The Twinkie pulls to an abrupt stop outside the pawn shop. JJ almost immediately stands up, clutching a ball of blue hiding the gold Kie and I melted down.

    "Alright," JJ says more to himself, looking down at the wrapped-up gold. He and I were assigned the job of trying to pawn the gold without looking suspicious. JJ got the job because he's the best liar, and I was assigned to try and make him look less suspicious. Having a kook with him makes a gold lump less strange. He turns to me, grabbing my attention, "You ready?"

    "Always," I nod, straightening my neck to keep my head high, "We'll be back with a lump of cash in no time,"

    "That's what I like to hear," He nods, wrapping an arm tightly around my shoulders and guiding me to the doors. He only lets me go to open the door for me, allowing me to enter first.

    The others trickle in behind us, spreading out over different parts of the pawn shop.

    The woman working looks up at our presence, her suspicious eyes watching JJ and I in particular. 

    "Afternoon, Ma'am. I see you buy gold," JJ says almost immediately. I clench my eyes shut, planting a fake smile on my face as I try not to physically cringe at his bluntness.

   She looks us up and down, her expression anything but amused, "That's what the sign says, don't it?"

    "Well, I sure hope you buy a lot of it, because, I'm about to blow your mind," JJ grins, dropping his bag onto the counter as he slowly opens it to pull the melted bars from the confinements. 

    "I ain't got much mind left to blow so, have at it," The lady replies, clearly not anticipating anything more than a joke or an overestimation of what we think we have.

    JJ drops the melted clump onto the table, a smug smirk on his face. I shake my head with a smile, deciding to just join in on his already botched proposal, "How about them gold apples?" 

   JJ nods in agreement, turning from me back to the Lady.

   The woman smiles, shaking her head as she eyes between us and the gold, "That ain't real,"

    "That ain't real?" JJ repeats in disbelief, a certain smugness in his tone.

    "It's as real as you and me, test it yourself," I suggest, leaning on the counter to better observe the conversation. 

   "Yeah, feel how heavy that is," JJ prompts. The lady picks it up, her face slightly fallen in shock but denial. She picks up a light, aiming it towards the gold, "Get some light on that,"

    "Spray-painted tungsten," She declares.

    "Spray-paint? You don't believe that," I snort, JJ standing beside me with his arms crossed over his chest. 

    The lady picks up a small hammer and nail, holding it above the gold, "You mind?"

    "Go for it," JJ nods.

    She hammers the pick in the centre of the gold, almost immediately moving her tools away from the melted blob.

    "Wow, would you look at that," JJ comments sarcastically once the Lady places her finger on the hammered site. I gently nudge JJ, a subtle reminder to not act so smug.

    "Hold your horses," She tells him, her confident expression slowly falling off of her face, "We ain't got to the acid test yet,"

    "Test away," I encourage as the woman turns to grab her materials.

    "Woo! The acid test. My favourite, Pheebs," He grins down at me.

    She lets a drop of the acid fall onto the gold, the clump not reacting to the chemical at all. I can't help but smile wider as it passes another one of her tests.

    "Well, it ain't plated and it ain't painted," She speaks more to herself, not removing her eyes from the gold.

   "Ma'am, I'm telling you, it's as real as the day is long," JJ promises.

    "It looks like someone tried to melt it down," She accuses. I clear my throat, standing up straight as my eyes dart to Kie. Memories of us trying all different techniques to melt it down come flooding back.

    "My mum," JJ says quickly. His words catch my attention again, my eyes darting to him as he quickly continues, "She had all this jewellery lying around the house and she thought it was best to melt it down to... consolidate it,"

   The woman turns, dropping the block onto a scale, "Seven pounds? That's a lot of earrings,"

    "Okay, to be honest, Ma'am," JJ starts, my chest tightening in suspense of what he's going to say next, "It's really hard to see my Mum fall apart with Alzheimer's,"

   "Alzheimer's," She repeats. JJ nods his head, looking down and trying to make himself look more upset, "Give me a minute,"

    "Take your time," I say after her, watching her turn and disappear behind a blue curtain. 

    JJ leans down to my ear, a cocky smirk on his face, "In the bag,"

   "I don't know. Something doesn't feel right," I swallow, unable to ignore the sinking feeling in my stomach. "This place is familiar,"

    "It's a small island," He shrugs. 

    The lady reappears from behind the curtain, all of our backs straightening up at the sight of her.

   "So, I, uh," The pawnbroker starts, making her way back behind the counter, "I talked to my boss,"

    "And?" JJ tugs.

   "And, uh, this is what I can do," She says, holding up a piece of paper before dropping it onto the counter in front of us.

    The only thing written on the paper stares back at us like a punch to the face.

   "Fifty thousand?" I almost laugh, my jaw open slightly in disbelief at her shotty offer.

    "You think we walked in here not knowing the spot price?" JJ joined. "Ma'am, I know for a fact this is worth 140, at least,"

    "Well, sweetie, you in a pawn shop," She replies smugly, her sudden shift in attitude making that pit in my stomach sink lower. "This ain't Zurich. Do I look Swiss to you?"

    "Ninety, or we walk," JJ tries to bargain, pinching the bridge of his nose.

   "Seventy. Half price," She retorts. She leans closer to her, his face tight, "And, um, I don't ask questions about where you got his,"

   "Ask them. We didn't do anything illegal," I jump in, leaning closer to her. Something about her since she came back from behind that curtain feels hostile and I can't help how reactive I get.

    "Phoebe," JJ whispers, pushing his arm in front of me. I look up at him, nodding and standing back from the counter. I turn over my shoulder, making eye contact with my defeated-looking brother. "I'm gonna need that in large denominations, please," JJ says to the pawnbroker. 

    "Well, here's the snag," She announces, her body language still not feeling right, "I don't have that much denominated, not here anyway. I can write you a cashier's check,"    

    "No, Ma'am. I want that cold hard. That's what the sign says," JJ shakes his head, pushing his fingertip onto the glass counter. "Cash for gold. That's what I expect, I'm gonna get it in cold hard,"

    "Well, I have to send you to the warehouse. I have the money there, is that alright?" She suggests.

    A second location? My stomach just got tighter.

    "Where's this warehouse?"

                    Sitting in the Twinkie, I can't help but chew on the skin of my thumb, my knee jolting up and down. Nothing about this feels right, no one on this godforsaken island can be trusted.

   "What kind of pawn shop doesn't have money on the property?" I voice out loud, realising my thumb from my teeth to speak.

   "Phoebe, relax. You're being paranoid," John B dismisses me, keeping his eyes on the road.

   "I've never even heard of resurrection drive," Sarah admits, turning over her shoulder to make eye contact with me and everyone else     

    "There's nothing but weeds back here," Kie adds, pushing herself up to get a better look outside the window.

   "All right, just cause it's just weeds, doesn't mean it's like..." JJ trails off, his stammer getting lost in thought. 

   I drop my face in my hands, blowing out a puff of air, "We're so getting fucking robbed,"

    Almost as if on queue, the sound of sirens floods my ears. My head jolts up, my eyes catching a glimpse of a cop car and lights flashing through the back windshield. 

    "Cops? Out here?" Kie exclaims. 

    "God! Are you kidding me?" JJ shouts, throwing his hands up in defeat. 

   "Stash that," John B turns, whispering to JJ who is still holding the gold. JJ grabs the blue rag and uses it to wrap around the gold nugget. 

    "Did you bring the gun?" Pope asks in fear.

   "No. Everybody told me to leave it back at the place," JJ sighs, clearly unbothered by the whole situation. 

    "Thank god!" Kie comments, "Please, put everything else in your bag,"

    "I am, I am! All right!" JJ groans, shoving everything into his backpack in a hurry. 

    Everyone begins to talk over each other in a painc. This causes JJ's movements to become more erratic as he stands and shoves his bag in the storage of the seat he was sitting on.

    "Okay, everyone, play it cool-"

   My words are cut off by the sound of a gun cocking. From behind JJ's head, I can make out the tip of a shotgun as it's aimed right at my brother's face. 

   My ears start to ring, my heart pounding so hard I can't hear the man as he speaks. 

   I feel like I'm about to vomit as John B slowly gets out of the car, everyone else following as Kie grabs onto my hand tightly, her palm sweaty. 

   We exit the Twinkie, my fear rendering me almost deaf as I keep my eyes on the ground, too afraid to look up and see that trigger get pulled in John B's face.

    Kie lets go of my hand, exiting behind Pope with her hands up in the air. JJ goes before me, glancing back at me as my shaky hands raise in the air.

   He climbs out, turning to the man with the gun as they yell at each other. My heart only pounds faster, my fingers practically vibrating from shaking so hard as I step out of the car last.

   I turn to the attacker, my eyes meeting his as we both freeze.

   Despite the skull mask wrapping around the lower half of his face, I recognise him instantly.

   "Barry?" My voice croaks, my elbows dropping ever so slightly. 

    "Get down in the ditch!" He yells, looking me dead in the eyes as he aims the shotgun between them. He must not like the way I said his name out loud despite no one seeming to hear it. He looks so different to how I usually see him. Sure, I know Barry isn't a stand-up citizen. But, he looks plain evil.

   JJ pushes himself in front of me so quickly I almost miss it, my front basically pressed to his back as he puts himself between me and the gun.

    "Get down, now!" Barry yells again, all of us slowly dropping to our knees in the dirt beside the van.

    "Put your face in the ground!" He instructs once more, screaming and repeating the phrase until all of us are doing exactly what he says. "Don't let me see you look up, alright!"

     I look up through my lashes as Barry walks over towards the Twinkie, tears falling from my eyes as my jaw clenches in anger. 

    "I told you guys it was a set-up," I almost snarl.

    "That old bat shanked us. Goddamn it!" JJ yells, slamming his fist into the dirt and sending it flying around us. 

    "John B... no," I hear Sarah whimper quietly. My head whips in his direction at the other end of the line. 

   I watch in horror as he slowly pushes himself up, ignoring everyone's quiet protests as he motions for us not to say anything. He quietly runs over to Barry's car, moving out of view as he climbs into the backseat. 

    I turn back to the Twinkie as Barry emerges from the van, a blue rag clutched tightly in his hand with the shotgun in the other. "All right, y'all just stay like that! Unless you want your brains blown out all over this road!"

    My heart pounds harder than it ever has as I watch Barry climb into the car John B is still inside of. My knees subconsciously prepare themselves to push my body into a stand, waiting for something to happen.

   Through the blurry windshield, I can see a commotion ensue. Quickly, I push through the dirt and jump to my feet, JJ right beside me as we bolt to the car.

    "Guys! I got the gun!" John B yells.

    JJ runs and punches Barry almost immediately, Barry stepping away from John B just to turn and punch JJ right across the face. 

    Pope runs for the passenger seat, snatching the lump of gold and announcing it to everyone.

    Barry punches Kie next, the blow sending her to the floor but distracting him long enough for John B to hit him with the gun. He falls to the floor in front of Sarah who immediately grabs the open car door and slams it against his head. 

    Everyone takes turns kicking Barry as I watch, Pope's kick sending my old friend against the car door. 

    JJ drops down, yanking Barry's face covering away, "I know this piece of shit! He's a basehead,"

    "Probably knows my brother," Sarah comments, looking down at him.

    "He sells coke to my Dad," JJ snaps, the anger on his face something scary.

   At the mention, Barry turns to me with a wicked grin, his chest huffing as he takes me in, "Firecracker, how you doin'?"

    "Fuck off, Barry," I scoff

    "You know this guy?" John B almost yells, pointing at the beaten male.

    "Wish I didn't," I snap, taking the gun from John B's hands and using it to hit Barry across the face with it. Barry turns to his side, dropping close to the floor.

   "Hey, chill out!" Kie protests.

    JJ takes the opportunity to crouch down beside Barry, reaching into his pocket and pulling his wallet from the confinements. He pulls a license out, inspecting it before announcing, "We got one last stop,"

    With that, we all turn and practically run back to the Twinkie.

   Barry yells after us, his voice chilling me to my core.

   "I'm gonna remember this shit! You can't hide from me!" He screams, "I know exactly who y'all are, huh! You're gonna see me again!"

    John B pauses beside me, taking what looks like car keys from his pocket and launching them into the trees all while Barry still screams on the ground. 

    I can tell John B is cold towards me, especially with the way he doesn't look at me as we climb back into the van.

   The last thing I hear as he's driving away is the sound of Barry screaming my name.

                    "Crackhead wasteland," Kie announces as we pull up to Barry's house. 

    My knee bounces rapidly, anxiety and anger filling me at once. I don't want to be here, none of us should be here. It's not safe.

    "Dude, why are we at Barry's?" John B questions with a sigh.

    "This'll only take a second," JJ says scarily calm, climbing out of the car quickly.

   "JJ, stop," I call in defeat, climbing out of the van to follow him up to the house, "JJ, stop! You can't go in there,"

    "Can't is such a strong word," He says, not turning back to look at me as he practically skips up the steps to the front porch.

   "I mean it, J," I say, practically slamming the door open to follow him inside. 

   "Got any insider information on his stash?" He asks, ignoring my protests as he ransacks the house. My chest stings at his use of words, feeling like I'm being reduced to the people I know like I used to be. 

    "That's your plan? Rob a drug dealer?" I exclaim, moving my body to stand between him and the curtain leading to Barry's room. He looks over my shoulder at the room I'm basically protecting, my eyes close shut in defeat as he smirks and pushes past me.

    "Don't worry, Pheebs. I'll leave behind your share of the drug money," His voice is cheery and lighthearted on the surface, but the boiling anger is hard to miss.

    "What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I snap, following him into the bedroom. 

    "You're gonna sit there and tell me you just happen to know him in passing?" He laughs bitterly, ripping things out of Barry's cupboard. 

    "So, what? I'm just guilty by association once again?" I yell, my voice getting louder in my hurt. 

    "What is it, huh? You help him sell or are you just a junkie?" He pauses his actions rifling through Barry's room, turning to me with a glare as he stands practically chest to chest with me. 

    I blink, the word 'Junkie' hitting me like a slap to the face. 

    "Fuck you, don't take your shit out on me!" My voice cracks causing my face to heat up, "In case you forgot, he also had a gun in my face, okay? There wasn't any special fucking treatment! I'm not a junkie,"

    "So you just sell to people and ruin their lives?" He grins bitterly, licking his teeth. His eyes fall all around me, taking note of anything that looks expensive. He nods down towards my wrist where my gold bracelet sits, "That how you got that bling, huh? Giving my Dad drugs!"

    "Stop it!" I yell. I stare at him, my chest puffing before I turn and pull a duffle bag down from Barry's wardrobe, "You're so eager to steal from a drug dealer that just had a gun in our faces, fine! Take it all,"

    I throw the bag into his arms, his hands gripping it until his knuckles turn white. 

    He turns away from me, dumping all the money out onto the bed.

   From the corner of my eye, I spot a small bag of white powder on Barry's bedside table. Without thinking twice, I snatch the bag and shove it into the front pocket of my shorts.

   "What are you doing?" I hear John B from outside the bedroom, his voice full of annoyance.

   "Getting even," JJ replies, grabbing the bag and moving to exit the bedroom. "All right, took care of business,"

    "Hey, look at me," John B says, grabbing JJ by the shirt as I exit the bedroom. "If you keep going down this road, you're gonna end up just like your Dad or-"

    JJ's body reacts like it's allergic to the word 'Dad'. His head jolts up as his fist grabs onto John B's collar at lightning speed, "You watch your mouth, Man. Aren't you tired of being messed with?"

    "That's not the point, JJ," John B shakes his head.

    "Forget it, John B. If he wants to be impulsive and put a target on his back, let him," I scoff, brushing past them and towards the exit of the house. 

    "That's the smartest thing you've said all day, Pheebs!" JJ calls behind me, only pissing me off further.

   I slam the front door open, almost jumping down the front steps as I walk past the Twinkie, ignoring the looks sent my way by the others.

   "Where are you going?" Sarah calls after me.

   "For a walk!" I shout back, not bothering to turn back to look at them.

    I know exactly where I'm going despite how far away it might be. If JJ wants to treat me like some Kook who's only as good as the people she once knew, I might as well act like it.

   The sun is as bright as ever as I reach the Cameron house, my temporary residence.

    But, instead of going into my room, I decide to climb the stairs up to the bedroom I know all too well.

   Rafe sighs as I open the door without a word, only turning to shut and lock it behind me.

    He looks up as I pull the small bag from my pocket, swinging it between my fingertips with a grin. 

    "Thought Ward kicked your ass out," I laugh

    "He's not here at the moment, is he?" He points out, sitting back in the chair in the corner of his room before nodding his head to the bag. "Where'd you get that?" 

   "Don't worry about it. Care for a bump?" I brush off the subject, dropping down onto the chair beside him. I open the bag, spreading out the contents into thin lines.

    "Got it from Barry?" He asks.

    "Yep," I nod, not bothering to look at him before leaning down, pushing one nostril shut. I snort the first line, sitting back in my chair with my eyes closed. 

    Rafe doesn't protest as he leans down and takes a line of his own, sitting up and rubbing the irritated nostril. 

   I can't help but stare off into space, thinking about what JJ said.

   He's right. I did go along with Barry to sell. I was never involved, but I went with him sometimes. I never thought about who I was hurting, I was just so desperate to be accepted. My whole family basically rejected me at a young age, and my Mother chose her husband over me. When I came here, I didn't feel good enough for anyone. 

    But, I thought JJ would understand more. I feel like he has the potential to understand me more than anyone has. But, maybe he feels the same way about me and maybe that scares him enough to act like a dick. 

    "Do you think I'm a bad person, Rafe?" I question. He turns to me, a confused smile on his face as he takes me in.

    "No," He answers plainly.

    I stare at him for a second longer, the eye contact making my heart race as I lean down and take another line off the table. The second I come back up, I turn to Rafe and press my lips against his harshly. 

    He accepts me eagerly, resting his hands on the outside of my thighs as he pulls me towards him until I'm straddling his lap. 

    I can feel my brain screaming at me, trying to remind me of all the horrible things he's done and that he's only getting worse. But, right as I'm about to listen to my subconscious, he detaches from my lips and moves to my neck, whispering as he goes past.

   "This is the Phoebe I love," 

    The small line of acceptance, no matter how artificial, was enough for me to ignore the voice in my head. I lean back, detaching his lips from my neck only to grab the bottom of my shirt and pull it over my head, allowing him to jump back to the space and cling to me with desperation, my fingers lacing in the back of his hair. 

   And no matter how much my current actions are proving JJ right, I don't stop.

                    Sleeping with Rafe didn't make me feel any better. In fact, it only made me feel worse. 

    I can't say I'm surprised. Why would that ever help me feel like a good person? Being with the worst person I know. 

   My eyes stay glued to the ground, my hair slightly disheveled despite me quickly running my fingers through it, with my cropped jacket zipped to the top, hiding marks left by Rafe that feel more like bruises. 

    My shoes in my hands hit against my bare legs as I walk up to the chateau. I only lift my head up once I see new lights strung up across the trees along with the sound of a machine whirring. 

    Furrowing my eyebrows, I follow the lights like a pathway, reaching the back of the house where more lights greet me. 

    A glowing, expensive-looking hot tub sits in the middle of fairy lights and LED lights wrapped thick branches.  

    "What the-"

    "Phoebe!" JJ exclaims, swishing water with his arm, holding a champagne bottle in his hand. "Come join me, there's a jet going straight up my butt!"

    "What is this, JJ?" I question, looking all around at everything he's done, "Did you use that money to buy all of this?"

    "I bought a hot tub!" He cheers, a painful smile planted on his face. I look at him for a moment, my face twisting in sympathy. He seems to notice, shaking his head and waving his hand, "No, stop with all the emotional shit. Enjoy it! Get in!"

    I take a second to look at him, my chest aching at the pain he's trying to hide. Sighing, I drop my shoes to the ground, moving my hands to unzip my jacket and let that fall beside my shoes. I step up to the hot tub in just my black tank and my shorts, stepping into the warm bubbly water and sitting down to the right. 

    "What happened?" I ask after a moment of silence, watching as he continues chugging the champagne rather than answering me.

    He puts the bottle down on the edge, turning to me with a lazy grin. His eyes fall to my neck where I'm sure he can see evidence of my shame, his face faltering for only a second.

    He plants that lazy smile back on his face, leaning his head back, "Looks like I'm not the only one having an amazing night,"

    "I'm not doing this, JJ. Talk to me when you're done being a-" I start to say, pushing myself to stand out of the water only for him to quickly grab my wrist, stopping me from leaving. He doesn't say anything, doesn't even look at me. He doesn't let me go either, his gentle hold on my wrist only leaving once I lower myself back into the tub. 

    "I... regret saying that to you," He says hesitantly as if the words hurt to say.

    "I know," I practically whisper, the jets from the tub splashing the sides of my face and falling all over my arms. 

    "You liking the jets, huh?" He quickly changes the subject, pushing back up his facade. He scoots closer to me, reaching for a remote on the edge beside me. He sits practically in front of me now, one arm stretched out keeping me against the wall of the hot tub.

    He pauses, clearly becoming aware of the proximity at the same time I do. I suck in a breath, his eyes moving from the remote to the lower half of my face. 

    "JJ, I-"

    "You're gonna love this," He cuts me off, sitting back into his old position with the remote in hand. He stands and aims the remote above, my eyes lifting to a disco ball right above my head.

   He presses a button, causing the ball to spin and reflect and the jets in the hot tub to become more aggressive. "Disco mode!"

   My eyes travel down, catching a glimpse of his abdomen right before he sits. His stomach is littered with round, harsh bruises. Fresh ones. 

    "You went to see your Dad, didn't you?" I guess, watching the way his face twitches at the mention. I know what his Dad does, and I know what that kind of thing does to your mind. 

    "Yeah, well, big mistake," He laughs bitterly, taking another big swing of the champagne, "You need some music or something-"

    "I get it, JJ. The desperation for their approval that you know you'll never get. At least, not in a way that feels good," I tell him, looking at the side of his face with a softness I hope he can see.

   His jaw clicks, his eyes watering against his will before he pushes himself up, "I think John B has some mixtapes inside,"

   The second he stands up in the tub, I join his side, moving to step in front of him and grab his biceps to stop him from moving.

    "It's not your fault," I tell him sincerely. I watch as the smile drops from his face, his head dropping down like it's too heavy for him to hold anymore, "It's okay to feel it,"

    "I just wanna do the right thing," He sobs, dropping his head onto my shoulder. He wraps his arms around my waist, his fists balled as I wrap my arms around him.

   "I know, it's okay. You can pay restitution some other way," I reassure him, stroking his hair in an attempt to comfort him. 

    "I don't want you to hate me," He cries, holding me tighter, "I'm sorry,"

    "I don't hate you, J,"