Runaway ✔

038 • Dana

"How do you feel?"

Juice sat down next to her. Dana had no clue how long she was sitting here, on the edge of the bed. It felt like her head was filled with syrup. 

She shrugged. 

"Come on baby, you need to eat somethin'. Want me to get ya somethin'?"

Again her shoulders moved up and down. Juice pressed his lips against her temple, stood up and left the room. 

For a long time the plate stayed untouched when Juice returned five minutes later. The thought of eating alone was enough to make her feel sick. She'd just aten one tiny piece when someone knocked at the door and yelled they needed to gather at the club house.

Very slowly Dana put on her shoes. She left behind the plate on Juice's bed and said nothing to him when she strolled to the club house. She kept her eyes aimed at the floor, so that she wouldn't have to bear their empathetic looks. 

If they only knew... 

"Dana and I need to go to Bakersfield to make funeral arrangements," Happy said. 

Reluctantly she looked up, before he would make a comment about that. 

"You stay under the radar, there's still an APB out for you. But we'll be doin' this together, she's your mother as well. Opie won't leave your side."

She's your mother as well... She could hear the silent reproach in his voice. He knew they'd never worked things out, and the only thing she could do now, was making sure she would have a proper goodbye. Even from the shadows.

"I'm going with her," Juice said.

 "You stay here," Happy answered shortly. 

"But..."

"Here, Ortiz," Clay cut him off. 

With a drooping head he remained silent.

"Why can't he come with us?" Dana asked. She addressed her question to her brother, instead of Clay, this was a family matter. She didn't mind that Opie was coming along, but she didn't understand why Happy was snapping at Juice. 

"Because I say so. Now get your stuff, we'll leave in a minute."

Dana suppressed a sigh. She walked to her room, grabbed some things and when she was about to leave she found Juice in the hallway. He leaned against the wall, waiting for her with a long face.

"I dunno what's wrong with him," she muttered. She laid a hand against his chest. "It would have been nice if you'd been around." She gave him a sad smile. "But when Happy got somethin' in his head..." 

"Don't tell me about it." He sighed. "If I say one more word about it, he'll bash my head to pulp."

She caressed his cheek. "Now that would be a real shame." She kissed his lips, let him hug her and then they walked outside. 

"Guess I won't see you before the funeral," he sighed when they reached the car. "I'll make sure I'll be there. Even if it leads to a crushed head."

"I would really appreciate that," she answered softly. She stroked with her hand along his and climbed in the back of Happy's car. Opie sat down on the passenger seat.

For a long time they drove in silence. Dana stared out of the window. The question why Happy had behaved so crude against Juice, kept weighing on her mind. In the end she decided just to ask him. "Why were you so rough on him? Why couldn't he come with us?"

"You really need to ask that?" Happy snorted. Through the rearview mirror he gave her a sullen look. 

She raised her eyebrows. "Well?"

"Maddox might've heard about mom's death and expects you around. Wanna make sure there's somebody looking at the door, and not fucking you while hoping to cheer you up."

Dana clenched her jaws. Now he sounded exactly as the brother she'd tried to avoid. And it was bullshit what he was saying. Juice cared about her, he would've stayed alert.

From her seat behind Happy she looked at Opie. He stared forward. Something told her that wasn't the real reason he was with her, instead of Juice.