Authors Note: Ask and you shall receive, Emmettluver2010 wanted more Piney- Here yeah go. So trust me when I say, your input matters. Thank you to everyone who's left a review! You guys are what make this story epic! I hope this chapter rocks your socks too.

Family Recipes

I've been sleepwalking, been wandering all night
Trying to take what's lost and broke and make it right

After settling in back home and making things right with her old man, Haley took it upon herself to take care of her dad. She may be living with Jax for now, but she knows damn well what her dad's idea of taking care of himself looks like. And after the pain of coming home to find her dad using a portable oxygen tank to aid his breathing, Haley took it upon herself to take care of him. She also started watching Ellie and Kenny a few afternoons a week for Donna. Her sister in-law would never ask, but it's important to Haley to pick up the pieces for her family. Especially after the struggle they've been facing while she was gone.

Haley walks into her dad's house, arms full with Abel's car seat in one hand and an arm full of groceries on the other. Her dad meets her as soon as she gets inside, lifting the plastic bags off her arm to lighten the load.

"What's all this?" Piney asks, already knowing damn well what is daughter was up to.

"Food" Haley laughs, as she places the remaining bags on the countertop and lowers Abel's car seat to the floor. Flashing the baby boy a big smile as his carseat swings back and forth on the linoleum tile.

"You gotta eat more than just frozen dinners and Patrone, dad." She instructs as she begins to put away the groceries for him.

"I don't need all this. I can feed myself, Haley." Piney grumbles stubbornly, but they both know she's right.

Not dissuaded, Haley pulls a bottle of Patrone from the bag, her fingers wrapped around narrow top.

"They had your favorite one on sale too." She smiled, knowing this one would win him over.

"You're too good to your old man." Piney concedes, a tired smile lifting on his face as he pulls his daughter into a side hug.

"Love you too, daddy." Haley says in return before planting a quick kiss upon his cheek and returning to Abel to get him out of his carseat. Lifting the baby up, Haley places him on her hip before giving his soft hair a gentle kiss.

Piney eyes her for a moment. "That baby calling you mom yet?" He asks, on a cantankerous breath as he gently pats Abel's back, earning him a big smile in return.

Haley knows it's not Abel Piney has a problem with. She knows he's just concerned she's getting saddled with a kid and a problem that isn't hers, but that's not how Haley sees the situation at all.

"He can't talk yet dad." She answers back sarcastically, Cheshire smile on her face to diffuse the situation.

"You know what I mean." Piney grumbles out as he takes a seat at his kitchen table.

"This is what I want to be doing. Same way I watch Kenny and Ellie. We're all family. We help each other out." Haley tries to explain it in a way she hopes her dad will understand. She isn't trying to replace Wendy, but Abel does need a mother figure in his life, and Jax needs the help, this is what she wants to be doing. She loves Abel.

"That all this is?" He questions her, the wheels spinning in his head. Piney always one to see the bigger picture in the details

"I'm happy, dad. That's all that matters, right?" She rephrases it, getting at the heart of what really matters, not what he's hinting at.

She doesn't know what she and Jax are or where they're headed. She knows where she'd like it to go, but they aren't there yet, and for that reason and many more, she doesn't want to get into it with her old man.

Walking over to the sliding backdoor, Haley looks outside to see Kenny and Ellie running around in the grass.

"Look Abel, looks like fun, huh?" She coos to the baby in his arms.

Piney watches his daughter with awe and admiration. She's turning into a hell of a woman. One he is proud of and not sure he deserves to call his own. Not after letting her down as badly as he did when she younger.

"You're a good girl, Hales." He remarks, the old remorse finding its way to the surface, because she deserved so much better than the hand that got dealt to her. And despite all the shit, she's rising above it.

"Thanks daddy," She answers back, flashing him a smile over her shoulder.

The weight of it all bubbles up. It's been festering in him ever since she got home, ever since he learned the truth from Jax. Piney has battled every day with the sense that he failed her. Failed her in the worst way possible. She was his little girl. A father is supposed to protect his daughter, keep her safe from anything, everything, and he didn't even notice what was going on right under his nose. So caught up in the club, fighting with her mom, he didn't see her silent pain. He didn't see her suffering. That's a regret he can't shake now that the truth has been brought to his attention. It's a feeling he's not sure he'll ever escape.

"You know Hales, if I had known what was going on at your mom's house I would have gotten you outta there. And I'm not blaming you for not telling me. I was too busy with things that didn't matter back then. I should have been there for you. I should have seen what was going on. I'm sorry." Piney suddenly confesses, hanging his heart out to dry in a way he's never done with Haley before.

A shiver runs down Haley's spin and ripples across her skin with her father's confession. Her heart begins to pound hard against the confines of her chest, her breath picks up rapid and shallow. She wants to deny what he's talking about, but in her sinking heart she knows exactly what he's talking about. What she doesn't know is how he found out.

Her heart begins to pound faster; anxiety picking up quick. She didn't want him to know, isn't sure she ever wanted him to know. Staring blankly out the into the backyard at her niece and nephew, Haley has to will herself to move, afraid to face him. Slowly turning around, the look on her father's face is almost more than she can bare. The look in his eyes instantly forms a choking lump in her throat.

"How did you-" She starts, but can't finish.

The devastation in his eyes, the guilt. It socks Haley in the gut. It strips the air from her lungs and sends tear burning in her eyes. Her mind begins to race as she clutches Abel closer to her. She's not ready for this, let alone to be ambushed by it.

"I need to get the kids home. Abel is due for a nap soon and I'm sure Ellie has home work." Haley rapidly spits out as she turns from her father, quickly yanking open the backdoor as she shuts this conversation down. Not ready to face it.

"Kenny! Ellie! Come on guys! We gotta go!" She calls in the backyard as she nervously bounces Abel on her hip. Chewing on her lower lip to keep it together. Ellie and Kenny come charging her when they spot her.

Haley turns back to Piney as the kids storm into the house from the back. Ruffling Kenny's hair and giving Ellie a quick kiss, she instructs them to quickly get their stuff.

Piney can see Haley is shutting this down. She can't even meet his eyes as he rises off the chair.

"Haley-" He tries to reach her as he watches his daughter block him out completely. Not blind to the alarm and fear in her darting eyes.

"Dad I- I gotta go." She manages to say as she places Abel back in his car seat. Snatching it up as quickly as she can, before moving for the door as the kids come racing out of the hall with their backpacks. Without another word or a glance her father's way, Haley ushers the kids outside and disappears out the door, running scared.

Haley waits for Jax to get home. She knows in her gut it had to be him who told her old man. That's how he found out. The thought makes her sick. Jax had promised. A promise she had never imagined he would break. And getting ambushed with the truth made the whole thing that much harder. She feels hurt, betrayed, and angry. And she wants answers.

It turned out to be another long night, but Haley's learned they're always long nights. This isn't a nine to five job. The guys don't work a shift and clock out. It's a lifestyle. You don't work outlaw. You are outlaw. It's an experience she was raised in. Even while spending most of her time with her mom, but she finds herself becoming acutely aware of the condition only as an adult.

When she was younger, she just lived it. She was a small piece in the bigger machine, but now she sees the pieces, sees the players. Now she sees the life they're all tangled up in. Sees the handwriting on the wall for Abel and Kenny. And reading John's manuscript, she's finally starting to see the price it's costing them all.

After rocking Abel to sleep in his room, singing quiet lullabies while he snuggled in her arms, Haley waited for Jax. He makes it home after dark, but surprisingly, not nearly as deep into the twilight as she had anticipated.

He greets her with a warm smile and a kiss on the cheek, before moving for the kitchen to find something to eat. Haley follows him, rounding the wall to the kitchen only to find him rummaging through the fridge.

"I made pot roast. Your plate is on the top shelf." She says, her heart hinged upon the edge of something. Fluttering and weary of what's to come as she prepares herself to confront him. Waiting to finally say what's been so heavy on her heart ever since she left her dad's earlier.

"Thanks," Jax answers back, flashing her a sexy smirk of approval as he moves for the microwave. Putting his plate in and starting it up before he turns back to her. Finally noticing that look in her eyes. The one he hadn't when he first got home. The one he knows so well. "Everything alright?"

Haley takes a deep breath, and lifts off the wall she's been leaning on. Her eyes pierce him, searching for the truth.

"I had a weird conversation with my dad today… Did you tell him what happened to me?" She asks calmly, trying to contain her emotions as she stomach twists in knots.

Jax stares at her silently for a long moment, but the truth is unmistakable in his eyes. "Haley, I…"

"Did you?" She asks again, her voice growing more firm. Her nerves on edge as she awaits the answer to a question she already knows.

The microwave goes off, a loud beeping fills the otherwise quiet room as Jax and Haley lock eyes in a quiet standoff.

"Yeah," He finally admits on a heavy breath.

Haley shakes her head as she stares at him in disbelief.

"How could you do that? You promised me you wouldn't say a word to anyone. It wasn't your secret to tell!" Her heart pounds, growing more riled up by the second as the words tumble past in her lips in a visceral response.

"Hales-" Jax says as he moves to her only to watch her step back, her hands flying up in defense, warding him off. The look in her eye pins him. She's furious and while he gets it, he needs her to understand why he betrayed her trust.

"You left. Took off without saying a word to anyone. And when Piney found you and you still wouldn't come back, he was done. He didn't get it, why you'd rather be out there then back home. But I did." Jax explains, not backing down just because she doesn't want to hear it, and as his explanation begins to unfold, Jax can see Haley coming around. He can see her find his eyes again. Her pupil taking in his every word as he slowly moves to her, but this time she doesn't back away.

"Piney blocked my efforts to find you. The club wouldn't go against him. So I told him what he needed to hear to understand why you left. So we could find you." Jax explained. She's still mad, he can see it in her eyes, but the fire has dissipated. She's starting to understand why.

Taking a chance, he reaches out to touch her cheek. She's still on edge, flinching slightly with the touch, but doesn't block his embrace.

"I had to find you." Jax says adamantly on a low deep breath, as if that was the real answer. The heart of the reason he had to tell her old man. Because he would have done anything, did do anything, to bring her home.

Lost on her eyes, Jax can feel her begin to tremble in his hand with the weight of his words, with the weight of the truth.

"He see me different." She admits on a shaken breath.

A heavy sigh leaves Jax for her pain.

"Because he feels like shit he wasn't there for you. Didn't protect you. So do I. But nobody loves you any different Haley." Jax admits on a heated breath. Giving voice the guilt he still feels where she's concerned. A guilt he knows eats Piney up too.

A sad weary smile finds her face as she holds onto the security of his gaze, his love. He can see it in her eyes, she wants to believe. She's scared, uncertain, but wants to believe she can trust the ones she loves even with this awful truth.

Moving to him, Haley leans against his chest, in the opening of his kutte as his arms wrap around her. Breathing him in with every deep breath. Holding onto the one person who knows her better than anyone else.

Haley told herself she was going to talk about it. After the complete disaster with her dad, she felt it was finally time she brought it up in therapy. Though she's sure it would come as no surprise to her therapist, she was finally going to say the words. She was finally going to talking about her childhood traumas, the rape. She was finally going to start to face this. This invisible monster that has ruled and destroyed her life since its creation. The thought of saying the words out loud had kept her up most of the night before. Nerves suffocatingly tight in her belly. So tight not even Jax's comforting embrace could ease them.

She could feel it, all of it scratching just under the surface as if her mind she was about to open the doors. She had talked herself up all morning. A mental monologue of what she would say, how she would say it, how the words might sound rolling off her tongue. Because she's never really talked about it before. The most she's ever opened up about it was with Jax the night he first found out and that barely touched the surface.

Anxiety had her practically jumping out of her skin by the time she made it to her afternoon appointment, but she thought she was ready, felt she was ready. Which made it all the more devastating when she got in there and couldn't. She played out the words in her head. She managed to bring it up. Even got out a few details about the men who came before, but when it came time to talk about the rape… She just couldn't.

With tears burning in her eyes, her foot nervously tapping against the floor, the words choked in her throat. With a trembling lower lip, she could only manage out- I can't, I can't do this. It was still too painful, too hard. She wasn't ready.

Haley spent the rest of the day furious with herself that she didn't just spit it out. So upset, she spent most of the day just driving around the outskirts of Charming, lost in her own head, because even though the words hadn't made their way past her lips, the memories had still come out of the shadows. Everything she spent so long pushing down was pounding in her skull, throbbing in her heart. Ripping her to shreds from the inside out. It left Haley on completely edge and physically sick to her stomach.

Trapped in her own private hell, because even though she couldn't say the words, she had still dug up the memories. Memories that were now alive inside her, racing through her veins, pumping through her heart, in and a part of her. Haley felt like she could hardly breath she was wound up so tight. It feels so unbearable at one point she had to pull off onto the side of the road and sob against the steering wheel. Her knuckles turning white as she gripped the wheel, her head digging into the rim. She hadn't anticipated this, hadn't planned on her memories tormenting her. She had held onto some flimsy notion that if she just acknowledged what happened it would set her free. And having always pushed her memories away in the past, trying to forget everything, Haley feels like she's barely holding it together when confronted with it now.

By the time Haley picked up Abel from Gemma's that evening she had managed to pull herself together on the outside. She didn't want them to see her torn up. This was her baggage, not the little guy's. And having been drug through the dirt because of her mom's baggage, Haley swore she'd never do that to a child. So she let herself find solace in Abel, let her love for the little guy be her sole focus.

They did tummy time, bath time, and books, but after he went to bed that night, all alone, waiting for pain, her stomach was in knots and her skin was crawling. She finds herself acutely aware of how dirty and damaged she feels, how unclean. She knows it's an irrational feeling, but there's no mercy for what's rational tonight. Needing to take the edge off, needing to make the sickness stop, she settles for some tea and whiskey. Something to quiet the noise and soften the blow.

Drinking wasn't the answer she was looking for. She wanted to face this head on, but the weight of it was more than she had anticipated. It all feels like too much after drowning in it all day long. She had finished downing her tea and moved onto straight whiskey when Jax finally got home. He meets her in the kitchen, draping his zip-up hoodie over a chair.

"Sorry I'm late. It was a long night." He explains on a weary breath as her runs his hand down his goatee.

Normally, Haley would enquire what he means by long night, but tonight she's too wound up in her own shit to take on his. Nodding to say she understands, Haley takes another sip from the amber liquor swirling around in her glass. A slight buzz hums through her body, but it's not nearly the numb relief she had hoped for. Gnawing on her lower lip, Haley tries to keep it together. Keep a brave face.

Jax comes up behind, his eye narrowing as he surveys the open whiskey bottle and her glass. "Long night for you too?" He asks carefully.

Turning his way to finally face him, Haley nods in response. Hoping he won't see it written all over her face, but fairly confident he will.

Sure enough, Jax knows her as well as she knows him. Concern clouds his steal blue eyes as he looks her over. "You alright?"

Forcing a smile, Haley nods with reassurance.

"Yeah, just a long day." She manages out, trying to convince him, because if she can't talk about what's eating her alive with her therapist, she's pretty sure she'll choke if she tries to tell Jax too.

This time it's Jax who nods, but it's slow and uneasy, as if he's taking her word for it, but isn't entirely convinced. His gaze moves back to the bottle resting on the counter as a low tired chuckle escape his lips. "Wanna make me one of those?"

The sound of his laugh, that electric smile covering his handsome face, it shoots right through Haley like a bolt of lightning. Makes her feel something other than the constant pain and panic that have been racing through her most of the day. She can't take her eyes off him. In that moment his simple gesture reminds her that the force Jax Teller has over her can quiet any storm. That longing in her belly, the one that's constantly calling for him, it's louder than anything else in her head and heart when he's near.

Turning back to the counter to grab a glass and pour him a drink, Haley feels Jax take a step closer to her as if sensing that she needs him. She can feel the heat of his body, his presence as he stands behind her, giving the back of her head a gentle kiss. And that simple gesture of support is her complete unraveling.

A thought races through her head as she slowly turns back to him- he's what she needs, he's all she needs. There's no second guessing it as Haley reaches for Jax, pulling him down to her lips. Meeting him with a searing kiss. Their mouths melt together as Haley holds him close, her kiss begging for more, before they slowly pull apart and Haley releases her hold on him.

Surprise is blinding in Jax's eyes as they find her own. Telling Haley he hadn't expected this. Isn't sure where it's coming from. But his sly smirk and the light igniting in his eyes tell hers it's a surprise he isn't necessarily against either. She can see it in his eyes as she takes hold of his kutte, pulling him close again, he knows how badly she wants him. Jax's hands envelope her face as Haley leans in begging for his kiss.

They meet for a slow sensual kiss as they hold onto one another. The noise in her head finally drowns to the back of her mind with his touch. The feel of his rough callused hands on her face guiding the dance of their lips, as his mouth reminds her of what love feels like, how it can kill her pain, kills the throbbing in her heart. Needing more of his medicine, more of him, Haley pushes Jax's kutte off his shoulders.

As Jax releases his hold on her face, the leather slides to the kitchen floor below. But when Haley begins tugging Jax's white tee up his taunt stomach, she feels Jax's hands enclose around her cheeks, pulling her face back from his.

Their eyes lock, Jax's blinding with uncertainty as they pierce her own. She can practically read his mind; he doesn't understand where this is coming from, what brought this on, but he has no confusion over what she wants. This isn't like the kisses they've shared before since she got home. They're one hairpin trigger away from setting this whole thing off again. They both know Haley is seeking far more than just the taste of his mouth, a quick embrace. They both know Haley is reaching for all of him, every inch.

Leaning up to his mouth, Haley lingers just a breath from his lips, her deep eyes imploring his own.

"Please." She whispers before her mouth finds his in a tender, tempting kiss. One meant to dissolve any lingers doubts he might have.

"Please." She whispers against his mouth.

A shallow breath bursts past Jax's lips as he crumbles, her persuasion and his heart winning out against all reason, because he never was good at saying no to her. Putting her out of her misery, Jax's hand digs into her hair as the other grips her jawline before he steals the breath from her lips with a kiss. Fisting her hair, Jax gently tugs Haley's head back, positioning her mouth right where he wants to devour it.

Haley almost forgot how it feels to be in the grip of his hands. Almost forgot how Jax likes to cup her face and lead the show. The pain of her past, the torment in her head goes quiet as Haley pulls Jax's shirt up his body. Her fingertips dragging over the contours of his muscles, over his smooth skin. Their kiss only breaking as she yanks the white tee over his head before they crash back together.

Jax's hands find her body this time, pulling her flush against him, curving her into him as his tongue teases the seam of her lips before slipping inside her mouth to find her own. Jax tugs Haley's shirt off her body and once he's got that out of the way, his hands find the exposed skin of her waist, plucking her up on the countertop where he can have more access to her.

Heart pounding, Haley losing herself in Jax. It's been so long since she's been with someone, even longer since she's been with someone she actually wants. Her skin feels on fire under his touch. Her senses drunk off him, off the way he smells, his tastes, and the feel of their skin moving as one.

As her legs spread to make room for him, Jax drops his hand to her lower back to slide her across the counter and flush against him. His mouth drops from her own, trailing hot nips down across her jawline, below her ear, and down her neck. Slipping her bra strap off her shoulder before his mouth finds the newly discovered skin.

Her chest rises and falls rapidly as every fiber in her begs for more of him. The back of her head pushes against the cupboard door as Haley arches into Jax, her hands lost in his long hair, but as her bra strap slips down her arm, the realization hits her- This is all wrong.

Not being with him, not wanting him, but taking it here, because she can't stand living inside own head for another moment. She has desperately missed him for over a year. Missed his touch, his taste, his love, and the realization that she's about to have some of that again, because she's running from her own shit, sinks Haley's heart. This is exactly what destroyed them last time.

"Jax," She calls for him, trying to catch her breath, but losing that battle as his mouth seduces her skin and senses.

Tugging on his hair, Haley draws his face back to her own, trying to gain some control here.

"Yeah?" Jax asks on a husky wanting breath as he recaptures her mouth. His mouth devouring hers before she can answer.

Taking her last shred of self-control, making her love for him the will power she needs, Haley pushes Jax back. His eyes meet hers as he fights to catch his breath.

"We can't do this. Not like this." She manages to spit out. Pushing him back further, confusion fills his eyes as Haley hops off the countertop. She snatches up her shirt as guilt plummets her heart before turning back to him. The mixture of confusion and rejection in his eyes steals Haley's breath.

"It's not you Jax. I'm sorry… I'm sorry." She says on a broken breath before turning from him, unable to look at him another moment and charges for her room.

Haley has her shirt back on by the time she reaches her room, but confined by these four simple walls, she doesn't know what to do with herself as she moves to her dresser. Her mind is racing, her heart heavy and pounding with guilt as she braces the lip of her dresser, her weight pressing against it. What the hell was she thinking? How could she do that to him again? After everything he's done for her, everything he is to her, how could she hurt him? They were finally starting to reach a place that meant something and here she goes making stupid impulsive choices that risk all that.

She knows she wants him, loves him, but acting on those feelings for selfish reasons just makes them worthless. This isn't who she wants to be anymore. This is exactly what she's trying so hard not to fall back into.

Haley in lost in her head when she spots Jax through the reflection in her mirror. Standing in her doorway, white tee back in place, resting his weight against the frame as he silently watches her. Haley's face falls into her hands with the sight of him, furious with herself for hurting him.

It takes her a moment and several heated breaths before she can face him. Pulling her hands from her face, Haley tries to make sense of this.

"It's not you Jax. I want you. God, do I want you. It's just everything else in my fucked up head that turns shit around." She blurts out, her hands running wildly through her hair as heated emotion races through her veins. As she tries to explain the madness in her head, one she doesn't even fully understand.

Jax doesn't say a word as he stands there. She can tell he's letting her get it out while he listens. It's a privilege she's not sure he deserves.

Letting out a huffed exasperated breath, Haley tries to compose herself. Tries to make some god-damn sense for a change.

"I went to my therapist today. I was going to talk about it. Finally talk about what happened with Hank. I thought I was ready. I felt ready… but I couldn't do it." She admits on a heavy defeated breath, her heart sinking as she relives what feels like failure.

Haley watches Jax's stoic face soften, a sadness finds his eyes as he takes a step toward her, but Haley moves back. She has to say this. She needs to explain herself.

"What I didn't expect was that digging all that shit up would make it real for me whether I could talk about it or not. And now I've spent most of the day just reliving it, over and over again…"

Haley takes a sharp breath, as tears fill her eyes.

"I couldn't take it anymore. That's why I had the whiskey out. But then you came home…" Haley recounts on a cracking breath as Jax moves closer to her. Their eyes locked in one of empathy and concern as Jax reaches out to gently tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. Haley can hear the words he isn't saying, I'm here.

Lost on his eyes, Haley can feel her breath wavering, her heart racing with his closeness and the way it makes her feel.

"You're the only thing that can take it all away. The only thing that make it alright. And I needed that." Haley admits on a quiet breath.

Jax's eyes implore her, reach deep down into her as his hands tenderly envelope her face.

"But I don't want my shit to be the reason we get back together. I'm always running Jax. It's all I've ever done and I think… I think I need to learn to live with what's going on inside me. I think I need to learn how to live with these feelings if I'm going to get past this." Haley's breath is deep and uncertain as a quiet tear slips down her cheek.

She doesn't like to feel the poison in her belly. She doesn't like to feel the sickness in her heart. She doesn't like to feel damaged all over. Still feel it all on her skin, her body. But she's starting to see she's going to have to walk through the fire if she's ever going to make it to the other side.

Without a word, Jax's thumb softly strokes her cheek, wiping away her tear, before his face drops down to hers, forehead to forehead. They breath each other in as they savor the closeness, the intimacy.

"Whatever you need. I'm here." Jax finally speaks. Haley hands reach out for him, wrap around him as they savor each other for a long moment, savor the comfort it brings.

Slowly Jax pulls back, a small smirk on his lips as his eyes find hers once again.

"You wanna watch a movie? Try and get your mind off things for a little while." He offers as his thumb tender strokes her cheek once again.

Haley can't hold back the smile that spreads across her face. He gets it. There's no running from this. She can't keep dodging this bullet, but he wants to be there for her, in any way he can help.

"I'd really like that."

After that night Haley does some soul searching. She isn't who she wants to be, and she may never be, but that doesn't mean she should stop working, stop trying. The things she's been through; the horrors she's seen. They changed her, that much Haley is very clear on now. But she's also come to see she's a fighter. Not the tough, roll with the punches girl she always prided herself on being. But a resilient son of bitch, because despite all the shit she's been through, she's still here. She hasn't given up. There were some detours along the way, a few dead end roads, but she's always found her way back. She always picks herself up and keeps going. And that, Haley has come to realize, means more than anytime she ever fell.

Leaving Abel with Jax, Haley finally finds the courage she needed to face her dad. So on a quiet evening, when dusk is heavy on the horizon, and crickets are the only sound for miles, Haley knocks on her old man's door. And when he answers it, their eyes meet. Not a word spoken, because they both already know. Stepping aside, Piney lets his daughter in. Not just into his home, but his heart. They settle in his Livingroom. Piney in his old squeaky recliner, Haley on the old couch she remembers as a kid.

Silently they sit for a moment, taking each other in. Trying to find the words. Before Haley finally speaks up.

"I'm sorry dad. I shouldn't have run out like I did. I was just caught off guard." She starts, the words heavy on her lips as she tries to hold his eyes. Tries to not break away, even though the anxiousness inside her would much prefer the easy route.

"I shouldn't have come at you like that." Piney responds back, reaching out to his daughter. Really trying in a way that resonates in Haley's heart.

"Nah Daddy," She smiles. "You're blunt, but it's one of the things I love most about you, because I always knew you were giving it to me straight. I never have to wonder if there's something behind it." She admits, trying to reassure him she freaked out for her own reasons. This isn't his fault, any of it.

Leaning across the couch, Haley takes her dad's hand. "I wasn't ready to talk about it then. I'm still not. So if you want details, I probably won't be able to give them, but that's not why I came. I came because I need you to know that it wasn't your fault. What happened while I was growing up, that isn't on you. I don't blame you and I don't want you blaming yourself." Haley confesses on an open heart. Her voice wavering as she sees tears he's holding back shine in his old tired eyes.

Haley feels Piney squeeze her hand as he speaks up.

"I should have protected you. Gotten you outta there sooner." He grumbles out, angry with himself.

Seeing his pain, a quiet tear slips down Haley's cheek before she wipes it away.

"You didn't know, Daddy. I didn't want you to. I didn't want anyone to. And when I needed you, when Honey kicked me out, you took me in. No questions asked. I'm lucky you're my dad. I don't know what I would have done without you."

Piney let's out a stifled cough as he chokes back the tears. Slowly rising from his chair, he calls to his daughter.

"Come here." He says open his arms.

Lifting off the couch, Haley welcomes the hug. Soaking in the way his hugs always feel the same no matter how times changes. Because in moments like these she finds she'll always be his little girl, no matter how grown she gets.

Pulling back, Haley smiles up at her dad. "No more beating yourself up over this, yeah hear? I'm gonna be ok. I'm gonna figure this out." She insists, that Winston fire in her gut shining through.

A wide smile lifts on Piney's face. "I know baby." He answers back, before leaning in to place a tender kiss on his little girl's forehead. "I know…"

Authors Note:

I'm gonna just stop saying that was a heavy chapter, because I've come to realize this is just a heavy intense story. A journey story about going through hell and coming out the other side. There was a lot touched upon with both Piney and Haley, as well as Jax and Haley in this chapter. Yeah know, if Jax and Haley were anyone else I'd say they're together, but they just have so much history, such a history of intimacy, that they're completely intertwined without being together. But they're almost there. And Haley, honestly I love her character. She's completely broken, but not a quitter, and there's some really beautiful and courageous about that.

So I'd love to know what you guys think about everything that went down in this chapter? Also I'm leaving it up to you all, Next chapter- you want the Juice question answered or do you want Haley to finally go see Ope? You guys decide. Most votes win.