{1} Tempest {Sweet Pea}

VIII

Storm had gone immediately just after 'the Gauntlet' to the tattoo parlor in the Southside.

Across the tracks to get her tattoo done, and surprisingly to the other Serpents, she had no pain on her face when it was finished.

"What are you, a machine or something? Do you feel any pain or anything?" One of the other younger Serpents asked and she raised one of her eyebrows at the person who had asked the question.

"I feel pain, just not usually the physical kind of the word. Unless I break a bone."

She said quietly as she stands up quietly from the chair, and rubbing the upper left arm where she had it done.

"You act more like a girl then a guy Tempest, why?" A guy asked and she shakes her head.

"That's a need to know basis question, and you don't need to know it yet Gret so... not answering." She said and he'd raise an eyebrow at her.

"Next question?" She asked the room at large now while they were all for at least right now, in the same room.

"You play pool?" Fangs asked and he held a cue stick out towards her, and she chuckled as she took it from him.

"Now that question, I can answer. In the form of kicking your asses at pool, anyone want in?" She asked.

"I'll play you." Sweet Pea offered, raising a hand as Fangs passed him a cue stick and Storm shrugged at him.

"Fine, but... be prepared to get your ass kicked." She said and he chuckled as Fangs set the table up.

"You wanna break?" Sweet Pea asked and Storm chuckles at him, as she was looking at the setup.

"Don't be doing me any favors Sweet Pea. I'll be fine whoever breaks." She said and he shakes his head, lining up his shot quickly.

"Solid." He said and she shrugged as he lined up his next shot, but missed and she moved to face the cue ball as she shot quickly.

She got three of the striped balls in before she missed again, and he was looking at her now with something to be seen like respect.

She ended up sinking the 8 ball just barely, before he did and he raised his eyebrows at her, when she held out her hand for a handshake.

"You wanna line up your shot better with where you want it to go and hit, rather then where your two eyes, are telling it that it has to stop at." She said as they shook hands.

"Thanks." Sweet Pea says, and then she shakes her head at him again now as she grabbed a soda.

She tossed herself onto a couch and Hot Dog leapt onto her stomach and she smiled at the dog, and scratched him behind the ears quickly.

Hot Dog licked her arm, and she shakes her arm out, but was laughing quietly at the affection from the dog.

She felt her phone buzzing in her pocket and she looked at it and her eyes widened.

She stood up, displacing Hot Dog with an apologetic look and she ran outside of the bar.

"Hey. What's wrong?" Fangs shouted after her and she looked at her phone as she frantically typed and her hands were shaking so much that she almost dropped her phone multiple times as she tried to type.

"Hey. What's wrong, Tempest?" Sweet Pea asked, having heard Fangs shout a bit, and Storm clenched her fists tight.

"My dad was just shot."

She whispered and took off running quickly and called her brother as she did.

She stopped at home to change quickly and throw her Serpent jacket into a small duffel bag, and she ran to the hospital from there, and found the gang waiting.

"Archie?" She whispered and he looked at her and he crushed her in a tight hug and as she looked down, and he was releasing her from the hug.

Then he was shouting at her loudly in front of the entire hospital accusing in his tone, as to why, she wasn't there to help, and she looked at him scared.

"Wait... Storm I'm sorry!" He called out but she was already running away again.

She caught sight of Tall Boy and one of the many younger Serpent around, who never spoke to anyone.

"Tempest, what's your business around here?" Tall Boy asks her and she looked at him, as she shrugged in her jacket.

"My father was the man, who got shot at Pop's, Tall Boy." Storm says coldly at the tone of the older Serpent's voice.

"Sorry kiddo, we'll help you if you need it." He says and she shakes her head.

"Thanks Tall Boy, but I'm good for now." She said and walks away from the hospital, her eyes watering as she did.

She walked into her garage, where she had set up as home since the guest rooms, were packed with all sorts of stuff and paperwork.

She pulled out her phone and looked at it with a wondering look as she was pulling her couch bed to actually now make it a bed.

"How's your old man?" -SP

Storm smiled at the text and shakes her head slightly at the message. "He's not breathing on his own yet. He's on a ventilator, and my brother basically in front of the entire hospital, told me to fuck off."

She typed back quickly, and then sighs, pinching the bridge of her nose between her forefinger and thumb as tears began to roll down her face.

"He shouldn't be the one telling you to fuck off!"

"Sorry, Fangs stole my phone. But he's right, Tempest. Just, because you were in a Serpent bar... it doesn't mean that you didn't deserve to be in the hospital with him and your old man." -SP

Storm's eyes were blurry through the tears, but she managed to laugh at the situation still and began to type again.

"I know it's you. You don't have to initial it every time, Pea. I can tell the difference between you and Fangs. I assure you." She finished typing and she put her phone on the pool table that she had bought from her mom's permission, and she fell asleep on the couch quickly.