( 𝘾𝙃𝘼𝙋𝙏𝙀𝙍 𝙏𝙒𝙀𝙉𝙏𝙔. )
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IT WASN'T EASY FOR Jaylene to cope with the fact that Marleen Harrington wasn't actually dead. In fact, she even thought about looking through the medicine cabinet to search for the oxycodone that was being stored inside of a prescription bottle, but instead, she went to the last person she wanted to speak to.

When she dropped Sarah off that day, she went straight home and unexpectedly wrapped her arms around the man who had been lying to her this entire time. The man who was unable to hold himself accountable for his own actions.

Henderson was shocked at first, but when the wave of shock left his system, he immediately realized that something was wrong. Instead of questioning her, he allowed his daughter to sob into his chest, soaking the button up shirt that he wore.

Despite everything she'd discovered about him within the past couple of days, he hadn't abandoned her like her mother did. Marleen could've come back for her, but she chose not to put any sort of effort into it. Not only did she despise the blonde haired woman who had fled the island almost twelve years ago, but she also despised Mark and Florence Harrington with a burning passion. They had been lying to her this entire time, and they'd been the main reason as to why her mother was torn away from her at such a young age.

Her heart felt like it had been ripped from her chest and repeatedly stomped on until it was nothing but small bits. She felt stupid for believing a single word that her grandparents had told her. It's like they saw nothing but a complete idiot whenever they looked at her.

"Hey, kid. Talk to me." Henderson broke the silence, keeping the protective grip around Jaylene's body as she continued bawling her eyes out, unable to stop the tears from falling. He was still shocked with the sudden embrace he'd been pulled into, considering the fact that she was still pissed at him, but he was more worried about the fact that his daughter was loudly sobbing into his shoulder.

Jaylene kept her face buried into his shoulder as she shook her head, indicating that she didn't wanna talk about what had triggered her sudden meltdown. And she didn't want him finding out either. Not for a while at least. It's not like Mark Harrington deserved her trust anyone, so when she was finally ready to hit everyone with the truth about Marleen Harrington, she would, but for now, she'd decided to keep her mouth shut.

And because Henderson knew that he was in no position to question her, he respected her decision, allowing her to let out every single tear that she could possibly shed.

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THE NEXT DAY wasn't as awkward as Jaylene originally thought it would be. After crying her eyes out in her fathers arms, she kept herself locked up in her room all day, throwing all of Marleen's items into a pile so that she could dispose of them whenever given the chance. A good part of her kept telling herself that she was fine, that the truth about her mother didn't affect her, but the other part knew that she was completely heartbroken.

Since she was still pissed off with everything that had occurred a few days prior, she did go back to avoiding her father, which was the main reason as to why nothing felt awkward. At least not on her part.

Now, the brunette was stood in front of her mirror, staring at her reflection with a disapproving look. Mostly because of the white bikini top that would certainly result in an accidental nip-slip, but also because of how grossed out she was with how puffy her eyes were from all the tears she'd cried the previous day.

She sighed, reaching down to retrieve a different bikini top, but before she could remove the one that was currently placed on her, a knock was heard from her bedroom door.

"Jaylene! There's a boy here to see you!" Celia shouted from the other side, causing Jaylene's eyebrows to furrow in confusion as she tossed the top to the side.

Instead, she walked into her closet to retrieve a pair of mom shorts, slipping them onto her lower half, not bothering to cover up the top due to how hot it was outside. On her way out of her room, she grabbed her phone, flashing Celia a smile before trudging down the stairs, hoping that the boy Celia spoke of wasn't Jason.

Her fingers were even crossed as she peaked her head around the corner. Quickly, the frown that had previously been worn on her face turned into a smile when she caught a glimpse of John B. He was by the doorway, awkwardly standing around until he saw Jaylene headed in his direction.

"Is that John with the unnecessary B? On kook territory?" She loudly gasped before placing a hand over her mouth, clearly teasing him for willingly showing up to her doorstep. It wasn't like him to ever be around her without a reason, which only led her to believe that he was here for something. "Someone pinch me, cause I think I might be dreaming."

"You're hilarious, Jaylene Rosewood." He spoke in amusement, receiving a wide grin from her in return as she stepped out of the house, shutting the door behind her so that they could get some privacy.

"Hmm..." Jaylene hummed, tapping her finger against her chin as she looked him up and down. "Cute hat." She commented, reaching for the bead on the string before tightening the pier-side hat that sat on top of his head. Her hands placed on both sides of his face as she narrowed her eyes at him, suspecting that he was definitely up to something.

"Yeah? I wore it just to impress you." The sarcasm was evident in his voice, causing her to roll her eyes at him as she began to pull her hands away from his face, but he quickly placed his hands onto her wrists, preventing her from doing so.

"What are you up to?" Jaylene questioned, looking up at him with a curious look on her face. He was nervous. She could tell. But she didn't know what scheme he was up to this time.

John B. hesitated for a few seconds before sighing, parting his lips to speak. "I need your help with something."

"Oh, god. That cannot be any good." She groaned in response, managing to remove her hands from his face, crossing them over her chest instead. "What do you want me to do?"

"Do you think you could lure Sarah Cameron out of her house?" He questioned, watching her eyes widen at the question.

"That sounds like something an abductor would ask—" Jaylene cut herself off mid-sentence, managing to put two and two together. "Holy shit! You wanna fucking kidnap Sarah Cameron? What the hell is wrong with you?" She shouted, using the palm of her hand to harshly slap his arm due to how idiotic his plan sounded.

"We have a plan." John B. tried to assure her, but he was failing to convince her. And considering the use of the word we, she immediately knew that he wasn't the only one here.

She glanced around the area, smacking her hand against her forehead when she caught a glimpse of JJ, who was hiding behind some rose bushes. "You two are literally insane." She mumbled, feeling the weight of John's arm around her shoulder as the two looked towards the blonde-haired boy. "What do you want me to do?" Jaylene looked up at him, tangling her fingers with his as she squinted her eyes to avoid the sun.

"Tell Sarah that you wanna hang out, lure her over to the boat that's by the dock, and JJ and I will take it from there." He explained, avoiding the look that she sent him as he went over the plan they'd come up with the previous day after the argument between Kiara and Sarah. "As for the insane part. Get used to it, baby. You're gonna see a lot more of this If you plan on sticking around."

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AS SOON AS JOHN B. LEFT HER SIDE, to go join JJ, Jaylene made a quick trip into her own home to throw on a halter top before heading over to the Cameron household. It took longer than expected to get the kook princess to agree to hang out, considering that Sarah asked her a bunch of questions regarding what had happened yesterday when Jaylene walked out of her grandparents' house with tears coating her eyes. And since she hadn't really been prepared for most of her questions, Jaylene just made up a story on the spot, somehow managing to convince the blonde-haired girl.

Everything ran smoothly for the most part as the two walked in the direction of the dock, talking amongst themselves the entire way until their conversation was cut short by John b. and JJ, who suddenly appeared, practically taking the Cameron girl hostage. Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Jaylene assumed that they'd be somewhat subtle about it, but that was definitely not the case.

Shortly after, she grabbed a hold of John's hand, pulling herself onto the boat as she tried to block out Sarah's pleas for help as she pounded her fists against the barrier separating her and everyone else.

"Way to be subtle, guys." Jaylene gave the two a thumbs up, sarcasm lingering in her tone as she took a seat nearby, letting the sun soak her skin while JJ placed his sunglasses onto his eyes before making his way over to the marsh.

Once they arrived to the isolated location, Jaylene stood up, using the palm of her hand as a shield from the harsh sunlight. There was nothing but water surrounding them, causing her to grow anxious since she wasn't familiar with that particular part. Sure she'd grown up in a place surrounded by water, but she still feared the ocean.

The thought of knowing that only a small percent of it had been discovered completely terrified her. She was a good swimmer, so she wasn't afraid of drowning. If anything, she was scared of all the identified creatures wandering underwater, never to be seen by anyone.

But she shook the feeling off, turning her head towards John B. and JJ instead. She walked towards them, clearing her throat to get their attention before parting her lips to speak. "Are you ever gonna tell me what this plan of yours is?"

John B. looked up at her, shaking his head as he crossed his arms over his chest. "If I tell you, you'll try and stop us. Plus, Sarah can still hear us." He motioned towards the wooden panel that was above Sarah's head, hiding the blonde away from the naked eye. "Just trust me on this."

"Trust you?" She raised her eyebrows up at him, allowing a chuckle to fall from her lips as she places her hands on his bare chest. "I mean, you're good looking and everything, but you seriously lack brain cells sometimes."

"Hey, listen. The other day, I said something to you that I shouldn't have. And I'm sorry." He quickly changed the subject, hoping that she would question him any further. Instead, she tilted her head in confusion, waiting for him to continue. "I shouldn't have brought up your past like that. It was a really fucked up thing to do, and I'm really, really, really—"

Jaylene didn't let him finish, cupping his face and bringing her lips up to his to get him to stop talking. It caused butterflies to swarm in her stomach, but the two broke away from their kiss when JJ loudly cleared his throat, reminding them that he was still there.

"That's cute, guys. That's real cute. But get a room." The blonde-haired boy commented, looking in the opposite direction where he caught a glimpse of the HMS Pogue heading in their direction. "Shit. There they come." He muttered under his breath, quickly crouching down in front of the alternator.

John B. followed in his steps, crouching down beside him which only confused Jaylene even more.

But rather than questioning them any further, she leaned her body against the wall of the boat, letting the silence engulf them until Kiara hopped onto the Heyward boat, heading straight towards the three teenagers.

"What happened?" She questioned no one in particular, looking down at the two shirtless boys as JJ randomly moved the tool around, making it appear that something was wrong.

He cleared his throat, looking up towards the curly-haired girl with a shrug. "Uh, the alternator's not alternating anymore." He quickly came up with a lie, surprised with how convincing it sounded.

"It's not charged." John B. added, shifting his attention towards his best friend, who was still mad at him due to the events that had occurred yesterday.

"Did you check the plugs?" Kiara asked, crouching down besides JJ.

"No. No, you should check 'em." JJ stammered on his words, quickly handing her the tool before standing up, squeezing past Kiara to head towards the edge of the boat.

"You guys are useless." She rolled her eyes, crouching down to get a better look at the alternator, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion when she realized that there were no plugs. "Uh, is this a joke? There are no plugs, like, at all."

Just as Jaylene managed to piece together John's idea, he planted a quick kiss on her lips, hoping that she'd forgive him later for what he was about to do.

"Make sure they don't kill each other." He whispered, practically sprinting away from her and jumping into the warm water that was holding the boat up.

A shocked look overtook Jaylene's facial features, mentally slapping herself for walking right into their mischievous plan. "I am gonna kill you, John B!" She shouted, causing Kiara to turn her head in the girls direction, eyes widening when she realized that the two boys had hopped off the boat already.

She shot Jaylene a confused look, wondering what they were planning, but she quickly received her answer when she heard a loud bang come from below her. Sending another look in the Rosewood girl's direction, she crouched down, sliding the wooden panel in the opposite direction, a shocked look forming on her face when she saw Sarah Cameron sitting there. The hatred that filled her eyes at the sight only caused Jaylene to realize how badly she'd fucked up.

Since there was no way in hell that Jaylene was gonna attempt to swim towards the HMS pogue, she shut her eyes closed, pinching the bridge of her nose as she watched the two girls walk towards the edge of the boat, angrily shouting at the three boys. Seconds later, the two enemies stripped from their shirts and shorts, leaving them in their bikinis.

When Jaylene opened her eyes, she heard a splash, quickly realizing that Sarah was no longer on board. This caused her to rush towards the edge, looking down at the blonde as she tried to catch up to the boat, but it was too far away now.

"Aren't there jellyfish around this area?" Jaylene questioned, glancing over at Kiara , who watched Sarah Cameron in amusement, basically waiting for something to happen to her.

Kiara shrugged in response, crossing her arms over her chest. "Beats me. She's the one who chose to dive in."

Right on cue, a loud shriek escaped from Sarah's mouth as a jellyfish rushed towards her sun kissed skin, sending an unsettling wave of pain towards the girl as she was sent underwater. Since Jaylene had managed to spot the jellyfish, she knew that it wasn't really anything to worry about.

So the two girls onboard waited around for a few seconds until Sarah finally broke through the surface, gasping relentlessly for air as she forced her way back towards the boat. "I got stung by a jellyfish! Shit!"

Jaylene watched as the Cameron girl pulled herself up towards the boat, a pained look plastered on her face as her hand hovered above the wound. It caused her to grimace in disgust, quickly looking away.

"Well, you swam right into a man-o'-war. Don't know what you thought was gonna happen." Kiara showed nothing sort of sympathy towards the wounded girl.

Sarah gave her a cold glare in return, struggling to catch her breath as she sat down. "Thank you for your help." She sarcastically replied, pressing her hand against the aching skin.

"Does it hurt?" Kiara stupidly questioned, earning a dumbfounded look from Jaylene.

Sarah ignored the question, squeezing her eyes shut as the pain continued to engulf her body. "Hey. You know what they say...about curing jellyfish stings?" She questioned, immediately letting Jaylene know where she was going with this. "One of you has to pee on me."

Kiara and Jaylene shared a look, grossed out with the plan. "Gross. There's no way in hell that I'm doing that." Jaylene shook her head in disgust, absolutely dreading the idea of having to urinate all over the wound. It would definitely haunt her for the rest of her life.

"I have a better idea." Kiara glanced towards the two girls as they sent her intrigued looks in return.

Minutes later, the three girls were sat close to each other, the wind blowing through their knotted hair as Kiara pulled out a blunt and lighter from a small box that JJ had left for them. It wasn't often that Jaylene got high on weed. She got high on other substances, but it was hardly ever the green herb. Since being sent to rehab, she had strayed far away from everything that could possibly derive her of her stability, well, aside from alcohol.

"It's for the pain." Kiara spoke before placing the blunt in between her lips, using the lighter to light up the end, the strong stench quickly making its way into Jaylene's nostrils when the herb was engulfed by the small flame. She took a long drag from the blunt, figuring that she'd need it if she was mean to spend the night in the same boat as Sarah Cameron. "Here. I think you'll need it too." She nudged Jaylene's shoulder, handing the girl the blunt.

Jaylene took it in her grasp, a hesitant look planted on her face before she finally gave in, bringing the intoxicant up to her lips and taking a long drag from it, inhaling the smoke, before exhaling. She had forgotten how badly she missed that exhilarating feeling.

Not long after, Sarah took the blunt from her grasp, earning a surprised look in return from the kook. She hadn't taken Sarah Cameron for a stoner, but she knew that it was only for the pain.

"Careful. Make sure it doesn't go down the wrong pipe—" Jaylene cut herself off mid-sentence when the blonde began coughing. She watched Kiara grow annoyed, but Jaylene couldn't help but laugh in amusement when she realized that Rafe and Sarah Cameron were literally polar opposites.

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BRIGHT STARTS COATED THE DARK SKY that Jaylene had been staring at for the past hour. After smoking the blunt with the other two girls, the side effects quickly kicked in. She had forgotten how amazing it felt to feel the way weed made her feel. She felt at peace for once as she admired the twinkling stars, a huge smile adorning her lips with her back pressed up against the floor of the boat. In that time, she had even managed to forget everything going on in her life at the moment. It's like she was in her own little world that was simply rainbows and butterflies.

As she slowly shut her eyes, her mind drifted towards the memory that