Fighting Destiny 9

Chapter 27 Saving Memories

Author's Note: I have been working on writing longer chapters but this is a short chapter because I'm going to do a time leap of a few days.

"

They ate fried chicken for dinner with Cole slaw and potato salad. It was Abel's favorite meal despite the fact that none of it was home cooked. Tara faced reality; everyone made better fried chicken and she was glad. It made her feel less guilty when she bought a bucket and didn't cook herself.

"Do you think Baby Nate is eating right now?" Abel asked.

"I'm sure Grandpa JT is feeding him his bottle," Jax said. "I bet he's sure surprised at how much that little guy can eat."

"I told him to eat a lot so he can get big faster and then I can teach him stuff."

"I bet you can't guess what I got for dessert," Tara said. "It's the best."

"Ice cream?" Abel guessed.

"Better," Jax said.

"What's better than ice cream?" Abel asked puzzled.

"Those fudgy brownies with the frosting from the store that you love with ice cream," Tara said.

Abel bounced in his chair with happiness.

"That's the best dessert ever and you're the best Mommy," Abel said.

"You've definitely got your father's charm," Tara said.

Tara had gotten up from the table. She put a brownie in a bowl added a big scoop of ice cream and some chocolate syrup and carried the bowl high so Abel couldn't see it.

"I'm sure of it," Jax said.

"Is that for me?" Abel asked. He couldn't believe his good fortune of having his two favorite desserts combined into one dessert.

"That's mine," Jax said.

"It's mine," Abel said. "You and Mommy eat dessert later."

"Good point," Jax said.

"It's yours," Tara said. "And look, there's even chocolate syrup."

Abel grinned ear to ear.

"This is the best dessert ever!" Abel yelled with excitement before digging in with his spoon.

"And how much of that did Mommy make?" Jax asked playfully.

"I made just as much as Daddy did," Tara retorted.

In those small moments, the pain of losing Baby Nate subsided into the background. Jax was glad they were at the cabin to heal a little before returning home.

Baby Nate had never been to the cabin so it made it a little easier because there were no memories there to haunt them. They watched cartoons with Abel. Jax gave him a bath and Jax and Tara read him a story together, each taking a different character in the story and doing the voice.

"Before you got to sleep, can you tell me one of your favorite memories of Baby Nate?" Tara asked Abel.

Abel thought for a moment before a grin spread across his face.

"When he came home from the hospital and Daddy was changing his diaper and Baby Nate peed all over."

Jax and Abel chuckled at the memory.

"And on me," Jax added. "He did that just a few days ago."

"Do you think he will pee on Grandpa JT?" Abel asked.

"I'm sure of it," Tara said giving Abel a kiss good-night.

After Abel was put to bed, Tara brought out her laptop and began to type at a furious pace.

"What are you working on?" Jax asked.

"I want to write down all the memories of Baby Nate so I don't forget and then I'm going to put them and pictures in a book maybe a little one for Abel and a bigger more complete one for us."

"That's a great idea. How can I help?"

"Write down your memories and I'll type them up."

Jax found some paper and began to write.

"

"***

"

Donna and Opie got to Jax and Tara's house shortly after dinner. Piney had come over to watch Kenny and Ellie while they boxed up Baby Nate's belongings.

Opie found the boxes in the garage and put them together while Donna began in the baby's closet.

"It was such a short time ago that we helped them fix up the room," Donna said.

Baby Nate's room had been done in red, white and blue. The walls were white, there were the ABC's in big bright letters along with a picture representing the letter all around the room's walls in that specific shade of blue known as SAMCRO blue. His crib was bright candy apple red along with the changing table and chest of drawers. A mobile of white glittery stars and a bright yellow moon hung above his bed.

"I know it's really busy with the MC and getting ready to move, but I'd really like to do something for Jax and Tara. I want to do a shadow box with the SAMCRO hat Baby Nate had on when he came home from the hospital, his little motorcycle booties, his bunny and his pacifier with its leash that was always clipped to his clothes along with some pictures."

"And you want me to . . . ?" Opie asked with a smile. He knew exactly what she wanted.

"To make the shadow box and the glass over it. I'll put the things inside. I'm not going to change them in anyway and I'll pick out and print the pictures and arrange them. I'll also paint it."

"Give me the dimensions for the box and the compartments and I should have time to do it tomorrow."

"Could you do his name in wood too for the top of his box?"

"Just go to the hardware store and buy some already cut out wooden letters. It's a bitch to do the letters. It's so time consuming."

"OK. I'll go by the hardware. I know there's some of that SAMCRO blue paint in our garage. I want to have it for them when they get back from the cabin. Do you think they will like it?"

Opie went over to his wife and wrapped his arms around her.

"I think they will love it. It's very sweet of you even if I have to do the most work," Opie said before giving his wife a kiss. Marrying Donna was the best decision of his life.

"

Yet Another Author's Note:

I got this review from Guest Ash and approved it, but as I thought about it, I deleted it not because it was negative, but because it wasn't accurate as far as the story. I'm posting the review to the bottom of the story with my response. I didn't do this in the reviews to this story because it may have spoilers in it for new readers. I'm including this in case some other readers also find the previous chapter unclear and my explanation clears stuff up or I hope it does.

Guest Ash:

I'm not really a Gemma fan, but this makes no sense. She wouldn't blow her grandson off as a defective baby. It just makes her this weird villain out to kill Tara and pimp out her kid. Now, I've lost a child myself. Now if his stuff was just gone, I would have freaked out. If you're gonna have psycho Gemma and Jax screwing Tara over, I'm not sure I can keep reading.

"

My response:

Thanks for writing a review. I hope I can clear up some stuff or explain some things that may explain why Gemma is acting the way she is. Gemma may have some blame when it comes to Baby Nate's death, but Gemma will never allow herself to take any blame. She could never handle that mentally, so she has to find someone other than herself to blame for Baby Nate's death. She blames Baby Nate because there must have been something wrong with him or he wouldn't have just died like that. That in her mind makes him defective. Since Tara made him, she's made a defective baby. She isn't psycho. She just can't accept blame.

Gemma isn't unfeeling about Baby Nate, but she's only known him for three months and she hasn't been involved in his life much because Tara is his mother. Abel is a couple of years old and she's partly raised him and begun his MC training because he didn't have a mother until Tara started living with Jax. Of course she cares more about Abel because her dreams for the future involve Abel being MC president and she just has a closer relationship. Also in the TV show, Gemma didn't seem to have the same tight bond that she had with Abel. I think she saw Abel as hers and Thomas as Tara's.

As far as Gemma being psycho to want to kill Tara, I don't see that she's unbalanced. In the world that Gemma lives in, murder is a tool of business. The MC kills its enemies and Gemma has been a long time old lady. She isn't going to hesitate about killing if there isn't another option especially if it means keeping Jax in Charming and under her control.

In S2 after Tara patches up the Irishman Cam at the clubhouse, Tara tells Jax that his mother still wants her dead. That was because she tried to take Jax out of Charming. Now Jax and Tara are leaving town and he's leaving SAMCRO. She blames Tara for it because she hates her and it's easier to believe that Tara is forcing Jax to leave rather than accept that Jax is an adult who is making a decision for the benefit of his family. In Gemma's mind, getting rid of Tara will keep Jax in Charming because he'll need her help with Abel and I think that's a reasonable conclusion.

Jax saw how broken up Tara was in Baby Nate's room and he asked Opie and Donna to box up his stuff and leave the boxes in his room. He did that as his way to spare Tara the pain of having to do it. He wasn't trying to screw her over. He has no motive to screw her over. They just got married. He loves her. No reason to hurt her. He told Opie to leave the boxes in Baby Nate's room. Baby Nate's stuff is in his room in boxes. It hasn't been trashed or taken to Goodwill. You also need to wait to read Tara's reaction.

Maybe if you reread Chapter 26, you'll see that Jax was just trying to spare Tara pain. He isn't trying to hurt her and he would never get rid of his son's belongings without discussing it with Tara.

I am very sorry that you lost a child. I can only imagine the pain that you have gone through. No matter how respectful I'm trying to be in this story, I'm sure it has stirred up painful memories. I hope you are doing OK, Ash.

Apologies for the Author's Notes being longer than the chapter. Next chapter will be back to normal and there are only a handful of chapters left.