Hi guys!

Here is another update! :)

It's a bit shorter. Chapter 3 coming soon.

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Chapter 2

Friday, April 11th, 1997

The jukebox played shitty 80s music. Tara rolled her eyes as another 80s pop song came on from some cheesy pop star with big hair. She took another sip of her beer and glance at the clock that hung from the dark, dingy bar.

"Tara!"

She turned towards the door and saw her cousin, Katie walk in, a small suitcase in her hands, her red hair perfectly styled in a high bun.

Tara grinned as she stood from the stool.

"Tara!" Katie dropped her suitcase and grabbed her and hugged her tightly to her body. "It's so great to see you!"

Tara eagerly returned the hug. "Its great to see you too, Katie!"

They both sat on their respective bar stools, smiles ear to ear. Katie didn't waste anytime in ordering two shots of Jameson.

She spoke a mile a minute barely giving Tara anytime to respond to her cousin.

When the bartender placed the drinks in front of them, Katie immediately drank hers, slamming the shot glass hard against the bar.

"Fuck, that taste good." Katie wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "Where did find this place?"

"Oh, the bar is under Samcro payroll. Plus, they don't card." Tara took a sip of her lukewarm beer.

"The gang your boyfriend is in?" Katie took the other shot and swallowed the amber liquid, her green eyes closing as she threw the drink back. She signaled the bartender, Danny, for two more shots.

"Club. Its a motorcycle club," Tara replied, trying her hardest to hide the annoyance from her voice.

"Whatever," Katie swallowed another shot. "Fuck, I needed those after the day I had."

Tara took the remaining shot glass and swallowed the Jameson. "How was your flight?" She asked more out of politeness than interest. Katie was her mother's second cousin. One of the few relatives Tara had left.

"Fucking long. Nice to be out of New York's shit weather, though. I got to give it to the West Coast-nice weather." Danny placed two more shots in front of them.

"Thanks, love," Katie winked.

"How long are you here for?" Tara took the shot and winced when she felt the liquid burn her insides.

"A week. Got to go to San Diego and visit the old hag. NYU is only paying for the 2 days of the conference in Sacramento. Then I am going to make my way down to LA to visit some old friends then San Diego. I'll fly out by next Saturday. Thanks for letting me crash at your place for the night by the way."

Tara shrugged her shoulders. "Its no problem. Dad will be happy to see you," she lied. "Plus, its a good thing you met up with me here instead of going straight over there. There isn't much to do in Charming and Dad is most likely not there."

Katie scoffed. "You don't got to lied to me, doll. Derek is probably pissed I am stopping by. You know our family hates him for destroying Auntie Addison's life. From what the old hag tells me, your grandparents and the rest of the family gave him hell and a half when he got together with Auntie Addison. Even more so after she killed herself, not that you would know."

Tara flinched as her cousin brought up her mother's suicide. Katie gave her a semi-apologetic look. Katie signal for more shots as she took the last one.

"It ain't your fault, doll. Love makes people endure crazy shit."

Danny placed the shots in front of the ladies and gave Tara a pointed look. "You maybe want to slow down on those, Tara. I don't want shit from Jax."

"How about you keep them coming and we will handle the boyfriend later," snapped Katie as she gave Danny a hard look.

"Ain't no one handles members of Samcro," answered Danny, a frown etched on his face.

"Just keep them coming, Danny." Tara twirled the empty shot glass in her hand. There was an uncomfortable silence between the three. Danny scoffed as he filled two of the empty shot glasses with more whiskey. Katie rolled her eyes and Danny walked off, annoyance clearly etched on his face.

"So, how are things with you?" Katie asked.

Tara sighed. "Same old, same old. Just working to get certified as a nurse. Should graduate in June."

Katie nodded. Tara looked on as her cousin looked at her hands. "When you were a kid, the old hag bought you this fake medical kit for your birthday. It had to be the fourth or fifth birthday, I think. You know, those little plastic things that bring fake band-aids and the stethoscope." Tara nodded.

"Well, when you opened the gift, you were so excited for it. You went around for days, pretending to listen to peoples hearts and take everyone's temperature. Do you remember that?"

Tara took one of the shots of whiskey and threw back the drink, briefly shutting her eyes. She remembered the gift. At the moment, she loved her cousin so much for the gift. Katie's mom wasn't the easiest person to get along with but Tara remember loving her mother's cousin for the medical kit. She even remember pretending to take her mom's blood pressure. It was one of the few good memories she had as a child-all good before everything went to shit.

"No, I don't," replied Tara.

"Well, you annoyed the shit out of me, doll. Following me around with the stethoscope around your neck, wanting to take my temperature and listen to my heart beat. You kept saying, 'one day, I am going to be a doctor. Made your Momma damn proud.'" Katie smiled, a whimsical look crossing her face. Her cousin took another shot and look straight at Tara. "What happened, kid?"

Tara looked down in shame. "I don't know. Life happens. I guess dreams change." She shrugged her shoulder, signaling Danny for more rounds.

"Bullshit."

Tara turned her head to look at Katie.

"That's bullshit and you know it."

Danny placed more rounds in front of them, shaking is head while doing so. Tara gave him a glare as she drowned the brown liquid in front of her. "Bring the bottle," she ordered.

She waited in silence for the Jameson bottle. When Danny placed the bottle in front of her and Katie, she saw the look of disappointment on his face. She scoffed at the irony. How many times had Danny called her to pick up Derek whenever he was too drunk to drive.

Tara poured herself and Katie more of the amber liquid. Clinking the shot glasses together, both of them drank the shot.

Danny stood in front of them, his hands on his hips. Tara looked up at him and glared until he walked away, shaking his head and muttering to himself. Tara's eyes followed him until his figure disappeared to the back, where she could bet, he would place a call to a certain blonde haired biker.

"Tara, I know that I am not as present as I should be. Neither is my mom. Fuck, our whole family has kept their distance since Auntie Addy died." Katie poured them drinks.

"But shit, girl. You had a good thing going for you. Momma told me about the good grades, the scholarship offers. With those grades you had during high school, you could had gotten anywhere. Any college of your choosing. Fuck, man. The fucking world could have been your oyster. And to see you here, in some dingy bar, in some dead town drinking with your bitter cousin, settling to be a nurse instead of a fucking doctor." Katie shook her head. She took another shot, her words coming out slurred. " It's not too late, Tara. It's not too late for you. Get out before its too late. Get out before you repeat your mother's history."

Tara shook her head, her eyes becoming glassy. "It's not that simple, Katie. I have a good thing going here."

"The boyfriend?"

Tara smiled as she thought of Jax. "Yeah."

Katie poured another round, "girl, you got it bad. Must be some deep shit for you to stay here."

"It truly is." Tara felt her speech slur a bit. "Jax and I... we just get each other. You, know?"

"No, I don't. But Tara, does he love you as much as you love him?"

Tara looked at her cousin with an incredulous look. "Of course he does!"

Katie turned to face Tara in the stool. "See, I don't think so. Does he know about your dreams to be a doc?"

Tara looked down at her hands, choosing not to answer.

"Your silence is answer enough. If he loved you as much as you claim, he wouldn't let you fucking rot here, like your Momma."

"He has the club. His whole family is here, Katie."

"And you have no one. Besides him, you have no one in this Charming town. That's no way to live, Tara."

Tara angrily wiped the tears that were running down her cheeks. "He'll leave if I ask him to."

"Will he?" questioned Katie.

"Yes. Absolutely."