MY PURPOSE - JOHN B ROUTLEDGE

CHAPTER SEVEN - FOSTER CARE

So you can't understand the Outer Banks without understanding the boneyard. It's kinda like a three-layer burrito. There's the pogues, their friends and the working-class derelicts from the cut. Then, there are the kooks, the rich second-homers who are mostly from poncey-ass boarding schools, just your normal, rich trustafarian posers. The pogues natural enemy.

And then, there are the Tourons who are totally clueless and are just there for a week on vacation with their families. Basically just chum for the sharks.

"Where those trees always there?" Asked a very tipsy Eleanor as she pointed to the woods to the right of the boneyard.

"Jeez Eleanor, how many beers have you had?" John B asked her.

"Erm-" Eleanor started to count on her fingers while squinting her eyes to try and concentrate "I don't know I keep losing count!"

John B went to open his mouth to say something but Kiara had beaten him to it "What's she doing here?" She groaned in disgust as John B and Eleanor looked over to where the kook princess was climbing on a post.

"Ooh who is she? She's so pretty" Eleanor blurted out and Kiara rolled her eyes.

"Sarah Cameron" John B told her "Kook princess"

"Kiara's best friend in the ninth grade and worst enemy in the tenth" Pope explained as Kiara glared at him.

"Oh" Eleanor understood now why Kiara had rolled her eyes when she called the blonde pretty "Sorry Kiara"

"No, it's fine Eleanor. Don't worry about it" Kiara gave her a small smile and the tipsy girl sent her one back.

"Hey Eleanor!" JJ shouted as he climbed over a log with two beers in his hand "Want another beer?"

"Well duh!" She said like it was obvious and he smiled handing her one once she met him half way.

"I also wanted to apologise for earlier, ya know me mentioning your parents and shit-" He started to ramble so Eleanor put her finger to his lips to shut him up.

"Shh, that's already forgotten about" She said before taking a huge sip of her beer "Now let's go have some fun, Maybank"

----

"Sarah!" JJ shouted over to the look, clearly drunk "Could I interest you in a tasty Milwaukee beverage?"

"No, thanks" She denied politely.

"Ohh, is it not fancy enough for you?" JJ teased.

"No we were just leaving" Sarah quickly defended herself before Topper joined in the conversation.

"Hey, you know what? I'll take it" Topper said "Thank you man, I appreciate it"

"That's cute but I didn't ask you" JJ replied and tried to give the drink to Sarah again. As the conversation started to gain some attention, John B and Eleanor walked over to the two.

"If you said pretty please, maybe, but you didn't" JJ said sarcastically while John B tried to pull him back.

Topper rolled his eyes "Oh, pretty please?"

"Yeah, Sarah. You can have it"

"She doesn't want it man" Topper shouted, shoving JJ back.

"You're so funny man" JJ shouted back as he grabbed Topper's shirt and that angered the boy so much that he threw his drink in JJ's face.

"JJ let's go" John B said as he pushed the two apart and Eleanor thought that was the end before Topper decided to speak up again.

"Dirty pogues!"

John B turned straight back around to Topper as they started punching each other "John B, we're supposed to be incognito, remember?" Pope yelled at him.

"John B, stop!" Eleanor had started to sober up now as she yelled.

"Hey, John B, don't make me drown you like your old man, all right?" Topper shouted, dropping John B to the floor.

"Give it to him! John B, let's go!" JJ encouraged his best friend.

John B got back up and sent a good left hook to Topper's face as the fight went deeper into the water "Cmon Topper! Let's fucking go!"

Topper then got another punch in before wrestling John B to the ground as he held his head down into the water giving John B no way to come up for air.

"Topper, stop!" Sarah cried.

"Shit, he's drowning him!" Pope panicked and that made Eleanor jump into action as she went pull her gun out her jacket pocket but she didn't get very far when she felt JJ grab her arm and pull her back. And that's when she noticed that the gun he had stole from the motel was tightly clutched in his hands.

He clicked off the safety and shoved it against Topper's head "Yeah, you know what that is. Your move, broski"

"JJ, chill dude!" But with the alcohol and the adrenaline that was pumping through his veins, he just pressed the gun further into Topper's skull. 

"Put the gun down!" Sarah pleaded as the whole crowd started to disperse and Topper then rose his hands in surrender.

"Did you say something princess?" JJ retorted.

"Okay, we're good. We're good" Topper said as his whole body shook in fear and JJ finally pulled away from Topper who ran to Sarah and began pulling her away from the beach.

"Okay, everyone, listen up! Get the hell off our side of the island!" JJ lifted the gun into the air and fired two shots, causing teenagers to scream as they fled from the boneyard.

"John B" Eleanor called out as she ran over to him while Pope and Kiara started to yell at JJ "Hey, your okay, I got you" She whispered to the unconscious boy as she sat on her knees and laid John B's head on her lap.

He opened his eyes for a second and he smiled slightly at the girl above him before they shut again "Guys, help me get him up!"

----

"Look, I'm calling it off. All right?" John B said while pacing back and forth "Peterkin said, if I stay out of the marsh, she'll help me with DCS"

"And you believed her?" JJ scoffed.

"Yes, I believe her, JJ"

"An actual cop, John B. You believed a cop" JJ couldn't believe what he was hearing right now.

"All I gotta do is stay out of the marsh for a couple days and she'll help me out. It doesn't help that your ass was the one shooting a gun!"

"You know what I should have done? Just let Topper drown your ass" JJ rolled his eyes as he stood in front of John B.

"Topper was gonna drown me?"

JJ nodded "Sure looked like it"

"John B he has a point. Yeah maybe he went the wrong way about it but he still saved your life" Eleanor pointed out, sticking up for JJ because if he didn't grab her hand when he did, it would've been her holding the gun to Topper's head.

"Thank you!" He pointed at her dramatically before looking back at John B "But they just always win, don't they man? Kooks versus Pogues. They always, always win!"

"Look, it's okay" Kiara tried calming JJ down.

"No, it's not okay!" He snapped "They don't want us to go down into the marsh. Why? Because there's something valuable down there, and you know it. I know you do" JJ glanced at Pope "And I understand why you don't wanna go. You're the golden boy. You got way too much to risk and you" He looked over at Kiara "You're already rich as fuck anyway so why would you bother?"

"But, you and me, man? We got nothing to lose" He pointed at himself and John B "We really don't, all right? And I know it didn't use to be that way for you"

"JJ, I don't wanna talk about this" John B mumbled, turning around to walk away but JJ ran after him and slung his arm over his shoulders "John B, listen to me. I have a plan. You got a key to Cameron's big boat, right? There's scuba gear, we borrow that and then we go down to the wreck this afternoon, and that is what's gonna save you, man"

"You don't see rich kids going into foster care now, do you?"