ISSUES II outer banks

bonfire

"Moving on happens quickly when you're just pretending."

❥

As I get back home, I hear my dad, Rose and Rafe talking about something serious in the dining room. I know they wouldn't want me to hear it but I'm also curious so I step closer so I can hear a bit but too much so they wouldn't see me. As soon as they seem to be finish I enter the room. "Mom, dad, can I talk to you?" "Rose, Rafe, I'll be taking care of the problem", my dad states and they leave so he turns to me, 

"What do you want to talk about?" "The bonfire is tonight and I wanted to go there with Kie. The others will be there too but", I stop for a moment not knowing if telling them is right or not but they may be a little less strict to me, "JJ and I broke up anyways. He won't be a distraction anymore." "Thank god", my dad sighs quietly and I can see my mom looking at me gladly. 

"It's for the best, Isabella", she nods softly and I would like to believe here. "You can go there but let Rafe be there with you. You're friends and he can keep an eye on pogues so they stay away from you." As much as I still hate this statement, I nod and I'm glad that I can at least go there without hiding it from them. "Of course", I nod knowing that this is the best agreement that I could get.

"Rafe?", I approach him later on as he seems to have a moment for me. "Bella?", he replies softly and I instinctively give him a weak smile as I'm glad that he's still here for me. "Will you go to the bonfire with me tonight?", I ask him directly, "My dad might have told me to go there with you but if I'm honest, I want you to be there with me." 

"Yes, sure", Rafe nods smiling, "You know I'd do anything for you." Rafe looks at me empathically and I lay my arms around his upper body. "Thanks for you being here for me, Rafe", I whisper as I feel his arms on my lower back. "Of course, Bella. You wouldn't do it differently."

"It's been some time since so many pogues and kooks were at one place", I realize as soon as we get there and I watch the people at the bonfire remembering the kegger when John B and Topper had a fight. "Feels like it'll be an exhausting night", Rafe mumbles. "At least we're here giving it a try", I reply trying to be positive as I see Sarah and Topper on the stone walls and my friends and JJ arriving downstairs in front of the fire. "I'll go and greet Sarah and Topper", I tell Rafe but he's laying his hand on my shoulder. "I'll go with you. I'm here to protect you."

"Sarah, hey", I greet her and give her a hug immediately as soon as I see her knowing that she's still hurting. "You're here together?", Topper butts in pointing between Rafe and I, "What about JJ or him trying to kill his sister?" I feel Rafe tensing up and know that he's about to get angry, but I grab his hand to calm him down. A fight is the last thing I need right now. 

"JJ and I are not together anymore", I tell Topper and see his face immediately softening, "And my parents are back. I'm staying at the Cameron's anyways so Rafe and I are working on the issues." "I'm sorry", Topper nods ignoring what I've said about Rafe so we could avoid a conflict. "It's okay. We'll go and grab a drink now", I decide and Rafe and I go to the bar downstairs close to the fire. I also see John B and Sam flirting knowing that it also happened last year.

"Here", Rafe says softly handing my favorite cocktail to me, "John B looks pretty distracted already." I don't like what we see but I like the fact that Rafe and I can be here together without arguing or any other bad moment. We're just enjoying our time together. "He's not like that. He's probably just too insecure to tell Sam that she should fuck off", I explain to him and Rafe nods. "What about JJ?", he adds pointing to him as JJ is dancing with Tara, one of the most annoying pogues I know. His loss. At least I try to tell myself that. 

"I really enjoy this, Rafe", I suddenly admit looking at him as we lean at the wall next to each other, "Us just watching people and talking. We haven't done something normal in quite a long time." "Yeah, you're right. Way too long." "Don't you think drinking alcohol is problematic for us?", I wonder. "Why?" "We're both mentally instable", I shrug and feel Rafe laying his arm around my waist. 

"Let's be mentally instable together then", Rafe chuckles taking another sip from his cocktail, "I'm a lot more stable around you, Bella." I'm about to reply when I see Sarah bumping into Sam and John B and Topper appearing as well so I decide to go closer and step in in case something happens. After all, they're both my friends. "What am I to you? Just the next one?", John B asks Sarah in front of me. "And she's the next one for your collection? First Bella, then me, then her?" 

Topper tries to step in but both of them are too emotional right now. The people around us are building a circle and JJ and Pope get closer. "Don't mention her, Sarah", Rafe warns next to me and I press his hand wanting to stay out of a fight tonight. "Or what, Rafe? Are you going to freak out again? Are you going to shoot your sister?" Rafe looks angry at first but then laughs the way he does when he's frustrated, "No, Maybank, no. Bella is right here next to me. Here with me. Shouldn't you be the one freaking out, pogue?" 

"Just go away, leave!", Topper adds, "Leave, pogues." "Bugger off, Topper." "Hey, hey, she doesn't want you anymore, bro", Kelce butts in pointing to Sarah and then to me, "They were never supposed to be with pogues like you." "Better shut up." "What do you want to do, John B, huh? Are you firing at me like at Sheriff Peterkin?" 

And that's the moment when John B hits Kelce and the fight begins. I close my eyes for a second expecting Rafe to loosen the grip between our hands and to help his friends fight the pogues, but he's tightening the grip around me instead and makes us leave this area pushing us out of the crowd so we can leave.

After Rafe leaving the house this morning, Sarah and I met up at the Cameron's to take care of but as we notice that no one apart from us is here, we become suspicious and look around. We go through each room until we find the map in the dining room. We have to tell the pogues about it. For Pope.