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chapter thirty eight
YOUR RINGS SAVED MY LIFE
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"Dude, that was so gross." Athena commented as they finished looking through the trash in the water, "I think a mino tried to crawl through my finger nail."

"If it's not in the trash, then it's gotta be in the storm drain." Pope pointed out, speaking on the gun matter.

"It's in...it's in the drain." JJ stumbled over his words.

"Damn it." Pope huffed.

"Of course it is." Kie said with a cringed look on her face.

"You know what would be awesome." Athena spoke, Kie turning to face her, "If there were ninja turtles in there. Michelangelo and I would be besties. I wanna go in."

"Fine by me." Kie nodded her head, "You and JJ can go in there."

"In the sewer, there's this worm that you get when you're down there." JJ said as he looked over at her quickly, "It gets into your blood, and then it has to come out your pecker."

"JJ, you stay then." Athena confirmed, "I love you, but I do not wanna deal with that, like, ever."

"Yeah, it's gonna be a no for me too." Pope nodded his head.

"No, I get it. I get it. You guys are scared." Kie laughed at the pair.

"I'm not scared!"

"No, no."

"It's kinda cute."

"It is."

"It's the pecker thing."

"I'm not scared."

"I'll go alone." Athena confirmed, tying her hair up so it was out of her face.  "In and out. Grab the gun, befriend the turtles, then i'll be back."

"Yeah, just be carful." JJ nodded, rubbing her back as she ducked and crawled into the sewer.

Kie groaned, "Thena, wait."

"Oh, she's going with her." Pope spoke with wide eyes.

"Girl power." JJ cheered them on.

"Cmon, Kie, I'll keep you safe from any killer animals down here." Athena smiled as the taller girl followed behind her.

"Thank you Thens, I couldn't ask for a better bodyguard." Kie laughed. "Be looking, I don't wanna be down here any longer then needed."

Athena shined her flashlight around, in search of a gun in the disgusting water. Crawling through the small space, Kie behind her, wasn't so bad for Athena. She'd never had a problem with small spaces, though the smell was throwing her off.

"Find anything yet?" Pope called.

"Yeah, do you see the gun?" JJ added in.

Athena scoffed, "Oh, yeah. It's in my hand right now and i'm just sitting here twirling it around because I want to. Putting it in my mouth and going to town while Kie just watches. So much fun."

"Sounds like a really bad porno." JJ called back.

"Oh my god, go, hurry." Kie said in disbelief as she shoved Athena forward as she fell into the water. Athena came back up and shoved her as well, "People are so shitty."

"Literally. They act like more then half of our world isn't covered in water, yet continue to decontaminate it." Athena rolled her eyes as she looked at the amount of plastic.

"Exactly." Kie agreed, "So... you talk to Rafe yet?"

"I bumped into him the other day." Athena admitted quietly.

"What happened?" Kie asked, rummaging through the trash some more, hoping to find a gun.

"He told me that you guys, my friends are bad people." Athena began to explain as she gagged slightly at the suden smell, "He made it seem that I hang out with the worst people in the world, starting listing off examples of things you guys have done wrong."

"What did you do?" Kiara questioned, the two still looking around.

"I shouted at him, told him that the only reason you guys did any of the things he listed was because he provoked you first. I basically blamed Sarah's 'death' on him too, told him that he's the only bad person in my life." Athena explained, stopping her movements and playing with her bracelet.

"What's wrong, Thens?" Kie stopped too, looking over at her friend.

"I just feel bad." Athena told the girl. "I think he needs help that's all."

"I get it." Kie went back to rummaging as did Athena. "He's still your brother, whether he's a bad person or not, you guys have grown up together. For like sixteen years of your life he's been your older brother, the one to protect you and now suddenly everything's changed. But Athena he killed someone, he might need help but he also needs to pay for his actions. I get that -"

As Kie's hand rose, the pair of girls screamed at the dead possum.

"Did you find something?" JJ yelled into them.

"You guys, there's something dead in here!" Kie screamed.

"Not a ninja turtle!" Athena called a back with a gag, "I want outta here!"

"Like a person?" Pope yelled back.

"Just, come back, climb back." JJ called out.

"Don't go." Kie grabbed Athena, "It's dead and floating in the water!"

"Kie, it's gonna give us some sort of disease!" Athena panicked as she splashed around, "I wanna go!"

"Just crawl back, cmon!" JJ called again.

The sound of a faint rumble made the two stop, the water bubbling.

"Kie." Athena panicked quickly, "JJ! JJ! Pope! The water!"

"Get outta there now!" Pope yelled at the pair.

"Cmon, Thena, cmon." Kie said quickly as she came up the latter, Athena following, "Push with me, cmon, get up here." Athena climbed up on the rail with her as they pushed on the opening, not having it moving.

"Help! Help us!" Athena yelled, hoping someone would hear. The water was coming up fast and had already made it up to their knees, "JJ! Pope! Help us!"

"Please! Pope! Guys!" Kie begged as she hit on the metal, "We're over here!"

"Kie! Attie! We're coming!"

"JJ!" Athena yelled when she heard his voice, "We're over here!"

Their faces were looking down in the drain when they got to them, listening to the pair beg to be let out. The two grabbed the drain and began pulling. Athena wrapped her arms around Kie tightly and tucked her head into her neck when she water was at their shoulders now. Kie continued to yell and hit the metal, Athena whispering to herself slightly as she gripped onto her friend tightly.

"Hurry! Hurry!" Kie yelled as the sewer came to their necks.

"Get us out, now, hurry!" Athena began to panic again, coming back from a small void as she hit the metal, "JJ, please, please."

"I'm trying, Attie, i'm trying." he said back over her sobs and begs flying up at them, along with Kies.

"Pull hard. Just p-" Athena began before her leg slipped on the railed, making her fall deeper into the water. Kie yelled for her as Athena got lost in the dirty water. She floated up, hitting the top of the drain.

It had been so dark, she couldn't see when Pope and JJ got the drain off and Kie popped out. Athena attempted to come up again, still hitting the drain top harshly. She yelled under the water as it filled up her lungs, hitting the top of the drain as JJ's ring around her thumb sent a echo through the drain. Athena felt a hand grab hold of her suddenly, yanking her as she was pulled up the drain opening. Athena coughed as the water came out of her lungs, taking deep breaths while Kie recovered a few feet away. JJ crawled out after Athena as she fell onto the concrete, laying there and trying to regain sanity.

"Jesus fuck." JJ said as he fell back on his back and looked at her, "You need some feet grips!"

Athena coughed but placed her hand on his chest, patting slightly as a thank you before she sat up.

"This wasn't what we were looking for, right?" Kie asked, pulling the gun from her shorts. Athena laughed as she fell back down on the ground and pumped her fist in the air while the other three cheered alongside her.

"You did it Kie." JJ encouraged her. Pope pulled Athena off the ground as the four group hugged.

"How'd your dumb ass fall and float off?" Kie laughed as she hugged Athena.

"'Cause I'm clumsy as fuck." Athena said as she laughed, "Cmon, you crazy assholes."

"That wack vibration is the only way I tracked you." JJ pointed out, "Like a animal, like a damn animal!"

"Thanks, JJ." the girl said with a minor cough, throwing her arm around him. "Guess you and your rings saved my life."

JJ laughed slightly, kissing the top of her head.

"So y'all are telling me this is the firearm Rafe Cameron killed Peterkin with?" Shoupe asked after JJ laid the gun down on the mans desk.

"That's exactly what we're telling you." JJ nodded his head.

"And the exact same firearm that Ward just used to kill Gavin." Pope added in quickly.

"So, I actually have a list of psych wards that I think would be good for Rafe. I don't know if you guys get to pick but i've kinda concluded that it's a personality disorder type of things, maybe, though i'm not positive. This one right here has the best doctored for that s-" Athena began, grabbing her phone before she was cut off.

"And where's that corpse again?" Shoupe cut her off.

"Didn't you look?" Kie asked.

"I checked the hospital. I went by his house. He was out." Shoupe shook his head at them.

"He was out?"

"No shit! Cause he's dead!"

"Just because he's not in his damn home does not mean he was a victim of a homicide." Shoupe cut them all off quickly as he looked at each of the four with a stern expression.

"What are you talking about? Are you at least gonna send it in for ballistics and shit, or are you just gonna sit on your ass?" Kie asked in disbelief as she nodded toward the gun.

"Hey, man." Athena pushed forward stepping in front of Shoupe. "I did not go into the sewers and nearly drown after you practically called me crazy for you to sit on your ass and do nothing when you have the murder weapon. So I suggest you actually do something because I have friends in high places that I don't would appreciate if they found out, whether it was against my dad or not, that you know and hide who killed Peterkin and Gavin and god knows who else."

"What would your dad think if he was here now?" Shoupe spoke as the two held eye contact.

"I don't give a shit what my dad thinks." Athena shouted. "Why aren't you doing anything? Do something!"

"He's gonna sit there and wax that damn mustache! Is that even real?" JJ hollered as he threw his hat at the wall.

"I'll wax this-" Shoupe began.

"Shut up, JJ!" Pope yelled at him.

"Oh, i'm sorry. Did I hurt his feelings?" JJ mocked as Shoupe opened the door.

"Shut up." Pope scolded, "Maniac."

"Get out." Shoupe began.

"Read my damn mind." Athena stormed out of the sheriffs station first, "When one of us is dead on your door step, don't say I didn't tell you so!"

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𝗜𝗦𝗢𝗕𝗘𝗟 𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗔𝗞𝗦
my girl athena really going through it this season !!
one good thing tho is her confidence is finally showing