Disclaimer-I do not own the Sons. But if I had to pick just one, I think you guys know who it would be. Blah, blah, my own creepy mind came up with this story and characters, so please try not to steal them. Thanks! Oh and I don't own The Notebook, either. Well I mean, I have a copy of it, but I don't own the right to it. You know what I mean. Get comfy, this is the longest, yet.
"Why am I not surprised to find you two together?" Jax said drily when he and Opie arrived at the picnic area for the meet.
"My fault." Happy said, figuring the least he could do was take the heat for Juice taking off without checking in. Juice was asleep on a park bench under some trees. "Cut him a break, Jax."
"Not your call, brother. I'll deal with him back in Charming." Jax's face softened a little. "It's good to see you back in your cut."
"Feels good, too." Happy grinned. "Come one, I'll catch you up on what I'm asking for from the Red Nation."
No Other Man Alive
"Thanks for the ride, Kozik." Ace yawned as they pulled into the lot. Kozik looked at her sharply.
"You're not back to that nocturnal shit, are you?" He asked her, putting a hand over the seat belt release so that she couldn't get out.
"No, Tig successfully drugs me every night. Hardly even have nightmares anymore." Ace smiled at him.
"Good, that's good." Kozik mused thoughtfully. "If you're right, Killah will be back before the end of the week."
"I am right and he will be." Ace smirked, then sobered up. "Shit."
"Are you gonna be ready to see him?" Kozik asked, rubbing the blond scruff on his jaw.
"Nowhere close." Ace sighed. "I don't suppose you've reconsidered helping me skip town?"
"You know my hands are tied on that, Ace high." Kozik sighed and rolled down the window to smoke.
"Are we sitting in the car for a reason?" Ace asked, yawning again.
"I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place, here, Ace. Hap taking off like that was shitty, and not just to you, but he's still my brother."
"Am I messing that up?" Ace asked, a little horrified at the prospect.
"Not yet, but you hafta know he isn't going to just let you go. Decades of history doesn't just evaporate."
"No, but he told me he can't do this, so what am I supposed to do, huh, Kozik?" Ace threw her arms up, exasperated. "It's completely shitty that I have to sit around and wait to see if he still wants me, when frankly, I don't even know if I'd want him back."
"You're so blind when it comes to him." Kozik said, shaking his head.
"Whatever. I'm not going to argue this with you." Ace said, and opened the car door to let herself out. Before shutting it, she leaned back down. "You want to help me, find me someplace else to stay, it's going to be a couple weeks until I can afford my own place and I'm not staying in that room when he gets here."
No Other Man Alive
"Gentlemen." Romeo Parada and his associates were literally in the middle of the negotiation between the Sons and the Red Nation. "Jax Teller, President of Redwood Original, this is Manuel Hernandez, President, Los Angeles."
The two warily shook hands, neither ready to trust the other. Happy stepped into the mix and gestured to the cigar smoking Red Nation henchman hanging on the outskirts of the group.
"Your boy needs to go step off." He growled, and Jax shot him a what the fuck look. "He helped those assholes track Ace from Tacoma. You want this to go smoothly, he's out."
Manuel Hernandez nodded to the man, and he stepped away from the group, shaking his head. Happy watched him go, knowing that he couldn't follow, but damn did he want to.
"Romeo is a good friend to the Red Nation, but you have to understand, Mr. Teller, the Bastardos may be small, but they serve a purpose for my club." Hernandez said.
"I understand that, but they kidnapped and raped an old lady and broke my best man's throttle hand. There's no way we can let that go unpunished." Jax pointed out. "Happy is perfectly capable of taking their entire organization down without any help. We're not looking for permission here, Manuel, we just want to do what it takes to continue having a peaceful relationship between us out of respect for our mutual ties to Galindo."
"So what are the Sons offering us then to keep the peace?" Hernandez asked, folding his arms.
"There is a small club in Mission Viejo, the Rebel Kings that can handle the business you were using the Bastardos for. They're a brother club, and they've agreed to it already, at the same percentage you were giving those assholes in Fallbrook. It's a geographically smarter move for you, anyway." Jax offered.
Hernandez stepped away to discuss this with his second in command, but they knew that Romeo had already smoothed this one over, so Happy wasn't stressed about it.
"That's fine. We will get in touch with them and set things up. One more thing, though, the cost of our silence on this is free passage through Tacoma for one year." Hernandez bargained, and Happy could feel the vein in his forehead throbbing. He'd been up all goddamn night again and he knew that there was no way Bowie could wave that toll for a year without damaging the charter.
"Give me a minute with my guys." Jax said, and retreated out of earshot, Opie, Juice, and Happy trailing him. "How much of a hit can Bowie take on this?"
"Not much. Those tolls are pretty steep. I can cover a couple months, but that's it." Happy told him, shrugging off the look Jax shot him. "I don't spend much."
"Opie, call Bowie and see if he can give us a couple months." Jax ordered. "Juice, check in with Bobby, see what we can do."
"You sure you can dip into your charter's funds for this?" Happy asked.
"Yeah, I handled things wrong with your old lady, so let me do this." Jax said, clapping him on the shoulder.
No Other Man Alive
Ace knocked on Tig's door at ten, their appointed time on nights when she wasn't closing the shop. Instead of shoving a pill in her mouth, though, Tig just opened the door further and motioned her in. He was on the phone with someone, so Ace sat on the bed and waited. She raised an eyebrow when he rubbed his hands together gleefully, but stayed silent, just watching until he hung up the phone.
"Were you serious about killing that gash that got you scooped up?" Tig asked seriously.
"As a heart attack." Ace answered, heart starting to race.
"Good. Go put on something that you don't care about getting bloody." He told her, pulling off his cut and laying it on the table.
"Wait you mean we're going to go do this right now?" Ace asked, not moving from the bed.
"Unless you want to wait and see what Hap has to say about it, yeah." Tig gave her a look that clearly said she was acting stupid.
"No, definitely not. Do I need to pack anything? How long are we going to be gone?" Ace finally got to her feet.
"See that's the really great thing. We're only gonna be gone a few hours. Now quit running your mouth and let's go!" Tig kicked her boot to get her moving.
Ace scrambled across the hallway, she tried to kick the door shut, but it bounced back open and she left it, heading for the closet. She ripped off her shirt and jeans and dug in the pile of clothing on the closet floor until she came up with the jeans she'd been wearing in Charming, she didn't like those anyway. With only a few shirts to her name, Ace went through Happy's until she found a plain black, long sleeved shirt, and pulled that on.
"Yo Blondie!" Tig was calling down the hall, grinning like he was more than a little off of his rocker.
"Tig?" Ace called, getting his attention, and gesturing to the ensemble questioningly.
"Yeah, fine. Do something with all that hair." He told her, before heading for Kozik's room. Ace braided it back as she followed him.
"Need your throwaway. Wipe it down and wrap it up." Tig grinned, and slapped Kozik on the chest with two hands. "And get ready to go, I'm going to need your bitch seat."
"What are you up to?" Kozik asked, suspiciously, but backed into his room anyway, pulling a lockbox out of his dresser along with an oiled cloth. He wiped it down carefully, paying particular attention to the slide and trigger, then wrapped it up in another cloth and laid it on the dresser top.
"We are taking Ace to get her cherry popped. That hooker is up in Seattle." Tig laughed.
"What? You want to take Happy's old lady to a prostitute?" Kozik asked, and Ace rolled her eyes. Push come to shove, she was always Happy's old lady and nothing else.
"No, Kozik. The hooker from Indian Hills that helped Carlos Rivera get to me. She's in Seattle, and I'm going to kill her."
"Uh-uh. No. You're both out of your goddamn minds." Kozik shook his head. "Do you have any idea what he's going to do when he finds out?"
"Nope." Tig grabbed the wrapped gun, careful not to touch it, and tucked it into the back of his jeans. He went to Kozik's bathroom and pawed through his medicine cabinet until he came up with a pair of latex gloves, and shoved those in his pocket.
"I don't know, either, but I don't wanna find out." Kozik was following Tig around the room.
"You can either come with us and help or I'm gonna have to go steal a car, and you know how risky that is." Tig told him, sliding his cut off of his shoulders. "We need some cash, too."
"I'm going to do this, Koz." Ace said quietly, hands pressed against her stomach. "I don't want to, but I have to. Please come help."
"This is a horrible fucking idea." Kozik said, dropping his own cut on the bed.
No Other Man Alive
"Six months. And Bowie didn't shit over it?" Happy asked, smoking with Jax.
"No. He's not happy with you, though, brother." Jax told him. "Tell me you're headed back there. He said your old lady is turning Tacoma upside down."
"What do you mean Ace is turning shit upside down?" Happy asked, taking a step closer, but Jax just put his hands up and shook his head.
"He didn't say anything else. Got the impression that he wanted you to call and ask him." Jax said.
"Did you rat me out to Quinn, yet?" Happy asked warily.
"Not yet. If you don't check in with him by the end of the day, though, I will." Jax warned him. "What is your plan here? You can't just take off with telling me where you're headed."
Happy leveled a look at Jax that clearly said that he absolutely could take off if and when he wanted and Jax wouldn't be able to a thing about it. He knew his time was up, though, and since he was headed back to Tacoma anyway, it didn't really matter who knew about it.
"Gotta stop in Bakersfield to sleep, I'll be on the road to Tacoma by midnight." Happy grunted, his gut clenching at the thought of being back with Ace by nightfall tomorrow. He couldn't figure out if it was fear or anticipation that had him sweating it.
"Do you want an escort? I can send Opie with you." Jax offered.
"Not gonna trust me with the kid?" Happy laughed. "Nah, I'm good. I'll call Quinn when I get to my Ma's."
"Alright, be safe, brother. Call when you're ready to handle this, I know the boys are gonna want in." Jax said, hugging Happy.
No Other Man Alive
The good thing about riding with Kozik was that staying on the Harley took enough concentration that Ace didn't have room to think about what she was going to do. Happy might be able to take lives and never think about it again, but Ace knew she wasn't that kind of person. She tucked her face against Kozik's back and tried to pretend that he was Happy, but no matter how hard she tried, it didn't work. Kozik wasn't as tall or as lean as Happy, and despite the leather and smoke, he still smelled all wrong to her. She hated that despite everything, she still longed for him so acutely.
It was the single most important reason that she wished that Kozik hasn't blocked her from leaving Tacoma. She wasn't afraid to see Happy, there were too many years, too many shared moments between them for her to fear him, but she didn't think she had the strength to be in Tacoma and be surrounded by all the things that reminded her of him. No matter where she went, though, she knew she wouldn't be able to get away from him entirely. He was in her skin, and loving him was bone deep in her makeup. Besides, Happy was nothing if not a creature of habit, and he'd come to her when he needed her ink, no matter how far she ran.
Kozik slowed, following Tig through the streets of Seattle until they started to get into the dirtier, grittier parts. The pulled off into a semi lit lot next to a bar.
"I still think this is fucking stupid." Kozik felt compelled to tell her before letting her off of the Harley.
"Relax, I'm with you and Tig, what could go wrong?" Ace tried to joke, but her throat was tight, and her voice fell flat.
"Do you at least have some kind of plan?" Kozik asked, turning to Tig.
"Sure, I know where she's tricking at, and since she's never met my favorite lemonheaded fucker, you get to play John. Lure her into an alley, let Ace do her thing, and get the fuck out of here. Sound good?" Tig was already stepping off, heading for the back alleys, presumably to avoid notice.
"You can stay here, let Tigger and I handle this." Kozik sighed, running a hand through his hair before putting a hat on.
"No." Ace swallowed hard, and her face was pale.
"Fine." Kozik gave in, pulling her by the hand after Tig.
No Other Man Alive
Happy was surprised he could even sit down on the driver's seat with how thoroughly his ass had been chewed. First by his mother when he'd confessed the fight he and Ace had had before he'd skipped out on her. Delia Perez had some very serious opinions on what sort of Hell was waiting for him if he didn't fix things with his wife. He was reminded again that Ace was as much Delia's child as he was, maybe more, given that she'd spent more of her teen years with Delia than Happy had, and given her a lot less grief.
He'd just hung up with Quinn for the second time. He'd checked in when he'd gotten to Bakersfield, but Quinn had been too irate with him to talk coherently, just yelling too loudly to make any sense. This call had gone marginally better, but Quinn had threatened to send him to a charter if he ever left his partner behind again. His exact words had been something like he should have Tig close enough at all times to hold his nutsack for him.
Happy kept glancing over at the phone, its silence was making him twitchy. He knew Quinn would have given the number to Tig by now and the fact that he hadn't called to take out his pound of flesh had him worried. Everyone he'd talked to so far had warned him that his path of destruction was wider than he thought, and he was starting to believe that. The thought that Tig might withhold the phone number from Ace crossed his mind, but then he really didn't want to talk to her until he could do it face to face. He owed her one hell of an apology, and didn't have a goddamn clue where to begin with that shit. Things had been so good between them in Tacoma before, even when they'd fought; it had been good, both of them cooled off and in bed before the sun came up.
He checked the clock, fourteen more hours of pavement before he could see her. Heading out from the meet with Jax, there had been all kinds of ribald joking and suggestions, but frankly, what he wanted the most was to tuck her right up against him and go to sleep running his hand though all her wild red curls. The chances of that happening without about 3 days worth of explanation was slim to none, though, and he knew it. He really hoped she was good and pissed off when he got there, that was easier to handle than wounded.
No Other Man Alive
"That's her?" Kozik verified, shaking his head as he circled around the back of the building so he could reach the cross street to intercept her.
"C'mere." Tig told Ace. He pulled a knit hat out of his pocket and pulled it over her hair. Next he handed her the latex gloves, which she pulled on, eyes huge in the shadows behind the dumpster. "No dramatic speech, not one single second of hesitation. Let Kozik get her on her knees, and you put a bullet in that bitch's temple. She shouldn't even see you coming, you got it?"
"Yeah." Ace whispered, very aware that her hands were shaking.
"You will not fuck this up, you understand me?" Tig shook her by the shoulders. "The toughest bitch I know, right?"
"Yeah." Ace's voice was stronger this time, and she held her hand out. Tig pulled the gun out and screwed a silencer on the end of it, handing it to her butt first. Ace took it, turning it from side to side to get comfortable with the weight, and made sure the safety was off and it was locked and loaded. Tig put a finger to his lips and nodded toward the entrance to the alley, where Kozik was leading Starla as far back into the shadows as he could. Ace could hear all the ridiculous excuses he was making about needing privacy, and she squared her shoulders, rolling her head from shoulder to shoulder. Tig's hands were on her upper arms, and he put his mouth right against her ear.
"I'll be with you the entire time." He breathed so low that she felt more than heard the words. She nodded once to acknowledge that she'd understood. Kozik had the hooker backed up to the dumpster, and at his sidelong glance, Tig was shoving Ace out from their hiding spot.
It was the work of a heartbeat, leveling the weapon, and pulling the trigger. The only surprise was how truly messy a gunshot wound to the head turned out to be. Ace looked down at what was left of Starla, waiting to feel relief or vindication or guilt, but the only thing she felt was her gag reflex.
"Oh no, you fucking don't." Tig growled, clapping his gloved hand over her mouth. His other arm went around her waist, dragging her backward until she found her feet.
"I'm fine, I'm good, put me down!" She gasped and Tig let her go. He took the gun from her hand and wrapping it up, tucked it back into his waistband. They were walking quickly through the connecting alleyways, taking a different route than they'd taken to get there. Kozik pulled the hat from her head and tossed it to a homeless man. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and it was comforting being under someone's physical protection. She stripped the latex gloves off, shoving them into a bag of trash they passed.
"Get rid of that. See you back in Tacoma." Kozik told Tig, dropping Ace's helmet on her head and mounting up.
Tig mock saluted and shot off in the opposite direction from Tacoma. Ace got on, and wrapped her arms tightly around Kozik's waist, still uncomfortable with the close contact, no matter how many times she rode with him.
"Hold on, we're gonna move fast once we got out on the highway." He told her, looking back over his shoulder. Ace nodded her understanding and scooted a little closer, firming her grip.
No Other Man Alive
They beat Tig back to the clubhouse, but neither one of them made any move to go inside. They sat on the picnic table and Kozik let her share his cigarette. He ruffled her hair and gave her one of those sideways hugs before releasing her.
"You alright, Ace high?" Kozik finally asked, and Ace thought about it for a minute.
"Yeah, I think so. I thought it would feel different, but I just feel…ok." Ace shrugged.
"So tomorrow. How are you feeling about it?" He asked, not looking at her.
"Like I don't have a choice." Ace snorted and kicked at the bench halfheartedly.
"Give him a chance, Ace." Kozik persuaded. "He loves you."
"Didn't stop him from leaving, did it?" She asked bitterly. "That's the thing I can't get past, Kozik, after everything that I went through, fuck, that both of us went through, he couldn't even stick around. That's always his default with me, to cut and run."
"So don't let him run from you." Kozik shrugged.
"I'm sorry, are we talking about the same person? Because I've never seen him do anything but exactly what he wanted, and damn what everyone else thinks about it." Ace pushed herself off of the tabletop, ready to head inside, but Tig was pulling onto the lot so she stayed standing where she was.
"I don't think he can tell you no." Kozik murmured from behind her, half to himself, and Ace didn't bother answering, just scoffed. Her attention was diverted from Kozik though, when Tig jogged across the parking lot, phone held up in his hand.
"Guess who is back on the fucking grid?" Tig laughed, and Ace stared at him.
"He called you?" She asked, shocked by how badly that hurt. She shook her head and turned away, heading for the stairs, but Tig grabbed her wrist. Ace stopped, but yanked her arm from his grasp.
"Happy checked in with Quinn. Quinn sent me the number for the phone he picked up." Tig told her, and flipped his own open, offering it to her. "Call him."
"No." Ace backed away, her hands up, then turned and headed for the stairs.
"If you're not gonna call him, I'm sending him this picture of you passed the fuck out on my bed." Tig threatened her, sure that she would stop, but Ace didn't even hesitate.
"Go for it, Tigger." She called without even looking back.
No Other Man Alive
"Come clean up your mess." Happy read out loud, and was about to toss the phone back down on the seat when a picture message showed up. His throat closed up remembering the last pictures he'd seen on a phone, but forced himself to open it anyway. He immediately wished he hadn't, and he put the phone down carefully on the seat before he was tempted to crack it in half.
He could still see the picture, though. Ace was asleep, or maybe passed out, on Tig's bed, and he was grinning like an asshole with his boots up on the bed next to her. Which of course meant there was at least one more person in that room. He could guess who had taken that picture.
"Fucking douchebags." Happy muttered, resisting the impulse to call Tig and scream until his throat bled, because he knew that's exactly what Tig wanted him to do. He could wait ten hours to rip Tig a new asshole for that stunt. Maybe.
No Other Man Alive
Ace woke even earlier than usual, her stomach in knots. She looked frantically around the room to ensure she was alone, then flopped back down, groaning. Going back to sleep was an incredibly tempting prospect, but now that her mind was fully aware that today was judgment day, she knew there wasn't a chance in hell that she'd actually manage it.
Instead, she rolled to Happy's side of the bed and shook the last cigarette out of his pack and lit it. It was semi pleasant to let herself wake all the way up while failing at every attempt to blow rings. When that stopped being amusing, Ace got up, holding the cigarette in her mouth while she wound her hair up in a bun. She stopped in front of the window, double checking to make sure the truck wasn't out in the lot. She hadn't really thought that it would be, Happy wasn't exactly a paragon of patience, so if he had gotten there in the night, he'd have come straight to his bed.
He probably wouldn't show his face until tonight, or maybe he would roll in just in time for his appointment tomorrow morning. Whatever his plan was, and clearly he wasn't concerned about how she felt about it, considering he had a phone and chose not to put it to any use, she wasn't about to be caught in his room when he arrived. Stubbing out the cigarette, Ace pulled on a pair of jeans and padded barefoot to the kitchen to pour herself a cup of coffee before she got started on the room.
"Hey." She gave a little half wave in the Prospect's direction, and accepted the mug that he offered without looking at her. Ace was fairly certain that he hadn't made eye contact with her since the morning Happy had bit his head off.
Back in the room, Ace left the door open, drinking the coffee and pulling the pictures down one handed, leaving them in a pile on the dresser. She wasn't sure exactly what she was going to do with them. The constant need to see them- and know that what had been done to her was real and not some nightmare-had passed, but throwing them away didn't feel right either. It took her longer to gather all her things together, because without Happy following her around putting shit away, she'd definitely spread out. She still managed to fit it all in the little duffel, though, something she was strangely proud of. She dropped the bag near the door, and snorted when she realized how easily her presence in Happy's life could be erased.
Shaking her head at herself, Ace stripped the bed and remade it with fresh sheets from the closet. She dumped the ashtray and rinsed it out, then went to work wiping down any surface she could find. When she was finished, the room looked pretty much exactly the way it had the first time she'd been there.
"You're seriously moving out of his room, Ace high?" Kozik asked, wincing and scratching the back of his head.
"Yes." Ace shrugged. "Have you ever been in love, Koz?"
"Not like what you and Killah got going on." Kozik said, taking it the completely sterile room.
"Lucky you." Ace sighed.
"Quit feeling sorry for yourself. There are plenty of people who would kill for the kind of history and devotion the two of you have." Kozik pointed out, and slung Ace's bag over his shoulder.
"Ah yes, cheating, rape, and abuse; all the hallmarks of an epic love story. You know, they should make a movie about us, it'll be huge, like The Notebook." Ace laughed.
"Cheating? Who cheated?" Kozik looked at her sharply.
"I'll give you a hint, Kozik." Ace said, gathering the sheets up in one hand and her pile of drawings in the other, and dropped her voice to a stage whisper. "It wasn't me."
"Come on. There's an empty room down by me." Kozik locked Happy's door and pulled it closed.
No Other Man Alive
Happy's foot got even heavier when he crossed the border into Washington around two. He'd been on the road for fourteen hours straight, stopping only to piss and refuel, but he wasn't tired anymore. All his nerves were on fire to be back in Tacoma, even if that meant spending the next week groveling like a bitch to get back in his wife's good graces. He wondered if there was a limit to what he was willing to do to get her to trust him again, but thought that there probably wasn't.
He'd looked at the picture Tig had sent him more than a few times, trying to push down all the possessive protective rage that Tig wanted him to feel, and really look at what he'd done to her. She was fully dressed, which helped. It was more and more obvious the longer he stared at it that she wasn't asleep like he'd initially hoped. She was passed right the fuck out, and he really hoped that it was a one time lapse in whiskey judgment.
It felt downright shitty that after everything she'd been through, his duck and run routine had been what had finally broken her down. He knew when he'd left that she hadn't meant for him to actually get as gone as he had, but getting some distance and time had seemed like such a good idea at the time that he'd conveniently ignored what that might be doing to her. He'd always seen any time they'd been apart as another opportunity to come back to her, from when she'd been a teenager all the way through the runs he'd been on since they'd been together. It was only now occurring to him that from her side, all it looked like was a really long series of being of left behind.
No Other Man Alive
"Thought I'd find you here. Hiding out?" Tig asked, coming into the gym where Ace was working the bag.
"I got tired of pacing and feeling like a caged animal. Kozik won't let me leave until I have to go to work." She told him, through gritted teeth, not pausing in her assault. She was wearing jeans, but had stripped off her shirt down to her sports bra, and she was dripping with sweat. It killed her that she cared, but she couldn't stop herself from asking. "Do you know when he's getting here?"
"Nah. If I knew that I would tell you, dollface." Tig told her, circling to the other side of the bag to hold it for her. "You're still sure he's coming today, huh?"
"Either today or he'll drive straight through to his appointment in the morning." Ace grunted, shaking her hand out after landing a punch a little too hard.
"Well don't let him roll right over you when he gets here." Tig warned. "He doesn't have a fucking clue what he's doing, and his first move is going to be crowding the shit out of you to get a reaction."
"You think I don't know that?" Ace scoffed, and swiped her arm across her face, flicking sweat on the floor at her feet.
"Just making sure you're ready for it." Tig shrugged, like it was of absolutely no consequence to him, but Ace knew that Tig felt like he had just as much invested in this as she did. The biggest difference was that Tig knew exactly what he wanted, and Ace didn't have the first fucking clue. She loved Happy in such an imbedded, visceral way that the thought of losing him was incomprehensible to her. It would be like losing a limb, or suddenly not being able draw or ink anymore. She couldn't ignore the fact that no matter how close he brought her, she still felt like she was on the outside, and she'd never be able to really hold him.
"I won't ever be ready." Ace told him, dropping her arms and taking up the pacing again. "Shit, Tig, can't you just take me out of here?"
"Don't be such a pussy. Whether you stay with Hap or not, you gotta face this shit so that he can go back to doing what he needs to." Tig told her, and tossed the water to her. "Come on, you got a little while before you go to work, right? Keep working and stop thinking. You think too much anyway."
"You're not kidding. It's fucking crowded in here." Ace said, tapping her temple before she took up her position at the bag again.
"Less thinking, more hitting. It always works for me."
No Other Man Alive
Navigating the streets of Tacoma was the longest drive of Happy's life. His gut felt like it was made of lead, heavy and cold. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been so goddamn nervous, it was like the first time he'd gotten laid, completely psyched and terrified at the same time. Realizing that he was sweating like he was guilty of something, Happy dug in his bag one handed until he came up with some deodorant, and used his teeth to pull the cap off, so he could get some on. It brought back the memory of the night he'd fought Lorca, and how absolutely perfect she'd been, laughing with him, listening to him, trusting him, and then afterward on Maryanne's desk. He grinned at the memory, and wondered what Maryanne would do to him if she ever found out.
"Come on, come on." Happy muttered, stuck at a red light. He could see Tacoma's clubhouse from where he was sitting and he drummed his fingers impatiently on the wheel. The light finally changed after about a century, and he floored it as much as he dared, turning quickly onto the lot. His Harley was right where he'd left it, and it surprised him that as much as he missed riding, and he really did, he wasn't concerned with that right now. Unlike his wife, his Harley didn't have a choice about staying where he'd left it. He left his bag where it was and got down, slamming the door.
"Well, well, well, look who finally showed up." Lorca was coming down the stairs from the clubhouse, and went in for a back slapping hug. "And with your leather no less. Good man."
"I do what I can. Is Ace here?" Happy asked awkwardly, not meeting Lorca's eye.
"No idea, man." Lorca shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Your two pit bulls won't let anyone else near her."
At this, Happy did look up, but Lorca didn't offer any more information, just clapped him hard on the shoulder and headed out to his ride. Happy watched him go, and then headed up the stairs, taking them three at a time. As soon as he opened the door to the clubhouse, his brothers were on him. Questions about where he'd been and when he'd gotten his cut back came at him from all sides. He kept looking for any sign of Ace, or Tig and Kozik, but didn't see any of them. He'd thought for a second that he'd seen a flash of Kozik's blonde hair, but when he'd turned to look Kozik hadn't been there.
"Glad to see you whole, brother." Bowie said, pushing through the melee.
"It's good to be back, Bowie. Sorry about splitting like that." Happy was grateful that the older man didn't require any more explanation than that.
"Chapel in fifteen?" Bowie offered, and Happy knew that he was forgiven, otherwise Bowie would've made it immediately. "Bring Tig, too, he's around here somewhere."
"Yeah." Happy nodded, and having been dismissed, pushed through to the hallway, his heart hammering against his ribs. He tried the handle, but his door was locked. His hand was shaking as he tried to fit the key in the lock, succeeding on the third try. The door swung open and his stomach dropped. There wasn't a single trace of Ace in this room, it didn't even smell like her. He went in anyway, pulling open random drawers, but they were all filled with his shit.
Heading across the hall, Happy didn't bother knocking, just went straight for Tig's doorknob, and luckily it swung right open, but there wasn't any sign of Ace in there, either. For a sick moment, he'd thought he'd find her moved in with Tig, and the relief was immediate and also short lived. The next door up was Kozik's, and he beat feet down to the other end of the hall, but Kozik's room was empty, too. Now Happy was getting really worried, not knowing if Ace was still here at the clubhouse at all. Someone would have told him if she had left, though, he was sure of that.
Feeling like his hourglass was running too fast, Happy went back out to the clubhouse, but it was the same crowd it had been before, so he kept on going out the door and down the stairs. Both Tigger and Kozik's Harleys were on the lot, so he knew they were here somewhere. He opened Maryanne's door, first, he knew that Ace had enjoyed visiting her during the days.
No Other Man Alive
"Time's up, Ace high." Kozik said from the stairs. Ace shot him a slightly panicked look, swallowing the rising anxiety, and nodded. She didn't say a word, just kept up her assault on Tig, who'd slid on the mitts a while earlier. Tig and Kozik did that weird exchange of information without talking, but no one said anything, and the sound of Ace's panting and the impact on the mitts were loud in the big space. They weren't loud enough to mask the sound of the door that emptied out onto the back of the building when it opened, though.
Happy's first thought when he came through the door was complete confusion, because the woman across the gym floor wasn't his wife. He was wrong, though, she could change a lot of things about herself, but the pull she had on him wasn't something that could be changed. Her waist was narrower, and the muscles in her arms and across her back were firmer with the faintest traces of definition beginning to show through. And no wonder, judging by how hard she was hitting the mitts. Tig was watching him over Ace's dark haired head, his face carefully impassive. Kozik was hovering near the stairs, shifting his weight from side to side, like he was trying to decide whether to come say hi or retreat up the stairs, but he met Happy's eyes without hesitation, nodding his head toward Ace.
Tig was backing her off of him, even though she seemed determined to keep going. He watched, realizing that she was perfectly aware of his presence, and choosing to ignore him. She'd adored him, thrown things at him, cried all over him, but she'd never flat out ignored him before. His mouth was dry as he searched for words. Tig wasn't looking at him anymore, he was watching Ace's face while he shook off the mitts. Happy would have given up a lifetime of riding to see what Tig was seeing right that moment. He looked helplessly to Kozik for direction, but the SAA had apparently opted for retreat, because he was nowhere to be found now.
"Ace." He finally spoke, his voice somewhere between a question and a statement of fact. He could actually see the muscles in her back go rigid. She didn't turn around, though, just walked to where the bag was, and snagged a long sleeved shirt, pulling it on, covering up all the ink on her back. She finally turned to him, and her face was so closed off that he found himself looking to Tig for insight. Ace stopped a few feet in front of him, crossing her arms, and not meeting his eyes.
"C'mere." His throat felt raw, and he reached his good hand out to her, willing her to take it. She didn't, but she did take another step forward, close enough for him to reach her. She let him run a hand over her hair, which looked strange to him, but also reminded him strongly of a much younger Ace. When he cupped her shoulder and tried to draw her to him, she put both of her taped fists against his stomach, stopping him. She finally looked up at him, and he couldn't find any of the things he'd been looking for in her eyes. It was all distrust and anger and hardness.
"Give us a minute, Tig?" He asked, and it didn't escape his notice that Tig looked to Ace first before he replied, but she'd nodded to let him know it was fine with her.
"Sure, man. I'll be upstairs." Tig said, and headed for the stairs. When he'd gone, Happy turned his attention back to his broken wife, who was looking at him like she'd never seen him before.
"I'm sorry." He told her, rubbing his thumb against the skin at her neck. "I know that's not enough, but I'm sorry."
Ace still didn't say anything, but she nodded, and her shoulders relaxed. He tried again to pull her toward him and this time she didn't push back. She didn't move though, her clenched fists were still hard between them, but she let him wrap his arms around her, and he was grateful. He buried his face in her hair, not caring in the least that she was soaked with sweat.
"I love you. I'm a fucking idiot." He murmured, his lips against her forehead, but still she didn't say anything. He pulled back to look at her, but she was back to looking anywhere but at him. He cupped her face, running his thumb across her bottom lip, wanting her mouth on his so badly that he'd started to move toward her before he knew it. She did push him away this time, and he was left standing there like a chump while she cross to the desk that held some of the tape and wraps. He saw her pull out the scissors, and awkwardly attempting to cut the tape off of her hands. He was across the room in a flash, taking the scissors from her.
"Let me do that." And she laid her hand in his and he was careful, cutting and peeling the tape from her. Even with Tig's wrap job, which he recognized, her knuckles were bruised and watching her face carefully, he lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed the bruising. She was breathing fast, but her face wasn't giving anything away. He'd finished with her other hand when they both heard the boots on the stairs.
"Come on, Happy. I said fifteen and I gave you twenty. Let's go." Bowie told him levelly.
"Yeah, I'm coming." Happy let go of her hands and kissed her forehead. "We'll talk when I'm done with Bowie, alright?"
Ace nodded, pulling away from him, flexing her hands. It was nearly painful to tear himself away from her and follow Bowie.
"Hey." He turned immediately at the sound of her voice. "It's good to see you back in your cut, Killah."
He grinned and continued his climb up the stairs, relieved that she'd finally spoken to him. It wasn't until he'd sat down at Bowie's table that it occurred to him that she'd never called him Killah before, and somehow that made him very uneasy.
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