Angela was counting down the minutes until she could leave the funeral home and get back to the hospital to see Juice. Skeeter had been letting her leave early as long as she got the embalmings done and the death certificates filed and picked up from the County Recorder's office. She'd been lucky that they weren't that busy for the past few days, but on this particular day, they were slammed. Not only did she have Luann's service earlier that morning, but she was currently on her third cremation. She stared at the cremation oven, willing it to go faster. Once it was done, she just had to prepare the urn to be picked up, and she could go.

She heard the hard knock on the door and smiled, her heart skipping a beat in anticipation before she frowned as the realization that it wasn't going to be Juice on the other side of the door. Juice was in the hospital. Curiously, she opened the door, surprised to see Jax standing there. Anger hit her fast; it'd been a few days and not a single Son, including her cousin, had bothered to visit Juice, and it was them who'd put him in that damn hospital bed to begin with. Not to mention not a single SAMCRO member other than Gemma had been at Luann's funeral, which felt like another slight. "Can I help you?" she asked icily.

His blue eyes raked over her for a moment, not in a sexual way, just as though he was trying to figure out how mad she was and how to approach it. "Wanted to talk to you," he said, nodding towards the cremator. She stepped back inside the room, waiting for him to follow. With a sigh, she pushed herself up to sit on the table, eyes on the little window on the oven. "You watch the whole process?"

"No. This one's almost over," she explained on a shrug. "What do you need, Jackson?"

He recoiled at his full name, grimacing a little. "You mad about Juice getting shanked?"

"For one," she stated, crossing her arms over her chest. "Also not happy that not a single goddamn one of you have stopped by to visit him especially since it was your guys' fault he's in there in the first place."

Jax scratched at his eyebrow for a moment before hanging his head. "Yeah. Been a little busy."

For the first time, she noticed the bruises on his face. They were healing but red and nasty looking. "What the hell happened to you?"

"Don't worry about it," he told her on a shrug. "Lotta shit goin' on."

"Zobelle?"

"Some of it. Some internal shit too," he answered, leaning against the table she was sitting on. "You heard about the porn studio burning down?"

Angela nodded; Lyla had told her at Luann's service. She hadn't been sure if the girls were crying over Luann or losing the studio. She knew they got treated better at CaraCara than at other studios. The double loss hit harder than losing just one of them. No one knew the source of the fire, though. One girl thought maybe someone had left a curling iron on. The way Jax mentioned "internal shit" and the burned building in the same thought made her think it was more than just a curling iron being left on. "You think that was internal?"

"Clay never liked the porn business. Wanted us out. We fought about it the same day it happened."

"But that was a lucrative business, it'd be dumb of him to..." she trailed off at the serious look on Jax's face. "Shit. Hope you guys had insurance."

"Not really the point, Ruiz," he drawled, barely hiding a smirk. "Wanted to ask you about the Nomad shit."

Angela's brows furrowed in confusion. What the hell did she have to do with Nomad shit? Sure, Hap was a Nomad, but all she really knew about them was that it meant he could travel more. That he wasn't pinned to one charter. "Nomad shit? I don't know anything about it."

Jax hesitated for a moment, raking a hand over his face. "Hap was like a father to you growin' up, right?"

"Kind of. Father, brother, dominant male figure, whatever. He was all of it," she stated on a little shrug. It took a moment to click for her. "You thinking of going Nomad then? Cause of Clay?"

He nodded, tugging on his beard. "Thinkin' about it. Wanted to see what you thought. Abel's still a baby, so I don't...I don't want to fuck him up. You seem fairly normal...'cept for the dead people shit and loving idiots with mohawks. Wanted to know what it was like for you growin' up."

Angela elbowed him gently, scowling in feigned offense. "I am normal."

"We're having this conversation in front of a burning body," he stated, nodding towards the oven.

"Your choice, not mine," she stated on a shrug.

"Regardless, care to give me a little insight?"

She sighed heavily, messing with her ring for a moment. "Hap wasn't Nomad when I was a kid. He was SAMCRO, then he went Nomad once I moved out to New York. Think it was so he could visit me over there every now and then without causing problems. I loved when he was SAMCRO. He was always around. I'd go everywhere with him. Wherever he was willing to take me. I loved that," she explained with a little smile. It was true; she loved having Hap around. He was the one who always pushed her in the right direction. It was when he went to prison that things took a turn. "What really fucked me up was when he went inside."

"That when shit with you and the Mayan started?"

Angela nodded slowly. "Part of it was because I really did love Esai," she stated honestly. She didn't want to be dramatic about it. No one had forced her into that relationship. She'd been young and in love. "But I think there was a small part of me that was using him to get back at Hap for abandoning me."

"Rebellious little shit, huh?" he asked around a chuckle.

"Kinda," she admitted, shrugging. She knew it was a sidebar to what Jax was actually getting at, but she wanted him to know how hard it was being left behind like that. "The prison time is the hardest, Jax. You're far away, which means you're not easily accessible, and there's no guaranteeing your safety. The unknown is difficult a-and scary. Especially for a kid. It feels like an abandonment. It's hard to wrap your head around, and I was fourteen when he went inside. I can't imagine how it'd be if I was younger."

"And him going Nomad? That didn't scare you?"

Angela shrugged again. "I kinda liked it, to be honest. Don't really know what it means. I just knew it was why Happy and Koz could ride across the country once a year to visit me in New York. Then Hap transferred to SAMTAC when I came home, so I'd go months without seein' him. Now that he's Nomad again, he's here a lot. My aunt's thrilled, and while he can be a pain in the ass, I love havin' him here too," she explained, though there was one thing she hadn't mentioned yet. "But...you and Happy are not the same in a lot of ways. And Hap isn't my dad. He's the closest thing I had to one growing up, but it's not the same as you and Abel. I lost my dad when I was three, and that was something no one could control. You can control this."

"So you're saying I shouldn't do it?"

Angela hesitated in answering; she didn't want to make that decision for him. She wasn't qualified for it. The Nomad life was something she knew nothing about. "Don't think I know enough to give you that answer."

"Not exactly helpful," he muttered, looking down at his pristine sneakers.

"Surprised you didn't ask Ope or Tara even. Feel like they'd know better."

Jax shrugged a shoulder. "Asked Ope already, 'n' I'll talk to Tara about it, eventually. Ope's too close with Clay right now, 'n' Tara's too close to me."

"Got it. I'm you're neutral third party," she concluded with a bob of her head.

He smirked and nodded. "Kinda. Ain't like this is the first time," he admitted, elbowing her gently. "So? What do I do? Got the process goin', but I can always stop. Think my big question is...am I gonna fuck up my kid by bein' away more?"

Angela laughed, shaking her head at him. No, it wasn't. It'd been a long time since they'd last had a talk with any kind of depth to it, though. "I dunno, Teller. 's not like you're really around anyway."

"Ouch," he said on a grimace. "I'm around plenty."

"Sure you are," she shot back sarcastically. She leaned away before he could elbow her again. "If you're gonna be gone more, now's the time to do it, I guess. He's still a baby. He won't remember much of it."

Jax nodded again, hanging his head in thought. "Guess so."

Angela shifted slightly in her seat. She had her own doubts and fears running around her brain that could use some clarity. She cleared her throat, looking at him out of the corner of her eye. "Are you guys going back inside?"

His shoulders tensed for a moment before he let out a long breath. "Feels inevitable, don't it?"

As happy as she'd been that they'd all been released, she had a sick feeling in her gut that it wouldn't be long before they all went back inside. "Little bit."

"Gonna do our best to avoid it," he replied on a heavy sigh. "Think we have a good chance of getting off on this one, actually. Security cams were bullshit. They don't got much on us. No one got hurt or anything, but you never know. Feds have been after us for awhile now."

Angela frowned, twisting at her ring. Fear flooded through her, making her feel a little nauseous. She could hardly bear Hap and Koz being inside; she couldn't imagine having to be away from Juice for that long. "And they'll take any excuse to lock you guys up."

"Yep," he agreed, popping the last letter of the word.

For a moment, she felt like she couldn't breathe. "Shit."

"Don't worry about it 'til it happens, Ang. We may just get lucky," he said, though his tone indicated he himself doubted his own words. They sat in quiet for a long minute before he cleared his throat. "I'm gonna do it. Think it's what's best for me. For my family."

"Do what you gotta do, Teller," she stated, knowing he was looking for her to tell him it was the wisest choice, but she wasn't going to do it; she didn't know what the smart choice was for him. There were too many nuances in his life that she wasn't aware of, not to mention how little she knew about the Nomads.

Jax smirked and sighed. "How much longer you got 'til this is over?" he asked, nodding towards the retort.

"Couple minutes. Then I'm done and heading to the hospital."

"Probably see you there. We gotta get Juice's proxy," he said, messing with his hat.

Angela scowled at that hating that it took club business to finally get his brothers to visit. "Won't visit to make sure he's okay, but you need a vote, and he's your first stop. Kinda shitty."

Jax's jaw clenched at being called out like that. "Maybe we were leavin' him alone 'cause we knew he has you to take care of him."

She jumped down from the table to follow him towards the door. She seriously doubted that. "Were you?" she challenged, arms crossed over her chest.

His hand fell heavily on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze before he leaned in to kiss her temple. "Maybe. See you later, Ruiz."

She watched him leave, giving him a wave on his way out. Knowing he and Bobby were going to go to the hospital made her take her time with finishing up. She didn't want to intrude on whatever conversation they were going to have. It wasn't her business. She already knew what Juice's answer would be. He wouldn't deny Jax of something he really wanted, even though it would definitely hurt him to hear Jax wanted to leave.

~'~'~'~'~'~~'~'~'~'~'~~'~'~'~'~'~~'~'~'~'~'~

Juice watched as Bobby walked out of the room, feeling a heavy weight on his shoulders. Jax wanted to go Nomad. He wanted to leave SAMCRO. All that shit he said about the charter being his home, his family...he was throwing it all away. For what? Some bullshit issue he had with Clay? It felt like he was giving up on them. Like they were so deep in shit that even Jax couldn't see a way out. Closing his eyes, he tilted his head back on the pillows. He was torn between anger and sadness. Jax was one of the brothers he was closest to; he didn't want him to leave. How could he just leave them like that? It didn't make sense.

He heard the click of the door closing, and her perfume filled the room. Inhaling deeply, he let the familiar scent relax him. Today, it was a more floral, sweet scent. Jasmine and honey. He opened his eyes, hoping she didn't see the tears in them. Without a word, he extended his hand to her. When she was close enough, she slid her fingers into the spaces between his, sitting at the edge of the bed. Her freehand reached out to brush over his cheek lovingly. "You okay, baby?" she asked, her tone soft, worry pinching her brows together.

He nodded, tilting his head into her touch, soothed by the way her thumb trailed across his cheek. "Bobby and Jax came by. Jax wants to go Nomad," he told her. There was no surprise in her gaze, in fact, she nodded a bit as if it wasn't new information. He narrowed his eyes at her. "You already knew?"

"Jax stopped by the funeral home," she admitted with a nod. "Wanted advice. As if I know anything about it."

It took him a minute to process what she was saying. It'd been awhile since she and Jax had one of their little talks. They'd become few and far between once Opie and Tara became more in the picture. It made sense for Jax to talk to her, though. Hap was a Nomad. Jax probably thought she could give him some good insight on what it entailed. "Because of Hap?"

"Yeah," she said on an inhale. "I didn't tell him to do it. Didn't tell him anything because I really don't know anything. You know Hap. He doesn't tell me shit."

Juice swallowed hard, looking down at their intertwined fingers. He'd long since stopped being jealous when Angela and Jax talked to each other. He kind of liked it in all honesty. It was another way Angela had become ingrained into the club, into his family. He sighed softly. "Know its been coming, just didn't think it'd be so soon," he murmured, sniffling a bit. He tried to picture going to Church without Jax sitting in the number two spot beside Bobby. Would Bobby be the new VP now? What would that look like? "Gonna be weird to sit at the table without him. Feel like he was the one that kinda pulled me in, talked me up."

Angela squeezed his hand reassuringly. "He's not leaving for good, Juice. You know he'll come back. Hell, look at Hap. He's always in Charming. Plus, Abel's here. Jax isn't gonna leave that kid or Tara alone."

He smirked, bringing their hands to his lips and kissing her fingers. She was right, of course. It was surprising just how often Happy was in Charming. Sometimes without being called on. He just showed up, and they all accepted him in without issue. He had a feeling Jax would be the same. It was a comforting thought he hadn't considered before. "You always know what to say, Angel."

"Tryin' my best," she told him, leaning in to kiss him softly. She tapped her forehead to his. "Love you, goof."

"Love you too," he replied, tugging on her arm, trying to get her closer, his other arm settling on the soft velour fabric of her pants. He'd been so in his head, he hadn't really paid attention to what she was wearing. Now he took her in, curious about the whole ensemble. His big hoodie and dark green velour sweatpants. He wrinkled his nose at the color; he hated when she wore the typical Mayan green. It reminded him of that Mayan ex of hers and all the shit he put her through. She knew how much he hated it too, which was why he was surprised she'd worn them to visit him. He picked at the fabric, a little happy for the distraction. "Where'd these come from?"

"Nessa's wedding. I know, you hate the color, but check this out." She let go of his hand to stand beside the bed, lifting the back of the sweatshirt to show him her ass...her ass that had "Juicy" written across it in white script lettering. She shook her ass in the cutest way, looking over her shoulder at him. "Ta da!"

Juice was thankful for the loose hospital gown and blankets because all of his blood rushed to one part of his body. "Damn, baby," he breathed, biting his lip as he tried to think of anything but how good her ass looked with his name written across it. It'd been too long since he'd really gotten to touch her, and all he wanted to do was put his hands all over her body. "C'mere."

She climbed onto the bed, sliding one leg over his hips. He knew she could feel his hardening length pressed against her by the wicked smile on her face. His hands slid over her hips, cupping her ass as his fingers brushed over the embroidery there simultaneous making her lean forward into him. Her hands framed his face as she captured his lips in a hot kiss. He swept his tongue into her mouth, enjoying the taste of her. He squeezed at her ass, and she ground her hips against him. The friction was amazing, and he couldn't help the moan the action elicited. If she kept doing that he was going to make a mess of his hospital gown. He didn't really care, though. She encompassed him, filling every one of his senses in the best way.

"Oh shit!" a voice came from the door. "Stop! You're in a hospital!"

Angela pulled away slowly, but he lifted a hand to the back of her neck to bring her in for another kiss. He didn't give a shit that Chloe had walked in to take his vitals. He just wanted another taste of his girl. Angela obliged him with one more kiss, tapping her forehead to his gently. She leaned up, and he buried his nose in her cleavage as she grabbed one of the pillows behind him. "Juice!" she exclaimed, moving off of him and being courteous enough to put the pillow over his obvious erection. She winked at him before nodding at Chloe who was standing with a hand over her eyes. "Hi Chlo. Long time no see."

"Can I look now? Is it over?" she asked, peeking between two of her fingers before letting her hand fall away from her face. "How many hospital rules are you two tryin' to break?"

Angela shrugged a shoulder. "Just a couple."

He couldn't stop staring at Angela. Her lips were swollen, cheeks flushed. She was beautiful, and all he wanted was to entice her back onto his bed. Chloe smirked, going to grab what she needed for his vitals. "Down boy. You're gonna be discharged tomorrow, then you guys can go crazy," she said, rolling her eyes at them.

Angela's eyes lit up, the brightest smile spreading across her face that did nothing to help his current situation. "Really?"

Chloe nodded, putting the pulse oximeter on his finger and sticking a thermometer into his mouth. "Your pulse is elevated," she muttered, putting a blood pressure cuff around his arm. "Blood pressure too."

"I coulda told you that," he teased, his racing heart just starting to slow its beating. He glanced over at Angela who looked like she was trying to stifle a laugh. He winked at her, and the smallest giggle escaped her hold.

Chloe glared at her, though there was no real heat to it. "It's not funny. I turn in these numbers, and they're gonna think something's wrong with him. Make him stay longer," she explained with a scowl. She set her glare on Juice. "Calm down. Breathe."

"What got your panties in a twist?" Angela asked her friend, perching on the arm of the chair beside his bed. Juice perked up at the word panties, letting his mind wander to what color Angela might be wearing.

"Our supervisor's in a foul mood. Apparently, one of the residents did something to merit getting pulled and now she's pissed at the world. And because she's miserable, we all have to be miserable," she huffed, staring at the blood pressure cuff and the pulse oximeter with a frown. "Calm down, Juice."

"It's the panty mention," Angela stated on a smirk. Her dark eyes met his, a sexy smirk turning up the corner of her lips. "They're maroon, by the way. Matching set."

His heart rate kicked up a notch as he pictured his best guess of which set she had one. "Angela!" Chloe exclaimed, glowering at her. "Get out!"

Angela grinned like the Cheshire cat, blowing him a kiss before heading out of the room. Juice watched her leave, already missing her presence. He glanced up at Chloe, exhaling a long breath. "Sorry, Chlo. She's just..."

She scowled for a moment, but he saw the hint of a smirk turning up the corner of her mouth. "I get it. You two have been hands off for too long," she said with a sad smile. "I remember those days. You'll be out soon, and you can do all that more in the privacy of your own damn home."

Juice couldn't help but smile at the idea of being home with Angela. "Can't wait."

That got a smile from Chloe. "She's grown a lot from the girl that wandered in to our grief group," she commented. "Miss her there."

He knew Angela had stopped going to the grief meetings shortly after they'd gotten together. She'd told him it was because she was happy. That she'd been able to work everything out. "Yeah. That's okay, right? She shouldn't...she's good?"

"Grief is a funny thing, Juice," Chloe said as she unwrapped the blood pressure cuff from his arm. "I'm not a therapist or a specialist, and Ang and I aren't incredibly close, but...I think it's good for her to have space from our group. For now. Think she's moving on in a really healthy way this time thanks to you."

Juice couldn't help but smile proudly. "Thanks."

"Can I come in now?" Angela asked, poking her head in the door.

Chloe nodded, gesturing her to come in with a roll of her eyes. "C'mon in. Just...stay off of him and off the bed. Just got one more day, lady. Keep it in your pants."

Angela rolled her eyes but nodded, taking a seat in the chair by his bed as if to show she was going to listen. "You're no fun, Chlo," she said, sticking her tongue out at her.

Chloe stuck her tongue out right back. "I mean it, Ang. Don't jinx his last night here," she said, pointing a finger in Angela's face that Angela quickly swatted away. "A nurse will be in again in a few hours. Behave."

He chuckled at their antics, waiting until the door closed behind Chloe before he nodded towards Angela. "Want to give me a sneak peek a those panties?" he asked, wondering if she'd really do it.

Angela smirked, crossing one of her legs over the other. "Uh-uh. Not jinxing this. I want you home already," she said, though she leaned forward just enough that he could see the smallest peek of dark red lace on her bra. "Also took advantage and recovered a good amount of my panties you had stashed away."

He frowned at that, wondering just how far she'd gone. He had quite a few hidden in random places in TM took. His saddlebags, his locker, his tool box. "From where exactly?"

"You're gonna have to find that out on your own," she told him with a coy smile. "Gonna have to steal them off me all over again."

The grin she gave him set his blood on fire again; he knew what she meant by that, and he honestly, couldn't wait until he was out of the damn hospital bed and back in their bed with her. He winked at her, loving the way a shade of pink rose to her cheeks. "Already plannin' on it, baby."

~'~'~'~'~'~~'~'~'~'~'~~'~'~'~'~'~~'~'~'~'~'~

Was anyone missing Jax and Angela's chats? Because I sure was! 🤣
I love writing them as buds.

Let me know what you think!
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