#jax in a turtleneck

[dontcallthedoctor]

Some production art from Skittles Goes to the Amazing Digital Circus! The art you see here is by my lovely friends @goatmealluci, @jeggyweggy and @koolaidkan! Hope you all enjoy!!!

Sorry there hasn't been much in the way of teaser content, I'm afraid we're still in the early phases of production. Mostly we've just been goofin' around lol

The biggest project we've got on our plate rn is the first teaser poster (headed by @endomentendo) and official Casting Call Club page, which'll hopefully all be done sometime in May!

Also, if you'd like to lend your talents to this project, don't hesitate to dm me! :3

[sm-baby]

Ayo in that comic with Jax and Caine biting his ass (or well, actually head), Pomni's collar is gone in every frame. Is that purposeful?

That's an oopsies on my part ywy

this is because Pomni with and without collar isn't much of a visual difference (in terms of line art anyway) TwT

changing her to a v-like turtleneck though so I hope the distinction is easier to memorize when I'm on autopilot!

its tiny character design details that i gotta think of! I already have it in action with the recent piece!

[nightmarerodent]

what about the rest of the kombatants in casual clothes?

Nightwolf, Erron, and Johnny already fight and work in their casual clothes so, eh.

Sonya: No casual. Only work.

Kitana doesn’t really own anything casual. It’s just not how she was raised and as Khan she must always be prepared for a public appearance or battle. She is a fan of Earthrealm lounge wear though. They’re very comfy.

Hanzo typically wares a yukata or kimono when not in his typical uniform but he does have plain jeans and shirts for events outside the Shirai Ryu. He has no sense of style and it hurts Takeda’s heart.

Kuai Liang is in much the same boat as Hanzo, except Frost doesn’t give a shit what he looks like.

Jax is just like his daughter. Comfortable but functional. He’s a big fan of cargo pants.

When asked this question, Raiden did not reply.

Fujin does have casual clothes for when he goes “undercover” (sneaks out). Slacks, dress shoes, and turtlenecks. This is what he considers casual.

Liu Kang and Kung Lao dress in typical Chinese street wear. Kung Lao removes all of his sleeves though. Clams they offend him.

Shao Khan: Jorts.

[maibeewrites]

ULTRAVIOLENT || Chibs Telford x Y/N

part II. and you'r my cult leader

The next day she woke up with a horrible headache. But she couldn't rest at home, she awoke to a call from Tig. Church meeting.

Well, just what Y/N needed. From the moment she woke up, the only thing she could think about was the night before. The pain of it all, her betrayal, Chibs's betrayal. How he hit her. And how he took care of her after. But it didn't matter. If she ever had hopes for her and him, after last night, it was all gone.

Walking into the bathroom she looked in the mirror. She was taken aback by how bad she looked. Her eyes were bruised from her eyebrows down until her cheeks. Above her right eye there was a cut, which turned into a scab overnight. The same on her lips. She cleaned herself up and put clean stitches over it. Her whole face was swollen.

After the shower, she dried her hair, and whilst drinking a cup of tea and smoking a cigarette, she held a bag of frozen peas over her face, hoping to reduce the swelling. She didn't ever bother with makeup, knowing that her condition was far from concealable.

She put on a pair of skinny brown jeans, and a loose cream colored turtleneck blouse, put on her cut, and after completing her outfit with black boots, she was out the door.

She arrived just on time. Usually she is always early, but she didn't want to spend more time at the clubhouse today than it was necessary.

When she walked in, all of them were at the bar. Jax, Tig, Happy, Quinn, Bobby, Juice, Opie and Chibs. The prospects were cleaning up.

When they first saw her, everyone got quiet for a second.

"Holy shit." Jax exclaimed "Who did this to you?"

"Girl, are you okay?" asked Tig, and he quickly walked up to her and held Y/N's face gently in his hands.

"Yes Tigger. I'm okay guys. This was some personal stuff, there is nothing to worry about." She tried to sound as convincing and confident as she could.

"That is certainly a thing we should be worried about" said Bobby.

"The person who did this to you is an animal. That is all that I'm saying." Quinn spoke. Even Happy looked concerned.

Opie and Juice didn't say anything but were very conflicted. Opie hugged her shoulders as they went in to the Table.

Chibs haven't said a word. He didn't even look her in the eye.

"So, before we talk about what is on our plate with the Mayans, Y/N, you have to tell us what happened. Who hurt you?" Jax asked.

They all nodded and turned to her.

"This was personal business, and I do not wish to tell you just now. I can't tell you, trust me." She looked Jax straight in the eye, with a knowing look. At first Jax just stared at her, but after some monent, she could see that he finally understood what happened. After all, Jax and Chibs were the only one knowing about the ratting. Jax glanced at Chibs who was continuously staring at a specific part of the table in front of him. He then looked back at Jax, and the President understood everything.

"Fine. I respect that Y/N."

"But that is not okay? Somebody hurt her. Who was it? A lover maybe?" Tig guessed.

"He is right, we have to protect her" Juice added.

Y/N chuckled at Juice's suggestion that she needs protection, but smiled at him. She loved Juice, he was so cute, like a little brother to her.

"If pres said to leave it, leave it." Chibs finally looked up and at Y/N. His voice was strict.

After that, the subject changes to Alvarez getting into the Diosa business. They all voted aye for allowing the mexican to buy out Nero's part.

"And guys, I have some good news. We will have a big party tonight. We are all set, things going okay for now. Everyone, wind down, have fun." Jax said and hit the table with the gavel.

Y/N didn't want to spend her time at the clubhouse. She almost immediately got up, and left.

Honestly, the only thing Y/N wanted was to lay in her bed, eat some ice cream, watch a movie and fall asleep. Luckily, there was no more club business for that day, so she went to the grocery store before heading home, where she bought some frozen pizzas, and ice cream. She rode home and was all set for the day.

She took another shower. There was something about feeling clean. She put on a new set of baby pink pyjamas, and crawled into her bed. She got overwhelmed by the tv selection, and after finding nothing she was in the mood for, she started watching a documentary about cheetahs.

She tried her best to pay attention to the hunting method of the animals, or her ice cream, or anything which was not Chibs, but she couldn't. She never wanted to see him again. At the same time all she wanted was him.

When she finished her sweets and put the spoon in the dishwasher, she heard knocking.

She froze. She didn't expect anyone. Her gun was in her bedroom, and her semi was near the front entrance of the house on the coat hanger.

By the time she thought of a solution, it didn't matter.

"Aye, it's me girl. Let me in, I want to talk to ya." It was Chibs. Y/N felt like her heart skipped a beat.

She walked up to the front door.

"What do you want?" She spoke softly, just loud enough for the man outside to hear.

"Let me in. I just want to check up on you." She couldn't figure out Chibs's intentions. It dawned on her, that she was scared. Scared of her friend, brother... She felt incredibly weak and bitter.

"Y/N?"

"I'm scared." That was her response.

------------Chibs' POV----------

"I'm scared." Her voice was so weak, so soft, he could hear the fear and it crushed him. She was everything. The most amazing, interesting, caring and smart women he has ever known. She made a mistake, she had to pay. Or maybe he was too harsh?

He felt as if his heart was sinking to the deepest void.

"Please sweetheart. Let me in, I am not here to hurt you. I just want to..." But what did he want? Himself didn't even know. "I just want to see you."

The door slowly, very slowly opened. Her small frame seemed even smaller now. Barefoot, with her pink pyjamas she was like a little girl. Only little girls don't have their faced wrecked by big bad bikers.

Chibs walked into the house. When he heard the door close behind him, he straight up walked up to Y/N who instantly stepped back until her back hit the wall.

"Don't." He said and embraced her in his arms. At first she froze but then put her arms around him. She smelled like fresh bodywash, clean bedsheets and candy. She was so pure at that moment.

------------------

He smelled like tobacco, gasoline and dirt. His strong arms somehow calmed Y/N down.

"I'm here." She said.

"And so am I. I am sorry, I shouldn't have done this to you."

"No, if you haven't done this, maybe somebody else would've done even worse. I could be dead, Chibs. For what I've done."

He didn't reply. Instead, he picked her up, initially in bridal style, but she eagerly put her legs around his waist.

They looked each other in the eye, and then Y/N caressed Chibs's glasgow smile.

"Take me to bed."

[wrestler-smash-or-pass]

Weekly Wrapup 3/24/24 (late)

This Week's Rankings:

Lash Legend - 71.7% smash

Killer Kelly - 66.9%

Wade Barrett - 65.5%

Jordynne Grace - 65.3%

Rey Mysterio - 64.9%

Shayna Baszler - 62.7%

Angelico - 58.2%

Santos Escobar - 58.1%

Dominik Mysterio - 58.0%

Bollywood Boyz/Singh Brothers - 44.5%

Ryusuke Taguchi (Apollo 55) - 43.0%

Nick Wayne - 32.5%

Nia Jax - 28.7%

Nasty Boys - 7.1%

Average smash rating this week: 51.9%

More stats under the cut, along with my observations, commentary, and some of my favorite tags...

Most total votes this week (most enthusiasm)

Nick Wayne - 397 votes

Dominik Mysterio - 371

Shayna Baszler - 244

Nia Jax - 230

Santos Escobar - 227

And least total votes this week (least enthusiasm)

Ryusuke Taguchi - 149 votes

Bollywood Boyz/Singh Brothers - 164

Lash Legend - 173

Killer Kelly - 181

Jordynne Grace - 193

The closest poll was Bollywood Boyz/Singh Brothers, who lost 73-91.

Bottom Ten Overall

Vince McMahon - 3.9% smash

Ric Flair - 4.6% smash

Nasty Boys - 7.1% smash

Kane (Corporate variant) - 10.1% smash

Miracle Violence Connection - 11.8% smash

Gene Munny - 12.4% smash

Spike Trivet - 12.% smash

Kevin Sullivan - 13.1% smash

Triple H (Terra Ryzing variant) - 18.6% smash

Eric Bischoff (NWO) - 20.0% smash

Bottom Women Overall

Nia Jax - 28.7% smash

Eve Torres - 47.1% smash

Carmella - 47.8% smash

Nikkita Lyons - 48.2% smash

Julia Hart (Cheerleader Variant) - 49.8% smash

With an average smash rate of 51.0%, this is the lowest-scoring week yet. The overall average smash rate currently sits at 58.9%, and the previous low score was allllllll the way back in Week 1, at 52.6% average smash rate.

We also got two changes to the overall rankings: Nasty Boys made it to No. 3 on the Bottom Ten Overall list, and Nia Jax was voted the least smashable woman so far. There are still 31 men considered less smashable than her, but it's a major accomplishment to be the first woman to score significantly under 50%.

In happier news, someone finally requested one of my personal blorbos: Angelico. It has been agonizing waiting for him to be requested, so thank you to whoever sent him in. Now to see how long it takes for someone to request my other blorbo...

Rey Mysterio is more smashable than his son Dominik, 64.9% to 58.0%. Dom got 149 more votes, though.

Ryusuke Taguchi is more smashable as a member of Apollo 55 than he is on his own, but not smashable enough to get over the 50% mark (43.0% vs 28.4%).

Nick Wayne got the most votes this week, at 397. A lot of the tags said something along the lines of "he's too young right now, but let's check back in a few years." So, if this blog is still around in 5 years, I will make sure to run a new Nick Wayne poll.

And now for some of my favorite tags and comment

@dm-me-your-weltanschauung on Nasty Boys: #if you told me that this photo was from a campaign encouraging people to get tested for STIs I would believe you#or one of those “talk to your kids about sex before THEY do” things

@booboo-eyedbambi on Dominik Mysterio: #he gives me cute aggression in a way that makes me wanna squeeze him dry like an orange or burn the world down if he says he's chilly

@romanthereigns on Jordynne Grace: #I would let that woman throw me

@discow1tch on Nick Wayne: #he would 100% have been my type when I was a teenager but unfortunately I'm old now and would rather fuck his evil step dad

@supernaturalkickparty on Nick Wayne: #if anything take him to ihop gamestop and build a bear#think i saw a turtleneck shirt this past winter#he can make a christian cage bear

[the-crown-constellation]

Hey there, I'm Ajax/Kacey!!

Yup, that's me ⬆️

I'm Ajax/Kacey, you can also call me AJ, K, Kace, Jax, whatever nickname y'all can think of.

I go by mirror pronouns. For those who don't know, mirror pronouns are where you use the pronouns that you go by to refer to the person. So if your pronouns were he/him, you'd refer to me with he/him.

I am multigender in... Some way? Idk, i think I'm Bigender. But like, a masculine woman and a feminine man, ya'know? But also I'm not a man and I'm not a woman.

Don't know much else about myself, but I'll figure it out. I just wanted to get my intro posted before Sawyer hehe.

See ya!

[Image ID: A drawn Picrew of Ajax. They have saturated reddish-pink hair swept to one side, with a shaved part on the other side. They have long pointy ears, pale skin, yellow eyes, and pink eye liner. They are wearing a white turtleneck and an open blue button up which has yellow stars on it. They have gold hoop earrings and two gold necklaces where the longer one has a small oval pendant on it. The expression is relaxed, with a teethy smile that has a single gap in them slighty off centre to the left. End ID]

[circuslover12]

this is another TADC OC. Im just obssessed with making ocs.. also sorry that my camera suck i tried making the focus better

Anyway, this is Prismo. He came right after my many, many, MANY ocs(yeah, I have a lot of ocs for TADC). Prismo is smug and has a big ego(like Jax), and doesn't like wearing clown like outfits, so thats why he usually wears a turtleneck sweater.

Prismo is non-binarish, maybe trans, and is gay with a 1 percent chance of being bisexual. He has a crush on Jax and is a little interested in Zooble. His pronouns are he/they.

Prismo's body can change color due to his mood/emotion, etc.

He turns pink when being flirty or flustered. He turns red when he's angry/frustrated/annoyed and all that angry stuff. Prismo also turns blue when he is feeling sad or depressed.

Oh yeah, and he has bi panic colors whenever he's around Zooble Pretty neat huh.

Prismo HATES the cold, which is why he prefers wearing sweaters. Also, Prismo is a fashionista; he always wants to look his best which boosts his ego even more.

This is Prismo in his clown outfit, Im not experienced in making clown outfits but I made it work. His outfit would sort of have Kaufmo's color scheme.

Yeah, im obssessed with making these ocs. its fun <3

[jaxasstm]

Still unable to hear thanks to the static in his ears. His vision had began to grow with static as well. He can feel something wrapped around his arms, his chest and the side of his face. Was he Abstracting? Was he really going to end up another giant X on a door..? No. This wasn’t happening! It couldn’t be! “….I…I don't w-want to…abstract.....” Jax chokes out a sob. Grabbing onto Gangle in a desperate hug. He closed his eyes..

. …

Where was he? It was dark, he tried to adjust to what was around him but no matter how much he tries to adjust his vision. He tried his other scenes to navigate.

No use. Can't smell anything or did his whiskers feel anything around him.

Suddenly a light flashes and Jax blinks, adjusting his eyes. A light poured down from above is a gentle glowing shower. And he finds himself staring into a mirror. But.. His reflection wasn't one of a purple bun with yellow eyes and a grin. But one of a young Asian man’s pale soft face, freckled with facial hair, his deep brown eyes hollowed out with tiredness, they looked lost. Caked dry with old sticky tears. His black hair was messy, unkempt and greasy. His nose powdery with some sort of white substance. He wore a run down turtleneck, and pajama pants. A purple trentcoat, with little bunnies on the sleeve..

“..I-Is that…?-”

🐇 ･ﾟﾟ･｡ ・゜゜・．

Jax was suddenly back in the present staring at the top of the tree, it was like a light switch. The static began to fade, though it took a few more moments of ugly sobbing between the two. Nothing then.. Well, happened. Jax stopped crying at one point and was blinking all confused. "..Oh..I'm..okay?"

The static faded and so did the pain in his head. Huh. He was..still here. And hugging up on Gangle???!???!! The Lady Sun would be coming up soon.. If she saw them hugging? Caine would find out, and that would mean so would the Losers, that including Zooble. Yeah no, he rather actually abstract then let THEM find out he was being soft.

“..You got three seconds to let go before I turn you into a bowtie.”

Jax blinks slowly before arching a brow, well guess he could indulge himself for a bit. Crossing his arms and leaning against a nearby tree, the Rabbitoid watches closely, his ear twitching with amusement. What was with the drawing of him in a mask for anyways? He had noticed it earlier by at the time decided not to mention anything. Though, that didn't mean it hadn't left his interest.

Watching the dramatic scene makes Jax grin. “..Is this happening....right now..?” However, he would soon eat his words. The flash makes his eyes squint shut for a moment, he shields his face. “[$&@!]..w-what-?” He watches Gangle’s expression change and her mood was suddenly lifted. He was used to how Gangle’s masks worked by now. But this one seemed.. New.

The dancing, it made him start to zone out, weird.. Why did it feel like he seen this happen before?Suddenly he felt like he was somewhere else. Stactic began to fill his ears, and Jax tenses up. The fur on his neck was slowly standing up and painful zaps of what feels like lighting, rush through his head.

Something felt very familiar about the way Gangle was moving. Like he had witnessed this in a past life. Like there had been another version of him witnessing this. He couldn't explain it, but it made him very..dizzy. The Bun suddenly collapsed, against the tree clenching his head. A low groan leaving his mouth. “…..Stop..”

[winter-jay-official]

:)

[ollywears]

Olly Alexander wearing Mateo Velásquez turtleneck top from his “Pretty In Punk” collection in a backstage photo with Jax Jones at their performance at Top of the Pops New Year Special 2018 (December 29, 2018).

[xgreenteaprincex]

Ayy

[mechanicalweirdo]

i wish shining nikki would give us more outfits that are, like, the actual main outfit of the character like bloom poetry. give me peppermint's dress and hair. give me caprico's outfit with a cropped turtleneck under it or something. give me jax + yuka sets with recolours that are the opposite colour scheme. all these character designs are so good i want to have the outfits !

[oh-no-another-idea]

Tagged by the brilliant @eccaiia​ and the clever @dogmomwrites​ and have found a mix of their words in my documents! Have some Stars and Ships, heavily featuring our disaster family Jax, Aaliyah, and Quin

True: (Quin POV)

There was a long whistle behind him. Jax was hanging out the door dressed in a blindingly red coat, sappy expression on his face. “Damn,” he said appreciatively.

Aaliyah caught him at it and gave a little twirl. Quin rolled his eyes.

“Do we have to do this out here?”

“Too true,” Jax said, grabbing the sleeve of Aaliyah’s periwinkle turtleneck and tugging. “Um, bad news, Aaliyah my beloved—”

Quin followed them into the front hall. “If it’s about the galaxy wide wanted posters, we know.”

Trick: (Aaliyah POV)

“You come here often, big eyes?”

Her companions groaned. “That’s the oldest trick in the book,” the burly woman complained, pushing her drink away. “Oldest trick in the galaxy,” the tall man agreed. “Sorry,” he said to Aaliyah.

“That’s okay,” Aaliyah said with a smile, conveying that it was very okay. She lingered, tilting her body towards their table. “What drink is that? I’ve never seen it before.”

The slender woman beamed. Her hair was shaved close to her head, and a thin tattoo was visible beneath it, crisscrossing her scalp. A ring hung from the side of her nose, and her bare shoulders were pale and freckled. “White wine,” she explained. “With hot pepper—it’s delicious, wanna try?”

Damn. Aaliyah most certainly did not. “Yes please,” she said shyly, looking up through her lashes.

Fire: (Quin POV)

At least Aaliyah hadn’t started a real barfight. The last time she’d been unleashed in a drinking establishment had ended with thrown pickles, electricity cables cut and sparking and lighting the place on fire, and Quin carried out on Jax’s shoulder. The whole experience was humiliating, no matter which way you looked at it.

Together: (Jax POV)

“I’m not leaving [Aakov] alone with Quin.”

“Aaliyah.” Jax pulled back enough to catch her iron gaze. “That’s very motherly and admirable of you. But they were already alone together. If Quin’s honor is gone, it’s been gone a while.”

Aaliyah shoved him away, the corners of her mouth twitching. “I mean he could try to murder him!”

Jax laughed out loud. “Yeah, he could’ve done that earlier too.”

No pressure tags for @linaket @morphaeus​ @ashirisu​ @averyauthorship​ @cherrybombfangirlwrites​ @asher-orion-writes​ @zmwrites​ @baroquesse​ @muddshadow​ @sleepyowlwrites​ and anyone else who’d like to look for violent, fist, murder, and black!

[rabbit-rays]

image id: four drawings of my original characters in a twilight mirage au.

image 1 shows a sketchy drawing of samira with longer hair and wearing a jumpsuit tied around her waist, as well as a large pair of headphones. in one drawing she is standing casually and looking to the left, and in the other she is seen from the shoulders up with an intense expression as she pilots a mech. text reads ‘and at the close of their long (voyage) they tilted their heads back and saw the stars still, excerpt of apophenia’.

image 2 shows the divine apophenia, a large swarm of small white particles in the loose shape of a star. it’s flying in front of a colorful nebula, and white text reads ‘the divine apophenia’.

image 3 shows emily and mel in twilight mirage inspired outfits. mel wears a sleeveless turtleneck and a long jacket that’s tied at her waist and worn around her shoulders. emily wears a sweater with a belt worn over it and a simple skirt. mel stands with her arms crossed with a slightly worried expression and emily stands with one hand on her hip, looking warmly at the camera.

image 4 shows jackie wearing an oversized coat, multiple belts around their waist, and loose sparkly pants. they’re leaning against something casually and looking away from the camera. text reads ‘hare’s folly (aka jax lagomorph)’. end id.

oc-tober day 16 - i’m going off script for this one, here’s a twilight mirage au!! some notes under the cut becuase it’s fun

this would hypothetically take place a few hundred years before tm canon, when the fleet was larger but still in decline

the ship that apophenia guarded, the mirror born twice, was mysteriously destroyed at about the same time that voyage became her excerpt. voyage is trying to find the cause, mostly unsuccessfully

apophenia is composed of millions of tiny fresnel lenses (you can see indivudual ones next to voyage in the first image) that are able to warp and reflect light to have a holographic effect that can change their appearance. the swarm tends to move in a way that seems to be unpredictable - right up until it isn’t

hare’s is an neh spy attempting to get information about the remaining divines but is doing a pretty bad job of it. their alias is jax lagomorph, a citizen of the sky reflected in mirrors. they’re trying to throw voyage off the neh’s scent as voyage starts to investigate the deaths of other divines as well.

mel and em were originally from the ship myth of the cul-de-sac, associated with the divine proximity, but after proximity’s recent death the myth has left the fleet to attempt to settle on a passing planet. mel, who had spent her whole life dreaming of being proximity’s excerpt (and who was very close with proximity’s previous excerpt), is so devestated by this loss that she finds herself unable to leave with the myth, and stays with the divine fleet. emily stays with her so she won’t be alone.

mel will one day in the future become the excerpt of the divine precedence, which was once the axiom prophecy

voyage will one day somehow get involved with the rapid evening. idk how i just know it

[girlwiththereapertattoo]

begin again - part four

Jax Teller x female!Reader

Summary: After the return of her abusive ex-boyfriend, the reader plots her escape

Word count: 2,9k words

Warnings: bad language, alludes to the death of a minor character, physical & verbal abuse & kinda angsty

Author's note: Enjoy the fourth installment and all feedback is welcome! :)

If you’re in an abusive relationship or you suspect that someone you know is being abused, speak up and reach out to the correct people!

Beta read by @crucifixedbitch

PART ONE | PART TWO | PART THREE

💀💀💀💀💀

You examine your face in the mirror, pleased with the job you’ve done to conceal the marks left by B/N. Last night was brutal and you would do anything to erase it from your memory. To never have it happen again.

“Toots!” A loud pounding sounds on the bathroom door, “Come on, sweetheart, we’ve got to go.”

“Yeah, I’m sorry. I-I’ll be there in a second.” Moving quickly, you pack your makeup back into your cosmetic bag. “I just need to grab my bag.”

“Five minutes, okay?” he sounds irritated with you. “We’ll wait outside.”

With a shaking hand, you zip the bag closed and leave the bathroom for the bedroom. Your handbag is on the bed but your phone’s not on its usual spot at your bedside table and you just know B/N has something to do with its disappearance. And you know that it’ll be a while before you see it again. You’re so upset, it brings tears to your eyes but there’s no time for them. He’s waiting for you and being late will lead to trouble.

S/N and B/N are on the small patch of grass outside the house, kicking around a ball.

“You gotta kick the ball to me, okay kid? You gotta kick it hard.”

S/N scurries towards the ball and kicks it so hard, it zooms between B/N’s open legs and bounces off of the fence. They both cheer from excitement, and S/N runs straight into B/N’s open arms.

“That was amazing, buddy!”

You clap your hands, drawing their attention to you.

“Did you see that, Mommy?”

“I did, ace, and it was so good.” You walk over to join them on the grass, “Hey, sweet boy.”

You haven’t seen your son all morning. You lift him off the ground and hug him to your chest, it feels good to hold him so close to you, and for the second time in the last five minutes, you feel you might cry. The three of you make your way over to B/N’s rental SUV parked on the small driveway.

“Mommy, are you feeling cold?”

You briefly glance over to B/N who’s prepping the baby car seat. “A little. Mommy’s not feeling too well.”

“Do you need chicken soup?”

You chuckle and press a kiss to his forehead, “Will you help me make it when we get back?”

He pinky promises you to. You hand him over to B/N who buckles him into the car seat. It’s not his intention, but you can’t help but feel humiliated by S/N’s question. A turtleneck and jeans in the dead of the summer in Charming, California? That’s sure to raise suspicions.

“Baby, do you not think I should stay behind?”

B/N turns in his seat, brows furrowed in confusion. “Why?”

Pointing at your turtle neck, you explain, “It’s going to draw attention. It’s summer and I’m dressed for winter.”

“And you care what these people think of you?”

Yes, a lot. It’s your fucking hometown, of course, you care! You want to scream at him, claw at his face, but you’re weak. Pathetic. You can’t even muster the courage to get away from him.

“Sweetheart, no one’s going to be looking at you. Trust me.”

Ouch.

“Don’t ruin this outing by being so self-obsessed.” He starts the car’s engine and backs out of the driveway, “Do you want to listen to some music, buddy?”

Today’s your last day in Charming, B/N’s orders. Later on today, you’ll embark on a five-day road trip back to North Carolina. The idea of being trapped in the car with B/N has you regretting every decision you have made in your life that has led you to this point. Forty fucking hours? The car just isn’t big enough and no amount of eagerness from S/N can change your mind.

“When we get back, I need to see Mabel.”

Mabel’s a friendly neighbor who lives down the street from your mother’s. She moved to Charming a few months before your escape to Charlotte, and since your return, she has been a great help.

“Who’s Mabel?”

“She lives down the road.”

“Why do you need to see her?”

To use her phone to call Jax. “I want to give all my mother’s old furniture to charity. She offered to help me organize it.” It’s a believable lie, “It shouldn’t take more than ten minutes.”

After a dragged-out silence, he murmurs a soft ‘okay’ and warns you not to do anything stupid. “I might not be able to stop myself this time around.”

The chilling part is that it’s not an empty threat. You look back at S/N who’s softly singing along to ‘Old MacDonald Had A Farm’, gazing out the car window. Leaving Charming was a decision you made for his sake, to protect him from his father’s world. To give him a shot at a normal childhood, to raise him away from gangs and violence. Instead, you found yourself in the clutches of a wicked man who will one day kill you.

“Mommy, will we see Abel before we leave?”

“No,” B/N responds before you can.

God, you fucking hate him. Your feelings towards him are violent, and you’ve got to come out of the car before you act recklessly.

“Stop the car.” You unbuckle your seatbelt prompting the seatbelt alarm to go off. “Stop the car, B/N, now!”

He pulls into the empty parking space in front of a bridal shop. You frantically open the car door and stumble out of the vehicle, gasping for air. So glad to have distance from the devil you call your boyfriend.

“Toots, what’s wrong?”

You take a step away from him, needing the space. “I need to breathe, B/N.”

That upsets him. “What are you trying to do? Huh? Get in the fucking car so I can drive to the grocery store.”

You pace around in a circle on the sidewalk, contemplating your next move. You can’t run off, B/N could easily catch you and S/N’s still in the car. You can’t leave him, even though you know B/N would never harm him. He loves him too much. Think, think, think! You have a moment of clarity when you look across the street and see who you believe to be Bobby Munson sitting at an ice cream shop. What are the odds?

“Ice cream and candy!” You spin to look at B/N who’s shooting daggers at you. “I want ice cream and we need candy for the road trip, don’t we?”

“What are you doing, Y/N?”

You walk back to the car to open S/N’s door and start unbuckling him from his car seat. “D’you want ice cream, ace?”

His face lights up. “Ice cream! Ice cream!” he chants.

“Alright. Come on.” You shut the car door, S/N clutched tightly in your arms, “It’s just a small pit stop. Do you want any?”

B/N looks furious but there isn’t much he can do to you out in the open. He’s starting towards you when his work phone starts ringing. He has to take the call and so he tells you to go ahead, he’ll meet you inside the shop. You flash him a smile and make your way to Scoops & Sweets. Now that you’re closer, you’re certain it’s Bobby, and he’s standing behind the counter with his arm in a sling, drinking beer.

“Bobby?”

“Y/N?” His stony expression morphs into a smile, “Hi, sweetheart.”

“Hi, Bobby.” For the first time in the last 12 hours, you feel safe. “I thought it was you.”

“Who’s the kid?”

“This is S/N,” you look proudly at your son. “Say hello to Bobby, ace?”

Bashful, he waves awkwardly at Bobby before concealing his face in the crook of your neck. You casually look over your shoulder to check if B/N’s still on his call before you turn back to Bobby.

“Bobby, is there a phone I can use? I want to call Jax, there’s something I want to tell him, and my phone’s broken.”

He looks out the window to B/N who’s pacing next to the rental. “Why didn’t you ask your friend to use his phone?”

“He doesn’t like to share.”

Bobby looks back at you. “Jax’s upstairs. Come, I’ll take you up to him. Bring the kid.”

Bobby calls for Chuckie who emerges from what you assume to be the staff break room. When you last saw Chuckie, he had fingers.

“What happened to your fingers?”

“Chinese cut them off,” he holds up his prosthetic hands. “These were a gift from Gemma.”

You regret asking. Bobby orders him to keep watch of the shop and starts leading you towards the flight of stairs.

“Uh Chuckie, a man will come in here looking for me. Could you tell him I went into the bathroom?”

Chuckie nods and you continue on your way with Bobby.

“Is this the new clubhouse?”

“Somethin’ like that.” Bobby leads you and S/N down a short hallway and stops in front of a closed door. He knocks once before he opens it, “Visitor for Jax Teller.”

The men in the room, consisting of Jax, Chibs, Tig, Happy, and Juice, all turn to the door. From their expressions, you’d swear they’ve just seen a ghost. You might as well be a ghost.

Jax raises off his chair and crosses the space to join you at the door. “Is everything okay?”

“Hi, boys. I’m sorry for interrupting your meeting,” suddenly, coming to Jax seems like a bad idea. But B/N. You put S/N on the ground. “I just wanted to see you before we leave this afternoon.”

Jax scowls.

“We’re headed back home to North Carolina. Driving.” You throw your arms around your ex, wincing at the discomfort you feel at the contact. “I’m so glad I could see you again.”

He returns your hug, holding you flush against him and you don’t care that you’re in pain. You’re vaguely aware of the fact that the bottom hem of your sweater’s risen, probably exposing the bruises on your lower back. There’s a pang of pain in your heart when he releases you. The tears blur your vision. God, you hate that you’re so emotional today.

“How are you getting home?”

“B/N arrived last night, he’s waiting for us downstairs.” Probably impatient and suspicious. “We should probably get going.”

Downstairs, B/N’s at the counter listening to Chuckie recount the time he had his fingers cut off by Lin’s men. S/N leaps out of your arms and runs over to B/N.

“Here’s your candy.” Chuckie slides two bags of candy to you, “Don’t worry about paying, it’s on the house.”

You smile at him. “Thank you.”

B/N snatches the candy from the counter and the three of you make your way out of the shop. It’s a short trip to the grocery store and luckily for you, there aren’t a lot of people buying groceries whilst you’re there. The tension from earlier has subsided, and the ride back to your mother’s house is a sing-along with S/N leading you. You’re helping B/N unload the bag of groceries from the car when you spot a familiar van at the end of your street.

“When will you go to Mabel’s?”

“After lunch,” you start unpacking the groceries, “I’m sure you boys are hungry.”

“Starving.” He leans over to press a kiss to the side of your head, “I’ll have a beer with my lunch.”

He leaves you in the kitchen to join S/N who’s building Lego in the living room. You’ve just finished laying all the lunch ingredients on the counter when you hear the thunderous roar of a motorcycle outside your house. Shortly after, a knock sounds.

“I’ll get it,” you call from the kitchen.

Unfortunately, B/N beats you to the door. He angrily signals for you to go back into the kitchen.

“Do as you’re fucking told,” he warns through gritted teeth. “Go back to the kitchen.”

You open your mouth to protest but he marches over to you, grabbing your arm harshly, and drags you through the kitchen to the laundry nook.

“You’re hurting me!” you complain, struggling in his firm grip.

The sound of the back of his hand connecting with your cheek bounces off the walls of the small space. You forcefully shove him away from you and try to escape but he hooks a strong arm around your waist and hauls you back into the nook.

“Let go of me!” you claw at his arms and the pain causes him to release you.

“You little bitch!”

He lunges towards you but you’re quicker than him. You grab the first item in your reach which happens to be an iron and whack him on the head with enough force to make him cry out from the pain. You dash past him and run to open the front door at the same time Jax is about to shoot at the door.

His scowl deepens at your disheveled appearance. “Where is he?”

“In the laundry nook. I hit him on the head but he’s still conscious.”

“Where is the kid?”

S/N! You run into the living room, your eyes frantically searching around the space for your little boy. His Legos are strewn on the floor but there’s no sight of him. “S/N?”

“Mommy!”

He’s behind the couch. You find him curled up, his eyes closed and his hands covering his ears.

“My baby.” You scoop him in your arms and carry him towards the front door. “Jax?”

He calls back from the kitchen and tells you to go outside. “Rat’s got the van out front.”

“But Jax–”

“Go!”

You rush out of the house, S/N cradled in your arms. You’ve just stepped onto the patch of grass when you hear grunts coming from the house. Ratboy meets you at the gate and takes S/N from your shaking hands to carry to the van. He helps you into the vehicle before he climbs into the driver’s seat.

“Where are you taking us?”

“Gemma’s.”

💀💀💀💀💀

S/N and Abel are asleep in Jax’s old bedroom and you’re sitting at Gemma’s dining table staring blankly into space. If you had been told a week ago that you’d be seeking asylum at Gemma Teller’s home, you wouldn’t have believed it. You replay the last twenty-four hours in your head, you’re somewhat in disbelief of all that’s happened.

Gemma places a gentle hand on your shoulder, drawing you back to reality. “Here you go sweetheart,” she places a steaming mug of herbal tea in front of you, “it should help calm your nerves.”

“Thank you.” You place both of your shaking hands on the mug, watching as Gemma takes her place across the table from you. “Have you heard anything from Jax?”

“No,” she reaches for the box of cigarettes on the table. “I’m sure he’s fine.”

You nod, your eyes dropping to the mug. “Did he… did he tell you why he had Ratboy bring me here?”

“Psycho boyfriend,” she takes a pull from the lit cigarette. “I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

The shame brings fresh tears springing to your eyes. It makes it worse to know that this time around, S/N was awake to hear it all. You feel like you’ve failed him, exposed him to the very thing you vowed to protect him from when you left Charming all those years ago.

“What do I tell S/N?”

“Nothing,” she stubs out the cigarette in the ashtray. “You shouldn’t worry yourself with that right now. You should try get some sleep, you can worry about that tomorrow morning.”

“I don’t think I’ll be getting much sleep tonight.” You take a small sip of the hot tea and sigh, “This is all my fault.”

“Sweetheart, no.”

“It is and now I’ve gone and gotten Jax involved in this mess.” The frustration is eating at you, “I just–”

You’re cut off by the kitchen door opening. Jax’s back. Thank the heavens! Gemma rushes over to greet him with a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

“Are you okay, baby?”

“I’m fine, Mom.”

Joining you at the table, Jax pulls you into him and tenderly strokes your back. All your fears and concerns are alleviated once you’re in his arms.

“Did he hurt you?”

He chuckles and presses a gentle kiss to your forehead. “You shouldn’t be worrying yourself with that.”

“I can’t help it,” you laugh through your tears.

“You should get some rest.”

“All my stuff is back at my mom’s.” The thought of returning to the scene of last night’s brutality has you shuddering. You pull away from Jax and roughly dry your tears. “I don’t… I can’t–”

Jax pulls you back into him, holding you tighter than before, and gently rocks you. “He’ll never hurt you again.”

Guilt. You feel a tremendous amount of guilt. Is he dead? Possibly, and your guilt deepens when you recognize a small part of you overjoyed by the possibility. He deserves it. How could you even think that? No one deserves to die — not even B/N.

“How are you going to get rid of the body?”

He doesn’t respond to your question, instead, he tells you that he’ll get Rat to bring yours and S/N’s bags to Gemma’s.

“Jax, don’t leave,” you plead, the surge of panic hits you like a freight train and has you fisting the hem of his shirt. “Stay.”

He presses a kiss to your covered shoulder. “I’m right here. I’m not going anywhere,” he assures you.

💀💀💀💀💀

PART FIVE

tag list:

@princesssterek @derangedcupcake @furiouscopshepherduniversity @crucifixedbitch @holl2712 @sweet--catrastrophe @marvelsmylife @brittjulianne97 @few-proud-emotonal @zozebo @lovinnholland @adaydreamaway08

[noladyme]

La Cuervo - Chapter 8

She is used to the biker-life, having grown into a woman in the familiar embrace of SAMCRO. A bad decision and a gun-shot later, she gets whisked off to Santo Padre, and put under the protection of another club. What is supposed to be a short stint in the Mayan headquarters just north of the border to Mexico, turns into something more; when la quervo begins to develop feelings for el angel - and he seems to return them in kind...

TW: violence, blood, drug use, alcohol, smut, fluff, angst

In the spirit of "The Crown Princess of Charming", this is a story about O.C. Nina and Angel Reyes. It is obviously non-canon, as characters who have passed on on Mayans M.C. are present in it, and others have been excluded completely. Nina is written as a cis-female, but I have tried to keep her race and looks as ambigous as possible. Should you find any of this story offensive, please let me know.

8.

With firm hands on her hips, Angel led Nina in front of him; only letting go to hold the door for her to enter the clubhouse. Inside, they found both clubs neck deep in their first beers. Tig was seated on a chair with Chucky on his lap; bouncing the little smiling man up and down on his knee, while he hugged him tight. “I missed you so much, Chucky! Are they treating you ok? Do they feed you?”. He looked at Hank who was laughing at the scene. “You know, he likes his eggs sunny side up. And you need to make sure he doesn’t drink diet coke. It upsets his tummy”. Letty had showed up while she was getting ready, and was seated by the bar nursing a coke; Coco hovering over her, and giving any Son who looked in her direction a death-glare. Leticia was wearing a turtleneck, as she’d been told. The fact that it was a crop-top didn’t seem to matter to her.

Nina pulled at Angel’s cut to make him lean his ear down to her lips. “I’m gonna go spend some time with my other family, before VM rolls in, and I have to pretend not to know them”, she said. “Please don’t get all macho again”. “Can’t promise anything”, Angel said, and placed a possessive kiss on her neck. She pushed him away, and went to sit down with her brothers. After taking a chair between Rat and Happy, Ratboy gestured at her neck. “You got a little something…”, he smirked. Letty jumped off her chair, and handed Nina a pocket mirror, to examine the hickey Angel had left there, just below the one he’d made the day before. “Shit. What are you; 13?”, she growled at Angel. He smiled smugly, and grabbed a beer, before going over to stand by EZ.

Rat gave Letty a shy once-over, and Nina patted his arm. “Don’t… Her dad was a sniper in Iraq”, she muttered. Letty smiled at Rat, before going back to the bar. “That’s her father?”, Rat whispered, and looked at Coco. “Yup…”, Nina replied. Coco took a huff of his smoke, and leaned against the bar; moving his cut so that his gun was visible. Rat swallowed thickly, and moved his focus back to his beer.

Happy elbowed her softly, and pulled out his phone, to show her a picture on the screen. “Wendy checked in”, he said. The picture was of Thomas with his face covered in chocolate. Abel was running in the background, wielding a supersoaker. Nina let out a soft sigh. “God, that kid looks like Jax”, she said. “Which one?”, Happy grunted. Nina chuckled sadly, and the biker put an arm around her. “Yeah… I know”.

“So, you’re coming back with us, right?”, Tig asked; having finally let Chucky go. “No, she isn’t…”, Filip said, having appeared at the table with a glass of scotch in hand. “What?”, Happy said, his expression suddenly angry. Filip sat down, and Bishop pulled up a chair next to him. The two presidents gave each other a knowing but hard look. “It seems our Nina has sold herself into servitude”, Filip said. Tig leaned forward and shook his head. “Nah… Nuh uh. What the fuck is this shit?”, he said. “She’s not some piece of ass for you to…”. “Relax, Trager. It’s not like that”, Bishop said. “Then tell us what it is!”, Quinn said. Filip gestured for Bishop to continue, an irritated but defeated expression on his face. “As you know, Vatos Malditos are coming to Santo Padre. They’re going to offer us money to help them search for Nina”, Bishop said. “You told them…?”, Tig roared.

The Sons jumped to their feet, hands on their weapons. The Mayans responded in kind, and it seemed that what had just been a nice get together, now was about to turn in to a massacre. Letty and Chucky dove behind the bar, and Nina got on her feet. She grabbed Filip’s glass, and flung it at the wall; smashing it into a thousand pieces. “Enough!”, she roared. “Fuck! It’s like dealing with overgrown children…”. She scowled deeply at all the men. “Sit your asses down, and listen!”. “Yeah, fucking listen!”, Creeper growled. Nina drew her lips back in a snarl. “Shut the fuck up, Creep; or I’ll superglue your dick to your balls!”. Creep looked dumbstruck. “Are you gonna let your girl talk to me like that, brother?”, he asked Angel. “Fuck, yeah”, Angel said. “Oh, and you and me are in the cage tonight”. Creeper sat down, cursing bellow his breath.

Once everyone was seated, and more or less calm, Bishop continued. “You know how it is… We can’t risk money and potential war for an outsider. You wouldn’t either…”. “I’m staying here, working for San Pad for a year”, Nina explained. “That way, the Mayans couldn’t hand me over, even if they wanted to. It would be against their rules, because I’ll be a part of the family here”. “And we’re supposed to trust that they won’t do it anyway… Why?”, Happy asked. “Because Nina does…”, Filip said, giving her a meaningful look. “Look, I don’t like this any more than you do; but as it is, I don’t see another way out. We brought our girl down here; put her in the care of not just another charter, but another club all together. I blame myself… But this is a better solution than all-out war”. The Sons all shared angry and defeated glances. “And after her year is over?”, Tig asked. “That’ll be up to Nina”, Bishop said. “She does good work around here. If she wants to stay…”. “Niña is family”, Coco said, getting concurring nods from the rest of the Mayans. Filip got to his feet. “We’ll deal with that 12 months from now. But you better treat her like a fucking queen, or we will come back down here, and burn this shit-hole to the ground”, he said. “I need a new drink”.

---

A few hours later, after Bishop had explained the plan of letting Nina disappear into the crowd to SAMCRO, the first guests began arriving. Nina rushed around, dealing out orders to the hangarounds who were going to take care of the guests that night. She was overseeing the setting up of the sound equipment outside the clubhouse, while simultaneously refilling the bar set up by the porch. Daniella had decided to show up, in spite of Angel’s rejection. She kept to herself; once in a while sharing some words with some of the other guests. Angel didn’t pay her any attention, though not for her not trying to catch it.

Suddenly, there was a roar of bikes coming up the driveway. Nina instantly froze in place, only to move again, when EZ came up to her, and pulled at her wrist. “You good?”, he said. “Is it them?”, she whispered. EZ looked towards the incoming bikers, and nodded slightly. Nina let out a slight gasp. She turned around, and saw a group of men dressed in denim cuts; none of them looking friendly. They got off their bikes and walked up to greet Bishop, and Filip; who’d followed him outside. The Mayans and the Sons all took their places on the porch, each with their own faction. The leader of the group stepped forwards. He was a brusque and serious looking man, with a long braid down his back. His eyes were cold, and she recognized the family resemblance to Gael. El Palo.

Angel shot her a short look, before looking at EZ. His eyes would have seemed indifferent to anyone else, but Nina could see what he was saying. We got this, querida; and; take care of her, brother. “They’re just gonna stare each other down a bit”, EZ said, trying to calm her. Nina nodded slightly, but was unable to control her breath. It was like someone had a vice-grip on her lungs. EZ looked down at her, and frowned slightly. “I need…”, she heaved. “Time to disappear”, he muttered. Slipping an arm around her shoulders, as if they were about to find a quiet corner together, he led her towards the trailer. Most of the people around them ignored them. It was perfectly normal for couples to get a bit frisky, and needing to release some steam at these kinds of parties. They passed a group of women chattering excitedly. Daniella was among them, and smirked when she saw EZ’s grip on Nina.

As soon as he’d opened the door, Nina stumbled inside the trailer, and grabbed her inhaler from the table. In her shaking state, she dropped it on the floor, and EZ picked it up, handing it to her. She took a hit, and felt her lungs relax. “I’m sorry”, she panted. EZ put a calming hand on her shoulder, and smiled. “You’re ok”, he said. “Just breathe”. Nina took a few deep breaths, and put her forehead on his shoulder. “Thanks”, she said. “Is one brother not enough for you?”. Daniella was standing outside the open door. Nina scowled at her, but didn’t reply; still too wound up to be able to form a proper comeback. Ezekiel went down to face Daniella, and stared her down. “If you wanna stay, behave”, he said. “Otherwise, get the fuck out”. Nina put down her inhaler on the table, and walked outside; closing the door behind her. EZ put his arm around her shoulders again. “Puta…”, Daniella mouthed. Nina shot her the middle finger, and let EZ lead her away.

The staredown seemed to be over, and all three clubs had scattered to enjoy the party. “I have to go take care of the grill”, EZ said. “Will you be ok?”. “Yeah…”, Nina lied. He squeezed her shoulder, and left her to go tend to his job.

She stood for a long moment, looking over the frivolities. Happy and Gilly were looking on, as Angel revved the engine of his bike by the gate separating the scrapyard from the clubhouse area. The Son looked impressed, and let a pretty girl crawl under his arm, and press against him. Hank was studying the tattoo on the arm of a VM. Coco was pulling Letty off a table, where’s she’d been dancing. Nina made eye contact with Filip for a second, and he winked at her quickly, before going back to nursing his beer, and the gorgeous brunette on his lap.

She went up the steps to the porch, and opened the door to the clubhouse, to go inside; when she bumped straight in to a denim-clad chest. “Perdóneme…”, a raspy voice said. She looked up, and locked eyes with a Vato, with inquisitive and cold eyes. She parted her lips – unable to speak – and let out a short, nervous breath. “Let me get this for you”, he said, and held the door open for her. “Thanks…”, she muttered, and walked by him as calmly as she could. Taza was seated by the bar, and when he saw her expression, his eyes flickered for a moment, looking at the VM-biker. “Yo, sweetheart. Get me a beer, would you?”, he called out. “Uh huh”, Nina croaked, and slipped behind the bar as fast as she could. She grabbed a Sol from the fridge, and placed it in front of the VP. Sala disappeared off to somewhere. “You’re doing good, kid”, Taza said quietly. She nodded, and tried to smile.

Tig joined them at the bar, and looked in the bowl of apricots. “I see you’ve let Nina take care of the snacks…”, he chuckled; while looking around to check that none of the VM who were spread around the room were listening. “You have so much to learn”. Taza patted his shoulder. “Educate me, brother”, he smiled. Nina handed Tig a beer, and wiped down the bar, as the two men began sharing stories. After a few shots with the VP's, she felt about as embarrassed as EZ must have felt, after Felipe had told her the story of how he wet himself on the Ferris wheel at a state fair. “… I’m telling you, Taza. Her face was as green as the absinth-liqueur she’d been drinking; and she was dancing on the bar to the national anthem”, Tig said. Taza roared with laughter. “Happy and I had to carry her to bed; and we came back to check on her, she’d snuck out the window of the dorm – the door was unlocked, mind you – and she was running around the lot demanding piggyback-rides from every patch in presence”. Nina cleared her throat. “I think I’m gonna go check on the bar outside”, she said. “Aw, am I embarrassing you, muffin?”, Tig said. “Yes”, Nina said shortly, and shot both men a smile, before grabbing a case of beer, and walking towards the door.

One the porch, she was met by the Vato she’d bumped in to earlier. He gave her unpleasantly leering once-over, before reaching for the case in her arms. “Let me help you", he said. “You don’t have to do that”, she replied. “I insist”, he said, and took the case from her. Nina gave him a polite smile, and gestured towards the bar by the garage. “I’m Sala”. “It’s over here”, she said, avoiding giving him her name. She was just a random hangaround, she kept reminding herself; no one special. She walked ahead of him, not wanting to make it seem like she was interested in having a conversation. Once they arrived at the fridge set up behind the table set up as a makeshift bar, Sala set down the case. She nodded at him. “I can take it from here”, she said, and went to open the fridge. The biker grabbed her arm, and made her turn around; getting a little too close for comfort. “Have someone else do it. Let’s go somewhere private…”, he smirked. “No thanks”, Nina croaked, and pulled her arm from his grasp; backing away. “I don’t think my…”. She didn’t know how to label Angel; it was still too fresh. “I’m here with someone else”. Sala frowned teasingly. “Come on…”, he said, and took a step towards her again. “You look like you like to have fun…”.

“Hey, mami. How are you doing?”, Angel said from behind her; placing his arm protectively around her waist. Nina almost gasped in relief. Happy came up next to them, giving the VM-biker his trademark stink-eye. “This your girl, Reyes?”, Sala said. “Yeah, is she?”, Happy said, looking towards Angel for a split second; and took a sip of his beer. Angel tucked Nina into his side. “Yeah… she is”, he said. “Want to make something of it, carnal?”, he asked Sala. A smile ghosted Happy’s face, and he met Nina’s eyes; nodding shortly. “Sala!”, someone barked from across the lot. Palo had been observing the interaction, a displeased scowl on his face. He nodded his head for Sala to come join him, and the Vato walked off; cursing bellow his breath.

“Thanks…”, Nina muttered. Angel looked down at her. “Ain’t nothing to thank me over”, he said. “He’s just marking his claim”, Happy said. Nina frowned. “Are you gonna pee on me next?”, she grunted. Angel winced. “Don’t tell me you’re in to that shit…”, he said. “That’s nasty”. Happy laughed, and patted Angel’s shoulder; before walking over to join Quinn at a card-game he had going on.

Nina pulled out of Angel’s grasp, and went to fill the fridge. He came up behind her, and grabbed her hips; kissing the back of her neck. “You know you’re not the only one here to do this shit, right?”. “Just keeping busy”, she muttered. “It’s a party. Try to have some fun", he said. “I have to finish this…”. “You have to look like you’re enjoying yourself". He turned her around, and pushed a lock of hair out of her face. “You’re tense as fuck…”. She sighed deeply, and put her forehead against his chest. Angel waved for a female hangaround to come take over; before taking Nina’s hand, and pulling her with him, to go sit on the steps to the porch.

By the looks of it, everyone around them were having fun, but Nina found it hard to get into a partying spirit. She looked over at a table by the garage, where Bishop was deep in conversation with Filip. Palo came over to join them. They all nodded at each other, and the conversation continued with the VM president adding his inputs. Angel noticed Nina looking at them. “You afraid?”, he asked. “Only as much as the next possible murder-victim”, she muttered. He put an arm around her shoulders, and pulled her close. His other hand went to her knee, and he let his fingertips draw small circles on the inside of it. “I know something that might relax you…”. She began to feel her cheeks burning, and bit her lip. “What’s that?”, she asked. He squeezed her thigh, and put his soft lips to her ear. “Watching me fuck up Creeper in that cage…”, he smiled. Nina let out a wanton sigh. “God, yes…”, she breathed.

Angel chuckled, and got up; giving her a hand to stand up herself. “Creep!”, he called out to the other Mayan. His tongue was down the throat of the red-head Coco had had some trouble getting rid of the week before. He pulled back, and looked at Angel. “What, brother?”, he asked. “It’s time”, Angel replied. Creeper gave the ginger one last kiss, and made his way to the cage. Angel went in the same direction, his arm around Nina’s waist.

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A crowd gathered around the cage, as Angel and Creeper got their hands taped up. Nina let herself be mesmerized by the sight of her bare-chested champion, who was already jittery with adrenaline. Once Riz had finished with his hands, Angel went over, and grabbed the back of her neck; pressing his lips to hers. His kiss was deep and greedy, and he had no shame in pressing his groin against her in front of the crowd. His tongue danced against hers, and he let out a wanton grunt. “Let me just take care of this motherfucker, and then we can go somewhere and finish this”, he said against her lips; and stepped away from her. Nina was surprised her knees were still carrying her, and she felt lightheaded from all of her blood running to her groin.

Once inside the cage, Angel and Creeper circled each other like two lions, until Riz called out for them to begin. Angel flew forwards at the flash of an eye, and slammed his fist into Creeper’s face. Creeper fell backwards, and covered his mouth. Letting Angel think he was disoriented, he stumbled forwards again, and jabbed Angel in the ribs. Nina gasped at the sound, and her heart skip several beats, until Angel straightened back up, and put his arm around Creeper’s neck; continuously jabbing at his sternum. Breaking free, Creeper managed to get a hit in to Angel’s head.

As the fighting continued, Nina was caught off guard, when Palo appeared next to her. He handed her a beer. “As an apology… for my enforcer’s behavior”, he said. “Thank you”, she croaked. Palo gave her a half smile. “I’m just trying to keep him out of that cage…”, he said, and looked towards the two fighters. Angel had Creeper in a headlock. Nina chuckled nervously. “He’s strong… Your man”, Palo said. “Is he doing that for you?”. “I guess…”, Nina said, trying to avoid letting her voice shake too much. Angel looked up at her with a smile; but when he saw Palo, his eyes went cold. Creeper began tapping his arm, to forfeit; but Angel didn’t seem to notice, and only held on harder. Nina’s eyes widened in fear. “Angel! He’s tapping out, man!”, Riz called out. Angel was pulled out of his trance, and immediately let go of Creeper, who fell forwards, gasping for air. “I’ll leave you to it”, Palo said, and walked away.

Riz proclaimed Angel the winner, and he and Creeper hugged. They walked out of the cage together, and came over to Nina. “Are we good, Nina?”, Creeper panted. “Yeah. We’re good, Creep”, she said with a slight smile, and stepped forwards to pat his shoulder. Creeper winced at the touch, blew out a deep breath, and let himself be led away by the readhead, to be pampered.

Angel looked in the direction Palo had gone. “Everything ok?”, he asked. “Yeah, I think so”, Nina muttered. “He was apologizing for that thing from before, with that Vato”. “Huh”, Angel said, before turning to accept a towel from Riz. He had a small cut over his eyebrow, and his ribs were bruised. Nina stroked her fingertips over the mark, and Angel winced a bit. “Are you ok?”, she asked. “I’m good, querida. Don’t worry about it”, Angel replied, and kissed her temple. The scent of his adrenaline-fused sweat and his cologne hit Nina’s nose then, and she let out a soft moan. He smirked down at her. “Who’s the horny little shit, now…? Got something you need, cuervo?”. She bit her lip to keep from grinning, and got on her toes to kiss him deeply; making it very obvious what, in fact, she needed. Angel grabbed his shirt and his cut, and put his arm around her, letting his hand rest on her bottom; before leading her towards the trailer.

They were halted in their tracks, by a whistle. “That was some stellar fighting, brother”, someone called out to them in a Scottish drawl. Nina groaned, and looked over her shoulder disgruntledly at Filip; who was nursing a bottle of Jameson with Tig, Bishop, Sala, and Palo. “Thanks, man”, Angel replied. “Have a seat”, Filip said, and gestured for a chair next to him. Angel shot him a displeased smile, and led Nina over to the group. In spite of her disappointed expression, he put on his shirt and cut again; and sat down next to Filip. Tig smirked at Nina. “Aw, looks like we ran out of chairs. I got a lap right here for you, sweetheart…”. He patted his thighs, his eyes full of mischief. “I have a feeling you’re a dirty old man”, Nina replied, and raised a knowing brow at Tig. “You don’t know the half of it”, he said, and reached out his hand to shake hers. She did actually know much more than she wanted to, but held her tongue. Tig was as dirty as they came, but since hooking up with Venus a few years back, he’d mended his ways somewhat. “Tig Trager”, he introduced himself; keeping up the ruse of not knowing who she was. “And you are?”. “Not interested”, Angel said, and pulled Nina down to sit on his lap.

“You want to be careful with this one, mano”, Sala said. “He’s possessive of his girl”. “Good”, Filip said. “A man should take care of his woman”. Angel nodded shortly at him, and wrapped his arms around Nina’s waist, as she sat sideways on his thighs. Planting a soft kiss on her shoulder, he then accepted a beer from a passing hangaround. Nina looked up at her, and saw that it was Daniella; a fake smile plastered over her face. “Anything for you?”, she asked Nina. “Scotch…”, she replied. “That, I can help with”, Filip said, and got a glass from the table, filling it, and handing it to Nina. “Chibs Telford”, he said. Nina nodded, and took the glass. Daniella had an ugly sneer on her face for a second, before leaving them to it; giving Sala a view of her butt as she passed him. “Mami, get me another cold one”, he said. “Coming right up”, Daniella smiled at him, and moved towards the bar.

Bishop cleared his throat. “Palo was just telling us about a situation up north”, he said. Nina focused on running her nails through Angel’s hair. She was there as arm candy, not to listen; and she needed to keep up her ruse. “Business?”, Angel asked. “Yes… for you”, Palo said. “For me, it’s personal”. “Never good to mix the two”, Filip said. “Maybe not; but in this case, I’m willing to make an exception”, Palo grunted. “Esto se trata de la familia. I know Alvarez is your primo, Obispo; but I don’t trust him and Oakland with this anymore”. There was a pregnant silence, before Bishop spoke again. “As far as I know, Marcus is keeping his end of your deal. He’s been reaching out to all our charters, to find this woman…”. “This whore, shot my cousin down in cold blood!”, Palo growled. “Then she left him behind in a dirty alley to die alone. I want her dead!”.

A shudder went through Nina’s body. “Are you cold?”, Angel asked, trying to cover for her. She shrugged and nodded; and Angel pulled her closer to his chest. He put his lips to her ear, as if he was kissing her. “Breathe, querida”, he whispered, and squeezed her thigh gently; before taking a sip of his beer. “Didn’t she shoot him in the head?”, he said to Palo. Nina’s heart skipped several beats. “What are you saying?”, Bishop asked, his voice warning in its tone. Angel shrugged. “Just that if she shot him in the head…”. He pointed at his temple. “… he was probably dead the second the bullet hit… So, it’s not like he bled out alone on the ground…”. Nina wanted to scream; please shut your himbo mouth!; but, once again, held her tongue. “How does that change the situation?”, Sala asked. “Whoever shot him, didn’t want him to suffer… They were probably just trying to save themselves… Your cousin had reputation of being a bit rough with his women, is what I heard”, Angel replied. Nina hadn’t heard about this before, and was beginning to wonder if Angel had been asking around about Gael, to help her in some way. “Or mug him”, Palo said, obviously indifferent to his cousin’s reputation with women. This seemed odd to Nina, after how he’d handled her situation with Sala.

“Was anything stolen?”, Filip asked. Something cold ghosted Palo’s face, making him even more terrifying. “No… Nothing seemed to be missing from his body”, he said. “The puta did leave something behind, though”, Sala said. He grabbed the beer Daniella sauntered over to give him, before running his hand up her thigh. She smiled sweetly at him, taking it as her que to take a seat on his lap. He took a sip of his beer, and looked down her cleavage; seemingly satisfied with his catch of the evening, now that he couldn’t have Nina. “An inhaler…”, Palo said. “Was there a name on it?”, Tig asked. “No… But we know she used a .38”. “Those are some pretty weak leads”, Filip said. “Perhaps. But it’s something. And I’m going to use it to track her down… With your help”.

“What is it you want us to do? This happened in northern Cali", Bishop said. “I suspect she’s moving towards the border, trying to get across somehow, to avoid police investigation", Palo said. “As I understand it, your charter has been known to find ways to cross over with goods, without suspicion from authorities”. “What are you trying to say? That we helped her cross, in spite if your deal with El Padrino?”, Bishop said. “My deal is with Oakland", Palo said. “Different charter, same club", Tig said. “From our experience, Mayans are loyal to their brother-charters deals. They back each other". Palo looked at him with a scowl. “Maybe so…”. He turned his head towards Bishop. “I meant no disrespect. I am sure you back your brothers up north. “The same brothers you are saying you don’t trust", Bishop said. “That’s disrespect in itself".

Palo folded his hands, and smiled congenially. “Maybe we can rebuild that trust right now".

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