Lauren Ash || A Tig Trager Love Story

7

The next morning Alex woke me up and apologized profusely but told me we needed to go to the funeral home. I made him take me back to my place to shower and get ready for the day.

As I was looking at myself in the mirror, trying to dry my hair out enough to leave the house, I realized I looked half dead. Part of me had died yesterday with my mother. If not for Alex, I'm not sure I'd want to continue to live.

When I was ready, I returned to where Alex was standing in the living room looking at pictures. Most were my mom and I with her parents when I was young. There were some from my high school days of my friends and I. Mom was always willing to have my friends at the house but she didn't keep booze around and would've died if she thought any of us were doing drugs in her house.

"This your senior prom?" Alex asked softly.

"Yeah," I said with a chuckle.

"You went with that douchebag?" He asked.

"Unfortunately," I said. "Not the best night of my life."

"I'm sorry baby," he said. He turned slightly and wrapped me up in his arms. He kissed my head before saying we should head out. I fought him on taking his bike. I didn't feel like riding today. He understood and insisted that he be the one to drive instead.

The day was long as we made the arrangements for the funeral for the day after tomorrow. I'd taken them what my mother had called her funeral dress. She wore the same black dress to every funeral so the negative energy of a funeral didn't taint all her clothes. She had insisted on being buried in it and who was I to deny her that.

By about two in the afternoon everything was arranged so we headed to Teller Morrow to relax and hang out for a bit.

When we got there though, the air was tense.

"Where the hell have you been Alex?" One of the members, who I think went by Chris, was yelling the second we got out of the car.

"With my girl planning her Ma's funeral. JT and Piney knew that."

"JT was in an accident. He's in a coma they don't think he's going to make it," Kozik said, much calmer than the patched member was.

"What?"

"He was hit by a semi out on 580," Koz said. "Thinking the breaks on his bike failed."

"Lowell's the only one allowed to touch that bike," Alex said. "There's no way."

"How's Jax doing?" I asked.

"He and Ope are in the clubhouse. I don't think he knows yet."

"Piney at the hospital?" I asked. He shook his head no and pointed to the clubhouse. I walked away and headed inside to talk to him.

"How ya holdin up old man?" I asked.

He scoffed a bit. "First your Ma. Now this."

"Yeah, I know," I said. "Funeral's tomorrow. Ten am."

"We'll be there," he said.

"I know," I said, leaning against the bar next to him and watching Jax and Opie as they chased each other around.

"He doesn't know does he?"

"Gemma got the call and asked me to watch him as she was running out the door," he said. "I think she would like to be the one to tell him."

"Might soften the blow," I said. He just nodded.

"I don't know how you tell a kid his dad's dead," he said.

"I don't know Pine," I said. "And I pray I never have to."