Edited June 20, 2023 

𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗙𝗜𝗥𝗦𝗧 𝗧𝗛𝗜𝗡𝗚 𝗛𝗘𝗥 eyes landed on the van parked on the side of the road a few strides away from the Redfield Lighthouse. Mackenzie had woken up early to make sure she would get home before her parents woke up to avoid being questioned about Rafe and where she was running off to. She also wanted to slip out of the awkward situation before JJ woke up and things got weird.

Mackenzie stepped out of her vehicle and watched as the other teens poured out of the van. Kiara gave the girl a nod, Pope waved, and both John B and JJ her a lopsided smile that she returned.

They stood behind the white picket fence, staring up at the extremely tall lighthouse that stood just about 20 feet away.

"Right, here's what gonna happen. You're gonna post up and look out for bogeys, okay?" John B walked over to JJ, explaining the plan to him.

"Wait, why me?" JJ questioned them, confused.

"Because you're not coming." Pope sighed, shaking his head at the blonde.

"Why?" JJ half-yelled back.

"Look JJ, there are independent variables and dependent variables. And you're an independent variable, we don't know what you'll do." Pope tried explaining to the blonde, making his friends furrow their eyebrows.

"Shut up, just shut up!" The blonde yelled back, causing an argument to break out between the two.

The boys kept fighting as John B interjected. "Listen to me for a second, just listen. Pope, you stand to look out for JJ, okay?"

"Kenzie you come with u-" John B started.

"I'll stand lookout with them." She simply stated, her eyes on JJ. She was starting to realize that leaving before he woke up was probably the wrong choice and that things would have been less awkward had she stayed to talk.

"Oh." John B's eyes lingered on the girl for a second, trying to hide the sting of her rejection. "Okay, um if we get split up we meet back at JJ's house."

"Great," Kie added before walking towards the fence with John B behind her.

"I'm gonna work on my merit scholarship essay," Pope told the two, walking over to find a spot to sit and write in peace and quiet.

JJ played with a hacky sack, rolling his eyes at the boy. "All right, will you just shut up already?"

Kie and John B jumped the white fence as Pope made his way to a quieter spot, leaving Mackenzie and JJ alone.

She backed up against a tree, sitting down in front of it picking at the grass and flowers and she tries to process and recollect all her feelings. She wasn't sure how JJ felt about last night, a lot of things were said and thrown out there that he probably didn't mean.

JJ caught the hacky sack in his hand, walking over to the sulking girl. She eyed him as he sat down next to her, a weak smile on her features.

Their eyes were on each other as they sat. Neither of them wanted to be the first to break the silence. Their faces were mere inches apart as Pope took notice of the pair again. The boy furrowed his eyebrows from afar, watching his friends with a confused look.

JJ's eyes flickered to her lips, clenching his jaw slightly. He wasn't sure if he wanted to kiss her again or ask why she had left him again.

Her head snapped the other way when she heard sirens, which cut off whatever moment they had just had.

"Shit. Cops." Mackenzie jumped up from her spot, the other two boys doing the same.

The three teens dashed from where they stood as the cop car pulled into the entrance road of the lighthouse.

They ran to Mackenzie's vehicle, hopping in quickly. The only good thing about her leaving JJ this morning was that she drove her own car to the lighthouse, which John B had mentioned on her way out. He had a thing for catching people sneaking out apparently.

"Crap, crap, crap." Mackenzie fumbled with the car key in her hand before getting it in the ignition.

"Kenzie, hurry." Pope rushed the girl from behind, tapping her shoulder.

"I'm going, I'm going!" She started the van, stepping on the gas as fast as she could. The van sped down one of the other roads and booked it away from the police car which somehow did not see them.

"We shouldn't have left them." The girl sighed, parking the van out of sight of the police a little further down the road.

"We had to. My merit sch-" Pope began, gesturing to himself.

"Yeah, Pope we know about your stupid fucking merit scholarship already." JJ rolled his eyes, slamming open the passenger door of the van and getting out.

Mackenzie and Pope went silent as they watched the blonde pull out his vape and smoke it a few times before exchanging looks. They both knew they needed to talk.

Mackenzie's eyes light up when she spotted Kiara and John B. She was about to tell JJ and Pope when she watched with shock as John B kissed Kie.

Her eyes widened as she blinked a few times, making sure she wasn't just imagining. This strange feeling came over her, she wasn't sure how to feel as Kie pulled away from the boy, making her feel harsh second-hand embarrassment for him.

The two spoke for the next minute before a cop car pulled up beside them. The girl turned to JJ and Pope, letting them know it was probably a good idea to head out.

"Let's go." She nodded at the blonde, who was still vaping. The boy got in the passenger side while she got in the driver.

She swiftly started the engine, racing off down the road and away from the lighthouse.

"The cops showed up, I'm sure they ran in time," Mackenzie mumbled.

Mackenzie drove the trio drove back to the Chateâu leaving the van parked by the lighthouse as an escape for the other two. Pope had suggested they waited down at the dock until John B and Kie got out of confinement or made their great escape.

The brunette girl dipped her toes into the water and watched the little fish swim by. Pope was sitting down and working on his essay once again and JJ was smoking a blunt.

"Is this really a good time to get high?" Pope coughed, fanning smoke out of his face.

"Every time is a good time to get high Pope," Mackenzie explained to the boy, stepping out of the water and making her way toward the blond who offered her the joint.

This earned a laugh from JJ, who was in full agreement with the girl. To everyone's surprise, John B pulled up in the van, honking at the teens as a way to tell them to hop in.

Mackenzie threw the blunt to the floor, putting it out before grabbing it so there was no evidence they even had one. She tossed her car keys into her side pocket and jumped into the van.

"Let's ride." JJ made his way over to the van.

"This better be good," Pope added.

—

"She says she's not coming," Pope announced to the group as pushed through the back door of The Wreck, Kie's family restaurant.

The group was planning on picking Kie back up, who was given no option but to work because his father was so angry about picking up her and John B from the Police Station.

"Why not?" JJ raised a hand in confusion from the passenger seat of Mackenzie's car.

When Mackenzie pointed out that she was frequently getting car sick, she asked if meeting the others would be okay. JJ had made up some really lame point that he should go with her in case she got lost or something, no one really questioned it.

"What did you'd do to her, John B?" JJ turned his attention to John B who was sitting in the passenger seat of the van.

"Shit." John B muttered. "Hang out, I'll deal with this." The boy got out of the van, running past Pope and into the restaurant.

Mackenzie rolled her eyes, she knew exactly what this was about. So much for the "no pouge on pouge rule". But like herself, was Kiara really a pouge?

"Does anyone know what he did?" JJ looked 𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐆𝐈𝐑𝐋.