───────────────── shameless
⨳                   𝗖𝗛𝗔𝗣𝗧𝗘𝗥 𝟬𝟬𝟯 . . . ꗃ ≀ ▊✹
❛ john booker, the scuba poacher ! ❜ · ˚.‧ .

✹ . . . THE DOOR OF THE DRUTHERS SLID OPEN, AND none other than John B. Routledge snuck in, carrying a bunch of scuba gear. Before he could even step into the living part of the yacht, his eyes caught onto Sarah, who was sleeping peacefully. He paused for a second, wondering how he was going to put the gear back without waking her up, and then stepped inside, leaving the door open behind him. He tried his best not to make noise, but his shoes echoed with each step he took, the added weight of the tank not helping.

Sarah tossed around a bit, her hand coming up to rest on her forehead and over her still-closed eyes. "Wheezie, shut up," she grumbled sleepily, clearly annoyed about being woken up. The noise continued, and when metal clanked against the side of the staircase, the girl opened her eyes, letting out a gasp when she saw John B. and not her little sister. "God," she muttered, running her hands over her hair as she lifted her head and focused on the boy. Her brows furrowed in confusion, no doubt wondering why he was there. "You're not Wheezie," she stated as he looked over his shoulder at her.

John B. let out a few nervous breaths. "Correct. Yeah."

Sarah just sighed, closing her eyes and laying her head back down.

"I'm sorry."

"What are you doing?" she asked, using her fingers to rub some tension from her forehead.

"Uh..." John B. looked down to the floor. "I'm just dropping off some scuba gear." His eyes ran over Sarah as he realized that her shirt was pulled up a bit, showing off her stomach. She seemed to realize too and quickly pulled it down as she focused on him again. "What are—" he began, sounding awkward as she sat up, resting on her elbows. "What are you doing... here?"

She scrunched her face like that answer was obvious, which it was. "It's our boat," she told him, meeting his gaze. "It's also the only place with air conditioning."

"Right."

"Did you, um... top off the tanks?" She sat up a little more, now resting on her hands.

"Uh..." John B. shuffled on his feet. "No. No, power's down, so the compressors were off." He cleared his throat.

"So, you're sneaking onto our boat at five a.m. with empty tanks?"

"Sounds kinky." Lilla's teasing voice rang in their ears as the bathroom door slid open. "Like the beginning of a bad porno." She had a smirk on her face as she stared at John B., who had looked over at her quickly, while Sarah just shook her head in amusement, trying to fight off a smile of her own. Lilla had been staying there with Sarah since, as the girl had said, it was the only place with air conditioning. It had actually been kind of fun.

"Are there any good pornos?" asked John B., his brows furrowed.

Lilla shrugged. "I wouldn't know. I've never watched one," she confessed, noting the confused look on his face. Her eyes remained on John B. as she walked past him, his eyes following her until she sat down on one of the seats.

"I'll make sure to tell Ward," Sarah continued, causing the boy to focus on her again. She sent him a small, almost sarcastic smile as their eyes met.

"Okay. Okay," he muttered, then turned away. "Cool. Cool."

Lilla and Sarah gave each other knowing looks from across the room, then they watched as John B. removed the strap of the bag from over his neck, setting it down on the ground.

"Just drop these off."

"Yeah, yeah, the middle of the room is fine," Sarah said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Yeah." John B. sets another thing down. "This is pretty much what he told me to do." His eyes caught onto Sarah's as he stood up straight.

"Bye," Sarah and Lilla told him as he turned to the door.

He didn't get too far, though, while Sarah looked away from him before he was moving back to stand in front of Sarah, running a hand through his hair. "Actually, you know what—what exactly were you gonna tell your dad?" He crossed his arms over his chest and let out a small, nervous chuckle, trying to act nonchalant, as she met his gaze.

She turned down her mouth as she slightly shook her head. "Nothing much. Just that you poached our scuba gear."

"Okay, fuck," he muttered under his breath, putting his hands on his hips. He looked away from her for a moment as he thought, while Lilla just crossed one leg over another and snacked on some popcorn, watching the interaction. It was free entertainment; who was she to pass it up? John B. flattened his tone with his next words. "I borrowed it for a few hours. Okay? And then I brought it back intact and unharmed."

"Minus air," Sarah replied.

"Look, please don't tell him," John B. pleaded. "Okay? He'll fire me."

"So what are you gonna do?" asked Sarah boredly. "Pull a gun on me?"

"I didn't know JJ was gonna do that."

"That's convenient to believe," Sarah scoffed. She was clearly upset with what had happened to Topper, and Lilla knew she had a right to be, but Topper had been trying to kill John B. None of them were completely innocent. "Maybe you should get better friends," she suggested with a shrug.

"Well, maybe you should get a better boyfriend," John B. retorted.

Sarah scoffed again. "Like one who doesn't poach?"

"I think you both are right," Lilla interjected, causing them to look at her. She shrugged, like what she was saying was no big deal. "Topper sucks ass." Sarah gives her a bored look at this. "And JJ is, well... JJ."

John B. just focused back on Sarah. "Look, please, just don't tell him. Okay?"

"Relax," Sarah replied, smiling. Then she looked down as she shook her head. "I'm not gonna tell him anything." Her eyes caught the boy's again, still with a small smile on her face. "Your secret's safe with me, John B."

"I won't tell him either," Lilla added, just for reassurance. John B. and Sarah looked at her again as she smirked and focused on the Pogue. She leaned forward, grabbing her night-old soda can from off the table, and lifted it as if she were toasting him.

John B. just smiled before facing Sarah again.

"Okay, you can leave now," the blonde told him, moving to lay back down.

"Right." He went back to being awkward. "Yeah. Uh..." He headed towards the door, while Sarah put her back to him, clearly planning on going back to sleep. He glanced back and forth between her and the scuba gear, his attention going to Lilla a few times, seeing that she was still staring at him with a smirk. "I'll leave—I'll leave that right there."

"Bye," Lilla and Sarah said as he finally stepped outside.

"Later," he replied, leaving the door open.

And with that, he was gone. Lilla quickly got up from her seat, setting her can and popcorn back down on the table. She made her way over to Sarah and laid down with her, being the big spoon, even though she was the shorter of the two. After that, they went back to sleep, neither realizing that Wheezie had heard the whole conversation.

━━━━━

✹ . . . IT WAS A LITTLE LATER IN THE DAY. LILLA AND Sarah were on an incline in front of a little girl, the former standing while the latter squatted and was holding her small hand. She apparently had lost her stuffed animal when Agatha hit. That was all they knew, and before Sarah could ask her anything else, Lilla felt eyes on them. She looked up, seeing none other than Rafe, Topper, and Kelce standing just a bit away from them and watching them. Her eyes narrowed as she trained her focus on them, uncrossing her arms from her chest as she stormed over to them, determination in her steps.

She had not forgotten about that letter, and she was going to get it back.

As she came to a stop in front of them, all three pairs of eyes falling on her, she offered them an obviously fake, sweet smile. "Hi," she said kindly, though, in the back of her mind, she was murdering all three of them so no one else would ever find out about her past crush on Rafe.

"Hey," they all replied.

Then Lilla grabbed Topper and Kelce by the front of their Polos and pulled them down so that they were closer to her height, where they usually stood a good eight to nine inches taller than her. It was really a curse and a blessing just being a mere inch above five feet tall. "If you two ever mention that letter to anyone, JJ Maybank won't be the last one aiming for Topper's head, and the same goes for you, Kelce."

Their eyes were a bit wide, and they nodded quickly.

She smiled again, then let them go, pushing them backwards while she was at it. They stumbled a bit and soothed down the front of their shirts, looking at her almost offendedly. Her attention fell on Rafe as she narrowed his eyes. He was smirking at her, seeming amused by her anger and frustration. She moved so that she was in front of him, crossing her arms over her chest. Then she pointed a telling finger in his face. "Don't think you're off the hook either, Rafe. I wrote that letter when I was twelve. It was nothing. Did I have a silly little crush on you for a month or two at some point? Yes, unfortunately."

"Which is it?" He raised a brow, which she could barely see over his dark sunglasses. "Was it nothing, or was it just a silly little crush you had when you were twelve?"

She opened her mouth to answer, but she couldn't for the life of her come up with a response. It hadn't been nothing; she knew that. And it had been a silly little crush—which had actually been neither silly nor little—but she didn't want him to know that. She just huffed out a breath, rolling her eyes.

"You're so cute when you're mad," he told her, ruffling her hair.

She smacked his hand away. "Don't touch me."

"What's she doing?" Topper asked, and Lilla looked over at him. He was looking past her and in the direction Sarah had been. Lilla quickly turned around to focus on her best friend, seeing her walking towards the boat on wreckage, her arms held up to keep her balance.

"Watch her fall and make a big drama out of it," Rafe said, also focusing on his sister.

Lilla rolled her eyes at his words, knowing that he was only upset because he didn't always get his daddy's attention. Boohoo, cry me a river, she thought. Her arms were still folded together over her chest as she watched Sarah, praying to God that she didn't fall and get hurt. She knew that there were some wires that had fallen; she hoped they weren't live. Her heart was beating out of her chest as she moved away from the boys and went over to the little girl's side. She stopped next to her, both of their eyes on Sarah, who continued towards the boat. "Sarah, please be careful."

"Hey, there's fourteen thousand volts in those wires," some woman called out from the porch of the house behind them, and Lilla presumed it was someone related to the little girl, ignoring how her heart sank a bit, thumping loudly against her chest.

Sarah smiled at them and then let out a small shriek as she almost fell. She regained her balance, however, not seeming too worried about it all. Lilla loved her for being like this—so carefree—but it also gave her the sense that her hair would be gray by the time she hit twenty years old if Sarah continued being her best friend and she had to watch her put herself in danger just to help out.

"Hey, Sarah, be careful," Topper called out, still standing next to Rafe and Kelce.

"Oh, you gotta be kidding me," Rose muttered under her breath as she walked closer to the scene. Lilla cast a short glance back at her as she felt the little girl step closer to her, grabbing onto her shorts for comfort. Lilla just placed a hand on the back of her head as she refocused on Sarah. "Sarah, get down now!" the blonde's stepmom ordered.

"Rose, calm down. I'm an athlete," Sarah told her, looking up at her and still smiling as she moved a bit forward. She focused back on her shoes, carefully watching each step she took. "I got this."

Rose took off her sunglasses and squinted her eyes due to the brightness of the day. "You're gonna get electrocuted! Get down!" She shouted, putting her sunglasses back on. She was clearly upset and tired of Sarah's carelessness. "Are you kidding me? Get—"

Sarah looked at her as she shimmied her shoulders.

Rose sighed. "Oh my... No."

"Sarah, that's not funny," Topper chimed in.

Lilla didn't know why they were bothering; Sarah wasn't going to listen to them.

"When I tell you dad about this, Sarah..." Rose threatened, sounding frustrated and worried.

Sarah just turned around and stepped onto the wrecked boat. "I see her," she called back to the little girl, who giggled in excitement from beside Lilla.

"Sarah!" Rose continued sternly. Her stepdaughter didn't listen and began digging around in the boat, no doubt looking to grab the stuffed animal. "I swear to God when I tell your dad—"

Sarah screamed as her foot slipped and fell down into the boat.

"Sarah!" Lilla, whose heart had dropped to her ass, Topper, and the little girl shouted in panic. The young girl sounded scared, while Lilla and Topper were worried, both of them (along with Kelce) moving closer to the water where the wreckage was. Even Rafe stepped a little bit closer. Their eyes landed on Sarah, who was lying on her back, looking as if she were hurt. Then she focused on them, grabbing the wire and waving it around as she smiled.

Topper and Lilla both let out breaths of relief but also annoyance with how easily they'd panicked. Rafe and Kelce just began laughing, along with Sarah, who sat up in the boat, still holding the wire. "It's disconnected," she told them, a bright smile on her face.

Kelce hit Topper's shoulder. "She got you."

Lilla noticed Rose storming away, putting her sunglasses back on, and muttering something under her breath. She just smiled and shook her head as she refocused on her best friend. "Sarah, that wasn't funny," she told her pointedly, though she was holding back her amusement. "I swear, you're going to be the death of me."

"Absolute suckers," Sarah teased, grabbing the stuffed animal, and continued to laugh. "Topper, you should see your face."

"Yeah. Okay, yeah, I'm sorry that I care." He held his hands up in defense, causing Lilla to roll her eyes as Sarah stood up in the boat. Someone clearly couldn't take a joke, she thought, keeping it to herself. "All right, guilty."

Rafe placed his hand down on Topper's shoulder. "Congrats, pussy. You're officially her bitch," he teased, causing Kelce to laugh even more. Lilla tried to hold hers in, not needing Rafe to think that she found him funny. "But I do think you have some competition," he added, nodding to Lilla, who gave him a bored look.

Topper and Kelce focused on her too, seeing her arms crossed over her chest. She gave them all a conniving smirk. "I think it's clear who's better out of us two. Right, Top?" She watched as Topper rolled his eyes and turned his attention to his girlfriend again, who was dancing in the boat and holding up the stuffed elephant in the air.

"Officially, did you know that? You're officially her bitch, all right?" Rafe continued to taunt, while Topper ignored him, looking at Sarah with a blank stare and frustration.

Lilla just turned to him, patting his arm, though it made her want to disinfect her hand afterwards. "Come on, Top, lighten up. It's not like she tried to drown someone," she said, giving him a tight smile as she reminded him of what he'd done at the boneyard.

He just gave her a bored look, and she continued smiling.

Lilla really didn't know what Sarah saw in him.

━━━━━

✹ . . . LATER, AFTER EVERYTHING HAD SETTLED,
Lilla was determined to get the letter back from Rafe. She had to. She had work later, and she didn't know what other time she'd be at Tanny Hill and not with Sarah (since the girl was talking with Topper, who still had his panties in a twist about what happened earlier that day), so she was taking this opportunity.

She walked upstairs and made her way down the hall, going to Rafe's room, which, unfortunately, was right next to the one that the Camerons had reserved for her whenever she stayed there, despite her always sleeping in Sarah's room. When she stopped in front of the door, she shook her arms and hands, trying to prepare herself for the lie she was going to tell to get him out of his room, and then knocked on the door. She didn't wait for a response before opening the door, liking to catch Rafe off guard.

But when her eyes caught onto him with just a towel wrapped around his waist, fresh out of the shower, his hair wet, and water droplets running down his very, very toned chest and stomach and going down to his very prominent V-line, they went wide. She was sure she gasped, but she didn't think too much of it as he looked up at her, and she turned around to stare at the door frame. "Uh..." She cleared her throat, aimlessly pointing her finger out into the hallway and making sure not to take a glance at him again. "Sarah needs your help with something." She didn't; she was still talking with Topper, but he didn't need to know that.

"Okay," he replied, and she could practically hear the smirk in his tone, no doubt to her reaction at seeing him in nothing but a towel.

She tried not to think about it too long or let that image replay in her mind as she walked away and closed the door. Instead of going back downstairs, she darted to her room, opening the door quietly and entering. She closed the door behind her, placing her ear against it so that she could hear when he left his room. And when she did, a moment later, she slowly opened her door to peek her head out. She saw Rafe, now wearing shorts, walking away from his room and towards the stairs. He was still shirtless, and she tried not to ogle at his muscular back too long.

God, she was so touch-deprived.

She hadn't been with anyone since she and her ex broke up a year and a half prior.

When he was gone from her sight, she waited another couple of seconds before she exited her room, shutting the door behind her and going to his room. She opened the door, glad that he wasn't the type to lock his door, and stepped inside. She closed the door behind her so no one else could see her in there. Then she began searching for the letter, going through his desk and dresser drawers. It wasn't in any of those. So she checked under his bed, in case he had a special box to keep important things in (everyone had those, right?). It was safe to say that Rafe was the cleanest male she'd ever been in the room of, since there was barely anything under his bed. But he was still a typical guy, meaning his room made her want to disinfect her whole body once she left.

Sighing, she got up from the floor and placed her hands on her hips. She looked around the room, and her eyes landed on his nightstand. It was like a light bulb went off in her head. She cursed herself for not thinking of checking in there. The nightstand was always the place to carelessly toss random things in; at least, it was for her. She was sure he'd probably keep it in there. It wasn't as if he cared about the letter; he was just keeping it to mess with her. That was the only logical explanation for it.

Opening the top drawer, Lilla began searching through it, trying to find the stupid letter before he came back and caught her. She shuffled through all of the contents, ignoring that there was a bottle of lotion and a box of condoms in there, among some other random things. At least he was prepared and safe. When she couldn't find it in the top drawer, she closed it and opened the bottom one. Again, ruffling through his things, she searched and searched until...

"Ah-ha!" She smiled as she spotted the folded paper. She grabbed it and unfolded it to make sure it was what she thought it was. And as she read, she realized it was. Her twelve-year-old words and sloppy handwriting were a dead giveaway of that fact. Now having the letter, she closed the drawer, knowing that she needed to get out of there as quickly as possible.

If Rafe came back and caught her, he'd—

Her thoughts were cut off as, just when she was about to open the door, the knob turned and it was opened for her. Her eyes went wide as she froze in place and cursed her breath. In walked Rafe, whose eyes fell on her immediately. She didn't even get a second to think about hiding the letter before he snatched it out of her hand.

"Give that back!" she demanded, moving closer to him. She tried to snatch it back from him, but Rafe held it high in the air, not allowing her to remotely get close to reaching it. He was over six feet, and she was barely over five feet. This was one of the times that her height was a curse. She grabbed his arm, her body pressing against his, and tried to pull it down so she could get the letter from his hand. But he didn't budge as his other hand landed on her stomach and gently pushed her back from him. She fought and fought against him as he smirked, not even realizing that he was guiding her to his bed. Not until the back of her thighs hit the edge of it and she fell backwards.

She gasped as he fell on top of her but didn't allow his full weight to fall on her. She was fully aware of his body against hers, however, and the fact that he was resting between her legs and shirtless, the warmth of his skin passing through her clothes. She struggled against him, still trying to get the letter. But he captured her wrists with the hand that wasn't holding the letter and pinned them above her head, not letting her almost grab the paper anymore. She continued to move against him despite it, trying to get out of his hold, but still, he wouldn't budge.

Both of them were breathing heavily as they stared at each other, Rafe with a smirk and Lilla with a scowl. She watched closely, having no choice, as he leaned in, his eyes glancing to her lips, which absolutely made her feel nothing. "Oh, so you are obsessed with me? Sneaking into my room like this," he teased, finding her eyes again as she glared at him. "I always had a feeling you were."

"I am not obsessed with you, and I never have been," she retorted, ignoring that she had glanced at his mouth a couple of times too. It was right there; how could she not? It didn't mean anything. Nothing whatsoever, and she'd die on that hill. She bucked her hips up a few times, still fighting him as she tried to pull her wrists from his grip.

The hand holding the letter fell to her hip, pushing her back down against the bed and stopping her movements. "Don't do that, Lilla," he muttered through his teeth, squeezing his eyes shut, and she realized what she had been doing. She hadn't even thought of it in that way until he said something.

She swallowed the lump in her throat as she looked over his face, not moving her hips anymore, not moving at all. Suddenly she felt extremely hot, her cheeks heating, and she was sure it had to do with having no air conditioning. It had to be that, nothing else. It couldn't be anything else. She wouldn't let it be. She heaved in a few breaths as he opened his eyes again to stare into hers. "Get off of me, Rafe," she told him quietly, her voice a bit raspy and barely above a whisper. She needed some space, especially with how aware she was of everything about him.

He did as told and rolled off of her, letting go of her wrists, his back falling onto his bed but still clutching onto the letter in the other hand. They were lying next to each other for only a second because she got up with impressive speed. He watched her as she straightened out her clothes and moved the hair from her face by leaning her head back and shaking it, causing her hoop earrings to dangle with the movement. She was looking anywhere but at him as he propped himself up on his elbows. He took in her expression, wanting to know what was running through her mind besides the obvious plan to murder him in his sleep. She closed her eyes for a long moment, her chest rising and falling heavily, before she opened them again and faced him.

Lilla took a step closer to him, narrowing her eyes. She looked down at the letter clutched in his hand, and he noticed. She wanted to snatch it from him, but she wasn't ready to risk being under and pinned by him again. She didn't know if her heart could handle it. It was already beating so rapidly that she thought it was going to explode. He had such an effect on her—he always had—and she hated it so much, that was why she always ignored it and claimed hatred. Her hatred wasn't entirely false either, though; he was just so annoying that it was hard to get along with him. Such a pompous dick.

Finding his gaze again, Lilla saw him staring up at her from where he was still lying on his bed. And, for a moment, they just were silent and staring at each other. Then the moment was over, and she huffed out a breath, turning around. She stormed over to the door and opened it harshly. Without saying another word or letting him, she rushed out. Unfortunately, she still heard his arrogant ass laughing as she shut the door loudly behind her.

God, he was so frustrating.

She quickly made her way down the hallway, down the stairs, and to the front door. Luckily, her things were already in her car, so she didn't have to go and get her bag from Sarah's room. She exited the house, not even planning on saying bye to her best friend before she left. She was too confused about how she was feeling. It was quite clear to her that she was irritated and frustrated, but there was also something else lingering throughout her, and she couldn't—or didn't want to—put a name to it.

Her steps were basically stomps as she went to her car, not wasting a second to open the driver's door and get inside. She found her purse in her passenger seat. She knew her keys were in there, so she hit the push-to-start button to crank her engine. Then everything that happened flashed in her mind, and she let out a sigh, her head falling against the top of her steering wheel. She knew it was all she'd be able to think about for the rest of the day.

How was she supposed to work?

━━━━━

✹ . . . SURPRISINGLY, LILLA HAD BEEN POWERING through her shift at Los Morales pretty well. She sat people, got them their drinks, took their orders, and brought them their food without any mistakes or hiccups. She put on her sweet voice and kind smile all while she did it, too. No one was the wiser that her mind was spiraling and she was planning on how to successfully get the letter back from Rafe since her original plan had gone south.

But as she went to the bar to get the round of drinks a table had ordered, all of that wellness faded just slightly when her eyes caught onto Rafe. He was sitting at the bar, talking to the bartender—asking for a drink presumably. Lilla came up to the bar, setting her tray down. "Don't bother with him, Thomás; he isn't quite old enough to drink yet."

"I swear I was going to check his ID," Thomás quickly stated, holding his hands up in defense.

"I'm sure you were," she replied with a smile, genuinely meaning it, as Rafe focused on her. She watched as Thomás smiled back and walked away, then she focused on the boy next to her.

Rafe looked her up and down, taking in her work attire—a black button-up, black slacks, black shoes, with her signature hoop earrings, the sleek and silver name tag with her name on it pinned to her shirt, and her hair pulled back in a low, resting at the nape of her neck, slicked-back, and short (since her hair was only shoulder-length) ponytail. She was wearing as much makeup as she usually did, but it was nothing bold since that didn't really fit with her style or work attire. Los Morales was a lot more formal than other restaurants on the island, such as The Wreck. It was more made for Kooks, while The Wreck was made for Pogues or Kooks who didn't want something they had to dress up for, which was a very little amount. Los Morales was the restaurant one went to if they wanted to order a glass of wine and properly eat Peruvian dishes; The Wreck was what they went to if they wanted to crack open a cold beer and get their hands messy eating seafood.

He lightly smacked his hand on the bartop, smirking at her. "Thanks for that."

"It wasn't for you," she retorted, leaning a bit closer. "I'm not going to let my parents get in trouble for their restaurant serving underage people. They've worked too hard for it to be ruined because of you, of all people."

He nodded, looking away from her as he stood up from the stool he'd been sitting on. His hand was still resting on the bartop as he moved closer to her, finally finding her gaze again. He looked down at her, still with that same smirk. "I had fun earlier," he said, his voice low, thinking back to what happened in his room as he brushed a bit of hair that had fallen from her ponytail behind her ear.

It was such a pain trying to keep her short hair in the hairstyle her whole shift with how much she was moving, going from table to table, the bar, and the kitchen, and making sure everyone was enjoying their experience. She'd need to bobby pin it before too long.

She smacked his hand away, looking away from him for a second as she tried to keep herself calm. Her eyes narrowed when she met his gaze once more, her arms crossing over her chest. She took a step forward, her voice lowering. "I am going to get that letter back one way or another." And she wasn't lying. One thing to note about Lilla Gabriela Morales-Grey was that she was determined and would do what she needed no matter what it took. She didn't need that letter to be in Rafe Cameron's hands any longer than it already had been.

"I'm sure you will."

She rolled her eyes at his cockiness and grabbed her tray off of the bartop. "Goodbye, Rafe," she told him and began walking away. She was aware that he was staring at her ass, which she would admit her slacks hugged nicely (so she checked herself out in the mirror sometimes before leaving the house for work, big deal). She also knew that she still needed to put in the orders with Thomás, so she found him at the end of the bar, ignoring Rafe's eyes still on her. She waited until he was done with his customer and then told him what she needed. She stood there until he was done making the drinks and setting them on her tray, and then she grabbed it, thanked him, and walked away. She'd already wasted too much time talking to Rafe; she needed to get the orders to the customers before they got a stick up their ass due to the wait.

So, quickly, she was trying to get to their table but also did not look like she was rushing. Her fast pace almost caused her to run into someone though. "Whoa," she muttered, coming to a stop before she ran into them, saving all of the drinks from being on both of them and the floor. "Sorry," she told them, not wanting to be rude but also needing to go. But as she was about to pass them, their hand fell on her arm, and she looked over, only to see Sarah staring at her. Her brows furrowed at the sight of her best friend, wondering why she was there. She was still wearing the same clothes from earlier, so she clearly wasn't dining with her family, which would've made Rafe's presence understandable. "Oh, hi, Sarah." She smiled. "What are you doing here?"

Sarah's expression remained blank, and Lilla felt like she was in trouble for something. "Did you tell Topper about John B. being on the boat this morning?" She asked, taking a step closer and keeping her voice low so on-listeners wouldn't hear.

Confusion crossed Lilla's face, the knowledge of needing to get the drinks to her table and check in on her others in the back of her mind. "Why would I tell Topper that?" It was a valid question; she would never, ever talk to Topper about something like that. Or anything at all, really. They weren't exactly friends, and Sarah knew that.

Sarah sighed, running a hand through her hair. Something was clearly bothering her, and Lilla ventured that she and Topper had argued about John B. since she was asking about it. "I noticed you talking to him earlier when I was getting that stuffed animal from the boat. What was that about?"

Lilla thought back to her conversation with Kelce and Topper. "I didn't tell Topper about this morning; I was talking to him about the letter." She cleared her throat, chuckling awkwardly. "I was actually threatening him about it."

Sarah furrowed her brows. "Threatening him?"

"Yeah."

"What exactly did you say?"

Lilla's words came flashing back. If you two ever mention that letter to anyone, JJ Maybank won't be the last one aiming for Topper's head, and the same goes for you, Kelce. She cleared her throat again, half-shrugging. "I just told him and Kelce not to mention the letter to anyone. That's all."

"Oh," Sarah muttered, looking around the floor for a moment. She ran her hand through her hair again and let out a sigh before focusing on the girl in front of her once more. "I'm sorry." Her hands dragged down her face like she was stressed. "Topper and I had a fight because someone told him about John B., and you were the only other person on the boat this morning, so a part of me thought it might've been you," she explained, giving Lilla an apologetic look. "It was stupid of me; I know that you would never do something like that. You know how Topper is—how he can... overreact."

"Yeah." Lilla nodded. She wasn't upset that Sarah had thought it was her. If the roles were reversed, she probably would've had the same thought, just based on circumstances. "It's okay, Sarah." She gave her a side hug since she was still holding the tray of drinks. She could already see the stern looks and fake smiles she would be getting once she finally got the table. Old rich people could be such assholes. She pulled back from Sarah, who looked tired. "Do you have any other ideas of who could've told him?"

"No," she confessed, sighing.

Lilla gave her a look of sympathy. "I don't like Topper, but I do hope things work out for you. I'm sure he'll get over it soon," she assured with a kind smile, placing her hand on Sarah's arm. "Now, I would love to stick around and talk, but I really need to get these drinks to my table. They've been waiting for a while, and I know they're getting frustrated."

Sarah lightly laughed. "All right. I'll see you later, Lil."

"Bye, Sarah," she replied, and then walked away. And when she finally reached the table, the diners' faces were just as she suspected—stern and bored but with fake smiles planted on them. She put a fake smile of her own on her face and began handing out the drinks. "Sorry for the wait."

✹ . . . ella's thoughts ! · ˚.‧ .
teehee 🤭

lilla is such a topper hater and i love it- like her and john b are the leaders of his hate club fr (bc i can't stand him i fear; he's cute but annoying as hell). she's also so real for ogling rafe bc same 😋

neways, i hope you enjoyed this chapter!

make sure to comment and vote 🫶🏻

kisses.

━━━━━━━━━━━━ 𝗦𝗛𝗔𝗠𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗦𝗦
𝗔 𝗟𝗢𝗩𝗘 𝗦𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗬 . . . © -lostgardens, 2024

word count. 6358.   written.  9.11.24.   published. 10.17.24.