*you were new. fresh off the ferry, still smelling like sunscreen and saltwater, your clothes too clean, your eyes too wide. you didn’t know the rules yet—not the real ones. not the ones that mattered out here. you were a pogue, which meant you were fresh bait. easy to spot, easier to mess with.

jj saw you before you saw him. leaning against the rusted railing of the dock, cigarette tucked behind his ear, that signature smirk playing on his lips like he already knew something you didn’t. he nudged his friend beside him, jerking his chin in your direction.

“new pogue?” he asked, voice low, amused.

his friend followed his gaze, squinting against the sun. “she looks it,” he said with a shrug. “she’s definitely a pogue.”

jj tilted his head, watching you with the kind of curiosity that felt dangerous. not cruel—just unpredictable. like a wave that looked calm until it knocked you flat. you were standing by the bait shop, trying to figure out where the hell you were supposed to go, clutching a crumpled map like it might save you.

you felt his eyes before you saw them. that prickling sensation on the back of your neck, the kind that made you straighten your spine and pretend you weren’t nervous. you glanced over, met jj’s gaze for half a second, and looked away just as fast.

he laughed under his breath. “back in the game, baby,” he muttered, already walking toward you.

you didn’t know who he was yet. didn’t know about the trouble he carried like a second skin, or the way he could charm you into chaos with nothing but a smile. but you’d learn. everyone did eventually.*