Hello again all! I know i didn't get to make another post on Sunday or Monday but that's because a surprise college project came up. I had thought it was due the 18th not the 11th, so me and my group had to have a really fast grouping session. Thankfully, it got done and after a few stuttering a words (blehhh...public speaking), it got done. woo! But not, instead of doing my history work, I decided to make another chapter. There will be both Esmeralda and Happy in this chapter, in the same area but they will NOT be interacting. She will with other club members and such but not with him directly this chapter. That'd be too easy. But, David and Happy will be. So, get ready for a ride =).

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, settings and such in relation to Sons of Anarchy. Those are purely Kurt Sutter's, lucky man. I do however own the people and settings that are not familiar with the series. I also do not own Numb by Linkin Park. I wish I did…because then I'd be potentially rich lol.


I'm tired of being what you want me to be

Feeling so faithless, lost under the surface

Don't know what you're expecting of me

Put under the pressure of walking in your shoes

(Caught in the undertow, just caught in the undertow)

Every step that I take is another mistake to you

(Caught in the undertow, just caught in the undertow)

2006

The soft bell of the book store would ring. Turning Pages was the name of the bookstore. A cute title but the pages weren't filled with black ink. It was filled with the few elderly people that came in, barely allowing the shop to keep it's head above water. She was a stocker and only during the morning shift was she allowed to work. The owner couldn't afford to have her on by herself when she was unwilling to answer a customer's question. Where what book was? How much of a discount was 20% off a book? Where's a certain author located? She couldn't. So instead, any customer that approached her would be taken to the next nearest associate. A soft, apologetic would touch her pillow soft, full lips. And they would just walk away.

They knew. The entire town knew. It was too small and Esme had quickly taken knowledge of that little bit of information. Della Unser had been kind enough to "accidently" tell the most gossiping women in town about her situation. Her lack of talking and it spread like wild fire. She was thankful for it and thankful that Wayne and Della had put in a good word for her at Turning Pages and the Third Street Diner, where Esmeralda also worked.

She knew that without the older couple that she would be a mess, lost. She had to work seven days straight to afford her rent, which was already cheap. A deal that Wayne had worked out for her. 785 a month, utilities included except for oil. Oil. That was expensive and with her four year old son, she needed to make sure it was filled. If it was just her, she could suffer in the cold. It would be the first time but she wouldn't and couldn't stand to see the red cold blush on her son's cheeks that had once been on her own.

The time at the diner was…different. It was almost directly center in the town. It was cozy, very eighties oriented in the style. Blue booths were lined near the wide open windows. A blue-green bar that took up half of the dinner with the open back to see the cooks in the work. She almost expected to have to wear roller skates but she was glad they didn't make her. She could barely stand on her own feet, let alone four wheels.

They also had a different system at the diner than they did at Turning Pages. They had her on four days a week, two morning shifts, one afternoon and one evening. They always had her at the bar. Esmeralda was stitched into her blue apron that wrapped around her waist. At the bar, only the locals usually sat. And the locals knew her…or of her. They weren't as judging. They were able to take one glance at her and then say their order before they allowed her to go off. Tips weren't big but they were enough. The only true big tips that Esmeralda received was when a Gemma Morrow would come into the dinner. That was a….terrifying experience to say the least.

XXXXFlashbackXXXX

Her black hair danced down her back, curling softly at the ends of the long strands. Her green eyes were down at the pad, her pen moving as she wrote down the order of hash browns. Extra cheese and onions. Onions. Bleh, she thought. She had been against onions since she was pregnant. Those days even the simple sight of them made her rush to the bathroom.

The bell chimed above the diner door and it was soon followed by the click of heels. Esmeralda didn't look back towards the new customer as she slid the ticket for the order into the order stand. She moved over to get Thomas, the current customer, his coffee before she heard the clearing of the throat. The nails tapping on top of the counter. She glanced over her shoulder at the customer, spotting the women as she turned, sliding the cup of coffee towards Thomas.

She moved towards the woman, tilting her head slightly with a soft, welcoming smile on her face. One that spoke without her having to. The woman had dark hair, blonde streaks running through it. She looked older, middle of her forties. She lifted her pad and pen, ready to take the woman's order.

"Ain't you ganna speak honey?" Her voice was filled with what Esmeralda took as amusement. Amusement at her?

Esmeralda's eyebrows shot up to her hair line. Her emerald eyes wide, a fearful look in her eyes as she eyed the woman. Come on. She'd been there for a couple months now and someone was going to mess with her now? She swallowed, a soft flush covering her lightly tanned cheeks in embarrassment as she ducked her head back down, allowing the long dark strands to cover her face.

"So it's true. You're mute." The woman chuckled. Mute? She wasn't a mute! Her heart pounded against her chest, her knees trembling as she wished the floor would just open and swallow her to get her away from her tormentor. She shook her head gently, denying it. "No? Hm…then you're just rude? We don't take kindly to rude people around here. Especially those rude to me."

The bell chimed again and she heard the soft patter of feet, "Mama!" The voice had her head lifting, glancing towards the boy rushing towards the counter. His hair was dark, cut close to his scalp. His skin a few shades darker than her own but a pair of emerald eyes sat out on his boyish face. She smiled at her son, reaching out to gently slide her hand over his cheek as Della helped him up onto the stool before the elder woman turned towards her tormentor.

"Gemma." The woman's, now named Gemma, face turned slightly sour at Della. "Della…always a pleasure." She mumbled as her eyes dropped to the small boy in the stool near her. A son. Hmm…She kept her smirk to herself.

"Causing trouble as always Gemma or just interested in local gossip?" "You know me Della. I'm a helper. You know I leave the trouble to the boys and the gossip to you." She smirked now, sliding her dark sun glasses over the bridge of her nose to cover her eyes as she moved towards the diner door. "Have a good evening."

Esmeralda had turned back to grab the plate of food, handing it to Thomas before sliding a cookie to David, watching as he began to eat it. "Don't mind her Esmeralda. She's all bark and no bite without those boys of her's to back her up. " Boys? What boys? The look of confusion must have been obvious on her face as Della chuckled softly.

"The boys are her son and husband and their…club of misfits. More like a gang but hmph. Sons of Anarchy." She snorted softly as she reached for the glass of water. The sons of Anarchy. Esmeralda dropped the glass before Della's hand grasped it. The glass shattering at her feet. Images of Happy's cut that covered his back as he leaned over the dining room table, checking her math. His cut tossed over the chair in the living room. The black leather as he rode away. The picture of him stuck in her dresser at home. His back facing the camera, looking over his shoulder at her with a look of daring for her to actually take the picture. Sons of Anar- "Meralda!"

Della snapped her fingers in front of her face, breaking Esmeralda from the gaze. Both she and her son staring at her in wonder. She forced a smile on her lips, turning from them to finish her last hour of work.

XXXXXXEnd of FlashbackXXXXX

That wasn't the last time she saw Gemma or heard of the Sons of Anarchy. Gemma came in every week, ordering a cup of coffee and leaving a twenty dollar tip behind, even more if she ordered an actual meal. The sons were a constant daily hearing. Someone complaining, the roar of their bikes, and even a few occasions when a son would stop in themselves, avoiding her section and sitting in a booth in the far back. A booth she noticed was never sat in by any other customers. They apparently were a big deal. She could see that.

At least…that was until David De'Leon decided to adopted it.


2009

Three years since she arrived in charming, the twenty year old Latin-Caucasian beauty was still working at Turning Pages and The Third Street Diner. Her, now Seven year old, son sat in the very back booth as his mother worked. The front bar surrounded and filled with customers that she was attending to. He was busy working on his math, second grade. A tough thing. He sighed, scratching his darkly tanned cheek.

No one noticed the bell chiming or the large, boot heavy man heading towards the back booth. His head was shaved, his skin tanned and tattoos shining under the black t-shirt that was covered partially by the Sons of Anarchy cut. He had a swag to his body. His head tall, confident as he moved towards his normal spot. A spot that was for the club and the club alone. He could feel his gun in the back of his jeans as he moved, slowly spotting the kid in the booth.

He slid into the booth opposite of the kid, eyeing him as his eyes danced along the math page. His large hand, the large ring that sat on his middle finger catching the kid's eye, as he snatched the book. "Hey!" The boy cried out, his eyes lifting, narrowing as Happy seemed to freeze, allowing the kid to snatch the book back. Green, piercing green eyes that stood out on the dark complexion. He hadn't seen eyes that green in years. Not since the last time he saw Esmeralda when he shot the man that had violated her.

He swallowed, catching his composure. David stared at the larger man, his gaze narrowed as if in a threatening way. "Don't you know this booth is for grown men?" The man's voice was husky, deep and dominating. But David was having none of it as he pulled his math book back in front of him. "I don't see a 'grown men' sign on the seat." It was a childish remark but it was just snappy enough that as David lifted his head, he saw the man's cheek twitching in a slight smirk.

"I don't need a sign to know who can sit in a seat kid. " The man growled, forcing David to shrink back slightly before he straightened, lifting his chin in confidence and stared straight at him. "My mama says that you're name has to be on everything you own or someone will take it. You're name wasn't here, I took it." He planted his small hands on the table, staring down the older man.

Happy was slightly amused and aggravated at the same time. "Listen Kid-""David." David. "What?" Happy questioned, raising his eyebrow as he lifted his sunglasses over his head. "David. My name is David, not kid. My mama writes it on my things and that's why no one takes my stuff." His voice was filled with a childish sarcasm.

Happy had a déjà vu moment as he stared at the smaller kid. His green eyes that stood out on his face. The hard confidence on his face, the look of fear that was quickly covered after his growl. Like the kid had to be strong. Strong for what? He felt a strange feeling twitching at his body. A feeling he hadn't felt in years and he shot up from his seat. He couldn't be here right now. "Number three and five are wrong." He grumbled, turning on his boots and moving from the diner.

Esmeralda wandered over to the table a few moments after, resting the glass of juice in front of her son as she ran her fingers gently through his hair, watching as he fixed number three on his paper. His green eyes lifting, meeting hers with a soft smile as he leaned his head up to welcome her kiss on his forehead before he went back to his work. The roaring sound of the bike having the seven year old glancing out the window before he returned to number five.


YAAAY! So…We see into a few things here. My favorite part was definitely Happy and David meeting. I hoped you all realized the similarities between Happy and Esmeralda meeting then Happy and David meeting. The age, kind of off in the distance, the feeling Happy felt over the kid. I really like how David's confidence came across. He isn't like other seven year olds. He has had to help his mother since he could walk. He knows her best, knows what she's thinking partially. So he's had to be strong and I don't see him being in death-like fear of Happy. Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed! Please review and I'll make sure to post again soon!