Setting: Season 1
S-O-A-S-O-A-S-O-A
Ari tried not to sound frustrated as she ran a hand through her hair, the sunlight making her auburn tresses look even redder. "Anita," she said, for the third time in the past hour, "You need to eat. You know as well as I do that David won't mind."
Anita, Ari's seventy-year-old patient, shook her head stubbornly. "I told David we'd have dinner with him. I can wait. I sure don't have any other plans for the night," she said with a laugh.
Ari chuckled as well, until Anita's laughter turned into gasps and Ari hurried to give her some oxygen. She held up the tube. "At least keep this on until he gets here, all right?"
Anita gave a small nod as she breathed in the extra oxygen. The older woman was very sick, and Ari didn't need her nursing degree to know Anita's death would be slow and painful. Ari had left her old life behind three and a half years ago and moved clear across the country to Tacoma, Washington. She had sought a job as a nurse and found it. Ari hadn't had much experience and had been slightly surprised that the hospice company had secured her a position so quickly. It hadn't been until a month after she started taking care of Anita that she learned Anita ran through caregivers the way other people went through milk.
But Anita hadn't scared Ari. Even Anita's son hadn't scared Ari off. The big, bad biker was Anita's only family and it was obvious to Ari that they loved each other. Both of them had an edge, but Ari didn't mind. She had grown up with people like that.
The roar of a motorcycle was heard in the tiny house. "Did you hear that?" Ari asked Anita.
"Of course I did. I might be dying, but my hearing's just fine."
A lesser person might have winced at the harsh words. "I'll let him in," Ari said cheerfully. "You go sit down in the kitchen."
Anita heeded Ari's words, removing her oxygen tubes as she went. Ari bit back a sigh, then turned to walk to the front door. Anita's son had a key to the house, of course, but Ari always met him at the door. He liked to ask her how his mother was before he saw her.
Ari opened the door as he came up the walk and leaned against the doorframe. "Hey Hap."
He walked up the front stairs and stopped in front of Ari. As usual, he stood too close. As usual, his six-one frame made her feel smaller than her five-four height. And as usual, a little thrill went through her when she laid eyes on him.
"Hey," Happy said in reply, his voice gravelly.
He took off his sunglasses, hooking them onto the front of his shirt. "How is she today?"
Anita never wanted Happy to know how sick she was. He, never one to be fooled easily, always knew she was worse than she let on. Often Ari found herself stuck between the two of them. "About the same," Ari told him. "She's been waiting for you to have dinner."
Happy's expression didn't change, but his voice was irritated. "She doesn't have to do that. You know that shit comes up and I can't come right on time."
Ari placed her hand on his arm, her voice soothing. "I know. She knows too."
~*~*F*~L*~A*~S*~H*~B*~A*~C*~K*~*~
"So where's the new one?" Happy asked his mother as she let him into the house.
To his surprise, Anita didn't snicker like she usually did. "I like this one."
Happy blinked, surprised. Since his mother's diagnosis three years ago, she had been spending more and more time at the hospital. Six months ago, her doctor had suggested to Happy that Anita have a live-in nurse to provide round-the-clock care. Happy had no problem spending his money to give his mother the best possible care. It had been the two of them against the world for most of his life, and he loved her in a way he loved no one else.
Happy knew his mother wasn't an easy woman to get along with. She didn't take any shit from anyone, and she didn't appreciate people coddling her as her illness progressed. None of the nurses the hospice company sent over lasted for more than two weeks. Happy met all of them – if someone would be living in the same house as his mother, he sure as shit was going to make sure she wasn't some crazy bitch – and he hadn't liked any of them either. He had left it to his mother to run them off, though.
"Don't give me that look," Anita chided him. "I don't hate everyone I meet."
Happy raised an eyebrow at that, and Anita laughed. "What an untrusting son I've raised. You'll see. I think this one could work out."
Happy hadn't heard his mother laugh since she had gotten sick. He knew right then that if this new nurse was the reason for his mother's lightheartedness, he'd do anything to keep her there. Even if it meant being nice.
"If you like her, I like her," Happy said to his mother.
Anita rolled her eyes. "Bullshit."
Happy smiled. His grin quickly faded as his mother started a coughing fit. He brought a hand to her back, feeling helpless, when a young woman he had never seen before came into the front hall. She was on the shorter side and slender, with a nice rack. Her hair was straight, shoulder-length, and a deep red.
"Anita," the woman said. "We had a deal, you gonna renege? Come on, let's go into the other room. You can talk to your son there."
She put her arm around Anita, and Happy felt a brief annoyance. He could take care of his own mother. Then the woman looked at Happy for the first time, smiling at him. It took a good deal of his self-control not to react. She was gorgeous. She had high, slashing cheekbones, a pretty smile, and intense, sexy blue eyes. "I'm making dinner, so you can talk privately in the other room."
Happy just nodded, nonplussed. He followed as his mother heeded the woman – she was obviously the new nurse – and went into the living room, sitting on the couch. The nurse had a nice ass, Happy thought idly. He couldn't believe his mother had actually obeyed the woman's command.
"Sit down," Anita ordered.
Happy sat. The nurse turned to go to the kitchen. "You too," Anita said. "Dinner can wait a few minutes."
The nurse hesitated, clearly thinking it over, but she finally sat. "This is Aria, my new nurse," Anita introduced them. "Aria, this is my son David."
"Happy," Happy spoke to Ari for the first time.
Ari's brow furrowed. "What?"
"Call me Happy."
Ari pressed her lips together and glanced at Anita. Happy recognized the look on his mother's face; she thought something was amusing. "What," Happy barked at them.
Ari smiled. "It's just, you don't seem very…happy."
Anita smirked. Happy scowled. Ari bit her lip, clearly trying to hide her smile. As Happy glared at the hot nurse, he was surprised to realize she didn't seem intimidated. Besides his mother, he had never encountered a woman who hadn't looked at him with at least a touch of fear lurking in the back of her gaze. He didn't blame them; they should be afraid of him.
But this woman wasn't. Either she was very stupid, or very brave. And she didn't seem stupid.
Happy brought his hand to the small of Ari's back as they walked into the house. Ari had been taking care of his mother for over three years now – and he had wanted to fuck her since their very first meeting. He hadn't, because she took such good care of his mother and he didn't want to ruin that.
He couldn't risk it with Ari. He knew she was the only nurse his mother would stand to be around. He, Ari, and his mother had worked out a system, and it worked for them. So he would do what he usually did after spending time in Ari's presence: race back to the clubhouse and screw a sweetbutt. It never got Ari out of his mind, but at least then he wasn't walking around with a hard-on.
"She using the oxygen?" Happy asked.
Ari shrugged. "I keep on her about it. She won't use it around you."
Happy exhaled. "Fuck."
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Ari cocked her head at the sound of motorcycles. She and Anita had just seen Happy two nights ago, and they weren't expecting him today. Ari went to look out the front window and was surprised to see Happy had brought someone with him. This other man, a blonde, was also wearing a Sons of Anarchy cut. Ari knew Happy was very involved with Tacoma's motorcycle club, but he had never brought one of his fellow members to his mother's house before.
Ari stepped out of the house, closing the door behind her. Anita was napping and Ari didn't want to disturb her unnecessarily. "Didn't know you were coming by," Ari said as she made her way over to the two men.
Happy got off his bike and then looked up at her. He froze for a second, and Ari felt a moment of embarrassment. She knew she looked ridiculous. She was wearing an old t-shirt knotted in the back, short denim cut-offs, and cowboy boots. Usually she knew when Happy was coming and would dress more appropriately.
"Yeah," Happy finally answered. "Gonna be out of town for awhile. Came up last-minute. We gotta head out, but I wanted to stop by and let Ma know."
Ari chewed her lip. "Anita's sleeping…"
Happy ran a hand over his face. "Fuck. She been out awhile?"
Ari checked her watch. "Yeah. She'll probably be up in less than half an hour. I can go get her now – "
"No," Happy interrupted. "We can wait a little bit."
"Yeah, no problem," the other man added.
For the first time since she'd stepped outside, Ari looked at Happy's friend. The blonde man didn't seem to mind that Happy had seemed to forget he was there. He gave Ari an easy smile. "I'm Kozik," he introduced himself.
He pushed his sunglasses off his face, his eyes warm on Ari's face. "If I had known Mama Happy was being looked after by such a beautiful woman, I would have stopped by sooner."
Ari couldn't help but smile at him. She knew Kozik's type. Good-looking, charming, self-assured, and usually harmless. Unfortunately for him, that wasn't the type of man Ari went for. "I just bet you would have," she said.
She glanced at Happy, who hadn't said anything. "I'm Aria," she said to Kozik.
He held out his hand, and Ari shook it. "Nice to meet you, Aria. You can call me Koz."
He held onto her hand a little longer than necessary. Ari pulled her hand away, giving Kozik a knowing look. Ari looked at Happy. "What do you call him?"
Happy waited a beat. "Asshole."
Ari laughed and Kozik grinned, unoffended. "You guys want a beer or something?" Ari offered.
"Yeah. Bring it out here," Happy said.
Ari disappeared inside the house. "Off-limits," Happy said immediately, not even looking at Kozik.
Kozik swore. "You hittin' that?"
Happy didn't answer. "Dude, she is fucking hot," Kozik said appreciatively.
Happy was thinking about the tattoo he had seen peeking out of Ari's shorts. It had looked like a flower of some kind, inked pretty high up on her inner thigh. He hadn't known she had any tattoos.
Ari came back out and handed them each a beer. They sat on the front steps, Kozik and Happy towards the bottom and Ari at the top. "So," Kozik said, leaning back on the step to look up at Ari. "How long has Hap been hiding you here?"
Ari looked at Happy, who was drinking his beer. "Mmm…almost four years now," she answered.
Ari knew Happy didn't talk much, but he was almost mute now. She didn't know what was going on with him. Maybe the trip he and Kozik were going on was going to be dangerous. She had never asked what he did on these trips – runs, he called them – but she had lived in Tacoma for four years now. She had heard rumors around town about what the local motorcycle club did.
"You from around here?" Kozik asked.
Ari shook her head. "New Jersey, born and raised."
Happy shifted so he was leaning against her leg, and Ari felt herself get irrationally excited. Maybe he had moved on purpose. Maybe he wanted to touch her. Maybe he would miss her while he was gone. Maybe you're an idiot, Ari told herself.
She wanted Happy. She'd had a crush on him since they met. She thought he was sexy, with his gravelly voice, dark eyes, and ripped body. He'd taken off his cut and his shirt when he fixed the gutters at the house once, and Ari had about swallowed her tongue. It had been the first time she had seen that he was truly covered in tattoos. To her surprise, Ari had found it incredibly sexy.
Happy had a purposeful swagger when he walked. She knew he carried a gun at all times, but she imagined that most of the time he probably didn't even need it. He had the aura of someone you didn't mess with. Ari had a thing for men like that. Real badass men, ones that everyone – man or woman – knew not to mess with.
Ari could tell Happy's friend Kozik was a tough guy too – after all, he was in the same motorcycle club – but Kozik didn't exude danger the way Happy did. It was just Ari's luck that the man she was wildly attracted to was her patient's son. Ari liked Anita, liked her job, and wouldn't jeopardize it. She needed a job that kept her out of the way like this. A live-in nurse was the perfect nursing position for someone like her.
It might be different if Happy initiated something. Ari knew that if that happened, she wouldn't have the willpower to say no. But Happy had never made a move on her. He seemed to like her, and he did touch her sometimes – her back, her arm – but it was never anything more than that.
"Why'd you move out here?" Kozik asked, interrupting her thoughts.
Ari blinked. "What?"
Kozik smiled at her again, charmingly, and she shook her head at him. "Why'd you move all the way to Washington, from the East Coast?" Kozik repeated his question.
Ari took another sip of her beer before replying. "Why not?"
Kozik just looked at her, clearly waiting for Ari to elaborate. Happy was looking at her too. "No one reason," Ari lied. "I just wanted a change."
She stood. "Come on, I think I hear Anita moving around. She'll be glad to see you, Happy."
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Ari pressed her face into Happy's back, inhaling the leather of his cut. The wind whipped through her hair as they sped down the highway. Ari's whole body thrummed with excitement. She loved the feel of the bike underneath her. She also loved having a reason to wrap her arms around Happy.
He had taken her for a ride on his bike for the first time four months ago, and it had been the first time Ari had ever sat on the back of a motorcycle. She had quickly grown to love it. Now, whenever Happy came to see his mother, he would take Ari out for a ride. It had given Ari even more reason to look forward to his visits.
~*~*F*~L*~A*~S*~H*~B*~A*~C*~K*~*~
Ari and Anita both heard the roar of a motorcycle outside the house. Their eyes met, and identical smiles spread across their faces. Happy was back. They hadn't seen him since he and Kozik had left for their run a few weeks ago. "I'll let him in," Ari said.
She pointed a finger at Anita warningly. "Don't get up, Anita. I mean it. You can't exert yourself."
Anita started indignantly. "I – "
Ari shook her head. "I'll tell Happy what the doctor said," she threatened.
Anita narrowed her eyes. Ari glared right back. After a moment, Anita relented. "Fine. But you better not tell him."
Ari stood. "I won't."
She didn't mention that the doctor had already been in touch with Happy, and left him a voicemail with Anita's most recent results. Not surprisingly, it hadn't been good. Ari knew that she and Happy would have to talk about it now that he was back.
Ari went out the front as Happy walked across the grass. She smiled at him, relieved to see he was still in one piece. "Hi," she said, walking down the front steps.
He looked over at her. "Hey."
He looked tired, travel-weary and dirty. "Everything good?" Ari asked as walked up the stairs together.
"Yeah. How's Ma? I didn't know I'd be gone so long, I rode straight here from California."
Ari stopped walking. "Shit, that's a long ride, Happy. You could have just called or something."
He shrugged a shoulder. "Didn't want Ma to worry."
Ari frowned. "You can call me. Just call my cell next time."
He gave her a funny look. "You never gave me your number."
She tilted her head to the side, realizing he was right. "Oh. Well – I'll give it to you now."
Happy took out his phone. "A'ight."
She rattled off the number. He entered it, then slipped his phone back into his pocket. Ari pouted slightly. "You're not going to give me yours?"
He briefly rubbed his knuckles across her cheekbone. "I use prepaids a lot."
Ari ignored the heat that shot through her at his touch. She looked around the front yard before closing the door. "Your friend get back okay too?"
"Who?"
"Kozik."
"Yeah," Happy said shortly.
He didn't wait for Ari before striding off down the hall. She looked after him, confused by the sudden irritation in his voice. Ari followed him into the living room. Happy had already sat down on the couch nearest to his mother's chair. He didn't look at her when she came in, and Ari decided to leave. Maybe he and Anita just wanted some time to talk without her around.
"Why are you upset with Aria?" Anita asked as soon as the other woman had gotten out of earshot.
Happy leaned back, closing his eyes. "Upset? Jesus, Ma. I'm not upset. Women get upset."
Anita sighed. "Whatever you say."
"Yeah. Whatever I say."
Anita didn't say anything. Happy opened his eyes and looked at his mother, who was watching him carefully. "You two a'ight while I was gone?"
"Yes," Anita said. "Aria stayed with me the whole time. She never goes out or does anything on her own, anything fun."
Happy looked at his mother like she was crazy. "Fun?"
Anita pointed a finger at him. "She's twenty-seven years old, David, and you and I are the only people she spends any time with."
Happy didn't see why that was a problem. He liked knowing Ari was always around. "And we just sit around this house," Anita continued. "I'm an old lady. I don't mind sitting around. But Aria – "
"Shit, Ma, you ever hear Aria complain?"
Anita waved a hand. "She'd never say anything. I trust her with my life, and I know you trust her. But she don't trust us. She's running from something. She's hiding out here."
Happy crossed his arms. "Hiding from who? You worried?"
"No."
Anita and Happy talked for awhile, and Ari made dinner. While they were eating, Happy told them he planned on staying at the house for a few days. After dinner Ari cleared the table and, though it was early, Anita said she was going to bed.
Once Happy kissed his mother goodnight and Ari had her settled in bed, the two of them found themselves in the living room. It was only eight o'clock. "You wanna go for a ride?" Happy asked Ari.
Ari's eyes widened. "What?"
Happy smirked. "On my bike," he clarified.
A flare of excitement lit Ari's face, but she chewed her bottom lip nervously. "I've never ridden one before."
Happy stood, bringing his hand to her lower back. "No shit? Come on, babe, I'll pop your cherry."
She liked when he called her that. It made her think that maybe he did care about her, think about her. Want her. "Clever," she retorted, but allowed him to lead her outside.
They walked over to his bike. Happy took out a helmet and handed it to her. "Put this on."
She fastened the strap, eyeing the bike nervously. It seemed bigger, now that she was so close to it. What if it fell on her? She'd be crushed. Happy swung his leg over the motorcycle, gesturing for her to do the same. "Where do I sit?" she asked.
Happy didn't have a bar on the back of his bike. He never let anyone ride bitch with him. "Behind me," he replied.
He waited until she climbed on. She sat rigidly, and he could tell she was nervous. "Keep your knees tight," he instructed. "Move with the bike. If I go one way, don't lean the opposite way."
Happy started the bike, and he felt her jump. "What do I hold onto?" she asked, raising her voice to be heard over the engine.
Happy looked back at her and grinned. "Me."
He put his hands on her knees and squeezed, encouraging her to move closer. Ari complied, scooting forward until she was pressed against his back. She hesitantly placed her hands on Happy's hips. He took hold of her hands, yanking them forward, and put them around his waist. He bit back a groan as he felt Ari clasp her hands around his lower abdomen, moving her whole body even closer to him. He could feel her breasts pressed against his back.
Maybe he hadn't thought this through, but it was too late now. Happy revved the bike's engine, and took off down the road. Ari's arms tightened around him.
After a few minutes, she leaned forward and yelled into his ear, "I love this!"
Happy grinned, cranked the throttle into the next gear, and the bike picked up speed. Ari let out a whoop of excitement.
"You good?" Happy called back to her.
"Yeah!" Ari said into his ear.
It had been months since her first ride, but he always asked her that. Ari smiled, thinking of how nervous she had been that first time. If she had known that riding with Happy meant she got to feel that hard body against hers for hours at a time, she would have made him take her for a ride a lot sooner.
All of the sudden there was a high-pitched sound and something whizzed by Ari, causing Happy to jerk. "Shit!" he swore, quickly looking over his shoulder.
Ari realized what was happening almost as quickly as Happy did. Someone had just shot at them. She turned around and saw a lone biker behind them. "Aria keep your fucking head down!" Happy yelled.
Ari faced front, moving her mouth next to his ear. "There's just one, on a bike."
Happy turned around again. "Fucking Mayan," he spat.
He increased their speed, then fired once over his shoulder. An answering shot rang out, and Ari pressed closer to Happy. She saw a service road coming up on their right and Happy must have known it was there, because he swerved onto it immediately. "When I slow the bike down, you get clear," he commanded her. "Get behind a fucking tree."
"Okay!"
Happy slowed the bike and Ari jumped off, hitting the ground with a thud. She rolled, getting off the road, and scrambled to get behind the bushes dotting the side of the pavement. The sound of Happy's bike had faded, and the other bike zoomed past her. Ari got to her knees, looking through the branches. The other bike came to a halt and a short Mexican dismounted. He had an AK-47 in his hand and he crept down the road, clearly looking for Happy.
Ari's hand went to the knife strapped to her leg. She never went anywhere without it. She didn't really think she could disarm this big scary Mexican biker with only a knife, but she felt better with it in her hand. Ari was nervous. Where had Happy gone? Did he have a plan?
Ari's question was answered when Happy came out of nowhere and shot the Mexican in the chest. Ari rushed forward as Happy shot him again, this time in the head. "Happy!" she said.
Happy's eyes whipped to hers. His face was cold. "I told you to stay out of sight," he snapped.
He stuck his gun in the waistband of his pants and took off his cut, not wanting to draw any further attention in case someone in a car spotted him. His eyes went to the knife in Ari's hand. "Where'd you get that?"
Ari was looking at the Mexican lying on the ground, making sure he was really dead. "I had it with me," she said absently.
Happy gripped her arm, pulling her away from the dead body. "Don't look at him," Happy ordered.
Ari lifted her eyes to meet his. "What are you going to do with the body?"
Happy just looked at her for a second. Ari seemed calm, in control. She wasn't looking at him like he was a murderer – which he was, he knew that. It had never bothered him, but he knew that was a rarity. Even Tig, his friend in the SAMCRO charter who was a fucked-up individual and someone Happy had always felt a kinship with, sometimes felt remorse after a killing. Happy never did.
But he was surprised to see Ari was unfazed by the violence she had just witnessed. "I'll take care of the body," he answered her question.
It was then that Ari's eyes went to his shoulder. There was a dark patch seeping through his shirt. Ari remembered feeling him jerk against her. "You've been shot!" she accused him.
"Yeah, I know," Happy said, and took out his cell.
He pushed a button and brought the phone to his ear. "Donut? I got a situation here. I'm at the service road off the 5, need some clean-up. Yeah. Mayan. Yeah. No. No one for you to worry about. Bring the van."
Happy ended the call, slipping his phone into his pocket, and looked at Ari. She was glaring at him. "This won't blow back on you, a'ight? I called one of my brothers, we'll get you home and clean this up."
"You didn't tell him you were shot. Happy, you have to get that looked at."
Happy didn't respond to that. "Here," he said, giving her the gun. "Stay here for a second. Shoot anyone that's not a Son. I'm going to go get my bike."
Ari took the gun, checked the clip, then stood there as Happy jogged down the road. He wheeled his bike back as a van pulled up. Ari raised the gun and pointed it at the door and the first man to jump out held up his hands. "Hey there beautiful," he said. "Point that thing somewhere else, okay?"
Ari saw he was wearing a Sons of Anarchy cut, and she lowered the gun. Happy kicked out his bike stand and leaned his bike to the side. He went over to Ari and held out his hand, and she gave him his gun back. "What happened?" the man wanted to know.
Happy stood next to Ari. "Mayan came up behind us while we were out riding. Must've seen my cut and wanted to start shit," he said.
A large man, also wearing a cut, had also stepped out of the van. "How you wanna do this, Hap?" the man asked.
The large man looked at Ari and gave her a nod. Happy gave his two brothers instructions. "Wrap it up, get it in the van so we can dump it. We'll just kick the dirt over here to hide the blood."
The men got to work. "Happy's been shot," Ari told the two men.
Happy wouldn't listen to her, but maybe his friends could convince him to get his wound tended. The larger of the two men looked at Happy and saw the bloodstain on his shirt. "How bad?" he asked Happy.
"Through and through, almost a graze. Not bad," he said.
Happy's two friends looked at each other. "We got this, Hap," one of them said. "Why don't you take her out of here, get your shoulder looked at."
Happy glanced at Ari, who was clearly trying not to look pleased. "A'ight. I'll see you back at the clubhouse," he said.
He got on his bike, Ari quickly getting on after him. "Don't ever fucking do that again," Happy growled at her, clearly pissed she had made him seem weak in front of his brothers.
Ari wrapped her arms around his waist as he started the bike. "Then don't fucking ignore my concern for you," Ari snapped back. "Are you okay to ride?"
Happy ignored her question. They sped down the road, Happy finally pulling into the Tacoma clubhouse. He killed the bike's engine and dismounted. To Ari's surprise, he held out a hand to help her off the bike. They started walking across the lot, and Happy put his good arm around her neck. He had never done that before, and Ari was worried. Was he feeling weak, and leaning on her for support? "Happy?" she asked worriedly, turning his face to hers. "How are you feeling?"
He brought her hand away from his face. "Like I got shot. C'mon. When we go inside, you stay by me."
"Okay," Ari agreed.
Happy opened the door, still not letting go of Ari, and the two of them walked inside the Sons of Anarchy Tacoma clubhouse. There were several men wearing black leather cuts identical to Happy's, and a couple scantily clad women scattered around. "What happened?" a tall man with long, curly brown hair asked, coming over to them.
His questioning eyes went from Happy to Ari. "Ran into a Mayan. Got shot. Lorca and Donut are cleaning up," Happy filled him in.
A few of the others wandered over, all of them looking at Ari with interest. None of them knew how Happy knew Ari. She didn't look like one of the women he usually had around. "We need to get that doctor?" he asked Happy.
One of the other men sighed. "Bowie, man, the doc's getting' tired of us blackmailing him. We go to him again so soon, he might go to the cops this time."
"So we kill him after he's fixed up Hap," Bowie snapped.
Bowie's eyes went to Ari, then Happy. "Hap, she's not gonna say – "
"I can patch him up," Ari said.
It was the first time she had spoken since entering the clubhouse. "She's a nurse," Happy answered his brothers' unasked question. "And we can trust her."
"The pretty nurse is here?" came a voice from the back of the room.
Kozik came over, grinning when he saw Ari. "Hi beautiful."
Ari pushed Happy's arm off of her. "Hi Koz," Ari said. "And it's Ari."
She barely spared him a glance as she rubbed Happy's arm. "All right, take off your shirt," she said.
"She always get right down to business like that?" Kozik asked Happy.
Ari rolled her eyes. "Shut the fuck up," Happy said, taking off his cut and his shirt and tossing them on the barstool next to him.
"I assume you have medical supplies?" Ari asked Happy.
Happy looked to Bowie, jerking his head. "What do you need?" Bowie asked.
Ari rattled off a list of things, and Bowie brought her the supplies. She moved to stand between Happy's legs and ignored the men talking around her, focusing on cleaning Happy's wound. He had been right; the bullet had gone right through. She stitched it up and carefully taped a bandage over it.
Once she finished, Ari looked up – only to find Happy's dark eyes on her. "How's it look?" he asked her quietly.
"Keep it clean, and it'll be fine," she said, her voice just as soft. "If you stop by the house every day, I can clean it and change the bandage for you."
"I don't want Ma to know about this," he warned her.
She gave him a small smile. "I figured. I won't say anything to her."
Ari stepped back from Happy, but he snagged her arm. "Aria – thanks."
She looked at him. "You're welcome. Go clean up, okay? I should get back to the house."
Happy nodded. "Give me a few minutes, then I'll take you back."
He grabbed his cut and ruined shirt, and Ari went outside to wait for him. Once she was alone, she wrapped her arms around herself and allowed the fear to surface. She had grown complacent. She had depended on Anita and Happy to feel safe. Closed off from the world in Anita's house, Ari had felt like no one knew she existed. It had been a nice feeling. She hadn't wanted to deal with chaos and violence like she had in her past life.
But it had shown up today anyway. She had been shot at. She had seen a man killed. Neither action bothered her that much, but seeing Happy hurt had shaken her. She had thought that living in Tacoma, far away from New Jersey, had been what had given her peace of mind. Now she knew the truth: it was Happy. Happy was the one who made her feel safe.
"So, you okay?" came a voice from behind her, making Ari jump.
She turned to find Kozik standing there, lighting a cigarette. "Me? Yeah, I'm fine."
He looked her up and down. "You look kinda shaky."
"Well you did just sneak up on me," Ari snapped.
Kozik smirked at her. "Uh-huh. What's going on with you and the Killah, anyway?"
Ari knew who he was talking about, but she asked anyway. "Killer?"
"Happy. And don't tell me you need me to explain the nickname."
Ari looked at him warily. "There's nothing going on with me and Happy."
Kozik looked at her skeptically. "Can I get a cigarette?" she asked, changing the subject.
"Sure," he said, handing her one.
Ari lit up and inhaled deeply. She didn't say anything else to Kozik, and he pretended he didn't notice her hand was shaking. "See you around," he finally said, and left.
A few minutes later, Happy came out. "You smoke?" were the first words out of his mouth.
He had never seen her smoking before, but she looked really sexy doing it. He watched as Ari blew out some smoke. "If I'm stressed, or upset," she answered him.
Happy got pissed all over again. He didn't want her stressed or upset. Ari should never have been involved in any of this. "I shouldn't have brought you here. You need to forget everything you saw, and everything you heard. I don't want you involved in club shit."
Ari finished her cigarette, dropping it to the ground and stubbing it out with her toe. She stepped forward and, wrapping her arms around Happy's waist, gave him a hug. "I'm just upset you're hurt," she said into his chest.
Hesitantly, his good arm came around her. "I'm fine," he said dismissively.
They stood like that for a moment. "Okay," Ari said, pulling away. "Now take me home."