༄ 𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗉𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝗍𝗐𝗈 ༄

THE SUN SHONE through Thalia's closed curtains the next morning after Hurricane Agatha struck Kildare, hard. By the time the redhead rolled out of her massive bed, a work crew was already at the house, fixing what the hurricane had destroyed, per Rose's demand. As one o'clock rolled around, Thalia forced herself to go downstairs and face the day. She was out of all forms of weed, and Thalia needed a hit after her therapy appointment the previous day. She had contacts, she had resources, she just needed to be undetected.

        Thalia tugged on a black tube top and a pair of denim shorts, an opened button-down blue shirt over her body. Thalia left her messy red hair down and tugged a baseball cap over her head, packing her old backpack with the necessities. She slipped on her reebok sneakers and walked quietly down the stairs with her skateboard in hand, tossing an apple into her bag on her way out the door.

        Sarah was outside saving mice, Wheezie was searching for cell service, and Ward was directing the workers in the cleanup. No one cared enough about Thalia to wonder where she was going. Thalia started skating towards the cut, ignoring all of Sarah and Rafe's Kook friends. They, Kelce in particular had started taking an interest in Thalia ever since she got out of rehab and returned to school. Thalia didn't think she was anything special, but the Kook boys surely did.

        When Thalia eventually made it to the cut, she missed what it felt like to live there. Things were hard and unfair on the south end of the island, but at least there was family, and friends, and a community. Thalia wished to have the kinds of friendships the Pogues did. She continued skating, passing John B's house, getting all the way to the crappy motel where her suppliers camped out. Thalia kicked her skateboard up into her hand, walking towards the rundown motel, her nose used to the stench surrounding the place. She avoided all of the mattresses dumped onto the lawn from the storm, and walked carefully up to the second floor of the building.

        Thalia didn't notice the boat full of Pogues pull up to the motel.

        Once she was certain she had found the right room number, Thalia placed her foot onto her skateboard to balance it, knocking her fist against the closed door. "Parker? It's Thalia!" the redhead shouted after repeatedly knocking on the door. When she got no answer, Thalia continued slamming her fist on the hard material, shouting for her dealer to get his attention.

        "Thalia Cameron? Is that you?" the voice of John B Routledge asked. Thalia froze and turned around, not surprised that JJ Maybank was at John B's side.

        "What's up, John B? JJ?" Thalia leant against the wall with her arms crossed, trying to be as nonchalant as possible, her foot resting on her battered skateboard.

        "What are you doing on this side of the island, Princess?" JJ teased, making fun of Thalia for her Kook status.

        Thalia rolled her eyes at the nickname JJ called her. "Business." she shrugged, hoping that Parker wouldn't throw the door open right then and there.

        "What kind of business could a Kook have down here? Shouldn't you be on Figure Eight, lounging around with your generators?" John B said distastefully, and Thalia remembered how annoying he really was.

        "You got me there, I'll give you that. Why the hell are you two scoping out this shitbag?" Thalia wondered, trying to find an opportunity to slip away and come back for her drugs at a later time.

        JJ and John B weren't sure what to tell Thalia. Whatever lie they cooked up wouldn't have fooled her, but they couldn't trust her either. "Just a summer hunt." John B settled on saying, JJ nodding enthusiastically.

        Thalia chuckled. "That's cute, guys. Fun little treasure hunt. Explore any shipwrecks yet?" she asked in a mocking tone, preparing to skate away as soon as she could.

        John B and JJ's eyes widened in surprise, and before they could question how Thalia knew about the sunken Grady White, the motel door Thalia was leaning beside swung open, a tall man no older than twenty threw the door open with a gun raised in his hand. "What the hell do you assholes want?" Parker grumbled, high out of his mind.

        JJ and John B backed up as far as they could go, shouting in alarm at the sight of a gun aimed at them. Thalia wasn't in the mood to deal with Parker while he was on drugs, so she grabbed his wrist and pinned him to the nearest wall, prying the gun out of his hand with ease. "Jesus fuck, Parker. If you're going to threaten someone with a gun at least turn the safety off, dumbass. My God." Thalia rolled her eyes, tossing the gun back into the room Parker came from, releasing her grip on him.

        Parker turned around, his eyes bloodshot. "What do you want?" he asked Thalia, forgetting why she was even there.

        "My stuff, you idiot. I payed you last week, remember?" Thalia ignored John B and JJ behind her, urging Parker to hurry up.

        Parker grabbed the bag with the things he supplied Thalia, handing it to her. Thalia placed it in her pocket, not letting the Pogues behind her see what she had purchased. As Thalia turned to leave, Parker stopped her. "Tell Rafe I need his help." he said, breathing slowly, gripping her wrist tightly.

        Thalia heard JJ mutter something under his breath relating to the hold Parker had on the redhead. Thalia scoffed, easily removing Parker's hand from her arm. "Tell him yourself. Ease up on the oxy while you're at it, asshole," Parker rolled his eyes and slammed the door in Thalia's face. She turned to John B and JJ. "At ease." she mocked with a salute, beginning to leave once more.

        "Wait, wait." John B said quickly, and Thalia stopped skating with a sigh.

        "Who the hell was that piece of shit?" JJ asked, running a hand through his blonde hair, confused at the interaction he and his best friend had just witnessed.

        Thalia frowned. "Friend of my cousin." she shrugged, delivering the news casually. Thalia didn't know that Parker was one of Rafe's suppliers until she went to him for weed a week after her surgery. He was her top supplier now.

        "You're friends with Rafe's friends? A drug dealer?" John B asked, fixing his hat backwards over his poofy brown hair.

        "What drugs? I don't know what you're talking about." Thalia brushed off, skating away and leaving John B and JJ to converse quickly and quietly.

        "You know your way around here?" JJ asked a moment later.

        Thalia turned around. "Depends on what you're asking." she answered, and JJ rolled his eyes in exasperation. Thalia knew a lot about JJ, but JJ really knew nothing about Thalia. The only knowledge he had was from what John B had figured out.

        "Can you help us find this room?" John B held up the motel key.

        "What's in it for me?" she popped her skateboard into her hand once more.

        John B and JJ shared a look. "We don't know yet. Are you in?" John B said, knowing from witnessing Thalia live her life that she was always down for making trouble, the opposite of the Cameron family.

        Thalia shrugged. "Why not?" she took the key from John B's hand as she passed him, leading the two boys down the motel hall. Thalia didn't know where this adventure would take her, and she probably should've turned around and skated away like she had been trying to do.

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