Opie's mind flashes back to a month ago.. little did he know it would lead to the situation unfolding in front of him right now.
Donna and the kids pull up to Teller-Morrow to take Opie a lunch and eat with him on his break. They get out of the car and Kenny of course heads straight into the garage to see what everyone is working on. There's no denying he will be employed here in a few years when he's old enough. Ellie leans up against the car, her face glued to her cell phone and she's grinning from ear to ear. Opie frowns. "Who has she been texting nonstop? She's smiling at her phone like a damn fool.." He grumbles.
Donna looks at Opie and smirks. "Oh, just some boy from school. It's harmless." Opie, Jax, Tig, and Juice all share a look of disapproval and Donna just rolls her eyes.
"She's going through puberty, honey. What do you expect?"
"I expect her shorts to be at least mid-thigh length.. and for her to not have a figure or be interested in the opposite sex until she's like twenty. Is that too much for a dad to ask for?" Opie says as he leans down to kiss his wife.
"How old were you when you started liking girls?" Donna asks smugly. Opie scoffs, "that's different and you know it."
"No, it's a double standard and you know it."
Of course he knows it. Every dad knows that. But it still doesn't change how he feels.
Since Ellie is thirteen her parents decided to get her a cell phone. It's prepaid and nothing special but it does it's job. She can call and text and take shitty quality pictures but she's more than happy with it. Donna feels at ease knowing Ellie can call her or Opie in the matter of an emergency or just to let them know what's going on.
Ellie snaps her phone shut and joins the rest of them in the garage. "What's wrong? He's actually really nice, dad," she says, a hand on her hip, sassy as ever. Opie raises his eyebrows. "Mhm, I'm sure he is," he responds without looking up from his work. He bites his tongue so Donna doesn't get pissed at him. But he knows why a lot of teenage boys are "actually really nice." He remembers being super sweet to girls at that age.. sweet until he got in their pants and didn't really bother talking to some of them again.
Tara pulls up with Sydney and Abel. They join the rest of the gang and Jax wipes his hands on a dirty grease rag before kissing Tara. "How's your day been?"
"Good," she smiles. "Did some quick grocery shopping while Sydney stayed home with Abel. He just fell asleep."
Jax nods and kisses her again.
Ellie and Sydney huddle together looking at texts from Matt and giggling while Donna and Tara stand off to the side and talk. Opie and Jax walk Kenny through what they're doing to the car.
"I think he really likes you, sis.." Sydney tells Ellie. She beams and dramatically holds her phone to her chest with a sigh. "I think so too."
Even Kenny looks up at the girls now. Opie rolls his eyes. Donna and Tara giggle while nudging each other. Ellie has her first real crush..
Ellie continues to look at Opie. "Are you going to sit down with them or are you going to stand there the whole time?"
Opie raises his eyebrows but doesn't reply because Jared speaks up.
"Actually, my mom just texted me saying don't be gone too long so we're about to leave anyway," he lies on behalf of his best friend. He knows Matt wants to get out of here just as much as he does.
"Yeah, I'm going to go get a to-go cup.." Matt says as he stands up. Ellie shoots her dad a this is your fault look before getting up and walking to the counter with him.
He asks Madge for a cup and Ellie stands next to him, making sure she's quiet enough to only be heard by him. "You don't have to go.. I'll make sure they leave us alone," Ellie says apologetically.
"No, it's not that," Matt lies through his teeth. "Maybe you and I could hang out another time alone.. that way we could actually talk and spend time together?"
Ellie's face lights up again and Matt flashes her that perfect smile.
Jared joins them, having already said goodbye to Sydney. "Ready?" he asks Matt a little too eagerly.
"Yeah, I'm ready. See you on Monday, Ellie."
Ellie turns on her heel and sees that Opie and Jax finally joined everyone else. Sydney is standing nearby waiting for her and together they walk over to the big, round booth and squeeze in where they can fit. Ellie is between Opie and Piney while Sydney is on the other side of the booth between Jax and Chibs.
"Your date didn't go as expected, huh?" Piney teases them. Sydney raises her eyebrows. "I wasn't on a date.. I was just supporting my best friend."
Even though Ellie's annoyed about how things turned out she still smiles at Sydney. "Yeah, thanks for that. But I wasn't on a date either gramps.. and honestly I don't know if he'll ever want to go anywhere with me ever again.
"Well, that's his loss, baby," Tig says before taking a big bite of warm apple pie. Even with his mouth full, he continues talking. "The little shits didn't even say one word to any of us.. no 'hi, how are you or my name is…' whatever their names are."
All the men laugh. "Yeah, if someone likes you then he sure as hell better introduce himself to at least your dad.. basic respect," Clay jumps in.
Ellie narrows her eyes at all of them but she knows they're right. If Matt ever wants to be her boyfriend then he'll have to grow a pair and face her family.
Sydney changes the subject to Bobby's homecoming party and for that Ellie is grateful.
Jax and Opie come to a stop in the Tellers driveway. Sydney hops off the back of the bike and yells over the engines. "See you later!"
Jax cuts the engine followed by Opie and Sydney narrows her eyes at them, clearly confused. "Coming in?"
"Yeah, I need to talk to Tara about bringing Kenny back here tonight."
Sydney wonders why but doesn't ask any questions. Instead, she just nods and makes her way into the house after Ellie.
Tara's sitting at the kitchen table with Abel in the high chair beside her. "Hey, ladies.. how was school?"
Sydney grins. "Interesing.. to say the least. How was your day off?"
She kisses a giggling Abel on top of the head. "I love you, bud."
Ellie scoffs as she fills a cup with water. "Interesting, huh?"
She grabs her ringing phone out of her jacket pocket. "Oh, she's gonna get it!" she exclaims before answering.
Donna didn't even get so much as a 'hello' when her daughter picked up the phone.
"Mom, why did you tell dad about Sydney and I going to the diner? ... You didn't? Then why did he and Uncle Jax, Clay, Tig, Chibs, and EVEN GRANDPA show up there and scare the boys away?!"
On the other line, Donna holds the phone away from her ear. "I didn't even know they showed up, baby... I was planning on telling him tonight but now he's just going to be pissed that I didn't let him in on it. I have a feeling he would have said no anyway," Donna says rolling her eyes. "But I'll talk to him.. I was just calling to make sure you made it to Jax's house."
Ellie looks at Sydney and Tara and smiles. "Yeah, we just got here.. They brought us on their bikes.. Okay, mom.. I'll see you and Kenny later. I love you too, bye."
Tara rolls her eyes after hearing Ellie's side of the conversation. "Those damn men.. I didn't think they'd show up when he mentioned it to me earlier. So, how'd it go?"
Sydney shrugs. "Fine for me.. I got a free milkshake out of it. I don't like Jared so I only went for Ellie."
Ellie smiles. "And that's why you're my best friend. But, you should have been there Tara. Matt will probably never talk to me again even though he said he wanted to hang out another time.. but I wish you could have seen the look on their faces when dad and the rest of them rolled in.. I'm annoyed.. but it was funny."
Tara chuckles while wiping Abel's face. "I wish I could have seen it.. but, listen babe. If Matt is done with you because he's afraid of your dad and the rest of the club.. then he's not the right guy for you. But, if he's done with you just because they showed up and interrupted your little date or whatever, then he's just not the right guy period. Any guy interested in you needs to understand that you're always going to be looked after.. I'm sure it will be annoying at times but it's all out of love."
Ellie nods, knowing Tara is right. "You're right.. I guess I'll just wait and see," she says with a shrug before lightly pinching Abel's chubby cheeks who screams and laughs in response.
Jax is the first one to enter followed by Opie. "Hey, babe. How's he been?" Jax asks as he makes his way over to give Tara a kiss. "He's been great.. barely napped today so he'll be out like a light tonight."
"Oh yeah," Jax remembers. "Kenny is going to stay here tonight too.. so when you bring them home can you bring him too?" He asks as he motions to Sydney and Ellie.
Tara nods, "no problem."
Ellie finally turns in her chair and looks at her dad. "Why is Kenny staying too?"
"What, you don't want him to?" Opie answers her question with a question.
Shaking her head, Ellie responds. "No, I don't care if he hangs out with us.. I was just wondering why."
"So your mom and I can stay at Bobby's party longer."
Smirking, Jax interjects. "Your daddy's trying to get some ass tonight, Ellie."
Ellie groans and brings her hand up to her face as she turns back around in her chair. "Don't act like you didn't do that last weekend.. because both Kenny and I heard it!"
The three adults laugh. "Sorry, kid."
"Okay, well we're gonna get going.. see you guys later."
Jax says before kissing Tara again and then Abel on top of his head. He squeezes the girls' shoulders before turning on his heel to head out. Opie approaches Ellie and leans down to set his hands on her shoulders. He kisses the top of her head. "You still pissed at me, babe?"
Ellie tilts her head back so she can see him and rolls her eyes. "Who said I was pissed?"
Tara and Sydney snicker at her ridiculous question. Opie, cocking a grin, gives her shoulders one last squeeze. "I love you, Ellie.. See you in a little while."
"Yeah, yeah.. love you too, daddy."
Sydney stands up and pushes her chair in before raiding the fridge for something to drink. Ellie slips out of her jean jacket and hangs it over the back of the chair.
"I can't wait to see Bobby tonight.. I hate it when they're locked up," Sydney admits but immediately regrets it. She knows how difficult it was for her best friends and Donna to be without Opie for five whole years and she didn't mean to say something that might trigger bad memories or hurt Ellie's feelings.
"Shoot, I'm sorry Ell'! I didn't think before I said that."
Ellie smiles at her before shrugging. "Don't worry.. I know you didn't mean anything by it. Besides, I hate it too."
Tara smiles sympathetically at Ellie before standing up and lifting Abel out of his highchair.
Her phone rings and Sydney fishes it out of her purse for her and hands it to Tara.
"Hello? Yes, of course.. that's fine."
Flipping her phone closed, she sighs. "I just got called into work.. won't be there long, just need to discuss some things to help out one of my patient's parents. I'll call Gemma and see if she can pick you guys up and I'll see you guys later tonight."
Sydney frowns and Ellie groans. "I'm sorry you have to go in... you deserved a day off!" Ellie exclaims.
Tara smiles and hands Abel to Sydney. "Could you try to burp him for me while I get changed?"
Gemma pulls into Teller-Morrow with the kids and parks in her reserved spot. "Hope they had the crow eaters clean up a bit... you know how filthy the clubhouse gets. Men are pigs" Gemma complains as she gets out and moves her seat up so Ellie can get out of the back. She unfastens the seatbelt and carefully hands Abel and his carseat to Gemma. "Thanks, baby."
They enter the clubhouse which is pretty quiet at the moment - a few people are hanging out and getting ready for Bobby's big party. There is music quietly playing from the surround sound.
Clay is sitting at a table against the wall with all the mugshots hung on it. He turns his head and looks at the four of them over his reading glasses, a messy stack of papers in front of him.
"Didn't expect you all to be here so early... where's Tara?" he asks as he turns his attention back to his work.
"She got called into work but she said she won't be long," Sydney answers.
Gemma sets Abel down on another table and approaches her husband. "Planning a trip?" she asks after seeing the map in the mess of his papers.
"Ah, I'm just seeing which charters we're gonna need to make this thing work with the Irish" he answers, focused on the map.
"If it involves you and a map we're screwed."
"You saying I got no sense of direction?"
"I'm saying you need a GPS to get from the driveway to the front door."
Clay grins as he pulls Gemma onto his lap. "You know I'd be lost without you, babe." They begin to kiss, forgetting their surroundings. Abel begins to cry so Gemma jumps up to get him.
"I hired Nita to help with him."
"Nita?" Clay questions while taking off his glasses and setting them on the table. "There goes my underage nanny fantasy" he jokes.
"Eww, grandpa.." Sydney groans in disgust.
Both Gemma and Clay laugh.
"Actually," Gemma slowly starts walking back towards Clay and the dorms.. "it's time for your two o'clock feeding," she whispers while cupping her mouth in an attempt to shield the girls' ears from it.
"Oooh," Clay smirks and follows her.
Both Ellie and Sydney cringe while shooting each other a knowing look. A lot of kids probably aren't used to all the open sexual talks and comments.. but Sydney, Ellie, and Kenny are definitely a little more desensitized about it than your average teenager.
Ellie begins to organize the stuff on the table in front of her. There are many large packs of hamburger and hotdog buns and empty pitchers which will obviously be filled with beer later. She straightens up the empty foil pans as well. Sydney absolutely could not be bothered so she just sits there and watches.
"GET OUT!"
Startled, both Ellie and Sydney jump at the sound of Clay's voice. Abel begins to cry.
Halfsack quickly emerges from the hallway and shoots the girls a nervous smile before heading straight for the door.
They begin to laugh.. hysterical laughing, actually. Both of them are laughing so hard they've gone silent and their bodies are just shaking.
Donna and Kenny pull onto the lot. They're early as well - Donna wanted to head over and see if Gemma or anyone needed any help setting up since Tara was called into work.
"What am I supposed to do until the party starts? I'm starving.. and the food won't even be served for a couple more hours," Kenny groans as he walks behind his mother.
"Oh, buddy, would you stop complaining? You can snack on some chips or something.. and besides, your sister and Syd are already here. You'll be fine."
Kenny rolls his eyes behind her but says nothing.
As they're walking in, Sydney and Ellie are walking out.
"What are you doing here so early?"
"I came to see if Gemma or anyone for that matter needs any help setting up or throwing some last minute food together. Is she inside?"
Sydney snorts. "Yeah, she's in there.. but she's trying to be alone with grandpa.. or at least she was until the Prospect interrupted them."
Kenny's eyes widen and Donna stifles a laugh. "Oh.. well, thanks babe.. that's good to know. I won't interrupt them then."
"Is anyone else here?" Kenny asks them after Donna walked inside.
"Uhh, yeah, a few members from other charters and a lot of crow eaters. Gem' said a lot of people will be piling in soon."
The party is in full swing. The Sons of Anarchy grill is blazing and nearly everyone has a beverage in hand. The music is loud, but not loud enough that you have to scream over it to have a conversation. There are motorcycles everywhere and the food is amazing as always.
Opie and Donna are sitting next to each other eating and drinking beer. Tara is across from them but isn't drinking since she's driving the kids home.
Next to the three of them are Kenny, Ellie, Sydney, Juice, and Piney.
"How was school? Talk to any pretty girls?" Piney asks his grandson. Piney has always had a really good relationship with his grandkids. He loves them more than anything and would do anything to protect them. He's always there if they need a shoulder to cry on or if they need someone to tell them to pull their heads out of their asses. They know they can always count on grandpa... even if he embarrasses you in front of your crush.
"School was boring.. and mom made me do my homework right after school so I don't have to worry about it the rest of the weekend," Kenny rolls his eyes. "But yeah.. I talked to a pretty girl in my gym class. She's cool."
"What's her name?" Donna asks, tuning into the conversation.
"Katie."
Ellie leans forward so she can look around Sydney and Piney in order to see Kenny since they're on the same side of the picnic table.
"Katie who? Do you like Katie?"
"Katie Thompson.. and no, I don't like her. I like to watch her jumprope... but I don't like her enough to stay up all night texting her and then get up late for school," Kenny sneers, pushing his sister's buttons.
Ellie rolls her eyes and sits back in her normal position. "Now we know why you took so long in the bathroom.." she shoots back. Kenny's cheeks turn red but he just shrugs and laughs.
Opie and Piney nearly choke on their food from laughing. Tara and Sydney even have to look down to hide the grins on their faces.
"Ellie!" Donna scolds.
"What?! He embarrassed me so I embarrassed him! It's only fair."
"Well, I don't need you two at each other's throats if you're going to be staying with Jax and Tara."
Ellie, Sydney, and Kenny head off to the side away from the crowd where the cars drive up. They are carelessly bouncing a rubber ball back and forth to each other impatiently awaiting Bobby's arrival.
"So dad messed up your date, huh?" Kenny smirks as he bounces the ball to Sydney.
"It wasn't just him and it wasn't a date.. but yes. He did mess it up."
"Listen.. I'm not even in the same building as you guys and even I know that Matt is a douchebag."
Kenny may only be twelve but, considering who his father, grandfather, and "uncles" are.. having a potty mouth is basically expected. Hell, even Donna still curses like a sailor.
Ellie rolls her eyes. "You don't even know him though."
"Neither do you!" he shoots back. "Earlier after I got home from school dad stopped by with Uncle Jax to grab something.. must have been after he showed up at the diner. He told mom they would 'discuss it later' after she asked him why he showed up with grandpa and them to embarrass you. So if they end up fighting.. it's your fault!"
Angry, Ellie chucks the ball at him but he dodges it with a laugh and it goes bouncing and rolling off towards the entrance. "Asshole!" she shouts.
Kenny runs after the ball, still laughing. It bounces against the gate and rolls back to him and he's happy it didn't roll right out the entrance. He sure as hell wasn't chasing it if it left the lot. He'd make Ellie do it since she's the one who threw it. He grabs the ball and starts walking back just as a silver Mercedes pulls in. He quickly moves out of its path and stares at it. The windows are tinted but AJ Weston stares at him as they drive by.
The girls back away as well and are off the side of the lot away from the clubhouse and the music cuts and everyone is quiet as Clay and his club approach the vehicle.
"Girls, come over here and go inside," Clay commands. Better to be safe than sorry.
The girls glance at each other before they meet up with Donna and Tara. They begin to walk them inside but Ellie stops short by her dad and grabs his hand. "What's going on, dad?" she asks him worried.
"It's okay.. go with them" he commands. Donna lightly pulls on her but she won't budge. "I mean it, baby. Go inside now" he tells her sternly.
Piney squeezes her shoulder as they walk past him towards the door to the clubhouse.
"Wait, where's Kenny?" Donna asks while turning back around.
"He went inside to use the bathroom," Ellie covers for him just in case he's doing what she would do if she could have - eavesdrop.
Little did everyone else know Kenny snook off to the side of the clubhouse and leaned up against it. He could see and hear everything from his angle but no one could see him in the dark unless they were really looking. Everyone's attention is on the fancy car and the four men getting out of it.
"Garage is closed."
Ethan Zobelle flashes him a pearly-white smile. "We're not here for car repairs. I understand you're a Camacho fan," he approaches Clay with a box of cigars.
The other Sons get closer as the men approach Clay. He looks at the box offered to him and smirks. "Who are you?"
AJ Weston intervenes by handing Clay a piece of paper. "Just dropping by to give you a little friendly advice."
Clay, appearing amused, looks at the paper. "And what advice would that be?"
Zobelle speaks again. "We feel it would be best for all concerned if you stop dealing arms to the One Niners and the Mayans."
Juice and Tig crack up. Beer in hand with a shit eating grin on his face, Clay laughs too. "I don't even know what you're talking about. We're just mechanics and Harley lovers."
Kenny's heart is racing, not sure what to expect. Arms? He already knows the Sons have been convicted - well, at least some have been - of illegal gun running. That's public record, not like anyone could hide something like that from him anyway. He's heard the people of Charming talk about SOA for nearly as long as he can remember. There are just some things his mom can't keep away from him no matter how hard she tries.
He listens to the conversation again though there's a knot in his stomach.
"... you're a criminal and you're done selling guns to color."
Tig steps forwards and grabs the gun from his waistband.
Zobelle holds his arms out to keep his men back. "Are you gonna shoot me, Mr. Trager? With all these witnesses?"
Tig, without backing down, glares at him.
Kenny feels as if he might puke. He hadn't realized he was balling his fists so tight he nearly pierced skin of his palms. Again, he cues in on the conversation.
"...let me be real clear: nobody threatens Samcro.. and nobody tells us what we can and can't do. Black, brown or white. So why don't you just climb back into your little, German clown car and drive back to Nazi town... because the next time you piss all over my shoes, he will kill ya'. And I don't give a shit how many witnesses there are."
Kenny wipes the sweat from his forehead. It's not a very hot evening, but his nerves got the best of him. He hides as the car backs out and waits for the music to turn back on. Quickly he sneaks back towards the party and waits for his mom, sister, Sydney, and Tara to come back out of the clubhouse. Without them seeing him, he goes into the clubhouse and makes a beeline for his dad's room. He shuts the door behind him and goes to the bathroom. Shaking, he runs his hands over his face and stares in the mirror. Would Tig really kill that man? Would Clay kill him? Would any of the Sons actually kill someone?
He splashes cold water on his face and there's a knock at the door. "Kenny, is that you?" Donna asks.
"Yeah," he answers, "I'll be out in a minute."
He takes a deep breath before leaving the bathroom to face his mom. "Your sister said you were in here.. I would have checked on you before but she and Sydney were talking a mile a minute about the visitors. Are you okay?" Donna asks concerned.
"Yeah, I'm okay. I felt really sick there for a minute so I decided to wait it out just in case. I feel better now though."
"Aw, baby. Do you need me to take you home?"
"No, I'm fine mom. I want you to stay and have fun. I'm cool with still going to Uncle Jax's."
Donna smiles and brings him in for a quick hug.
Together they rejoin the party. He spots Ellie and Sydney sitting at the picnic tables with his dad, grandpa, Gemma, and Tara. Both his sister and Syd are staring at him because they know he didn't go inside like he should have.. even though Ellie covered his ass by saying he was in the bathroom. They want to know what happened. He and his mom sit down at the tables with the rest of them. Other than the music, it's pretty quiet. Everyone that witnessed what just went down is replaying it in their minds but none of them want to say anything in front of the kids.
Just then Jax rolls up on his bike. Tara jumps up to greet him, wanting to get out of the awkward silence.
"Hey, babe.. I'm glad you're here," she says hugging and kissing him. He takes off his helmet and hops off his bike. Together they walk over towards the group. People have finally started talking again and the crow eaters have started drunk dancing again.
Sydney gets up and hugs Jax. She wonders who will fill him in on whatever happened between the club and those men in silver car. She feels a bit more at ease now that he's here. "Hi, daddy. I'm glad you're here," she says as she squeezes him. He wraps his free arm around her - his other arm is around Tara's waist. "Hmm.. you must want something?" He jokes.
"I'm staving though.. so whatever it is you want has to wait," he says, laughing as Sydney rolls her eyes at him.
"Whatever, dad... next time I just won't be happy to see you!"
Jax loads a plate full of food and sits down beside Opie and across from Kenny and begins shoveling it into his mouth. Kenny stares blankly and the table before Opie snaps his fingers in his face. "Earth to Kenny.. you okay, bud?"
"Yeah, I'm fine.. dang, Uncle Jax! Don't forget to chew!"
Everyone at the table laughs.
A black car pulls onto the lot and everyone erupts into cheers. Bobby is let out of the car and Juice holds his kutte out to him. Sydney and Ellie push their way through the crowd of drunken people to get a chance to hug him.
They stand off to the side and watch the club greet him like they haven't seen him in years.
Clay laughs and smacks the top of the car, "thanks for giving him a lift. How much do I owe ya'?"
"No charge.. enjoy the party." Agent Stahl says.
She's about to get back in the car but Clay stops her with a question, "hey, wanna stick around for a while? Sure you could do some major damage to a stripper pole."
Playing along, she flashes a cocky grin. "You have no idea."
Kenny laughs for the first time since those men showed up but Ellie and Sydney just roll their eyes. Like Gemma said earlier.. men are pigs.
"Bobby!" Ellie shouts. He turns around to the sound of his name. He opens his arms wide and the girls run into them. "We missed you! Don't go back ever again."
"Oh, I missed you kids too.. but, I can't promise anything, sweetheart," he admits to Sydney.
"Get your ass over here! I don't care if you're too cool to hug me now!" He yells at Kenny. Grinning, he joins in on the group hug.
It's been about two hours and Bobby is drunk off his ass and having the time of his life. Most of the party has migrated inside but Ellie, Sydney, and Kenny are sitting outside with Tara, Donna, and Gemma. Sometimes - or maybe all the time - it gets to a point where the parties get too wild for minors.
"You kids about ready to head home and relieve Nita?"
All three of them nod. Ellie stands up. "I'm gonna go say goodnight to dad, okay?"
Donna stands with her. "I'll go get him, honey."
"Mom.. I've seen boobs before. Actually, I see them everyday. Besides, I want to say bye to everyone else too."
Donna shakes her head with a chuckle. "You're such a smart ass."
They walk inside and the main attraction is a busty blond dancing around a pole wearing thigh high boots, a thong, and pasties on her nipples. Kenny looks at her for a little longer than the rest of them and Opie approaches them. "Like what you see?" he asks him and Donna smacks his arm. "Talk about it when I'm not around to hear it.. the kids are leaving and wanted to say goodnight."
"Finally we can be alone.. I've been trying to get rid of them for hours now," Opie teases, cocking his head in the direction of his children. Kenny shoves him and Ellie sticks her tongue out at him.
Opie briefly hugs Kenny and ruffles his hair. "Be good for Tara.. be an asshole for Jax. I love ya', kid."
"Love you too, dad."
"And you..." Opie turns to his eldest. "Still pissed at your old man?" he asks as he holds open his arms. Rolling her eyes, his daughter hugs him. "Jokes on you... you'll be stuck with me under your roof forever if you never let me date anyone."
"No need to rush something worth waiting for.. you can still find the love of your life when you're thirty," he teases her.
Kenny busts out laughing despite the uneasy feeling still lingering in the pit of his stomach.
Ellie secretly flips him off and they both begin to laugh.
Opie pulls away. "I'll see you tomorrow, sweetheart. I love you."
"I love you too."
Sydney hugs Opie and Donna before she, Ellie, and Kenny head towards the bar where Jax is standing with Tara.
"Ready?" Tara asks them.
Sydney hugs Jax goodnight.
"I'll be home soon, babe" he tells Tara before kissing her.
"Love you, Syd."
"Love you too," she shouts over her shoulder on her way out.
Tara unlocks the door and goes straight to Abel's room to relieve Nita. "Thank you so much. How'd it go?" Tara asks as she stands in front of Abel's crib, admiring the sleeping angel.
"Everything was fine. He was fussy for a while but he ate well and fought me during his last diaper change. He's been sleeping soundly ever since. He was fighting sleep but he's tired."
"Amazing, thanks again."
Tara sees Nita out and goes into the kitchen where the kids are sitting at the table. "You kids okay? You look like you've seen a ghost..."
"Who do you think those people in the Mercedes were? Why did grandpa make us go inside?"
Tara exhales and shrugs her shoulders. She makes her way over to an empty chair and the girls stare at her expectantly while Kenny stares at the table refusing to make eye contact.
"I don't know who they were.. and you know how it is. The club wouldn't want you guys to see or hear something you shouldn't. And I'm not saying anything bad happened out there - I don't know what happened either. But Clay and Opie wanted to make sure you were safe - that's a number one priority. Don't worry about it though.. they'd tell you if it was something that affected you."
Nodding, Sydney and Ellie sigh. "Thanks, Tara."
"I'm going to go get ready for bed.. I'm whooped. You guys have a good night and don't be loud enough to wake the baby, alright?"
They all nod and tell her goodnight.
None of them speak for a few minutes. Finally, Sydney gets up and peers down the hallway. She goes into the living room and turns the TV on. She turns the volume down - she just wants some noise to drown out their voices. She rejoins her best friends in the kitchen and sits down. She stares at Kenny.
Ellie's the one to break the silence. "Okay, so she doesn't know anything yet.. or at least she isn't saying if she does. So, Kenny, the stage is yours. What happened?"
"Well... I don't even really know where to begin. A man in a suit and three other guys got out of the car. He took something to Clay, a wooden box. I don't know what it was. None of them knew who he was.. and he told Clay he needs to stop selling guns to the Mayans and the Niners.. you know, those other motorcycle clubs?"
Ellie and Sydney both nod but Ellie is the one to speak. "Yeah, we know.. what else was said?"
Kenny exhales a shaky breath before looking back and forth between his sister and Sydney. "Well.. the man in the fancy suit called Clay a criminal and told him he's done selling guns to color. Which is when Tig stepped in and reached for his gun.. that man knew Tig's last name and everything. Which, I guess isn't so surprising because everyone from Charming knows Samcro.. but I know this guy isn't from around here. So Clay stepped in and told him that nobody threatens Samcro.. and that the next time that man, I can't remember his name, does something like this again or threatens anyone, he'd let Tig kill him.. no matter how many witnesses."
"So this means the club is selling guns.. which is something some of them have been in trouble with before.. so if people know about it how come they haven't been arrested?" Ellie asks.
Sydney gets a nervous feeling in her stomach that makes her feel sick. "I don't think they've been caught yet.. people know, yeah, but they actually have to be caught. So the cops or whoever need proof of it before they can actually arrest them I think."
The three of them look back and forth between each other but stay silent; each of them are thinking basically the same thing. Each of them are worried about the club.. their dads and grandfathers.. their uncles. Ellie and Kenny both know their mom wouldn't be able to handle Opie being behind bars again. She'd flip her shit.. she'd be absolutely devastated.
The silence lasts for what seems like forever as they each stare at the floor, at their hands, and the clock on the microwave. No one says a word until they hear a motorcycle coming up the street.
"Should we go in the living room and at least look like we are watching a movie? He's going to be suspicious if we just sit here in the dark staring at each other.. I don't want any of them to know that I know what happened," Kenny says.
The three of them take off their shoes and place them neatly by the back door. Kenny grabs his bag of clothes off the couch and goes into the bathroom to change and brush his teeth before bed.
Sydney goes into her bedroom and Ellie follows. She shuts the door and goes over to her dresser to grab some pajamas. Ellie takes off her jean jacket and pulls her dress over her head. She opens her bag and pulls on a pair of leggings and a t-shirt. They both hear the back door close and Jax quietly moving around in the kitchen. Sydney changes into a pair of Christmas pajama pants, the first thing she grabbed out of her drawer, and a plain white shirt.
There's a quiet knock on the door and since Ellie is closest to the door she opens it.
"Just checking on you while I wait for Kenny to be done in the bathroom.. you're awfully quiet."
"We just don't want to wake Tara or Abel," Sydney replies - hey, it's not a complete lie.
Ellie steps away from the door so Jax can enter. He leans up against the wall and looks back and forth between the two of them. Ellie, feeling a little awkward, looks down but is unable to contain the snort of laughter rising in her throat. Both Jax and Sydney look at her. Sydney giggles a little bit too but Jax just looks at them confused.
Kenny then enters the room and sees Ellie looking at the ground, her body shaking in silent laughter. He shrugs and goes to sit on Sydney's bed. He then looks at Jax who is still wearing a mask of confusion. "I don't know, Uncle Jax. Girls are just weird."
Jax cocks a grin. "Yeah, I'll have to agree with you, bud. Well, I'm gonna hit the hay.. you guys already know where the extra pillows and blankets are. Goodnight, love you kids."
Jax heads for the bathroom to get ready for bed.
The three of them decide to head out to the living room so they can all fall asleep watching a movie. If Kenny weren't staying the night Elie would just sleep in Sydney's room with her but they didn't want to leave him out in the living room alone after tonight. Within a half hour both girls are sound asleep but Kenny tosses and turns for a while before he's able to get his mind to rest and stop wandering back to what happened a few hours ago..
