Runaway ✔

075 • Dana

Dana bowed her head and tried to fight the tears. She didn't know what hit her harder: the fact that her brother would be send to jail or the fact that it could be no coincidence that of all people he was the one whom this happened to. 

Juice stood still in front of her and heaved a deep sigh. "I'm sorry." She pushed her knees apart and pulled him closer. She buried her face into his chest. 

"Was it Maddox?" Cherry asked. "The one they killed?"

"No," Dana muttered. Happy wasn't that stupid, he wouldn't let them catch him. "Maddox framed him."

Juice' fingers raked through her hair and ended up in her neck. Then he sighed deeply again. "It was a cop."

Dana breathed in shakily. A cop. That's just perfect. 

"Who was with him? Except Kozik?"

"Two guys from Tacoma. And Tig."

Dana felt a little relieved he didn't speak about Opie or Kip, but it didn't change the dull, nagging feeling in her stomach. 

"I told you so," she whispered, even though she knew there was no point in doing so. "I told all of you that you were underestimating him. But none of you valued my words." She leaned back and looked up to Juice. His jaws tensed, but he didn't say a word, he didn't even look at her.

"It was a club decision. We all agreed," he said eventually. 

"It was dumb decision."

"Then what should we have done?" he snapped. Now he did look at her, and something she'd never seen before was churning in his eyes. It gave her goose bumps. "Nothing? You just wanted to wait until he switched medicines again? Clay's this time? Or Piney's? Or mine?"

He turned around and rushed into the clubhouse. Blindsided Dana watched him leave. "Yours?" she repeated, dazed. She gave her friend a questioning look. "Why's he takin' meds?"

Cherry shrugged. "How would I know? I'm not his girlfriend."

Dana dropped her eyes. No, but I am. 

And right now she felt the worst girlfriend someone could think of. At the night her mother was buried, Juice had told her he was afraid of losing her, but she realized now he wasn't just afraid to lose her. She clawed through her thick locks. Most days they were just avoiding the subject, but he wasn't an idiot. He knew their relationship put his life in danger. She'd thrown it into his face since the very beginning. 

"I don't know what to do, Cher," she whispered. "Maybe we should break up. Should I..."

Cherry moaned loudly. "You have to be kiddin' me, right? Your thoughts are following that path again? You know you can't be without him, and neither can he. I thought we'd passed that stage by now."

Dana stared at the asphalt beneath the picnic table and intertwined her fingers. "Should I go after him?"

"Nah, give him some space. Just give him some pleasure tonight. There's no better way for them to unload. You two have fucked by now, right?"

"Not yet," she muttered. "He wants to take things slow."

Cherry laughed, it sounded hollow. "Don't be so silly."

Dana looked at her friend in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"He's had no sex in a month. That must be his record. No wonder he's so grumpy."

"That's his choice," Dana stressed. 

"He wants to be a gentleman. Man, your sleeping together for two weeks. Are you in a fucking coma? How can you not touch that perfect body?"

Dana shrugged her shoulders. She'd  wanted to go further a few times now, but something had held her back. He was the one who wanted to take things slow. 

Cherry patted her knee. "He needs it, baby. To get laid." She pulled up the corner of her mouth. "As do you. Believe me, it's the best way to de-stress your man. Mine will be all over the apartment tonight."

Dana shook her head, chuckling. 

"See? You're already smilin'."

"I smile because you're such a weirdo."

Cherry took the pack of cigarettes that had laid between them and lit one. "I just know how things work here. And believe me, all those guys are the same." She blew out a cloud of smoke and gave her a wink. "And not only the guys."

Dana rolled her eyes. "You're the only one who thinks about sex at a moment like this."

Cherry shook her head. "I'm not the only one, honey. Believe me. Why do you think this place is bulging with croweaters now? They know the guys need them. Whether they have something to celebrate or want to get rid of their sorrows; the outcome is the same."

A small smile played Dana's lips. The guys weren't the only ones who wanted to forget their sorrows, and she wasn't afraid of flashbacks as long as she would take the lead. Butterflies raced through her stomach while she quietly fantasized about tonight - which was a hundred times better than contemplating the fate of her brother - while she waited with Cherry until the roaring of bikes filled the warm night air.