Welcome to Out of My Hands prequel. I do hope it'll satisfy curiosity about Nelly and how she met & got to know Opie, Jax and SAMCRO. The first few chapters are about Nelly, where she came from, the forces that shaped her and propelled her towards Harry/Opie. It goes waaaay back to when Jax and Co. were 16. Also, I hope you'll stick with this story until it hits its stride with introduction of Jax, Harry/Opie, and Tara, but I want Nelly's story to be told first.
I do not own Sons of Anarchy or Charming, or anything associated with them. Although I wish I did.
Chapter 1 – True Colours
"Okay, everyone, please settle down." Ms. Wilson called to her class full of eight-year-olds, and when the children's attention was on her, she continued, "We have a new student joining us today. Her name is Nelly Hathaway and she moved to Charming from Lodi. Please make her feel welcome."
The tall girl with long, skinny limbs and a cloud of buttery orange curls smiled at the group shyly. She pulled down on her too short t-shirt as her curious green eyes scanned the classrooms. She received a few smiles in return. Ms. Wilson thought of a good spot for Nelly and lead her to one of the most empathic and friendly kids in her class, a quiet girl with dark brown pigtails. "Nelly, this is Donna." There was no time to chat, as Ms. Wilson put the class to work. Nelly's pencil case and its contents were shabby and boring by comparison to Donna's colourful, happy ones. The dark haired girl was quick to lend Nelly her crayons and the two girls worked together contently in silence. Then the bell sounded and Donna said, "Time for lunch, Nelly. What did you bring?"
Nelly looked into her backpack and noticed there was no lunchbox. This wasn't unusual. She shrugged, "I think my dad forgot."
Donna's eyes creased thoughtfully for a second, "Let me see what my mom packed for me. She always gives me too much food." And then shared with Nelly her PB&J sandwich, carrot sticks, even her M&Ms. Nelly smiled at Donna, as she crushed candy between her teeth, rich chocolate melting on her tongue. She had a feeling she was going to like this new school.
"So who's picking you up?" Donna asked Nelly as they walked to her mom's car after school.
"My dad." Nelly said, but it sounded more like a guess than an answer.
Nelly watched as Donna ran to her mum, a pettite woman with the same dark hair and smiling eyes. She hugged her daughter and kissed the top of her head. Nelly felt a nasty tug at the base of her throat, a longing for a mother's touch, and just turned away not to see it any more. Then the mention of her name brought her back.
"Mommy, this is my new friend, Nelly. She's new, just moved to Charming."
Donna's mom gave Nelly a smile as warm as a ray of sunshine. "Hello Nelly, it's nice to meet you. You can call me Sue."
"Can we wait with Nelly until her dad picks her up?" Donna asked.
"Sure, honey." Sue nodded as Donna's older brother, Danny, joined them. Nelly watched as the family chats happily, wondering whether her dad would show up. After nearly half an hour of waiting, the school grounds have emptied, and still Nelly and Donna's family were waiting. Sue checked her watch again. "I'm going to see if we can find your dad, Nelly. You kids wait here, ok?"
Sue returned just as the Charming P.D. cruiser drove up to the school. Sue smiled at Nelly with a reassuring, but slightly nervous smile. "Nelly, honey, I'll take you to Ms. Wilson's office. She and Chief Unser there," she pointed at the short, middle-aged police officer getting out of the car, "will figure out how to get you home."
Nelly knew this wasn't good. The last time she saw the khaki-clad officers, they came with news that her mother was dead. "Did something happen to my daddy?" She couldn't help her voice from breaking. "Where is he?"
Sue's forehead creased with concern. "He probably just got caught up at work. It'll be ok."
Nelly didn't want to leave Donna and the comfort of her family. "Could I stay with you? Could you take me home?"
"Or she could have dinner with us and her dad could pick her up later." Donna pleaded with innocent eyes.
"I'm sorry, girls, but we can't. We have to find Nelly's family." Sue stooped down to Nelly's eye level and laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Deputy Unser is a nice man, you can trust him. He'll make sure you're ok."
Nelly just nodded, knowing well that the decision was made for her by the adults.
"Come, I'll walk you to Ms. Wilson." And taking Nelly by the hand, Sue followed Deputy Unser into the school.
Nelly sat outside Ms. Wilson's office as the teacher talked to the cop. The door was cracked open and the girl couldn't help but overhear the conversation inside.
"I'm at a loss, Deputy. This kind of thing doesn't usually happen in our school."
"What do you know about the family?"
"Well, they have recently arrived in Charming from Lodi. I understand there's only Nelly and her father, Troy Hathaway. Apparently the girl's mother died in a car accident a couple of months ago."
"Don't know the dad. Is there a next of kin, any contact at all?"
"Let me take a look." Said the teacher as she shuffled papers, and added after a moment, "I have Linda Thornton on file. She is Nelly's aunt, her mother's sister, with an address in Charming."
"Linda Thornton..." Deputy Unser repeated the name, as though trying to recall the person it belonged to. "I think she's one of Sam Crow old ladies."
"Hardly a fitting guardian for the child."
"Well, Ms. Wilson, Sam Crow may be a motorcycle club, but they treat their own like family. The girl will be well taken care of, if it comes to that. Tell you what, I'll take the girl home first, then if necessary, to her aunt's. If all fails, then it'll be Child's Services, I'm afraid."
"How can anyone have so little concern for their own child is beyond me." Ms. Wilson's voice was sharp.
"With the mom recently dead and the two of them moving to new town, who know what's going on..? But it happens more often than you think, Ms. Wilson." Said Deputy Unser, a little sad. "I'll take the girl now. Will keep you posted."