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                    "Phoebe!" Linus's voice bellows from above deck. I huff, lowering my phone displaying unanswered text messages to my brother. Ever since I found out about our father going missing, I've been the one to reach out and try to speak to him. It's like he's ignoring the fact my Dad is missing too. 

    "Coming!" I shout back, standing up with a huff. I know all too well that tone of voice. The sternness and demand mean I need to drop everything I'm doing and come over to him right away. 

    I pause at the door, tugging my white and green reeboks onto my feet. Then, I quickly jog up the stairs of my stepfather's lavish boat, meeting him and my mother at the top.

    My Mum greets me almost instantly, her floppy hat and purple sundress almost covering her entirely. She moves towards me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders with a wide grin hidden behind her sunglasses. I lift my own white sunglasses, placing them on top of my head and keeping my hair out of my face as I smile back at her. 

    "Isn't it just as beautiful as you remember?" She gushes, turning out to face the island we steadily approach.

    I spot Linus on the side of the boat, dressed like a tacky sailor as he throws the rope onto the dock for the workers to secure. 

    "I don't remember much but..." I trail off, wrapping my arm around her waist and stepping forward with her, "It is pretty,"

    "Charlize, join me?" Linus interrupts, holding his hand out for my Mum to take. She steps away from me in an instant, grabbing her husband's hand as he helps her off of the boat. 

    I glare in his direction, imagining myself shoving him off of his fancy boat and into the water below. In front of me, a lavish white mansion sits back from the dock--our dock now I'm guessing. 

    God, this is such a cocky display of wealth. Who the hell needs a water feature outside of their waterfront home? 

    "Sorry I'm late!" I hear a male voice yell from the dock, snapping me out of my thoughts.

    Pulling my sunglasses back over my eyes, I make my way to the edge of the boat and step off onto the dock. At my feet, a blond boy in a grey tank, shorts and boots kneels and wraps the rope around the metal, securing Linus's boat to the waterfront. 

    He looks almost too casual for such a rich area. I'm sure Linus will have some complaints to make about his exposed arms and legs despite the burning sun above. He always finds something to pick on.

    Sure enough, I see the man in question turn and screw his nose up at the back of the boy's head, turning his nose quickly as if the worker isn't worth the attention.

    "Hey," I start, turning my eyes down to the boy kneeling in front of me. He finishes securing the line, craning his neck and squinting his eyes from the blinding sun to look at me. "Do you work here? Like, at the docks I mean?"

    "Nah, I just like to play with ropes all day," He replies sarcastically. The older man supervising him gives him a stern look as if to mentally tell him off. The blond simply smiles at his boss, staying crouched as he fights the sun to make eye contact with me. He answers truthfully this time, "Sometimes," 

    "Here," I say, reaching into my back pocket and pulling a $100 bill from the confinements. My sunglasses allow me to see the way his eyes light up, his hand twitching to reach out and take the money from me, "Consider it a tip,"

     He coughs, clearing his throat and immediately trying to act nonchalant, as if he's not at all affected by the large bill in front of his face, "Is this like a, uh, pick up?"

    "Take the money and shut up,"

    "Yep, will do," He nods, quickly taking the money and stuffing it into his own pocket. I take this as the end of the conversation, stepping away from him and moving down the dock. Just when I get past the nose of the boat, I hear him speak once more, "Thanks, kook!"

    Kook? What the hell kind of a nickname is that?

    "Is there a reason you're giving away the money I give you to a boy who can't even be on time to work?" Linus questions me as I catch up to him and my Mother. I smile at him through my sunglasses, shrugging off his dirty look.

     "Well, maybe he can use it to buy an alarm clock," I smile innocently. He stares me down, knowing I only did it because of the harsh look he gave the boy. 

    Linus scoffs, crossing his arms over his stupid little sailor shirt, "Or some appropriate workwear,"

    "Whatever, sailor moon," I mumble under my breath, watching through the tint as he walks into our new home, unaware of my small dig at him. 

    Just then, I feel a buzz in my pocket. I pull my phone out, my heart jumping at the sight of my brother's name on my screen.

              Johnny B
        leave me alone, phoebe.

                    The warmth of the bonfire reaches the skin of my cheeks even from the distance between us. I sip on the alcohol in my red solo cup, the contents of the container only warming my face even more. 

    "Phoebe, how ya doing girl?" Barry slurs, falling into the sand beside me. I laugh, squinting to keep the sand out of my eyes. 

    "Barry, have you ever heard of the phrase 'don't get high on your own supply'?" I ask, holding my arms out to keep him balanced as he finds a comfortable sitting position in the sand.

    "I got spares," He grins, pulling a small plastic bag with white powder inside of it out of his pocket. He holds it up to me, his eyes half closed as he grins lazily, "Try some. Goes great with booze,"

    "I'm sure it does," I comment sarcastically. I take the cocaine from him anyway, creating a line on the skin of my hand before leaning down and discreetly breathing it in. Just as I lift my head and wipe the excess powder from my nose, Barry lifts his arm up and gestures someone from the crowd of partygoers over.

    "Country Club!" 

    A tall, rich-looking boy steps out from the crowd, walking over to the empty patch of the beach where Barry and I sit with our feet in the sand. I keep my eyes on the stranger, leaning down to play with my gold anklet as he approaches. 

    The male almost completely ignores Barry. Instead, he tucks his hands into his pants pockets and grins down at me, "Barry, who's your friend?"

    Barry laughs, the drugs affecting his mood as he drowsily points from me to the man in front of us, "This is Phoebe. She's moved to the island a few weeks ago. Be careful with her, Country Club," He wags his finger as if warning 'Country Club' to be weary of me.

    "I'm sure she's not that bad," The man grins at me once more, turning to drop down by my side in the sand. He holds his hand out in front of me, a formal gesture for an informal setting, "Rafe Cameron,"

    "Phoebe," I take his hand, shaking it quickly before dropping it. His palms are soft as if he's never worked a day in his life, instead, expecting others to do the work for him for a dime. His last name sparks recognition in me, reminding me of a name I associate with my stepdad. "Cameron? As in, Ward Cameron?"

    "My father," He nods, swirling his tongue around his mouth as if to mix the bitterness and pride around in his gums. "You're Linus Pierce's kid, aren't you?"

    I catch myself copying Rafe's previous movement although devoid of all pride, my tongue running along my teeth as I shrug, "I guess you could say that,"

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