With a sigh and one last look at her sister, whose hand she had squeezed again, Tig escorted Sage out of the room when visiting hours were over. Only one person was allowed to stay with Dawn, and that was only because the nurses knew that some shitty, made up rules wouldn't stop Tig from staying with his daughter.

Plus there was still the lockdown, which meant there was still danger. Even though things had become quiet after the attack on Dawn and a prospect, who also survived, the club wanted to be on the safe side and maintain the lockdown until the club had retaliated.

Sage wasn't thrilled at all, she didn't want to keep running into Fawn. Especially not after the little argument earlier. And Tig knew that, which is exactly why he approached Happy first.

The killer lounged on an uncomfortable chair in the hallway, waiting for news or what would happen next. After seeing Fawn's angry, red face two hours ago, he already suspected that there had been a fight between the sisters. His suspicions were only confirmed when he spotted Sage's split lip.

"What happened?" he asked her after he stood up and approached her, gently running his thumb along her lip.

Sage grimaced as the pad of his thumb came near the open wound, but played it down. "Nothing special. Fawn was just being...well, Fawn."

"That's why she was so pissed off and left without a word", Happy guessed.

Fawn had simply glanced at Jax after she came storming out of the room earlier, who had followed his wife with an exhausted sigh. If Jax wouldn't be such a pain in the ass sometimes, Happy could almost feel bad for him. Being married to a woman like Fawn certainly wasn't easy.

The redhead could only roll her eyes. "She's a drama queen, always has been."

As the two talked, Tig observed the scene closely and furrowed his brows. He was surprised that Happy even said so many words and it seemed like he really cared about Sage's well-being. Happy had no compassion for anyone other than the club and his mother.

"Can someone explain why you guys are so close?", he asked, pointing his finger back and forth between the two of them. "Is there something going on I should know about?"

A slight grin graced his lips at the thought. That would at least be good news for a change. Or not? Sage had been hurt before and Tig didn't want that to happen again and until now he couldn't imagine Happy ever actually getting into anything serious.

His daughter, on the other hand, was someone who enjoyed relationships. Who liked having someone by her side with whom she could share her life, her joy and her worries. Tig's worry was that if something were between them, Sage would develop feelings while Happy wouldn't.

But what mattered to Tig right now was seeing that Sage seemed comfortable around Happy. She needed this support right now.

"No", they both answered in unison, smirking at each other before looking back at Tig.

"But you'd be the first to know", Sage added with a wink.

"I'm not sure if I believe you." Tig looked at the twenty-seven year old, then at Happy. "You're keeping something from me, I just know it."

"And even if; it's none of our business." Grinning, Happy slapped Tig's back. "What now? Want me to take her to the clubhouse?"

Tig narrowed his eyes skeptically, but left the topic alone for now. If neither of them wanted to say anything about it, he had to accept it. For now. He looked at his daughter again, who looked at him pleadingly, giving him the perfect pouty look that made it impossible to turn down any wish of hers. Who wouldn't soften at such a look?

"Nah." He scratched his forehead thoughtfully. "She can crash with Ima and me from tomorrow, of course only if a patched member is with them at all times because I'll be here with Dawn. But it's late and Ima is still at the clubhouse. Can you take Sage to your place? Or does Jax need you tonight?"

"Not that I know of. He just said that he needs me there in the morning for church", Happy told him, and to be honest he was glad about that. The tension between Jax and him was tense enough. "I'll take her home with me."

Sage's sigh of relief filled the empty hallway. Only a nurse occasionally walked past them. But other than that it was quiet. "Thanks. I don't want to be a burden, but I definitely don't want to spend my time here with Fawn and Jax."

"I know, sweetheart", Tig nodded understandingly. Even though he hated that his daughters didn't get along, he could understand why Sage and Dawn were avoiding Fawn. "But if I allow you to be outside the clubhouse, I want you to listen to Happy, got it? Whatever he says goes."

Sage raised her hands, smiling gratefully. "I promise I'll listen to Happy and don't do anything that could get me in danger."

"Good." Tig pulled Sage into a tight hug, just holding her for a long moment. "I still want you to be careful."

"I am, dad", she assured him as she buried her face against his shoulder and closed her eyes for a few seconds. "I really missed you."

"I missed you too, baby." Before Tig could get too emotional, he pulled away and caressed her cheek. "Now goᅳ you both look like you could use some sleep."

"We do", Happy grumbled, his hands buried deep in his pockets. "And you'll let us know if you need anything. Jax said that he would send a prospect to keep an eye on the hospital."

"Okay, maybe that's not the baddest idea", Tig nodded, then said goodbye to the two of them before heading back into Dawn's room.

"Come on, Tig's right, we can use some sleep." Happy nodded the redhead with him through the now quiet hallways of St. Thomas and back outside to his bike and her car.

"Thanks", Sage said as soon as she stood in front of her car that was parked right next to Happy's bike, her hand already on the door handle. "That you waited and I can stay with you tonight", she added after noticing his confused look.

With a grunt, Happy mounted his bike and put on his helmet, then his gaze fell back on Sage, whose face was clearly visible in the surprisingly bright moonlight even in the darkness. Her face looking even paler than it usually was.

"No need to thank me", he rasped with a shrug and started the engine. "Stay close behind me, understand?"

Only when Sage, after she had promised to stay close behind him, got into the car and her door was closed did he leave the hospital parking lot, which was much emptier at night than during the day.

ᚔ

Sage tossed around, unable to sleep. She was so tired that she was already way too tired and therefore had difficulty finding sleep. But she desperately needed some sleep, even if it was just for a few hours.

"You need to sleep, little girl", Happy hummed from the other side of the bed before he turned around so he was facing her, wrapping his arm around her waist to pull her against his chest. "What's going on?"

Happy probably didn't know how much his little gesture meant to her. They had shared a bed for the last few days, there was nothing wrong with that. But so far it was just sex they had had, no cuddles. But that's exactly what she needed right now.

"I don't know. I guess too much has happened today." Without further hesitation or wasting time, Sage snuggled against his chest and slipped one of her legs between his legs, her arm wrapped around his waist. "Seeing Dawn lying there..that was horrible. When I think about what could've happened.."

Sage shook off the thought of what else could have happened to her older sister, otherwise she probably wouldn't get any sleep at all.

Happy noticed the pained look on her face, which he slowly recognized as his eyes adjusted to the dark room again. The moonlight coming through the window was the only source of light and did make it easier though.

"You shouldn't even think about what could've been. 'What if' thoughts always lead to catastrophic thinking." He carefully pushed some strands of hair out of her face and tucked them behind her ear. "Dawn will be okay, you know that."

A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Yeah...if one of us can survive getting shot, it's Dawn. She's always been tough."

"See", Happy grumbled tiredly. "And if you want to go back tomorrow morning, you should get some sleep now. Or is there something else on your mind?"

While Sage remained silent for a while, letting her fingertips dance over the stubble on his jaw, Happy just let her do and gave her the moment she needed. But he noticed that something was still bothering her. He soothingly ran his fingertips along the side of her thigh, his face just inches from hers so he could feel her breath against his skin.

"I haven't been to St. Thomas since I lost the baby", she finally began to tell after a few minutes, her voice barely a whisper and her eyebrows drawn together. "I didn't think it would still bother me so much after three years."

Again, Happy felt this strange feeling that others would probably call compassion, which is why he cradled her body even closer, if that was even possible.

He rested his forehead against hers and placed his hand on her cheek, his thumb gliding over her cheekbone. "Something like that takes time. It was the first time you were there since it happened. And then the run in with Jaxᅳ it was probably just too much."

"Yeah..it definitely was." A bitter laugh fell over Sage's lips. "I wanted to punch him the moment I saw him."

"I saw that, and he probably saw it too", he said with a grin before becoming serious again. "He'll leave you alone as long as you're here."

"How do you know that?" Sage looked at him, slightly confused, and despite the darkness she could clearly see his dark eyes.

"I told him", Happy let her know. "He should stay away from you. That's best for everyone involved."

"Why would you do that for me?" Sage pushed herself up with her arm, eventually using her forearm as support to hold herself up. "Did you have an argument or something with him because of that?"

"No, stop worrying about it." Happy pushed himself up too. "He fucked up and needs to live with the consequences. It's that easy."

"But you could've gotten into a fight with him", the redhead sighed, letting her forehead fall gently against his. "But again; why would you do that for me? You don't even really know me. Jax, on the other hand, is your friend, your brother."

"Because I like you, Sage", he replied. There he said it, he liked her. He didn't have to know her for weeks to know that. "And I told you that just because he's my Pres at the moment doesn't mean I have to support everything Jax does."

Either Happy liked someone immediately or he would never get along with the person. That's how it had always worked for him and he clearly got along with Sage.

"You really seem like a great person, Happy", she replied sincerely, leaning in to steal a kiss from his lips. Then she smiled weakly. "I'll miss you and this once I'm back in Seattle."

Happy didn't say that he would feel the same way, but leaned in even more. Gently grabbing the hair at the nape of her neck, he claimed her lips and rolled on top of her, drawing a soft moan from the redhead.

"Then we should use the time we have left." He growled softly against her lips, which he immediately claimed again when she rolled her hips against his.

"Mhm...I like that", she purred against his lips as she let her hands wander over his upper body, enjoying the feeling of his muscles on her palms.

Happy's hungry gaze roamed over her body, which was only clad in a shirt of his and a pair of panties of hers. She was fucking perfect and he wanted to enjoy that for as long as he could.

Releasing his hold on her neck, his hand reached for the hem of her, or his, shirt, tugging on it. "Get rid of that, you won't need it for the next hour", he told her, his tone demanding yet gentle, his eyes darkening at the sight of her biting her lip.

He sat up so she could take off the shirt, which soon landed on the floor next to his bed. Happy  hooked his index fingers under the waistband of her panties, which he pulled off her legs and threw to the side, then he settled between her legs, which she voluntarily spread for himᅳ dropping one to the side and draping the other around his shoulder.

"Oh my.." As his tongue slid through her wet slit and his arms slid under her thighs and then wrapped around them to hold her in place, she let her body sink back into the mattress and placed her hand against the back of his head as she greedily pressed her center towards him. This was the kind of distraction she needed right now and for the time she would be here. And Happy knew exactly what he had to do to make her feel good.