Hello! Sorry it took this long to update, all my favorite shows are back on and I'm glued to my television at least every other night! Thank you to those of you who continue to read my story, I PROMISE it will get more interesting once the main drama starts. And a big THANK YOU to those who left nice comments and spent time writing reviews for me to read! I love taking into account what you, the readers, like about my story and I love it when I receive advice on how to improve in my writing style. I REALLY APPRECIATE IT! I know I have a lot of things to work on, but as long as people continue to read the story, I will work hard on making it more enjoyable and easier to read! So THANK YOU!
Just wanted to say this chapter could be considered as a filler, taking place towards the end of 'Capybara' and right before 'The Sleep of Babies.' And by that, I mean I am going to make up most of what happens during this time. Instead of jumping from one day to the next morning, I've decided to take advantage of the time difference between these two episodes and let Emily's character unravel a bit more. With the fast pace of these episodes, and 'The Sleep of Babies' in particular, I wanted to put in as much detail as possible during this time so Emily could be a bit more interesting for you all to read about. Enjoy~
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Emily woke up early to take a quick shower and change before the others woke up. After rushing back into her room, she unzipped her duffel bag and took out her undergarments and pulled them on, followed by a pair of black pants and a plain white tank top. As soon as she applied some light makeup, she yanked on her boots and walked out into the kitchen, heading straight to the refrigerator to pull out some eggs and red bell peppers. She didn't spend much time in the kitchen, but she was a quick learner and having a cook as her roommate? She easily memorized more than a couple of recipes.
"I'm supposed to be the one cooking for you breakfast, Emily." She looked over to the door and watched Donna walk through the front door with a handful of grocery bags. She rushed over and grabbed some of the bags as she closed the door.
"It's just something small, nothing too troublesome." She reassured her as they placed the bags on the kitchen table.
"I know we might not have much, but whatever you need, anything at all, don't be shy, okay? You're family." She said in a hushed voice.
"Thank you, Donna. I promise not to be such a hassle." They laughed as they put away the groceries. Donna pulled out a bag of coffee grounds and started to boil water in the teapot Emily used the night before.
"Remind me to buy you a coffee maker, it's a necessity."
"It would be nice, but we get by with what we have, right?" she nodded as she starting serving the warm breakfast on three different plates. As soon as she placed the food on the table, Donna walked over with two mugs filled with freshly made coffee. Emily took the mug into her hands and took a long sip.
"Guessing Ope is getting ready for the day?" she asked Donna, who decided to sit across from Emily.
"Yeah. Said he has to show up at the clubhouse to explain to the guys what happened. What are your plans for today?" Emily took a bite of her eggs and thought of what to answer.
"I'm not sure yet. Probably have to see Mary, and I'm hoping I can maybe see my dad and the guys from the club."
"I was wondering if you can come with me to Mary's house and pick up the kids?" Ugh. Didn't want to go this early but…
"Yeah, I'll tag along." She smiled at Donna, who most certainly looked relieved.
"Thank You. We all know your mother is a bit…rough. I think it'll be less awkward if you're there."
Emily scoffed and took another small sip of her coffee. "Yeah, I doubt it, but I'll still go."
Just then Opie walked out from the hallway, pulling on his cut. "Mornin" he mumbled and gave them both a kiss on the cheek.
"Emily made breakfast, I'll grab you some coffee." He thanked her as he took a seat beside Emily, digging in to the meal that was waiting for him. She glanced at her brother, waiting for him to finish chewing his food.
"This is actually pretty good. When cid you learn how to cook?" she smiled at his approval of her cooking, but quickly nodded her head before she took another bite of her own dish.
"My roommate is a chef, she taught me a thing or two." Donna handed him his mug and she joined them as they finished their breakfast.
They heard the rumbling of a motorcycle coming from the street and Opie quickly stood up. "Must be Jax. I gotta go. I'm taking the truck." He handed Donna his dirty plate and mug, leaning in to give her a kiss. He then turned to Emily.
"Dad is going to be at the clubhouse. Might not be the best timing but you wanna head over with me?"
"No. I promised Donna I'd head over to mom's house and pick up Ellie and Kenny. I can head over afterwards?" he nodded as he walked out the door. Emily walked over to the sink where Donna was washing the dishes. She quickly took her plate and mug.
"I got it covered. You made breakfast, I'm in charge of cleaning. You should go say hi to Jax." Emily smiled and thanked her, making her way through the living room and out the door.
She looked up and watched as Opie and Jax exchanged some words. She made her way down the porch steps and let out a huge grin when she saw Jax's confused face when she approached them. "What the hell?" she laughed and lunged at him after Opie stepped to the side, giving him a hug as Jax returned the tight embrace. "Holy Shit, Em. What are you doing here?" he asked as he let go of her, a smile tugged at his lips.
She shrugged. "Wanted to visit my family. It's been too long." He stared at her for a second before nodding his head. He knew the reason why she came back to Charming was for Opie. She had always loved her brother; he was the only one she would every try to make time for and help out. A perfect example was when Opie got locked up for five years, she helped out the only way she could; to console her depressed sister-in-law and help with her niece and nephew.
Jax smiled at her and returned her shrug. "Too long. I'll be seeing at the club house later on?" Later on. Right. They were in a rush to the clubhouse, trying to get Opie's name cleared as soon as possible.
She nodded and took a step back, "Yeah, I'll pass by. I promised Donna I'd go with her to pick up the kids. You guys better get going." Jax nodded and gave Opie a quick glance.
"C'mon, the club is waiting." Opie mumbled a 'see you later' and padded her back as he walked towards his truck.
Jax placed his hand on her face, bringing her closer to give her a kiss on the cheek before turning back and heading towards his bike. "I've missed you, Em. Good luck with Mary." He gave her one of his infamous smirks, and she rolled her eyes.
"Geez, thanks." She looked over her shoulder and stared at her brother before turning back to Jax. "Hey!" He turned his engine on before looking up at her, strapping on his helmet. She crossed her arms and stared back at his blue eyes, not wanting him to know how uncomfortable she was under his stare. "Take care of Ope. He would never betray the club."
He revved his engine and nodded. "Yeah, I know." He sped off with Opie driving close behind him.
Emily kept shifting in the passenger seat as they neared her mother's house. Just calm down. Why am I getting all worked up? Just calm the FUCK down! Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard Donna let out a small noise. She quickly looked over to her, sending her a questionable look. She was suppressing a laugh, and as soon as she saw Emily notice her, she couldn't help but let out a chuckle. "I'm sorry, you just look so miserable."
She squirmed in her seat again."You can't blame me, right?" Donna nodded and turned the corner into a small street, coming to a complete stop as they parked in front of Mary's house.
"We're just here for the kids, and we'll be on our way out." Donna whispered as they walked towards the front porch. It didn't take long for the front door to fly open, and they were face-to-face with Mary. Her eyes shifted between the two women, giving them a hard stare. "Hey, Mary." Donna quickly spoke up, breaking the silence. Emily's mother stepped back into her house, swinging the door open.
"C'mon in." Donna was quick to step inside, Emily hesitantly stepped into the house and turned to face Mary as she shut the door. Emily shifted in place, biting the inside of her lip as she stuffed her hands into her pockets. The three women stood there, the awkward silence made Emily feel even more uneasy. "The kids are down the hall." Mary stated, not bothering to look at her daughter-in-law; she was too busy glaring at her daughter.
Donna glanced at Emily before answering. "Y-Yeah, okay. I'll go get them." She darted down the hallway without saying another word.
Emily shifted again. C'mon. Just say something. "So…how was your time with the kids?" she said casually, but her mother just scoffed. "I told you I didn't want you to come down here. And what do you do? Show up at my house and try to make small talk." She walked across her small living room and sat on the large couch. Actually, yes, but apparently it's too much to ask for. She sighed and took a seat on a smaller couch across from her mother.
"You can't just tell me my brother is in trouble and expect me not to do anything about it." Mary rolled her eyes and let out a bitter laugh.
"Your brother has to pay for his own damn mistakes! You shouldn't get involved with his problems! He's a criminal!" This time it was Emily who rolled her eyes and let out a frustrated sigh. She was tired of her mother's bullshit and she wasn't going to take it anymore.
"I'm here to support my brother and his family. MY family. You don't like it? Too bad, because I'm back in Charming and you can't do anything about it." The two stubborn women stared each other down, clearly disapproving of what the other said.
"Aunt Emily!" she looked toward the hallway as her niece and nephew ran toward her and gave her hugs.
"Ellie! Kenny! Look at you! All grown up!" she smiled at them and hugged them again. It had been almost 4 years since she last saw them, they were small back then, but she was glad they remembered her.
"We should probably get going, kids. Say 'Thank You' to your grandma." She heard Donna say as she walked popped out of the hallway with their small bags. They turned to Mary and embraced her next.
"Thank you, grandma" they said in union, making Emily smile.
"Take care of yourselves, alright? Don't cause trouble for your parents, okay?" they nod and she gave them both a kiss on the cheek.
Emily quickly stood up as the kids walked towards their mom, who was more than ready to leave. "Thank you, Mary. I really appreciate you looking after them." After getting an approved nod from Mary, Donna opened the front door and led the kids towards their small blue car.
Emily quickly followed them, turning back to her mother when she reached the doorframe. "I'm not sorry that I decided to come back. I'll call you later." Before Mary had a chance to respond, Emily shut the door and hurried off toward the car.
After treating Donna, Ellie and Kenny to lunch, Emily had asked if she could be dropped off at Teller-Morrow. Knowing that all the guys were at the clubhouse, it might be the only chance to see them all before they were off doing their usual business. The kids wanted to see their father, so Donna agreed to pass by. They pulled up to the shop and parked next to Opie's truck. Emily's nerves were starting to act up again as she saw all the bikes lined up side by side on the opposite side of the lot.
"You should head on in, let Opie know we're here?" Donna asked her before she opened the car door and hoped out. Emily knew Donna wasn't comfortable being around the club, especially not now.
"Yeah, I'll tell him." She smiled at the kids before closing the door and walked toward the clubhouse. Every step felt heavy, and she kept readjusting her bag from her shoulder until she arrived at the door. Not realizing she was holding her breath, she exhaled and turned the doorknob.
She hesitantly walked in, the smell of booze and cigarettes smacking her face. She saw Jax walk out of the chapel and looked up to Emily, a smile instantly spread across his face. He turned to the group of men who were too busy getting their drinks to notice her presence.
"Hey, Piney! Might want to welcome our visitor!" he nodded towards the group, signaling her to step out into their sight. Everybody stopped what they were doing and looked over towards her direction; curious as to whom the VP was referring to. Emily didn't know what to do, so she just stood there awkwardly, waiting for someone to say something. Anything. She decided to look up, and she caught the stare of a set of bright blue eyes; fairly identical to her own.
She glanced at everyone for a second, seeing familiar faces and a couple of new ones, but her eyes automatically went back to look at her father. One step at a time, with a confused look on his face, Piney walked toward Emily and finally let out a light chuckle.
"My God. What the hell are you doing here?" Unlike his ex-wife, he let out a big grin as he hugged Emily, clearly pleased to see his daughter. She returned the embrace and couldn't help but feel relieved.
"Good to see you, Pops." She smiled at him as he let her go, the grin still plastered on his face. They turned to face the guys as they all shouted and banged on the bar top.
"LITTLE EMILY IS HOME!" She heard a Scottish accent shout as the cheers continued. She let out a laugh and turned to Chibs, who was still shouting as he marched towards her with his arms wide open, a beer in one hand, giving her a hug and a kiss on the cheek.
One by one, the guys walked over to her and welcomed her home; everyone except the two latest additions to the club. Juice and Half-Sack stood together at the end of the bar, watching as the rest of the guys cheered and welcomed the young woman. Half-Sack awkwardly turned to Juice. "D-Did I just hear her say Piney is her father?"
Juice merely shrugged and took another swig from his beer, looking over to the group of men surrounding her. "Yeah."
Half-Sack glanced at her and smirked. "Where has she been this whole time? I surely would have remembered a face like that."
Juice shook his head in disapproval. "Out of town, I guess..." he walked off toward the pool table, with Kip following
As soon as Emily had greeted everyone, she turned to Opie who had handed her a cold beer. Judging by his cool stature, she assumed everything with the club was resolved. "Hey, Donna is waiting for you outside."
His eyes widened and stared back at her. "She's here?" Emily nodded and Opie was quick on his feet, moving straight for the door.
"It's good to see ya, kid." She looked up to Clay and returned his smile.
"I've missed you guys. I know it's been a long time but…" they gray haired man clasped his hand on her shoulder, giving her a gentle squeeze.
"Don't worry about it. You're here now. That's all that matters." He gave her another hug before walking out of the clubhouse.
"C'mere, Lass! Ya have ta be my charm!" Chibs called her over to the pool table, where he stood next to the two men she had yet to greet. Piney patted her back and smiled at her.
"Go on, have fun." He walked away from her, immediately taking a seat at the bar and finishing the rest of his drink. For as long as she can remember, Piney was never the type of father to show much affection toward his kids, but she didn't mind. She knew that her father loved her and her brother, so she never bothered asking for attention.
She turned to the pool table and the greeted the guys with a smile. Chibs nodded towards the two younger men. "Em, dis 'ere is Juice, our very own computer nerd. And dis is Half-Sack, our Prospect. Boys, I introduce to you the lovely Emily Winston."She gave Chibs a disapproving look and he just laughed. She glanced at them both before shaking their hands.
"Nice to meet you both."
"Right back at cha." The younger of the two grinned.
She looked over at the man with the head tattoos, raising an eyebrow. "Juice, right? You look familiar…" He stood there, not sure of what to do under her stare. Half-Sack kept glancing between the two.
"Aye. Juicey boy 'ere use to be a hang around till we brought 'im in." Chibs spoke as he handed each of them a pool stick.
That's right. "Yeah…I remember, now. Jax brought you in, right?" She faintly remembered Jax talk about bringing in a Tech guy around the last time she was in Charming.
"Like a lost puppy!" Jax chimed in as he made his way over to them.
Juice groaned. "C'mon, man…" Jax smirked and playfully punched his arm, making Juice trip over his own feet. He regained his balance before he managed to fall against Half-Sack.
"Well, it's nice to know you made it into the club." She smiled at him, and he nervously returned the gesture.
"Yeah, thanks, I guess…" he trailed off.
She looked at Half-Sack as he racking up the balls on the table, walking over to him"And I expect the same from you."
He laughed. "So far, so good."
Chibs quickly spoke up."As far as you know, Prospect!" Kip's laughter died down, making everyone chuckle. Poor guy. The guys must give him hell. She decided to change the subject.
"Haven't played in years, Chibs. Not sure if I'll be the best partner." She confessed. He chugged the rest of his beer and shook his head.
"No problem, Sweetheart. I bet you're still better than da both of 'em combined."
Jax laughed and nodded his head, agreeing. "Don't worry too much, Em. If you're still half as good as you use to be when we were kids, you'll smoke them." They shared a grin.
"I guess we'll see." She placed the white cue ball on the table, laid the cue stick down and eyed the rest of the balls. "Solids." She stated before making the first shot, sending the multiple colored balls flying across the pool table.
After beating Juice and Half-Sack three times, Emily finally decided to call it a night. She sat on the bench outside of the clubhouse, drinking her last beer while waiting on Opie to finish his round of pool. She stared at bikes lined up, the garage, and all the SAMCRO signs plastered everywhere; nothing had changed since she was little. Now that she thought about it, she didn't know why she was so nervous about coming back. Everyone was welcoming and loving, they were her family.
"What's that face for?" she looked up and watched as Jax strolled over to her, taking a seat next to her.
I was making a face? She laughed half-heartedly. "You know me, over-thinking everything. I just missed this. I've missed everyone." She mentally beat herself up for letting her mother take her away from all of it.
Jax bumped shoulders with her, giving her a smile. "We've missed you too, Em. We're glad you're here. Good thing you showed up, it lightened up the mood."
She glanced at him, instantly frowning. "Why is that? Did things not go well with Opie?"
"Nah, everything is good with Ope. It's just everything else that's been going on. Has us all on the edge, ya know?" She knew the drill. Anyone outside of the club didn't need to know their business, no matter how close they were to them. It was safer that way. She nodded and took another sip of her beer.
"How are things for you up north?" He asked, obviously not wanting to talk about the club.
"Good, I guess. I hang around with Kozik and the rest of the guys during my spare time, but other than that, I've been working at the hospital."
Jax smiled and pulled out cigarette. "You should ditch Washington and stick around Charming for a while." She gave him a questionable look, making him smirk as he took out a lighter and lit his cigarette.
"No way. I can't just stay here. What about my job?"
"Quit."
She scoffed. She sipped some more of her beer. It's not that easy. "Yeah? And what? Work at St. Thomas?" She said sarcastically, laughing at the ridiculous idea.
"Yeah, why not?" Her laugh died down.
"You can't be serious."She stared at him, puzzled.
"You have your resume, I'm sure Tara can get you working there in no time."
What? "Did you just say Tara? She's back?" The last time she had visited, she was told that Tara had left to Chicago, leaving Jax heartbroken. Emily would have never thought she'd return to Charming.
"Yeah." Jax let out a puff of smoke, flicking the ash off his cigarette. "Things are better between us now."
She raised an eyebrow. "Better?"
He laughed. Of course she wanted to know what was going on. She had a lot of catching up to do. "Yeah, better. She's actually helping out with Abel too. He should be coming home any day now." When he said his son's name, his eyes lit up with joy. He loved his little boy.
Emily couldn't help but smile. "I can't wait to meet the little man."
Just then, the door to the clubhouse swung open as Piney walked out, half empty bottle of tequila in his hand. "Thought you had left already." He mumbled as he walked over to her, clasping a hand on her shoulder.
"Just waiting on Ope. I'm staying at his place."
He took another swig from the bottle before handing it to Jax. "Well, I'm heading out. I'll catch you later." He stumbled off towards his motorcycle.
"You think you can handle riding, old man?" Jax called out, holding the bottle up. Piney never answered; he sped down the lot and out into the street.
"He's a better rider when he's drunk." They turned to Opie as he walked out the club house, followed by the rest of the club.
"Hope you're right." Emily said as she stood up, chugging the rest of her beer. "Ready?"
Opie nodded, faced the guys as he gave them all a hug, one by one.
"See you later, Jax." He jumped off the bench, giving her a hug.
"Let me know about St. Thomas." He smiled at her before walking over to the guys.
"Welcome home, Doll." Tig walked over to her and kissed her temple before heading towards a group of crow eaters at the end of the lot. Looks like they're gonna have a busy night.
"It was nice meeting you, Emily. Hope to see you around." She turned to the Half-Sack, who had a smug smile on his face.
"Yeah, nice meeting you too, Prospect. Practice some more and I might play another round of pool." She half turned around and looked at Juice. "Same goes for you." She smirked.
"After getting my ass kicked, don't think I'll want to play." He replied, giving her a light shrug.
"Well, that's too bad." She laughed.
"Have a good night, Darlin'." Chibs walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her, giving her a tight squeeze before letting her go.
"Alright, let's go." She followed Opie towards the truck.
"Bye, guys." She waved at them before hopping into the truck.
"Long Day." Opie stated as he turned the key, making the truck rumble.
"Yeah." She looked out the window as he reversed the car and passed by the club. Emily waved goodbye at them one last time before they made their way out of Teller-Morrow.