ISSUES II outer banks

sisters

"Friends are the family that we choose."

❥

"Did you prevent him from doing something stupid?", Kie asks me as soon as I meet her in front of our home. "Well.. no. But we'll do it together." "What exactly?" "Honestly, I don't know. But it'll be alright, I promise." Instead of reacting annoyed, she looks amused. What happened to my cousin? She would normally shout at me. "Who would have thought that you're all over JJ Maybank." "You definitely didn't", I laugh for a moment and joins me, "I'll try to make it as legal as possible." "Well.. nothing's as dangerous as being with JJ but I'm also scared of what we face here", she adds and points to the house which we live in. "I'm right beside you."

"Mom?", Kie calls for her cautiously as we get in, "Dad? Uncle Harvey, aunt Dana?" Anna comes over to us and breaths out relieved, "Oh thank god. Where have you been? I've been up all night and even called the hospital. Isabella didn't say anything else than that you're safe. I'm actually very disappointed in you for that, Isabella." I gulp. I mean, she's right. I should have told her but Kie would have killed me and I guess that scares me more than Anna.

"Well, Iz doesn't have her car anymore and we had an issue with the truck and our phone battery was empty and there was no electricity." Anna lets out a frustrated laugh. "Yeah, that's completely logical. No electricity, of course. No electricity. I have to call Dana and Harvey. They've been busy helping Ward but also looking for you." Sure, helping Ward. They couldn't disappoint me more.

"John B is back", Kie changes the subject and I get more nervous as I don't think that Anna will like what we'll say, especially with us being lost for too long. "I've heard it through the media. He's been arrested for murder." "He was but he didn't do it", I quickly state but Anna doesn't look convinced. "I swear someone is making it look like he did it and he'll need money for a good attorney-", Kie continues a tiny bit too quickly.

Anna smiles and for a second I feel relieved but then realize that it's only a fake smile. This is going to end badly. "I can't do this with you any more." "Mom, that's really important." "I'll ask mom and dad as well and Kie and I will pay everything back to you", I try to help Kie and calm Anna down in the same moment but she shakes her head. "Your parents are disappointed as well, Isabella. You were allowed to go to court and go back, not follow others to the Cut. And Kiara, you didn't even call."

"Anna, it's a murder charge that we're talking about. John B is in serious trouble", I try it again but even if it helped, Kie ruined the chance by snapping her mom. "Don't you get it, mom? A murder charge. It's not always about you." "Sure", Anna sneers, "That's why I thought when I walked down the beach at four a.m. to see if the tide might have washed up your dead bodies on the beach. Kia, you're treating me really badly. Isabella made a lot more effort to help this family stick together."

"You treat me badly!", Kie interrupts her harshly, "You don't trust me, you even trust Iz more." "Why should I trust you? You've lied to me constantly and get your cousin involved just for those boys!" "When did I lie to you?" "Kiara, save it. It's always about those boys." "Gosh, your so scared that I might have sex with a pogue like you and aunt Dana did but guess what? I already did", Kie snaps and I freeze for a second.

Kie just started a war and she's not going to win that one. I see Christian coming closer to us and he asks Anna to give him and Kie a moment but Anna is clearly refusing this idea. "You've got no idea how hard we work to give you all those possibilities that other children might never get", Anna states disappointedly and I feel sorry for her. She's right and I know that she wants the best for us. But the best is not always what someone thinks it is. She would have to think like Kie to know what's objectively the best for her.

"How often do I have to repeat myself that I don't care about those possibilities?" "But they should! And Isabella, ever since you've been a child your dream was to become a lawyer like your parents. You spoke about studying law and living with your parents after school for so long. What's your plan now? Live on the cut and go from job to job not knowing if you can pay the bills at the end of the month?"

"I've tried too hard to be someone I'm not, Anna", I whisper regretful, "I am thankful for everything that you do for us but I've realized what I want and that is be with my friends even if that means that I have to skip all those possibilities." "Exactly. Sorry, mom. But that's not who we are. I'm a pogue and I'll always be one", Kie yells by now, "Iz and I have always been pogues. That's why I hate coming back to this place!"

"You hate coming back", Christian repeats her words and I can hear his voice cracking. That must have hurt and I feel sorry for them even if Kiara might have told them her real feelings. She could have said it in a different way. However, Kie's also disappointed. All of us are sad about this situation and none of us knows to handle it.

"You want to live like a pogue?", Anna raises her voice as well scaring the shit out of me when she continues taking the laundry basket throwing her clothes in the front garden, "I'll show you how that looks like. Go and live like a damn pogue. Get out of my house. No one is going to stop you." Kie is fighting back her tears, I'm shocked and Christian doesn't show any emotion. He's probably shocked as well and also sad and scared that they might lose Kie for real.

"Kie", I whisper considering asking her to apologize but she nods slightly and walks down the stairs so I follow her. If we leave right now, we tear this family apart. But if Kie leaves, I'll be by her side. When she grabs a sweater of hers, I do the same and put as many clothes into my bag as I can and follow her when she turns around to leave this place behind.