LXXIV. wherever you go, that's where I'll follow

      When both of her parents went to work, Dylan and the others relocated back to the dock, the burnt down Chateau leaving a bad taste in her mouth. Her dad hadn't said anything to her about their phone call which worried her. She was sure he'd hound her over it, try to keep convincing her that going to South America was a horrible idea. Or maybe Dylan was hoping he would, she wouldn't have to go.

"Sarah, when did you say the pilot would get in?" John B asked Sarah.

"Probably like an hour? I mean, once he's here, my dad said we can leave whenever we want." She explained.

Dylan hummed. "Oh, leave whenever we want. That's comforting to know," she muttered sarcastically and scratched the back of her neck.

"Okay, well, as much as I would love to ghost my parents again, I can't." Pope said reluctantly.

"Pope, we're talking El Dorado here. Can you, just, so out the back, maybe?"

Dylan gave JJ a dumb look. "Oh, great plan, genius."

"I'm just saying!" He exclaimed. "It always worked for me. How to avoid unpleasant circumstances 101. If there's a problem, and you don't wanna face it, turn that face and keister around and walked the other way."

She heavily rolled her eyes. "Thank you for the advice, Jordan Belfort, but Pope's right. And there's no way my mom and dad are going to let me go to South America, not after what happened last time." She reminded them.

"DJ, it's to save Big John!"

"They thought I died, J!" She matched his tone. "We got to make it back home at all. I can't do that to them again."

"Okay, okay, take a breath," Pope stopped them, holding up his hands. He looked back at JJ. "I'm not doing that, okay?"

JJ huffed. "I just want you to be there, dog."

"I'm gonna be there," Pope confirmed. "I'll meet you guys at the airstrip in an hour?"

John B nodded. "Yeah, we'll see you there."

"One hour, Pope. Not a second later." JJ warned him.

"Be careful, okay?" Dylan called out as he walked down the dock.

"Yes ma'am." Pope called back without turning around, his smirk evident in his voice.

"I'm gonna take a stroll back to the shack," said JJ. He glanced back at Kiara. "For old times sake. I always wanted to go to South America. Great surf, cheap weed."

Dylan cracked a smile. "It's no New York, but, it's something."

"It's something," he agreed and they fist bumped as he passed her. "See you guys on the Tarmac!"

"I guess I'll go pack some stuff and break the news to my parents," Kiara told them dreadfully.

She winced, thinking about how badly that conversation will be. "Will you be okay?"

She nodded. "Yeah, yeah, I'm good." She jumped off the railing. "I'll see you guys in an hour."

Dylan watched her jog up to JJ and stop him. She couldn't help but smirk. "Hopefully they both took my wonderful advice," she praised herself to the others.

"Oh, your wonderful advice?" Cleo questioned, smirking as well.

"Of course, darling."

"Mama DJ always has the best advice." John B commended and they high fived.

"You know it," she grinned. Dylan glanced at Cleo. "Guess we should head back to the house. Break my mom and dad's hearts again."

The girl winced like she had before. "Guess so."

"I'm sorry, D," John B told her, frowning.

She shook her head. "This is bigger than me. It's for your father. Dad will understand." She said softly and squeezed his arm. She hopped off the dock. "Come on, Cleo."

"Be careful, guys." Sarah told them.

"Not to worry, Princess Cameron." Cleo called over her shoulder.

Dylan smirked again and JJ and Kiara. "Don't let us interrupt," she sang smugly as she passed by.

JJ shot her a look. "Real discrete, DJ. Thank you," he said sarcastically.

She blew them a kiss and walked away laughing.

Luckily for her, Logan and Ainsley were still at work. Braxton was at school. Getting in and out of the house was easier, but Dylan drowned in guilt as she packed her clothes. She left a note on the kitchen counter explaining everything they were doing and that she would be safe. She told them she loved them, something she wished she would have done the last time she went away.

"You sure you're okay?" Cleo asked the girl who'd been silent all the way to the landing strip.

"I feel like the worst daughter on the face of the planet," she answered honestly, her backpack thrown across her shoulders. "I mean, I left a note. I can't even say goodbye in person."

"DJ, from what I've learned about your family, they're understanding people. You real lucky to have a mother and father that love you so much. What you're doing isn't wrong and they know that."

"But what happens if we don't come back?" Dylan said and looked her way. "Am I going to be the reason my dad spirals out of control again? Or the reason my mom cries herself to sleep? What the hell is my little brother going to do when his sister doesn't come home again?"

Cleo didn't have an answer for that.

John B, JJ, and Sarah were at the landing strip when they arrived. "Ahh, there they are! With three minutes to spare!" JJ shouted, annoyed and he threw his hands up. "Why the hell did it take you so long?"

"Sorry, I was writing a very detailed, heartbreaking letter to my family explaining that I'm going all the way across the country and I might not make it back," Dylan snapped, glaring at him. "Have anything else to complain about?"

"No, no, he doesn't!" John B said and shot him a look. "Dude, shut up."

JJ continued his rampage. "Dude, where the hell are they?" He bursted out.

"I don't know, man—"

"We should get in the Twinkie, and we should just get 'em. That's what we should do."

"Would you please chill out? Now is not the time for you to go all berserk!" Dylan yelled at him.

"Just give them a few more minutes!" John B shouted over their bickering.

"Guys, guys, there's Pope," Sarah said loudly when she saw Pope driving toward them on his motorcycle.

Dylan sighed. "Yes, okay."

"You're late!" JJ exclaimed. "Now did you actually convince your pops this time, or. . ."

"Uhh, yeah, sort of. After I mentioned that Dylan was going," Pope answered, getting off the bike.

"My man. That's what I'm talking about." The blonde praised and high fived him. "This is why you two are the parents of the group."

"Yeah, parents with our five very annoying children." Dylan rolled her eyes. That's when she noticed one of them was missing. "Speaking of five, where's Kiara?"

"I don't know. It's gotta be her parents. They've been up her ass." Said Sarah.

Dylan nodded along. "Yeah, they're threatening her with boarding school again."

"Must've said she couldn't come. We're gonna have to do this without her."

"What? No, we can't leave without Kie!"

"DJ, we don't have time to wait any longer," Pope argued calmly.

"No, DJ's right," JJ stated, all of them turning to him. He looked at John B. "Give me the keys."

"No, dude. No, no, no—"

"Gimme the keys right now."

"It doesn't seem like a go idea right now, JJ." John B tried convincing him.

"Look, her parents already hate me. All right? Just give me an hour," JJ tried, making him sigh. "It'll be like a black ops mission, in and out. Surgical removal type shit, all right. Plus. . ." He put his hand on John B's shoulders. "I kind of owe her one."

Dylan immediately smirked. She looked at Pope, covered her mouth with her fist.

"Gimme the keys."

"Ohhh," John B said once he realized what he meant.

"Stop making that face and gimme the keys."

He smiled smugly. "Okay, well, yeah. You owe her one, right? You owe her one." John B teased and put the keys on JJ hands. "I got it. I just appreciate the honesty. Okay? Hurry back.

"Just give me an hour — DJ, stop looking at me like that."

She leaned against Pope with her arms crossed, still smirking knowingly. "Like what?" She played innocent.

"Like—" he pointed at her face. "That."

They watched him jump through the open window. "That door opens, bro." Pope pointed out.

Dylan sighed and closed her eyes. "Oh, brother."

She should've known. "This is fucked up. Why the hell would they do that to her?" Dylan freaked out and paced around in circles. "I mean, do they not know something called understanding their daughter?"

"I bet it, D. I get it." John B concurred, sitting under the wing of the plane with Sarah, the others sitting on the steps of the Tarmac, watching her pace around.

"I mean, this is Kiara. She's a free spirit. What the hell do they think a wilderness camp is gonna fix?" She kept on, growing more angry.

Suddenly, Topper's jeep rolled up the airstrip. Dylan sighed extremely loud. "What could he possibly want?"

"Oh, god," Sarah dreaded and stood up.

Topper got out of his car. "Hey, Sarah."

"Are you like a stalker now or something?" Dylan asserted bluntly.

Sarah put her hand on her arm. "Don't worry, I got this." She whispered.

The brunette rolled her eyes and went to sit on the steps in front of Pope. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

"What are you doing? You just, uh, you just seeing John B off or what?" The boy questioned.

John B walked over and stood by his girlfriend.

Sarah appeared unable to find an explanation. "I'm sorry I, uh, didn't call. I meant to call you last night."

"Oh, you meant to call me last night?" Topper contradicted and scoffed. "Oh okay, it's all good. I was actually asking around myself and heard your dad's plane was here."

"This man just never gives up," Cleo muttered while twirling her knife.

"He's like a leech." Dylan sneered and leaned her elbow on Pope's leg.

"And I was like 'oh, that's. . . that's interesting'." He continued with a sarcastic nod of his head. "Yeah. So are you leaving with him?" She was silent. "Are you leaving with him? Yes or no, Sarah?"

"I think the silence was the answer." Pope whispered, making her smile.

Sarah only nodded shortly, avoiding eye contact with him.

Topper nodded again, a smirk curling on his lips. "You're just a f. . . a damn liar, Sarah Cameron. You've always been a liar. After everything we've been through? This. . .This is what you're gonna do to me? I'm done, okay? You literally just promised John B would go away, you'd stay here with me."

Dylan rolled her eyes heavily. It was obvious that Sarah just told him that to keep John B out of jail and he too desperate to see through her lie.

"Hey, Top. You got a little something right here, man," Pope pointed out, motioning to his eye.

She laughed.

"Why don't you just shut up? How about that?"

Dylan laughed at him. "Don't get mad at him you're too obsessed with Sarah to see that she played you."

"Nobody asked for your input, DJ," Topper sassed. He took a step toward John B. "And oh, buddy, John B. You better be glad I didn't swing back at you at the Wreck cause I think you know what would have happened."

"Didn't look like you had the opportunity." Cleo commented, making Dylan laugh and they high fived.

"I'm not taking the bait, Top," said John B, completely unfazed. "You're right. You would've kicked my ass."

"That's debatable."

Pope accidentally snorted.

"I, um, heard they're remodeling the Chateau. That's tough, man. How did that happen?"

Dylan titled her head forward, then she quickly looked behind her, her and Pope catching each other's eyes.

"What did you just say?" John B demanded as Topper started walking back to his jeep. "No, Topper, what'd you just say?"

"Hey, you guys have a nice life, all right?"

"Better hope that jeep's locked away nice and tight when we get back!" Dylan shouted when Topper got in the vehicle. "Did he just confirm what I think he just confirmed?"

"So that's what you call a Kook?" Cleo questioned after her.

"Yes and yes." Pope answered them both.

Kiara stood in the line of girls wearing the same Kitty Hawke shirt as her. Some were young, maybe a few years younger than her, others her age and maybe older. Some looking as petrified as she was, others looking like they'd been there for a long time. She can't believe this has happened to her twice now. She watched the girls in the camp planting in a garden close by or she watched the younger girls painting rocks in a group on the other side, and Kiara thought this was all fucking stupid.

"First day?"

She quickly turned around, a girl standing behind her with her arms crossed. Her hair was long and blonde, the front pieces braided, and her eyes were bright blue. She was fair skinned. Kiara looked her up and down. "What makes you say that?"

"Cause you're looking around like you're on an alien planet," the girl pointed out. "After a while of being here, you get used to the crazy."

"Yeah, I doubt that."

She laughed. "What's your name?"

Kiara glared at her. "I'm not telling you my name because I'm not going to be here for very long." She snapped.

Again, the unnamed girl laughed. "Yeah, I said that too. A year later and I'm still here."

"A year?" She repeated, shocked at the information.

There was a hum. "Yep. Thrown in here like a bag full of trash. They came into my house in the middle of the night."

Kiara frowned. "Jeez."

"It's not as bad as you may think. I've gotten really good at painting," she said sarcastically, quirking another smile. "Well, I'm Emma if you're ever interested. See you around, new girl."

She watched her walk in the direction of the painting station. Kiara inhaled a sharp breath.

Dylan was growing restless and very, very aggravated. It became dark outside as they waited for JJ to come back with Kiara. She tried calling him all of five times. Every time, he didn't answered. "Has he called?" Sarah questioned.

"JJ, I'm going to murder you if you don't pick up this phone. I will go full Lauren Reynolds on your ass. Answer the damn phone!" She yelled and hung up again.

"That's gonna be a no," John B answered.

"We have to go. We don't have eight hours. And Topper might have already called the police.

"Okay, okay, DJ and I are trying to call him," he assured her. "D, how many times is that?"

"Five! I'm going to squeeze his head till it pops like a balloon." She raged and tried calling him again.

"That's nice to hear. Thank you."

Again, it went to JJ's voicemail. Dylan huffed. "I hate him. I hate him so much."

"Calm down girlie, before you break out in hives." Cleo warned her.

Pope saw headlights approaching the airstrip. "Uhh, guys. Who's that?" He asked, all of them turning to where he was looking.

"Oh, god. What now?" Said Sarah.

Dylan narrowed her eyes. She watched a car pull up by JJ's motorcycle. She was confused until the headlights dimmed and she saw it was her dad's car. Her face fell when all of her family got out of the car. "Dylan Celeste," her father said casually.

"Oh, no," she mumbled and gently pushed past Sarah. "Mom, dad—"

"Dylan, honey, we can't let you do this," Ainsley cut her off, Braxton standing close by her.

"Mama, I know how all of this sounds but you don't understand. We have to save Big John!" She exclaimed, getting ready to beg on her knees.

Logan lifted his hand. "You didn't let her finish," he said, making her look at him. "We can't let you do this. . .without me."

Dylan's face stilled.

The others behind her looked at each other, their eyes widening.

"W-What?"

Logan stepped closer to her. "You think I'm gonna let you go all the way to South America to save my best friend without me? C'mon now, Celeste," he said with a short laugh, causing her to blink in confusion. "I read your letter when I got home. We all had a talk. I almost lost you once, baby girl. I can't do it again. So I'm going with you. All of you."

John B stood by her side. "You're coming?" He said to the man in shock.

He smiled slightly. "Yeah. I've always wanted to go to South America. I've heard they have the best Arepas."

Dylan quickly hugged his torso, exhaling with relief. "Thank you, daddy."

Logan smiled again and put his hand on the back of her head. "I go wherever you go, DJ."

She let go of him and stood in front of her mother, both of them staring to cry. "I'm sorry, mama."

"Just please come home. Both of you," Ainsley whimpered and Dylan hugged her.

"Thank you, Mr. Jennings," John B muttered, nodding lightly.

"I won't let you go through this alone, John," he promised and pulled the boy into a hug, John B hugging him back tightly.

"I can't believe you're leaving again," Braxton said sadly when she pulled with from their mom, his eyes dad.

"I know, buddy. I'm sorry. But I'm coming back. I promise you." Dylan told him and pulled him in close. "I'll come back for you, okay?"

"I knew you'd come through, Mr. Jennings," Cleo said with a proud smile.

Logan stood in front of the other teenagers, laughing shortly. "Well, y'know they say. Once a Pogue, always a Pogue."

"Hell yeah." Pope said happily with a wide smile, and he hugged the man. "Glad to have you with us, Mr. L."

"Thanks, son. I'm glad to be here."

"John B," Ainsley spoke and stood in front of the boy. "I love you, okay? Please be safe out there. Keep my girl safe."

"I promise, Mrs. A," John B replied and leaned down to hug her. "I love you, too."

"So, what are we waiting for?" Logan asked loudly.

"JJ." The teenagers answered together.

He frowned slightly. "Yeah, that makes sense."

new character:

Chloe Rose Robertson Emma Callahan

Dylan is fr Topper's biggest hater