𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐒 𝐒𝐎 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐅𝐄𝐂𝐓 ➝ 𝐫𝐚𝐟𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐧

𝟐𝟔. 𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐔𝐍𝐅𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐑

𝐈 𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐑𝐑𝐄𝐃 𝐈𝐍 my sleep, the feeling of something soft and unfamiliar against my cheek. I pried open my eyes, trying to block the burning sun from the window. A small chuckle arose from beside me as I realized Rafe was leaning on his elbow. I let out a small breath, worried that it was some random person. The events from the night before came back to me and I sat up quickly. "Hey, y/n, you're okay," Rafe reassured as he wrapped around my waist.

I rubbed my eyes with the heel of my hand and nodded slowly, trying to slow my racing heartbeat. He placed a kiss on my cheek and got out of the bed, while I stayed under the covers. Looking up, I could see that he was shirtless in a pair of gym shorts. "Definitely better then Jacob's," I said as I stared at his bare chest, a blush creeping onto my cheeks.

He chuckled again as I slipped out of the sheets. Walking over to him, I smiled cheekily as I moved onto my tippy toes. I wrapped my arms around his neck before he could put his shirt on. Bending down, his lips met mine and I could feel him smiling through the kiss. I pulled away after a second before moving into the bathroom. "I kept your toothbrush in a bag," He called to me as I looked under the sink, grabbing the ziplock bag from a small shelf.

I rinsed the brush in water before adding the toothpaste and more water. I brushed my teeth, watching as Rafe made his bed, now wearing a blue polo and beige shorts. Soon enough, I was rinsing out the sink and putting the bag away before grabbing the spray deodorant. I walked out of the bathroom still in Rafe's shirt since I was wearing Sarah's dress when I got to his house.

"I'm driving you home, okay?" He told me as he passed me a large sweatshirt and a pair of shorts because I didn't have any other clothes. The two of us walked down the stairs as I combed my fingers through my hair, trying to detangle it. Just then, the front door opened and John B walked in with a cast on his arm.

I flew down the stairs and into his arms, squeezing him tightly. "I'm so glad you're okay," I whispered as he wrapped his arms around me as well.

"I'm okay, don't worry," He said as we pulled apart, "Have you talked to the others?" He asked and I shook my head as he sighed. "We'll meet at The Wreak in an hour,"

"Sure, I'm just gonna head home and change," I told him as I gave him a small salute and walked away, Rafe following behind. "Morning, Ward," I acknowledged before I walked through the doors. 

"I still don't know why you hang out with them," Rafe mumbled as we got into my jeep after putting his bike in the back.

"You know your friends hate me, and plus, I like my friends," I commented as he pulled out of the driveway, "Just because I'm friends with different people, doesn't mean that I won't be with you,"

"I know that, but you could hang out with me and everyone at a country club, other then a small boat that's barely running," Rafe replied and I rolled my eyes, looking away from the window.

"The HMS Pogue is a great boat that has helped us a lot," I defended and then sighed, "I don't fit in at country clubs, and everyone there would rather golf then surf," I added as I looked back out the window. The trees flew past as we drove out of Figure Eight.

"How about a deal then. Sometime this week, I take you surfing. It'll show you that Kooks can surf as well as Pogues," Rafe offered and the deal was tempting. Surfing and spending time with him, what could be better.

"Okay, but if I'm right about the fact that y'all can barely surf, then you can't say anything about my friends, ever again," I smirked and he rolled his eyes before sticking out his hand for me to shake. I shook his hand proudly, excited to show him up with my surfing skills.

Around ten minutes later we pulled into my house and he parked my jeep in my "driveway". We both hopped out of the car and I helped him unload his bike. "Thanks for driving me home, you really didn't have to," I told him and he shrugged as he grabbed his helmet.

"I wanted to though," He told me as he snaked an arm around my waist bring me closer. To say that I was still a bit unfamiliar with the whole 'He's my boyfriend' thing, would be an understatement. It was so weird to see him this carefree with me and honestly, I enjoyed the fact that he was this romantic and loving.

I tilted my head up and kissed him as I slipped my arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. Just before anything else could happen, I heard my name called and I quickly moved away from Rafe. My mom walked out of our house, hands on her hips, and a small smirk playing on her lips. "I'm guessing that's my cue," He laughed lightly and I blushed from embarrassment. "It was nice seeing you, Ms. l/n," Rafe called to my mom.

"It was nice seeing you too, Rafe, maybe you could stay longer next time," She called back and I looked at her bewildered.

"Mom!" I whined as she shook her head, laughing.

"I'll see you later," He told me as he kissed my cheek once more and pulled on his helmet. He moved onto his bike, gave my mom and me a wave, and rode off. I walked back to my mom, and she gave me an innocent smile.

"So, that's the boyfriend," She said as she wrapped an arm around my shoulders, leading me into our house, "He's cute,"

"Mom, seriously," I whined again as she closed the door.

✮

The four of us sat in The Wreak while Kie brought drinks to us at a separate table. I'd just thrown on a pair of shorts and a tank top before making my way over. Kie and John B were talking about where he was staying, which was with Ward and Sarah in Tannyhill. While the two were talking, I was sitting with JJ and Pope, watching as they fought like usual. "Hey, so do you have a membership to the clubs now?" Pope asked as he leaned back against his chair.

"I don't know, Pope," He replied as he took a seat at the table, followed by Kie.

"What about those golf carts they drive around? You get one of them?" JJ added and I chuckled.

"Does it come with a sweater-vest, or do you have to but one on your own?" I joined, making fun of the fact that John B had literally gone full Kook.

"Look, you promised. You said you weren't with her," Kie said, making John B ignore my very-well thought out comment. "If you wanna hang out with her, that's fine, but I'm letting you know now, that I'm not doing anything with Sarah.

"Do you guys see her here?" John B asked us, annoyed, "No, right. Okay. A little focus would be fantastic. We've got the map,"

"It's out of whack 'cause the guy was ganja'd when he drew it," JJ said as he leaned over my shoulder.

"It's cause the coast has changed," I told them as I stared at the brown map, "We just have to look for landmarks that haven't changed,"

"What about the old forts?" John B questioned and I shrugged, looking towards Pope for a yes or a no.

"Battery Jasper," Kie said and I took a sip of my drink she had brought us, "We can head there and look, see if we can find anything," The five of us agreed and made our way into the van.