Angela's alarm woke her up, and she reached out a hand to turn it off. Sighing, she stared up at the ceiling, trying to avoid thinking about how the other side of her bed was empty and cold. Juice had only been gone about a two weeks, but it felt like forever. Closing her eyes, she grabbed his pillow and brought it to her face, inhaling deeply and enjoying the smell of him that lingered there before putting it back on his side. She got out of bed with a groan, stretching her hands over her head and delighting in the way her back popped at the action. She swore she could smell bacon though there was no reason for it. Yeah, Kozik was her new roommate, but she'd never seen him cook anything other than grilled cheese...the world's best grilled cheese in her opinion.

It was her day off, and she'd planned to go visit Juice, but he still wasn't allowed in person visits, so that was a bust. She was going to go to the prison anyway to visit Happy. Happy didn't tell her to stay away this time around as he had when she was younger, so she was going to take advantage and visit with him without her aunt or Ma being there. She pulled on a pair of Juice's sweatpants, since she was already wearing one of his t-shirts to sleep, and one of his big hoodies, throwing her hair up in a messy bun as she padded her way to the kitchen. Someone was cooking there, but it wasn't Koz, it was Hannah.

Angela smirked; she'd thought she'd heard Koz bring someone home the night before, but she was so wrapped up in her own thoughts, she hadn't paid him much attention. She'd taken a sleeping pill and knocked out for the night. Hannah was wearing one of Kozik's big t-shirts, her dark red hair was still styled neatly in a claw clip that Angela knew was hers. She must've left it in the living room when she'd gotten home the night before. Clearly, the Croweater had made herself comfortable in the kitchen because there were several pans on the stove and coffee percolating in the coffee maker.

Hannah grinned at her as she walked. "Good morning sunshine," she greeted, flipping a piece of bacon.

If it had been anyone but Hannah, Angela would've been annoyed, but she liked the woman enough to be more curious about her presence than anything.  "Mornin'," she replied around a yawn. "Made yourself at home, huh?"

Hannah didn't look embarrassed in the least as she nodded. "Koz said it was all right as long as I made you breakfast too," she answered with a shrug. "Especially coffee. I got bacon, eggs, and pancakes. Koz bought the mix last night. Said he was cravin' 'em."

"I bet he did," Angela shot back, pouring herself a cup of coffee and fixing it the way she liked. "Need any help?"

Hannah shook her head, waving her away. "Nah, I got it, sweetheart. How you holdin' up with your boy gone?"

"I'm fine," she lied on a sigh. While she and Hannah were friendly, she didn't trust her enough to be a hundred percent honest with her. She took a deep drink of her coffee and sighed as she enjoyed the taste. She cleared her throat, ready to deflect and move onto a different topic before she started spilling her guts about how she was feeling with Juice. "What's this thing you got goin' with Koz?"

"What d'ya mean?"

"You're here," she pointed out, hoping Hannah would get it. "You're here and making him breakfast."

Hannah shrugged a shoulder. "We're just enjoying each other," she brushed off simply.

Angela narrowed her eyes at her. For Kozik to bring her into the house meant he really trusted her. Otherwise, he'd have fucked her at the clubhouse and come back home at some ungodly time. It wouldn't be the first time he did it. Him inviting a girl over to stay the night was unprecedented. Though, she had to admit, she liked the idea of Kozik having someone to support him, but she didn't know enough about Hannah to fully say she supported the relationship. "You an alcoholic?" she asked, though she couldn't remember ever seeing her drunk.

"No."

"Druggie?"

"Nope," she replied, shaking her head. "Never touched the stuff, actually. I don't like the feeling of not being in control. I'll smoke weed every once in awhile, but nothing hard."

Angela was relieved to hear that. It was a girl who'd gotten Kozik to relapse both times in the past. Granted, it was the same girl, and sadly, she'd died that second time they'd relapsed together. "Any kids?"

Hannah shook her head slowly. "Can't have 'em. Had fibroids or whatever, so I had a hysterectomy."

"Oh, shit," she said on a grimace. "Sorry."

"I've made peace with it," she stated with a little shrug. "Any more questions, Officer? Feel like I'm being interrogated."

Angela wasn't sorry about asking the questions. As protective as Koz was of her, she was equally protective of him. If he was going to let Hannah into their lives, Angels had to vet her out a bit. "None at the moment."

"Can I ask how long you've known Koz? I get why Hap and Juice are protective over you, but what's the story with him? 'Cause he gets real fierce when it comes to protecting you. There somethin' between the two of you at some point?"

"Gross, no," she muttered, wrinkling her nose. Koz was objectively handsome, anyone with eyes could see that, but she never saw him in a romantic light. He was her big brother. The guy who'd put bandaids on her skinned knees and made her grilled cheese when she had days off of school. It'd be weird to do anything romantically with him. "Met him when I was seven. He took the training wheels off my bike. Been my big brother ever since."

Hannah's eyes warmed at the story, no doubt she was picturing him fixing her bicycle. "That's real sweet."

"What's real sweet?" Kozik asked as he walked towards them. He was shirtless, his blonde hair a mess of spikes, and he was wearing some SOA sweatpants. Angela didn't miss the way Hannah's green eyes raked over him hungrily.

"That you took off my training wheels," Angela said on a shrug.

He grinned proudly and nodded, ruffling her hair lovingly. "What the kid failed to say is that she'd tried to pry 'em off herself, so the metal was warped as hell. Took me like twenty minutes to pry the damn things off."

Hannah laughed, shaking her head. "Why does that not surprise me?" She plated a couple pancakes, bacon, and eggs before handing it to Koz. "Hungry?"

"This looks good, babe. Thanks," he said, kissing Hannah's cheek before bringing the plate over to table.

Babe. The word reverberated in Angela's brain, making her heart warm. He'd called people 'babe' before, but it was the way he said it that gave her pause. He'd called Hannah 'babe' in the same loving way he called her 'kid' or 'Angie-pie'. Kozik really liked this woman.  She caught Hannah's surprised look and smiled back at her encouragingly; as long as Hannah made him happy and didn't lead him back to drugs, Angela was all for it.  Hannah's cheeks went pink as she dipped her head down to make another plate. "Here you go, sweetheart," she said, handing it to Angela. "Syrup's already on the table."

Angela smiled and accepted the plate with a 'thank you' before going to sit next to Kozik at the table. The table that had been set very nicely with silverware and napkins and everything. She wondered how long Hannah had been awake and digging through her kitchen cabinets. "What're your plans for today, Angie-pie?" Kozik asked around a mouthful of pancake as Hannah joined them at the table.

"Goin' to prison," she answered, cutting the pancake and taking a bite. She had to hand it to Hannah, the pancakes were delicious. Before Kozik could bring up that Juice didn't want her to visit him, she cut him off. "Visitin' Hap."

"Really?" Kozik asked, head tilted to the side. "Why?"

"Because he's my cousin, and I love him," she stated slowly as if he were an idiot.

He bobbed his head in a nod, enjoying his breakfast too much to pay her sass any mind. "Okay. You need a buddy, let me know. I'll move some shit around."

"I'll be fine. Could use some time alone, actually. Get my thoughts together," she said, finishing her plate before pushing away from the table. She grabbed her plate and brought it to the kitchen. "Gonna go get ready. Thanks for breakfast, Han. Make sure he cleans up."

Hannah nodded, seemingly pleased with herself. "Oh don't worry, he will."

Angela couldn't fight a smile when she heard them teasing each other as she walked away. She showered and changed quickly, braiding her hair and putting some light makeup on before heading towards the door. Kozik and Hannah were still chatting at the dining room table when she walked out. Kozik paused their conversation long enough to say, "Text me when you get there, kiddo."

"Drive safely!" Hannah called out.

She waved back at them, weirded out by how it felt like she was saying goodbye to her parents on the first day of school...or at least the way it looked it the movies; Angela personally hadn't had that type of experience. Her first days of high school consisted of walking to the bus stop with Lino or, when he had his license, he stopped by to pick her up so they could face the first day together.

Without her aunt complaining in the passenger's seat, Angela actually enjoyed the drive out to the prison. It was a relatively easy drive, so she rolled down the windows and blasted her favorite music, singing along at the top of her lungs. It was cathartic to her as it always was and by the time she pulled into the parking lot, she felt a little lighter than she had that morning.

She locked her phone in the glove compartment before re-doing the braid in her hair that the wind had whipped into a mess. Getting out of the car, she headed towards the entrance, surprised to see a beautiful Harley with gleaming ape-hangers parked near the front. " 'ey, look who it is," a voice drawled as a man sauntered over to her.

His dark hair was nicely styled on top and shaved on the sides, facial hair well-trimmed. He was wearing a plaid shirt underneath his Mayan cut. Angel Reyes. She'd only met him once, and she'd been with Esai when she'd met him. At the time, she couldn't help but notice how handsome he was. Now, she didn't really give him a second thought. Still, he'd been nice to her then, so she gave him a friendly smile. "Angel, right?" she greeted with a nod.

"Good memory, Angelita. My name twin," he teased with a smirk. "Heard about your man. My condolences."

For a moment, she wondered what he meant by "condolences"; Juice was in prison, not dead. Then it clicked. He didn't mean Juice, he meant Esai. Angela grimaced; it'd been a long time since Esai was her man. "Oh. Thanks, but we weren't together when all...that went down."

"So I heard. Still sucks though," he stated on a languid shrug. At her eyebrow raise, he smirked again. "What, you don't think we talk, Angelita?"

"I know you all talk. Like high school girls. It's ridiculous," she replied on a scoff. "Just didn't think my shit would reach down there."

Angel was still smirking at her as he shook his head. "E came to visit a couple times after. Wouldn't shut up about you. 'specially when he was trashed. Went on and on about you hookin' up with some asshole Son. Said you looked happy. Think that's what devastated him the most."

She really didn't know what to say to that. It was a whole lot of information that she was finding hard to process. The fact Esai had said she looked happy and that's what had hurt the most made her feel just a little sad for him; he'd been an asshole to her, but she wished he could've found someone to make him happy and forgotten all about her. "Oh," was all she could manage to say.

"You here to visit your Crow boy?"

Angela smiled a little at the nickname and nodded. She wasn't, but Angel didn't need to know that. "Who are you here for?"

"My kid brother. He got into some shit," he explained simply.

"That sucks. I'm sorry."

"Yeah," he agreed, sliding his hands into his pockets. He looked over his shoulder at the prison looming behind him. "You should go. Visit your boy 'fore they stop lettin' people in."

Angela nodded, giving him a smile. "Yeah. You take care, Angel."

"You too, Angelita. Sure I'll see you around. Maybe we can grab like a coffee or somethin'."

She knew that was something that would never happen. She loved Juice too much to go behind his back and do anything one on one with a random Mayan. Even though it wouldn't mean anything, Angel was a handsome guy, and if anyone should see them and get the wrong idea...she didn't want to put Juice through that. It wasn't worth it. Still, she didn't have the heart to shoot him down completely. "Maybe," she dodged, setting her left hand on his shoulder as she walked by. "See you later, Reyes."

His dark eyes spotted the ring before he smirked a bit, dipping his head. "Later, Ruiz."

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

Happy sat down heavily in the seat on the other side of the window surprised to see just his cousin on the other side. Her dark hair was braided away from her face, and she was wearing a Raiders hoodie that had once been her father's. There were dark circles under her eyes, and she was messing with her engagement ring nervously. She perked up when she saw him though. Giving him a little grin as she reached for the phone. He did the same; it was always good to see his little cousin. "Hey kid," he greeted, leaning forward on the little counter underneath the glass. "You look like shit."

Angela chuckled, shaking her head at him. "Gee, thanks, Hap."

"Where's Ma?"

"At home. She said she wasn't in the mood to go on a wild ride to prison," she explained with a smirk. "I promised her I'd drive slower, but she told me no."

Happy knew it was a bullshit excuse and that his Ma really was just too tired to make the trip. After her MS diagnosis, she often got to that point, though she'd never admit it. "How's she doin'?"

Angela shrugged a shoulder. "She's all right, I think. No big changes. My mom took her to get a checkup a few weeks ago, but you know they don't tell me shit."

He grunted at that; he hated how his Ma and aunt routinely kept them in the dark about his Ma's progressing illness. He hated that. "She's fine," he assured her, though he knew even less than she did. He and his family would always protect Angela above all. Physically, emotionally, mentally. They all wanted to keep her protected. "How're you?"

"Apparently, I look like shit," she shot back with a little smirk. He gave her a glare, and she rolled her eyes. "I uh...I'm just working and getting through the day. Juice's weed shop has a shit ton of work that needs to be done, and then there's all the wedding shit, so I've been keeping busy."

He could tell she was forcing the positivity. She did look like shit, though. Her dark eyes looked tired and sad with dark rings underneath them. Her shoulders were sagging a bit, and he knew her too well to believe the smile she had forced on her face. "Not sleepin'?"

"Not well. I love Koz, but he's too quiet. Feels like I'm living alone," she admitted, glancing down at her hands. "How about you?"

He had a feeling she was skirting around asking about Juice, which he appreciated; she'd come to visit him, not ask about her fiancée. " 'm good. Idiot snores like a fuckin' lawnmower. Don't know how you sleep like that."

"You get used to it," she said with the smallest smile. A real one this time. She always smiled when she talked about him. "Hope you're lettin' him sleep a little."

As obnoxious as the idiot's snoring was, Happy had gotten used to it, at least enough to let him sleep more. He nodded slowly. "Doin' my best."

"Oh. Good. So...how's the food in there?" she asked, trying her best to change the subject.

Again, he appreciated the way she was avoiding talking about the idiot. How much she respected their time together, but he also knew the not knowing was killing her, and he didn't like watching her suffer. "He's okay, kid," he told her, feeling better when he saw her shoulders relax. "Keepin' his head down. Stayin' outta trouble. He's good. We'll probably get our visitin' privileges next week, 'n' you can see for yourself."

She let out a soft sigh of relief and nodded. "Thank you."

"Got you, kid," he told her with a smirk. "Food in here is shit. Rather eat somethin' your Ma makes."

That got her to laugh, and he triumphed in it. Her Ma was the world's worst kick and rarely cooked anything. That was his Ma's job. Graciela was the breadwinner, always had been. She didn't have time to cook and clean. "I dunno. Hear y'all can get pretty creative in here."

"Bobby's the best at it. Makes the weirdest shit, but it tastes all right."

"I'll put some more cash in your commissary. Make sure you can buy some weird shit to mix together."

" 'ppreciate it," he said with a nod. As much as he took care of his little cousin, she took care of him. Usually, he wouldn't let her, but it was never a bad thing to have extra cash in his commissary.

Angela nodded, pleased with herself. Her dark eyes sparkled with mischief as she leaned in even more. "You'll never guess who I found in my kitchen this morning."

Happy listened as Angela told him the story of the Croweater she'd found in the kitchen, cooking breakfast for them. He knew Hannah well and knew Kozik had taken a liking to her as of late, which was why he'd been staying away from her. Angela's chatter brought him back to when she was a little girl, and she would talk his ear off. He fought against a smile as he remembered her toothless in pigtails rambling about some new gossip she'd overheard their Ma's talking about. It helped bring a little light to the dark-ass prison. He'd forever be grateful to her for that. "You good with her bein' there?"

"Yeah. I always liked her, 'n' as long as she's not into the drug shit, I'm good with him bein' happy just like I'd be good with you bein' happy...even though you are always happy 'cause that's your name or whatever," she said, gesturing with her hands as she spoke. "I can share the number one girl spot, y'know. Just like you can share it."

He smirked and nodded. He honestly didn't mind sharing the number one spot with Juice. The guy was an idiot, but there was a mutual respect there that made it easy to fit him into their family. He couldn't imagine finding someone who could fit as easily into their lives. "We'll see, kid."

The guards called time, and he watched as her smile faded. She fidgeted with her ring a little before sighing. "Thanks for comin'."

"Of course," she said with a roll of her eyes. "I love you, Hap. Please be good."

"You too, kid. Take care a Ma," he said, nodding to her.

Angela swallowed hard and nodded. "Take care a him. Please. Tell him I love him."

"Will do. Be good," he said, pushing away from the counter and hanging up the phone. He pointed towards the exit, not wanting her to see the guards put the shackles on him. With a nod, she got up and left, keeping her head down as she walked by the rest of the visiting family members to give them their own privacy.

He took the long walk back to his cell feeling his spirits a little lifted as they usually were after talking to his kid. Heading into his cell, he wasn't surprised to see Juice's socked feet already on the top bunk. The idiot had a piece of paper in his hand that he was reading, one rubbing over his heart where he'd just gotten the kid's name tattooed. It was the first of many sessions. Happy was taking his time with that tattoo; he wasn't going to fuck up his little cousin's name. That shit was going to look as clean as if he'd gotten it done outside. "Don't rub the ink. Still fresh. You'll fuck it up."

"Sorry," Juice replied on a sigh as he put the paper down. "How's your Ma and Aunt?"

"Stayed home. Was just the kid," he stated, washing his hands in the little sink. He could see the way Juice stilled out of the corner of his eye. The way his breath caught. The mere mention of his cousin always had him reacting like that. "She looks like shit."

He scoffed softly. "That's physically impossible."

Happy liked the answer, though he didn't like being told he was wrong. "Looks tired. Don't think she's sleepin'. She ain't ever gonna say it, but she needs to see ya."

"Talked to her on the phone today," he stated, sitting up in his bed to look over at him. "Hopin' to see her next week."

"That from her?" he asked, nodding to the paper.

Juice nodded, bringing it to his face and breathing it in. "She sprayed one a her perfumes on it."

Happy wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Gross," he muttered, shaking his head; he was grateful she didn't do that shit to the letters she sent to him. "Keep that shit to yourself, or I'll burn it for more ink."

The idiot looked mildly offended and quickly shoved the letter into the space between his mattress and the wall. "Wasn't about to read it to you anyway," he muttered, sighing softly. "She comin' for you or me first when we get in person privileges?"

The fact that he didn't automatically assume she was coming for him was another point in Juice's favor. Another sign of respect. He had a feeling that it wouldn't upset Juice one bit if she came to visit him first. He valued not just family, but his family that much. "You."

He let out a sigh of relief as he nodded. "Great. I miss her."

Happy smirked and stretched out on his own bed, grabbing a makeshift sketch book and starting to mess with some lettering ideas for a tattoo another inmate had requested. He missed the kid, too, and he'd just seen her. He wasn't about to tell Juice that, though. Instead, he simply said, "Good. You should."

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

Some filler, but I like fleshing out the characters a little and figured it was time for a little Hap and Angela one on one.
I think one more prison chapter before we proceed with the story?
Unless y'all want more?
Let me know what you think!
Any ideas or suggestions are welcome!
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