On The Devil, We Ride

9

My shift went by agonisingly slow, a quiet one as far as the diner went. It meant I had more time to stew on the thoughts in my head, over analysing everything and stressing myself out. Maybe I needed to get some space from the club... from Jace.

"Brooke your ride's here." Tara said as she came back through the back door from her cigarette break. I nodded and took my apron off, hanging it up before going to grab my stuff. I shrugged on my hoodie and waved goodbye to Tara and Doyle before heading out the door. As I approached the bike parked in front of the diner, I felt my heart sink when I recognised who was driving it.
"Hey B. Good day?" Jimmy smiled at me, handing me a helmet. I shrugged before grabbing it and strapping it under my chin. I had hoped that despite our argument that Jace would be the one to pick me up. The thought made me hate myself even more. I should have been glad that he was keeping his distance, not disappointed. I had to constantly remind myself that he was a different man to the one I had left behind, and things weren't going to ever be how they used to be, and really they shouldn't be. Jimmy pulled up outside Debbie and Joe's alongside the numerous other bikes parked outside and down the street. I followed Jimmy up to the house, feeling a bubble of nerves settle in my chest. I was never very good at being the centre of attention, preferring to blend in and fall into the background. Jimmy gestured for me to go in first, and with a roll of my eyes I stepped past him and inside.
"There she is!" Bear cried as soon as he saw me emerge from the hallway. Everyone was piled into the living room, having group and separate conversations. People were already drinking, and the room was full of laughter. I looked around to see that Debbie had decorated the living room with ribbons and there was a big 'Welcome back' banner hanging above the fire place. Everyone cheered as I came into view, and I was gathered into more hugs than I could keep track of. I recognised more and more faces from my childhood, and couldn't stop a smile from spreading across my face.

The dinner Debbie had made was delicious, and I had forgotten how good the feasts could be when all the women banded together to cook. Once everyone had had their fill, they were back into the living room for more drinking and socialising. I participated for a little while, but before long I started to feel overwhelmed, and needed some fresh air. I took the opportunity to slip out as soon as the attention was off of me long enough, walking around the side of the house and climbing up the trellis to the spot I knew was still there. Jace and I had spent numerous evenings sat up on the ledge around the back of the house, staring out over the roofs while sipping beer stolen from his dad's stash. I wrapped my arms around my legs and let out a deep sigh, listening to the muffled hum of voices from inside. I'd lost track how long I'd spaced out, but I was snapped out of it when I saw the trellis shuddering. A map of blonde hair poked up from the trellis, followed by a head, shoulders and torso.

"Thought I'd find you up here." Jace said as he presented 2 bottles of beer from the back pockets of his jeans. I took them before sliding over, giving him space to climb up. The ledge wasn't huge, now that we were both adults it seemed even smaller. Once he was sat down and settled I stuck the lid of his bottle between my teeth and cracked it open before handing it over to him. He smirked as he took it from me, watching as I did the same to mine.

"Well you can take the girl out of the club, but you can't take the club out of the girl." Jace winked at me before holding his bottle out. I chuckled, then clinked my bottle against his before we both took a swig. A silence fell between us as we stared out over the roof tops. I'd planned on letting our fight keep us distant, figuring it was best for both of us but sitting next to him now, the plan sounded stupid and childish. I would always need Jace, whether it was as a friend or something more. No matter what I did when I was away, nothing filled the hole I left behind. The hole was him.

"Hey, I'm sorry for earlier. You were right, it was none of my business." I admitted somewhat awkwardly. He looked at me, studying my features before looking away again.