𝟎𝟓𝟗.    𝐬𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲

the night we met ──── lord huron

☀︎ 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐥𝐲𝐧'𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐯

𝖮𝖭 𝖳𝖧𝖤 𝖳𝖧𝖨𝖱𝖳𝖸－𝖥𝖨𝖱𝖲𝖳 𝖣𝖠𝖸，𝖨 𝖪𝖭𝖤𝖶 𝖶𝖤 𝖶𝖤𝖱𝖤 𝖦𝖮𝖨𝖭𝖦 𝖡𝖠𝖢𝖪 𝖧𝖮𝖬𝖤．I didn't just have some kind of epiphany, I just woke up to the sound of a plane flying overhead. It was time to go home and leave our paradise behind.

For one shining moment, I didn't want to wake JJ and tell him the bad news as I knew how much he wanted to stay here, but I wasn't the one who woke him. No, Pope came rushing over to us first, shaking him awake, and bringing him out of his peaceful sleep so he could see what would be taking us off our island.

A plane. Somebody had found us.

Thirty-one days, and now somebody has found us. Who has found us? That's the real question.

I felt both relieved and disappointed, but I didn't have much time to consider the weight of what was happening as I was being pulled at, forced to come to a stand so early in the morning. Pope and Cleo had run ahead, waving their hands up at the plane in the hope of getting the pilot's attention.

John B practically yanked my arm out of its socket, insisting I help in screaming up at the air so this plane will land. I push forward, freeing my hand from John B's and instead taking JJ's as he remains silent beside me, staring up at the plane.

If I could read his mind, I'd guess he's hoping that thing doesn't land.

"Help us!"

I shake my head, watching the plane overhead, also not screaming as I can't really find the strength to do so. I know the plane is going to land, what's the point in yelling? That might've been some kind of an epiphany because I ended up being right.

The plane landed on the cliff, and we each headed over to greet the pilot.

I hear my friends cheer except for Kiara and JJ who sulk beside me. I've said it before. They do not want to leave the island.

It takes us several minutes to reach the pilot on account of us three not really wanting to leave paradise, but once we reach the plane, we're greeted by a man who I think has longer hair than me. He slips his sunglasses off, looking to each of us with a wide smile.

"Well, what do we got here?"

John B huffs out a laugh, peering over his shoulder at us. "You know, just some castaways."

"Well, I'll cross that off the grocery list." He steps off his plane, coming to join us, and the second he steps over, I notice Sarah tense from behind John B. She doesn't trust this man, not that I blame her after all she's been through. This pilot could've been sent by Ward or Rafe Cameron, but I seriously doubt it. They would've found us days ago had Rafe or Ward sent somebody.

"So what's the story? You guys sank a boat?"

"Jumped off one," he replies, shrugging like it's an everyday occurrence for us. He then points to Sarah and offers, "Her dad's."

Well why did he have to go and say that? We don't know this man, he certainly doesn't need to learn anything about us.

"In laws, man. They're tough." I understand Sarah's wariness. He does have an odd... vibe about him. It's kind of unsettling, I can't explain it. Maybe I'm just as paranoid as Sarah. "Well, have no fear. Jimmy's here."

Jimmy Portis── that's the pilot of this plane, The Flying Fish. One by one── reluctantly for JJ, Kiara and I── we sit on the plane, leaving Poguelandia behind us until JJ and I find a way to come right back here in the future. I sit in between John B and Sarah, watching as Jimmy gets himself comfortable, prepared to fly.

"So what were you doing all the way out here?" JJ asks, leaning in to speak with Jimmy.

"I got a little guide outfit in Saint Vincent," he tells, and I couldn't care less. Sorry. "I was spotting fish."

"What were you spotting?" JJ asks, but I suspect he's asking for more than just curiosity.

"You know, the usual," he speaks. "Wahoo."

JJ's eyebrows furrow, and he nods, not saying anything else which, for him, is strange. His eyes flick to mine, and if there were ever a time to read his eyes, now would be that time, but I have no idea what he's trying to tell me. Does he not like Wahoo? Odd. It doesn't matter how long I've known him, I struggle to read him at times.

Jimmy takes off, and we soar over the island we called home for the past thirty days.

Bye, Poguelandia. Until we meet again.

With Jimmy's attention on the sky ahead of us, JJ leans in to speak with us, hopefully telling me what that eye flicker was. "Wahoo don't run in September. Ever. Alright?" Oh. Yeah, I didn't get that from his eyes. I don't know fish that well. "So whoever this man is, he's not a fisherman," he tells, his voice barely above a whisper.

I knew there was something peculiar about him.

"Maybe the run just starts earlier out here," Pope suggests.

JJ shakes his head, not convinced. "In the Caribbean? No chance."

"No, I know what this is." We look to Sarah, and I already know what she's going to say before she speaks. "He's working for my dad, and he's probably been looking for us the entire time."

I mean, it's, of course, a possibility── one that's crossed my mind several times over the course of thirty-one days, but it can't be true. I feel like they would've found us much sooner than this. No, I don't want to believe that this guy is working for Ward. I can't believe that.

There is one way to try and find out more about this supposed fisherman slash pilot who may be working for Ward. His bag hangs over the back of his seat, right next to JJ's leg, basically begging to be opened and snooped through by us.

John B, for some reason has been deemed the master distracter── if that's a thing── so we give him the job of distracting Jimmy long enough for us to rummage through his bag, checking to see if he has anything that tells us who he really is.

John B distracts Jimmy, choosing to ask about his plane and the picture of the woman that's stuck to the front window. Barely paying any attention to Jimmy, I watch JJ as he peers into Jimmy's back, first pulling out a book.

A book called, The Loss of El Dorado is in JJ's hands, but we ignore that and he instead rummages through the other particulars in his bag, finding photos of the Coastal Venture── the ship I fell off. Why did Jimmy have this?

I'm not certain that Jimmy is working for Ward. Sure, the things in his bag, especially the photos, are a little suspicious, but that doesn't mean he's working for Ward. Sarah is absolutely certain that Jimmy is working for Ward, but I think she's more paranoid than the rest of us.

"Guys, whatever it is, it's happening fast. Look." Listening to Kiara, we each look out the windows of the plane. I'm unsure where we are, but according to Cleo, we're flying over Barbados.

"Why the hell are we in Barbados?" I ask, looking over to JJ.

"Okay, there's seven of us, one of him. You know my vote. We storm the cockpit." I'm afraid he's going to hear us any second as the cockpit is right there, inches away.

"Who's gonna fly the plane, dumbass?" John B snaps, knowing JJ, of course, hadn't thought that far ahead.

"I've seen Pope fly simulators." Not the same thing. Not in any way.

"I crop-dusted for my uncle last summer," he corrects. "This is not the same thing."

"We don't have time to pretend that's a real option."

"Do you have an idea?" JJ asks, looking at Kiara.

"Something safe." Boo. Boring. When have we ever taken the safe option?

"Why don't we just wait until the plane lands somewhere safe, and then we sneak out," Pope suggests, and while I'm all for being a little more reckless, we are up in the air with a man we don't know, so it's probably best to take Pope's suggestion, especially when he adds, "And if anyone comes to mess with us, we mad-dog them."

"I like the mad-dogging part," JJ speaks.

I reach for the belongings on JJ's lap. "Just put that back and be cool."

Carefully, he begins to put Jimmy's belongings back into his bag. John B decides to distract him, wanting to keep his attention away from us as JJ continues to push the book and pictures back into the bag hung over the chair.

With every passing second JJ wastes trying to stuff this stupid book into his bag, I become increasingly paranoid that Jimmy is going to catch on, and I don't imagine he's the kind of guy who takes things well.

Again, I hate that my head has once again predicted our fate. Jimmy notices, and as suspected, he does not react well.

"Hey, man! What the hell are you going?" He reaches his arm back, shoving JJ away from his bag. John B rushes forward to aid his best friend as Jimmy stops guiding the plane through the air, instead grasping JJ and attacking him.

Oh, this is just great.

I push at Jimmy's arm, insisting he get the hell of JJ. "Fly the plane!" I yell, really not wanting to die in a plane crash. It's not on my list of ways I want to die── not that I have one. "Fly the plane!"

"Fly the plane!" My friends each yell, finally bringing Jimmy back to our reality, but it's a bit too late.

Looking out the front window, I find that we're plummeting towards the water. Jimmy regains control of the plane, but he barely has any time to catch up and bring us back into the air, and I instead close my eyes, grasping the seat as we continue to drop and drop and drop to the water.

The plane hits the water with such a force that we end up falling forward, knowing into each other. Seconds later, water begins to fill the plane, and if we don't get out now, we're going to die, and I refuse to die.

John B moves first, kicking open the back of the plane. "We gotta get out before it sinks." He looks out of the opening, finding several people to be gathering at the beach. "They don't look friendly."

"No, they look very unfriendly."

My head hurts, and I can only imagine I fell into somebody else's head when we crashed. I don't know, but the pain in my head is not settling. I also don't want to be in this water, not for any longer than I need to.

"We gotta go."

One by one, I watch my friends move out of the plane, pushing themselves into the water and heading towards dry, friendly land. Cleo is out first, followed by Sarah and Pope, then Kiara and JJ, and just before I head out, I look over my shoulder to see Jimmy.

I don't trust him, not for a second, but he seems to be unconscious, and if she stays here any longer, he will probably drown and die.

"Brooke, come on," John B shouts, pushing himself out of the plane.

"I'm coming." Not yet. "Go!" He heads off with our friends, and I move away from the exit, hating myself for being righteous in the moment, but I can't, in good conscience, leave Jimmy behind to drown.

"Brooke, get out before it sinks!" I ignore JJ, pushing myself through the sinking plane to reach Jimmy who remains unconscious with his head on the console. He's bleeding from the head, but he's still breathing. He's fine, but he won't be if I leave him in this plane.

"Brooke, come on!"

I sigh loudly, shaking Jimmy gently but he doesn't stir. "Great," I utter. "You know, I hate you." And myself.

Without knowing which way my friends have gone, I use the little strength I have to slide my arms around him so I can pull him out of the plane he so stupidly crashed. I kick my feet, desperate to stay afloat as Jimmy weighs on me. Oh, I really do hate myself for doing this, but I can't stomach to have a dead guy on my hands.

He weighs like a dead person though, and as I kick my feet, pulling us out of the plane and into the water, I become faintly aware that I may be screwed once I pull him to his safety.

I just, for some stupid reason, couldn't let him die. I can't let somebody die when I could've prevented it.

The moment the water becomes shallow and I stand, I'm able to drag him the rest of the way, heaving his unconscious body onto the beach where a few civilians have stopped to observe what's going on. The moment he's safe, he begins to cough and splutter, getting the water out of his system, and it's like deja vu.

Just thirty-one days ago, I was coughing for air after nearly drowning.

Jimmy peers over at me as I attempt to catch my breath. I look away, finding that I am not near my friends. In fact, I can't see them.

"Thank you," is what I hear Jimmy say.

I snap my head back to him, the stinging in my temple returning. I can't catch a break, can I? "You lied to us," I breathe out, wishing my friends were near me. Of course I went in the opposite direction to them. "Who are you?"

Before Jimmy replies, I feel somebody grab my arm forcefully. I squirm, attempting to break free but then another set of hands grasp my other arm. "What the f──" I'm being held back by guards. I don't know who they think they are, but they need to get their hands off me. "Get off me!"

There's guards on the beach, on the bridge and on the road behind me. I'm entirely surrounded, and for what? I didn't do a single thing wrong. This bastard I just saved should be pulled away, not fucking me.

"Get off me!" I yell, trying my best to squirm from the tight grip these guards have on my arms.

It's useless, it's like fighting with bodybuilders.

The guards that have a hold on me begin to pull me away, dragging me towards one of their buggies. "Let me go!"

Jimmy is standing behind me, and I look over my shoulder, hoping Karma reigns down on him very, very soon as he should be the one who's getting dragged, not me. "I saved your life." Oh, how I wish I hadn't bothered. "You bastard."

"I know. I know. I'm sorry. I'm gonna try to help you, okay?" I don't believe him. I should've just let him die. I continue to fight, still looking at Jimmy as he speaks, "Look, if you don't fight, if you just do what they say, these guys prob... probably won't hurt you."

"I'm probably going to kill you when I see you again," I spit, going against his comment and fighting with the guards to get away from them but their hold on me tightens, my arm feeling like the bones will break.

Where the hell are my friends?

"What did Ward promise you?" I yell, wanting to know if this bastard really was working for Ward this entire time, but his facial expression is blank.

His eyebrows furrow, confused. "Who?"

I'm shoved into the vehicle, no longer looking at Jimmy as I realise that Ward is not behind this.

If it's not Ward, who the hell is kidnapping me?

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❀ soph speaks

rafe & brooke are about to see each other again . . .