Wildfire ☞ 𝗝𝗝 𝗢𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗕𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀

1. Missing Parents

"What the fuck are you doing?" Millie heard the familiar voice of Sarah Cameron. She was currently trespassing through the Cameron's household to get to the beach and get in a nice, relaxing surf in before Hurricane Agatha hit.

"Uhm, well right now I'm in your house, ya know, chillin' on my way to the beach." Millie said, not realizing just how lame she sounded.

"I won't tell dad if next time, you try and give a heads up before using my house as a short-cut."

"Oh, crap, yeah, uh, I will make sure to do that, Sarah." The kook raised her eyebrow, expecting an answer along the lines of 'there won't be a next time' since the two girls had hung out several times in past, but neither considered the other a best friend.

"Anyways, stay safe!" Millie said before sprinting off in the direction of her destination. Sarah chuckled, she was quite fond of Millie, she liked her quirkiness and how she didn't mind being the odd one out, she was after all both a kook and a pogue.

Her dad lived on one of the bigger houses on Figure 8, but her mom and brother on the south side of The Cut. It was weird, but oddly convenient for Millie, it meant she could hang out with literally anyone on the Island without being judged.

Her mom and brother weren't exactly poor, but they definetely weren't rich. Her mom worked as a nurse in the local hospital, you would expect a well trained doctor like her to be well payed, but cash wasn't easy to earn in islands like the Outer Banks.

They made enough money to buy what they needed, but that was as far as it went. Millie never complained, though, she had all she wanted.

Until Hurricane Agatha decided to ruin her life.

♕♕♕

Millie was having the time of her life. She was surfing in the middle of a oncoming hurricane.

Sure, she was doing it alone, at least that's what she thought until she heard two other teenage boys jump straight into the waves, laying on their surf boards as they went.

Millie managed to get close to the coast, who still hadn't noticed her. She didn't really feel like talking to anyone right before a storm hit, so she did her best to just get back on land and head home.

"Is that Millie!?" She heard one of the boys yell; Pope.

"Nope! It's your local McDonald's employee! What can I get ya?" She yelled back.

Millie saw John B laugh at her comment, he was eager to invite her to any pogue adventures, but JJ wasn't very fond of her. He was extremely jealous of the life she had, Millie did after all, have freedom on the whole island rather than just a part of it. She had the best of both worlds.

"Uhm, I gotta go, but I'll see you guys later?!" Millie finally yelled out again, after a bit of awkward silence from her side and a lot of crashing into the waves from theirs.

She didn't bother waiting for a reply, knowing she'd barely hear one, and left.

♕♕♕

Millie did not know where her mom was. Her brother was staying at a friends house and she couldn't text him thanks to the fact that there wasn't any wifi or data.

People always went missing after hurricanes, this time it was her mom and Scooter Grubbs.

Everyone loved Mille's mom, Kesani, she'd always go out of her ways to help others. But this time, that was the exact thing that kept her from reaching back home on time, before the shed by the hospital collapsed on her.

"Oh my god Diego! Mom, she-she's not here and I don't know what to do! I didn't wanna go anywhere without telling you so-"

"Woah- slow down Li, stay calm. She probably stayed over at someone's, you know she had a late shift last night."

"Yeah but, she always tells us D! No ones called since last night and that means no one has seen or heard from her since the hurricane!"

"Millie, Li, calm down. Stay calm, okay? Go change, I'll make breakfast, and we'll figure this out together, yeah?" Her brother comforted her.

Millie only had one panic attack in her entire life, and she was eternally grateful for only having to experience it once. But it was coming back. She could feel it but this time, she had her brother with her.

Millie did as Diego said and ate the simple toast he made for her, along with a glass of apple juice.

"Now let's go out okay? You go to Mrs Amy's and I'll go find dad. Don't panic Li, we'll find her."

♕♕♕

"M-Mrs Amy? Uhm hey, do you- have you seen mom? You know, since yesterday, she didn't come home and I thought maybe she'd stayed over?" Mrs. Amy was moms best friend, they went to school together and stayed friends throughout their lives.

"Oh my god honey, I'm so sorry but I haven't seen her, look, I'll go ask some others okay? I'll let you know on anything I find, you stay calm and don't worry, okay?"

Millie hated the way she was talking, like her mom was missing or gone.

Millie then asked Heyward, Pope's dad. She didn't quite know why she bothered since the man barely knew her mother, but Millie was desperate.

He hadn't seen her either. He said he'd ask his son, Pope, who was trying to sneak away with his friends while Millie watched awkwardly.

She needed to find her mom.

"John B! Joh-John B!" Millie yelled and caught his attention. She needed to get around the island and to the hospital. The boat was the best way.

She jumped right after Pope and thanked Heyward for his help.

"Hey, uh, I know this all, uh, kinda random but, have you seen my mom?"

The three boys stared at her, dumbfounded.

"Sh-She did my come home after the storm and no ones really heard from her, so, well, have you?"

John B shook his head gently, knowing what it was like to lose a parent. He knew her mom was gone, it was almost like a rule on the island.

You give it 24 hours after a storm, if they don't come back, they're gone.

Maybe not dead, but gone.

"Bye." JJ said. She was making things awkward, and he was jealous she actually had a mom to lose. Well, he went through the same, though he'd never admit it.

"What?" Millie asked.

"Bye. You're business here is done so, bye."

"Do you want me to like, jump in the water and swim back or-?

"Your problem, not mine."

"Its actually you with the problem cause, I don't mind being here. You mind me being here, which is your problem. And I really would leave but I kinda ca-"

"Fucks sake, I get it. You're not leaving, chill and just, shush." JJ was trying to be all cool and careless, but he was just being a dick.

Sure, Millie could've asked before inviting herself on what she considered was a trip to save her mom, but hey, where's the fun in that?

"So, where are we going?"