𝐦𝐢𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐫𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐥, 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝟏

𝐩𝐢𝐥𝐨𝐭

Tatum Thornton rested her elbow on her knee as she drank form her can of beer, watching her friends be complete idiots.

John B stood on the roof, balancing his weight on one foot. "That's what, a three story fall to the deck?" Pope squinted his eyes.

"I give you about a one in three chance of survival." John B hummed, licking his finger, testing the wind's direction, "Should I do it?" He contemplated it, and Tatum rolled her eyes at his games.

"Yeah, jump," Pope responded quickly, pointing the hand drill he found downstairs, "I'll shoot you on the way down." "You gonna shoot me?" John B asked sarcastically.

Tatum rolled her eyes, taking a swig of the alcohol, "I'm not helping if you fall off that roof." John B pretended to shoot a gun at her, "Pew!"

Kie sighed with a frown as she walked out of the house, onto the deck, dramatically, "They're gonna have Japanese toilets with towel warmers."

"Of course they are. Why wouldn't they?" JJ said as if it couldn't have been more obvious. "This used to be a turtle habitat, but who cares about the turtles, I guess?" Kie threw her hands up in the air, walking further out onto the deck.

Tatum snickered, "What a social injustice! Killing all the sea turtles!" Kie glared at Tatum, who just sat there, a grin stretched out on her tan face.

"I can't have cold towels," John B's voice dripped with sarcasm. "Can you please not kill yourself?" Kie shouted up at John B.

"Don't spill that beer. I'm not giving you another one," JJ yelled up at his best friend, pointing at him with the beer in his hand.

And right on time, John B lost his balance, the beer can slipping from his hand, hitting the deck. "Whoa! Oh shit!" "Fucking idiot," Tatum ran her hands through her hair. "Of course you did," JJ leaned back.

John B groaned, like it physically pained him that he'd spilled his beer.

"Hey, uh, security's here," Pope said, looking at the patrol car pull up beside the house, "Let's wrap it up."

"Boys are early today," John B said, with surprise. "Humpty Dumpty, let's roll," JJ called, swinging himself down from the scaffolding. "Let's go, boys," Tatum smiled, her eyebrows high on her forehead.

"Gary, is that you?" JJ joked as he ran from the security guard. "Hey, you know it's me!" "Gary, good to see you, man!" "Is it time?" "Yeah, you're just asking for it!"

Tatum stood on the other side of the fence, holding Pope's beer as he tried to jump over. "Come on, JJ! Let's go!" "Get up, fatso's coming," JJ jumped over, helping Pope up from the ground.

Tatum opened the door of the van, and JJ stuck his head out. "Check out Gary gunning for a raise," John B chuckled, looking in his rear view mirror.

"Hey! You little pricks!" "You're gonna give him a heart attack!" Kie warned John B who sped up the van. "JJ, give it to him before he passes out," Tatum looked up at him.

"You're so close! You can do it. There you go," JJ threw the can out to Gary who was still chasing him. "You're evil!" Tatum pulled him back into the car. "Aww, they don't pay you enough, bro," JJ yelled out at Gary.

"You're a real asshole, you know," Tatum rubbed her eyes. "Oh, come on. That sort of initiative is just begging to be punished."

...

"Sarah! Tatum!" Ward Cameron called as he walked into his grand home, looking for his daughter and god-daughter. "You seen the princess?" Ward asked his wife as she walked into the room.

"She's outback with Tatum," Rose answered, walking down the stairs. "Let there be generators," Ward blessed as the power came back on. "Thank God. It's like living in Nicaragua."