I Don't Wanna Be Unfair | 03
Pairing: Jax Teller x OC (McKenzie Gilbert)
Summary/synopsis: Fresh off a broken engagement, McKenzie Gilbert has a one night stand with a random guy she never plans to see again. Soon after, their paths cross, which complicates several situations at hand.
Chapter warning(s): language, a lil derogatory language towards strippers
WC: ~5.5k
McKenzie glanced down at the grocery list as she leaned against the buggy in the middle of the chip aisle. She offered to do the grocery shopping for tonight’s party since she didn’t plan on actually attending. And also, it was just an excuse to dip out from the clubhouse. She needed to be away from everything, or rather everyone right now. She was having a hard time as it was adjusting to the recent fallout with her and Brandon. But add Jax to the mix and she was ready to crawl up the walls.
She continued on her journey down the aisle after grabbing a variety of family size chip bags. The buzzing in her pocket halted her once again and when she reached to look at her phone, she saw that her sister was calling.
“Well, that didn’t take long.”
“What?” Sairah inquired.
“You calling, I’m actually surprised you didn’t call sooner,” McKenzie clarified.
“Well damn, I do have a job, you know. How are you?”
“Fine.”
Sairah groaned, “One of these days, I’m gonna take that word and shove it down your throat. You know you can talk to me, right?”
“Look, I know you’re trying to help, but I really don’t want to talk about it,” She said with a sigh.
Sairah paused before saying anything else and then spoke, “This just sucks. I wish there was something I could do to make it all better.”
“Well since you mentioned it, there is something you could do to make it a little better. Can you help me with something tonight?”
Sairah hesitated for a moment but then replied, “Uhh, sure, I’m not going to the party anyway. What do you need?”
“I was gonna move out tonight while he’s at the party,” McKenzie explained as she continued pushing her cart around the store.
Another pause.
It was obvious that Sairah was working overtime to mind her tongue. These days, McKenzie was hard to suss out. She didn’t want to say anything to further upset her heartbroken sister, no matter how much she assured that she was “fine.” In reality, all Sairah wanted to do was shake her and get her to see reason.
“The sooner, the better, you know?” McKenzie prompted.
Sairah couldn’t hold back the frustrated sigh. “What, he can’t wait a couple of days? Or damn, better yet, be a gentleman and help you move the shit himself?”
“Look, I can do it myself if it’s that big of a hassle.” McKenzie bit back.
“I didn’t say it was a hassle-” Sairah paused again, taking a moment to gather calmness before this turned into an argument. When she felt more in control of herself, she continued, “I’ll be there tonight. I have a work dinner with some colleagues, but I’ll come straight there afterwards.”
“Are you sure? I mean if it’s-”
“I’ll be there, McKenzie,” Sairah soothed.
McKenzie closed her eyes with some relief, happy that she wouldn’t be doing this alone.
“Okay, well, then I’ll see you then. Thanks.”
“No need to thank me, sis. He better stay his ass at that party, though, because there’s no telling what I’ll do the next time I see him.”
“Sairah…”
“He needs his ass beat, McKenzie. You can downplay it all you want, but he didn’t just wake up one day and decide he didn’t want to get married.”
“Sairah,” McKenzie’s voice wavered, “I’m in the middle of the grocery store right now, I really can’t do this right now.”
The roughness in her voice immediately silenced Sairah’s ranting, “I’m sorry. I really am. I’m not trying to make things worse. I’ll shut up.”
“I know.” McKenzie nodded even though Sairah couldn’t see her, “I guess I just need time to process, y’know? I don’t even want to think about it, much less talk about it.”
Her sister replied, “Okay, I’ll drop it for now.”
McKenzie smiled as she wiped her wet eyes, thankful that none of her tears dropped in public.
“Thanks.”
“I’ll see you tonight.”
The sisters said their goodbyes and McKenzie returned her phone to her pocket. She resumed her shopping with a little bit of weight lifted off her chest, knowing that if no one else, she always had her sister by her side.
******
Jax stepped out of the lounge and decided to venture around. Gil did say that SAMCRO was completely welcome to the clubhouse and to consider it their shared home for the time being.
There was less heaviness on his chest now that he and McKenzie had talked. He was relieved that she had voiced the same train of thought that he was thinking; there was no reason that anyone needed to know about their night together. The adamancy with which she expressed her desire for this not to be brought up ever again filled him back with relief and more hope that everything would go right. That nothing would curtail his goals for bringing this club into a new era. He felt bad for her, he couldn’t lie. She obviously harbored a lot of hurt from her break up which translated into the unprovoked animosity that he was met with last night. He was empathetic to her plight, not enjoying how it was clearly affecting her. But on the other hand, it was better that the two were broken up. It was technically less messy if it were to get out that he and McKenzie had hooked up. Sleeping with just the president’s daughter was a little better than sleeping with the president’s daughter and another member’s fiancée. For him, at least.
He doubted she would take the same comfort as he.
She was still in the same place. Constantly having to face the guy who dumped you. And now Jax’s presence probably made that even more difficult for her. The thing that gave him relief still probably hurt her deeply and there wasn’t much either one could do about it.
Jax wandered down the stairs and found his way back into the common area. The bar was open now with some Highwater patrons enjoying a drink, intermixed with some SAMCRO and Street Wolves. He needed the earlier time to himself after their fruitful meeting and the bombshells from this morning. Now, his social battery was recharged and he felt inclined to mingle. There’d be plenty of time tonight to really get to know everybody, but he wanted to interact some while sober.
He looked up when he heard chuckling. Flu was smirking at him, “I’m surprised you’re not somewhere resting. Two clubs coming together, the party tonight’s bound to be one for the books.”
Jax shook his head with a chuckle, “I don’t plan on doing too much damage. I’ll leave that to Bobby and Kozik, those two’ll probably get drunk enough for me by themselves.”
“Sweets and Ace, too! Those fuckers drink as if you can buy new livers at Walmart.” Flu shot back.
Jax grinned as he looked all around the room. The bar, now open to the public, had a mix of patrons and club members around. It was still somewhat quiet, given it was the middle of the day, but held a reassuring, regular vibe. Jax had only been in the space for a few hours, but he had already found comfort here. In the space and in the people.
In his sweep across the room, he didn’t spot McKenzie. He hoped she didn’t feel the need to avoid everyone because of him, but he knew that he probably wasn’t the sole factor behind her disappearance.
“Wanna sit, man?” Rev asked. He nodded to the seat that sat at the table between him and Brandon. He was reading Zhuangzi, a Chinese philosophy book while Brandon was watching sports highlights at the nearby TV that hung over the bar area. Flu looked as if he was doing some accounting business for the bar, given the papers, pencil and calculator he had out on the table.
Jax nodded and placed himself in the seat.
“So, what’s your first impression of ‘The Garden,’ Teller?” Brandon asked, referring to the name of the Street Wolves’ bar. He leaned away from his bent over stance from focusing on the TV.
“It’s a nice establishment y’all got set up here. Some clubs fix cars, some clubs run bars.” Jax cracked.
T.M. went up in flames alongside the clubhouse, but it had been their legitimate front for as long as the club had been around. Just like with T.M., The Garden was the Street Wolves’ front with closed off areas upstairs designated as the club-only quarters.
“That’s right, y’all had an auto shop. Shit, that’s just another business idea we could get crackin’ when the time comes.” Rev added. The others nodded in agreement.
“Maybe so.” Jax concurred. The possibilities were endless with what they could do and he couldn’t wait for them all to buckle down and narrow down some solid projects to get going.
“Maybe sometime later this week, you can take us all on a field trip, let us see that ghost town you were raving about.” Rev encouraged.
He nodded in response, pleased that Rev seemed to be as enthusiastic about the potential area as he did. Hopefully, everyone else would come to the same response once they saw the blank canvas waiting to be painted on.
“Consider it done.” Jax declared.
Rev leaned back in his seat and lowered his book some, curiosity in his gaze, “So what else is there to know about the SAMCRO president? I’m assuming you’ve lived in Charming your whole life.”
“Born and raised,” He confirmed.
“What about family, besides the club? I know you mentioned your dad found the club…”
Jax paused for only a second, “I got a sister, yeah.”
“Damn Rev, what’s this, 20 questions?” B asked, but Rev just waved him off with a shrug.
“Just making conversation, man,” He said to B before glancing back at Jax, “What about an old lady?”
Jax felt a sharp aching in his chest at the question, but merely blinked his eyes to mask the pain the harmless question filled him with.
Shaking his head, he said, “Nah. What about you?” It was a smooth deflection, but Jax was also interested to learn more about the Street Wolves as well.
Flu had snorted at the question which immediately sent a smug smile on Rev’s face. “Aye man, fuck you.”
“This ole doe-eyed motherfucker be falling in love with every stripper he sees at the local joint. They don’t even be wanting to be saved, but here he comes with his cape.” Flu interrupted.
“Man, chill with all that.”
“You read all them books, so I know you know what a Superman complex is. I know you see your face right there in the dictionary next to the definition.”
Jax listened to the two of them bantering, enjoying the camaraderie.
“Aight, so Rev here has got hero syndrome,” Jax joked. “What about you, Flu?”
“He ain’t much better than I am!” Rev retorted. “What’s this, divorce number three?!”
“Aye man, at least I know when to quit. You ain’t happy until they running you out for fucking up their tips!”
They both laughed at their antics, enjoying each other’s ribbing and finding solace in their fellowship. It shouldn’t have felt so refreshing to Jax, but it did. His own brotherhood had been hanging by a thread after the mess Clay and Tig made of it. There were several SAMCRO members who wrestled with the feelings of mistrust they felt around people that should have been their brothers. People they used to be able to rely on without a second thought. Jax wasn't proud to admit that he, too, felt something was lost in their charter after the dust had settled. Everyone had made renewed vows to reseal the once-tight bonds that held SAMCRO together, but it was easier said than done.
He allowed his mind to travel back to the now and let himself rejoice in the fact that they were now back to being as tight as ever. He tuned back into the conversation at the table and set his previous feelings of upheaval ebb to the back of his mind.
“I guess Gil and B are the only ones who got this love and commitment shit figured out.” Rev sniggered, but the comment set Jax’s back straight. He looked at Brandon to gauge his reaction. An uncomfortable awkwardness settled in Jax as he knew Rev’s comment wasn’t completely true. From the look on Brandon’s face, there was also uneasiness in him at the comment, but he kept quiet.
“One of you mind directing me to one of the dorm rooms? I could probably use a shower before tonight.” There’d be plenty of time for him to freshen up, but Jax was keen on disrupting the unsettledness that had yet to pass from him.
“Yeah,” Brandon rose first and waited for Jax to follow. Rev's eyebrows flew up at the sudden movement. With the rate at which he stood, it seemed that he, too, was searching for a way out of the awkwardness. Together, in silence, they walked back upstairs and he directed Jax to one of the unoccupied dorm rooms with an ensuite bathroom.
Back downstairs, with the two of them now alone, Rev spoke in curiosity, “Flu, has B seemed a little off to you lately?”
“No more than usual, why?”
Rev simply shrugged, “I don’t like getting in his business like that, but sometimes he makes it all of ours when it comes to him and McKenzie’s shit. And then the way he just up and left in a hurry with what I just said…”
“Shit, he’s probably just got cold feet.”
Huffing out a breath, he lowered his voice some. “I know they love each other, but damn if I don’t miss how things were before they got together,” he reminisced, “McKenzie don’t even come around like that anymore, you’d think them getting engaged would mean her being around just as much, not less.”
Flu sighed, “I mean, you know she’s been focused on her job and everything, and it’s not like we really need her as a medic as much these days. The benefits of being legit, less bullet wounds. And the club’s been her and Sairah’s lives since they were babies, I can understand wanting to branch out some. They know where home is."
“Well, yeah, but Sairah still pops in all the time. And it’s not even about just about how much McKenzie’s here, it’s about how she already looks ready to bounce before she even walks through the door. You saw how fast she volunteered to go grocery shopping for Lisa? And shit, B just looks miserable these days.”
“I don’t know what to tell you man, my name is Bennet and I ain’t in that shit. Maybe it’s just pressure considering he’s marrying one of the president’s daughters, I don’t know.” Flu shrugged, seemingly done with the conversation.
*******
McKenzie sat back in tiredness with all the errands she’d been running. She took the liberty of not only going to the grocery store, but she also picked up her dry cleaning, got some gas, made a bank deposit, and explored the town for some apartment openings. She didn’t plan on staying with Sairah forever, so she wanted to get an idea of what the current rent market looked like.
She was currently in her car, outside of the clubhouse, after honking the horn of her blue-green Camry. The guys usually volunteered to help grab and unpack the groceries, but she had no patience right now. So with a grunt, she got out after popping her trunk.
There was a possibility she’d get roped into helping Lisa put the final touches on the party tonight, but that was the absolute latest she was staying. Once the party commenced, she was out of here.
She grabbed the grocery bags with a bit more aggression than needed, but they were the closest target to letting out her frustration. She didn’t want to have to make several trips back and forth, so she grabbed as much as she could with her two hands. In her zealousness, a jar of salsa had slipped out from one of the bags. Before it could reach the ground, a hand caught it.
McKenzie looked up and found herself face to face with Jax. His appearance forced her to settle some. Not even necessarily because she didn’t want him to see her so puzzled, but just the fact that she had found his words so grounding earlier today. Her moment with him earlier was probably the most peace she had gotten today. She couldn’t call it trust, she didn’t even know him, but there was an assurance, a bond now built between them that melted away the apprehension she felt when their eyes first met earlier today. His peering eyes held concern and he didn’t stumble in voicing it.
“You good?” He asked.
“Y-yeah, I’m okay.” She breathed.
They both stood up from their slightly leaned position. Her head snapped up at the sound of other voices as more of the guys came out to help with the groceries.
“Thanks,” she spoke quickly to him before handing a bag to Rev.
Wordlessly, she moved back some and allowed them to retrieve the remainder of the bags before heading inside. When she walked behind the bar to the narrow kitchen, she was met with Lisa.
“Oh, thanks, baby. You know where to put everything.” Lisa was busy, going in and out of the kitchen and bar, fixing drinks for customers and talking with the caterer for food tonight. By the time McKenzie had finished putting everything up, she was ready to make her exit for the day.
Instead, Rev stopped short as he was walking past the kitchen, “Yo, your pops was looking for you.” He called out. He paused again when McKenzie called after him.
“Wait, why?”
Rev shrugged his shoulders, “I don’t know, he said to tell you go find him when you came back from the store.”
Nodding slowly, she ambled out of the kitchen and made her way upstairs. Rev watched after her, still unnerved at the recent changes in the woman he’d always considered a sister. It wasn’t lost on him that B hadn’t gone out to help with the groceries, he hadn’t even acknowledged her when she walked in. He was resolved not to say anything because he hadn’t felt it was his place, but Lisa wasn’t so hesitant.
She had been running around putting the finishing touches on the party while also tending to customers as they came and went. Still, her eyes saw everything and questions continued to rise in her head. The first time she’d had something of a breather, she went and dashed straight to Brandon.
“Ok, since she’s not gonna say anything, I figure you’re the next best person to go to.” Lisa spoke as she sat down next to B. She took a second to catch her breath from all her moving around as she waited for B to speak.
The confusion on his face was evident.
“Huh?”
“McKenzie. What’s been going on with her? She’s been off all day and in typical McKenzie fashion, she pretends like nothing’s wrong. We need to make sure nothing’s wrong.”
Jax looked on at the encounter, pretending he was entranced with the TV. He watched as Brandon’s shoulders tensed and he could see the pause in his features as he searched carefully for his next words.
With a deep sigh, he said, “...It’s not really my place anymore, Lisa.”
Rev’s ears perked up at those words and his eyes met Brandon’s with confusion. Lisa’s eyebrow rose in alarm and question.
“What are you talking about?” She asked.
“Guess this is a good time as ever,” he mumbled before standing. He avoided Lisa’s chilly look as he drew the attention of everyone. “Guys listen up, I got something to say," he paused before continuing, "Last night, McKenzie and I decided to end things. For good. We’re not getting married and we’re no longer together.”
A shocked silence permeated the room and Jax looked around at the stunned faces of the Street Wolves and the sympathetic looks of his SAMCRO brothers.
“It was just better for everyone this way. No hard feelings.” He declared with his hands up.
Jax hadn’t realized he was holding his breath during Brandon’s announcement and he also hadn’t realized the hitch in it at those choice of words. The tone that suggested amicableness. Mutuality. And he knew from McKenzie that that couldn’t be further from the case. When he made it sound like a reciprocal decision, McKenzie had all but voiced that he had dumped her. And it made Jax wonder what his angle was.
Sweets spoke first, having just arrived not long beforehand to hear the announcement. “Ahh, B, that sucks, man. Sorry to hear that.”
Brandon simply shrugged at his words. Jax looked over to Lisa who was silently fuming in her seat, her eyes never having left B despite his ardently avoiding hers. Jax was almost scared of whether she might lash out, her quiet fury reminiscent of his own mother’s. Despite possessing a glare that could kill, she simply rose from her seat and presumably went to check on her step-daughter.
“Maybe you two can work things out.” Ace suggested.
“Nah, we’re definitely over. And that’s okay. We don’t want to make this weird for anybody, we’re all still family, after all. We just wanted you to know what’s going on.”
And with that, he returned to his seat, going about his business as if nothing had happened.
**********
McKenzie stepped into the club’s lounge area, tapping on the open door as her dad looked up at her from his leaned stance against the table. He gave her a small smile and nodded her in.
She closed the door behind her and walked further into the room. When she settled next to him against the table, he spoke.
“How are you doing, baby? You’ve been quiet today.” He asked softly. And when she looked at her father, at the sympathetic and soft cast on his face, she knew.
“He told you,” resolution in her voice.
Gil gave her a sad smile.
“He did.” He simply stated. He sat and waited for her to give a response, but she simply sat there, smoothing her hands down her jeans. With a sigh, he pulled her into him and held her in a side embrace. He kissed the top of her head and soothingly ran his hand alongside her.
“I’m sorry, baby.”
McKenzie allowed herself to lean into his embrace, but nothing more. She’d save the crying spell for another time, preferably when she wasn’t here at the clubhouse. When they finally separated from each other, Gil maintained his comforting hand around her. Their eyes locked and she could see the sincere compassion, but also hesitance.
“I just-,” he looked away before he continued, “I just need to know this won’t be an issue.”
She fought the urge to roll her eyes. After all, he was president of the club, too. Brandon wasn’t going anywhere and McKenzie obviously wasn’t either. It was logical for Gil to have concerns about how things would go moving forward. Especially in the face of a new regency of the club. Though she held back from biting back with a smart comment, Gil could tell that his words weren’t received in the best way.
He continued rubbing up and down her arm to illustrate his sympathy. “Now wait, I have your back always. But I gotta think like a dad and a president. I voiced the same concern to B, too. I didn’t say anything when you two got together because you’re a grown woman, but here we are. B’s not going anywhere and you definitely aren’t. I gotta know that this doesn’t change things. That you two can still co-exist.”
“It won’t change things.” She spoke firmly. “At least on my end, it won’t.”
Gil put his hands up in defense, “Alright, that’s all I needed to know.” And then he held them out again, silently gesturing for another hug.
She walked into his arms and allowed herself to feel her father’s comfort once again. There were no further words spoken between them, an understanding in place. Once they parted, they nodded to each other and McKenzie walked out of the lounge.
She was only a few steps down the hallway before she was met with Lisa. Her arms were crossed as she slowed down and her eyes switched from fury to sadness as they connected with McKenzie. Acceptance rained over her as she realized that Lisa must know. Which meant everyone now knew, too.
She sucked in a resolute breath before meeting Lisa in the middle of the hallway. Wordlessly, they allowed their arms to cover each other as they fell into a hug. Once again, she allowed herself to revel in the arms of a loved one, embracing the squeezing comfort. Her eyes had watered once again but she wouldn’t let her tears fall, not while she wasn’t alone.
“You know, don’t you?” It was an unnecessary question, there was no doubt, but McKenzie felt the need to ask anyway.
“B just told us. Honey, why didn’t you?”
McKenzie let out another deep sigh before speaking, “Well, it was his decision. Figured it was on him to be the one to announce it.”
Lisa’s head immediately tilted in question, “What?”
“What?” McKenzie mirrored, not understanding the confusion.
Lisa stepped back and crossed her arms around her chest once again. “He said y’all decided to end things as in ‘we.’ As in it was a mutual decision.”
McKenzie couldn’t stop the rough laugh that escaped her lips. She shook her head and murmured, “Of course he did.”
“McKenzie, what really happened?”
She wanted to disregard the concern filling Lisa’s voice, but she knew her stepmother would push until she got her answers.
“He… he got home last night and said he didn’t want to be with me anymore. So he ended things. Just like that. A straight up blitz attack.”
“That asshole.” Lisa ground out.
“We’ve been having problems. Obviously, that’s not really a secret. Still though, I feel like I must have had blinders on because I didn’t think it was that bad.” The defeat and barely hidden hurt in McKenzie’s voice was evident. Lisa could hear the guardedness and she could see her begin to put walls up, unable to even look at her in the face. She stepped back, putting more distance between them and uttered, “It is what it is. No use in harping on it.”
Lisa sighed and pulled at McKenzie’s arm, silently willing her not to harden herself.
“He’s a dick, baby.” She continued pulling her until she was back in her arms, “You know I’m here for you, it’ll all be okay.”
“I know, thanks Lise.” McKenzie slowly relinquished herself from Lisa’s embrace. “It’s just- right now, all I want to do is forget about it.”
Lisa bit her tongue and simply nodded, “Then, that’s what we’ll do. Tell you what, let’s run out for a quick lunch, the guys can hold down the fort for a little bit,” she offered. A small smile fell onto McKenzie’s face and they linked their arms together as they walked down the steps.
“That sounds perfect.” McKenzie replied.
Neither of them glanced out towards the open bar area. Instead, they detoured towards the side door and headed outside towards Lisa’s sports car.
“Thank you,” McKenzie breathed as they separated. Relief had washed over her as soon as she exited the clubhouse. Almost as if it was choking her, she felt fresh air entering her lungs as she basked in the outside.
Lisa sent her a sympathetic smile, and responded, “Anything, babygirl.” She hopped into the driver’s seat, intent on lifting her stepdaughter’s spirits.
**************
Jax glanced at himself in the mirror as he spruced himself up. The party was beginning to start. He could already hear the music blaring through the speakers and patrons indulging in the festivities. He had come back up here to savor in the down time before what was sure to be a party for the books. To be honest, he wasn’t particularly in a party mood. He would for sure revel in the booze, food, and celebration, but he couldn’t see himself getting straight fucked up. Don’t get him wrong, today was worth celebrating. But peace had washed over him instead of the desire to get hammered. He felt like he had finally been able to relax after so long, especially seeing how everyone had fit well together during the brunch.
Now that him and McKenzie had come to a truce, he was even sure that they would be able to be cordial. The only weariness that continued to weigh on him was B. He wasn’t sure how long the feeling of uneasiness around him would permeate. It was weird because he didn’t necessarily feel the same anxiety around Gil. Sure, it wouldn’t do well for either of them to know of his and McKenzie’s recent tryst, but there was an unpredictability with B.
Jax had quickly found out that Brandon was sharp-witted and cunning. His contributions to their earlier meeting were insightful and sharp. He gave plenty of input on how best to go about purchasing properties and even supplied some contacts of people who’d be willing to help with the legalities on the cheap. He was helpful and the SAMCRO president could see how his usefulness was important to the Street Wolves. However, Jax also picked up on some things that rubbed him the wrong way about the young Street Wolf. For one, he had a perceptible ego. It wasn’t glaringly obvious, but it was there. And that kind of attitude could be dangerous, especially for two clubs who were working hard to stay legit. Hopefully, it never got to that point, but he knew it was something to watch out for.
And another thing that bothered him was how he treated McKenzie. Again, it was subtle. But obvious enough that he wondered if everyone could see it and simply chose to ignore it or if he was the only one who noticed. McKenzie had been withdrawn for pretty much the entire day and Brandon couldn’t have been bothered in the slightest. Jax wouldn’t have known that they were engaged to be married with the indifference and even slight annoyance with which he walked to go check on her in the bathroom earlier today. And it also wasn’t lost on him that McKenzie had practically fled the premises once he had announced their separation. Even after that, Jax was taken aback at the ease with which Brandon threw snide shots that were obviously directed at her. He made constant comments about how excited he was to finally be free tonight at the party and how he had one less headache in his life now. The only thing that made it even more childish is that he didn’t dare take a shot in the presence of Gil.
Everyone else looked a little uncomfortable, but said nothing, presumably letting him air his grievances like they would any brother who had just gone through a breakup. It was awkward because McKenzie was also their family, but they were doing what they knew best, supporting their brother. Instead of encouraging his comments though, they would just pat him on the back or give him a sympathetic smile.
Jax didn’t find it amusing at all. He never smiled, even sympathetically. He only excused himself to allow himself some alone time before the party. He tried not to be presumptuous, that had bitten him in the ass earlier. Maybe, B just wanted to lighten the mood and was the kind of person to crack jokes during tough times, but it rubbed Jax the wrong way and set off alarms in his head. Not even necessarily because of McKenzie. Just that Brandon thought it was appropriate to make those comments at all. At a fragile time like this, discord among the group was the last thing needed.
He’d give him the benefit of the doubt, though, just like he did McKenzie. They had both just gone through a break up. Maybe this was Brandon’s way of compartmentalizing, a twisted coping mechanism to help him process and get over things. It had only been a day since the breakup and a day since he had known the two of them. So, he’d give it more time before having his final judgements on the man.
Despite those initial worries, Jax wasn’t letting anything wash away his peace. He felt inspired, empowered, and ready to take on the world. Everyone seemed to respond well to his proposed plans and visions, so he couldn’t feel more excited about the moves on the horizon for this new partnership.
When he walked downstairs to join the party, he noticed Lisa and McKenzie in the small hallway nook that was centered right before you hit the main bar area. The two were saying goodbyes; it was obvious that McKenzie was itching to get out of here.
The sounds of his footsteps hitting the steps alerted them of his presence.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to intrude.” He spoke with a small smile.
Jax and McKenzie’s gazes locked momentarily as Lisa, oblivious, opened the side door that McKenzie was getting ready to walk out of.
The two gave each other a silent nod before McKenzie focused back on Lisa and said her goodbye.
Instead of lingering, Jax continued walking past the hallway nook and entered the vast expanse of the bar- the party in full swing.
A/N: And that’s Ch. 3! The two clubs seem to be settling in well which is nice, especially with their work cut out for them with new possible projects. There’s a lot of interesting things coming up with this story, so I hope y’all are enjoying it so far. I plan to delve more into Jax’s and McKenzie’s pasts, considering McKenzie is an OC and Jax has a non-canon past in this story. If you love slow burns, then this story is def for you! I know that’s ironic considering they slept together in the first chapter but def don’t expect them to be getting together together anyyy time soon. Obviously, there's still a lot of hurt and fallout for McKenzie after her breakup. And Jax himself hasn't had the best of experiences with love, so there's that.
Please let me know your thoughts. I’ve been so happy with the feedback and reception from y’all! Please continue to support by liking, reblogging, and leaving feedback. Thanks for reading!
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