kie might be able to come back to the Cut on the weekends or holidays, but my parents wouldn't let me leave again if me staying in Figure Eight doesn't work now. I would only see Kie when my family would visit them but I'm sure that my dad would do anything to make me stay away from JJ and until then, JJ would have found someone else.

"Stop worrying, baby", JJ mumbles as he sits down next to me and gives me his joint, "It'll be fine." "Why are you so sure about it?", I mutter but take the joint. JJ shrugs so I know that he's got no plan but he tries not to think about it so I try to do the same. "What Pope are you today?", I ask Pope as I give the joint to him but he declines. "The good Pope, the boring one", Kie mumbles frustrated and sits down with us.

"He doesn't have to, Kie", I add as I see that he's not feeling comfortable right now and JJ nods. "I take his amount." Kie and Pope give each other looks that I can't really define so JJ flashes me a sad smile, "I'd come with you. We can marry in New York, too. Wherever you are." "Looks like Yucatán has to wait", I chuckle feeling a lot better already knowing this wouldn't change anything about JJ and me.