As Sage packed her duffle bag and absentmindedly folded the things lying on the bed, she kept replaying the conversation with Fawn in her head. Night had now fallen over Charming and the clubhouse had become quiet. Most were in their rooms or at home.

Sage wasn't at all surprised that Fawn had stayed here tonight. Her sister wanted to make sure that she would actually get in her car tomorrow morning and drive back to Seattle. And so far, that was Sage's plan.

As much as she hated lying to Happy and keeping things from him, it was probably for the better. However, this wasn't going to be as easy as she had hoped.

"I don't want you to leave", Happy's raspy voice came from her right as he returned from the bathroom.

He gently took the shirt she was folding from her hands and threw it back on the bed. With his hand around her wrist, he turned her more towards him and lifted her chin, his gaze so intense that she couldn't even avoid it.

"We both know that if you go back to Seattle now, we won't see each other for weeks, maybe even two or three months again", he said matter of factly. "I want you close in case something happens, Sage. It's my kid too."

The redhead was silent for a moment, her lips pressed together. He knew how much she hated being here, around Fawn and Jax, and what painful memories she had, and yet he asked her to stay here.

Anger rose within her for a brief moment, but it immediately disappeared as she kept thinking for another moment. He was worriedᅳ about her and the child. She could be happy that Happy actually cared for his child. And she wanted to be near him too.

God, she would love to wake up next to him every morning and know that she wasn't alone. Sure, she had Dawn in Seattle, but her sister also had to work a lot.

Still, she would miss Seattle. She had really grown fond of the city and felt comfortable there. But Sage couldn't expect Happy to move in with her either. That wasn't possible with the club. And the club always came first.

However, there was still Fawn's threat, which Sage took quite seriously. For now Sage didn't say anything but just let out a quiet sigh.

"How do you think this can work, Hap?" Her tone was full of overwhelm and her eyes were filled with uncertainty. "I have my whole life in Seattle. My art gallery, my clients and especially Dawn."

"I know", Happy nodded, really trying to be understanding. "But we'll find a solution for that."

"And what does that solution look like?", she inquired with a sigh.

Happy let go of her wrist before sitting down on the end of the bed, pulling her next to him. "You can paint your pictures here and send them to your clients. Your gallery can stay, you just won't be there as often as usual. And Dawn..maybe she can move to Charming too?"

"Hap..I don't know. Besides, I can't force Dawn to move here." Exhaling deeply, Sage tilted her head back.

"Just think about it", Happy demanded without putting any pressure on her. "I know it's a lot to ask, but I want you here."

She appreciated Happy's suggestions and that he really thought about things. But it wasn't that simple. Still, she didn't want to kill his spiritᅳ so she didn't. If he were happy and calmer, she would just have to step back and do him the favor.

Not because she had to, but because she was lucky that her child would have a father like Happy. It was worth putting her own needs aside.

"Even if I stayed..", she paused for a moment while she rubbed her temples. "There's still a problem."

Happy frowned as he placed his hand on Sage's leg. "What kind of problem, Sage?"

"Fawn", she murmured, her gaze fixed on Happy's hand. "There was a little incident earlier."

"What incident?" Something murderous immediately shimmered in Happy's eyes, making them appear darker as he narrowed them. "What did she do? Did she hurt you."

"Well, not exactly." Sage cleared her throat quietly as she dropped her gaze again. "She threatened me and I know Fawnᅳ she would do anything to get or keep what she wants."

"She fuckin' threatened you and you didn't talk to me?!" Happy immediately jumped back on his feet, running both hands over his scalp while pacing up and down. After a while, he came to a stop and looked down at Sage with one of those intense glares, causing her breath to hitch in her throat.

"Shit doesn't work like that, woman. If someone threatens you, you're gonna tell me!", he barked at her. Not because he was angry, not at Sage at least.

But she had to understand that she couldn't keep something like that to herself. Only when she looked up at him with those sad eyes did his facial features soften, immediately making him feel a sense of regret and compassion.

"Fuck, I'm sorry." Sighing, he crouched down and placed his hands on her legs. "I didn't mean to snap at you, okay? But I need to know when shit like that happens, little girl."

"I know. I'm sorry I didn't tell you about it right away", the redhead choked out, rubbing the tip of her nose with a sniffle. "I just don't want to make a mistake. I don't want anything to happen to our baby so I thought it would just be smarter to listen to Fawn and sort things out once the baby is here."

These hormones during pregnancy were really no joke and quite stressful. All Happy had to do was raise his voice a little and she would start crying. Although she was probably more upset because she was afraid of disappointing himᅳ that wasn't what she wanted.

"She threatened you and the baby?" Happy's jaw tensed enormously, the blue veins on his temples clearly visible.

"In a way, yes. Apparently out of jealousy because Jax is supposedly having old feelings coming up", she murmured with a heavy swallow. "That's why I didn't say anything. Normallyᅳ"

She didn't get any further as Happy stormed out of the room. It was almost impossible to keep up with him as quickly as he rushed towards the large room to look for Fawn and Jax. Even though it was late, the two of them were still sitting at one of the tables, Fawn in a surprisingly good mood.

"Happy!" Sage exclaimed and grabbed Happy's arm to keep him from doing anything stupid, getting the attention of the other two.

The killer, however, was so caught up in his anger that he simply yanked his arm out of Sage's grasp and walked towards Jax. The blonde couldn't even  react so quickly before Happy pulled Jax to his feet.

"Tell your wife to get her shit together and never fuckin' threaten my woman again, especially not my kid", Happy snarled dangerously, giving Jax' one of those death glares that everyone feared. "Or I'll make sure she won't be around to do it again."

Grabbing him by the collar of his Kutte, Happy slammed Jax against the nearest wall. "And if you lay your eyes on my Old Lady again, I'll kill you myself and I don't give a shit about the consequences, Pres", he spat the last word before letting go of Jax. Because if he wouldn't, Happy would probably beat the living shit out of SAMCRO'S new King.

"What the hell, man?!" Jax shouted indignantly, adjusting his Kutte before pushing his hair back, pushing Happy backwards. "What the fuck are you talkin' about?"

"That's enough!" Chibs, who just came from the back to get a beer and spotted them fighting, pushed himself between the arguing men. "Jesus Christ, what's wrong with ye' two?!"

"I don't know, ask him!" Jax huffed, straightening his shoulders.

"Ask your wife", the SAA spat at the blonde, spit flying  from his mouth, while Fawn was already trying to remove herself from the situation.

"Fawn!" Jax' cutting tone reached the woman with dark blonde hair.

Embarrassed, she scratched her chin and cleared her throat after giving Sage a hateful look. "I think we'd better talk about it at home."

Sage, still in shock about what had just happened, wrapped her arms around her body. Wordlessly, she let Happy gently drag her outside and towards her car. He needed to get out of there or he'd do something that he might regret later.

The cool night breeze hit both of them and helped at least Sage to cool down a bit. Happy, however, was still seething.

"Drive to my house, I'm right behind you", he ordered and held the car door open for her, his gaze wandering towards the clubhouse again. Loud shouting could be heard from the inside. Apparently Jax didn't want to wait any longer with the talk.

Before Sage slipped into her car, she looked up at Happy and unexpectedly wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face on his shoulder. "You called me your Old Lady", she murmured, a hint of a smile crossing her lips. "That sounds pretty official."

Slowly Happy also managed to relax his muscles under Sage's touch. He grunted quietly, one arm slipping around her waist.

"Because that's what you are. I'm done dragging this out just because to keep the Prince happy", he cupped her face in his hands. "It also means you don't have to take shit from anyone, baby. Show your sister that she has no fuckin' power over you."

Smiling, she stole a kiss from his lips. "I love you, just so you know that."

Then, before he could answer, she slipped into her car and closed the door. Gripping the wheel, she bit her lower lip and waited until Happy was at his bike. Only then did she leave the yard and drove directly to his house, as he had told her.

ᚔ

After the long day, she was happy to finally find some peace. She was lying on the couch with Happy, the containers of the Chinese food they had ordered earlier were half-empty while the TV was still on.

Her head was in Happy's lap, her eyes closed. She wasn't tired yet, but it was nice to just rest here with Happy and not have to worry for a moment whether she was about to run into Fawn or Jax.

"You have to tell Tig about this, Sage." With his fingers he pushed some hair out of her face, his gaze no longer on the TV and now focused on her. "He needs to know what's going on and then we'll see what happens next."

"I know. He definitely won't be happy. He always hoped that Fawn would come to her senses at some point", she replied with a sigh, looking up at him. "What's going to happen next? Jax is the Pres, so Fawn isn't going anywhere. And if it's true that he's actually developing feelings for me again, then that's just going to cause trouble."

"I know that there's nothing you can do about feelings, but he'd rather not try anything", Happy grumbled. Jealousy was a shitty feeling, as he had to realize again. "It's going to be tense for a while, and Jax and I need to have a serious conversation. But you're definitely staying here."

"Happy, please don't get your hopes up", she asked with a sigh, her expression pleading. "First I have to see if all of this works out with my customers and the gallery. And I want to talk to Dawn about it first. Also, where am I gonna live? Here?"

"Look, we're going to Seattle together in the next few days so you can sort this all out. As I said, we'll find a solution", he emphasized again while resting his hand on her stomach. "Of course you'll move in with me", he said firmly.

"Okay, but I can't promise anything." She had no choice but to ultimately give in. And if they found a solution, she'd  be okay with it. The redhead looked up at him again hesitantly. "If I moved here, we'd live just a few houses away from Jax and Fawn. I can't do that, Hap."

The SAA shook his head after finishing his beer and placing the bottle on the table. "I'm selling this house and we're looking for another one. This one is way too small anyway."

The corner of his mouth twitched upwards as he circled his thumb over her stomach. "The baby needs a room. And you need a room so you can put all your paintings in here."

"You would get another house just because of me?", she asked, perplexed that he didn't even hesitate.

"I want you to live here and give up everything in Seattle, so I have to give you something back", he said with a shrug. "We just have to find another house first. That might take a while, can you stand being around Jax and Fawn for that long?"

With a small smile, she placed her hand on his and nodded weakly. "If we're looking for a house that's further away, I can live with that. And until then I'll have to travel back and forth between Seattle and Charming more often anyway."

"Why don't you move your gallery to Charming? Or another nearby part of town?", he asked.

"No, I want the gallery to stay in Seattle. It sounds stupid, but the gallery is kind of my baby. It's the first thing I worked really hard for", she explained calmly while tracing the tattoos on his arm with the tip of her finger.

"And I'm keeping my apartment, I'm too attached to it. The rent isn't that expensive and if I keep my clients, I should be able to pay rent easily", she added.

"It almost sounds like you want to go back at some point", Happy said gruffly.

“Would that be so bad?”, she asked cautiously. "I feel really comfortable in Seattle. Charming doesn't feel like home anymore, but Washington does."

When she saw his face contort in thought, she sighed softly before pressing a kiss against his arm. "But who knows, maybe that will change and I'll feel home again. The important thing is that our baby sees both of us regularly."

"I hope so." Sighing, Happy rubbed his face before turning his gaze back on the TV. Knowing that Sage would be unhappy here gnawed at his conscience.

A transfer to Tacoma was a solution, a solution that would suit him just fine. He missed his old charter, but right now every member in SAMCRO was needed. This means that he could only ask for a transfer in the next two to three years, when at least two of the prospects were patched in.

Until then, he would do everything he could to make Sage feel comfortable here if she was ready to give up everything in Seattle just for of him. She could also be selfish and reject his wishes, instead she put her needs aside so she and the baby could be with him.