what now? | outerbanks

• six •

Cleo

        I walk up the stairs leading to the plane, and feel bad that I'm not walking up here with Pope. I know we're about to go get him and John B., but what if things don't work out? And if we do get him and the gold, what if things don't work out with us?

        "Cleo?" I snap my head to the right of me where Sarah is trying to get my attention.

        "Oh, sorry."

        "You alright?"

        "Yeah, yeah- I'm good. Just thinking."

        "Okay. Heyward was just making sure that everyone was ready for takeoff."

        "Yeah, I guess. Wait- is Heyward flying this thing?"

        "Yeah, he said he took some classes when he was younger. Apparently the guy I sent him to was being "disagreeable". I didn't ask anymore questions."

        "Oh, wow, yeah I think I'll stay curious for now." The two of us laugh, and quickly go back to our own things. Though, before fully separating, I take ahold of Sarah's hand; I can tell how nervous she is. She looks over at me, and I think I can see tears welling in her eyes, but I dont say anything and look back out of the window.

        The plane ride is short, but it's one filled with tension and nervous energy. About halfway through, JJ stumbles his way to the cockpit and I hear him discussing the plan with Heyward.

        "You think he knows what he's talking about?" I ask Kie who sits a couple of feet in front of me.

        "Well, I sure as hell hope so." Her eyes widen a bit, and her mouth moves into a slightly-scared smile.

        Not too long after, the plane starts to land. I exchange worried looks with Sarah and Cleo, and cross my fingers- hoping for the best. To my best wishes, the plane ends up landing pretty safely; a bit more rocky than I would pay for, but I'm not paying for it, so I guess I'll take what I get.

        "No way that actually worked..." Kie says with a shocked look and a light chuckle. At the same time, JJ walks out of the cockpit, but stops when he hears her sentence.

        "Wait- you didn't think I had it in me, huh?"

        "No, no. I- I definitely thought it would work, it's just-"

        "It's just what?" JJ jokes back, but Kie doesn't seem to get the joke.

        "No, JJ I was just joking- I-"

        "Kie, I know. It's okay- you're okay." The two stay in their eye contact for a bit longer than normal, and their smiles only grow bigger as the time passes.

        "Okay, lovebirds, let's get moving." Sarah breaks the silence and starts to walk down the stairs to leave.

        "Yeah, because you're one to talk, Mrs. Routledege." JJ mocks Sarah, and it gives us all a good laugh.

        "Whatever." The three of us, and then Heyward, follow behind the girl and I'm a little confused at what I walk out to. I look around, expecting to maybe see the cave somewhere around me- maybe even far in the distance, but I don't. I see green, and that's all.

        "Um, JJ, are we in the right place?"

        "So, um, yeah. We couldn't really get too close to El Dorodo, so- so we'll have to walk a little."

        "Oh you've got to be kidding me."

        "Sarah, you've already walked this path, so it should'nt be too difficult. Plus, its only about a fourth of what you walked the first time."

        "Come on y'all, we gotta get started before it gets dark out." No matter how much we like to joke around, all of know better than to mess with Heyward- so we listen. We let Sarah get in front, but JJ follows very closely behind. Kie walks behind him, me behind Kie, and Heyward in the back of the line. The sun is shining hotter than I've felt it in a while- hotter than I've felt since Poguelandia. Oh how I miss those days. Days where I could sit with my favorite people all day, without a worry in the world. Sure, there was always a thought of help in the back of my mind, but most of me wishes I was still there on that island. Most of me wishes I could spend the whole rest of my life on that island.

Kie

        We've been walking for close to two hours, and there's been nothing but occasional comments about the heat, or being thirsty. Thankfully, JJ managed to steal some drinks from the corner store yesterday because- well- because he's JJ.

        I walk behind JJ, and I can't help but think about how incredible he is. He really has been through so much, and I'm glad he trusts me with all of his trauma. Though, I'm taken out of my thoughts when I feel a sharp pain in my left foot.

        "Awh shit!" I look down expecting to see a snake or some sort of bug, but I don't, so I come to the conclusion that it must not be too big of a deal.

        "Hey, you good?"

        "Yeah, yeah I'm good. Probably just a little bug bite or something." I know I should probably be worrying a bit more than I am, but I don't want anyone else to worry, so I lie about how bad it hurts.

        "You sure?"

        "Yeah, don't worry about me."

        "Okay, just let me know if anything changes."

        "Of course. Let's get back to it, I don't want to hold anything up." With that, the conversation is over, and I'm glad they can sense my seriousness.

Sarah

        Once the conversation ends, I don't think much about Kie's foot. To be honest, all I can think about is my boy and how much I hope he's safe. I don't think I'd be able to omve on without him. My life revolves around him- he is my sun. It isn't until I hear a bit of stumbling that my attention is turned back to the line behind me. I stop in my tracks and look behind me to check that everyone is okay. When I look back, I see Kie sitting on a rock. She doesn't look like she fell, but I can tell just by her face that something is off.

        "Whoa, girl you alright?"

        "Yeah, I just got a little lightheaded all of a sudden. I'll be fine, let's just keep going." She tries to stand back up, but JJ lightly pushes her shoulder down so she can't. He kneels down so that he's eye-level with her, and Cleo and I exchange a moment of eye contact.

        "You're not okay, Kie. Is it your foot?" I can tell Kie doesn't want to admit that she's not okay, this is something she has always struggled with. But being faced with JJ makes her admit it.

        "I don't know- I- I felt a really intense pain in my foot back there but I didn't see a snake or anything so I guess I just figured it was okay. But, I mean, something's obviously wrong and-" The girl places a hand on JJ's shoulder and I see something in her face change. "And, um-" Kie starts to blink a bit more than normal and I see her sort or readjust herself a couple of times.

        "Kie?" I try to get the girl's attention to make sure she's okay, but she doesn't have any reaction to me calling her name. "Hey, Kie." Still nothing. Instead, she crumples over into JJ's arms. The boy looks up at me with pure fear in his eyes, then immediately back down at Kie, and then to Heyward, who has already started to try to wake the girl up.

        "Hey, hey Kiara. Kiara, wake up." She doesn't. Cleo walks over to the three to assist as well, and I follow. By the time I get there, there are already tears running down JJ's face.

         "C'mon Kie. Fuck, Kie, come on."

woahhhhh!!! what's gonna happen next????? will everything be okay?! i guess you'll just have to wait and see 🤗

so sorry for the cliff hanger i just couldn't help myself

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