CHAPTER TWENTY: HELLO WORLD!

( episode six: parcel 9 )

✲*'。

"You ready for this my person?" Arden giggled up at Sarah as the two of them reclined on the hammock outside.

"I was born ready for this my wifey," Sarah replied as she sat up, watching the boys and Kie load up the van with the equipment they would need in a matter of hours.

After retrieving the girls from the boat, the pogues and Sarah went back to The Chateau to rest up before they went on back to the Crain House to find the gold once and for all. They had all taken short naps before getting ready to leave in the next hour.

"Where's Have?" Sarah asked when she rolled off the Hammock, offering a hand out to Arden to help her stand.

"Last I heard she was in the shower," Arden replied right before a shit eating grin spread across her lips. "What... Ardie what are you gonna do?" Sarah cried, taking off after the pregnant teen ignoring the odd looks everyone shot them. Arden went all the back towards the back of the house, leaning right against the door frame as the shower turned off. "What are you doing!" Sarah huffed, standing in beside Arden never moving.

As the door opened, Haven almost leapt a foot in the air, tightly clutching her towel as she caught sight of Arden smirking at her, with Sarah burying her head into her smaller friends shoulder.

"Did you enjoy yourself?" Arden questioned, raising an eyebrow with a shit eating smirk on her face.

"What is wrong with you!" Haven cried, her cheeks colouring red as she desperately tried to resist the urge to strangle the pregnant teen in front of her.

"Guys are you ready?" Pope called, rounding the corner as he came to an abrupt halt as he saw all three girls together, eyes zeroing in on Haven specifically. He froze, eyes wide as Arden caught the way his leg twitched in embarrassment.

"Maybe I was wrong," Arden hummed, tapping her finger again her chin. "Maybe Pope's enjoying himself more." Arden piped up, eyes whirling around to stare at her.

"Why you!" Pope screeched, angrily bounding down towards Arden who ripped herself from Sarah's grip, dashing into John B's room and out the open window as Pope tried to catch up to her.

"Get back here!" Pope screeched as Arden took off towards the van, her giggles the first JJ, Kie and John B heard as she ran towards them.

"JJ protect me!" Arden screeched, skidding behind the blonde boy, wrapping her arms around his neck as she tried to climb her way onto his back. The boy could only sigh exasperation, grabbing her by the thighs as he hiked her onto his back. Just as Arden made herself comfortable on the boys back, Pope skid clumsily around the van, charging towards the pair as Kie desperately tried to hold him back.

"Ard what the fuck did you do?" John B tiredly huffed as Arden looked up from where she was running her hands through JJ's hair.

"I only said the truth," she commented, shrugging her shoulders. Pope finally ripped himself out of Kie's grip and could only stare at the girl in response. "You!" He aggressively cried.

"Me!" Arden mocked, resting her head on JJ's shoulder.

"Ard," Kie called out in a warning tone. Arden stuck her tongue out before gesturing back to Pope. "Your ship is going to sink since you and Have aren't joined at the hip!"

Pope could only squeak in response. Before anyone could try to reply, Haven and Sarah finally left the house. Haven shot Arden a dark glare to which the girl only responded with by waving.

"Let's go looting y'all!" Arden declared, thumping her fists against her baby daddy's shoulders who only hissed at her to stop in response.

✲*'。

"You got rope?"

"Got it."

"Grappling hook?"

"We don't have a grappling hook. We're not batman."

"Tape?"

Holy fuck, was this man preparing for a rendez-vous with Sarah or did he want to get the fucking gold?

"Jesus, John B, this is one kinky list," Arden snickered from Sarah's side as she drew the hood of JJ's sweatshirt over her eyes, not wanting to see John B's face in case her statement was true. "Sarah, I pity you."

"Do you ever shut up?" John B hissed as red hot embarrassment burned the tips of his ears. JJ snickered and patted him on the shoulder with a wink, only making his blush worse. "Arden, I hate you."

"Sure you do."

John B just shook his head and went back to his list, stubbornly ignoring his friends laughing at his expense. Arden always managed to get under his skin, and it certainly didn't help when the rest of them fed into it. Under the protection of the night sky, they pulled up outside Mrs Crain's house. It didn't look any different to last time, but there was a new tension in the air now. They knew the gold was there. They'd come to retrieve it, putting a new level of pressure on their shoulders to remain unseen. If Mrs Crain caught them, they'd never succeed at breaking-and-entering again.

"Alright, let's get to it," Pope said as John B left the driver's seat to open the back door for them.

"Let's get rich, guys," JJ beamed, clapping his hands together as he went to stand beside John B.

"Wait, wait, wait," he suddenly gasped, the intensity of his tone causing them to freeze. "I want to thank you guys. Seriously. It means a lot to me that you're here tonight." Trust John B to try and make the hormonal Arden cry!

Kie just rolled her eyes at him, though she smiled fondly and reached out to squeeze his hand. "Always."

"What else would I be doing with my time?" Haven shrugged, though Arden could see the tenderness on Haven's face.

"Alright, are we done with this circle jerk? Can we go do this?" JJ huffed into the silence. He heaved the rope over one shoulder, gesturing with his other hand for John B to move out of the way.

"Let's go get that wheat in the water."

Just as quickly as it came, all seriousness was erased from JJ's face. "Weed? I'm up for weed."

"Of course you are," Arden scoffed as Pope stubbornly corrected him. "Wheat. I said wheat."

Shutting the Twinkie's door behind them, they surveyed the stone wall for a moment, hesitating to see who would make the first move. Arden huffed in impatience as the silence stretched on, storming towards the wall herself and calling back to JJ. It was time to get a fucking move on. "Well, are you going to help me or not? I thought you'd seen this in the movies before."

"Ladies first," Haven muttered as JJ ungracefully pushed her over the wall, his face red from the effort as she kicked him on the top of the head in a mess of limbs.

"That's not a lady." Arden could hear the smirk in Kie's voice from behind the wall.

"I can hear you," She grumbled unimpressed.

"Keep it down," John B sighed as Arden saw a dark stare boring down on her from the wall. "You can't give us away now. It hasn't even been a minute yet."

"Oh, so you think it'll be me who gives us away? I see how it is."

One after the other, they joined her on the other side, until none of them were left to jump. Arden insisted on leading the way with the flashlight, much to John B's chagrin, half-heartedly guiding them around to the front of Mrs Crain's house. More often than not, she almost bumped into the statues hidden in the shadows, giggling to herself as the pogues and Sarah stared daggers into the back of her head. Hey it's not her fault it's so fucking dark out!

In the end, John B lost his patience and snatched the flashlight into his hands, ignoring her pout as they paused just a few metres back from the porch steps.

It was at that moment the sensor lights flickered, casting a bright glow around the yard that had them ducking behind the bushes in a panic. Had Mrs Crain heard them coming? Was she going to cut off their heads like she did to her husband?

"I'm too young to die," Arden moaned to herself.

"You're not going to die," Pope scoffed. "She just has motion sensor lights."

"We could, uh... move really slowly, maybe?" JJ suggested.

Arden blinked. Her mind not functioning for a full minute. Did JJ not hear Pope? Oh good Lord she was a having a baby with this man!

"That's not how it works," Pope sneered.

And just when they thought JJ had taken the award for dumbest suggestion, John B spoke up. "Oh, shit. Let's throw a rock at it."

This man was definitely not becoming Logan's godfather. Hell no.

"What?"

"That's a really good idea, actually," Kie deadpanned. "Let the axe murderer know we're here."

"Okay, do you guys have a better idea then?" he frowned.

"Literally anything but that."

"What about the breaker?" Sarah asked, seemingly the only logical one there. "In the circuit box on the porch." At their confused stares, she explained, "We used to play hide and seek here as kids."

"Fun times," Arden cut in with a sigh. They really were not.

"And if we were brave enough, we'd go all the way up to the porch," she continued. "I've seen it."

John B shook his head decisively. "No, no. You're not going into that house alone."

"Watch me."

Who the fuck did John B think he was, Sarah's fucking guardian angel? He needed to back the fuck off.

"Crain chops people into pieces," JJ hissed at her, eyes wide with fright.

"If you believe that. But she's like, what, eighty-five? She's probably barely still kicking."

Well, if John B didn't want Sarah to go alone, Arden's person wouldn't go alone.

"Ladies," Arden piped up, a smirk on her face. "I think this is a mission for the Quartet."

"Not our name."

"Don't call us that."

"I said what I said," she scowled. Her friends really were rude sometimes. "Boys, wait here. We'll show you how it's done."

"We'll wait here for your signal," Pope nodded. For once Po-Po agreed with an idea of hers! As Sarah went to follow the other three girls she was pulled back by an ever-dramatic John B frowning at her.

"Hey," he murmured. "Be safe."

The girls rolled their eyes. Who knew John B Routledge was such a romantic?

Finally, he let Sarah go and they departed from the boys."She must have a generator plugged into the main power supply," Kie commented with a glance up at the lights above them when they had reached the porch.

"We could just break them," Arden hissed, almost tripping over her own feet was it not for Haven heaving her back up.

"We went over this with the boys," Sarah rolled her eyes. "You might as well knock on the door and ask Mrs Crain for a cup of tea while we rob her."

"Sounds like a nice time to me."

They made their way up the steps, wincing every time the aged wood creaked beneath their feet. Finally, they reached the circuit box which Kie rushed to open, revealing a dozen tangled wires with no breakers in sight. Well, that was going to be a problem. Of course if could never be fucking easy.

"Where are the breakers?" Sarah frowned before shining her torch up to the roof.

"You're not serious..." Haven trailed off, but there was no doubt about it.

"It goes inside."

"Okay, I didn't sign up to enter the lion's den," Haven immediately shook her head. "The porch is one thing, her bedroom is another."

"The breakers won't be in her bedroom, silly," Arden patted her on the shoulder. "We're not giving in."

"Arden—"

"The Quartet doesn't give in, Haven."

"If we die, I'm haunting your ghost."

"Awe," Arden cooed. "I'm honoured."

"That's enough, you two," Kie snapped. "Let's go."

Mrs Crain's house was just as worn down inside as it was outside. Ancient paintings hung on the walls like something out of a museum. The furniture was covered in white sheets, preserving the materials from dust and other bacteria. Somewhere in the mess, a cat hissed, prompting Haven to wince and Arden to screech and latch onto her arm. Where the fuck did a cat come from?

Fortunately, they managed to find the other circuit box pretty easily. It was just around the corner from the front door, the power lines on the roof leading them right to it. Kie smiled with pride as she switched each button off, the lights ran by the generator slowly powering down. Soon, they were left with nothing but darkness.

"Alright, let's get out of here."

Behind them, the old grandfather clock chimed with a new hour. The girls gasped, hiding around the corner as creaking floorboards followed.. Not a second later, the evident sound of footsteps. They had woken Mrs Crain. Oh great, this was just what they needed—— the old bat coming to kill them.

"Oh, we really are going to die," Arden whispered in horror.

Through heavy, croaking breaths, the elderly woman spoke. "It's late, Leon. Too late."

"What kind of name is Leon?"

"Does that matter right now, Arden?"

Arden went quiet. For once, she realised this was no time for jokes. Mrs Crain shuffled in front of them, staring ahead with unseeing eyes as she felt around the floor with a fire poker. What Sarah said was the truth, she didn't look like much with her grey hair and nightgown with flowers on it, but Haven had a feeling JJ was right all along.

"I can hear you, Leon," she hissed suddenly, spinning around to face them and revealing white eyes. "I've been waiting all night."

Arden's own screech of terror was enough to prompt her into action. She latched onto Haven's wrist and yanked her down the hallway, Sarah and Kie hot on their heels as Mrs Crain chased them with her fire-poker raised like a spear. For someone who was bent over struggling to walk just a second ago, she had impeccable running skills.

Somehow, they got separated in the panic to get out. Arden released Haven's arm as she followed Sarah down one hallway. "Saz!" Arden whined, not wanting to lose sight of Sarah in the case the old bat did actually find them.

"I got you Ardie, come on she's gone after them. I'll get the girls, you find us an exit." JJ

Arden didn't hesitate in listening to the command barked her way. She took off, tugging all the various door knobs until she finally found one that Arden thought led to the basement. Seconds later Sarah was back with Kie and Haven.

They had to get to the boys, and fast.

"Guys," they screamed as they took the basement steps two at a time. "Guys, we gotta go!"

"Whoa, what's going on?" Pope frowned as they rounded the corner and came face-to-face with him and JJ. They were holding on tight to the rope leading down the well where John B was, but their grip loosened ever-so-slightly from the shock of their sudden entrance.

"Mrs Crain is up there," Arden wailed as she latched onto JJ's bicep. The boy in response was looking her over to see if she was hurt as she continued on. "She almost stabbed Haven with a fire poker."

"We locked her in the parlour, but we gotta go now," Sarah exclaimed, panting for air as the boys sprung into action.

All five of them worked together to pull John B from the well, though the rope suddenly slipped from their hands as his wait on the end was released. They rushed over to the edge in a panic, listening closely as his screams echoed up to them.

"What's he saying?"

None of them were really sure, but the frantic nature was enough to worry them. "He's drowning. We gotta pull him up." Fortunately, he must've heard them, for the rope was suddenly weighed down again. They struggled to lift him quickly, but they were slowly getting there. Well, until Mrs Crain came down the stairs with a shotgun.

"Oh, fuck," Haven screeched, instinctively releasing the rope as the first shot ricocheted off the bricks behind her.

"She can't aim for shit," Kie frowned as she crawled over to where Haven had ended up in the corner beside Sarah. Everyone had scattered as the old lady prowled the centre of the room. Arden ended up crouched down beside Pope and JJ. Fortunately, the boys had managed to tie off the rope so John B could climb up, if he wasn't splattered at the bottom when they first him.

"She can't see..." Sarah realised.

Another gunshot just inches away from Arden's ear. The girl yelped as JJ and Pope dragged her outside, the others following without a thought. Mrs Crain might've been blind, but she had good aim. The shots followed them all the way across the yard, John B racing after them as he finally made it out of the well. They tumbled into the waiting Twinkie, JJ behind the wheel while the others crowded in the back.

"Why are we always getting shot at?" Pope shouted as John B slammed the door shut and they sped off.

He was covered from head to foot in mud or worse, the smell absolutely rancid. Holy fuck. They made it out alive, by the skin of their teeth. One wrong shot and their bad luck would've finally caught up with them.

"Is everyone okay?" JJ asked as he glanced over his shoulder at them. "No one shot?"

"No gunshot wounds but my heart is racing so fast, I might puke," Arden rebuked. "John B's appearance doesn't help." It really fucking didn't. Arden was resisting the urge to puke then and there.

"Yeah, man, you look disgusting," Pope told him.

"What the hell just happened?" Sarah squawked as John B just shook his head at them.

"All-time pogue Hall of Fame, baby," JJ crowed, reaching over his shoulder as Kie cheered and high-fived him. Now they were out of there, it was easier to laugh about it.

"That bitch is possessed," she sighed as she sat back in her seat.

Sarah nodded in agreement. "That bitch can't aim."

"No, but she was good with a fire-poker," Haven said. "I can attest to that."

"Did she get you?" Pope asked as he reached out a hand to her.

"No, thank god, but—" Arden barely paid attention to when Haven finished, she was too busy trying to work out why she had agreed to all of this again. "John B, is that..."

"No, you didn't," Sarah laughed as she also caught on. Holy fuck did he actually...

John B screamed in delight. "We did it, baby."

"Oh, my god," Arden screeched before throwing her arms around Haven. "Goodbye Outer Banks, hello world."

Everyone was screaming, holding onto each other with the brightest smiles ever seen on pogue faces. John B had the gold, or at least some of it. And so they drove into the darkness, shouting for the full kook life sealed with that tiny bar of gold in John B's hand.

✲*'。