Now or Never ⇀ John B Routledge [1]

xxx. golden

There were two things in this world that Lucas Jay Hughes was afraid of: his mother and the dark. His fear of Claudia was understandable and the curly haired brunette no doubt had an undiagnosed case of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder from the torture he endured under that womans roof. The latter though, which also stemmed from his mother's abuse, seemed to get worse with age.

Luke always thought he would grow out of the fear, but the slightest rustle or distant howl still sent him running for the hills. He did everything in his power to avoid being out after dark, but here he was, leaning against John B's rusted old van as his friends and little sister roamed a murderer's house for gold. The cherry on top was the fact that he was stuck with Emerson Slaney.

The islander obviously didn't remember him, but he could never forget her face, even if he was tripping balls that night. Luke and Emerson had met at a party six months prior to his 'disappearance', and as the eighteen year old stood tall next to the younger girl, he wished his brain blocked the memories from that night.

"Emerson." He barely recognized his own voice as her name escaped past his lips, "Why do you have a problem with me?"

Green eyes locked with brown as Emerson's brow scrunched together. "My problem is that you hate me for no reason... Every chance you get, you throw some rude comment my way, whether it be the fact that I'm hanging with the Pogues or dating JJ. I should be the one asking why you have a problem with me."

"You act like knowing JJ all those years ago makes you better than me and Ashtyn." Luke's voice was unusually calm as he made the statement, crossing his arms over his chest as he shot the girl a glare. "I've lived with JJ and John B for a month and a half now, but for some reason you act like I'm less of a Pogue than you."

In all honesty, Luke didn't give a shit if the girl viewed herself as better than him. He just needed an excuse to avoid the real topic of his anger. The curly haired boy never cared for labels anyways because at the end of the day, he was just Lucas Hughes.

"I don't want to be a Pogue, Luke." Emerson was taken back by his unusual claim, fully expecting a more valid reason for his disliking toward her. "That was never my intention. I just don't want to be a Kook anymore. You bringing it up just reminds me of all of the shit going on with my family right now."

Deciding that it was best to stay on their current topic, the older male shook his head, leaning back against the cool metal of the passenger door. "You know, I get that you want to do the whole teenage rebellion thing because your parents disappointed you, but you've never once been against the idea of being a Kook, Emerson."

"Dude-" She scoffed, but Luke didn't let her brush the statement aside.

Every bit of hatred he had toward Greenville and his parents rushed over the boy as his teeth clenched together. "You didn't even give JJ a second glance until your parents turned rogue. I get it, being a Kook sucks at times, but you were accepted with open arms. Me? I was beaten and berated. I was a Pogue from the day I was born trying to blend in with the Kook life, so how can I trust that you aren't going to go running back to your parents if we don't find the gold, huh? I don't know you well enough to trust you and your first impression wasn't a great one."