The rest of the day is a blur. For at least a few hours, Kathryn is genuinely happy, and she wished she would have enjoyed it more. There was no worrying about what Henry would say, no wondering what would come next because of Limbrey; her best friend was still a convicted felon, but he was here.

Sarah, too. Kie kept looking at her with all the adoration in the world. No amount of anecdotes about what happened between her and John B was enough to make the light dim.

They make a bit of the way back to the Outer Banks on the boat Sarah and John B stole – apparently, it was the Cameron's anyway, so is it really theft? In any case, they make a stop by a small island to get some supplies to eat something – Sarah and JB are starving, and no one can blame them.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she remarks how thin they are. How worn out they seem. How their skin is burnt and lips are chapped and every time they stand, they waver a little. Sarah even got shot by her own brother, right in her lower abdomen. But if she starts worrying now, she'll be insufferable. She's been told enough that her outbursts are too much.

But John B said something dumb, and Kathryn is giggling. Head tipped back, almost howling in laughter. She's not sure if it was funny or if she's just marvelling at the fact that he's here. He's not sure either, he just missed her. That's why he keeps rambling about everything that happened when they were apart. He wondered what she'd say so many times. He wasn't disappointed.

"You got fake married?" she asks him with wide brown eyes almost brimming with tears of joy.

Kie and Sarah left earlier to get watermelon, which might be for the better in the former's case.

He grins. "Well, I wouldn't say 'fake'–"

"You got fake married and I couldn't be your fake maid of honour? John Bastard!"

"I would've loved for my bug to be my maid of honor, but I'm half sure you would have thrown us both overboard."

"I would've," JJ lets out.

"I would've let you exchange vows first," Kathryn admonishes.

"Oh yeah?" He messes with her hair for a second before she swats it away, scoffing and trying to brush her hair back into position. John B freezes for a second. "Oh my god, you still have that scar on your forehead."

She puts her fringe back in place, the curls hiding the ragged scar under. She always had it, he even noticed it way back on the beach, half a century ago. He's not sure why he's talking about it now, but it feels right, because it's tying her back to him.

"Why did you even headbutt the slide?" Pope lets out, shaking his head.

JJ snorts. "Take a guess."

"She aimed for JJ," John B and Pope say at the same time. John B tries to hold his laughter in. "I don't even remember why."

"Must've been a good reason, 'cause it's on my forehead forever."

JJ puts a finger on it, pushing her head back. "I think it looks kinda badass."

She puts her mouth to the side, and says in a very bad texan accent; "Battlescars." JJ almost falls from his seat on the edge of the boat.

John B shakes his head. "You never change, do you?"

"Well, one of us is a married man, and it's not me." Kathryn exhales a laugh, floating on her little cloud of happiness. "Wish I could just change the tiniest bit, though, you know?"

"What do you mean?" he asks, frowning.

She has to talk to him about JJ. Out of anyone, if she's going to tell someone, it has to be John B. Who else?

JJ spares a careful glance towards her, but she's already clearing her throat. "Things got weird, bee."

John B nods. "So I've heard." He turns to Pope. "So, uh, what's up with this Kiara stuff there, big guy?"

Pope stares at him. "That's your idea of a weird thing? Okay." He sighs at their inquisitive faces. "Uh, honestly, I don't know right now, man." He shakes his head. "I mean, I definitely like her, and I'm pretty sure she likes me."

"Seems like it," he agrees.

This time, Kathryn meets JJ's eyes. Maybe these two should have a talk of their own, really. Just talking needs to happen all around that friend group. They should have a therapy session. The therapist would immediately be sent to retirement.

"Right now, there's a lot of conflicting information going on. Like I'm trying to gather all the data and put into a folder in my mind–"

"I'm sure she's thrilled to know she has a folder in your computer disk," Kathryn lets out quietly. John B snorts.

"All right, man," JJ butts in. "Look. Women, all right, like, they're just not consistent."

She turns to him, head tilted. "You stuttered a lot to get this shitty sentence out."

He looks flabbergasted. "We're not gonna take female advice from JJ," John B adds.

"What?" JJ exclaims. "Why not?"

Kathryn holds up a finger. "One, don't use 'female' like that, you sound like Elon Musk. Two, women are consistent, men just aren't listening. Three, as a representative of the female gender: suck my dick." She shakes her head. "At least Pope used his brain. I swear, you guys are Neanderthalians."

They start to argue for a second, before Pope speaks up. "She's right, shut up idiots." He holds up his hand, and Kathryn high fives it.

"Okay, well," John B starts to change the subject. "What's the deal with this Limbrey chick?" Kathryn falters. "You think she knew our pops?"

"Well I really didn't want to get into that," she says, sighing. She could've used a few more seconds in ignorant bliss. "Look, Henry hid all of this from me, so I really haven't the faintest what it's about. And, to be frank, who cares if she worked with my dad, or knew yours, you know? She could be the devil, she'd still have us by the balls. She can exonerate you."

"Balls having part isn't ideal, kinda like the exonerating thing," he lets out.

"Not to throw a monkey wrench in the entire thing," JJ pipes in, "but she did just try to kidnap you." He rolls his eyes. "How many times do I gotta say this?"

Kathryn arches a brow. "Say what?"

John B sighs. "Here we go."

"Why are we going back? Why don't we go south? Why don't we just go to Yucatan? Coast of Broken Dreams, baby!"

"We've had that argument, JJ!" John B tells him while Pope and Kathryn awkwardly stare at each other. "You know why we can't leave." A look is sent to her. She feels like the object of their argument to her expense, but is too tired to even butt in. "I'm not running anymore. Look, OBX is our home. And besides, if I go back, I get another shot at Ward."

Kathryn blinks. "What? What shot? The one he'll use to kill you? It's useless, JB." She shakes her head. "This can't be healthy."

"You got to make your peace with your mom when she was thrown in jail," he says. "You get peace – don't I get a shot to have that too?"

"Of course you do! But this doesn't just affect you, bee," she says, as softly as she can. "It's your girlfriend's dad. Just... think this through. I know coming from me it's hypocritical, but we have to be better than them. We can't let them win."

Kathryn has let her mother come between her and her friends for far too long. She doesn't want to watch her best friend make the same mistakes she did.

"What are you guys talking about?" the voice, chirpy and happy, comes from behind them.

Sarah and Kie returned with watermelons and smiles on their faces. Kathryn rolls her lips in her mouth.

Potentially killing your dad. Or at least steal from him. Throw him in jail, too. "Me," Kathryn says. "'Cause I'm awesome." See, her egotistical tendencies do help from time to time... she thinks.

"She's hot," JJ adds. "That's that, you know?" Kathryn turns to him, and he just sends her a bewildered look back, as if to say, 'I'm just spitballing, okay?'

Sarah seems dubious. Maybe because the lie really isn't believable. "Okay..."

They quickly help the girls to get on the boat before it becomes too much of a big deal. To be fair, Kathryn wants to go back to five minutes ago when everything was good. But she's got John B. So it's a good trade.

Once everyone is settled, Kathryn claps her hands. "Well, what do you think about going back to the Château then?"

🐝

The boat ride to the OBX feels the same as the moment they got on the boat. Kathryn shakes her worry again everytime she looks at John B. She still hasn't processed that he's here, alive and mostly well. She figures God got tired of kicking her to a curb.

The Château appears in the distance, and they all stop talking for a second, just basking in the sun and how nice this feels. "There she is," John B lets out.

"Bet it is good to see her old bones," JJ adds. It is.

Kathryn grabs her best friend's hand, and puts her head on his shoulder, smiling broadly. "Welcome home, bee."

They dock the boat, and step out of it, stopping halfway to the Château to lean against the wood structure of the dock.

"You know I gotta be honest," Kie says. "Not exactly looking forward to a check-in at home. My parents probably already arranged my funeral."

Pope hums. "I also predict unpleasantries at the Heyward household after I... left the truck in Charleston."

"See, that's why we're so different," Kathryn says, shrugging. "I hope they're scared of me, 'cause I'm going to rain hellfire on the place."

Spending years lying about her dad? Actually making sure that she wouldn't have a bad memory of him, and then doing a whole 180 when things got bad? She has a thought or two for Henry.

Kie laughs beneath her breath. "Guys, she's not like other girls, I don't know if you've heard..."

"I'll push you in the water, Carrera." Kie grins at her and, surprisingly enough, Kathryn smiles back.

"No one knows we're here, right?" JJ asks. "And you three aren't gonna get into any more trouble for showing up twelve hours late. Am I right, or am I right?"

"I'm going to hate this." Kathryn sighs. "Well, you're not exactly wrong."

"So that means we have twelve hours to do whatever we want. Huh? A little Pogue fellowship. How does that sound?"

John B starts smiling. "Let the shit hit the fan tomorrow."

"Yeah!"

Kathryn frowns. "No? I crave blood."

"Bug, be normal for a second."

"No."

"The cops could be looking for us," Sarah says, shaking her head. "It could be really really stupid."

"Thank you."

Except JJ has that shit-eating grin Kathryn knows all too well – the kind that makes her want to strangle the life out of him, or do something to shut him up – and he starts to walk towards her. "Sarah Cameron, you've heard of my philosophy, right?"

Sarah can't help her amused smile. "No."

"Stupid things have good outcomes all the time." At this point, they know it by heart. All the Pogues said it at the same time, like a well-rehearsed mantra.

She scoffs. "...Okay?"

John B holds up a finger to his mouth. "No, no, wait for it."

'It' being the moment Kathryn realises what the idiot in front of her just said.

"That's statistically untrue. You're going to get killed one of these days, JJ. That's not a philosophy, that's an epitaph."

"No, no, my epitaph's gonna be 'KD told me so'." She groans and he walks away before she can say anything. "Who's with me? Let's get some beer!"

Twelve hours of forgetting her problems. Well, can't exactly say no to that. Somewhere behind them, Pope frowns.

"How does he know what an epitaph is?"

Author's Note: Everytime I post I figure people are going to reread the last few parts to remember me and it's both sad a bit fun .

Also I've hit writer's blank for a loooong while and idk if I'm fully back yet, also the fact that I can see people losing interest in what I do does not help but!!! I'm doing this for the few who stay and yeah I'm ranting cause life is shit and then you die. My epitaph is going to be 'Kathryn Darcy would have slapped some sense into me' and that's hot of her

Editor's Note: I don't know what this bitch ^^^ was going through but slay I guess? Anyway Sarah, JB and Kat are the bermude triangle of daddy issues and I stand by that