A/N: This is just a filler chapter. After writing it, I realized two things: 1. It should have been part of the first chapter and 2. My chapters need to be a little longer, so starting with THE NEXT CHAPTER, I will start posting more extensive chapters.
A quick shout to myevolution, leckie, and Nandita21unexplained for leaving the first reviews. Thanks, guys!
I do not own SOA or any characters created by Kurt Sutter.
"C'mon, boy-o, we don't have all day!" Chibs hollered as he slammed an open hand against the cold metal of the door, causing the young blonde inside to jump a little. "Time ta raise 'er up!"
"Yeah, yeah. I heard you." Half-Sack replied exiting the cab and shutting the door. "Maybe you wouldn't be in such a hurry if you hadn't taken a half hour to hook it up."
"I'm not in a hurry, I just don't like doin' all the work while ya sit aroun' jerkin' off." Chibs laughed as he pushed the boy's head forward playfully. "And if ya keep talkin' back to a member like that, Prospect, ya'll be spendin' another year scoopin' Piney's shit out 'o the toilet with yer bare hands."
The Scot's vivid reminder of the rookie's place amongst the club caused him to pause, not even bothering to react to the punch Chibs had landed on his shoulder. He was too distracted by the 'sentence' he was not-so-jokingly facing. Enough that he physically shuttered.
"Sorry, Chibs."
Chibs laughed heartily at the ill-stricken face of the boy. Inside the breast pocket of his mechanic's vest his phone had begun to ring. He reached in, pulling it out with his thumb, index and middle fingers and flipped it open.
"Yeah." He answered plainly.
"Hey, Chibs." The woman greeted.
"Wha's going on, Mum?"
"Got a job for you."
He ran his free fingers through his tousled hair and let out an audible, irritated sigh, sparing a glance at Half-Sack working the controls that hoisted the faded red Ford Tempo from its resting place teetering on the edge of a steep incline.
"And wha's tha'?"
"Someone's stuck out by Tom's Pump Up. Need you to go get 'em."
"Are you kiddin' me?! Lodi?!" He yelled, albeit regretfully.
"Yeah." Gemma sternly reprimanded. "You got a problem with that?"
"Tha's way outside our limits, love." He said, his speech delicate, trying to rectify his misstep of raising his voice at the Queen Bee of Charming.
He could hear her scoff. "You think I don't know that?" Gemma spat harshly. She never did like it when people stated the obvious, let alone to her.
"'O course." Chibs chuckled. "Can't you send someone else? Tig?" He asked hopefully, almost begging.
"Tig's on a run with Clay, Jax, and Bobby. Juice took Piney to a doctor's appointment and the other trucks are out on the 5 for a three car crash. You're the only option I got, sweetheart."
"Ok, ok. Christ. The Prospect and I will head up after we're done 'ere."
"Thanks, Chibby."
"Guy musta been real persuasive ta convince ya to send a wagon to pick up 'is arse. Wha's this blowhard's name?"
The dark-haired woman leaned back in her chair, a shrill creak echoing off the cinderblock confines of her office. A mischievous smile played on her face at the same time an entertaining thought crossed Gemma's mind. "It's Al Halloran. Finicky little shit, too. Said somethin' about only letting the best handle his ride. No exceptions. Guess we're as close as it came, huh?"
Al. Hmm…rolls right off the tongue. She thought to herself, pursing her lips when she heard Chibs go silent. She had known him to do this every so often when he became so mad that he couldn't even speak. The timing was even better considering that babysitting the Prospect and showing him the ropes had probably been biting at his last nerve. Perfect.
"A real charmer. Kinda reminds me of you." Gemma said as she reached for her purse. Reaching inside, she rummaged around looking for the half-pack of 100's she knew she threw in before she left the house this morning. The flexible cardboard bent underneath her grip as she extracted it from its leather confines and flipped it open, tilting it until the lone tobacco-filled tube fell into her palm. Shit. I just bought this pack yesterday.
Laughter seasoned with a bit of cynicism echoed through the earpiece. "Tha's the biggest load 'o shite I've ever heard."
Gemma joined in the temporary insanity that was comical relief, feeling somewhat lightened by it all. She was the Queen, after all, and all the seriousness of the SAMCRO lifestyle ate away at her at times, so this moment was a bit of a reprieve from that burden. But it was a short-lived refuge from reality.
"Jesus fuckin' Christ!"
Gemma instantly pulled the phone away from her ear, the sound of a loud screech and Chibs' bellowing cries and swears too much for her hearing to take.
"Wha' in the hell is wrong with ya, Prospect?!"
Putting the phone back in its proper position against the side of her head, Gemma listened closely, deeply worried and agitated about what could have possibly happened.
"What the hell is going on?"
All Chibs did was growled. A deep, guttural upheaval of his last nerve being raised to the surface. He did not need this. Not now.
"Fuckin' new kid, tha's wha' happened! Pulled the wrong Goddamn lever and now the car is sittin' pretty the rest 'o the way down the embankment. SHIT!" Chibs gazed down at his wrist to check the time. 3:15. "Won't be able to get out ta Lodi until I clean this mess up. I'd say a couple hours at the most."
"Alright. And tell that little shit if he makes our insurance premiums go up, I'll take his other ball off myself."
"I migh' beat ya to it, darlin'." He forewarned her.
With that, he snapped his phone shut, not even bothering to bid his farewells to Gemma. If he was irritated before, then this little stunt courtesy of the newbie had just given him a violent shove into a realm of pissed off he had never been in before in his life. Not only did he now have to dick around with this epic botch job for another two hours, he needed to drive an hour out of his way to pick up some stranded, pompous, too-good-for-you asshole who can't settle for a local tow because the spoiled little shit wants 'the best'. Boy, was this guy going to get a piece of his mind.
But right now, he had a more deserving fish to fry. Chibs replaced his phone back into the polyester vacuity of his shirt pocket and trudged closer to the unfolding scene of disaster. Half-Sack was standing near the semi-steep hill rubbing the back of his neck apprehensively, staring down at the Tempo resting twenty feet from the roadside.
"I don't know what happened." Half-Sack choked out afraid to look at the ready-to-erupt Scot that took a place beside him.
"Wha' happened is ya're a Goddamn eejit!" Chibs politely pointed out while smacking him on the back of the head.
"I'm sorry, man." Half-Sack apologized, gently rubbing the tender spot where Chibs had hit him. "Who was that on the phone?"
"Gemma. She wants me ta make a trip out to Lodi to pick up a dead car."
"Us."
"Wha'?" Chibs looked at the Prospect contorting his face in confusion.
"You mean she wants 'us' to go."
It only took a few seconds of getting the most seriously disturbing look he had ever seen the rugged Scotsman make for him to regret his grammatical correction, but for some reason it didn't keep the words from coming out of his mouth like vomit.
"I-I get to come with you…right, Chibs?"
"Ya'll be lucky if you even make it out 'o tha' ditch let alone ride back inside the truck. Now get down there, ya bugger!" He said shoving him off the road and down after the disabled car. "And make sure it's hooked up righ'! I'll work the winch.
I hope you enjoyed the filler. I also hope to have another chapter up soon and not have you waiting 3-4 weeks for new material.
As always, please don't forget to follow/favorite/REVIEW!
