Friendly, Neighborhood Pharmacist

[Caitlin "Cait" Ambrose]

She couldn’t stop her body from trembling; the fear of her mother realising that she was there and most importantly dressed like she was dressed , causing her to shake all over uncontrollably. She clung to Jax as though he was her only form of a life jacket in a drowning sea, and in fact, in this situation he was. She was completely out of her element, and in normal circumstances she would find the fact that she was scared of her mother and not the drug lord in the room as more than a tad ironic. But this was far than normal circumstances, and Cait wanted to get the hell out of there before her mother realised she was there. The fact that her mother was there in the first place, was something she would need to process at a later date. For now, she just wanted to get out of there.

She was grateful when Jax excused them both and led a hasty retreat from the manor. Soon she was sitting in his passenger seat, shaking uncontrollably as she reached into her bag to retrieve her tin. With hands shaking so badly that she couldn’t even pack her cone, Cait sniffed angrily as she felt tears well in her eyes. Wiping them on the back of her hand before Jax climbed into the car, she tried to focus on packing her cone again but still her hands were shaking too much and she spilled the precious contents onto her tartan skirt. She looked over at Jax helplessly as he turned to look at her and asked her if he wanted to her to take him home.

~No! The last place in the world I want to go right now is home Jax..~ she sighed deeply. ~For now, I just need to pack my fucking cone so I can calm down…~ she blew out a breath in frustration before turning her sad green eyes towards him.


~What the fuck was my mother doing there?! Did you see what she was wearing??? She looked like a fucking strung out coke head whore.. oh my God.. all this time… the things she has said.. the way she treated me when she found my stash… Fucking hypocrite!!~


Rage boiled in her silently, bubbling to the surface in the form of angry tears which she blinked back furiously. ~Please.. just help me pack this cone and then take me somewhere far away from here, okay?~ Her lower lip trembled as she handed him her pipe and her tin.*[/b]

[Jax]

Jax watched in dismay at the state she was in. He felt like this was somehow his fault and he knew now that what had just transpired was more groundbreaking than he thought. He now knew that his choice not to delve further into her mother being at the party and prior times was probably the best choice. And in that moment it finally hit him with her youth, and though it didnt change his feelings about her, it gave him a new approach to giving her comfort.

"No problem, I will take you some place you can relax. And dont worry, shit will sort itself out whether it is easy or hard. You smoke this bowl, relax, and you will be able to approach this better or forget about it for alittle while." He held her hand gently when he spoke and when he had finished, he took the piece from her, gently placed the weed into the bowl and packed it. He then handed her the pipe and started the car.

He pulled away from the party without stopping to joke around with his buddies at the gate, as he had when they entered. He quickly made his way out of the neighborhood and back towards the city. Soon they were amongst the many businesses in the downtown district, towering buildings shadowing out portions of the slightly illuminated sky. They parked outside of a music shop, beautiful guitars displayed on acryllic stands beyond neon lights. He would step out and of course open the door for her before leading her to a door on the side of the business leading up to the second floor above it. He shuffled through his pockets to find his keys before turning the key, unlocking the door, opening it up, turning on the light, and then allowing her to step inside.

One might expect that his apartment might be something of a shit hole, since he had always grown up on the graces of minimum wage jobs and drug deals. But with the money from his military days and now his pretty proficient selling, the area was quite a change from the wasting brick buildings slowly chipping away from decades of standing. The floors were hardwood, stained a rich dark red color and the walls were painted to reflect that floor color. All of his furniture was quite modern, with boxy designs somehow melding into comfort and all jet black in color. His living room included two chairs, a couch, and a glass table all neatly set around his tv. Pictures hung on his walls including a picture of himself in Iraq with his gear on, awaiting to get into the Humvee before a mission. The rest were prints of famous pieces from Picasso, Van Gogh, and random private artists with a taste for something new and refreshing. Off in one corner sat a guitar, a practice amp, and a pair of headphones plugged into the arm, probably one of Jax's only hobbies besides the firing range. Beyond an open seperation was his kitchen and to the left was his bedroom connected to the only bathroom.

"This is my place. Make yourself at home." He gestured around the room in a wide motion as if to present it and welcome her inside. He would move into the kitchen after taking off his shoes, leaning out from beyond the seperation. "Can I get you something to drink? Beer, water, soda, milk?"

[Caitlin "Cait" Ambrose]

*She accepted the pipe gratefully, lighting it quickly and taking a deep toke, holding the breath down in her lungs for as long as she could before letting it out in one long shaky breath. By the time they had left her neighbourhood, she felt much more relaxed and after packing her pipe away back in her bag, she sat up straight in her seat as she looked around keenly, taking in this neighbourhood.

She climbed out of the car silently, shrugging her backpack on as she closed the car door and followed Jax to what turned out to be the front door of his apartment. She stood just inside the threshold, looking around expectantly, pleasantly surprised by what she saw. The artist in her soon took over however as she noticed the reproductions of Van Gogh. Drifting towards them, she raised her hand to run it over the reproduction of Van Gogh’s “Sunflowers”. The painting had been one of her favourites since she was younger, and the familiar golds and browns made her feel instantly calmer.

~I love this painting, it's always been one of my favourites.. he led such a tormented existence, but he was so talented...~


After a few moments of staring at the familiar twirls and strokes that Van Gogh was famous for, Cait turned towards Jax with a smile on her lips as he asked her if she would like anything to drink.

~Uh.. a Coke would be great. Diet if you have it..?~ she trailed off as she continued wandering aimlessly around the apartment, taking it all in as she waited for him to return. Her walk ended in front of the guitar. ~You play?~ she asked him when he returned, although it was obviously a pretty stupid question. She looked around for somewhere to sit, but felt nervous about just sitting anywhere until he made some gesture as to where she should best park her ass.*

[Jax]

Jax rummaged through all the shit in his fridge, cursing softly under his breath for not cleaning the damn thing out after his last get-together. He located himself a Newcastle and the diet Coke that she had requested. He moved from the kitchen and handed her the cold pop and motioned towards the couch.

"Make yourself comfortable. I will be right back." Jax gave her a smile before he disappeared into what appeared to be the bedroom, a few moments of shuffling amongst clothing and the occasional drawer shutting, and he emerged from the bedroom in a pair of shorts and a tank top. It was more apparent just how much of a weapon his body was, from head to toe he was trim and built to out-endure, out-class, and overpower his enemy and it was the one thing he had never let go from his days in the military.

He first moved to where the practice amp sat in the corner, alittle 30 Line 6 with onboard distortion, he unplugged the headphones from the port and flipped a switch causing the yellow lighted buttons along the face to flip on and feedback begin its ear-piercing shriek. He quickly muffled the dreadful noise by muting the strings, grabbing the guitar by the neck and slinging the strap over his shoulder. He produced a guitar pick from the top of the amplifier and turned to her where she was sitting on the couch.

"And yes, to answer your question, I do play." Jax wanted to do something short, but impressive enough in its own right. He decided on a solo piece from a song by one of his favorite bands. He kicked the volume to a fair tone and began to pick and tap in a way that once in his life he thought had to be impossible. The amazing precision of playing intricate pieces on a guitar was something that always enthralled him, it was his escape from all the shit-storm going on around him. The piece only lasted forty seconds but was a sufficient show of his skills on the guitar, it also was short enough for him to make his way back to her in a timely fashion. ( www.youtube.com/watch?v=gES3164c9vQ&feature=fvst The song is "The Night" By Disturbed that inspired this writing piece and I thought about the solo in this song when writing this bit. If you are interested, the solo is from 2:57 to 3:37 in the song.)

Jax smiled at her as he sat on the couch, quickly opening his beer and taking a long drink to wet his throat and mouth before he decided to speak. "So I see you are into art a little bit. Do you paint yourself?" It was abit of an awkward question as what had happened prior to him bringing her here had to have been traumatic whether or not she got along with her mother. The thoughts still drifted in his mind of remembering seeing her mom there on many occasions but still he avoided telling her, if it was something she didn't want to talk about, he would find ways to shift their conversations.

[Caitlin "Cait" Ambrose]

*Caitlin accepted the soda gratefully, opening it and taking two long gulps before she drifted over to the couch where Jax had indicated she should sit. Taking him at his word, she shrugged out of her backpack and pulled her long legs up underneath her so that she was now in her most comfortable position – cross legged. She waited patiently while he disappeared into another part of the apartment, sipping her Coke quietly while her eyes drank in the sights around her. The recent party and the realisation that she knew her wayward mother even less than she had first thought, niggled at the edge of her drug fucked brain but for now Caitlin was successfully keeping these unpleasant thoughts from her mind and her smile was calm and serene when Jax returned in a pair of shorts and a tank top that showed off his incredibly taut and well built body. Caitlin almost choked on her soda when she first laid eyes on him. Coughing and spluttering, she finally regained control of herself to nod and smile as he confirmed that he did in fact play the guitar.


She settled back on the couch as she watched him play. The solo that he chose was slightly heavier in tone than she had expected, but she could not deny that he was talented.


She applauded when he was finished ~Wow! That was cool.. I wish I could play! I had a few lessons when I was younger, but apart from “Smoke on the Water” I sucked balls…~She trailed off as he sat on the couch beside her, his closeness suddenly making her feel shy again. She struggled to find something to say and was grateful when he asked her about art. As it always did when she spoke of her favourite subject, Caitlin’s entire being seemed to light up as a huge smile spread across her beautiful face.


~I love art! ~She enthused, placing her empty bottle of Coke on the floor beside her and tucking one loose blonde strand behind her right ear. ~I have tried it all – sketching, photography, ceramics, printing but although I enjoy everything my talent seems to lie with painting.~ She blushed as she realised she was close to bragging. ~I mean… I.. think I have talent.. at least others say so.. and my mother has a friend who owns a gallery and she let me have my own exhibition last year. I even sold a few pieces..~
The mention of her mother caused a lump to form in her throat and those niggling thoughts began to press down further upon her. Reaching forward for her backpack, Caitlin began to rummage around for her tin.

~Uh.. do you mind if I smoke inside? It’s just… ~ she trailed off as she felt tears forming in her eyes, the moisture blinding her to where her tin was hiding. Frustrated with everything going to shit, she threw the bag across the floor and burst into tears.


~What the hell was she doing there Jax??! You saw her! She was more drug fucked than I’ve ever been.. and what the fuck was she wearing??~ She sprung up off the couch and began to pace back and forth as her anger grew. ~ You don’t understand. She is SUCH a fucking prude at home. Always straight laced and has the audacity to tell ME to cover up!~

Caitlin finally collapsed back on the couch, sobbing uncontrollably. ~What was she doing there??~ she asked him, her bottom lip trembling.*

[Jax]

Jax let the guitar slide back down and rest upon its stand. Fingers brushing it gently for a moment before he looked back over at her. A grin tugging up the edges of his lips, a shrug coming from his shoulders.

<b>" I mean.. I'm nothing like what we just saw earlier. Just kind of evens me out, kind of the way you capping out that bowl does for you. Never really played for anybody actually, that never occurred to me."</b>

Once again she became his soul Focus, anytime her lips began to move and her face started to give little gestures that he could memorize. He heard every word, watched as she would look further away when she was embarrassed by her interest in something, only to be wrapped up in it and back to him. He just look like he was enjoying everything, leaned back against the couch with his arm behind her head, resting his neck and turning so that he could watch her.

<b>"Oh yeah?"</b>

Jax chuckled temporarily before taking another small drink of his beer, placing it on the table in front of him. Shaking his head at the thought that crossed his mind.

<b>"Now that's amazing, that's cool. I have zero ability to do that, and you even got accolades for it. So young, energetic, and very talented? I didn't die at that club did I?"</b>

Another short bit of laughter as he fell into a different gear of the amalgamation of the man before her. Once a soldier to get away from his dad, now a drug Peddler forced to look at him everyday. And in that same moment that he got far away? Was when she started to break down. His eyes never left her, but he wasn't quick to rush to her. He simply waited for her to get out what she didn't want to do in front of him. But not for a single second did he judge her. The opposite was true, he judged himself. After all, this was part of his fucked up little world. But there would be time to sort that shit out, carve a name for himself and give the middle finger to the rest of the fucking world.

<b>"Cait.."</b>

Her name not so much spoken as it was breathed from his lips. Standing from where he was sitting and making his way over to her. He lifted her off the couch as easy as it was for most people to rearrange their pillows. He turned and sat right back where she had collapsed. He never wanted to see that look on her face again, he couldn't even remember the last time that he felt a chink in his armor. Probably when he was a child, but to see her so upset.. it felt like he was about to break himself. He positioned her to be supported by his legs, does well muscled arms snaking around her and bringing her into him. Much like he had protected her at the concert from The Surge, here he sought to protect her from the world itself and questions that he didn't have the answers to.

<b>"Listen... I don't know. I wish I did, but I'm right here. Cry yell, rage. Dump it all out and let me refill you. Or if you want to be numb? You found the right guy. Just.."</b>

Jax curled a finger underneath her chin and raised her lips to his own. This one wasn't out of excitement, or drugs, or atmosphere. No, as those slightly slick surfaces rubbed against each other it was driven by emotion that he wasn't even sure that he still believed in. All he knew was that he needed to make her feel better.

[Moridanu]

*His lips found hers, the soft caress of his tongue causing her trembling mouth to melt as she leaned into the kiss. With her tears still drying on her cheeks, she chose to lose herself in the moment, banishing any thought of her bitch of a mother to the far corners of her mind. As she slowly and softly explored his mouth with the tip of her tongue, her hands found their way to his back, her fingers feeling the muscles under his tank top like the blind reads braille.

She had never kissed, nor been kissed like this before; yet she found herself falling into a natural rhythm with this man who had been a stranger to her hours ago. As the kiss deepened, she could feel the passion rising between them both as her breath became short, pants of hot, moist air. Her hands tightened on his back as she subconsciously pulled him towards her, not realising she was naturally falling backwards to lay on the couch beneath him.*

(( holy shit babes! 12 years ago?! ))

[Jax]

(12 long damn years love)

*Jax wasn't even sure why that was the first thought in his head, of course he was attracted to her.. that have been proven by him enjoying himself at a concert he normally wouldn't. Just enjoying her for those moments. But this? All he had wanted to do was take her mind off of her mom, and he had never been the greatest with words. So much like the autopilot that she had been on, it was the first place that he went.*

*So when she called those fingers into the Mounds of hardened sinew that she was dedicating to touch much like a sculptor did to an intricate piece, he could only chuckle a little bit as they fell onto the couch. Landing with his elbows on either side of her head just to above her shoulders. Thumbs on the front side of her ears while his fingers Tangled their way into her hair. His body naturally arching so that their hips met, deepening that kiss further to allow that curious tongue of hers to run along his own pushing back with his own.

*Jax left that kiss with a few more presses to her lips, even without her pulling him back, it was just as natural as gravity. But eventually he managed to push himself up onto his knees. That flush skin heated even beneath that thin tank top, which he summarily took between his fingers at the Hem and pulled it up and over his shoulders tossing it to the floor. That body of his bear even more impressive than it was in the manner that he presented himself in. Like a Sculptor had carefully chiseled him out of one solid piece of stone. But much like a masterpiece things happened, like his time in the military that had left small Burns and scars here and there. But besides for that, the canvas of his tan skin was only decorated elsewhere by the tattoo that spanned over his left pec and shoulder. At the delt was his unit's patch immortalized on his skin, and the rest was a combination of intricate Norse design along with runic writing. The ball chain that held on to his tags ever present on his chest. Leaning back down he recaptured her lips, letting his own worry that his father was the cause of everything Fade Away into this moment.*