༄ 𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗉𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝖿𝗈𝗋𝗍𝗒－𝗍𝗐𝗈 ༄

THE FOUR SLEPT on tables in Kie's family restaurant. No one really slept, except for Pope, who was feeling the aftermath of smoking a shit ton of weed. Thalia rolled off the benches she had been lying on, finding JJ looking at the road out of the window. The redhead pulled her messy hair into a loose ponytail, her arms crossed over her chest. "Anything?" Thalia asked JJ when she reached him.

        Her brother shook his head. Although, JJ and Thalia were more like close friends than brother and sister. They just hadn't gotten close yet. Pope woke up at the sound of Thalia's voice and joined the two at the window. Thalia looked up at him, expecting him to give her the same hopeful eyes he always did, but today, he didn't meet her gaze once. "He's pinched for sure, man." JJ said, noticing Thalia looking at Pope. He noticed how close they had been getting.

        "No. They wouldn't still be patrolling if they caught him." Pope decided, and Thalia finally looked away, giving Pope the opportunity to take a glance at her.

        "Let's hope." JJ leant against the wall, looking at Pope over his sister's head.

        Kiara sat up. "You know, we were in that car. They're probably looking for us, too." she added.

       Pope sighed. "Well, if we're gonna be outlaws, we might as well help John B." he spoke, and Thalia was uneasy. This wasn't the Pope she had come to love.

        "So, find him before they do?" Thalia asked as Pope walked away from her and JJ, grabbing the keys to JJ's motorcycle.

        "Pope?" JJ asked over Thalia's scoff at being ignored, he and the redhead following Pope as he began to walk out of the restaurant.

        "I'm gonna get gas for the boat.  Meet me at the dock at three. Don't be late." Pope instructed harshly. He was being cold, and Thalia knew why.

        Thalia glanced at Kie and JJ and then followed Pope out of the restaurant, limping down the steps where Pope was turning the key to the motorcycle in the ignition. "Are we gonna talk about it?" Thalia crossed her arms over her long-sleeved shirt, standing at the side of JJ's bike.

        Pope wouldn't look at her. "Talk about what?" he said, focusing on the bike instead of the girl in front of him.

        Sighing, Thalia grew a tad annoyed. "Don't make me say it." she said, annoyed.

        "I'm not making you do anything." Pope said. His words only agitated Thalia further.

        "Stop acting like a baby." Thalia reached up and tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear.

        "I'm not. You're the one who won't let it go." Pope spoke bitterly, trying to shift the blame to Thalia so he didn't have to think about the embarrassment her rejection caused him.

        Huffing, Thalia crossed her arms again. "Pope, you tried to kiss me. We have to talk about it." Thalia said bluntly. Kie and JJ were now standing on the porch, watching from afar.

        "What's there to talk about? I tried to kiss you, and you dodged. I get it. Let's just move on. You don't have to let me down, or anything." Pope said, trying to stifle his sadness.

        "You were high." Thalia spoke, looking away from Pope shyly, her blue eyes dim.

        "Why the hell does that matter?" Pope questioned, frustrated.

        "Because I've done things I regret while high. A lot of things." Thalia said quickly, staring back at Pope, her fingers shaking.

        Pope noticed everything about Thalia. He knew from observing her with care that when her fingers shook she was nervous, and if she kept thinking, her hands and legs would shake, and she would spiral. So he reached out and took her hand, unwinding her arms, interlacing their fingers together. "I don't regret trying to kiss you. The only thing I regret is not doing it sooner." Pope said shyly, not noticing that they were being watched.

        Thalia sighed quietly, and Pope thought he was done for. "It doesn't count." she spoke, reaching up to fix her gold earring. He noticed that when she didn't know what else to do, she adjusted her hair, jewelry, shoes.

        Pope frowned. "What does that mean?" he asked, staring down at Thalia, still holding her hand.

        Thalia looked up, her eyes meeting his. Blue meeting brown. Darkness meeting light. "It could count now. If you want it to." she said carefully, hoping Pope would get the hint, because she was running out of ways to be discreet.

        But he didn't. "I don't understand." Pope said, and JJ and Kiara sighed silently.

        "Oh, my God," Thalia muttered, before she mustered up the courage to plant her lips on Pope's, lurching forward to hold his face, tugging him down towards her. When they pulled away to breathe, their faces were still close, Pope daring to tuck a piece of Thalia's red hair behind her ear. "It counts." Thalia said, and Pope smiled lightly.

        Pope kissed Thalia once more. "You could've given me a little hint that you liked me back." he said, dimples wide.

        Thalia rolled her eyes. "It's called being nonchalant." she said, stepping back from Pope. This level of closeness was out of her comfortable territory. She had to get used to caring.

        Settling on JJ's motorbike, Pope looked at Thalia, and she understood. Of course she did. They would talk more when he got back. Their tightly interlocked hands lingered together until Pope had to let go, driving to pick up gas for John B. Thalia remained standing in the dirt for a minute, before wiped the giddy smile from her face and walked back over to a smirking Kie and an uncomfortable JJ. "Don't say anything." she demanded, all traces of joy leaving her body.

        As Thalia opened the door to the restaurant to walk back inside, a helicopter overhead caught the attention of the Pogues. "Who the hell is that?" JJ asked, looking up into the sky. But no one had an answer.

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