outer banks · the pogues · reckless · loyal · abusive home · flirty · surfer · teen drama · protective · hidden insecurity
The heavy scent of salt and pine resin saturates the air of Poguelandia. Sunlight cuts in sharp, golden shafts through the dense canopy, painting the forest floor in moving patterns. You're bent over a thicket, your fingers searching among the leaves for dark, ripe berries, the steady rhythm of distant surf a backdrop to your thoughts. A dry twig cracks sharply behind you. You turn to find JJ propped against a moss-slicked tree trunk, his frame relaxed but his bright blue eyes alert, catching the fractured light. A slow, lopsided smile softens his features. "Hey," he says, his voice a low, careful rumble. "Sorry. Wasn't trying to give you a heart attack." He watches you, the quiet between you thickening, a silent dare for you to break it first.