Faye had spent the past days at Happy's house, just like her father wanted her to. It wasn't so bad at all. Sure, it was still hard but she decided to do her best to have a good friendship with him, that's why she hadn't tried anything to get him into bed again. Every evening he brought her to work because she didn't just want to sit around like a prisoner. Jay, her colleague, was the one who showed her everything, who introduced her to the other two colleagues and who cheered her up when he noticed that she wasn't in the best mood. It was a really nice guy and Faye was glad she didn't had to work with assholes around her. Right now she had a shift again and mixed some easy cocktails behind the bar, she couldn't do the super fancy ones yet.

"You like this job so far?" Jay asked curiously.

"Yeah, it's great. I mean, I miss the kindergarten, but this is also fun," she answered with a sweet smile. Her shift would be over soon anyway, she had only five minutes left.

"I'm glad you found your way to us," Jay chuckled softly and he took care of the guests again.

. . .

Juice spent the last days with a lot of work. He needed the distraction to forget about Grace ‒ but it didn't work. It was like everything reminded him of her. Faye had called him to tell that Grace and Polly were friends, and he didn't like that. Maybe Polly seemed nice, but she wasn't. But he couldn't just call Grace and tell her to stay away from Zobelle's daughter, that would just scare her or piss her off.

He was often close to texting her, calling her or showing up at her work, but he also knew that that would destroy everything again, keeping him from doing it. How was he supposed to wait for such a long time? It was torture at its finest. Faye had told him about the day when Grace had been at Happy's house, how sad she had been, which made him feel even worse.

. . .

Grace started to wish they had never moved to Charming. It was all just too much; the unstoppable thoughts about Juice, her forbidden friendship with Faye, the tension at home, the fear that Polly had really wanted to hurt her friend... She just didn't know where to go to with all her feelings, it felt like nobody truly understood her. Even God was silent. She hadn't dared to whip herself again, since Faye had noticed the wounds. Instead, she was piercing herself with needles in her thigh, just small clusters of almost invisible wounds that only bled for a few minutes. The pain was short, it was no constant reminder, but for now it helped a little to keep her thoughts focused.

It was Saturday night, and Polly had asked her to come over to watch a movie. Grace had agreed, and as they were sitting on the couch, she decided to ask the truth about Faye. "You know I'm friends with Faye, right?" she asked.

The girl's eyes shot to the side, she frowned her eyebrows in a silent question.

"She told me you tried to kidnap her." She felt nervous, she could no longer look her friend in the eye and bowed her head, staring at her hands.

Polly let out a cynical laugh. "Oh yeah? And you believe that?"

"I don't want to believe it," she muttered. "But she's pretty sure about it. Says your dad and hers have some problems."

"Well that's certainly true. Those bikers ruined my father's shop a few days ago and they killed a work associate of my father because he had been in a car accident with the President's daughter. That was just a stupid coincidence."

Grace tensed. "W-what? They killed someone?"

The girl looked up, there was a hateful glare in her eyes. "You really have no idea what horrible things they do, huh? All of them?" Suddenly there was a grim expression on her face. "You know what? Your biker friend is right. We tried to kidnap her, tried to lure those assholes out of their stinking hole."

Grace flinched. "W-what?"

"Yeah. I've been raped by one of them, okay?" she said through gritted teeth. "Happy to hear the truth? My father wanted to make them pay, wanted them to deliver that pig to us."

Grace covered her mouth with her hand. "W-what?" It felt like it was the only word that she could still remember. "Who – who did that? When?"

"A few days before you came here. I don't know his name, he's a creep with tattoos everywhere, even on his head." She was silent for a while why Grace's eyes went wide. "No, I don't mean the guy you were dating."

Grace almost wished she had mentioned Juice, for then she would have known the girl was lying. About who was she talking? She hadn't seen a lot of Sons, but at least Happy had tattoos on his head. A shiver crept down her spine. She could see him do something like that, if she was honest. He was just... not all right. She felt it all the time when he was around.

"But Faye... she's innocent..."

"We were never going to hurt her. I just wanted that guy dead. She was just leverage." Polly sighed. "I know they are showering you with attention, Grace, but they are outlaws. They hurt people." She shook her head. "They even hurt you. I have never seen you smile ever since you broke up with that guy. Just be happy your relationship lasted just a few hours. He won't ever make you happy. Their life will destroy you."

Grace bent her head, blinking away the tears. Was she right? She didn't want to believe her – but why would she lie?

. . .

The day of the fundraiser arrived. The day before there had been so many preparations that Grace had been dead tired last night, sleeping without waking up until her alarm clock went off. Grace left the bed and started to dress herself in a jeans and a top that showed the name of their project. She felt nervous. Would all their efforts be rewarded? What if nobody showed up? If they had forgotten important things? And there were other, more personal worries. What if Faye and Polly came across each other? She still didn't know what to think of the situation. She had considered to tell Adrian wat Polly had told her, but it hadn't felt right. She didn't want to spread rumors about Happy being a rapist if she wasn't 100% sure of it, and if she was honest there was still something off with Polly. She just had a bad feeling about it. However, she couldn't forget about the words she had spoken, they had nestled in her head. Was it true? Had they killed a man – the man who had caused Faye's car accident? Had Juice known about that – had he been there? And Faye? How had she felt about it? Had she wanted this revenge – had she wanted to take a life because she would never give birth? But it had been an accident, right? Everyone could have been in that car... Grace pushed away the thoughts, focusing on the day itself, the money with which they could finance an orphanage, the many children that would find shelter, food... That was what this day was about. Everything else were worries for later.

Adrian and Grace had made sure there were volunteers at every activity or boot, not having fixed tasks themselves so they could jump in whenever they were needed. They had transformed the plaza in front of the church into a fair and the weather was good.

"There are so many people!" she said with a smile to Adrian.

Everything went well, they hadn't crossed any problems. She was holding a pile of lots in her hand, which they had to sell. Within half an hour the first lottery round would start. Suddenly she heard the rumbling of bikes. Immediately her heart leaped into her throat. She shouldn't be surprised – Faye had told her she would be there, but her eyes went wide as she saw that at least ten Sons walked up the lot, all walking around like they owned the place. A lot of people were glaring at them, and she could feel the aversion of some people from her church, which made her feel ashamed. They were just here to sponsor the event, right? Or would they be here to mess things up?

Suddenly her eye caught Juice, who was looking around. "Oh no," she said, holding her breath, feeling how she almost paralyzed. In a reflex she grabbed Adrian's hand. She had been so convinced that Juice wouldn't show up that she had the feeling her knees could collapse any moment.

Adrian looked at their hands, his lips parted but he didn't say anything. Instead he looked in the same direction, sighing as he saw Juice. "Just relax, we wanted to have fun today, right?" He looked back at Grace, smiling.

Juice froze when he saw Grace, holding hands with Adrian. What kind of shit was this? Were they a thing now? Was that why she wanted the distance? No, she would have been honest, she hated lies. But it pissed him off, he had to admit that to himself. Just ignore it, he thought. If he would mess this up today, they would never have a chance together. Slowly, he walked over to them.

"Hey, you two did a great job," he said as friendly as he could, shoving his hands into his pockets.

Grace's eyes shot around, knowing her parents were around. "What ‒ what are you doing here?" she asked bluntly. She didn't look him in the eye, she just couldn't. Adrian let go of her hand and she noticed that her fingers were shaking. Quickly she pressed them together.

"Gemma wanted to come here and it's an event for everyone, right? Is there a problem? Maybe you two wanted to enjoy the time alone?" He glared at Adrian before Grace got his attention again. "I actually just wanted to know if you were okay, so, how are you?" Juice tried to look into her eyes, but it seemed like she couldn't.

There was an angry tone in his voice, which she understood. She couldn't forbid him to go to a public place like this, but... she just wished she could have prepared herself for this. "I'm fine," she said shortly. But she wasn't. She felt weak, she wanted to feel his arms around her. She just wanted to be alone with him, wanted to forget about everything else. Crossing her arms, she buried her nails in the skin underneath the short sleeves and scratched herself. "Please go, Juice," she whispered, without looking at him, again close to tears. "Just go." She knew he couldn't just leave; all his brothers were here and he would never admit that a girl had sent him away. But it was the only thing that slipped her lips.

Adrian looked around, Grace's parents were close to them but they hadn't seen Juice and Grace yet. He didn't want his friend to get into trouble, so he decided to distract them with an interesting conversation and left the two alone.

Juice watched Adrian leave, not sure if he left because he felt uncomfortable or because he couldn't stand him. Whatever, now he had the chance to talk alone to Grace. "You want me to leave? And what do I tell the others? I promised Gemma to stay here." His voice sounded much colder than before. He was hurt. He understood that she was still mad, but if he'd leave now, it wouldn't be better after three months. "What is your problem? I'm not doing anything. I just wanted to see you."

"I can't see you," she answered, tears gathering in her eyes. "Don't you get it? It hurts to see you, Juice. I... The past two weeks were hard, really hard, and I missed you more than you can ever know, but it's still better... It's still beter than seeing you and not being able to touch you or look at you or..." she took a deep breath, trying to control herself. Quickly she wiped the tears from her face, looking around. "I can't cry here," she sniffed. She started to walk to the church, not really caring if he was following her or not, she just needed a minute away from everyone and she had the keys to every room.

Juice followed her, but he gave her a few moments to get a clear mind again. After that, he grabbed her arm and turned her into his direction. "I know, Grace. It hurts me too. Do you think I don't miss you? I do, I really do. And I mean it." He sighed deeply, pulling his hand back. It hurt him to see her like that, he wanted to comfort her, pull her into his arms. "We shouldn't do this three months thing, it'll only make it harder for the both of us and you know that."

Grace looked around before answering, since there were still people near. She walked further, opened the door where she was keeping the prizes for the lottery and locked the door as he was inside, so that she was sure no one would find them. With a sigh she sat down at the table, looking at his hopeless face. He was right. This was breaking the both of them. "You're right," she sighed.

Juice leaned against the wall, his hands in his pockets again. "I know," he replied, nodding. "So, what are we gonna do about it? Live our own lives or give it a chance? I just want to know it, I'm not mad if you chose the first option." And that was the truth, he wouldn't be mad; just hurt.

She let out a long sigh, thinking about her parents. "How do you picture the second?"

"I don't know. You know my opinion about it. I don't want to hide, that's not how I want to have a relationship. But if this is the only chance to have you around me... I'd do it." Juice stepped closer to her, sitting down on the table too.

Grace bent her head. Keeping a relationship secret from her parents... It was wrong, it wasn't something that God would want from her. "I don't want to hide it either. I don't think I can." She chewed on her bottom lip. "So I guess... I guess we should just live our own lives."

Juice scratched his neck and swallowed. "Okay, if that's what you really want, I have to accept it ‒ and I will. But please don't change your mind and come back to me after a few months, because this will probably happen again," he told her, his voice firm. He couldn't let her play with his feelings, and he should stop forcing her into something. "So then... it's completely over?"

His question kept racing through her mind. Over... Did she really want this to be over? What if it was a mistake, what if she would regret it later? He was right, she couldn't come back later. She bent her head, burying her face in her hands, trying to fight off the tears. She thought about all the things Faye had said, about finding her own happiness. "I don't know," she whispered. "I just don't know what to do anymore."

"I want to hear a yes or a no, Grace. I mean, it can't be that hard as it seems we be both want this, but you can't and I won't force you to anything." Juice chewed on the inside of his cheek. Seeing her so desperate wasn't easy for him at all. "Think about it again, I'm probably here the whole day," he told her, pulling her closer and into his arms. After a while he took a step back and cupped her face. "But I don't want to see you sad, I wanna see your beautiful smile today, even if I'm not the reason for it." He smiled weakly.

Grace knew she wouldn't smile again today. Nor the week, or even month after. Not if she let him go. She leaned into the palm of his hand, his skin felt warm. She slid off the table so she could hug him, she wanted to feel his arms around her, just one last time... She buried her face against his shoulder, her arms slid around him and her fists clenched around the hem of his leather cut. Right through their layers of clothes, she could feel his heartbeat. She thought back to that evening on his couch, when their bodies had been pressed together without a piece of clothe between their stomachs. It was the last time she had felt happy. "Please, just hold me a little longer," she whispered.

Juice swallowed and wrapped his arms around her body to pull her even closer. His chin rested on her head, his eyes closed. At least she was the one who hugged him again. But was it a goodbye? Right now he didn't want to think about it. All he wanted to think about was the girl he was holding in his arms. "I won't leave," he whispered.

Grace breathed in deeply, taking in his scent. Swallowing, she looked up to him, to his confused eyes that were dying for an answer. Leaning into him, she caressed his cheek and reached out for his lips. One more time, she told herself. She wanted to lose herself one more time to him, give herself one lasting memory of her first love before she had to put an end to this.

Feeling her breath on his skin gave him a warm feeling, the feeling he always had when she was with him. How was he supposed to let her go? Now that he really was in love with a girl for the first time in his life, he couldn't even have her. As she came closer, he pressed his lips on hers. Even before he touched her lips, it was enough to make him want to fight for this girl.

As soon as his lips brushed hers, she just wanted to forget about everything else. Leaning with her head against his forehead, she listening to his breathing, only to his breathing. Follow your heart, she said to herself. Step back from him ‒ and if you can't... then fight for him. And she couldn't step away, on the contrary, she leaned into him, kissing his lips more fiercely, hungry; all those days without him just turned into a passion she could no longer control. She laid a hand against his neck, with the other she pulled him closer. She sighed softly as he answered her kiss, as he gave her what she had been longing for ever since that day that she walked away from his house.

His hands let go of her face, instead they were now resting on her hips. The kiss turned into a passionate and lustful kiss. Juice lifted her up and put her down on the table, placing himself between her legs and pulling her closer again. His breathing got faster, and so did his heartbeat. "I won't give up on you, sorry," he whispered against her lips.

Grace pressed her knees against his hips as he stood between her legs, her hands moving up to his chest. His words touched her, and she whispered: "I don't want you to give up on me."

"Well, that's good to know." He smiled briefly and leaned with his forehead against hers, looking her in the eye. He was still a little out of breath. "So, it's okay if I'm staying, hmm?"

Grace nodded silently. Her thumb stroked his lips as she kept looking at him. "I really missed you. And I... I'm sorry, Juice. I know I asked a lot from you."

He gave her a warm smile and shrugged. "It's okay. I think no other girl would've given me another chance after I messed up more than just one thing. We both can do it better now," he whispered, running his thumb across her hip.

"Well, then they would have been very stupid," she muttered. She caught his hand as it ran across her thigh and laced her fingers with his. It was probably better to go back outside, but on the other hand; Adrian knew what to do and she just wanted to be alone with Juice a little longer.

Juice pulled her back into his arms. "But we shouldn't tell your parents today, huh? Don't wanna ruin the fair. You and Adrian did a great job." He cleared his throat and looked at her a little awkwardly. "I'm sorry for acting like a jealous boyfriend. But as I saw you two holding hands..."

"I was just so shocked to see you that I needed to hold him," she said with a slight blush. "And I was too wrapped up in my own feelings to notice that you were acting jealous." She brushed his jawline, pressing a soft kiss to his lips. "Adrian is great... but he's not you." With her other hand she played with his fingers.

"For a moment I was afraid that there was more... but I guess there wasn't." He smiled, caressing her cheek with his thumb. Her finding another guy had been his biggest fear.

"No, there wasn't. I would have told you if I fell for someone else, remember? But you were the only one I could think about, Juice. And Adrian knows that."

"Right, you told me..." he nodded, remembering her words.

She stroked both of his hands and moved her fingers higher, caressing his arms, his shoulders, up to his neck. "About my parents... I think we should stick to the old plan and not telling them within the next couple of weeks. We'll just have to find ways to see each other, don't you think?"

"Yeah, we can do that. I think that's the best for now, even if I hate the thought to hide," he replied honestly, enjoying her touches. Everything she did just felt so good.

"It will be difficult," she admitted, "and there will be days that keeping the truth from them will break me."

"I know, I think it'll never be easy. But I don't want to be the reason why you're broken, Grace. Faye already told me how sad you were when you visited her."

Grace dropped her eyes. "I was a wreck, the past two weeks," she admitted. "It just felt so... unfair that I couldn't be with the people I care about." She leaned back at the table, her hands spread on the table. "I think I'm going to tell them I want contact with Faye again. She's going through a tough time and she needs me, I feel like they would understand. So if they agree with that... things should become easier for us too."

"I wish you would've called me. Maybe I wouldn't have been a big help... but... I don't know," he answered and again he swallowed. But yeah, it was unfair, all of it. They just wanted to be happy together ‒ but it was his fault, he said all those things to her father.

"I wanted to call you, text you... but I thought keeping our distance was the only way." She sighed, feeling stupid now. With her ankle she rubbed against his lower leg, she just needed to touch him.

"Maybe I just should've send you a text or something... to make you feel better. But I wanted to respect your wish." He sighed deeply, running his fingertips up and down her arms.

"No, it's good you didn't," she sighed. "Maybe I just needed this. To realize how much I lo- like you," she said with a blush on her cheeks. She looked at her arm, where his touches were causing goosebumps. "I feel... It's just that I felt numb all those days without you but now..." Her arms snaked around his chest and she pulled him closer in a hug, still sitting on the table and he standing in front of her. "Now I feel so much," she whispered.

Juice smirked briefly. "I really like you too," he whispered against her ear, trailing soft kisses down her jaw ‒ not in a sexual way at all. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "I know how you felt, wasn't different for me," Juice admitted. It wasn't a secret that he had also felt sad. He ran his fingers through her curls, inhaling her scent.

Grace wanted to slip her hands underneath his shirt, wanted to feel his warm, soft skin, but she knew she had to go back. "I think I should go back outside," she sighed. "Although I'd rather stay here with you." Forgetting about everything else, that was what she wanted to do. To no longer worry about her parents, no longer worry about the things Polly had said about Happy and the club... she just want to pretend that everything was perfect ‒ but deep down she knew the situation was anything but perfect.

Juice nodded briefly. He had known that this moment would come, and before she got into any trouble with her parents, he needed to let her go. "Okay, you go back and maybe we have a little more time later again, hmm?" He put two fingers under her chin, raising her head a little and kissing her gently.

"Yes, I'll fix that," she said, pecking his lips. Her hand stroked his side as she walked to the door and unlocked it. "You should go first, I'll wait a little longer and get this stuff to the lottery." She pointed at the boxes that were standing against the wall.

"If you need help, just look for me," he said, pressing one last kiss on her forehead. Of course she wouldn't ask for help, that was impossible, but he still wanted to offer her his help. "See you." Juice smiled before he left the room and went back to his brothers.