"I'm really glad we're getting to hang out." Kie said honestly as she walked side by side with Bali, "The only time I knew you, you were completely different."

Kie and Bali spoke a little freshman year when she wasn't herself at all but that had really only been it.

"Times have changed, I guess." she used the excuse with a shrug, "I just figured you never wanted to talk or anything."

"No, it's not that. I just worry, and get anxious with Sarah around you all the time." Kie said honestly as she squinted from the sun, "And you two are so close."

"We haven't talked as much lately, honestly." Bali said back with a tight lipped smile, "After what happened with Topper and John B... I don't know, i'm just disappointed in her for not calling it off between them after that."

"Completely understandable. I mean, that was my real psycho shit." Kie said honestly as they set their chairs up, Pope and JJ not too far behind, "I don't mind you hanging around, mainly because you've helped us out a lot. But this hunt we're on is really important to us. If anything happens or goes wrong because we involve you-"

"It won't." Bali cut her off, "I get it. I'm not trying to take over or become apart of the four of you either. I just want to help John B with his dad and you guys get the gold, and if being a distraction is that important then i'm down for that."

Kie gave her a half grin, "You want anything from the stand?"

"A grape soda." Bali smiled as Kie walked off.

"Damn, you got through mama bear? Scary." JJ said as he laid the blanket across the itchy grass, looking up at her and flicking her ankle.

"People tend to soften up around me." Bali said back, kicking her sandles off.

"Not me, I get h-" JJ began before Pope yanked his ear lope harshly to shut him up.

"Are you even, like, okay to hang out with us here?" Pope questioned Bali as she sat down with a odd look. Pope looked around, "This is Kook territory."

Bali checked her surroundings, "My parents aren't here."

"No, but your friends are." Pope said back with a eyebrow raise.

"I have one friend, and I don't see her." Bali said with a snap of her fingers, "Aren't you suppose to have the brain cells?"

"Oh, she got you there." JJ laughed as he tapped Popes arm.

"Just saw Rafe." Kie said with a annoyed smile, handing Bali her grape soda, "He said, and I quote, 'tell your boy that we know what he did.' What is that?"

"What a weirdo." Bali said as she opened the can, "Probably all those drugs talking for him, freaking weirdo. He should be worrying about his own boy."

"Um, where is he?" JJ asked with a clear of his throat.

"Right there." Kie nodded over her shoulder. The three all turned to look back at Rafe, Topper, and Kelce standing a few feet away. Bali made eye contact with Topper as he gave her a questionable look, making her turn back around. She didn't want to feel weird hanging around pogues, not after they'd been the only people that had bothered to talk to her recently. But it was hard, especially when she could basically hear her mother and fathers lecture on reputation and how she will mess up the family.

"Great, the whole death squad." Pope said in a panic as his voice cracked.

"I can take em, all three." Bali said as she flexed her muscles and looked back at the three, "Been doing yoga with my mom, these arms are as strong as Iron Mans suit."

"Don't stare, both of you." JJ said as he grabbed Bali and Popes heads to turn them back around, "Just warning you, bro. If they corner me, i'm coming out swinging, okay? Slice and dicin'. I'm on edge right now."

"JJ, chill out. Your anxiety is going to travel to the rest of us." Bali scolded him with a harsh pat to the knee. She took a small chain off her neck, "Here, wear my amethyst, it'll help."

"Okay, okay, but if that doesn't work-" JJ said as he pulled the chain around his neck and held his bag up, "I got this right here."

"Yeah, yeah. So, we just gotta stay in the group. It's not like they'll get Bali, right? Her family's pretty freaking crazy, right?" Pope asked hopefully as he looked at the curly haired girl by his side.

Bali gave a tight lipped smile, "My dad took a crow bar to my ex boyfriends truck after he spread a rumor about me that put a bump in my rep."

"See, she's got us." JJ said as he snapped his fingers at her.

"I'm sorry, JJ. Please tell me that you did not bring a gun here." Kie said in disbelief as she stared at the blonde with a insane expression, "There are kids!"

"No, Kie, I didn't bring the gun. Everything's fine, okay?" he asked her, adjusting his hat with a nod.

"Oh, wow, thank you. That's really convincing. I love that, JJ." Kie said right back to him with a roll of her eye and a wave of her hand.

"JJ, are you a republican?" Bali asked with a alarming look his way.

"What? A- no, Bali, I don't know shit about politics, okay?" JJ said back at her words.

"Founding principal, you guys. No secrets amongst Pogues." Kie said as she looked at the pair of boys. Bali looked around awkwardly and met JJ's eye for half a second, "What is Rafe talking about?"

"Should I go while you have this talk?" Bali questions.

"No." Kie said back.

"Kie, it might go down tonight." Pope said as he grabbed her shoulders with a serious expression.

She gave a dumbfounded look, "What does that mean?"

"You should try dramatic theater, Pope." Bali said back with a hum.

"What did y'all do?" Kie asked the pair of guilty boys yet again.

"Deny, deny, deny." JJ mumbled over to Pope.

The movie began playing as the sun went down and the mosquitoes came out. Bali slapped one on her ankle as she held her knees to her chest, hands by her side. JJ looked over at her in the corner of his eye, watching her eyes dance across the scene. Her hand was rested so close to his, if he moved barely slightly then their pinkies would touch. JJ deceived to fake a cough into his elbow, when his hand came back down it placed on top of hers for a second before moving it away.

If anyone saw, it looked like a accident that was immediately fixed. Bali smiled, though a happy scene was played on the screen so it didn't give her away. It was her turn to fake a very dramatic, and louder then intended yawn. Her arms stretched over her head as a lion like noise came from her throat. Kie and Pope looked at her in disbelief at the noise and dramatic scene she pulled.

When her arms came back down, the right side of her arms ran down JJ's arm, making him smirk in the slightest.

"I gotta take a piss." Pope whispered over toward JJ, cutting the moment short.

"Hold it." the blonde said back.

"I can't hold it. I drank too much soda." Pope argued with a begging look.

"Don't hold it, Pope. You'll get a UTI." Bali whispered back, watching him become embarrassed at the fact that she heard him talking, "I've got cranberry juice hot and ready, don't worry."

"It's too exposed. They'll totally see us." JJ said back to Pope as his hand came up and placed it across Bali's face, shoving her back slightly.

"I gotta go." Pope panicked, "They're blocking the bathrooms."

"Come here. I know where." JJ said as he stood up, encouraging Pope to do the same quickly.

"Hey, where are y'all going?" Kie whispered toward the pair of boys.

"We gotta ring it out." JJ said back casually.

"You gonna hold it for each other?" Kie asked in disbelief as he walked off, "They're so weird."

"You don't go to the bathroom with you friends?" Bali asked her with a raise of her eyebrows.

"Well, my friends are three boys so, no, I do not." Kie said back with a mimicking look.

Bali gave a tight lipped smile, "Well, if you don't wanna go alone, i'll go with you."

Kie looked over at her, "And what will your precious parents say about that one?"

Bali pretended to think, "You know, I haven't thought about it."

Kie gave a small laugh as she punch her arm slightly, taking Bali by surprise. She returned the shoulder punch, harder then intended as Kie winced and look over. Bali cringed, "Sorry, sorry, sorry, Kie."

The pair watched the movie a moment longer before Kie turned to grab the bug spray, a panic look on her face, "They're gone."

"Huh?" Bali asked, turning around and following her eye sight, realized the death squad was no longer in their seats, "JJ and Pope aren't back yet."

"Come on, hurry." Kie said as she stood up. Bali stood quickly, following before turning back around to grab JJ's bag, sprinting after Kie, "Where did they go?"

"Back here, come." Bali said as she lead the way, encouraging Kie to follow close behind. They hurried down the small hill and around the trees. The first thing Bali saw was Kelce holding JJ while Rafe gave him harsh punches to the stomach, "Get off of him, Kelce!"

"Bali!" Kie shouted as Bal dropped the bag and ran over. She was stopped by arms suddenly grabbing her.

"Hanging around a bunch of dirty trash now, are you?" Topper mocked as he squeeze her face in his hand. Bali fought against him, "Saw that one coming. Maybe all that stuff Conner said about you was true, wasn't it? Sweet little Bali just can't keep her legs sh-"

Topper was cut off by Bali's knee coming up between his legs. She smiled when her let her face go, "Worry about your own legs, Top."

New arms grabbed hold of Bali from behind and lifted her, "Let me go!"

"Let go of him, Topper! Fascist asshole." Kie said to Topper when the blonde went to beating up on Pope once again, hitting him with JJ's bag.

"Yeah, get him, Kie!" Bali yelled before a hand clapped over her mouth. She bit their finger, making them drop her. When she turned around, she came face to face with Conner, her ex. Bali and Conner dated all of eight grade and then half of freshman year. She broke up with him because he'd gotten involved with the wrong crowd and started acting like a dick. Out of anger, he spread a lie saying she cheated on him with three different guys at the same time. Her dad destroyed Conners windshield with a crow bar when people around the island began to talk about Dante and Cassandras perfect little daughter being such a little whore.

Last Bali had heard, he was at college in Duke, "Miss me, Bal?"

Bali started in disbelief, it wasn't until she heard Kie cry out in pain that she turned around.

"Stay out of this, Kiara." Rafe scolded her after throwing her down onto the ground.

"Kie, you okay?" Pope asked, trying to go to her but Topper was behind him yet again. Bali was gonna go to Kie before Conner grabbed hold of her.

"Get off of me!" Bali shouted, fighting against him.

"Admit you did it, bitch!" Topper yelled at Pope.

"Yeah, admit it, Bali." Conner mocked her, holding her arms tightly.

Bali winced slightly when his fingers dug into her biceps, "Should have stayed at Duke, you loser ass."

Bali head butted him harshly, feeling like her nose was twisted. She gave a cry of pain, but it was enough to get him off of her. Bali turned and found JJ still getting punch over in over while being held down, Toppers hands around Pope throat. Kie was running off toward the large screen. Bali had a sudden thought, and that's when she knew her rep would be fucked after this one.

Rafe stopped mid punch when he heard the click of a gun behind him, the cold metal pushing into his skull, "Hey, Bali, put it down."

"Bali! No!" Kie yelled as she stopped her movement.

"Back off, Rafe, let him go." Bali said as she held it in her hands, looking over to Topper, "Cmon, Top, you too."

He dropped Pope as the lanky boy tried to catch his breath on the ground. The blonde gave her a look, "All right, put it down, we're all good."

"Let him go, Kelce, now." Bali said her cousins way, backing up to have sight of all of them.

"You don't even know how to use that." Rafe said in disbelief with a minor laugh.

Bali held the gun in one hand and aimed it to her right, not breaking eye contact as she shot the tree with zero hesitation. The shot made everyone at the outdoor theater panic and began to scram.

"Let's go. Rafe, let's go." Topper said. Kelce gave her look of disbelief.

"Nice to see you've changed." Conner commented as he stared at his ex before running off with his friends.

"Jesus christ, give me that." Kie said as she grabbed the gun and put the safety back on, "I had that under control."

"So did I." Bali said back.

"Hell yeah." JJ said as he winced when he walked their way. Kie was quick fo help Pope up a few feet away, "That was hot."

Bali wrapped his arm around him and made sure to help him walk while Kie did the same for Pope.

•

kylie speaks

mommy.

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