It was a few hours later, you were with Sarah, Wheezy, and Rose in the dining room, just having finished dinner. You've been having a decent time talking about nothing important with the girls, but you knew your aunt well enough to know the sigh she just let out meant she was changing the subject to something more serious, going by the look on Sarah's face, she learned that little tidbit about your aunt as well. "So, you've been pretty tight-lipped about where you were today, hun. I was worried, you don't know the area, especially after a hurricane, and you were gone since sunrise."

You laughed lightly, trying to downplay everything, you had no idea how everyone in the house would react to who you've been hanging out with, but you were pretty damn sure they'd disapprove of what you were doing with your new group of friends, "Come on, aunt Rose, I'm from Florida, you know damn well I know hurricanes better than anyone. I knew what to avoid and what was okay to explore. Don't worry, I was safe, I promise."

Sarah smiled at you, "Oh yeah, Rose, she seems like the type that knows how to take care of herself. Still, though, Peach, where did you go? If you wanted to explore, you could have asked me, I've been wanting to show you around since I heard you were coming to town. I'm excited to have another girl my age in the house."

"Uh-oh, I know that look," Rose chided Sarah, "I'm going to regret letting you two get to know each other, aren't I? I have a feeling you're already imagining up the trouble you two could get into." Lower, in almost a whisper to herself, she shivered as she said, "I know I am."

Both you and Sarah laughed, Rose was right; you could just imagine all the trouble you and your cousin-in-law could get into. In fact, you were close enough to her that neither of you had to say anything, and you both knew you wanted to get away from everyone else so you two could talk. So you both simultaneously stood, preparing to go to Sarah's room, when Ward walked into the dining room and stopped you, "Well, if it isn't my four favorite ladies, what are ya'll eating."

You had to admit, you kind of liked Ward. You were weary of him in the beginning; you thought your Aunt could do better, money or no, but after getting to know him, you've decided he was pretty cool. Especially after how easily he took you in, he'd been treating you as one of his own. And you had to admit, it didn't suck to have another adult care about you, especially one who you were starting to think of as a father figure. So you smiled at him, "Hey, Uncle Ward. We're doing good. I'm not even sure whatever fancy thing I was just fed, but it was delicious."

He laughed, "Well, good then, that's all that matters in the end anyway. What do you two have planned for tonight?" He asked both you and Sarah, "Is Topper coming over? Maybe have him invite a friend or two, we want Peach here to get to know the nice people of the town, to feel at home here."

"Jeez, Dad, she's been here a few days, and you're already trying to marry her off?"

"What? No! I just want her to have fun while she's here, and if perhaps she likes enough people and places around here, staying here permanently won't sound so bad anymore."

You tried to let the words flow over you. You know everyone thought your mom had abandoned you for good, or worse, something happened to her, but you knew better. She'd be back, she always came back. So you smiled at him and pretended as if you were fine with the possibility of staying there forever, "I do like it here so far. People are super nice, and it seems like a real community because of how everyone came together after Agatha."

"We really are. And I'm so happy you like it here. Rose never stopped talking about how much she missed you, so I'm sure it's like a dream come true for her. On that note, I was thinking, maybe you'd like to redecorate your room more to your liking, we already have workers here fixing everything after the hurricane, so adding one more room to fix up won't be a problem."

"Oh, I appreciate the thought, I really do, but I don't want to be a bother, I'm already eating and living in your house for free, there's no need for you to spend more just to make it even more comfortable for me."

Sarah cut in, "Don't be silly, my dad loves projects like this. I swear this will be more a treat for him than you."

You stayed quiet, unsure what to say, and Ward picked up on it. "Okay, well, just think it over and let me know if you change your mind."

"Okay, thanks."

Sarah decided family time was over, so she grabbed your hand and led you upstairs to her room "Come on, Dad's right. I am hanging out with Topper, and he has a friend he wants to introduce you to, it's time to get dressed."

As John B looked up from his phone, he couldn't help but glance around at the choppy waters from his porch, trying to get you off his mind. He was not usually one to get hung up on girls, but something about you had him thinking back on the day, a smirk lingering on his face. JJ caught the look and, always one to sniff out a new mystery, nudged his shoulder with a grin.

"Oh, I know that look," JJ teased. "Don't tell me, you're getting all soft on someone already."

John B shoved him playfully, but his grin gave him away. "Nah, man. Just…thinking."

"Thinking about what?" JJ's smirk grew. "Or should I say who?"

John B rolled his eyes but didn't argue. "Alright, alright. There's this girl, okay? And she's... I don't know, man. Different. Cool."

"'Cool,' he says." JJ snorted, pulling his phone out and scrolling through his contacts. "If she's so cool, what are you waiting for?"

"Not that easy," John B muttered. "I don't even have her number."

JJ's eyes lit up as he raised his eyebrows. "Oh, dude, I've got you covered." He scrolled down, tapped a contact, and seconds later, the screen lit up with your number. He smirked, tilting the phone toward John B. "You're welcome. Did you think I stole her phone to get the number for myself?"

John B hesitated, but he knew JJ well enough to recognize when he wouldn't drop a subject. "Alright, alright." He quickly tapped out a message and then shoved the phone in his pocket, pretending not to care—but JJ caught the faint smile creeping onto his face. "And of course, I assumed the number was for you, when do you ever put the effort out when it isn't?"

"There you go, bro," JJ said, leaning back with satisfaction at the sent text, ignoring John B's comment on his selfishness. "Now, just try not to blow it."

John B rolled his eyes, but his grin lingered, his mind already running through what to text next.

"You know I don't have a lot of clothes, you saw the size of my suitcase," You said, thinking up an excuse, it wasn't as if you didn't want to hang out with Sarah, you did, she was pretty down to earth and fun to be around. It was the other Kooks that were the problem, you were pretty positive you wouldn't fit in with them, and what's more, you wouldn't like them.

"I know that, silly. That's why we're going to my closet. Don't worry; if you're going to become an official member of this family, Ward isn't going to let you go without. I bet you as soon as the roads are cleared, he's going to send us to the mall with his black card to get you a whole new wardrobe."

"Oh," You said, unsure how to reply, but you knew that was too much, even if the draw of nice new clothes was alluring.

You sat down on her bed as she made her way to her huge closet. You sat there watching her expertly maneuver around her room, wondering how someone could remember where every piece of clothing in a closet this large was when your phone buzzed. Huh, you guessed the towers were back on everywhere. You quickly reach for your phone, thinking it might be your mom, when you remember this is a new phone and a new number that Rose got you. No one had your number, so you were confused about who it could be.

'Hey, Peaches. How's the view from the rich side of town?'

No name was saved, but only one person had the audacity to add the "es" to the end of your nickname.

'John B, I presume? Oh, you know, exactly what you'd expect, the sun shines brighter, the food tastes better, the boys hotter.' You joke. Plus, you want to feel him out, you're into him and are pretty sure he's into you, too.

'Come on, Peaches, stop lying to yourself. We both know who you think is the hottest guy around here ;) '

'You think pretty highly of yourself, don't you?'

'What? I was talking about Old Man John; I saw how you looked at him earlier.'

You laughed out loud before replying, 'Damn it, you caught me, I just can't get enough of that old man-farmer look. So what's up?'

'We're having a little get-together on the beach, and I thought I'd be neighborly and invite you. It'd sure be embarrassing to be the only one stuck at home on a Friday night with no plans.'

'Well, as it just so happens, I do have plans.' You noticed Sarah put a few options on the bed next to you as she looked your way weighingly, before turning her attention to picking her options for the night.

'Ahh, you're going to one of those boring ass Kook parties? You'll have more fun with me.'

'You're pretty sure of yourself, aren't you? Well, as it just so happens, I don't know where they're planning on going, all I know is I'm being set up on a blind date, which sounds like hell to me, so you might be right.'

'Good, then I'll see you on the beach at sundown.'

You send a winking face emoji before puting your phone away, considering how to tell Sarah about your new plans. You looked up and saw she was already looking at you with her eyebrow quirked, arms crossed, and one foot tapping on the ground, "So, who's making you smile like that?"

"What?"

"Oh, come on, don't deny it, you've been on your phone nonstop for the last five minutes, texting away with a smile on your face. Did you already meet someone? Who? I know everyone around here, I can give you the down low about them, tell you who to stay away from, who's bad news. And who has the green light."

"It's not like that," You kind of lied, "I just met some people, and we had fun today. There's no one specific person."

"Sure," She said, holding onto the vowel for way too long, making it clear she didn't believe you. "I know that look, and you're into whoever you're texting."

"So, where are we planning on going tonight?" You asked in a clear change of subject.

Thankfully, Sarah rolled with it, "Oh, the Pogues are having a party on the beach, it's like the one place in town where we can all be normal with each other."

Oh, that must be the party John B. was texting about. "Why do the two sides of town hate each other so much? It's stupid."

"Oh, you don't have to tell me, I've been saying the same thing for years. I don't know why we can't just live in peace together. It seems like when everything cools down between the two; someone starts a new drama, and the fights start all over again."

"You're right, that is dumb." Eventually, you shrug, you're not foolish enough to think that you can fix the divide between the two, money and lack of it does a lot to keep people apart. Plus, you're not planning on being there long enough to make a difference. So, you focused your attention on getting ready for tonight, at least you and the town will have one night of peace on the beach.

A half-hour later, you and Sarah were standing in front of her large floor-length mirror, "Oh yeah, this is the one, you're going to have every single one of the guy's attention tonight. Or girls, if that's your thing."

You had to admit, you did feel hot, you've never had clothes this nice. You tease Sarah, "Well, other than Topper, that guy is obsessed with you."

She sighed, "Yeah, he is."

"What's wrong?"

"Huh? Nothing."

"Sarah," You held the vowels of her name much longer than necessary.

"Okay, it's nothing, really, I should be happy, right? Because you're right, he is obsessed with me. He loves me, but sometimes I just need him to back off, he's too clingy."

"Want me to play interference tonight?"

Sarah laughed and wrapped her arm around yours, starting to lead you downstairs, "You really are the best, you know that? Like the sister I never had." You heard an obnoxious clearing throat from a few doors down, "I meant a sister my age, Wheezy, you know I love you!"

"Whatever!" Wheezy yelled in her normal preteen attitude.

You're barely downstairs when there was a knock on the front door, and Sarah rolled her eyes. Apparently, Topper being on time annoyed her, too. You had a feeling Sarah just didn't like him as much as he liked her.

Truthfully, even though you were in the backseat of Topper's huge car and you were talking to his hot friend, you couldn't really pay attention to him, and you didn't remember his name. He was nice and hot; you could totally see yourself being into him, but you were too focused on the two in the front seat fighting and considering how you were going to ditch these guys to spend some time with your friends.

"They fight like that all the time."

"They do? That doesn't seem healthy."

"Oh, it's not. I figure the sex must be amazing because no one would put up with that much fighting. They used to be really happy and sweet together, then last year they both started partying harder and fighting more."

"Ahh," you said, unsure how to respond.

"So, you're going to live here now, right? I'd really like a chance to get to know you better." He said,

You smiled he seemed sincere and kind, "Yeah. Well, that's the plan, anyway. Until my mom pops back up, anyway."

"Well, that's good to hear." He said, leaning closer, his eyes flicking to your lips every few seconds. You considered letting him kiss you like he clearly wanted to, but then, at the last second, right before your lips met, you pulled back, and he looked upset.

You laughed awkwardly, "I'm sorry, I was just thinking, I'm about to kiss a guy, and I can't even remember his name. I'm terrible with names, by the way, so don't take it personally. Just yesterday, I called Sarah's sister Sneazy, and I've known her for years."

He threw his head back and laughed; you felt a little relieved that he didn't seem to mind, "Garrett, my name is Garrett."

You look at him hard, making his face burn into your memory, "Garret, right, I won't forget that again."

"I have an idea, where's your phone?" You hand it over to him after unlocking it. He moved over to your texts; you saw him take a moment to read over your last text to John B., even though his name still isn't saved on your phone. You can tell he wants to click on the conversation to see who you're planning on meeting tonight. Thankfully, he decided against invading your privacy and instead opened a new chain of texts, putting his number in, then saved the contact with his name before sending a quick text to himself so he had your number. "There, now you won't forget it again. I plan to text you often enough that you'll have no choice but to remember it."

You smiled at him, "That sounds good to me."

It wasn't long until you pulled up to the beachfront, where the party was already going strong. There were so many people there, and you didn't see anyone you knew. Granted, you knew a total of ten people in town, and three of them were in the car with you. You all made your way to the party, Sarah was so happy and giggly you were sure she pre-gamed at some point without you, which kinda annoyed you, as you could use some alcohol to calm your nerves at the moment.

Topper and Sarah lead the way over to what you assumed was the Kook part of the party. There was a lot of top-shelf liquor, and everyone was wearing clothes you could never afford. Garrett asked, "What can I get you?"

"Uh, I don't know, there are so many yummy options. Do you know how to make a long island?"

"Sure, just a bunch of different liquor with some iced tea, right?"

You laughed, "I'll take some vodka and Orange juice."

"On it."

Garrett was barely out of sight when you felt someone grab your shoulders and spin you around. You let out an 'eep' of surprise, but your face turned into a smile when you saw it was JJ. He held his pointer finger up to his mouth, warning you to stay quiet before grabbing your hand and dragging you over to the other side of the beach.

"You're welcome," He finally said after you were far enough away.

"What am I supposed to be thanking you for?" You asked cheekily, waving at Pope when you noticed him and smiling at John B, who smiled back but quickly turned his attention back to giving people drinks from the keg.

"Uhh, hello, I saved you from having to endure another moment of that boring ass Kook part of the party!"

"And I would be gratefully thanking you if you would have waited another three minutes because then I would have gotten my free top-shelf drink."

"Oh yeah, wow, I guess I did fuck up. Sorry," he laughed, "One day here, and you already know how to wring those Kooks for all they have. I have to say, I'm proud."

You shook your head exasperatedly at JJ while laughing, "Well, I guess I better get a drink myself then. Apparently, I have to settle for a beer."

He laughed as he waved you away before going back to your new friends. You walked up to John B, who was manning the keg, and smiled at him as you held out your cup. "One, please,"

"What are you doing over here?"

"What do you mean? If I remember correctly, I was invited."

"Yeah, you were, but you seemed to be having a great time over there with Sarah and your date."

You smile, "John B, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you sound jealous."

He scoffed and incredulously asked, "Jealous, me? Yeah, right. What do I have to be jealous of Garrett about?"

You shrug nonchalantly, "Oh, I don't know. It was just a wild guess."

He scoffed again, "Well, I think you need to take a class in reading people because you're way off."

You hold your hands up in surrender, "My mistake. Now, are you ever going to pour me a drink?"

He looked at you as if he was seriously considering the question. "I guess, but nothing is free."

"Yeah? And what's the cost?" You asked, voice a little flirty.

"To be determined."

"You expect me to sign a blank check for one cup of cheap beer?"

"No, I expect it for a whole night of cheap beers."

You looked around, considering. "Deal, on one condition."

"I'm not sure you know how negotiation works, Peaches, I hold all the beer, I.E., all the power, you have nothing."

"I'm not so sure about that."

"Okay, what is this 'condition' I'm absolutely not going to agree to?"

"A dance."

"A d-dance?" He asked, stuttering because he was shocked, thrown off guard.

"Yup, one dance with me to the song of my choosing."

"I'm not sure your date will like that very much," He said, looking past you, you turn your head to see Garrett staring holes into John B's head. You see John B. wave at him with a huge smile on his face. You grab his arm and push it down, trying not to laugh and egg on his tendency to be an asshole.

"It doesn't matter what he thinks; I met him like 45 minutes ago. This isn't a date. It was a… a hangout that I was not enjoying."

"Boring, huh?" John B said, looking all too proud of himself, "So boring that you had no choice but to come hang out with someone much more interesting and handsome."

"Handsome, who said anything about handsome?"

"Oh, Peaches, you didn't have to say anything, your eyes say it all."

"Wow, someone thinks highly of themselves."

"Only because it's warranted."

You rolled your eyes, "Whatever you say. So, do we have a deal?"

He looked at you consideringly, "I suppose I can set aside time for one dance."

In response, you hold your cup out to be filled. Once he filled it, you looked between the Kooks and the Pogues, you thought they'd all be mixed together by the way Sarah explained it, but there might as well be a wall between the two groups. Eventually, you decided to go over to sit with Pope, JJ, and Kie, John B followed behind you, and you couldn't help but notice that he sat next to you, much closer than necessary, too.

"Hey," You greeted everyone around the fire.

"Hey," Kie said in a kinder voice than you've heard directed to you so far, it was then you inhaled and realized she must be stoned going by the smell and how nice she seemed to you right now.

Pope raised his barely sipped beer in greeting, and JJ winked at you. You had more fun than you expected watching the Pogues work the tourists and joking around with them. You realized they weren't above stealing from drunk visitors if need be; you didn't mind, really, you've been in desperate situations before that made you do things you normally wouldn't.

About an hour later, JJ was drunk, Pope was totally sober, Kie was stoned, and you were feeling pretty good yourself, John B kept close to you, and right now, you two were sitting down on a tree that must have been knocked over during the hurricane. You were talking about nothing important; the mood was too good for any deep, serious talks. You realize John B was really funny and nice when he wanted to be, plus he had a way of dragging you into adventures, it was exactly what you were looking for during this little vacation away from your real life. It wasn't like you planned on being around long enough to have any real relationships, but he seemed like the kind of person who'd be okay with that, someone who'd want to just have fun with you. You just had to make sure not to let yourself get too attached to him; he didn't seem like the relationship type anyway. Normally, you were the relationship type, but you figured you could manage it since you knew your mom would come back any day now. You leaned closer to him, smiling a little when he did the same.

Unfortunately, you were interrupted when Kie spoke from behind both of you. "What is she doing here?"

John B sighed, annoyed at the interruption; he was really feeling this girl and was kinda pissed Kie distracted them. He knew things had been pretty weird between him and Kie the last few days, ever since she started acting as if she liked him as more than a friend. If it was a few days before now, he would have jumped on the chance, but as he said, he was really feeling you and didn't want to mess up any shot he had with you. Along with the chance of ruining his friendship with Kie, no, it just wasn't worth it, he was going to make sure not to cross that line with Kie or let her think he wanted to at all, it was safer that way.

"What do you mean? You asked incredulously, "I told you I live with her, and I told John B. I was coming with her."

"Oh, you did, did you?" She asked but was looking at John B the whole time, pissed that he didn't warn her, he simply shrugged in response, not sure why she was so upset.

Everyone looked over to Sarah, who was clearly drunk and trying to climb on top of a lifeguard tower. You sigh, not looking forward to the trouble it was going to be trying to sneak her back into the house. You saw that Topper was taking good care of her so you looked away, knowing she'd be okay and you didn't have to worry about her right now.

After a few hours of talking and hanging out with your new friends, the sun was starting to set, and you were feeling a little tipsy after your fourth cup of beer, so you decided to take a walk around and clear your head. You weren't exploring the beach for five minutes before Sarah, Topper, and Garrett were with you again, joking around, clearly more intoxicated than you were, but they were funny drunks, so you didn't mind.

John B, JJ, and Pope watched you go, waiting until you were out of earshot before they said anything.

"Damn, John B, she is into you, if you don't try to get at that, then I will."

John B playfully shoved JJ, "Stop, you don't know what you're talking about."

"Of course I do. Look at her," He said, eyes comically wide, "She's beautiful, and she's down to slum around with us even though she could do so much better. I mean fuck, she's staying at Tannyhill."

"Yeah, but she wasn't born rich, she's just visiting that life," Pope added. "It's not like Kie, who's an actual rich girl that, for some reason, thinks we're good enough to hang around."

"Uh oh, John B, I think it's time you stop living in the land of denial because it looks like someone else has their eyes on her. And she doesn't seem to mind all that much; you might just miss your shot."

The three guys looked up to see you walking down the beach with the three people you came to the party with, plus Rafe, who you stay as far away from as possible, and his date. You were in between Garrett and Sarah, stepping your toes in the water whenever possible, just enjoying the beautiful weather, the drink in your hand, and the company.

"So, are you having as good a time as I am?" Garrett asked, bringing you out of your thoughts.

You look up at him and smile, "Yeah, it's a beautiful night."

"Good," he said, lifting his arm to wrap it around you, but he stopped when someone cleared their throat pointedly.

You look up to see John B a few feet ahead of you, paying close attention to Garrett's hand. You tilt your head to the side, waiting to see what he planned to say. After a few seconds, he held his hand out to you, "I think it's time for me to pay up."

You smiled, knowing he was talking about the promised dance. You started to reach your hand over to his, but Rafe grabbed your arm to stop you, "No, you live with us now, and we Camerons don't mix with the help."

You ripped your arm away from Rafe and put your hand in John B's, planning to just walk away and avoid drama, but you realized that isn't going to happen when a drunk JJ ran up to the group, "Yo, you don't talk about my boy John B like that."

"I'll talk to him however I want; he works for my father, he literally is the help."

"Don't be an asshole, Rafe."

"Shut up, Sarah; I'm just trying to teach our new cousin here how the world works around here."

"I'm a big girl; I can make my own choices, thanks." You said, taking a few steps from the Kook side of this stand-off to the Pogue side, hand still in John B's. You hoped that you'd be able to just walk away, deescalating the tension, but weren't too hopeful.

Your pessimism was proved right when JJ spoke next, "Yeah, Peach over here clearly has good instincts, did you see how she recoiled from your touch, rich boy? She's just as creeped out by you as everyone else."

There weren't any words after that. Rafe swung at JJ, and John B pushed you behind him, trying to keep you out of the fight before jumping in himself. You're not even sure how Pope got there so fast, but he was defending his friends, too. You and Sarah were the only sane ones, trying to break up the fight, grabbing onto the guy's arms and trying to pull them apart.

The next thing you realized, you got elbowed in the face by someone, not sure who. Your vision went blurry for a few seconds, while you couldn't see, you heard splashing around in the water, someone yelling John B's name, and sounds of drowning. When your vision came back, you saw John B. being held down in the water by Garrett. You were scared, it seemed like he was really trying to kill him, so without thinking about it, you ran and jumped on the guy's back, hitting his back and shoulders with your fists as hard as you could.

The next few minutes passed by in kind of a blur. You're not really sure how it happened, but the next thing you realized, you were being dragged away from the scene, someone holding your hand and pulling you, telling you to run. You looked and finally noticed it was Sarah. You tried to turn around to make sure your friends were okay, but everything was so hectic you couldn't see them. Plus, Topper was honking the car horn over and over again, yelling at you two to get into the car.

So you did, you got into the backseat, taking a moment to realize how much had happened since the last time you were there just a few hours ago. You were in such a good mood earlier, what the fuck went wrong? You looked at the seat next to you when the car door opened and saw Garrett getting in the car, yelling at Topper to go. At that moment, anger flowed through you; it was him, he was the one who almost murdered someone today, he grabbed your arm and looked you over with his eyes, clearly concerned with your wellbeing, "Hey, are you okay? Shit, someone punched you! You're going to have a shiner in the morning; it's already forming"

You ripped your arm away from him and pushed your back against the door, getting as far from him as possible when he reached for your face, "Don't touch me!"

"What? What's wrong?"

You reached behind you without taking your eyes off of him, trying to find the door handle in this stupid big ass car, "You almost killed him! What the fuck was that?"

"They started it!" He tried to defend, reaching for you again.

"No, Rafe started it, he said the first insult and through the first punch. I said, don't fucking touch me."

Sarah turned to look at you two from the front seat, but you ignored her. Finally, finally, you found the door handle. You opened it and started to get out. Sarah reached out and tried to stop you, but you avoided her hand, "Where are you going?"

"I'm not being in a confined place with that psycho; I'll find my own way home."

"Psycho? That's not fair!" Garrett yelled.

You ignored him and focused on Sarah, "Thanks for the good time, well, up until the end, I'll see you at home."

"Are you sure? I'll come with you."

"No, it's fine. Thanks, though, " you said and gave her a small smile. You knew Topper well enough by now to know he'd demand to come, and you weren't too fond of him right at that moment, either.

Sarah nodded her head a bit uncertainly but didn't fight you again. You shut the car door, knowing you'd worry about getting home later. Right now, you had to find John B and the rest of the group. You were scared. You didn't see him get up from the water, and you had to make sure he was okay.