AN: Thank you so much for all the love! Looks like there are a lot of new readers which I'm super stoked about. This isn't the chapter you want but we're getting there. ;) and if you tell me you don't know who Jordan Catalano is, you've lived a deprived life lol.

Tara POV

I followed Jax outside. Frankie caught a painful looking case of whiplash at the sight of me. I thought I might've heard his neck actually snap.

I went to throw my stuff in the bed of the truck but Jax gently nudged me forward. "Upfront, Knowles."

I opened the door to Frankie and Opie staring at me.

"No shit?" Frankie asked incredulously as he looked from me to Jax who was jumping in the bed.

"It's not what you think," I told him defensively.

Frankie laughed like he obviously didn't believe me. "Right," he replied.

I looked at Opie pleadingly but he just burst into a shit eating grin.

"Seriously," I emphasized. "Not what you think."

My tone seemed to shake some sense into him; at least it seemed like he might've understood. Opie wasn't an idiot. He knew how my dad could get. It wasn't the first time since my mom had passed that someone had found me in the park.

As we drove the short route toward the high school, I started getting nervous. Already three people had made assumptions about why I'd stayed the night at the Teller residence. The throbbing in my head worsened at the thought of what Adam might say or do. I lit a cigarette, trying to ease my nerves.

Maybe he wouldn't be there. After all, he was more than ready to drop out last night. Why would he even show? The thought fueled my anxiety into white hot anger. I caught my reflection in the side mirror. I wasn't sure if it was the anger or the outfit but only an echo of anxiety reflected back at me. I let the anger build. My reflection smoothed.

I took a drag of my cigarette. Fuck whatever Adam thought. He obviously didn't give a shit about my feelings so why did I care so much about his?

"How did he know?" I asked Opie, trying to find something else to occupy the space in my mind.

His brows pulled together. "How did who know what?"

"How did Jax know about that Docs?"

Opie glanced down at my feet. "Oh. They finally gave them to you, huh?"

"What do you mean, finally? How long have they had them?" I questioned.

Opie shrugged. "I'm not sure. But seriously, how could he not know? Every time you watch that My So Called Life bullshit, you oogle the boots almost as hard as you eye fuck Jordan Catalano."

I pursed my lips wondering if that was true. At any rate, it gave me something to think about besides Adam.

We pulled into the lot and got out. The usual myriad of girls flocked to the truck but for some reason they all seemed to hesitate today. Look at me, making friends and shit, I thought sarcastically.

I turned to the guys.

"I'm gonna run to my locker. I've got a spare bag in there. I'll see you guys later."

"We'll go with you," offered Opie, much to the girls' chagrin.

""You guys don't have to do that. It's cool." I turned to Frankie. "Thanks for the ride."

Never one much for words, he offered a nod in response.

I turned to Jax with a certain uncertainty. "And thanks for….everything," I told him, searching for big enough words to convey my gratitude but not finding them.

He nodded silently but didn't meet my eye, whether for his sake or mine, I wasn't really sure.

Opie looked between the two of us and laughed.

"Whatever, Rocky. We're coming with you," Opie said.

I shrugged and turned to leave when I saw Adam lumbering toward us from across the parking lot.

My sudden confidence faltered. Opie whistled uncomfortably and I elbowed him. The glacial glare Adam leveled me with was no match for the inferno I felt rising.

Adam looked at Jax and then at me.

"This is why you didn't answer my calls?" he questioned, casting a withering stare at Jax.

The callousness in his voice ate like acid but instead of dissolving, I let the anger pool. Jax went to respond but I answered first.

"No," I quipped back. "I didn't answer your calls because you were being an asshole."

"So, what? You're mad at me so you go off with him?" Adam accused, his voice inching higher with insinuation. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" he asked, equal parts disgusted and betrayed.

My face burned with shame. I knew I hadn't done anything wrong but somehow he made me feel guilty.

"Cut her some slack, Woodley. It wasn't like that," Jax defended roughly, though it didn't seem to help. I felt the tension searing through everyone in our vicinity.

"I didn't FUCK him, Adam, if that's what you wondering. Jesus. What is wrong with you? You were on the phone. You know what happened. Don't try to play the victim here." I seethed, unimpressed that he was playing the "poor, pitiful me" card in a game where I was clearly always the loser.

I sensed passersby stealing glances our way but they were barely blips on my radar. I was sure I'd care later when the gossip wheel cranked back up again but I couldn't worry about that right now.

Adam and I caught eyes and said nothing. We didn't have to. He knew his assumption had crossed a line; I saw the recognition in his eyes. He backpedaled.

"Tara, I was just worried about you god dammit," he declared, ever the picture perfect boyfriend. "You had me fucking worried. I didn't know what happened to you." There was truth in his words but I struggled to let it sink in.

"Yeah, well maybe if you hadn't been such an asshole to her, you would've known," commented Jax.

"Oh, you're just loving this, aren't you Teller?" loathing clenched the hard jaw line of Adam's face. "What did I tell you last time? It's not your fucking business," Adam spat before grabbing me by the elbow and trying to lead me away.

I ripped my arm from his grasp and glared at him. His brown eyes softened. They reminded me of a wounded deer.

"Can we just talk? Without an audience?" his voice was irritated but his eyes were pleading. Despite my annoyance, I found myself obliging. I wanted to be angry but a sinisterly twisted part of me still wasn't ready to admit defeat.

JAX POV

I watched Adam and Tara skulk away, her arms crossed across her body defiantly. Not that the small act of defiance mattered. She wouldn't stay mad at him.

Kris materialized beside me. "What was that about?" she asked.

"Your friend is fucking crazy?" Frankie offered shaking his head.

"Yeah. She is," agreed Opie, almost astonished.

I heard some of the girls who'd been standing by mutter in agreement but they didn't try to join the conversation.

"I was hoping she'd punch him in the face. That would've been some entertainment," Frankie continued.

I ran my hand through my hair at a loss. I didn't want to admit that for a moment, I had gotten my hopes up; thought that maybe today would be the day; that maybe Tara would finally quit putting up with Adam's shit. The look on her face when we walked out of my place this morning – well, I had seen an entirely different person.

Deep down, I knew better though. Even with the most perfect excuse to bail, Tara would still go down with the ship. The girl never made any damn sense. On one hand, she was quick to scrap with any girl that so much as looked at her sideways. But when it came to Adam? Shit, she would tolerate anything.

"Why does she put up with that dude? He's such a pansy," Opie lamented in disbelief.

I shrugged, trying to act like I didn't care. Honestly, it was hard to pinpoint why she put up with it. Did she think she deserved it? Did she think she could fix him? Did she just not want to admit that she'd been wrong about him?

"Well, he's hot, duh, though I still don't understand what he sees in her," a shrill voice answered. "She's so superficial; she just wants to be seen with him." I turned to see Brittany leaning against the truck, smacking her gum.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Kris' fist clench but she didn't say anything. Tara was her friend but she didn't have the same kind of fight in her.

"I mean, since she can't have you, ya know," Brittany emphasized, linking her arm through mine.

I wanted to tell her she was wrong; wrong on so many levels. But I was already flustered – the warm tingle of Tara's lips on my cheek stung like frostbite. I didn't want everyone to see how much Tara got under my skin. For a little while, I'd had her attention… and then it was gone. If anyone was a pansy, it was me.

Annoyed with myself, I turned my attention to Brittany. She was laughing at something Frankie had said but was still keeping herself attached to me. Everything in me wanted to scrape her off like a chemical peel but my brain was trying to recover from my perceived rejection. If I couldn't have Tara, I needed a distraction.

"Besides, you weren't really with her last night, were you?" Brittany asked in disbelief like the thought of me and Tara revolted her.

I'm not sure why I did it; whether to protect Tara from the rumors or to protect myself, I don't know - but, I lied.

"No. No way, darlin'. We just gave her a ride this morning. I just like pissing Woodley off," I told her with a Cheshire grin.

I could practically hear Opie and Frankie rolling their eyes.

Brittany draped herself against me and ran her fingers through my hair with such ease you would've thought we were closer than we really are. It felt wrong but I didn't stop her.

"Good. Because I was about to say! You can do so much better than Tara Knowles," she continued, twirling her hair around her finger.

Kris caught my eye but I was confused by the disappointment I saw.

"I don't know what you ever saw in her. I'm just glad Suzy snapped you out of it last year."

Her words were like nails on a chalkboard. I must not have been the only one who heard it because Opie gritted his teeth.

"I'm out of here, Jax. I'll catch you later," he said, clearly unimpressed with our current company.

"You're right. The bell's about to ring," Brittany agreed. "Come on, Jax. I'll let you walk me to my class," she ventured with a sickeningly sweet smile.

The look on Kris' face had hardened. She definitely wanted to punch this girl. Kris stared me down and, under her gaze, I felt guilty.

But why? Tara was with Adam and it wasn't like I was doing anything wrong. So what if I lied about last night? It wasn't like telling the truth would've done Tara any favors. I knew how girls like Brittany worked. If she sensed blood in the water, she'd attack. I couldn't let her do that to Tara. At least, that's how I rationalized it to myself.

"Is he serious right now?" I heard Kris ask Opie.

I didn't want to hear his response. It's not like it would change anything.

Instead, I put on my best Teller smile and let Brittany flirt with me as I walked her to her class.

XOXOXOX

I tiredly made my way to the cafeteria for lunch. I'd felt fine this morning but staying up to take care of Tara last night was kicking my ass. I didn't have a hangover per say, but the sluggishness slowed me to a near screeching halt.

I found Ryan and Opie talking with Kris, but no Tara in sight.

Kris caught my eye and laughed humorlessly. "She's with Adam. Not that you care," she explained before turning back to the guys.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked. I'd always gotten along with Kris, even when shit between me and Tara had gone south, so her tone surprised me.

"Nice way to stick up for your friend earlier," she replied. Like that helped.

"You're gonna have to be a little more specific. I'm pretty sure that, despite the fact that I hate the guy, I tried to help her out."

Kris rolled her eyes and blew the bangs from her face.

"Help who out, exactly? Cuz it looked to me like you were only worried about your next piece of ass."

As if on cue, I saw a bouncing blonde bob making its' way toward us.

"Ah, shit," Opie groaned. "Look, bro. I'm out of here. I can't sit here and listen to that bitch bad mouth Tara while you just stand there and let her get away with it."

I paused at a loss. I knew that they were right but were they really expecting me to put myself out there for Tara after what happened this morning? Then it dawned on me that no one had seen us this morning; no one had seen that I'd allowed a little spark of hope some tinder.

"Bro, wait. I'll take care of it," I told him.

They both looked at me doubtfully.

"Cross my heart," I promised, drawing an x over my chest.

"Fine." Kris grumbled. "But I'm not Tara. You know I don't want to fight. Please don't make me put that bitch in her place."

"I'm with Rocky # 2," Ryan agreed. "I love a good cat fight but I wouldn't want Princess here to break a nail."

Kris punched him hard in the kidney. Ryan doubled over.

"See, I bet you broke a nail," he coughed through the pain.

Brittany sauntered over. "Hey boys."

She eyeballed Kris, appraising her with distaste before she turned back to me, obviously deciding she was no threat.

"You guys just feel sorry for this one because her friend ran off?" Brittany asked jerking a thumb over her shoulder at Kris.

Kris stepped closer. "Jax, you really need to get your new bitch on a leash."

I held my hands up to keep her at bay before turning to Brittany.

"Look, Brittany. Kris is our friend. If you want to kick it with us, you're gonna have to play nice. A little respect for the Princess, ok?" the words were friendly enough, but over the years I'd learned the edge the guys in SAMCRO used with their women. Those sweet butts might think they had free reign sometimes but if any of them got too high on their saddles, the guys knew just the way to knock them back down.

Brittany didn't seem to like that but she didn't argue.

"Princess huh? Well that means you guys still need a Queen," she replied obviously envisioning herself with the crown. She didn't seem to notice the look the rest of us shared.

The words were so ludicrous I couldn't even rebut them. I just laughed.

"Yeah. Whatever you say, Brittany," I told her, already regretting choosing her as my distraction.