𝐒𝐎𝐌𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐍𝐄𝐖, ʲʲ ᵐᵃʸᵇᵃⁿᵏ

vi. nothing more natural than a kegger

SOMETHING NEW
Chapter Six: Nothing More Natural Than a Kegger

"Who's that?" John B asked a random girl sitting next to him, referring to a dead body on a stretcher that had pulled out of The Marsh.

"It's Scooter Grubbs." She informed. "He was out during the storm." Ava looked from the girl back to Scooter, then to John B who's expression was blank as he was watching a woman crying over the body. Scooter was from The Cut, Ava wondered what he was doing out in the storm. "Check out this pic I got." The girl broke Ava's train of thought as she pulled out her phone showing The Pouges the picture of Scooter, lifeless in the water, Ava shook her head in disgust. "Dead body." The girl said as if it were the coolest thing she'd ever seen.

"What kinda boat did he have?" JJ questioned, Ava still grimacing from seeing the girl's picture.

"Somehow the dirtbag copped a brand new Grady White." She told them. Ava's head shot up toward John B, they're eyes meeting nervously, knowing they had found the boat. "Everyone's out looking for it." Ava stood calmly, running a hand through her hair as she walked up to JJ who wrapped an arm around her.

"You alright?" He asked, she nodded leaning into him. "Guys, we should get going." The rest of the group agreed, heading back to the boat where they were finally making their way back to John B's place.

Back at The Chateau, Ava was rolling a few joints while they were all sat on the porch out back. JJ was playing with his Zippo lighter John B was flipping and empty beer bottle in his hand, Kiara sat quietly watching Ava at work. "Okay." Pope started, jogging up the porch steps and swinging the screen door open. "So um... We didn't see anything. We don't know anything." He sat down on the other side of Ava who nodded in agreement. "We need to have complete and total amnesia."

Ava held one of the joints between her fingers. "This baby'll help." She smiled pulling the lighter from her pocket and sparking up the joint.

"Actually, Pope's right for once. See, I agree with you sometimes." JJ stood from the chair he was in, taking the joint from Ava's lips making her glare at him, but all she did was light a different one. "Deny, deny, deny."

"Deny, deny, deny." Ava repeated, passing the newly lit joint to Kie.

"Guys, we can't keep that money." Kie said handing the joint out to John B.

JJ shook his head. "Okay. Not all of us can afford unlimited data plans, Kiara."

"J, don't go there." Ava said looking at him with the shake of her head.

JJ lifted his arms out. "What, Ava? You sayin' you don't need the money?"

"No, that's not what I'm saying-"

Kie cut her off. "We have to pass that money to Lana grubbs. Otherwise it's bad karma." Ava sighed hitting the joint, holding the smoke in her lungs longer this time then blowing it out her nose.

Pope nodded. "Bad karma to be implicated into a felony, too. We gotta go dark." He told him leaning forward on his knees.

"If that means we get to keep the money, then I agree." JJ stood next to John B looking out the screen door. Ava sat back continuing to smoke.

John B pushed himself off the post he was against, patting JJ on the shoulder. "I don't agree."

JJ turned to him, confused. "What? Why?" He questioned.

"Just think about it." John B responded. "This is Scooter Grubbs, we're talkin' about. Right?" Ava sat forward, putting out her joint. "Same dude that's buying individual cigarettes at the Porthole. Shit, one time I saw this dude begging for change at the Save-A-Lot parking lot because he needed gas."

"Money's tight for people around The Cut." Ava put in holding her head in her hands with her eyes closed, feeling the effects of the joint she just smoked.

John B nodded. "We're talking about a dirtbag marina rat who's never had more than fourty bucks in his pocket, and all of a sudden he's got a Grady White? Just sayin'."

___

The group was fishing now, well, Pope and JJ were the only ones with poles in the water. Ava was sitting on the railing JJ was leaning against, her hand on the back of his head lightly scratching her fingernails through his hair, she knew it was something he enjoyed. John B and Kiara were posted up next to Pope also sitting on the railing. "All right, so think about it, Pope. How does a marina rat get a Grady White?" John B asked, eyebrows raised, hands out.

Pope inhaled sharply in thought before replying flatly. "Prostitution." Ava snorted, JJ smiled at the sound of the girl's laughter.

"Square groupers, bro." John B continued more seriously. "Okay, flying under the radar, no aerial surveillance." He listed off on his fingers. "They don't do that stuff during a hurricane." Gesturing to the sky, John B hoped to get his point across. "What does that mean? JJ?" He pointed to the blonde for an answer.

JJ didn't look away from his fishing line. "They were straight smugglin'." He answered.

"Smugglin'." John B repeated. "And I guarantee there's a serious amount of contraband in that wreck." Ava shrugged at the thought, it was a possibility.

"Hell yeah." JJ agreed before his line went tight, he immediately pulled up on his rod to set the hook. "Fish on!" Ava giggled, swing her legs to the other side of the railing and hopping down on the dock.

___

The five teens were sitting in John B's bedroom. John was sitting on his window sill, an electric guitar in his hands. Kie was sat in a chair beside him strumming a ukulele. Pope was on the bed, JJ and Ava across from him on the other window sill. "For the record," Pope started, snatching the money from JJ's hand. "If that is a smuggling ship, with illegal contraband on the inside of it... It probably belongs to someone else-"

"Minor details." Kie interrupted with a shrug.

"They could come looking for it." Pope continued, looking at Kie. "Taking it would be catostrophically stupid."

Ava smirked. "Oh, that's a big word, Pope. You sure you're using correctly?" She inquired.

Pope looked slightly offended. "Of course I'm using it correctly."  He scoffed.

JJ rolled his eyes, leaning forward and taking the money from Pope's hand. "Right well, stupid things have good outcomes all the time." He fanned the money out to prove his point, before sitting back wrapping a loose arm around Ava. "All we need to do now is figure out a way to get into the cargo hold of that wreck. Until then, we lay low. Just act natural." He explained.

"Right? And how exactly do we do that?" Pope asked the group.

"Kegger?" Kie suggested, Ava grinned standing up clapping her hand together.

"Of course." She said. "There's nothing more natural than a kegger." They all smiled in agreement to the plan.