totally not a stalker [riara]

oversalted stew at the wreck

Rafe didn't consider himself a stalker.

He considered himself someone who carefully gathered information, not in an insane, obsessive kind of way, no, not at all, he was just being proactive. Really, he was just looking out for himself. Because he had a damn lot of enemies, people that were jealous, no doubt, jealous of his wealth and family name and probably the amount of girls that would and had sucked his dick in a heartbeat. Clearly, there was no other reason a guy like Rafe could have any enemies, besides jealousy.

Rafe didn't consider himself a stalker. But it so happened that Rafe found himself in a position in which he had to watch out, always had to gather information and carefully store it inside of his little kook brain, which was kind of hard, considering how much his drug habits fucked with his memory. But he managed pretty well.

It was a Wednesday afternoon, the sun up as high as Rafe himself by the side of his pool, burning down merciless on his shirtless body and Rafe didn't consider it weird, or creepy that he happened to know that Pope Hayward was currently sweating his brains out in a hot classroom. He wasn't a stalker. It was simply that Topper had maths club too, had to go because his mother told him to, like helping out at the soup kitchen, cleaning trash from the beaches, whatever it took to make the perfect son she needed. Rafe and Kelce made fun of him for it plenty. Precisely every Wednesday, when Topper had to decline any invitation to hang out and smoke or have a few drinks at the island club because he had Maths club. And he just had happened to mention towards Rafe once, that Pope was in that club too. So it wasn't weird for Rafe to know that Pope was occupied as of right now.

In the same way it sure as hell couldn't be considered stalking that Rafe knew where JJ Maybank was in this very second, too. Because JJ simply did lawn work for Kelces neighbors and Kelce had send Rafe a snap earlier, complaining about the loud lawn mower, asking Rafe if he could drop by and escape the noise to hang out in the quiet shadow of Tanneyhill. Unfortunately, Rafe had to decline the offer. He was busy.

Although, some people wouldn't consider tanning at the pool with a Mai Tai by his side being particularly busy. But Rafe was busy, not stalking, no, just watching out for John B to turn up. Which should happen, any time soon. Rafe thought, his father cut his workers too much slack. Told the Rutledge kid to come in for work "whenever he wanted"; it just needed to be finished by tomorrow morning when Ward wanted to take the Druthers out. If Ward had given John B an exact time instead, at which he was supposed to work, this would've been easier. Rafe wouldn't have had to wait around like a stalker although he probably would've anyways, hoping for John B to show up late and report it to his father then, but you couldn't be late for a time that wasn't defined.

John B did show up, late, by Rafes measures and walked by the pool on his way to the Druthers, saluting Rafe as he saw him in one of the lounge chairs. "Afternoon, sir", he said mockingly and Rafe wrinkled his nose, pressing his lips into a thin line not answering as John B crossed the yard, his walk so light, vivid, like he couldn't care less about spending his afternoons working rather than blowing daddy's money. Rafe waited until John B had disappeared at the dock, not in a stalker kind of way, before he jumped up, feeling dizzy. Being stoned and laying in the sun for too long wasn't the best combination.

He got inside, quickly taking a cold shower to wake himself up, throwing on a random outfit, totally random, no planning whatsoever, just coincidentally slipping into the beige shirt Sarah got him for his birthday saying girls liked these kind of clothes with a wink and some random pants, his favorite, putting on some perfume, not too much, it was supposed to be random after all. He messed with his hair for a minute, felt it would look like he tried to hard and simply put on a backwards cap before he slipped into his shoes and rushed down the stairs.