"𝐖𝐄'𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐎𝐆𝐔𝐄𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐌𝐈𝐒𝐒𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑 𝐈𝐒 𝐓𝐎 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐀 𝐆𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄, 𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄."

— 𝐉𝐎𝐇𝐍 𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐄𝐑 𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐓𝐋𝐄𝐃𝐆𝐄

• • •

THE SUN always rose early on the Outer Banks no matter what season or month it was. It was every residents wake up call, the bright shine that scattered through the thin curtains covering the windows that were always open. There was never any escaping the sun and it's rise into the sky, it was a reminder that it was time to get up, time to work — a new day to do face.

I didn't want the sun to rise today, not as early as it did anyways after the night I had endured. My eyes were sensitive to the bright light that pooled into the shabby house I found myself waking up in — although it was hardly a house, more like a fish shack. It was however a home away from home and I'd spent most of my years sleeping in this house. The bed I woke up in though was not what I was accustomed to, I was used to the futon with the dodgy springs sticking into my ribs, not the comfort of a bed.

I opened my eyes only to shy away from the light and close them again. I used my hand to shield my eyes before rubbing them in an attempt to wake myself up. I hadn't even lifted my head off the pillow and I could feel it spinning, my stomach growled angrily as it reminded me of how empty it was.

"Oh.. god." I groaned lowly, rolling over in the bed. I peeled one eye open to look at the clock near my head for the time.

7:07am

I dropped my head back on to the thin pillow I was sleeping on and exhaled loudly, pinching my temples in between my fingers in a bid to nurse my headache away. My dad would've left already for the docks and there wasn't any way I would catch up to him before he set out to the marsh for the day.

My dad, like half of other men that lived on the Cut, made a living out of fishing. He went out early and he came home late, it had always been the same and it was something I'd grown used to since moving to the Cut. One thing I was grateful for though was that my dad never left the island for longer than half the day. He wasn't one who joined a group of fishermen out on a week's sail around the entire OBX or ventured across to the mainland and back. He went out, stuck to what he knew and he caught his haul and then he came home and sold it on for his profit.

That was life on the Cut, it was either you worked for yourself or you worked for someone on Figure Eight. 

There was no point in me trying to go back to sleep now, the room was too bright and I could only sleep in the darkness, but I couldn't be bothered to get up yet. I stared at the wall of the  bedroom I had found myself waking up in until I heard a startled yelp followed by a thud and the clattering of beer cans hitting the floor.

I sat up slowly, my head throbbing painfully and I caught sight of John B on the floor on the other side of his bed. He was on his ass, his hands rubbing his eyes as he sat in only a pair of shorts and when he opened his eyes they were wide. I watched as his jaw dropped in shock, the gears in his head turning at an abnormally fast rate for such and early time in the morning.

"Oh.. god." I repeated, falling back in his bed until I hit the mattress. I put my hand on my forehead, piecing it all together as the memories of where it all went so wrong came crashing into my mind.

What had John B and I gotten ourselves into?

I opened my eyes again and turned my head to see John B kneeling on the floor, his elbows resting against the mattress and his head in his hands. He was looking at me in serious shock and I shook my head at him in warning as he opened his mouth, "Don't even—"

John Booker Routledge — or as we liked to call him, John B, brown and uncontrollable hair and brown eyes. He was kind of the ringleader of our group although I'm not sure how he got the position. He was the first person my age I'd met on the Cut when I'd moved and we'd been friends ever since. Six months ago his dad — Big John — went missing while out at sea after he and John B had had a massive argument and John B had only spiralled from there. He had a bit of a thing for bandanas, always wore one around his neck or wrist for a reason I never knew. Oh, and he lived in a fish shack next door to me but he liked to call it his Château. Don't ask me why.

John B's eyes were wide as he pointed between him and I while stuttering, "We-we—"

"—I know, I remember." I hissed as I sat up, cradling my head in my hands. I straightened my legs underneath me and more empty cans of beer fell off the bed, "How much did we drink?"

"How much did we drink?" He asked rhetorically, "How much did we smoke?"

I shrugged and looked to him, "I only had two joints."

"Oh my god." He mumbled, "This is a mess. We had sex last night, we broke the rule."

"Please stop reminding me." I pleaded him.

All I could think about right now was how much I'd messed up.

"Should we talk about it?" He asked me.

I blinked before responding, "I don't know."

My biggest fear now was that this had just fucked John B and I's whole relationship up completely. I wouldn't be able to live with myself knowing it driven a massive rift through our group and if this has just made it awkward between us I'd lose him and my friends too. I couldn't cope without them.

"Do you regret it?" John B asked me.

I looked to him and posed, "Do you?"

He sighed and nodded, "Yes."

So we both regretted what we had done. That made me feel somewhat easier.

"You don't.. uh, you don't.. you know.. have feelings for me John B, do you?" I asked him sheepishly, stuttering.

"No." He shook his head, "No, you're off limits, Mal."

I nodded, feeling somewhat relieved but perplexed at the same time. What did he mean by off limits? Why was I off limits? Well, whatever reason it was for it was as good as nothing now because John B and I still had sex so clearly I wasn't very off limits.

"I don't want to make this awkward between us." I said to him after a minute of silence.

"Neither do I." He agreed with me, "That's the last thing I want."

"I don't know what to do right now." I muttered, sighing in despair, "God, John B, I'm so sorry."

He chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his neck, "Don't be. It takes two to tango."

I nodded in agreement. I knew what I was apologising to him for because the memory of where my night turned so sour had just resurfaced from a darken abyss of drunken memories.

"Do we tell the others about this?" He asked me.

I pressed my lips together in apprehension before silently shaking my head, "I don't know." I said to him.

John B dragged his hand through his thick hair, messing it up further. He sighed before pulling himself to stand up and grabbing a t-shirt from the floor, "What time is it?"

"Early." I said to him, "Just after seven."

"I thought you were supposed to be going out to the marsh with your dad?" He asked me, kicking a pile of empty beer cans to the side.

"I was." I nodded, "Then I got drunk with my idiotic friends and didn't go home."

John B nodded, crossing his arms as he leaned against his dresser, "So much for the no Pogue-on-Pogue macking rule, huh?" He asked me, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"Yeah." I nodded, "'Cause that really stopped us."

"We created that rule because of you."

I chuckled at the memory and nodded, "I know."

John B looked to me again, "Was that—" He licked his bottom lip, "Was that your first—?"

"—No." I interrupted him softly while shaking my head. I met his eyes again, "Why was it yours?"

"No." He shook his head before asking, "Touron?"

I nodded, "Touron."

"When?" He asked me, his eyes sparkling with genuine curiously, "You never told JJ, Pope and I about him so he can't of been a douche."

"February." I told him, "After Peelers kegger at her place. You?"

"The same night."

I chuckled under my breath, "Well there you have it. A wild night for many, huh?"

John B nodded, "Those Tourons man."

"I'm gonna hop in the shower." I said to him, pointing to the direction of the bathroom.

John B looked up to me and nodded, "Yeah, go ahead. I'm gonna clean up a bit in here."

"Thanks." I nodded, walking out of his room and towards the bathroom. I passed Kiara as she slept on the futon and picked my bag up from the floor by the pull out and made my way to the bathroom. I closed the door behind me and sighed while I leaned on it. I took a moment before I walked to the dirty wall mirror John B had in his bathroom and dragged my hands through my messy hair. It was cotty in the middle, almost like it had matted together and I groaned lightly, trying to comb the messy waves with my fingers before I washed them. 

I gave in after all of a few seconds and placed my hands on the side of the wash basin, my head was hurting and suddenly I regretted drinking and smoking last night.

Shaking my head to myself I pushed off the wash basin and turned to the shower, turning it on and letting the water run. I peeled off the clothes I'd fallen asleep in, a pair of denim shorts and a white bikini top before stopping to look at my tan line. Thin lines where the bikini straps had been stood out against my tanned skin.

I got into John B's small shower, pulling the curtain across and wetting my hair. I grabbed for the shampoo, putting it onto my hand before rubbing it into my scalp. John B always had shampoo and conditioner stocked for Kie and I, we'd go mental if he didn't, and it was at times like these where I was thankful.

I heard the bathroom door open and close mid washing the shampoo out of my hair and I furrowed my brows in confusion, "John B?"

"Try again, sweetheart."

I rolled my eyes and whipped back the shower curtain to poke my head out, keeping the rest of it around my body. JJ was stood in a pair of swimming shorts, his hands in his pockets as he grinned at me. His hair was dishevelled and the blond colour of his hair looked dirty, "What hole did you crawl out of?" I asked him with an arched brow.

JJ Maybank — massive pot head, drinker and a mild kleptomaniac. Everyone who knew JJ knew he was one of the best surfers out on the island but we never told him that, I'd only make his ego bigger than what it already was. He was my closest friend and there wasn't much we didn't tell each other. He was different to John B — with my brown haired friend I saw him as just that but JJ.. god. His blond locks, blue eyes and witty charm had girls falling at their feet in front of him and I often had I hard time not doing that. He'd taught me a lot and I owed a lot to him as well. He had taught me how to surf, how to ride and fix a motorcycle — he even taught me how to steal and get away with it. The thing with JJ though was that he was my worst influence but if you asked him that he'd say I was the influencer.

John B and JJ had been in my life for a very long time, they were like sons to my dad and I wouldn't had it any other way. I'd do absolutely anything for them without question and I knew they'd do the same for me too.

"Oh I dunno." JJ shrugged, bringing me back to earth. He ran his hand through his hair as he leaned against the wall, "Woke up on the hammock about 5 minutes ago."

I was reminded of where he'd gotten to last night and my bad mood I had been subjected to when I had originally found out returned. I fought the urge to scowl in annoyance at him and instead focused on why he was on the hammock.

I nodded before narrowing my eyes. I knew JJ too well and I knew he had a tendency to fall out of the hammock when he was asleep, "Woke up or fell out of?"

"Pfft." He shook his head, smiling before he reached up and scratched the back of his head, "I fell out of it."

I rose both my brows, unsurprised before asking, "What do you want JJ?"

"I was looking to see if you wanted company but it sounds like you had plenty last night." He replied, folding his arms over his chest. His usual teasing tone had disappeared and was brimming with what sounded like annoyance.

I shook my head, "I'm going to kill him."

"Of course he was going to tell me Mal." JJ said to me seriously, "He's freaking out, he can barley remember anything."

"Well, that makes two of us." I grumbled.

"Look, accidents happen." He said to me and I looked to him, "Did it mean anything to you?"

I sighed apprehensively, "I—not in the way you're suggesting. To be honest I wish it didn't happen."

He arched his brow, "But did you enjoy it?"

"JJ!" I fired in annoyance, reaching out the shower to try and hit him.

He jumped away from me, "Seriously Mally how the hell did that happen? Did you forget the rules or something?"

"If I was of a sound of mind it wouldn't of happened." I snapped angrily at him. He was really winding me up right now, and for what?

John B and I had made a mistake. We broke the number one rule of Pogue life — not like that was my biggest concern at the moment. I didn't have any sort of feelings for him and as far as I was aware he didn't display any feelings towards me. I liked someone else, someone who wasn't John B. I didn't want this mistake to change anything or make anything awkward. It was a result of one too many drinks, something I pushed the boundary of too often.

"Alright, I'm sorry." JJ apologised, "But hey are you going to use all the hot water in there because if you are I'm going to join you."

He stepped forwards towards the shower and quickly I pushed my hand out against his bare chest, "Don't you even think about getting into this shower with me Maybank."

"Oooo, surnames." He laughed, a smile on his face finally, "Someone's not in the mood."

"JJ—" I snapped at him quickly before biting my tongue. I was hungover, I wasn't in the mood for his teasing but I didn't mean to be nasty with him. I calmed down a little and sighed, "Just give it a rest, please."

JJ saluted me, "You're the boss."

I proceeded to wash my hair and turned the shower off, grabbing a towel before I got out the shower and wrapping it around my body. I knew JJ was still hanging about in the bathroom because I hadn't heard the door open and close and when I stepped out the shower I watched his face fall.

He was waiting for me to get out so he could see me. I gave him a pointed look and rose both my brows, "JJ." I scolded.

"Hey it's nothing I haven't seen before." He said to me.

I slapped his arm, "Yes it is!"

He was talking in the context of girls in general, I realised and it only made me hit his arm again.

"Right." He nodded and quickly made a scrape for the door, "Sorry!" He called mischievously, closing it behind him and leaving me alone finally.

I reached into my bag and pulled out a clean navy blue bikini set and a pair of ripped high-waited denim shorts, putting them on and tying my hair up into a ponytail and brushing my teeth. Once I was done I left JJ to it, letting him use the shower and I walked into John B's front room.

"Here she is."

I didn't expect to see Pope lounging on the futon next to Kie, my two other friends and honorary members of the Pouges.

Pope Heyward — now he was a fucking genius, the brains of all our operations because god we needed someone to keep us alive. I have no idea where we plucked him from but I'm glad we found him. He's the smartest guy I know and a finalist for the Lucas T. Vanderhorst merit scholarship to college— he was doing far better than any of us. He's a bit of an introvert and an oddball but we wouldn't have it any other way, he was our Pope and we loved him.

I grabbed a slice of toast off John B's plate as he walked past me and bit into it, "How goes it?"

"It goes well, thanks Mal." Pope replied enthusiastically with a smile.

"I thought you'd be on Figure Eight by now." Kie said to me and I swallowed the toast with a frown.

Kiara Carrera — or Kie as we called her — my oldest friend. So there was a pattern here. John B was my first friend on the Cut, JJ was my closest friend, Pope was like my brother and Kiara was my oldest friend.  I'd known Kie before I'd known the boys, we used to live on the same road when I lived in Figure Eight. We were still young back then but we used to play together, hang out by the private dock on the house I used to live in. When Kie split from her life as a full time Kook she glued herself to my side. I wasn't bothered though, we'd sort of grown up together and despite how obnoxious she came across as she wasn't. The two of us never really lost contact and introduced her to the boys through me. She loved the turtles.. and Bob Marley.

"Why would I be on Figure Eight?" I asked her with a confused frown.

"Uh.. because your mom is getting married today."

"Oh." I nodded in realisation and I took another bite of the toast, "That's today? Wow, completely slipped my mind but yeah, I'm not going."

"You're not going to your own mothers wedding?" John B asked me.

I shook my head, "I was supposed to be going out to the marsh with my dad but I ended up crashing here for the night."

"How did your mom take that?" Pope asked me.

"What about me not going to a stuck up Kook wedding on the hottest day of the year?" I asked him before pouting, "Pretty well, I'd say."

"You're so sarcastic it annoys me." Kie rolled her eyes jokingly.

I chuckled before shaking my head, "There was yelling, let's just say that but it honestly wasn't as bad as what I thought it would be."

JJ exited the bathroom from the door behind me and he leaned over my shoulder and bit into the slice of toast in my hand. I let go of it, giving it to him with a deadpan expression.

"What are we talking about?" He asked through a mouthful of food as he took the toast in his hand. His hair had darkened, wet from his quick shower and it was fluffy as he left it to air out.

"How Mally isn't going to her moms wedding." Kiara said.

"That's today?" JJ asked with a chuckle, "Wow. That was quick."

"Exactly." I agreed, waving my arm in his general direction. I was happy that someone was finally agreeing with me, "They only announced they were getting married, like, two months ago."

"Yeah but she's been screwing Michael Thornton for about seven years." JJ retaliated and I turned to him with a serious expression. He met my eyes and shrugged innocently, "Your words, not mine."

I shook my head, "It doesn't matter." I said to my friends, "I never had any intention of going, all right? I couldn't think of anything worse, sitting next to Topper watching his dad marry my mom. It's bad enough he's going to be my stepbrother."

"Have to admit I am a little disappointed." JJ said to me, "I was looking forward to seeing you dressed up all nice and glamorous and being your date. I guess I'll just have to wait until senior prom."

I snorted as casually as I could while looking at him, "Who said anything about being my date?" I asked him.

His lips turned up into a smirk and he shrugged playfully, "I thought it was a given."

I narrowed my eyes playfully at him before Pope cleared his throat amidst the tension JJ and I had just created. I fought to tear my gaze away from my blonde friend and focused my eyes on Pope as he watched JJ and I with a raised brow.

"So I heard there was some good waves out today." He finally broke the silence, "How'd you fancy it?"

JJ walked over to me then and he slung his arm around my shoulder and grinned, "Well I for one would love it."

• • •

'And that's Mally — or Mal as we like to call her. She was the glue that held JJ and I together before Kie and Pope came along — I'm sure we would've killed each other by now if it wasn't for her. She's got a bit of a resting bitch face, hard to decipher when you first meet her, but she's a diamond in the rough. She's my neighbour — has been since she moved from Figure Eight when she was eight years old. She was the one who used to get us into trouble — not JJ and I — she's a bit of a daredevil, lives off the adrenaline that sort of thing. She's got more balls than JJ, Pope and I combined. There's not much that gets under her skin unless they're blond, six foot, and goes by the name of JJ Maybank. They're each other's worst influence but they'd happily argue against that. Mally likes to flirt.. a lot, but we don't judge, it often gets us free keggers and such. Her and JJ have this witty, playful, weird thing going on between them. It's been there for a while but none of us have ever brought it up to them, Mal'd probably punch us if we did. I'm pretty sure they're, like, in love or something.. but anyways she makes up the last member of my crew.'
    — JOHN B ROUTLEDGE INTRODUCING MALLY DAVIS.