Disclaimer: Any recognizable characters do not belong to me, nor does Sons of Anarchy.
He sighed and leaned back against the wooden door, closing his eyes and rolling his stiff neck. He winced slightly as it pulled, and he reached up a hand to rub it.
"Long day?"
He tilted his head slowly at the quiet voice, and smiled at his wife from where she was hovering in the hallway. "Busy's more like it," he replied, holding out a hand towards her.
Donna smiled, stepping forward to lace her small fingers through his. She leaned on the door next to him, lifting up her free hand to work out the kinks in his neck better than he could. Opie knew she noticed the bruising, but still said nothing about it. Instead, she stood on the tips of her toes and kissed the bruises lightly, just as he had seen her do many times to their children.
"They asleep?" she asked softly, gesturing tot e door they were leaning against.
He nodded, wrapping his arms around her and burying his face in her hair, inhaling her scent. "Yeah. I put them down for the night."
"When do you leave?"
Opie paused, frowning at the resigned tone in her voice. "In a couple of hours. I'll be back in a few days."
She laid her head on his chest. "But you can't tell me where you're going."
Not can't. Couldn't. Wouldn't. "Yeah," he said, pushing the guilt and second-guessing's aside. "I'll be fine and back in no time."
"Is everyone going?"
He nodded and ran his fingers through her short hair, pressing a kiss to it. "Everyone but Pop and the Prospect. But yeah. Jax and Kyle are going. They'll have my back."
She laughed quietly, more of a huff of air than a sound of amusement. She rubbed her nose against his kutte. "I know they will." She tilted her head back, humor momentarily clouding the worry in her warm brown eyes. "So. Piney's stuck with the newbie?"
Opie grinned, the pressure in his chest easing somewhat at the topic change. "And he's not happy about playing baby-sitter. But the kid's not that bad, he's just," he paused, searching for a word to describe the playful, somewhat oblivious prospect that's be getting his patch soon enough. "Bouncy." He finally decided and heard Donna laugh. "It's true. He's just so energetic. Drives Pop nuts. But when it comes to electronics, Juice is a genius. He's already like a brother, and I know I'd be proud to have him covering my back."
Donna lost her smile slowly, the laugh fading from her eyes as they gazed at him searchingly. "I'm surprised he isn't going with you guys, then."
Opie swallowed and resisted the urge to tell her everything. She didn't need to know. It's just complicate things. He shrugged stiffly. "We don't need him. Besides, someone's gotta watch the shop."
She hummed and didn't look convinced, but she dropped it. She understood the things she didn't know, the things he refused to tell her. Instead, she smiled, pressing herself up against him and twining her fingers at the back of his neck in his short hair. "Enough business talk; come to bed. If I won't see you for a couple of days, might as well make the most of it now."
He chuckled, ignoring the dark and slick feeling of foreboding in his gut, instead letting his wife pull him into their room. "If that's not a good idea, I don't know what is."
*.*
He gave in to the urge and checked on the kids as he was leaving. He knew they were still asleep—the sun wasn't even up yet—but something nagged at him, and he just had to see them.
Just as Opie had thought, they were both still sleeping peacefully, both sprawled out, one drooling, and the other tangled in sheets and stuffed animals.
He shook his head with a fond smile, gazing wonderingly and still surprised form time to time at how quickly they seemed to grow.
He shut the door quietly and made his way through the silent house. Jax and Kyle were already waiting out front on their bikes.
"Hey, man," Jax greeted, grinning under his shades and helmet. "You ready?"
Opie nodded, pushing away his doubts. "Yeah. Let's get it done."
Jax shook his head, glancing between Opie and Kyle. "Man, you guys are goddamn downers. Don't worry, it'll be quick and easy. You go in, do your thing, blow up the truck, and we can all get on with our merry little lives."
For the first time, Opie noticed Kyle's uncertain expression. It didn't sit well. "Yeah," Opie said hollowly, getting on his bike and shooting one last glance at the house where his wife and kids were sleeping. "Nothing to worry about."
My head cannon on the night before Kyle ditched Opie, letting him take the fall and making Opie go to prison for five years. Nice guy, eh?
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