They headed across the lot of the Sacramento airport towards their cars. Feeling energized, they were absolutely thankful to be back home in California with some interesting lessons learned in New York City.
"My mom said they're cooking dinner back at the house, to come straight there." Jax said as he buckled the boys into the back seat.
Kristina smiled as she climbed into the drivers seat, putting her hands on the steering wheel "God I missed you!" She cooed as she spoke to her car and started the engine. "I can NOT wait to get back to the house."
Jax closed the passenger side door and she had already pulled out of the lot before he buckled his seat belt. "Christ I need a smoke" he said rubbing his neck
"We'll be back in twenty minutes" she smiled
Jax groaned "It's a forty minute drive, Kris"
"Baby" she laughed "have you met me before? I'm just as excited to get back and see Slash as I am to put these sleeping rugrats down for their nap"
"And for Juice to get an ass beating" he smiled
She shook her head "So mean. So mean. He's a good kid, Jax" She laughed. "Abel, when we get back you can hug and kiss mama but then you gotta get a nap. Okay?"
"Fugheddaboutit!" He shouted from the back seat. Jax laughed, high-fiving him.
"Christ." She grunted. When they pulled up to the house, they slowly walked up the walkway as they readjusted themselves to the smell of Charming and the cool weather. "We're home!" She shouted as she lugged her bags inside. Gemma and Fiona walked out from the kitchen and an eager Boston Terrier came running through the hallway. "Hi baby!" She smiled, bending down to pet Slash. But he had another favorite in mind as ran past her and he jumped all over Jax's legs. Gemma grabbed the boys' carriers as Jax plopped himself onto the floor scratching and playing with the puppy. "Wow" she scoffed standing up "I've been replaced."
"I missed you too!" Jax laughed as the dog licked and jumped up onto him "what can I say babe? Your aunts and Slash all have a thing for me."
"Everyone's in the back" Gemma smiled as she held her grandson. "I'm gonna put them down for a nap" they made their way into the back, Juice, Bobby and Tig setting up a welcome home- newly redefined 'Jax pong' game.
"Look who it is!" Tig smiled as they all stepped out into the backyard. The SAMCRO men embracing one another as Kristina and Jess fought mercilessly through their bags for a cigarette to light as they sat at the table. "All good shit?" Tig asked
"Lots" Chibs smiled "good shit, emotional shit, hilarious shit..."
"Let's hear the good shit first" Bobby demanded as they all gathered around the table. Mary, Gemma and Fiona walking outside to join them.
"Got a new deal." Jax smiled, taking a deep breath. He pulled his cigarettes out of his pocket and lit one. Happy was about to explode out of his seat if Jax didn't say something soon "Alright. So… Kristina's uncle needs some help running protection. He's moving his goods from the Bay Area to Reno once a week"
"What kinda goods?" Bobby asked
"Ah, nothin' crazy" Chibs smiled "Electronics, bullshit stuff. No drugs, no guns."
"And…" Jax chuckled, leaning forward and ashing his cigarette. "Happy?"
"Fifty THOUSAND dollars!" He screamed "Between fifty and one hundred fifty k EVERY week."
Bobby, Juice and Tig looked up wide-eyed and stunned. Tig stood up and walked around the table, wrapped Kristina in a hug and kissed the side of her head "Did I EVER tell you how much I love you? Because I fucking LOVE you!" he shouted holding her face in his hands "You beautiful little mafia princess! I LOVE YOU!"
"Yeah yeah" She smiled "I know you do"
"Other good shit?" Juice asked
"Her family man… great people. Went to a few great bars, and picked up some Italian" Jax smiled
Gemma snorted "Oh really?"
"Mia fidan…" He stammered looking at Kris
"Fidanzata" she smiled
"Fidanzata! And Come stai?"
"Would ya look at that?" Gemma chuckled
"Her aunts positively loved me. Naturally" he shrugged with a confident sigh
Bobby shook his head "Okay Romeo. What about the hilarious shit"
"Please let me!" Happy laughed "Alright. Besides Kristina nearly killing us all on our way from the airport. Went to her aunts fuckin' old style house. This asshole over here rejects food politely and gets slapped in the back of the head. Wednesday we all get on the train to go meet her cousins for dinner… this stank ass lookin ho is grillin' everyone. So Kristina naturally decides to say something and goes 'keep your own eyes in your head'. This chick goes off and calls Kris a bitch and Jax white trash. These two midgets think they're the hulk and literally leap across the fucking subway car as Opie and Jax are holding them back. Fucking classic. Kris was smacked more times than I can count, her aunts man… they got that quick hand."
"YOU were smacked?!" Juice shouted
Kris rolled her eyes "They always do that."
"But we finally figured out her kryptonite. Her two uncles. Man…. they had her in a STRAIGHT fuckin' line. Even made her pray in Italian. Ripped her cigarette right out of her mouth."
"Oh!" Chibs smiled devilishly leaning forward and folding his hands on the table "Another really hilarious thing happened"
Everyone turned their attention to him as he tried to find the best way to approach the subject "So, ya know, we were all up the first mornin' there, brewin' coffee and chattin'. And…" he chuckled "The funniest thing happened" Opie, Jax and Happy trying to control their laughter as they watched Kerrianne struggle to stay seated without vomiting and the rest of the men looking on with anticipation "So…." he smiled looking at Juice "Seems as though Juicey here has been seein' Kerrianne behind my back." He glanced over at Fiona who wasn't at all surprised, in-fact, she seemed to know already but was disappointed that Chibs knew.
"SHIT!" Juice shouted as he went to stand up and run, Happy grabbing his arm and pulling him back down into his seat- legs shaking and sweat forming.
"NOPE!" Chibs said "Now… had you been there, you would've been probably stabbed a few times. But I had a very relaxing few days, and time to think it over. So, I figured I'd bring it here to this table because if we speak in private, I might not be as calm."
Kerianne rubbed her face "Da! Stop!" she interrupted
"Filip" Fiona sighed
He cut his eyes at his daughter "Like I said, I had a very relaxing few days and I've had some time to cool down, think it over. A lot of lessons learned in New York, boy. So you better be on your knees thankin' that girl" he said pointing to Kristina "And this one" he said, patting Keri on her back, who looked like she swallowed a bug "Begged and pleaded, and begged and begged. So, you're breathin' for those reasons. With that said, she's seventeen. She'll be eighteen soon and you two can do whatever it is that you're gonna do, not that I want to know. You're a good kid, and I trust that you won't do wrong by her. But for the next four months, you best keep your hands to yourself. And if I find out that something has happened… both of you will be in a WORLD of pain."
Juice took a deep breath "I swear Chibs…. I swear we- I didn't do ANYTHING"
Everyone looked up catching his slip. Chibs narrowed his eyes and reached across the table, grabbing Juice by his collar, an inch from his face "Whad'ya mean I?" He glanced over at Kerianne "Keri. I'm serious, what does he mean I?!"
"NOTHIN'! I swear!" She lied right through her teeth but knew that was the only answer she could muster
Chibs rolled his eyes, looking back at Juice "I know she's lyin'. So if at any point you find yourself near her again, or her anywhere near ANY of YOU, I want you to picture my face instead of hers." he growled, shoving him back into his seat and walking towards the front of the house to smoke a cigarette by himself. Juice sat there panting while everyone tried to refrain from laughing.
"Go talk to him" Gemma whispered to Kerrianne
The girl's eyes watered "He's gonna kill me." she whispered
Gemma stood up and grabbed her hand "C'mon." she said leading her up and across the yard as Fiona followed.
Jax, Opie, Happy, Bobby and Tig bursted into hysterical laugher. "What- are- ARE YOU SERIOUS?!" Kristina shouted at them "Did you not see her completely break down right now?!"
"Kris, he just told this poor son of a bitch to picture HIS face." Tig continued to laugh, wiping the tears away from under his eyes. "You try getting hard imagining that. Holy shit!" He cried, trying to catch his breath, Juice sat there panting and contemplating his escape. Gemma walked back and took a seat shaking her head at the men. The back door opened and they turned their heads to see Abel running down the steps and over to his dad, climbing up onto his lap.
"You're supposed to be nappin' buddy" Jax said
"Vaffanculo!" Abel shouted with laughter, Kristina and Jessica gasped so loudly making the rest of the adults jump.
"ABEL!" Kristina scolded "NO!"
"But you said it yesterday!" he smiled, wrapping his arms around Jax's neck- knew how to play his father's charming game and he wasn't even five.
"That is a VERY bad word" she said in her motherly tone, looking at the boy "You don't say that."
Gemma smiled and picked him up from Jax's arms "Come on. You need to take a nap."
"Fugheddaboutit!" He laughed as she carried him into the house. Kristina shaking her head as she pinched the bridge of her nose.
Jax chuckled lightly "That's all your family baby."
"When's the first shipment?" Bobby asked
"We meet them on Wednesday. Once it's in Reno- we're back here in Charming. As little as 50k, split between all of us… pretty good for a days work."
"I'd say so" He smiled. Chibs walked back to the table with his daughter, Fiona heading into the house- shaking her head. He took a seat as he lit another cigarette, looking across the table at the boy.
"Here's how this is gonna work. You're going to answer my questions honestly, in front of everyone. Agreed?"
Juice looked over at Kerrianne who shrugged "Agreed" he said quietly
"Speak up!" Chibs growled
"I said agreed!" He said louder with more certainty
"If I told you to stop seeing her, would you?" he asked
Juice sat for a moment, looking around the table and then shook his head "No"
Chibs raised his eyebrows along with everyone else in surprise "Even if it meant losing your patch?"
"Chibs" Opie interrupted
"No" he argued, shaking his head "I want him to answer. Well?"
"I wouldn't stop seeing her" he replied. The men even now more surprised at his response. "And I'm not gonna apologize for it"
Jess and Kristina's eyes were lit up as their hands were over their mouths "I'm gonna cry" Kristina smiled "I'm gonna fucking cry."
Juice smiled lightly and shook his head "Anything else?"
"Yeah. Why?" Chibs asked "So far she's had the same answers you did. So I wanna see if you have the same answer to this question. Why?"
"Why do you think?" he shrugged, now sitting up straight "Because I love her."
"Annnnnnd now I'm crying" Kristina laughed, wiping under her eyes, everyone turning their heads and looking at her. "What?! Do you not see how fucking adorable he is?!"
Kerrianne's face flushed as she tried to hide her smile "This…" Chibs said, motioning between the two "This stays between everyone at this very table. Are we understood?" he asked everyone who nodded in response "And I absolutely do not want to see the two of you after a few drinks the way these two are" he said pointing to Kristina and Jax
"HEY!" Kristina shouted "C'MON! I'm not inappropriate!"
"Well he won't be flinging my daughter over his shoulder in front of me. That's for sure." Chibs sighed "Are we clear?"
"Yep" Juice and Kerrianne smiled
"Alright then" he smiled "That whiskey is gettin' cold!"
The next morning, Kristina was up bright an early. Gemma had made sure the house was cleaned up before they came home, and she was in a fabulous mood. Eight o'clock in the morning, she had her favorite playlist on Spotify blasting through the house while the boys rolled around in their playpen. She was updating her scrapbook and singing obnoxiously along to 'Only The Good Die Young' by Billy Joel.
"BABE! JESUS CHRIST!" Jax shouted as he walked into the kitchen holding his head.
Kristina laughed, cutting out pictures. "You might have heard I run with a dangerous crowd, We ain't too pretty, we ain't too proud. We might be laughing a bit too loud But that never hurt no oneeeee!" she shouted. He shook his head and smiled as he filled up his coffee mug. Seconds later, Jessica came tearing across the backyard and into the back door. Still in pajamas and her hair tossed around like she had just woken up. Kris jumped up and paused the music. "What happened?!"
She took a deep breath and shaking like she had amazing news "You didn't answer! Did you see your email?"
Kris scrunched her face and shook her head as she grabbed her phone, scrolling through it "No… wh- JAX!" she shrieked reaching for her wallet. "Where the- Where's my DEBIT CARD?!" she eagerly grabbed her bag and turned it upside down emptying its contents onto the table.
"What?" Jax laughed, still trying to wake up
"Please tell me we're going" She grinned at Jess while she flung open her laptop.
"Ummm… It's WEDNESDAY. Fuck YES we're going" Jessica said
"Avenged Sevenfold is playing in Sacramento. PLEASE!" She urged "You're gonna come?"
Jax shrugged "Ope goin'?"
Jess scoffed "I told him he was."
"I dunno babe. It's not really-"
Kristina looked up at him "PLEASE! You- you don't UNDERSTAND! Six tickets. DONE!" she clapped, printing out the confirmation. "Keri and Juice will probably wanna go."
"AHHH! Holy SHIT!" Jess shouted "Fuck. Fuck. I gotta sit." she panted "I- oh my god."
Jax chuckled softly "What is wrong with you two?"
They both cut their eyes at him "Do… He doesn't understand" Jess sighed, "Neither did Opie when I jumped up from bed and started pounding on him, screaming. I gotta go and tell him!" she screamed running out of the house and back across the yard.
Kristina grinned looking up at Jax who was shaking his head "You two need to go"
"Why's that?" he asked, grabbing his cigarettes and coffee while Kristina stepped outside with him, watching the twins through the back door as they leaned against the railing.
"Babe" Kristina whined, wrapping her arms around his waist, looking up at him "You gotta protect me. Pleaseeeeeeeeee"
He sighed and lit his cigarette, tilting his head back and blowing the smoke up above her "How can I say no to this look?" he asked smiling as she stood back and folded her arms
"You know you love my morning hair." she grinned, pulling his cigarette from his hand and taking a drag. "What time are you going for the run Wednesday?"
"Ah, shit" he sighed, rolling his eyes "Around eleven most likely meeting them by San Fran. We'll be back probably around four thirty."
"Alright. We need to leave around five. Just be ready to push some rancid teenagers around who will be shoving and kicking."
Jax scoffed "Yeah. Okay." Opie walked into the backyard, hair a mess and still in flannel pajama pants shuffling over to the table with a cup of coffee.
"You two are relentless." Opie groaned looking over at them on the steps "I was woken up by repeated PUNCHES TO THE BACK!" Kristina and Jax hysterically laughing "That AIN'T funny. 'OPIE! Then she started punching my back. Unreal"
"We love you guys!" she smiled before walking back inside. Jax made his way over to the table and sat down.
"Talk about pussy whipped" Jax chuckled as they heard the music turn back on from inside his house.
"We gotta endure that shit for hours?" Opie asked "We got a run on Wednesday"
"Gotta keep the bride happy brotha" he laughed hearing Kristina starting to sing "You hear that shit? That's what I gotta keep happy."
Opie smirked and laughed "Yeah yeah. You're EVIL!" Opie yelled at the door where Jess was standing holding Gabriella
"You LOVE ME!" Jess laughed "And get ready baby! Cause it's gonna be non-stop playing their music now!"
"Fabulous" He groaned "I better be getting something out of this."
"My undying love." She smiled before disappearing back into the kitchen.
"What time's church?" he asked Jax, brushing back his hair
"Ten. Gotta figure out how it's gonna play out on Wednesday. And we got a run later."
"Look. Between Luann's studio, and this shit we have comin' now… You really think we need to be running protection for anyone else? I mean, the other shit is peanuts compared to what her uncle has planned. And not to mention it isn't drugs or guns."
"We ain't transporting or storing the guns though. That was the agreement" Jax replied
Opie nodded and butted his cigarette "I know, but you know what I mean."
"I know. I'm with ya. Let's bring it to the table." he nodded lighting another cigarette.
Ellie pranced outside, all smiles and walked up to Opie "Good morning Daddy" she grinned, kissing his cheek and walking over to Jax, doing the same thing "Good Morning".
Jax subtly smiled and raised his eyebrows over at Opie who knew she was up to something "Mmmhmm good morning baby. What did you do?" Opie asked
Ellie sat down and brought her knees up to her chest "Daddy, I didn't do anything." she smiled
"Okay. That's the same look I get from you and Jess when you want something or did something. So which is it?" he asked, taking another drag of his cigarette
"Danielle just called me. She wants to go to a show on Wednesday. Me, Danielle, Mike and Matt. Danielle's mom is going to drive us and bring us home. It's Matt and Mike's favorite band, and I just asked mom and she said it was okay and I just really really want to go. And I know that it's in Sacramento and I know that you don't think that I'm old enough but everyone's going to be there and-" she rambled trying to get her point across
Opie shrugged and smiled "What did Jess say?"
"Oh she said that she's positive that you wouldn't have a problem with it because you know I'm responsible."
Jax put his hand over his mouth covering his smile as he continued to pull on his cigarette "Yeah Ope. A show in Sacramento, cause she's responsible. Hey kiddo, what's the name of the band?" he chuckled
"You probably don't know them. Avenged Sevenfold?"
Opie licked his lips trying to refrain from laughing "Yeah of course it's the kid with the lip rings favorite band" he nodded "That sounds good. You can go."
Ellie widened her eyes and tilted her head "Really?"
"Yep. Why not right? You're responsible and I trust that you'll make smart decisions" he nodded
Ellie shrieked and jumped up hugging both of them as she ran back into the house. "HE SAID YES!" she shouted to Jess
"You gonna tell her you're gonna be there?" Jax laughed
"Hell no!" Opie chuckled "She don't gotta know that. But I'll sure as shit be watching her the entire time."
The men gathered into the Chapel around ten, eager to get their plans laid out. "Alright, alright!" Jax grinned, slamming the gavel down. "Mornin' gentlemen. Today is a fuckin' beautiful day."
"Fuckin' right it is!" Tig nodded as Happy rubbed his hands together with excitement.
"So Wednesday. We're going to meet the truck right off of eighty outside of San Fran around eleven. Take it all the way up to Reno. It was brought to our attention that they've had issues before. Now those exact issues, weren't made clear."
"Other family problems" Opie added "Just a bunch of bullshit. But he was confident we wouldn't run into too much trouble. Angels were runnin' protection, but their charter fell off."
The men nodded along "We'll get there around 2 or so, back here by 4:30." Jax nodded "All agreed?" They nodded and raised their hands "Alrighty then. Next up… Ope?"
"I know we got this thing runnin' now aside from the studio. But if ya think about it… we'll making more with this new deal than we'd make in a month doing what we've got goin on now. Ending this deal running with the Mayans… we'll really be cleaning ourselves out of the ATF shit."
"I hear ya, but where does her family stand with RICO?" Piney asked
Jax and Opie shrugged "From our understanding they've been clean for a long time." Opie replied
"I agree with Ope" Jax added "See how Wednesday goes, and we'll bring it back to the table on Thursday. If we all agree, then we stick to tits, ass and this one other deal." he laughed
"Yea!" Happy growled "Fuckin' STOKED!"
"Agreed?" Jax asked as the men started banging on the table with anticipation. "Alrighty then!" he shouted slamming down the gavel. "Let's get outta here and get this shit done so we can get home."
When Jax and Opie returned home, Kristina was sitting with Gemma, Jess and Mary at the table- papers spread out everywhere. "Watcha workin' on?" Jax smiled kissing the top of Kris' head.
"Tryin' to send out the invitations tomorrow." she smiled as they all continued to write out addresses "How did everything go?"
"Good" he nodded, taking a seat between Gemma and Kris "What's for dinner?" The four women looked up at him as if he had asked for the world to be handed to him on a platter. Opie chuckled and walked into the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge. "I'm gonna guess that was the wrong question?" he smiled
"It's three o'clock" Kristina sighed
"I know" he nodded "I'm starving"
"There's chicken and left over pasta in the fridge. There's enough for the two of you. Heat that up to hold you over." she said, continuing to pile the completed invitations and grabbing another.
He smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist "But it's so much better when you heat it up. I never do it right."
She rolled her eyes and smiled, shaking her head "Fine, Teller. You win" she said, pushing out her chair and walking into the kitchen. "Abel, come here."
He skipped into the kitchen smiling up at her "Did you finish the book?" she asked
"Yes" He grinned
"Oh yeah? You got that smile your daddy gives when he doesn't do something." she laughed, pulling plates from the cabinet. "Tell me what it was about."
He leaned his head back and sighed "It was about a girl Callie-"
"Uh huh…" she chuckled "And?"
"And she has a new baby brother…."
Pressing the buttons on the microwave, she knew he hadn't read it. "Keep going"
"And… her baby brother is named Michael." he smiled.
"Huh. That's it?" she smiled, walking into the living room and grabbing the book.
"Yes" he grinned.
"Abel, what's the title of the book?" she asked, sitting on the couch as he walked over to her.
He tried to refrain from smiling as he looked at Jax who walked over to him "Callie's New Brother Michael"
"Ah ha! Nice try mister. Let's go" she laughed, handing him the book, making her way back to the kitchen. "Now you gotta read it aloud"
"Busteddddd!" Jax laughed messing up Abel's hair.
"Daddddd" Abel whined "I don't wanna read"
"Who starts Kindergarten in September?" Kristina asked
"Me" he sighed
"And who wants to be the smartest boy in the class?"
"Me"
"Okay then. Let's go" she demanded. "One book and then you get to color."
"You gotta admit…" Jax chuckled in a whisper "Not too bad for trying to get around it."
Kristina shook her head and smiled "Like father, like son." she said, dishing the food onto the plates, placing them on the table listening to Abel read. "My aunt said the dresses were in, so she sent them out overnight. We should have them tomorrow, Tuesday the latest."
"I can not get over how gorgeous that dress was" Gemma said taking off her glasses, placing the last invitation down "I'll send these out tomorrow. I better see that dress in person when it gets here."
Kristina chuckled looking over at Abel while he read "You will. Hopefully the adjustments worked. Are you two ready?" she asked looking at Jax and Opie
"Ready with what?" Jax asked, mouth full of food.
Gemma rolled her eyes "I'm assuming standard SAMCRO attire for the both of you?"
"Of course" he smiled as Opie nodded "I'll toss on a shirt and tie though. Can't be lookin' too good in a tux and overshadow her." he laughed, continuing to shove food into his mouth. The womens' jaws dropped looking over at him while Opie steered completely clear of this conversation, focusing on the plate in front of him.
"Overshadow who exactly?" Kristina asked, eyebrows raised
"You babe" he smiled "I can't be the best looking one there."
"You're digging your own grave brother" Opie said shaking his head. "Doesn't matter what I wear, still won't be the best lookin' one, right sweetie?" he smiled at Jess
Jess rolled her eyes "Nice try"
Wednesday morning, Jess awoke around eight and turned on the radio after feeding Gabriella- who was enjoying laying in her crib and staring at her mom while she began her pre-concert ritual that she hadn't been able to do in many years. "Jess" Opie groaned, rolling over and seeing her toss things out of her closet as if everything was on fire. "Jess!" He growled a little louder, catching her attention over the music.
"What?" she called out, throwing things across the room "Fucking…. none of this shit is gonna fit" she grunted, continuing to sift through everything.
He walked over to her and leaned against the wall "Jess, it's eight am."
"Babe" she said, keeping her eyes on the closet "I gotta get everything ready. Your moms gonna be here in a few hours… I… I just gotta get it all ready."
"She's coming at three" he laughed
"My point. Coffee is on the counter. I'll be up in a few after I pick something out and I'll make breakfast."
"Just wear whatever. It's a dark arena. It doesn't matter." he said picking up Gabriella who smiled and cooed at him, grabbing at his beard "We'll be back around four-thirty."
She grabbed her iPad that was blaring music and carried it up the stairs. "Please, Ope. Please be careful today." Jess said pouring a cup of coffee.
"We'll be fine" he smiled sitting down at the table with the baby "It's all planned out. What time is Ellie leaving?" he whispered
"Around four. She'll be gone before you get back." Jess smiled, putting coffee in front of them and sitting down
Opie leaned his head back and looked down the hallway to make sure her door was still closed "You make sure she's not wearing anything that I wouldn't want to see. And no makeup."
Jess rolled her eyes and smiled "Yes sweetie. You want her in a plastic bubble too?"
"Can you make that happen?"
The men left around nine-thirty, leaving the girls to do their thing. Kristina spent the better part of the last hour washing her hair and blowing it out. Jax left her as she was sitting on the bedroom floor trying to decipher her rollers that she hadn't used in a while. "Jesus Christ this is impossible!" She grunted to herself. She leaned over and picked up her phone, pressing Jess' number and putting it on speaker.
"Hello?" Jess answered
"I need helpppp" Kris whined "I… these fucking rollers Jess. It's already ten-thirty…. I can't do this myself. My hair is too long."
Kristina could hear Ellie and Kenny laughing in the background "I have two children helping me. I'm about half way done."
"Shit" She sighed "I mean- sorry guys. Alright, I'll figure something out."
"If not I'll be over as soon as I'm done. You're excited to go to San Francisco right?"
Kristina looked at her phone and raised an eyebrow "Oh! YES. I can't wait. That restaurant is supposed to be fabulous. Alright, get back to your hair." she said hanging up the phone. Looking around the room as if it would give her an answer, she figured she might be able to get some help "Abel!" she called out. He came running into the room, smiling at her "You wanna help me?"
"Okay" he said
Kristina smiled "Good. Okay… I need to put these in my hair. So when I ask you to, I need you to open one of these clips and hand them to me. Sound good?" He helped her quickly and she managed to roll her head up in about thirty minutes which she was baffled by.
"You look like an alien" he smiled looking at her
Kristina chuckled and nodded "Well, this alien says that since it's eleven o'clock, that it's time for your show. And then lunch. Sound good?" she asked. Abel nodded and followed her out of the room as she peeked in to still see the boys asleep. Now only five hours left, she always got pre-concert jitters, the thrill of a live show was just always too exciting for her.
The men returned home about four-thirty like they said, confident and unharmed. Jax entered the house to see Gemma sitting on the couch with Mary. "Hey baby" Gemma smiled "How'd it go?"
"Pretty good" he sighed "Tired, but all smooth sailing"
"Good. You better hurry up" Jax moved quickly down the hall, Kristina was taking her hair out of the rollers, and spraying it with no mercy.
"Damn" he laughed "How come you don't dress like this every day?"
"Because you're not the lead singer of a band" she winked "Gotta get ready for my boo. How was the run?"
Jax raised his eyebrows as he quickly changed his clothes "The run was good. Who is your boo exactly?"
"Mmmm." she grinned as she finished her makeup.
"So what does this man have that I don't?"
"He can make my toes tingle with just his voice." she shivered "Ugh. Might need you to hold me up. And pull me out of a mosh pit."
"You aren't going anywhere NEAR a mosh pit" he warned as he tied his sneakers
She looked up at him "Oh really? Says who?"
"Says your husband."
"Well…" she smiled "When Matt tells me to start moshing, baby I start moshing. C'mon" she said, tying her converse.
"No heels?"
"I'm not breaking an ankle. You got the fancy from the ankles up. Feet gotta be comfortable." she laughed and headed towards the living room. "Alright. Twins should be good for another hour or two. I just changed them. I already made dinner, it's on the stove. Just heat it up. Everything should be fine-"
"Kristina" Gemma sighed "Goodbye."
She smiled and nodded as Jax walked up behind her, sliding his kutte back on "Alright. Be good?" she asked Abel, kissing his forehead "Whoops. You got lipstick on you."
"Ughhhhhh!" He whined, rubbing his hand over it
"C'mon" she headed towards the door, Jess and Opie already waiting outside with Kerrianne and Juice "Do we really need to take the bikes?" she asked Jax
"Yes" Opie and him replied at the same time "Let's go"
They arrived at the arena after about forty-five minutes. Teens staring at the bikers as the women walked to the back of the line- all of them trying to avoid seeing Ellie and her friends. "Where you going?" Jax asked
"Ummm… line ends there" Kris pointed
Opie, Jax and Juice scoffed "Please" Juice laughed "Let's go" They walked to the front of the line, and Juice gave the security guard a brotherly hug as he let them all in quickly, teens shouting and cursing at the man- doors didn't open for another hour. Kristina and Jess' heart was beating out of their chest and Kerrianne was in awe.
"I can't believe this whole thing is outdoors. This is awesome" Kris said looking around
"Oh my GOD" Jess whispered "You think they're walking around since no one is in here yet?"
"If they are… hold me up. Is my hair okay?" Kristina asked Jess locking her arm in Jax's as they walked towards the merchandise table and concession stands.
"Fab" she smiled, shaking her friend's curls
"HOLY-" Kris shouted before stopping herself
Jax looked down at her and smiled "What?"
"Baby!" she gasped, grabbing at his shoulder while she pointed at the men standing at the far end "Look!"
"I don't know who that is" he laughed
"Kris" Jess whispered "Oh my GOD"
"Who is that?" Opie asked
"That's… Oh my God" she said, squeezing Opie's arm
"That's not God" Opie smiled "Who is it?"
"That's Zacky and Matt!" she screeched, taking a deep breath
"You wanna go say hi?" Juice asked Keri who was wide-eyed and non-verbal at the moment. The men dragged the girls towards the beer stand where the two musicians stood, smoking cigarettes and talking. Kristina was squeezing Jax's arm, digging her nails into it as she tried to compose herself.
"What's up?" the tall lead singer- tattooed, muscular and soft spoken smiled at the six. "I'm Matt and that's Zack" he smiled, extending his hand. Jax, Opie and Juice shook their hands, Kristina, Jessica and Kerrianne cowering behind the bikers as if they were six years old meeting Mickey Mouse for the first time. "Sons of Anarchy, huh?" he asked, looking at their kuttes. "We got a club down in SoCal near our hometown. Great bunch of guys"
The men smiled and nodded "I'm Jax, Opie and Juice. This is…" Jax smiled, pulling Kristina out from behind him "Kristina, that's Jess and that's Kerrianne. But I think you can tell they know who you are already"
Kristina was grinning from ear to ear, her face red and knees weak, leaning against Jax for support "Hi" she squeaked, extending her hand.
"What's with the shyness?" Zacky- the guitarist, arms full of tattoos and eyes greener than hers smiled
"We grew up on your music" Jess managed to croak "Jesus Christ" she sighed reaching for her bag "I need a drink"
"Been to any shows before?" Matt asked as Jax searched his pockets for his lighter but was pleasantly surprised at the generosity of the man- who was about his height- standing in front of him as he handed him his own.
Jess and Kris scoffed "Of course" Kris smiled "New York City mainly, a few in SoCal one in Huntington Beach actually a few years back, Jersey…"
"You from here?"
Kris and Jess shook their heads "New York City. Moved out here a year ago." Kristina smiled "Much different than SoCal. Huntington was my goto place."
Zack nodded "That's why we call it home" he smiled "You must've seen that show a while back."
"Sure did, oh-six I think?" she asked, looking over at Jessica who was sucking down a beer. Jess nodded and tried to refrain from burping. "Wherever you guys were, we were there."
"Ah. So we got long-time fans. Most of our shows are all newbies now."
Kris shook her head and turned around, pulling up the back of her top "Long time."
"Shit" Matt gasped, looking at her tattoo that displayed their lyrics across her hip "See… now you gotta get a picture, and a beer." he smiled, pointing to the bartender. As much as Jax made her over the moon with even the slightest look, this man's smile… he made her knees weak just like Jax did. She nearly threw everything out of her bag looking for her phone as she pushed it against Jax's chest jumping up next to the two musicians, trying to control her smile. The mere click of the camera gave Jessica the instinctual feeling to hop right in between the two and Kerrianne to follow. "You want one with everyone?" he asked
Kristina smiled and nodded as Jax handed the phone to the bartender and closely watching his loving fiance as he pulled her up against him instead of against the handsome musician. "You guys are amazing" she smiled, taking her phone back and looking at the pictures. "You have no idea"
Zack nearly blushed and nodded- still humble after all these years "Thank you. Hang on a sec" he said, looking around at the different workers that passed through "Jay!" he shouted, jogging over to a man that was part of his roadie-crew. He looked back at the group, as if he was counting the amount of people that were there and looked back at his friend. Jay handed him something and he came jogging back, holding out laminated cards attached to lanyards in his hands. "These'll get you practically everywhere." he said handing them out to everyone. "You can go down and come back up. We've got soundcheck if you wanna check it out, but we'll see you guys later." he smiled as the two ran off with their beers, towards two closed double doors.
"Ah, they're pretty fuckin' cool" Juice nodded looking at the passes "Didn't think it'd be that easy. SAMCRO luxuries." he smiled
"You ladies okay?" Jax smiled, looking at Kris who was leaning against the bar, staring at the pass; Jessica was grabbing Opie's arm, practically holding herself up and Kerrianne had frozen the second the pass was put in her hands.
"Is screaming inappropriate right now?" Kris whispered
"Huh?" Opie asked, reaching forward and grabbing his beer
"Is this the feeling someone gets before they have a heart attack?" she asked taking deep, rapid breaths.
The men laughed and rolled their eyes "I think you'll be okay" Jax smiled.
She looked up at him and jumped up into his arms "You're…. He just…"
"I'm going to scream. I'm going to scream. HOLY SHIT!" Jessica screeched, wrapping her arms around Opie's neck and practically lifting herself up onto him "I love you! I love you!" she shouted, kissing his cheeks over and over
"Jesus Christ. You see this picture?!" Kristina asked turning her phone around "Jeeeeeesusssss" she grunted, shaking her head.
"I'm guessing he's your boo?" Jax winked
She took a deep breath and nodded, hearing the booming of the soundcheck start "Matt is just…. oh God dammit. I'm sorry babe" she smiled "But… his voice…"
Jess chuckled "But you don't understand… Zack touched these passes!" she said holding it up "His HANDS were ON these"
"How old are you?" Juice asked "Really"
The women cut their eyes at him "This is fourteen years in the making. Fourteen." Jess insisted "This wouldn't have happened if you hadn't dragged us in. You guys are…"
"The men you're about to marry" Jax laughed "Remember that"
Kris nodded and swatted her hand at him "Yeah, yeah. Fabulous engagement ring, I love you blah blah. This is the 'worse' part in for better or worse. Remember that" she smiled, grabbing the plastic up filled with beer "C'mon. I wanna go watch sound check!" she grinned as she took off running towards the entrance to the stage, Jessica and Kerrianne right on her heels. The men stood by the bar. finishing off their beer and getting a refill before heading after them. When they walked in, the three were sitting in the middle of the general-admission area on the floor- staring up at the band. They stood behind them, leaning up against the barricade that separated that area from the seats.
"I'm guessing we're invisible now?" Juice asked
"They wouldn't know we were here if the building caught fire." Jax laughed
Once the doors were opened, the girls stood up and walked over to the men who hadn't moved. "C'mon, you wanna go around back? Stay out of Ellie's sight?" Jess asked. They all nodded and excited the main area back to where the merchandise booths were and concession stands. They walked to the end where the tour busses parked by the gate to hide and lit cigarettes. "We should go in when they turn the lights down."
"Why?" Opie asked
"Because you're a six-foot-seven bearded biker wearing his kutte. You're not easily hidden" She laughed "And you two also stick out like sore thumbs." they could hear the roaring and screaming of the crowd- the sound the first band was walking on stage.
"There's one opening band. One more beer and we'll go in?" Kris asked. "We gotta push our way towards the front"
"Are we even gonna use these passes?" Juice asked putting money on the counter for a few more beers
"Wait until after the first few songs. There's one that we NEED to get a little crazy with. After that we'll go back. Deal?" Jess smiled
Opie chuckled "You're not moshing"
"I most certainly am" she nodded "But you're gonna stand there and make sure I don't get hurt" she winked.
They made their way inside about twenty minutes later, the first band just finishing up. Kristina, Jess and Keri locked arms and pushed through the crowd of people. The men were struggling to keep up but once an angered teen looked up at them, they very willingly let them pass.
"They're like little ninjas. Shit" Juice shouted, trying to keep up. The men leaned against the barricade off to the side with the girls standing in front of them, perfect view of the stage. Black curtains covered the stage and the girls screamed making the men squint.
"Holy SHIT!" Kristina grinned, grabbing onto Jax's arm. "They're coming." Kerrianne was already ahead of them, tying back her hair.
Jess took off her bag "Here" she smiled, handing it to Opie and pulling a clip out of her bag, pinning up her large head of curls.
"Ooooh! Good call!" Kris smiled handing Jax her bag "Here. They're gonna come out, and we're jumping in" she shrieked, clipping her hair back. "You ready?" she smiled, looking at Jess and Keri. The room went dark and the curtains dropped, music started blaring from the stage and the men watched in absolute confusion as the girls screamed as loud as they could. The fast and loud paced music got the entire crowd shoving one another as the lead singer- the man they met before Matt, started to sing- the girls matching word for word.
"C'mon!" Jess screamed pulling Kristina and Kerrianne into the violent crowd. The men watched on, shaking their heads as they shoved through everyone as the entire crowd angrily moshed to the music. Opie keeping one eye on Jess was scanning the room filled with thousands of people for his daughter. Jax nudged Opie and Juice, pointing to the other side of the stage where he spotted Ellie and her three friends.
"So far so good" Jax smiled and quickly changed his face when he saw what his goddaughter was wearing. He looked up at Opie who had now taken his eyes off of Jess and completely fixated on his daughter- telling himself not to push through thousands of people to pull her right out of there. "Ope, she's fine!" he shouted over the music just so Opie could hear him.
"Not if I kill her" He growled, gulping his beer. He closed his eyes and shook his head. "As long as them two stay that far apart, then I'll deal with that later."
"Exactly" Jax shouted as the girls came racing back towards them, grinning and out of breath.
"THAT WAS AMAZING!" Kerrianne yelled "Holy SHIT!"
"What's wrong?!" Jess asked. Jax pointed across the arena at Ellie who was NOT wearing the belly shirt and shorts when she left. "Opie! She was NOT wearing that when she left. I SWEAR!"
The six made their way through security to enjoy the rest of the show on the side of the stage. Opie had an even better view of his daughter who seemed to be behaving herself with the exception of her outfit. The girls were running the batteries on their phone dry- snapping pictures and recording videos as the band continued to play. Leaning up against the wall, Jax had Kristina up against her as she watched on in complete awe. She gasped and looked up at him listening to the next song start up. "Babe" she smiled, looking up at him "Just so you know, this is our song."
Jax laughed "Oh really?"
"Yes really, listen to the words" she nodded, turning her attention forward. She went through her phone "Here. These are the lyrics" she said leaning her head against his chest. "Dear Godddd, the only thing I ask of you is to hold her when I'm not around, when I'm much to far awayyyy" she sang louder and louder.
"I knew you'd chose that one" Jess laughed as her arm was locked in Opie's "Now I gotta go to my backup. Oh JESUS listen to that SOLO! UGH!" she shivered
"I know. Magic hands!" She laughed
"Ope?" Jess said looking up at him "Opie!" He glanced down at her and gave her a half smile "C'Mon. Sweetie it's okay. She's okay. Look! She'-" Jess lost her breath and everyone glanced over. She put her hands on Opie's chest as if she was holding him back. "It's fine! She's fine!"
"He's kissing-" Opie began before turning around and walking away as if he had been crushed. The band finished and the crowd was cheering and screaming as they walked off the stage.
The remaining five walked towards the exit to where they had met the musicians earlier where Opie was sitting on a bench, smoking a cigarette and looking down at the ground.
"Are you okay?" Jess asked, sitting down next to him.
Opie shook his head, continuing to drag on his cigarette. "Sweetie, listen…" Kris said, bending down in front of him and putting her hands on his knees "As much as you don't want to see her near another boy, she's going to be thirteen next week. She's going to be starting seventh grade. I know she's a baby, and she's your baby. But she's fine. She's happy. We all know it won't last forever, they'll both get into some dumb argument about middle school nonsense and you can be there for her when she's upset and needs you. Right now, let her be a kid." He nodded and smiled as his phone started ringing. He put his cigarette into his mouth and pulled his phone from his pocket showing everyone who was calling. "Go! Answer!" Kristina smiled
"Hello?" He said into the phone, looking up at everyone "Ah, that's great baby, you have a good time? Good. Yeah we're still out. Grandma is at the house, door is open. If she's not there, she's next door with Gem. Alright, we'll see you later. Oh, and Ellie? Make sure you change your outfit back before Grandma sees it, alright?" he smiled, before giving the girl a chance to respond, he hung up the phone. "Oh that felt good" he laughed
"Opie!" Jess chuckled "That was MEAN!"
"It ain't mean. I guarantee you right now she's practically shitting herself looking around to see if I'm behind her. And she won't even dare approach me in that… whatever the fuck she has on. Ah… the power has returned" he growled, as they stood up and walked towards the exit.
"I am going to hang this next to the picture of the babies" Kristina laughed holding up the pass "Did you guys at least have a good time?"
Jax smiled and nodded "I'm not gonna lie, they're pretty good."
"Told you!" she scoffed "Telling me it sounds horrible before… what a liar. We need to go to shows more often if you guys can get us in like this. Metallica maybe?" she smiled over at Jess
"Can you guys REALLY get us in to meet them?!" Kerrianne asked
"We'll see" Juice smiled
When they arrived back at the house around ten-thirty, Opie and Jess' house was dark- meaning everyone was next door. They walked inside and saw Ellie sitting there with Mary, Gemma and Abel, still sitting in the same outfit she had on before. "You guys have fun?" Gemma asked
"It was AMAZING!" Kristina shouted, then instinctively put her hands over her mouth realizing the boys were sleeping "They got us to meet the band and got us backstage passes!" she grinned holding them up. "Oh and the pictures! I can't forget about the PICTURES! I could LITERALLY taste the sweat." Jessica was smiling and nodding in complete agreement- Jax and Opie winced their eyes and shook their heads.
"That's great" Gemma nodded "This one…." she said clearing her throat and pointing to Ellie. "This one thought we weren't savvy on top hidden under the hoodie look."
"Oh I know" Opie nodded "We were there the whole time" he smiled. Ellie looked up at him and took a deep breath to calm her nerves "Yes Ellie, the entire time. From the moment you got in there."
"Daddy, can I just go to bed?" she asked looking up at him
Opie sighed and handed her his keys "This conversation isn't done!" he called as she ran out of the house. "Unbelievable" he sighed
"Ope" Mary smiled "She's a teenager"
"You didn't see…" he began before shaking his head.
Jess reached up and put her hands over his ears "She was kissing Matt!" she whispered
"I'm not deaf. And I saw it, thank you" Opie replied
Gemma and Mary chuckled "Well, like she said, she's a teenager." Gemma smiled "To change the subject. The dresses FINALLY came today! I hung them up in the boys' closet. And YOU stay out of there" She said pointing to Jax
"I don't know why I can't see it." he shrugged "Nothing about this wedding is traditional"
Kristina sighed "Alright. Fine. C'mon" she said pulling Jess' arm. "Read the book with him and then you can see it" They quietly walked into the boys' rooms and pulled the dresses out of the closet and made their way into her room, closing the door.
"Hey buddy" Jax said seeing Abel sit on the couch holding his new books "You get new stuff?" Abel looked up at him and nodded, as he sat down next to him. "Alright, what'ya got here?" he asked looking at the books. "What does that say?"
"David's First Day of School" he smiled looking up at his dad.
Jax's eyes widened and high-fived him "WOAH! Way to go dude! When did you get so good?!"
Abel laughed and opened the book "Because" he scoffed "Mommy taught me to read. Duh."
Everyone laughed as Abel began to read Gemma and Mary disappeared down the hall to help the girls. "You're doin' awesome dude" Opie smiled at the boy.
"I know" Abel smiled. Gemma peaked her head out of the door and motioned for the men to come down the hall.
"Wow!" Opie gasped looking at the two "They're… Wow" he said shaking his head "They're gorgeous"
"Told you" Mary smiled looking at Jess
"Well?" Kris asked, holding out her arms. "Yes? No?" Jax looked at her and all he could do was blink, it was if the dress had been stitched onto her. "Too much boobs, right?" she sighed, shuffling over to the mirror "I told your mom it was too much, she insisted- said it wasn't as bad as I was making it out to be and that I'm not used to my new rack" she chuckled, shaking her head.
"It isn't too much!" Gemma argued "Right?" she asked looking up at Jax
"Hello?" Kristina called "Anything?"
"Kris… it's… its amazing" Jax smiled "Abel! Come here!" he called, tiny foot steps ran across the floor and Jax scooped him up when he reached the doorway "Look how pretty!"
"WOW!" he gasped "Mommy! Aunt Jess! You look so beautiful!"
"Thank you baby" she grinned, holding back from crying "I can see you have daddy's charm, huh?"
"What's charm?" he whispered in Jax's ear
"It's when you know how to talk to the ladies and make them feel good. You know how to be charming right? Tell mommy she looks stunning"
"Mommy you look stunning! And your hair is beautiful! And your eyes are beautiful!"
Kristina raised her eyebrows and nodded "I see." she grinned "Thank you baby"
"Alright. That's all you get" Gemma said pushing the boys out of the room as she closed the door. "You don't pull these dresses out for ANYTHING" she scolded, helping Kristina loosen the satin ribbon in the back. "Understood?"
Kris and Jess rolled their eyes "Yesss" They both agreed
"Do you want me to take them home with me? That way they're not ruined?"
The girls nodded "That's probably a good idea" Kristina laughed "Cause I know me. I'll take it out."
"Tomorrow we need to go and get the boys everything" Mary added, hanging the dress back on the hanger
Jess pulled her jeans back on and shook her head "I really don't know how this is going to work." she said "I've never seen a double ceremony before."
Mary and Gemma chuckled "You trust me?" Gemma asked the two
Jess and Kristina smiled "Of course" Jess replied
"Then let me take care of it. All you need to do is be awake on time that day." She said zipping the bag the dress came in back up and headed out of the room.
"Mommy" Abel smiled when she walked back into the living room "That dress was so pretty, why did you take it off?"
"Are you saying I don't look pretty right now?" He smiled and raised his eyebrows "Wow dude" she chuckled "You need to stop hanging around daddy so much. You and him are just like twins!"
"I don't know why you wouldn't want another me in the house." Jax winked "Let's go. Bedtime"
"Daddddddd" He whined
"No. You should've been in bed a long time ago. Lets go" He said scooping him up and walking down the hall.
Gemma and Mary kissed the girls goodbye, holding onto the bags like they were carrying infants. "Ope. Go easy on your daughter. Please"
Opie rolled his eyes "Alright ma. Goodnight" he said closing the door behind them.
The next morning, Opie had woken up extra early- he tossed and turned all night despite Jessica's pleads to try and sleep. He kept going in and out of the house- chain smoking and contemplating how he was going to handle Ellie's growing up. They walked upstairs around eight, Jessica couldn't sleep any longer and Opie was eager to get the ball rolling on his much-anticipated lecture. He sat at the table while Jess started brewing coffee. "Ope. Babe you gotta take a deep breath" she sighed, putting Gabby's empty bottle in the sink. Opie stretched his neck and sighed with desperation.
"I don't know what to do"
Jess put coffee in front of the two of them and sat down next to him. "Look, you talk to her. Yes she needs to be punished for wearing what she did and sneaking around about it. But you CAN'T punish her for liking a boy. She'll never trust you with anything if you do."
Opie narrowed his eyes "She. HAD. HER-"
"Nope!" Jess said, cutting him off "I saw it too. I know what she was doing Opie. But I'm telling you- you CAN'T punish her for that. She'll never tell you anything ever again. That's the opposite of what you want." He rolled his eyes as he drank from the mug. Jess chuckled "Don't roll your eyes at me. You want me in there to control your temper?" He nodded and she stood up with him "Let me put her down first"
He waited by Ellie's door for Jess to walk back over. He opened it and she was up watching TV and looked over at the two who most certainly had the 'we need to talk face.' "Daddy. I-"
"Nuh uh" Opie said shaking his head. He grabbed the remote and turned off the TV, leaning against the dresser. "You're gonna listen first. You're going to hear me out. Understood?" Ellie nodded as Jess leaned against the door frame, and a sneaky eight year old standing behind her- loving when it wasn't him getting into trouble. "Last night before you left, what were you wearing?" he asked
Ellie rolled her eyes and sat up "Shorts and a sweatshirt"
"Okay. And UNDER that sweatshirt…" he said looking around the room and picking up the top that she was wearing last night "Was THIS. You are going to be thirteen. You aren't twenty five. There is NO reason why you're wearing this."
"Dad. It's not a big deal." she sighed
Opie looked at Jess who shrugged, letting him handle the situation "Now I'm dad. A minute ago I was daddy. Now I'm dad. Ellie. This… you know you're not allowed to wear any of this. You're not allowed to. End of story."
"What's the big deal?!" She snapped, putting her hands in the air. "It's NOT like I didn't have a shirt on. All of THIS" she motioned at her brand new chest that she had recently developed "WAS COVERED!"
"I.. Are you yelling at me?" He asked narrowing his eyes "I don't care what was covered. IT was BARELY covered. And YOU are MY daughter."
"Just recently, right?" she growled. Jess' heart stopped and she stood up straight, she couldn't believe the guts this little girl had. She was just approaching five feet tall and her dad was almost two feet taller than she was. It was absolutely ballsy.
Opie glared at her "What did you just say?" he snarled, voice low and deep
"I said that it wasn't until she came around that you finally started being a dad. At least one of you is responsible" she said, shaking her head.
Jess leaped a good three feet across the room and stepped in front of Opie. She knew he wouldn't physically harm his daughter but at that moment, the situation would've escalated and both Opie and Ellie would've regretted anything that was further said. "ALRIGHT!" Jess shouted "Opie. Out. OUT!" she said pushing him as hard as she could out of the room and slamming the door. She could hear him punch the wall in the hallway and slam the back door closed. "Ellie!" Jess gasped "Have you lost your damn mind?"
"It's TRUE! You weren't here. Before you came, he was barely around. My grandma was taking care of us every day. He NEVER came home. EVER. It's only been in the past year that he's been home every day and is actually BEING a dad. Before that, I BARELY knew him until I was TEN! He was in JAIL!" Jessica sighed. She knew the girl was right, but she knew it cut through Opie like a blade and Ellie knew it too. "Ellie. You don't think he knows that?"
"Well he had to hear it." She shrugged.
"No" Jess argued "That was wrong. He's trying to protect you." She said shaking her head "That was mean."
"I'm not gonna apologize"
Jess raised her eyebrows at the stubborn teen "yeah. You are. He was telling you not to wear something. He didn't tell you to stop seeing Matt. He didn't even embarrass you in front of your friends last night when he saw you when the show started OR when he saw you kissing him. He didn't. You need to apologize. Let me talk to him first. Jesus Christ." She sighed, walking to the door "I can't believe you said that to him." She closed the door behind her and saw Kenny standing there "Go eat some breakfast sweetie. Grandma is gonna be here in a bit to go get you your shirt and tie for the wedding."
She found Opie sitting on the steps that led down to their room, holding his head. She sat next to him and pulled him in for a hug. "She didn't mean it."
"She did. She's right."
"Opie no. She's thirteen and probably pmsing"
Opie chuckled "But I haven't been around"
"You are now. That's all that matters. Come on. I spoke to her." she pulled him up and walked back up the steps and into the house. Kenny was sitting on the couch, watching TV and eating a bowl of cereal and Ellie was still in her room. Jess opened the door and she was sitting in the same position she left her in and raised her eyebrows at the girl.
"Look" Opie shrugged "I don't wanna hear an apology now. I know I wasn't around a lot when you were growing up. But, I'm here now and that isn't going to change. So…" he said turning around and opening her dresser drawers "I am telling you what you CAN and CAN NOT wear. Why? Because I am YOUR father." he started pulling clothes out and holding them up "Nope" he said tossing a top to Jess as he continued to pull out anything he deemed inappropriate.
"Check the closet" Jess whispered and looked over at the teen who was rolling her eyes and sighing "Sorry" She shrugged
"Would you look at that" Opie said sarcastically "This, and THIS!" he growled tossing a bralette to Jessica "Forbidden. Shirts go down to your jeans and will NOT be low cut. Skirts, knee length. And as far as your little boyfriend goes, I'm telling you RIGHT NOW young lady, you both better keep your hands to yourself. I find out anything otherwise, you'll be in this room until you graduate high school. Am I understood?"
"Yeah" she sighed
"I can't hear you"
"I said YES" Ellie growled
"And your attitude will also GO. As of right now, because of your little antics last night, you're grounded for a week. No computer, no concerts, no friends…. nothing. Keep it up, and it'll be two weeks." he said walking out of the room and Jess was standing there holding a mound of clothes and shook her head at Ellie who had her arms crossed.
"Go shower and get dressed. And then you can apologize to him." she said before closing the door. Opie was sitting next to Kenny on the couch when she walked in "You okay?"
"I'm great" He smiled
"What do you wanna do with this stuff?" she asked, still holding the clothes
"I don't know. Maybe burn it?"
Jess chuckled "Lets keep the arson down to a minimum. Alright Sparky? I'll put it in the basement."
Opie laughed and shook his head "If you say so boss lady."
Gemma and Mary took Kenny and Abel out for the afternoon to get clothes for the wedding. Ellie had locked herself in her room and reemerged around one to find Jess and Opie watching TV while Gabby slept next to them in her swing. "Daddy" she said sweetly "Can I talk to you?"
Opie looked at Jess who was biting her lip "Now I'm daddy again" he laughed, standing up.
"Remember my reasoning before?" Jess smiled "It was just solidified" Opie shook his head and followed Ellie back to her room. She sat on her bed and looked up at him as he sat next to her and wrapped him in a hug.
"I'm sorry Daddy" she whispered
"I know" Opie nodded "You know this isn't going to get your computer back, right?"
She chuckled lightly "I know."
"Good. But you know I'm not doing this to be mean and not just because you're too young. But because you're my daughter"
"I know Daddy. I'm sorry"
Opie smiled and shook his head "Mmmhmm. Always daddy when you want to be nice. Alright" he said kissing the side of her head "I love you. Chill out in here." he said standing up and closing the door behind him.
"Went okay?" Jess asked as he sat back down on the couch.
Opie nodded "Always daddy when she wants to be nice"
"Oh baby that's gonna happen for the rest of your life."
"Between you and her…." he chuckled "I'm just glad she can't talk right now" he said pointing to the sleeping baby.
"A few more months Ope and you'll have three women pulling at your heart strings."