𝚋𝚘𝚛𝚗 𝚒𝚗𝚗𝚘𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚝 {𝚓𝚓 𝚖𝚊𝚢𝚋𝚊𝚗𝚔}

𝚜.𝟷 𝚎𝚙.𝟺 -𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝚝𝚠𝚘-

"you said you hate my suffering / and you understood / and you'd take care of me."

~

When Tate made it to The Wreck and put her apron on, she immediately knew something was off. She'd thought her overall gloom of the day had just been from the disappointment of not finding the treasure and the fight with JJ, but she quickly realized that it might be something more than that. "Kiara's waiting out the storm at Heyward's," Tate said to Mr. Carrera on her way out to the counter.

Mr. Carrera nodded, and then did a double take. "Are you feeling okay?" he asked in a low voice.

Tate ran her fingers through her tangled hair, damp from the rain, and felt like she was wading through fog in her brain to answer. "I'm fine," she said at last, but her head was killing her and her stomach felt like it was still lurching around on the boat in the middle of the storm.

Mr. Carrera looked unconvinced. "Are you sure? You look sick."

"I feel fine, Mr. C," Tate lied. "Really." At that moment, the door banged open and a soaking wet Kiara stepped through, distracting Mr. Carrera long enough for Tate to busy herself with a table.

It was rare that Tate ever got sick. She usually got a cold in the winter and that was about it. Right now, however, she felt like her feet weighed more than the rest of her body and her head was a huge rock tethered to her shoulders. She spent the shift trying to manage despite being off-balance and groggy the entire time. She kept trying to think of what could have made her feel like this. She was okay on the boat... or was she? She couldn't remember. She didn't want to think too hard about it. She just needed to finish her shift and get back to John B's house where she could sleep off the sickness. That would have to do.

"You good?" Kiara asked for what felt like the hundredth time that shift.

Tate nodded. The restaurant was dead because of the storm so she took a second to lean against the counter and take a few deep breaths. It was getting harder and harder to stand up straight and keep acting normal. "I'm good," she said, nonetheless. Kiara gave her a disbelieving look and Tate sighed. "I'll lay down when I get home, I just have to finish out the shift."

"That's ridiculous, dude," Kiara argued. "Just go home now. You need the rest. I'll be fine alone for the rest of the evening."

Tate shook her head. "Some of us actually need the money, Kie." It came out more bitter than she'd meant it.

Kiara looked hurt. "Look, I know you think I'm not good enough to hang out with you guys because my parents have money, but you know my dad would do literally anything for you-"

"You're one mani-pedi away from being a Kook, dude," Tate said, her voice tired. "I can't figure out why you hang out with us."

Kiara frowned, looking at Tate for a long time. "Because that's how friendship works, Tate." Tate rolled her eyes, not wanting to put up with this while she was already feeling sick. Kiara kept going. "It's not about how much money your friends have, it's how compatible you are with each other. I love John B and JJ and Pope because they actually bothered to get to know me and they care about the things I have to say. I don't give a shit about how much money they have, but I know I'm better off than them so I'd be willing to help them anytime they need it. It's just... it's how it works when you love people."