─☼☼☼─

CHARLOTTE WAS THE  first one up the next morning, and she was thankful for that. After a long night of drinking, smoking, and celebrating, she needed time to nurse her raging hangover without being made fun of by the others.

The sun was just beginning to peak over the horizon, casting a golden haze against the sky as Charlotte sat on the porch, warm cup of coffee in hand. She inhaled deeply, the smell of salt water being carried by the rippling winds. She knew what that meant, and knew the others would too when they awoke. 

A storm was brewing somewhere across the Atlantic, lending itself to the perfect surfing conditions. Charlotte smiled to herself, knowing the day ahead was sure to be exciting. 

This was something she didn't get when she was away at school. There was nothing and no where like the Outer Banks. But maybe because the Outer Banks was where the Pogues were...where her family was. And that was what made it that much more. Carson never got it, and now he never would. Charlotte felt bad for him in a sense, never getting to experience all that this place could be. 

As her breakup flitted across her mind, so did something else. Someone else. And before she could stop herself, Charlotte found herself reaching for her phone. 

Her fingers shook slightly, likely from her hangover and lack of sleep and perhaps a bit of anxiety, as she clicked on her photos app, opening the album she had been avoiding for the past year. When she clicked on it, she was inundated with pictures of Rafe.

A year ago, she hadn't even been able to think of him without feeling such an overwhelming sadness that she truly wanted to die. That feeling was still there as she scrolled through their entire relationship in the form of snapshots, but it was much less minimal. She scrolled all the way to the start, a photo of them at a party when they were freshmen. They'd just started dating. Rafe still had braces, and Charlotte had apparently such discovered eyeliner. But the way they looked at each other in the photo...

Charlotte always wondered when it started to go wrong. She'd thought back so many times trying to decipher when her Rafe became someone she barley knew. But she could never really figure it out, and she knew that even if she could it would make no difference. 

The drugs were what destroyed him, and she knew that until the day he was completely clean, he would never be her Rafe again. 

A stabbing pain filled her chest as she swiped through their memories. This was the first time in a year she'd been able to look at his face. Each picture hurt more than the last. Each reminder of what they were destroyed her more and more. 

A year had passed, she should have moved on...but Charlotte wasn't sure if she ever could. Even when she was old and grey, Charlotte Carrera knew she would never stop loving Rafe Cameron. Until her dying day, he was the love of her life, whether he was in it or not. 

Every day, she wondered what Rafe was doing, if he was okay. He'd never even tried to talk to her after that day she walked out of Tannyhill twelve months ago. Not a text or phone call...nothing. 

There was a time when Charlotte feared that he was dead. But all along he had been okay...he'd just been ignoring her. Pretending that she never existed. And that hurt Charlotte more than she cared to admit. 

"Morning, Charley."

She jumped slightly, quickly setting her phone down before turning to the source of the voice. 

John B stood behind her, a smile on his face as he looked out to the water, "You feel that?" He wondered, breathing in a deep breath. 

Pushing her thoughts of Rafe aside, Charlotte grinned, "I feel it."

"Should we get everyone up?" John B asked, looking to her with excitement. 

Charlotte nodded, downing the rest of her coffee. Looks like recovery time was over. "Yeah," she agreed. "Let's do it."

─☼☼☼─

An hour later, all of the Pogues (aside from Cleo, who was apparently catching bait, and Pope who wanted to "maximize their intel on the amulet") were on their way to the Break. 

Charlotte couldn't lie, she hadn't felt as happy as she did in that moment in...you guessed it, a year. 

The warm sun beamed through the windows of the Twinkie, warming her exposed skin as John B pulled onto the beach. 

"Over there!" JJ pointed, throwing open the sliding door to allow his hand to drag in the sand. "Perfect location."

A smile stretched across Charlotte's face as she watched him. He looked like a little kid in a candy store, a giddy smile on his face as John B parked them in the perfect location. 

"God damn beautiful!" Charlotte beamed as JJ took her hand, allowing her to jump onto the sand. She had turned toward the water, sucking in a deep breath as she watched the swell did its thing before them. 

Kiara grinned at her sister, "Don't you feel like life is just automatically better at the beach?"

"Hell yeah." Charlotte breathed, "Like a million percent."

And it was. Somehow the minute her feet touched that sand, Charlotte felt more at peace than ever before, like this was exactly what she had been needing all along. 

"Let's get these boards off!" JJ called, basically skipping toward the van where all of their freshly waxed boards sat. Charlotte joined him, hopping up onto the open part of the van so she could reach up toward the roof. 

"Oh, boy." John B called, the sound of approaching motors breaking through the calmness of the beach. 

"What?" JJ wondered as he and Charlotte turned toward the source of the noise. 

Charlotte paused mid action as her eyes landed on the series of incoming vehicles. She immediately knew who they belonged to, and suddenly her serenity had been stolen. 

Kooks. 

"Don't stop." JJ muttered, joining Charlotte up on the van. "Keep going."

Panic settled in Charlotte's chest, because she recognized the truck that was bringing up the rear of the pack. Recognized it all too well. 

"Please," she whispered, as if begging the universe. "Do not stop here."

"There's a whole beach!" Kie called, knowing the Kooks wouldn't hear her, and if they did, wouldn't listen. 

Charlotte pushed the lump in her throat down, "Not here." She whispered again, eyes locking with the driver of the truck. 

Rafe looked at her for what felt like an eternity, only breaking his gaze once his truck had passed her. A shaky breath fell from Charlotte's lips as she returned to her job of freeing the boards from the top of the Twinkie. 

"Hey," JJ said softly, pulling down the first board. "He's not going to bother you, alright? I'm here this time."

The smile that Charlotte gave him didn't quite meet her eyes. "Thanks, J." She muttered, feeling her gaze roaming over toward where the Kooks were unpacking all of their stuff. She couldn't help but watch Rafe's every move. She couldn't deny the fact that he looked good...healthier. 

"Great," Sarah grumbled, just noticing her brother's presence. "My brother's here."

Kiara looked to her sister, and then to Rafe, a look of sheer disgust on her face. 

"Kie, don't worry," JJ promised. "He ain't getting near you."

Charlotte cleared her throat, passing Kiara the last of the boards. "He won't bother any of us. Trust me." Because she was pretty sure Rafe was avoiding her at all costs. 

"Hey y'all. John B." JJ called, nodding toward Topper who was making his way toward them. "Sunshine's coming. What do you think he wants?"

Charlotte rolled her eyes as Kiara scoffed. "What does he ever want?"

"To start shit," Charlotte answered, reaching into the Twinkie to pull a drink out of the cooler. Lord knows she could use one. 

Sarah pulled on John B's hand. "Please don't let him antagonize you."

John B raised his hands in surrender, giving her a smile. "I got it. I got it." He assured, slowly backing toward Topper. 

"God, Kooks are insufferable." Charlotte muttered, taking a large slug of her drink. 

JJ raised his brows, letting out a small laugh. "Says our former Kook princess."

Charlotte shot him a wink. "I'm a changed woman."

Kiara and JJ both let out laughs as Charlotte felt her eyes wandering. When they landed on Rafe, he was already watching her, jaw clenched. 

Noticing Charlotte's line of sight, JJ nudged her. "You ready to get out there?"

Charlotte tore her eyes away from Rafe, plastering a smile on to her face. "Yeah." She nodded, "Hell yeah."

It had been well over a year since Charlotte had been out on her board, but as she got out there, it felt as if no time had passed at all. 

"Yeah, Charls!" JJ whooped as Charlotte rode her first wave, a laugh bubbling from her lips as adrenaline pumped through her. 

"Get it, Charley!" John B cheered, pumping his fist from where her sat on his board. 

Kiara and Sarah were cheering too, each of them with elated smiles on their faces. For a moment, Charlotte forgot that her ex was on the beach. But the moment she remembered, she couldn't help but look over. 

Rafe was watching her, small smile playing on his lips as he did so. As if seeing her happiness was enough to make him smile. 

Charlotte wanted to throw up. 

As she dipped back down onto her board, she forced herself to breathe, to pretend that he wasn't there. 

"That was awesome!" Sarah commended once Charlotte reached them again. "I didn't know you could surf like that, Char."

"She learned from the best," JJ puffed his chest out.

Charlotte rolled her eyes, popping into a seated position on her board. "Literally not true at all." She laughed, shaking her head. "Kie and I have been surfing since we were kids."

JJ furrowed his brows, "Are you sure? Because I'm pretty sure I taught you."

Ignoring him, Charlotte grinned at Sarah, "Your turn?"

The blonde paled slightly. "Oh. I don't─"

"Come on!" Charlotte encouraged. "You can do it."

John B nodded, "You've got it."

Sarah gave them all shaky smile. "Okay, then. Guess I'm up."

Unsurprisingly, she did great. 

The cheers of the Pogues followed her to shore as she rode the wave in , presumably to go work on her tan like she planned all along. 

Charlotte smiled to herself, leaning into her board as the waves lulled them. It was perfection out on the water, as if everything else melted away. 

Well, that was until Topper and Kelce joined them. 

"Hey, guys." Topper greeted as if they were old friends. 

For the most part, everyone ignored them. 

"Looking good out there, Charlotte." Kelce commented, trying to get under her skin no doubt. 

Doing her best to keep things calm, Charlotte gave him a quick glance. "Thanks."

"'Sup fools." JJ greeted, returning from his latest wave. "How's it going, Sunshine?" He nodded at Topper. 

"What's up, pal?" Topper returned, and quite frankly the fact that they were being even remotely cordial with each other was unnerving. 

JJ cocked his head, "Well I can't complain on a day like this, can I?"

Kiara and Charlotte shared a look as Topper nodded. "It's gettin' big out there, hey?"

"Sure is." JJ agreed, his eyes catching on a brewing wave. "You see that one?"

Charlotte instantly knew what angle JJ was getting at. John B seemed to catch on too, giving his head a small shake. 

"That you?" JJ wondered, to which Topper nodded with a grin. "Oh, yeah. That's me."

Kelce let out a cheer as Topper began to paddle toward the wave. "That's all you, baby!"

JJ instantly followed behind the other blonde. "Don't mind if I do."

"JJ!" John B and Charlotte warned simultaneously.

When Topper caught wind of JJ's antics, he shook his head. "Hey!"

Charlotte winced as she watched them battle for the wave. It was a dumb move on JJ's part, no matter how fun it was to piss Topper off. 

Ultimately, it was JJ who won the wave, Topper going head over heels into the water. 

"Hey!" Rafe yelled from the shore. "Blatant poach!"

Ruthie screwed up her face so violently Charlotte could see it from the water. "What the hell was that!?"

Kiara clucked her tongue. "So much for keeping the peace."

"Classic JJ." Charlotte muttered, wringing the water from her hair. 

Topper, who looked furious, was paddling toward them. "You got to teach your boy to wait his turn."

"Yeah," Kelce chirped. "Or we'll teach him."

Charlotte rolled her eyes as John B nodded. "Yeah, I'll just text him real quick." He mocked, pulling out an imaginary cell phone. "Hey, J, can you..."

"Classic Pogue shit." Topper shook his head. 

Kiara rose her brows, "It's not that deep, bro."

"Thought we were chill." Topper muttered, ego severely bruised. 

"Relax, Top." Charlotte advised, dropping onto her board to prepare for the next wave. "Believe it or not there will be other waves."

Topper glared at her, "Fuck off, Charlotte."

Charlotte saluted him, beginning her paddle. "Gladly."

─☼☼☼─

All of them were blissfully exhausted by the time they'd finished that day. 

"Last board." Charlotte declared, letting out a small grunt as she passed it to JJ. 

"Hey, do you have the other bungee cable?" John B wondered from the other side of the Twinkie. 

JJ set the board down, "Thought that was you."

"Was definitely you, J." Charlotte pointed out, lifting the cooler into the back. 

"Guys!" Kiara called, an excitement to her tone. "Guys, there's a turtle hatch!"

Excitement flooded through Charlotte as she closed the back of the Twinkie, smile breaking across her face as she all but skipped toward where her sister was. "No way!"

She crouched, pushing out her bottom lip. "Oh my God, look at them." She squealed. "Little babies."

Sarah brought her hands to her mouth. "They're so little!"

"Look at these little nuggets!" John B yelled, excitement in all of them so high it was visible. 

Kiara looked like a worried mother. "Wait, wait. Everyone back up. Give them some space!"

Charlotte took her sister's hand, giving it an excited shake. "Look at them, Kie!"

With a wide smile, Kiara leaned into her sister. "This is the best day every."

"We should make them a path! Get all these footprints out." John B announced, already kicking a path through the sand. 

"Charley and Sarah, keep the gulls off." Kiara assigned, worry seeping into her excitement. She was more invested in this than anyone. 

Charlotte and Sarah took their jobs seriously. So seriously, Sarah ended up on Charlotte's shoulders, waving her arms so the seagulls had no choice but to stay away. John B and JJ continued making the path as Kiara watched each baby turtle like her life depended on it. 

Everything was perfect until the sound of Topper's Jeep starting up broke through the excitement. 

Sarah dropped from Charlotte's shoulders, each of them turning toward the vehicle that was making its way toward them. 

"Hey!" Kiara yelled, waving her arms to alert the driver. "There's a hatch!"

But the Jeep didn't stop. In fact, Charlotte was pretty sure it was speeding up. "What the fuck?" She snapped, heart jumping in her chest. 

"Stop!" She yelled, joining her sister's attempts to get them to halt. "There's a hatch!"

All of the Pogues joined in, each of them doing different gestures to try and alert Ruthie, who they could now see was the driver, to go around the hatch. But Ruthie was headed right toward them, and there was no sign that she was changing her path. 

They were all standing directly in front of the hatch, but that also meant they were right in Ruthie's path. 

She was only feet away when they were all forced to dive to safety. Ruthie didn't hit the brakes once. 

Charlotte let out a grunt as she landed on the ground, sanding flying into her face upon impact. "Holy shit," she muttered, spitting out sand as she spoke. 

She sat up, spinning toward where Ruthie had finally laid on the brakes, beginning to loop back around. 

"Fucking assholes!" Kiara yelled as she pushed herself to her feet. 

"You okay?" JJ wondered, checking to ensure she wasn't hurt in any capacity, considering Kiara had been directly in the path and had jumped at the last second. 

Charlotte pushed herself to her feet, brushing away the sand before moving toward her sister. She was pissed in general, but mostly pissed that Ruthie had almost run her sister over. 

But in true Ruthie fashion, it didn't stop there. 

The sound of the Jeep engine revving caused all of them to look back. Ruthie had lined up with them once again. 

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," Charlotte snapped, just as Kiara let out a "Hell, no."

"STOP!" Charlotte yelled, waving her arms, "Stop!"

"There's a hatch!" Kiara screamed, begging them to go around. "Stop!"

Ruthie ignored both of them, a maniacal look on her face as she floored it toward them once again. 

This time when she passed, he threw her drink out the window. "Suck it, Pogues!"

The red liquid splattered all over Kiara's face as chest, coating her in the sticky substance. The youngest Carrera sunk to the floor in defeat, wiping away the drink in shock. 

Anger coursed through Charlotte's body like never before. Ruthie could fuck with her all she wanted, but not her sister. 

"Are you okay?" Charlotte demanded, trying to keep her anger at bay as she crouched down next to Kiara. 

Kiara gave her a small nod, and that was all Charlotte needed before she was on her feet. 

"Charley!" John B called after her, but she didn't stop. 

All she could see was red as she marched toward the Kooks, not giving one fuck that Rafe was over there. He was the least of her worries in that moment. 

"Uh oh!" Kelce teased once he saw Charlotte coming. "You made big sister mad."

Ruthie rolled her eyes, fuelling Charlotte's anger. She wanted to kill her. 

Topper tried to intercept, "Charlotte─"

She sidestepped his attempt to stop her, her palms coming into contact with Ruthie's shoulders. "What the fuck is the matter with you?" She snapped, watching as the Kook girl stumbled slightly. "You're a fucking idiot!"

Ruthie let out a laugh. "Woah, Charlotte. Relax."

"Look what you did!" Kiara snapped, coming up behind her sister. When Ruthie downcast her eyes, Kiara jutted her hand out, showing one of the poor baby turtles, dead...run over by the Jeep. "No, look what you did!"

Charlotte felt her heart clench at the innocent turtle that happened to be caught in the Kook─Pogue rivalry. A stupid, pointless popularity contest that meant nothing in the grand scheme of things. 

"There was a turtle hatch, you idiots!" Kiara cried, "You drove right over it!"

Topper tried to pretend the sight didn't bother him. "I understand you're upset, Kiara."

"I'm more than upset, Topper!"

"I mean, but it was only one." Ruthie pointed toward the rest of the hatch. "Look, there's more of them. A hatch is like, what, a hundred turtles? Most of 'em don't make it anyway."

"Yeah," Topper agreed, following in his girlfriend's footsteps like a little puppy dog. "What is it, like one in a thousand?"

Charlotte scoffed, "Are you fucking kidding me?"

Ruthie smirked, "Why don't you go toss that to the seagulls. Cycle of life, right?"

Kiara snapped, reaching out to shove Ruthie much like her sister had. "Cycle of life!?" She cried. "Getting flattened by the tire of a truck is not the cycle of life!"

As Topper stepped in to defend his girlfriend, JJ did the same. "Back off!" JJ warned, anger overtaking his features. Charlotte stood behind her sister, ready to take on anyone who dared touch Kiara. 

Amidst the chaos, from the corner of her eye, Charlotte felt Rafe watching her, again. When she dared meet his eyes, he didn't look amused in the slightest like she expected him to. In fact, he looked rather uncomfortable. 

"Your move, Kie." Ruthie challenged, raising her brows. "What are you going to do?"

It was then that Charlotte spotted the dumb Kook with the phone held up, recording their every move. She clenched her fists at her side, talking herself away from the ledge. 

"I would just walk away." Topper advised, the collar of his shirt still in JJ's grasp. "We're not doing this, okay?"

JJ released him, giving him a small shove as Kiara looked at the group of Kooks, tears in her eyes. "There's something seriously wrong with you people!"

"Let's go, Kie." JJ advised, gently turning her around. Kiara shoved away from him, reaching to shove over one of the Kook's speakers. 

"Yeah, that's right, Kie!" Ruthie called. "Go back to your side!"

JJ grabbed onto Charlotte's arm, nodding back toward where Kie was stomping off. "Come on, Charls." He then turned back to the Kooks. "If you come near either of them, or any of us again, I'll come back and kill every single one of you."

"We got you on video bro!" Kelce warned. 

As JJ turned to leave, Charlotte stayed in place, trying to diffuse the anger that had settled inside of her. 

"What's wrong, Charlotte?" Ruthie challenged, arms crossed over her chest, stupid look on her face. "Aren't you going to follow after your Pogue-slut sister and her scum of the Earth boyfriend?"

Now Charlotte didn't need an excuse to hit Ruthie, but that was as good of one as ever. 

She couldn't lie, the feeling of her fist coming into contact with Ruthie's nose, albeit slightly painful, was oddly gratifying. As was the crack that accompanied it. 

A series of shocked gasps flew through the group as Ruthie let out a scream of pain. "What the fuck!"

Charlotte pulled her hand back, a smirk coming to her face as blood began to pour from Ruthie's nose. She turned, expecting to see the camera in her face. Instead, it was on the ground, the girl who had been holding it was looking over at Rafe incredulously as if...he'd been the one to knock it out of her hands. 

Topper lunged, grabbing onto Charlotte as if he wanted to hit her back.

"Hey!" JJ yelled, he and Kie already rushing back toward them. 

But Rafe beat them to it, grabbing onto Topper by his shirt, backing him into his Jeep, "Fucking touch her again and see what happens." He warned, his voice so full of anger it caused Topper to shrink away. 

Charlotte stumbled slightly, shocked that Rafe had come to her aid amidst a group of Kooks.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Kelce demanded of Rafe. "Are you out of your mind?"

Ruthie was still crying over her probably broken nose as Rafe released Topper, turning his attention to Charlotte who was being surrounded by the other Kooks. "Come on, Lottie. I'll give you a ride home." He said it as if it were the most normal thing in the world 

JJ and Kiara had finally reached them again, both of their eyes wide at what Charlotte had done. 

Despite everything, Charlotte turned to Rafe, adrenaline still pumping. "Okay."

"Charley!" Kiara begged, knowing her sister going with Rafe was a horrible idea. "Come on!"

Charlotte hadn't wanted her sister to see any of this. "I'll meet you at home." She promised, voice rising over the agitated Kooks. "Go."

JJ shot Rafe a look, jaw clenched in anger. "Rafe, I swear to God─"

"I'm not going to try anything." Rafe assured, not even needing JJ to finish the sentence. 

Despite the fact that it was the last thing they wanted to do, JJ and Kiara knew they needed to get out of there. With a final look at Charlotte, each of them hesitantly turned and retreated. 

Rafe gently lead Charlotte toward his truck, protecting her from the crowd of Kooks who probably wanted to kick her ass. 

"Hey, Ruthie?" Charlotte called as Rafe opened her door. "Come near my sister and friends again and a broken nose will be the least of your problems."

Ruthie let out a sob, holding a towel to her gushing nose. "You're going to regret this, Charlotte!"

Truthfully, Charlotte did not care. 

─☼☼☼─

-an-

y'all knew our girl was not about to sit back and let ruthie disrespect her sister like that. 

also uhhhh rafe and lottie alone together next chapter hehehe

love you all!

-maddy xoxo