"Hey." Joey smiled as she walked toward John B, sat by the fire. "What are you doing?"

"Not sure." he slurred slightly, clearly on the verge of being drunk. "You?"

"Pretending to be cool." she sat down across from him. "You know what's absolutely insane and so stupid about this thing?"

John B hummed as Joey pointed to the fire. "Giant fire. Teenagers filled with alcohol."

He laughed suddenly. "I didn't think about that."

"Like, we probably should have went with an igloo or something." she said honestly, sipping the beer from the cup. "But, guess it's better then a massive pool party when everyone's in the pool."

"Not even enjoyable." John B took her beer and took his own sip. "Did you see Sarah?"

"Sarah?" Joey frowned her eyebrows, following his gaze as she looked back and saw her and Topper smiling, standing close together and as if they were perfectly happy. Clearly, friends just didn't look at each other like that. Joey blinked. "No, guess I didn't."

"Like, really? Show up here with your ex?" John B gave a look of disbelief. "Really?"

"You showed up with your ex." Joey pointed a finger at herself.

"True but it's different. We're mutual friend ex's that look for gold. They're just...they're not us." he tried to explain, passing her the beer back as Joey set it down, not gonna drink after him. "So, that guy show up?"

"What guy?" Joey leaned on one of her knees.

"The one you were telling me about last night. He show up?" he rose his eyebrows, leaning on his hands behind his hips.

"Yeah." Joey exhaled with an eyeroll. "And seems to forgot I exist now that he's got his OG girl."

"Screw him." John B waved her off. "You're the OG girl."

"What?" she had to laugh his way slightly.

"My OG girl." John B nodded his head at her. "My first lady."

"Yeah, your first lady that you totally dumped." Joey tried to laugh it off like it was some big joke.

"I didn't want to though." he pointed out, drinking the last of her beer. "And I tried to get you back for, like, ever."

"Right." Joey laughed. "Okay, let me ask you this. Say, I broke up with you, after already agreeing to do the long distance thing. Then, you end up moving back to OBX, and I tried to win you back. You're not even gonna be the slightest bit hesitant?"

"No." John B laughed at her. "You call that slightest? You tried to ruin my life on multiple occasions."

"I stand my case." she shrugged, flashing him a grin.

"But, if we would have gotten back together, non of this unnecessary bullshit would have happened." John B pointed out, Joeys heart sunk slightly. The break up was worse on her, because how differently their situation had been. He was just talking, but it was about to start affecting her. "We were so good together, right? I mean, I even got you in the water that one time."

"Yeah, if you exclude how much we yelled at each other and how I was mad at you 90% of the time." she nodded, her curls pushed back with a bandana.

"But, we weren't like that once we got together." he pointed out, giving her a little grin. "It was just before and after when we were like that."

Joey inhaled, biting the inside of her mouth. "We shouldn't be talking about this."

"What?" he frowned his eyebrows. "I'm just saying that if we got back together-"

"Okay, but you can't just say stuff like that." Joey stopped him quickly with a snappy tone. "I'm finally started to feel like I can move on to us just being friends and I don't want you getting in my head with this stuff again."

"No, no, i'm not trying to." he leaned forward and put his hands on her knees. "All i'm saying was that we were really good together and that if we'd have gotten back together, things would have been different."

"You had one fight." Joey wanted to glare at him. "You don't regret everything with Sarah because of one fight."

John B rubbed his drunken face. "But, it's different when it's you though."

Joey blinked, she hated that her heart started to beat quicker when he said it. Drunk, and talking nonsense, it still did something to her. She nodded. "Yeah, I know. That's what happens with your first relationship, it's different."

"You remember the night of Midsumemrs when you said you still loved me?" John B asked her, Joey inhaled as she looked away uncomfortably. "I still loved you then too."

"Yeah, and you chose Sarah after your Charleston trip." Joey grew bitter as she rose to her feet. "Because that's what guys did. They pick the girl that isn't a total handful and makes their lives hell. Both of you do and it's not fair for me to be in the middle."

"Joey." John B stumbled onto his feet as he stopped her. "I told you that if you had told me a day before that-"

"Yeah, before you met her, I know." she stared up at him with a shake of her head. "Doesn't make me feel any better knowing it took one day to not want me anyone."

"I did, I thought you hated me." he tried to say with wide eyes. "I tried to get you back for so long, so when Sarah came and I finally started to like someone else, it was refreshing to move on finally, because it was so clear you did too."

Joey shrugged. "I don't know what you want me to say, John B. You and Sarah break up so your first thought is to run back your your second choice?"

"That's what i'm trying to say, you weren't the second choice." he grabbed her shoulders with a shake of his head.

"Oh my god, hey guys." Sarah smiled as she walked toward the two. "Didn't know the two of you were gonna be here."

"What are you doing here?" John B asked her.

"Same thing you're doing here." she shrugged her shoulders, smiling as Topper walked over. "Hey, Top."

"Hey, Sarah." Topper put his arm around her, Joeys jaw clinched. "Hey, I think we should go."

"How are you guys doing, anyways?" Joey mocked. Non of her annoyance or anger was toward Sarah, just like non of Sarah's annoyance or anger wasn't toward Joey, they'd just both been stuck in the middle. "Spending so much time together now, almost like no one else exist anymore, right?"

"Her dad just died." Topper tried to defend Sarah.

"What am I to you, huh? Am I just another one? Like that?" John B shot at Sarah.

"So, you can run around with your ex but I can't run around with mine?" Sarah looked in disbelief.

"Joey and I are friends." John B defended himself.

"Topper and I are friends." Sarah shrugged in return.

"You having a blast at the bonfire, Top?" Joey shrugged with a tight lipped smile.

"Okay, i'm not the one making this a massive deal." Topper shook his head at her in disbelief.

"No, you just decide to be all lovey dovey with your ex and somehow i'm the one making a big deal out of things." Joey tossed her hands up with a laugh. "My apologizes!"

"So, it's cool for you to go on some goose hunt with your ex but I can't show you at a bonfire with mine?" Topper nodded at her in disbelief. "Makes a ton of sense, actually."

"It has nothing to do with you showing with Sarah, i'm happy you two are friends." Joey glared in disbelief. "But friends, that happen to be your ex, don't act the way you have been this entire night. You look like a love sick puppy that finally got what they wanted."

"What the hell do you think you and John B are?" Topper gapped at her with a stupid look. "How is it any different?"

"Because i'm not out here thinking just because he needs a friend and some comfort that it means we're gonna get back together." Joey shot his way with a finger in his direction.

"Okay." Topper laughed with a nod. "Guess I forgot you know how to read my mind."

Joey gave a dramatic bow. "My best feature."

"Hey!" Kelce got infront of Topper. "Back off pogue. You think one dinner makes you one of us?"

Joey cliched her jaw and hit Kelce in the face. John B gapped as him and Sarah stopped arguing. "Joey!"

"Why can't you ever mind your own business!" Joey yelled at Kelce as she went to punch him again before Topper pulled her back.

"Hey!" John B shoved Topper quickly.

"Do you wanna start shit right now?" Topper looked in disbelief. "They all know what happened last time."

"Just get out! Just go!" Sarah shoved between Topper and John B, pulling Joey back as Kelce started to yell at her.

"You wanna hit me?" Joey yelled at Kelce, pushed against Sarah's hold to try and get to him. "Come on, Kelce! Do it, you pussy!"

"You're trash!" he yelled at her. "That's all you are!"

"Rather be trash then my only personality trait being obsessed with other peoples lives." Joey shrugged his way. "Just leave, you dumb bitch!"

"What we should gonna do, Joey?" Kelce shrugged his shoulder. "Kill me like your boy killed Sheriff Peterkin?"

John B flung forward and knocked Kelce in the face next. Topper lunched for John B as Sarah yanked Joey away from the scene. Joey went after Kelce again, shoving him as he stumbled back. "How's trash now?"

Sarah fell off the side of the high grounds. John B gapped. "Sarah!"

"Joey! Yo!" JJ got infront of her when he saw how her and Kelce had been yelling at each other. "Back the hell off, man."

"Or what?" Kelce shrugged, JJ hit him in the face as he stumbled backwards.

Joey looked toward Topper and John B, seeing the way the blonde had his elbow into John B's neck. Joey grabbed his arm and tried to yank him off, Topper shoving her harshly as Joey, like Sarah, fell off the side. Topper realized it had been her. "Shit, I didn't know it was-"

But, she hadn't been affected by the fall, yanking him off John B with a shrug. "Why do you have to fight with murder involved!"

"He's an asshole!" Topper defended himself as Pope helped John B.

"So are you!" she yelled at him in disbelief. "You really wanna try to kill a dude for being with your ex? It's freaking weird, dude."

"I-" Topper started, getting a shove as Joey walked away from the bonfire.

•

kylie speaks

smh.