Juice checked the time on the clock as he walked into the house feeling his heart drop when he saw how late it was; he didn't have much time left to spend with her before his inevitable incarceration the next day. "Angel?" he called out, grunting as he kicked off his boots. He could hear music coming from the kitchen, some kind of soft rock ballad, and smiled. As he rounded the corner, he took a minute to drink her in.

Despite being battered and bruised, Angela was standing at the counter barefoot as she stirred something in a bowl, her long hair hung down her back in a mess of waves, the ends just barely brushing over the top of her lower back. She was wearing his sweatshirt again; one sleeve had slipped down her arm leaving her shoulder bare. Slowly, he approached her from behind, moving her hair off her neck before pressing a soft kiss to her shoulder, his arms snaking around her loosely around her waist careful not to put too much pressure on her bruised ribs. "Whatcha makin'?" he questioned, looking into her bowl.

"Gemma called to invite us for breakfast tomorrow, so I'm making muffins," she explained, leaning back into his embrace. It felt so good to have him close again. She tried not to think about how he was going inside the next day, choosing instead to focus on the present. He was there now, worrying about the inevitable wouldn't do her any good.

"Shouldn't you be resting or something?" he asked between kisses as his lips trailed across her shoulder and up her neck.

It was hard to think with his lips on her like that. "Mmm," she hummed, tilting her head to the side to allow him better access. "I have a concussion. I'm not s'posed to fall asleep, remember? I could slip into a coma and then I'd miss my last night with you."

He chuckled, shaking his head at her as he let her go. Leaning against the counter, his eyes followed her every movement as she worked, trying to pick on any hints that she was in pain. As she stretched to reach for a spoon, her jaw clenched briefly, a tell tale sign that the movement had hurt. "Are you in a lot of pain, baby?"

Angela shrugged a shoulder. Her head was throbbing, her side ached, and the thought of him leaving had her heart hurting, but there was no way she'd admit that to him. "Not really," she lied, turning towards the oven as it dinged. She took out the first batch of muffins and went to put in the next, but he stood in her way.

"You think you can handle going for a ride?" he asked, his hands tucked deep into the pockets of his cut.

If he hadn't had the earnest, almost innocent look in his eyes, Angela would've thought he was hinting at something quite different than a motorcycle ride. She bit back a dirty comment knowing he wouldn't appreciate it at that moment. If he was asking her to go for a ride with him this late at night it was because there was something in his head he needed to work out. "Yeah, definitely," she said with a small smile as she set down the unmade muffins and turned off the oven. "Let me just get changed."

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Juice didn't go as fast as he usually did when he rode through Charming. He was taking everything slow, enjoying the scenery, the cool wind on his face, and the feel of Angela's arms wrapped tightly around him, her cheek pressed to his back. It'd be a long time until he could enjoy these little things again.

He pulled over at their mountain, watching her carefully as she slid off his Dyna. He caught her wincing and felt a pang of pain go through his chest. As if sensing what he felt, she sighed. "I'm fine, Juice. Just sore," she assured him.

He nodded as he took off his gloves and tucked them into his back pocket before reaching out a hand for hers. With a small smile, she took his hand and let him lead her to their usual spot at the edge of the mountain. They sat down next to each other, both silent as they stared out at the sleeping town.

He started to dig into his pockets before producing a lighter and a joint. She raised an eyebrow at him, watching as he lit it up taking a quick toke before passing it over to her. They sat in silence, passing the joint back and forth until finally Juice spoke. "You know why we're going in?"

She shook her head. "Nope," she answered as she exhaled. To be honest, she couldn't care less why he was being sent to jail; she just hoped he stayed safe while he was in there.

"Aggravated assault with a deadly weapon," he answered on a sigh. He usually didn't tell her stuff like this, but he felt like she should know the reason he had to leave her. That she needed to know they hadn't really done anything wrong despite the long stretch of time he was about to serve. "That asshole who did that thing to Gemma tricked us into busting into his stupid church meeting, guns loaded."

Angela wondered where this was coming from; Happy hadn't even told her the reason they were going inside. She did appreciate him telling her though. More because it showed he trusted her than because she really wanted to know. "That sucks," she murmured, shaking her head. "You guys really didn't do anything?"

He chuckled at the irony of it all. They did illegal things on an almost daily basis; the one time they didn't really do anything was the time they got caught. "No. Absolutely nothing. How ridiculous is that?"

"How long will you be inside?" she asked knowing Juice, unlike Happy, would tell her a straight answer.

"At least a year," he answered softly.

"Woah."

Juice turned his head to look at her profile. It was times like this when they were just sitting there next to each other, more friends than lovers, that he realized how much he needed her. No one else would listen to him like this; without questions, without opinions. She just sat there and listened providing him with support when he needed it and advice when he asked. She was his best friend, and it would kill him to lose her. Still, a year was a long time for her to wait, and she was young and beautiful, he wouldn't blame her if she moved on. She deserved better than him anyway. "I don't...I don't expect you to wait for me, Angel."

Her head turned toward him, a surprised look on her face. "Why not?" she asked, eyebrows raised.

"I dunno," he lied, sighing heavily. He didn't want to tell her she was too good for him, that he didn't deserve her in case she realized he was right. "A year is a long time. I just...don't want to hold you back."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Hold me back from what exactly?"

"From happiness, I guess," he answered on a shrug as he stubbed out what was left of the joint on the ground next to him.

A disappointed look crossed her face as she looked back out at the view. "What are we doing here, Juice?" she asked, her voice a little sad.

Juice furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"You're giving up. A few hours ago, you were all about making up and staying together, and now you're giving up. I don't get it."

"I'm not giving up," he denied, a scowl on his face.

She turned to look at him again, her dark eyes filled with a mixture of hurt and sadness. "Then why wouldn't you expect me to wait for you, Juice?"

He smiled softly at her, leaning over to press a kiss to her temple. How could he be so stupid to question her loyalty to him? Of course, he expected her to wait for him because he knew if the situation was reversed, he'd wait for her. No matter how long it took. " 'cause I'm an idiot," he answered wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her into his side.

Angela wasn't convinced he really understood what she meant. He often pulled the idiot card when he didn't want to answer something, when he wanted to finish a conversation before it got too serious. But this conversation wasn't one she was going to let slide. He needed to know she'd wait for him. As far as she was concerned, there were no other guys she wanted to be with. "I'm not going to give up on you, Juice," she promised him, holding his gaze. "I'm not going anywhere."

Her dark eyes held a silent affirmation of her feelings for him. Feelings that were more than words. Feelings that, surprisingly enough, matched his own. "Good," he said catching her lips in a soft kiss. He pulled away as if he remembered something, his hand digging around in his jeans again. "Hey, I gotcha somethin' in Belfast. Well, actually Chibs' kid's friend, Trinnie, got it for me, but she got it for me to give to you so it's still from me...kinda. I picked it out from a few."

Angela bit back a laugh at his rambling, watching as he pulled out a little paper bag that was sealed with a pretty ribbon and handed it over to her. She opened it carefully before shaking out the item. "It's a clatter ring," he explained.

She studied the ring in her palm and let out a light laugh. "Claddagh ring, Juice," she corrected.

"That's what I said," he shot back stubbornly. It had sounded right enough to him.

Angela grinned, shaking her head at him. "It's beautiful," she said, running her finger over the hands, heart, and crown design.

Juice nodded in agreement; Trinity had brought him several rings to choose from, but he knew this was the one he wanted as soon as he saw it. It wasn't a normal, circular ring, but what Trinity had called a wishbone ring. He thought it looked like a mini tiara. "You gotta put the point of the heart towards you 'cause that means you belong to someone," he said turning it in the right direction. "Which is me."

"Is that so?" she teased on a laugh as she slipped it on the ring finger of her right hand. "Thank you," she said kissing him quickly. "I actually got something for you too. I mean, I ordered it awhile back and it came in when I was...not home."

"Let's see it," Juice said, his hand outstretched. Digging into her pocket, she pulled out a heavy silver ring and set it in his palm. He lifted his arm off her shoulder, pinching the ring between his fingers and holding it closer to his face so he could see it better. It had SAMCRO on it in big letters with angel wings going down the side. "Where'd you get this?"

"I know, I know. It's lame and cheesy. Angel wings and what not, but I went to this shop to get something for Hap's birthday and I saw this base and the guy at the shop said he could put a stone there or engrave something there so I just did that. I thought it'd look kinda cool."

"It is cool," he murmured, slipping it onto a finger. "My two favorite things, my club and my girl."

Angela rolled her eyes at him, gently nudging him with her shoulder. "Goof."

He smiled, gently taking her chin in his hand and pressing a soft kiss to her lips. She kissed him back passionately, moving so she was on her knees beside him, her hands on his chest gently pushing him down so he was lying on his back. She slid a leg over his lap, straddling him as her lips moved down his neck. His hands tangled in her hair, gently pulling her away. She looked down at him, the moonlight creating a halo around her head. Her eyes studied him, waiting for the cheesy line he was probably thinking. "We're gonna christen this mountain, aren't we?" he asked, catching her off guard.

She sat up, tilting her head back as she laughed. Her laughter pulled on her sore ribs, but she didn't care; she was with the man she cared about the most for one more night and she was going to take advantage of it. "Yes, sir, we are," she said, her hands slipping under his shirt as he tugged down the zipper pull of her sweatshirt...well, his sweatshirt actually.

He was starting to love the sight of her in his sweatshirt. Not only because she was wearing his clothes, but also because every time he pulled that zipper down, a pair of sexy lingerie seemed to be under it. That night was no exception. The moonlight caught the little rhinestones embedded on the black lace making them twinkle back at him. "Damn, baby," he said, his voice rough with lust.

A teasing smile crossed her face. "I don't expect you to wait..."

Juice didn't even let her finish the sentence. He sat up, his lips crashing down on hers hungrily. No, he wasn't going to wait this time. Waiting usually led to interruptions and he wasn't about to let that happen. He wanted her, and he wanted her now.

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Juice lay next to Angela in their bed, his face just inches away from hers, one of his hands tangled in her wet hair. After they'd christened their mountain, they'd gone home and re-christened the kitchen and the couch and the shower until finally making it to the bed. Her fingers traced over the two scars on his bare back as she looked up at him, worry etched into her dark eyes. He knew exactly what she was thinking. He kissed the small worry wrinkle that appeared between her brows. "I'm going to be okay, Angel," he assured her, his thumb trailing over her cheek. "We have protection this time. No one is going to touch me."

"Okay," she said, though the worried look didn't go away.

He glanced out the window over her shoulder, noticing it was starting to get light out. "Sun's comin' up."

She knew what that meant. As soon as the sun came up, her time with him would be over. Sure, they had Gemma's breakfast together, but after that...it'd be all about whatever plan it was they had and then, he'd be gone. "You barely slept," she said on a frown. Both of them had passed out for an hour or two on the couch before he'd picked her up and taken her to bed.

"It's all right."

"No, it's not," she disagreed, a scowl on her face. "You should sleep."

"Nah, I don't want to miss a thing," he said, wondering if she'd catch what song he was referencing.

She rolled her eyes at him, obviously she got the reference. "Don't you quote Aerosmith at me, Ortiz," she said, a hint of a smile tugging up the corner of her lips. "Not after you made me watch Armageddon...again."

The first time he'd brought up watching it, she'd been so adamantly against it that he'd had to find out why. And he did. Angela didn't cry much, but at the end of the movie she cried like a baby. It was then he'd remembered how she'd suffered a loss similar to the main character's. He'd felt like shit for the rest of the day. "I still feel bad about that," he said with a small frown.

"As you should," she said, a teasing glint in her eyes telling him she didn't mean it.

He pulled her in closer so her head was tucked under his chin, every inch of her body fit perfectly against his almost as if they were made to for it. He tried to ingrain this feeling in his head so that he could re-visit it during those cold nights in the slammer. "I'm gonna miss you, Angel," he murmured, his hand rubbing up and down her back. "So much."

She swallowed hard, fighting back tears. "Don't do that, Juice," she choked out. "Don't make it harder."

He held her tighter then, feeling her tears against his skin. "That's what he said," he whispered in her ear.

Angela pulled away, that big grin on her face that he loved. Her laughter filled the room as she looked up at him. He'd single-handedly taken what could've been a sappy, mopey moment and turned it into something they were more comfortable with. It was typical of their relationship. They were uncomfortable with serious stuff; silly and light-hearted was more their style. "You are such a goof."

"A goof you're gonna miss?" he asked, that huge megawatt grin on his face as he wiped away her tears. He loved being able to make her laugh, especially if it stopped her from crying.

She nodded, taking his face into her hands and pressing a soft, loving kiss to his lips. "More than anything."
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Not gonna lie, this is one of my favorite chapters. :) Let me know what you guys think! Your comments are always welcome!
- Love Ink