𝐇𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬: 𝐀𝐬𝐩𝐲𝐧 𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐧 ~ 𝐎𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐁𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐬

𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐎𝐤𝐚𝐲?

It had been a month since we had first discovered the island. At first, it was difficult to adjust to, but we eventually got the hang of things.

We set up a camp complete with a small shelter, makeshift beds, a place to hang the clothes we washed in the freshwater pond we found, and a fire pit in the middle of it all. Not to mention the Poguelandia flag JJ made and put on one of the trees.

As for food, we would spear fish and cook them over a fire, eat coconuts that had fallen off of trees, or find some berries growing nearby. It wasn't the most diverse diet, but it was enough to survive.

Despite our limited resources, I had honestly never been happier. Before all of the gold drama started, I was constantly angry, reliant on cocaine, and frankly just a bitch. Then, once I became friends with the Pogues, that brought its own share of problems.

Even though the adventure that came with the Pogue life was exciting, it was the first time I had a chance to relax.

We didn't have anything to worry about on the island. There wasn't any gold to chase or any cops to evade. It was just me and my six best friends living our lives the way we wanted.

I'll admit, I was happy on Poguelandia, but what I told Pope still stood. This shit, with the gold and the cross, wasn't over. After a month of relaxation, I was ready to search for a way off of the island so we could get back what was rightfully ours.

Not to mention we had all probably been presumed dead, so that would give us a chance to hit Rafe and Ward when they least expected it. That was if we were able to find them and the gold. Based on our past experiences though, I was confident we'd be able to.

Cleo, Pope, and I trekked through the wooded area of the island searching for some berries since our supply at the camp was running a bit low. After talking back and forth for a bit, the topic of Pope's scholarship came up in conversation.

"I could've had a real shot at it, but I walked out of my interview," Pope explained.

"Now, why the hell did you do that?" Cleo asked.

He shrugged. "My friends needed me,"

She furrowed her brows. "So, you're telling me you had your own house, your own room, and they was gonna give you money to read books?"

"Well, it was a scholarship, and I don't know if I would've gotten it. It's whatever now,"

"You just threw it all away to chase some treasure with your dropout friends?"

"It wasn't just about the treasure," He informed. "That cross belongs to my family. It's important to me, and I still haven't lost it,"

"No, you haven't, baby," I spoke up. "And once we get the hell off this island we're going straight for it,"

Cleo scoffed. "Better off keeping what you got, than searching for something you ain't gonna find. Did daddy ever teach you nothing?"

"Sunken treasure," She chuckled. "You had the real treasure in your hand, and you just let it go,"

"Okay, well, what about you?" Pope asked. "You had a job on a boat, a life, I'm sure, before this. You gave it all up to scrounge for berries in the jungle. Just saying,"

She plucked a berry off of a bush. "Well, what I had wasn't better than this." She tossed me the berry she had picked. "I'm sure you can understand that, A,"

"In most ways," I shrugged. "Becoming a Pogue made me genuinely happy for the first time in years, but it brought some problems I would've never had as a Kook. It isn't just black and white, you know? Not for me at least,"