#soft jax

[lazyyogurt]

hiii I have a jax request

can u do something cute and fluffy like ur last post but can we make it so hes like clingy one and he needs comfort for whatever reason u want idc

thank youuuu

- 🎱 anon

─ The Only Real Thing

pairing: clingy!jax x reader

Warning: none ig..

a/n: HAİİİİAİAİ TYSM FOR UR REQ İM SO HAPPY RN!! İ HOPE U LİKE THİS😭 remember English is not my first languagee

Jax woke up, practically shooting out of bed. His pupils darted wildly in the darkness, his chest heaving violently as he gasped for air. His hands immediately grabbed his own arms, checking to see if he was still holding his form.

He had had the same dream again. No, it wasn't a dream it was a loop. He was living the same nightmare over and over. Falling into a dark void, watching everyone in the Circus turn into Abstracted monsters one by one, and right as one of those monsters lunged at you, Jax couldn't move. He couldn't save you. And then everything would rewind and start over.

That famous, carefree smirk of his was completely wiped from his face. The walls of his room felt like they were closing in on him. He couldn't stay here. He couldn't be alone.

He didn't even remember getting out of bed or bolting into the hallway. His long legs automatically carried him in one single direction to your bedroom door. Normally, he'd kick doors open or obnoxiously sneak in using his spare keys. But this time, his hands were shaking so much that he could barely grip the doorknob. Luckily, the door wasn't locked.

As he rushed in, he saw your silhouette sleeping peacefully in bed In that moment, the invisible knot in Jax's throat loosened just a bit. You were here. You hadn't Abstracted. You were safe.

But that wasn't enough. He needed to be sure. with swift, silent steps, he approached the edge of your bed. Without even hesitating, he slumped onto the empty space, letting his weight sink into the mattress. He grabbed you by the shoulders and shook you lightly, but with an urgent demeanor.

"Get up," he whispered. His voice was completely devoid of its usual mocking tone; it was muffled and tense. "Hey. Wake up."

You blinked as you were pulled out of the depths of sleep. Seeing Jax's eyes fixed on you in the dark room startled you at first. You pulled the blanket closer to yourself as you tried to sit up.

"Jax? What... What time is it?" you mumbled, sleepy and dazed. "Who cares what time it is?" he snapped immediately. His voice came out much louder than necessary. He quickly cleared his throat and tried to slip that familiar, cocky mask back onto his face. "I'm just bored. Sleep is stupid anyway. I need you to talk to me."

"In the middle of the night?" you asked, rubbing your eyes. "Did you have a bad dream or something?"

Your question caused Jax to flinch as if he'd taken a physical blow. He quickly averted his eyes, fixing them on an empty chair in the corner of the room.

"What? Me? Don't be ridiculous," he said, forcing a layer of sarcasm into his voice. But his actions belied his words. He slid a bit closer to you on the bed. His long arms stretched out over your blanket, toward your legs. As if he didn't realize it, he pressed his hand down right next to your knee. He just wanted to make contact, to feel your reality. "I'm fine. It's just that Caine's stupid beds are super uncomfortable. And why are you asking so many questions anyway? Stop complaining and pay attention to me."

"Are you sure you're okay?" you pressed. You knew Jax. In any given situation, he would rather bite his tongue off than show a moment of weakness. But the way he was right now... that twitch in his eyes, his irregular breathing, and the fact that, despite normally invading your personal space uninvited anyway, he was now leaving almost zero distance between you two it gave everything away.

"I said I'm fine!" he snapped suddenly. His voice sliced through the silence of the room like a knife. "You just... talk too much. Shut up and sit down."

As he said this, his hand slid off your leg and found yours. He intertwined his fingers with yours so tightly, so desperately. you didn't say anything for a while. You just let him hold your hand. The tension in Jax's shoulders eased a fraction the moment your fingers touched. He slowly bowed his head, his long ears drooping backward. In the silence of the room, only the sound of your combined breathing could be heard. "Okay," you said softly. There was no point in pushing him further. Forcing him to take off his armor would only make him more aggressive. "Since we can't sleep... we can go to the cafeteria if you want. Let's get you something warm. Maybe it'll help." as you said this, you made a small backward motion to gently slip your hand out of his. Your only intention was to get out of bed and stand up. But the split second he felt your hand pulling away, creating a mere ten centimeter gap between you, every single alarm in Jax's brain started ringing. the loop triggered. the darkness in his mind that moment when you slipped from his grasp, when he couldn't protect you flashed before his eyes. "No!" His voice, completely abandoning the hushed argument from a moment ago, tore through the room like a panicked, primal scream. Before you could even process what was happening, Jax clamped both his hands onto your wrists. He pulled you toward him with such a sudden and violent force that you lost your balance on the bed and crashed directly into his chest. His long arms instantly wrapped around your back, practically locking you to his torso. He was panting, and you could feel his heart beating frantically against his chest.

"Don't go" he whispered. This time, there was no sarcasm, no mask. His voice trembled with desperation, and he pressed his jaw hard into your shoulder. "Don't get up. You can't go." "Jax... you're hurting me," you mumbled, trying to wiggle out of the vice-like grip of his arms. The moment he heard that his arms immediately loosened. He pulled back sharply as if the thought of hurting you terrified him even more. But he didn't let go entirely He placed his hands on your shoulders his eyes wide open, his pupils trembling as they scanned your face. There was pure fear in his eyes. "I'm sorry," he stammered, the words struggling to leave his mouth. "I... Just... don't pull away. Please." He swallowed hard, his hands sliding slightly down your shoulders to grip your arms. "I'm fine. Really. Just... you stay right there. Don't leave my line of sight." You saw that his hands were still shaking slightly. In that moment, you understood he didn't just want to be next to you. He needed physical proof to know that you "existed" and "hadn't disappeared."

You slowly raised your arms and wrapped them around his neck. This was definitely not the reaction he was expecting from you. His whole body went completely stiff at the contact. normal Jax would have shoved you away right now, saying "You're like a leech, back off." But in that moment, the person in front of you wasn't that cocky rabbit.

A second later, the reality of your arms wrapped around him broke all his resistance. Letting out a deep, shuddering breath, he buried his face in your neck again. He wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you in, but this time being careful not to hurt you, treating you like you were a fragile object about to break. He just stayed there, his eyes squeezed shut, hiding his face in your neck, and letting all his weight rest on you. He held you so tight, it was as if letting you go would mean both of you dropping into that bottomless void. All sense of time was lost in the room. In this universe coded by Caine, time was always a massive lie anyway, but right now, holding each other in the dark room, it felt as though the seconds had frozen entirely. Jax's body was still trembling slightly in your arms. He had buried his face so deep into your neck that you could clearly feel the strange, cool sensation of his breath against your skin. His quiet, muffled, and shuddering breaths were the greatest proof of the breakdown happening inside him. "I'm here," you whispered, slowly beginning to rub his back, over his overalls. "It was just a dream, Jax. It's not real. We're all here."

"It wasn't," he mumbled in a muffled voice. The sound vibrated against your skin. "It wasn't just a dream. It was a loop. Over... and over... and over again..." He forced the words out of his mouth in agony, as if he were swallowing broken glass. Without lifting his head from your neck, his grip on your shoulders tightened a bit more. "Those disgusting black monsters... Abstraction. Everything was dark. And you..." He couldn't finish his sentence. He took a deep breath and swallowed. A fresh wave of trembling shook his body. "I couldn't find you. You were nowhere. Only... your glitched, broken voice kept echoing."

His words settled like a heavy weight on your heart. For someone like Jax who mocked everyone around him and acted like he didn't care about anyone to have his biggest nightmare be losing you both warmed your heart and broke it.

"But look, I'm right here" you said, trying to keep your voice as soft and soothing as possible. You pulled your right hand from his back and gently trailed it up to his nape, and from there to the base of his long ears. When your fingers began threading through that soft texture an involuntary, muffled groan escaped Jax's lips.

That touch relaxed him instantly. All his defense mechanisms, that prickly hedgehog-like attitude of his, simply melted away with a small touch on the back of his neck. "Don't leave me" he said once more. This time he was just begging. "I'm not leaving," you whispered. "But if we keep sitting like this, Caine is going to find us with herniated discs in the morning. Let's lean back a bit, okay?"Jax grumbled softly at first, as if he wanted to object his arms remaining locked around your waist. However when you nudged him gently backward, he stopped resisting. As he slid back toward the headboard, he pulled you right along with him. He was absolutely refusing to let any distance form between you. When you leaned your back against the headboard, he rested his head against your chest. He stretched his long legs out on the bed, while his arms were still wrapped tightly around your waist. Now, it was like you had completely become his shield. That sarcastic, annoying, and untouchable Jax was now curled up against your chest like a giant plush toy seeking comfort.

You began stroking him with rhythmic movements. With every touch, you could see his tremors slowly fading, his calm beginning to return in their place. "If you're looking at me with pity or something, I'll gouge those eyes out" he mumbled suddenly, his voice muffled against your chest. You smiled. Flinging a threat like that when he couldn't even see your eyes was such a classic Jax move. "I'm not pitying you, you stupid rabbit" you said, petting his head a little more. "I'm just thinking about how clingy you can be. If Pomni saw this, she'd definitely have a heart attack."

"Don't say that clown's name right now," he grumbled. He must have had his eyes closed. "Not a word of this to anyone. If you mention this to Zooble or Ragatha... I'll throw you in that digital lake and watch you drown." "Of course you would" you said in a teasing tone. "As if it was someone else begging me not to leave them just a minute ago."

"Shut up." Instead of sounding aggressive, his voice came out tired and drowsy.

He slid his hand slightly from your waist and found your hand. He carefully intertwined his fingers with yours and pressed your hand against his own chest, right where his heart should be. There was a rhythmic pulse there.

"I need to feel that you're real," he said in a whisper. That confession completely wiped away all his fake threats from earlier. "I just... I need to feel your pulse, your warmth. Otherwise, my mind slips back into that loop."

"Okay," you said softly. You continued rubbing his back with your free hand. "I'm right here until you fall asleep. I'll be here when you wake up too. And I'll be here when Caine drags us into one of his stupid adventures."

Jax took a deep, long breath. "Promise?" he asked, his voice almost as vulnerable as a little child's. "Promise," you said. "I will never Abstract. I won't leave you alone." Those words hung in the air, wrapping around the cold, digital silence of the room like a warm blanket. The last crumb of tension in Jax's body vanished. He leaned completely into your chest, holding your intertwined hands even tighter. After a while, his breathing deepened and settled into a steady rhythm. You couldn't tell for sure if he had fallen asleep, but it was certain that his mind had escaped that dark loop. Watching that peaceful, vulnerable expression on his face.But tonight, in this current silence, you both knew the truth. Only you could illuminate the darkness beneath his mask, and no matter how much he denied it, he desperately needed your light. Your fingers slowly drifted through his ears one last time, and resting your head on top of his, you closed your eyes in true peace.

Jax had tangled himself around you like a vine all night, not drifting even a millimeter away. He opened his eyes slightly in the morning, but instead of letting you go, he sealed his arms around your waist even tighter. He buried his face deep into your neck and took a deep, shaky breath. The remnants of last night's dark loop were still lingering somewhere in his mind. "Don't go," he mumbled in a sleepy, muffled voice, sounding more needy than ever. "Caine's stupid activities can wait. Just... stay here." When he lifted his head slightly to look at you, you saw his pupils trembling. That vulnerability from the night before was still on his face it was still too early to put on his famous sarcastic mask. His hand slowly rose to your cheek, his fingertips gently, shakily caressing your skin as if he were examining a priceless jewel.

"You're still here," he said, his voice full of awe, as if witnessing a miracle. "It wasn't a dream." When you started stroking his head with your hand, Jax nuzzled into your touch almost like a cat. He closed his eyes and leaned his head into your palm. "Rub my back," he whispered, his voice raspy and full of longing in the morning silence. "Play with my ears, say my name... Just... make me feel like I belong to you." "Jax.." you whispered trailing your fingers along his nape. "We're real. I'm with you." Hearing his name reignited that touch starvation inside Jax. Unable to hold back any longer, he pulled you closer and crashed his lips onto yours. This morning kiss was more possessive and much longer. As Jax kissed you, it was as if he was drawing your very soul into his own. As his lips pressed firmly against yours, and your tongues intertwined, a deep, vibrating moan slipped from his throat. That moan was the ultimate proof that all his defense mechanisms had collapsed. He laid you back onto the bed and hovered over you, wrapping his arms around your body like a chain. When he slipped his hands under your shirt and touched your bare back, you felt the heat in his fingertips practically burning your skin. He was kissing you with such fervor, with such desperation, that you knew among all the fake pixels in the circus, the only real thing was the two of you. "Don't leave me."

He parted from your lips for a second, trailing burning kisses down your neck and along your collarbone. "I can't let you go," he mumbled against your skin. "I'm terrified that if we separate for even a second, that silence will swallow me whole again. Keep holding me like this... whisper my name... make me feel like I'm yours." Jax rested his head on your chest again and raised your intertwined hands into the air. He locked his fingers with yours so tightly that...

He hugged you even tighter, tangling his legs with yours. Your hand on his back, your name on his lips... That morning was the most beautiful reality in the circus for Jax.

[inkandanarchy]

Summary: You get Abel a kitten, and Jax falls head over heels.

Fluff& soft Jax.

Part 1 -Reaper

The roar of Harley engines faded down the street before the garage door rattled open. Sneakers heavy with the dust of the road, Jax Teller stepped inside, his kutte hanging loose from his shoulders, hair still damp with sweat from the ride. He wiped a hand across his face, expecting quiet—maybe his old lady in the kitchen, Abel playing with his trucks.

Instead, the first thing he heard was meowing.

Jax froze in the doorway. “What the fuck is that?”

From the living room came a giggle, Abel’s small voice full of delight. “Daddy! Look!”

You turned just as your son barreled toward Jax, tiny arms cradling a squirming ball of spotted fur. Abel nearly tripped over his own feet, but he was grinning ear to ear.

Jax’s jaw tightened. “Jesus Christ,” he muttered, running a hand down his face.

Abel stopped in front of him, proudly lifting the kitten. “It’s a kitty! Mommy found him!”

The kitten meowed again, tiny claws catching on Abel’s shirt. Its coat was golden with dark rosettes, a miniature jungle cat in your living room.

Jax’s blue eyes flicked from Abel, to the kitten, to you. His voice dropped low. “Babe. Tell me you did not bring a fuckin’ cat into this house.”

You held your ground, though your lips twitched at his tone. “It was at the shelter. Nobody wanted him. They were gonna put him down, Jax. I couldn’t just walk away.”

“Darlin’,” he drawled, shaking his head. “You can’t just pick up strays ‘cause you think they need savin’. You already got me.”

That earned him a sharp look. “This isn’t about you. Look at Abel.”

Jax sighed and turned back to his boy. Abel’s eyes were shining, wide and blue like his father’s. “Daddy, he’s so cool. He looks like a tiger! Can we keep him, please?”

Jax crouched down, elbows resting on his knees, staring at the kitten with the kind of suspicion he usually reserved for strangers. The thing blinked back, let out a soft mew, and butted its head against Abel’s chest.

Abel giggled. “He likes me.”

Jax muttered, “Yeah, ‘cause he doesn’t know you yet, little man.”

“Jax,” you said softly.

He looked up at you, the weight of your stare pinning him down. You weren’t backing off, not this time. He could see the stubborn set of your jaw, the way you crossed your arms. He’d been on enough runs to recognize when a fight wasn’t worth it.

“Shit,” he muttered under his breath.

Abel beamed, thinking that was permission. He hugged the kitten close. “We’re keepin’ him?”

Jax dragged a hand through his hair. “Guess I don’t got much of a choice, do I? You two already teamed up against me.”

You smirked. “Smart man.”

Abel bounced on his toes. “We gotta name him!”

Jax stood, watching his son dance around the room with the kitten. The sight softened something in his chest, even as he tried to fight it. He’d wanted to come home, grab a beer, take his old lady upstairs. Instead, he was watching a damn jungle cat curl up against Abel’s neck.

“Better not scratch the shit outta him,” Jax muttered, pulling off his kutte and draping it over the chair.

“He won’t,” Abel promised, running his hand down the kitten’s back. “He’s nice. Mommy said he’s a Bengal.”

“Figures.” Jax grabbed a beer from the fridge, popped the top, and leaned against the counter. “Can’t bring home a regular damn tabby. Gotta get yourself a leopard.”

You slid up beside him, nudging his arm. “It’s not so bad. Look at them.”

Abel was on the rug now, lying on his stomach, the kitten pawing at his fingers. Your boy’s laughter filled the house, sweet and unguarded.

Jax’s jaw softened. “Yeah. He’s happy.”

You leaned your head against his shoulder. “So are you. Don’t lie.”

Jax smirked around the rim of his beer. “Fuckin’ woman, callin’ me out in my own house.”

“Someone’s gotta keep you honest.”

He chuckled, set his beer down, and pulled you close with an arm around your waist. “You know I hate cats.”

“You’ll get over it.”

“Yeah, well…” He kissed the top of your head, voice dropping low and rough. “I can’t say no to you. Or him.”

Across the room, Abel sat up suddenly. “I got it! His name’s Reaper. Like Daddy’s kutte.”

Jax groaned. “Christ. Really?”

Abel nodded fiercely, eyes shining with pride. “Yeah! He’s tough. Just like us.”

You hid your laugh against Jax’s chest.

Jax shook his head, but the smile tugging at his lips gave him away. He crouched down again, holding his hand out toward the kitten. “C’mere, Reaper.”

The tiny cat crept forward, sniffed his fingers, and then—like it had been waiting for this moment—curled right into Jax’s palm.

Abel gasped. “He likes you, Daddy!”

Jax looked at the kitten, small and warm against his calloused hand. “Yeah, little man,” he said quietly. “Guess he does.”

You watched as Jax carefully scooped the kitten up, scratching under its chin the way Abel had been. For all his bitching, he was gentle, his rough biker’s hands cradling the tiny creature like it was fragile.

“Fuck me,” Jax muttered. “I’m gonna end up lovin’ this thing, aren’t I?”

“Already do,” you teased.

He shot you a look, but his lips curved into that lazy Teller grin. “Shut up, sweetheart.”

Abel crawled onto the couch beside him, resting his head on Jax’s shoulder while the kitten purred between them. “We’re a gang now, Daddy. Me, you, Mommy, and Reaper.”

Jax wrapped his arm around his son, pulling him close. “My little outlaw,” he murmured.

You watched them—the biker, the boy, and the kitten that had somehow wormed its way into your family in a single night. And you knew Jax Teller, for all his rough edges and road-worn scars, had more room in his heart than he ever let on.

he morning sunlight spilled through the blinds when Jax wandered into the kitchen, shirtless, tattoos inked dark against his skin. His hair was still damp from the shower, jeans slung low on his hips, and his kutte tossed over the back of a chair.

He stopped dead at the sight in front of him.

Abel was crouched on the floor, lips pursed in concentration, a fistful of cat treats in one hand. Reaper sat a few feet away, tail twitching like a metronome.

“Sit,” Abel commanded.

The kitten stared.

Abel tried again, louder this time. “Sit!”

Jax leaned against the doorframe, rubbing a hand down his face. “Jesus Christ, what are you doin’, little man?”

Abel looked over his shoulder, beaming. “I’m trainin’ him! Like a dog!”

“Yeah, well, he ain’t a dog. He’s a goddamn cat.” Jax stepped into the kitchen, snagging a coffee mug from the counter. “Only thing he knows how to do is ignore people.”

“He’s smart,” Abel argued, turning back to the kitten. “C’mon, Reaper. Sit.”

Reaper tilted his little head, eyes blinking slow.

Jax snorted, pouring coffee. “Told ya. Waste of time.”

“Don’t discourage him,” you cut in, walking past Jax with a smirk, your hair pulled back and one of his tees hanging off your shoulder. You crouched beside Abel, brushing a hand over his hair. “He might surprise you.”

Jax gave you a look over the rim of his mug. “Sweetheart, if that furball ends up doin’ tricks, I’ll eat my kutte.”

Abel gasped. “Promise?”

Jax groaned. “Don’t get smart with me, little outlaw.”

But Abel was already giggling, turning back to the cat with renewed determination. He held the treat a little higher. “Sit, Reaper. Sit!”

The kitten batted at Abel’s hand, then plopped down on his haunches with a chirp.

Abel froze, wide-eyed. “Daddy! He did it!”

Jax blinked. “Bullshit.”

You covered your laugh with your hand.

Abel shoved the treat into Reaper’s mouth triumphantly. “See? He’s learnin’!”

The kid’s excitement was contagious. Even Jax cracked a reluctant grin. “Lucky fuckin’ shot,” he muttered.

“It wasn’t luck!” Abel insisted. “He’s a real outlaw now. He listens to me.”

Jax crouched down, eye-level with both boy and kitten. “Alright, little man. Lemme see.” He reached out, holding a treat between two fingers. “Reaper. Sit.”

The kitten blinked, swished his tail, and promptly turned his back on Jax to lick his paw.

Abel burst out laughing. “He doesn’t like you, Daddy!”

“Yeah, well, I don’t like him either,” Jax growled, though the corner of his mouth twitched.

You smirked. “Sure you don’t.”

Abel scooped the kitten up, cradling him against his chest. Reaper purred instantly, tucking his face under Abel’s chin. “He’s my best friend,” Abel announced proudly.

Jax’s heart twisted, even as he tried to hide it behind a scowl. He ruffled Abel’s hair. “Long as he don’t scratch the shit outta you, little man. Otherwise he’s gone.”

“He won’t!” Abel promised. “Right, Reaper?” The kitten purred louder, sealing the deal.

Jax stood, sipping his coffee. “This house is turnin’ into a fuckin’ zoo.”

You leaned against the counter beside him, eyes soft. “Admit it. You like watching them together.”

Jax slid his arm around your waist, pulling you close. “Don’t push your luck, babe.”

You grinned up at him. “Your poker face sucks.”

Before Jax could argue, Abel piped up from the floor again. “I’m teachin’ him to follow me next!”

Jax groaned. “Christ almighty. What’s next, puttin’ him on a leash?”

“That’s a good idea!” Abel said brightly.

You laughed, hiding your smile against Jax’s shoulder. He dropped his head back with a sigh, mumbling, “This is my life now.”

But later that night, when Abel fell asleep with Reaper curled up on his pillow, Jax lingered in the doorway. He leaned on the frame, arms crossed, staring at his boy’s chest rising and falling, the kitten’s tiny body pressed tight against him.

You slipped your hand into his, quiet. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” His voice was rough, low. “Never thought I’d be jealous of a fuckin’ cat.”

You squeezed his hand. “You don’t need to be. He loves you just as much.”

Jax glanced at you, then back at Abel. A rare softness lit his face. “My little outlaw,” he murmured.

And though he’d never admit it out loud, he was already starting to love the kitten too.

[shijjii]

Prove it

Pairing: Jax/Reader Genre/Tags: No warnings apply, Hurt/comfort, eventual happy ending, eventual fluff, eventual relationship, Jax being an asshole, Jax is bad at feelings, soft Jax, reader is a simp, Jax & Pomni friendship, no use of y/n for reader insert, reader insert, goofy ahh, no beta we die like ribbit, cross posted in the archives Word count: 3,039 Reader appearance/notes: Been called Shortstack by Jax

“I love you” You breathlessly say. You don’t know why you are because you haven’t really done anything to warrant this kind of breathlessness, but the way that Jax is standing there in front of you, eyes full of surprise and…. Curiosity? Everything about this fuckass rabbit, from the way his ears stand at attention and how he blinks just takes the breath away from your lungs and the words spill out faster than Flash can say shit.

After a beat of awkward silence with him staring you down like you grew three heads, his body language shifts into something else and grins at you “Oh yeah?” There was a lilt in his voice as he began to speak. Eyebrows raised at you in questioning, crossing his arms as he looked down at you. “Prove it.”

You pause. Eyes staring back at the ones looking at you as if provoking you, challenging you to do something.

Something? You weren’t even sure what you were supposed to do but here he was, standing there, expecting you to do something, to prove that you do love him.

A kiss, maybe? Or jumping into a tank filled with toxic chemicals just like Harlequin? Or something grandeur? Like announcing it to the entire circus that you love him, may heaven or hell come. You can’t be too sure since Jax is more often than not, a wildcard that no one can handle that much.

Clicking your tongue together, you squint at him, observing each and every action he was showing you. You try not to get distracted by just checking him out, and decide that asking him may be the best way to know what is going on inside that pretty purple head of his— Well, his actions don’t match his words sometimes but you’ve already decided to go through with asking.

“How do you want me to prove it?” You slowly ask, curious as to what he will say.

But you’re met with a wide smile, a mischievous glint in his eyes, and a mere shrug of his shoulders “That ain’t my problem. That’s for you to find out.”

You let out a deep and heavy sigh, closing your eyes, smiling to yourself that yeah, this is the wildcard you like, until you felt Jax move to point at something so you snapped them open again.

Surprisingly, his cheeks littered with what seemed to be a blush that slowly invaded his whole face. You tilt your head at him and reach your hand out in concern “Jax? Are you okay?” He stutters out an answer, swatting your hand away “Anyway! How are you going to prove it shortstack?”

You look at the ceiling of the circus, slightly humming to yourself until a bulb lit in your head. You raise an eyebrow at him playfully “I’ll prove it”

”How?”

A wide grin spreads on your lips as you slowly walk away from him, echoing the words he used earlier. “That’s for you to find out”

For the next couple of days, Jax wondered what you were going to do. He admits, he thought you were going to kiss him right there and then… But you didn’t do anything, making him wonder what scheme you were cooking up.

His eyes would often trail you whenever he’d see you. He finds himself surprised when he’s out on one of Caine’s adventures, and there you were right behind him which was out of character for him. He didn’t want to be seen as someone easily surprised but you just pop out of nowhere.

He doesn’t know how to feel or what to do about the situation; Asking you is out of the question because it would look like he’s looking forward to it, and he would rather abstract than look any semblance of being vulnerable.

“What are you looking for?” Jax snaps out of his thoughts when Pomni asks him a question “Nothing for you to worry about, Pomni” he slyly replies, quickly settling himself into his usual attitude. Grin widening, and eyebrows raised.

“Heh” He hears Pomni let out a small huff of laughter. He sees that rather looking at him, she was looking at something behind him so was about to ask her what’s funny when you appeared right behind him again, holding some sort of food in both hands “Hey, got this for you” You give him the food and he does that thing again where he blinks confused, then he sees you smile. That damned fond smile that you often give him as if he’s the best thing to ever happen in this world.

“Thanks or whatever” Jax says in a weird and suspicious tone; he was still waiting on how you were going to prove it to him. That you actually love him and that whatever bullshit you said back then was not some bluff— Maybe it was some sort of infatuation? Or a prank? Maybe it was? That makes sense. I shouldn’t take it seriously— His train of thoughts were once cut off again when Ragatha called for you.

“They really love you, huh?” Pomni asks as soon as you were out of hearing range

“Excuse me?”

When he heard what Pomni said, his mind started racing, gloved hands slowly tightening around the piece of food you brought. Maybe he’s just hallucinating, misheard her or there was something in the food. That might be it. He was about to throw away the food when Pomni spoke once again,

“Haven’t you noticed?” The vagueness of the entire situation is starting to irritate Jax “Notice what!? That they’re slowly poisoning my mind?” He hissed, glaring at the piece of food in his hand.

“Poisoning? No, Jax.” Pomni scratches her cheek, clearing her throat awkwardly. Her eyes kept darting back from the rabbit and to you. “Jax… I- I don’t know if I should be the one-“

”No. You already started.” He demanded. He was truly and utterly done with it all and just wanted to know what the fuck is up with everything anymore. He doesn’t like being left out of the loop, and most especially when it is involving him.

He sees her move her finger to her neck to scratch it in nervousness and thin her lips together “Jax, it’s obvious that they have… You know… A thing for you?”

“I know that, Pomni!” He exaggeratedly responds, earning them a look from the other members. You look at them in curiosity but couldn’t really leave Ragatha at that moment. Jax sees you heave a deep sigh, continuing on with the puzzle that the adventure offered.

“Just- Be quiet!” She whisper shouts and reaches up to grab Jax by the neck, pulling him farther and being all hush hush with him.

“It’s so obvious that they love you!” Pomni tells him with a more firm tone

”How are you so sure about that? Are you sure you’re not like… I don’t know, going insane like dear old Kinger?” He hears Pomni make an irritated sound but letting go of his neck

“No, I’m definitely not going insane.” Jax follows Pomni’s every movement. How she touches her arm in nervousness again before raising an eyebrow at Jax, finally making up her mind

“You seriously didn’t notice?”

”What are you %$!#ng on abou—“

”When they try to support you from behind, when they give you food, when they look at you when you laugh at a joke before laughing at it?”

”wha-“

”Or when just now. The smile” Jax freezes up when Pomni mentions your smile

“They smiled at you like you gave the world color.”

He slowly walks to the wall. Eyes blank as everything you did for him flashes back in his mind. Surely Pomni could be wrong, right?

“Hey!” The two of them see you jogging up to where they were. “Is everything okay?”

Pomni tries to escape by saying she’ll go see what the others were doing but not without hearing Jax’s question “Was what you said the other day true?”

She makes a little surprised face before fully leaving the two of you alone

He sees you fidget with your fingers, cheeks tinting a pretty shade of red— Pretty? Come on, don’t tell me you’re changing your view on them just because of the recent events Jax reprimands himself, a part of him begging to not let himself fall deeper. He needed to keep everyone at an arm’s length and it was good that he had some lengthy arms.

Sure he lowered his walls down for you and Pomni sometimes, and maybe you found him crying once or twice but in his mind, he’s beyond repair. Someone who the others really wouldn’t miss but here you are, acting all shy and nervous despite already confessing the other day.

”Yes” you firmly say after a while, looking into his eyes softly

and that scared him. It scared him because that means if he ever did abstract you were going to be sad. He didn’t want you to be sad.

“Well! Stop it. At once” He says frustrated and leaves you there. Moving on to bother the others.

In his peripheral vision, he sees your hands fall down to your side and clench at nothing. He ignored it. He ignored you throughout the entire adventure too. Deciding that maybe this is the best course of action.

Jax has realized it way before that he likes you, maybe even before you liked him but he didn’t want you feeling sad or be hurt just because he finally abstracted. He didn’t want the members of the circus to feel the pain when someone does abstract, especially you.

The lot of you were going back to the circus after finally solving the insane puzzle Caine set up to free the lost prince. While his eyes kept wandering to your defeated form, he willed every part of his body not to approach you.

Everyone hung out by the common place until it was time to retreat back to their bedrooms. Jax didn’t see your figure after the adventure and it was slightly worrying him at this point. Maybe he worded it badly.

He’s a jerk, not a monster. He doesn’t want you to abstract with him being the main factor to it. He won’t let himself live, knowing that it was because of him… If you ever did.

Jax walks to your room and raises his knuckles up “uhhh…” Unsure, he lets his hand fall to his side instead and starts to walk away, but the door opens and your voice stops him

“Why?”

He turned back to look at you, your eyes were all puffy and red. His mouth forms into a deep frown, and he guiltily looks away from you and shakes the feeling off, placing a grin immediately

“I was just going to ask if you wanted to play a prank on Ragatha! But you know, I thought you might be tired from the adventure" Jax sees you shake your head sharply

“No, not that. You’re lying through gritted teeth and you %$!#ng know it.” He can practically see the steam coming out from your ears “Why did you say that earlier?” Jax slowly backs away when you march right up to him but you were quicker. You grabbed his wrist and pulled him inside your room.

“What? Pranking Ragat-“

”No” you firmly echoed once again, seeing through his facade, trying to deflect and ignore what happened earlier. Jax’s wide grin slowly downturns and his eyebrows furrow deeply. Glaring at you with every fiber of his being as you continued to speak, frustration slowly building up in his chest.

“Why did you say that? That I should stop loving yo-“ He reaches for the sides of your arms and holds you tightly.

“Because! Can’t you see?!” He seethes. His voice filled with hatred and anger. Not for you no. ”I’m beyond %$!#ng repair! I’m a mean person who is thrilled to see other people’s hardships! %$!#, I’m the one creating the problems! I don’t deserve you!” The words pour out of his lips like vomit with no way to stop it from coming out. Tears were slowly burning up his eyes, and his vision slowly warps

“Jax what…”

“I’m someone you shouldn’t love because someone so perfect like you doesn't deserve someone like me!”

The silence is so loud you can hear a pin drop. “%$!#…” He finally sighs out, realizing he just truly dropped his mask off for you. He slowly walks to your bed and sits on it, taking a deep interest on the floor and avoiding your eyes.

“Please don’t ask” pathetic he thinks to himself. Not only did he show you all of his cards, he even asked something from you as if that would make it any better.

“Okay, I’m going to change what I was going to say then” Jax looks up and raises an eyebrow at you

“I love you”

”There you go aga-“

”Despite what you tell me, I know the real you. The one who cares deeply more than anyone. The one who keeps memorabilias from adventures, from each member-“

”Hoooow do you know that?!” He flushes in embarrassment and stands up to maybe look more intimidating but he was shy as fuck right now

You grin at him and walk to a table in your room. Opening a small box, showing it to him, there were a bunch of keys with small symbols on them, indicating which key are for each member “You’re not the only one who knows their way around”

“You better not tell anyone about that or I swear to Caine’s flat %$!# you’re not going to see the next day!” You laugh at his empty threat

“death by your pretty hands? Yes, please” He flushes deeper and starts to stutter out a reply but you continue speaking “What I’m trying to say is that, it doesn’t matter what you think. I’m going to love you, the you who pushed me into a pool of sharks. The you who wallowed in guilt one night because he accidentally destroyed Gangle’s happy mask. The you who loves in secret because you’re scared and don’t want anyone to feel that sad when you abstract one day.” He didn’t know what to say as you started to walk to him.

”I love you, Jax. You can’t dictate me on what I should do and who I deserve.” You reach up to him, pulling him by the strap of his overalls and kiss him.

Surprise overcomes Jax. He’s frozen in place as you kiss his lips. His hands awkwardly hang in the air, unsure if he should touch you or not. Every insecurity he’s had was thrown out in that moment as he feels the sincerity in the way you kiss him.

Slowly, he places his hands on your waist. Still a little bit stiff and awkward but he responds. Or at least tries to. He tries to replicate the same sincere feeling but he feels that he’s not giving you enough justice, and so his competitiveness takes over his awkwardness and deepens the kiss the both of you are sharing.

Jax feels a sharp slap on his arm as you pry yourself away from him “I—“ Right now, you have every reason to feel breathless. The blush on your face was such a deep red that Jax was sure you were about to reach a different color in the color wheel.

“I win” He smugly grins at you, making you slap his arm once again.

There was a beat of silence as he looked at you, trying to understand the wave emotions that he’s feeling right now. He knows who he is. Hell, he’s self-aware just how much of an asshole he really is but he thinks that you deserve to know… Even if you already did.

“I…” His grin slowly turns down, becoming uncharacteristically serious “I don’t know if I’ll be able to reciprocate it feeling by feeling” His gloved hand slowly traces the side of your arm and clasps your hand, intertwining them together. The feeling of his hand in yours felt slightly awkward but he can’t deny the pleasure from having the warmth of your hand in his.

“I’m not asking you to give me the world”

”bull%$!#… You look at me like I already did. It’s kind of scary” He huffs out in annoyance. You just truly look at him as if he gave your world meaning, color, and all that jazz. Just thinking about it seriously scared him more than the thought of abstracting.

“I’m just…” He pries his eyes away from you, not really knowing how to continue his sentence “I’m not that great. You know that. I’m an insecure mother%$!#...” He rolls his eyes “And really bad at %$!#ng communicating my feelings”

“At least you’re self-aware”

“Hey! I’m trying here! Can you not?”

You both share a small laugh before he continues on “Whaaat I’m trying to say here is that if you want to be in– I don’t know, a relationship? I’m not the best contender out here in this %$!#hole but I uh..” Jax tries to keep his cool but can’t stop himself from stuttering and losing the words as he speaks. You make him feel nervous. Anxious. Scared that now he’s trying, you might back away, realizing you’re not really up for the emotional baggage he carries.

“I’ll try my best….?” You raise an eyebrow at first but he can see the playful smirk dancing on your lips and he wants nothing more but to kiss you once again but decides against it

“That’s all I ask for” He didn’t even need to ask, you were already pulling him in to give him another kiss

He pulls away slightly, looking at you with the blacks of his eyes blown out you almost couldn't see the yellows of it, His mouth slowly forms into a grin “Also, just so you know, I’m real territorial… Sooooo”

You chuckle at his whispered statement on your lips, pulling back as you can’t contain the bubbling laughter from your chest but you really couldn’t ask for a good ending to your night.

[estro-gem]

Jax x Ragatha: I remember the smell of rain

The Amazing Digital Circus AU: Oasis.

Author's note: Dear everyone. I was starving for bunnydoll. This is self-indulgent, sorry guys.

SUMMARY

After Jax's interaction with the possession, he rested easy, as he saw to his promise. The moment of peace, however, caused his mind to spiral out of control with loud thoughts. When he realised none of his own grounding techniques would be effective, he went to the one person he could always steal time from, no questions asked.

I REMEMBER THE SMELL OF RAIN

Jax closed the red door behind him.

He scanned the surroundings while dusting off his shoulders, squinting his eyes as he casted his gaze to the vast, high ceilings above him.

No sign of Zooble.

He stood frozen for a second, with a contemplative look on his face, like he was buffering in real time. He ran over the events that previously transpired in his head and remembered the stoic jester body being puppeteered by Gangle. He found it repulsive to look at, but he couldn’t see a reason to intervene with the ribbonoid’s toys if it didn’t affect anyone.

That would mean that he cared about it – and when it came to that thing, he reasoned that the jester was no use to them. Maybe Gangle wanted to feel solid for once? Who knew? All that mattered, was that he got his message across; Gangle needed to talk to Zooble.

Like he promised.

It was dumb and way out of his line of responsibility, but he could never really refuse his dolly anything.

Damn, he was getting soft.

It was easier and easier to fall into the comfort that everyone felt regarding secret connections with one another since Kaufmo wasn’t there to breathe down their necks anymore – to keep them in check. The freedom to simply be, with no one to tell you ‘no’ was still something they all had to get used to. They all still kept their strongest bonds a secret.

A part of Jax missed having to sneak around to be sweet on his doll, not that he didn’t still need to do that anyway, since he was still supposed to uphold his reputation as an instigator – a snake – but Kaufmo really had the tendency to be extremely anal about favouritism. It was annoying.

Good riddance.

Jax sighed at his own thoughts. How could he even say that, when the clown was the one who kept them all together and in line in the first place? Ever since he had been gone, all hell broke loose; at first it was a few loose strands, then it became a horrific jumbled mess that put Zooble to shame.

Ugh... where was that poor creature now? Only time could tell. In the meantime, he could only trust that the amalgamation would not abstract.

The rabbit sauntered his way down the hall.

He fulfilled his promise, so he was free to do whatever he wished, no? It seemed a bit aimless... But with Ragatha acting so reserved and withdrawn after the possession incident, he had to reign back his schemes a bit. It was torture as he felt that restless snake wriggle within him, eager to sink his fangs into someone again.

I need you to help Zooble.

He did, as promised.

He heard Ragatha’s voice for the first time since he had seen her after he practically dragged her to her room that day, his mind blank as his jaws clamped down the back of her neck, driven by the will to get them both to a quiet place. Desperate to just forget that Gangle almost abstracted and dragged the doll down with her. He remembered his skin burning and crackling as he mounted her on her bed, like a monstrous animal, yet desperate to keep her close.

He almost lost her. He wanted to think of something else. He wanted to get lost in her. He wanted to forget.

But she promised...

Jax blinked and did a double take, noticing the doors of their rooms, only to notice he almost walked past his room. With a silly few steps backwards, he redirected himself to the door sporting his grin, then effortlessly fished out the keys.

Once inside, the rabbit swung the door shut as he entered, letting his composure drop a little.

I need you to help Zooble.

Ragatha was far from her usual, sunshine-self as of late, ever since he left her in her room after the incident. She was quiet – too quiet – finding comfort in the confines of being wrapped in Kinger’s cloak, like a kid clinging to her father’s leg.

Kinger’s lucidity was non-existent; the scary, sober eyes of the chess piece blissfully fogged over, unlike when he was fighting to rid the doll from Gangle’s talons. It appeared Kinger slipped back to his carefree, delusional state, spacing off as Ragatha huddled into his cloak, blankly petting her hair and babbling about nonsense that held no relevance. Even in her state of shock, Ragatha knew just how to humour the King, humming in acknowledgement or simply nodding at whatever Kinger was rambling about at the time. Every now and then, the floating, white gloved hand would pet the red yarn of their dolly’s hair, or absentmindedly fix the blue ribbon.

Jax didn’t dare to approach.

He could never be sure what would set off the king piece into his lucidity again – and he knew his dolly knew that too. She wanted to be left alone, with her oldest friend. It concerned him as much as it annoyed him.

It was only days later, when he found her at his door with a sheepish expression, early morning, causing him to check the hall before harshly tugging her arm to pull her into his space. He could’ve been gentler when shoving her back against the closed door, but he didn’t want to pass up the opportunity to have her to himself again.

“Sweetheart wants something~?”

Ragatha, caught her breath, relaxing her wincing face slowly after being flung backwards into solid wood. Her eye spied the inky claws ripped free from the fingertips of his yellow gloves; the one had wood splinter as it dug into the door, while the other slowly dragged wooden spirals as it clawed its way down beside the ragdoll’s neck.

“I messed up.” She whispered, stiff as a board as her voice had a delicious tremor to it, “I need your help.”

Jax tilted his head, his grin looking more like a hungry snarl, “What kind of help~?”

Ragatha looked up into his freakishly dilated pupils, allowing herself to try to regulate her breathing, “I need you to help Zooble.”

That was new...

“Why would I do such a silly thing?” Jax purred, seemingly uninterested, leaning in to rest the bottom of his chin onto his dolly’s shoulder. It erupted a mix between unpleasant,  needle-like tingles onto his skin and a deep-rooted satisfaction he didn’t bother to understand.

He hated how it felt.

He loved what it meant.

“I told you...” much to his delight, Ragatha tilted her head to the side, as if allowing him better access, leaving him to growl lowly in warning not to tempt him any more as she spoke, “I messed up. I... I messed up really bad. I scared them, Jax.”

There was a brief pause in which the rabbit stiffened harshly, like he was struck by a shockwave of realization, before he pulled back with a discouraged sigh, rolling his head back and looking up to the ceiling as if it could help him, then trained his eyes onto the redhead with his chin held arrogantly high.

“Ugh, you suck the fun out of everything...”

“Jax, I-”

“Don’t bother.” He said flatly, his tone deliberate as the situation was more dire than he thought; he needed answers and he needed them now, “Did you...?”

Ragatha immediately bristled, baring her teeth as she snapped back, “No! I wouldn’t!”

Jax tilted his head again, now notably more relaxed, but seemingly bored at her cryptic statements.

The doll deflated, holding his gaze as sternly as she could hold her ground, slowly clarifying her problem, “I was upset. Zooble wanted to... they needed to know what happened to Gangle, but they were impatient and scared. I overreacted, but I didn’t do anything else. I just... I lost the grip on myself for a second, NOTHING more. They sensed enough to get spooked, but believe me; I didn’t.”

The doll waited in a stiff silence as she bluntly stated her case, watching the info being processed behind the rabbit’s unamused expression, speaking so casually that his words were almost lost on his dolly.

“So what exactly do you want me to do about it?”

Relief.

“They’re focused on Gangle now. They want nothing to do with me, but I think seeing me would send them into a frenzy anyway.” The doll hugged herself, looking off to the side, “At least talking to Gangle would set them at ease until I can get close enough to set things right. Track her down and lead her to Zooble.”

“Tch...” the hare’s teeth glimmered in the dark for a second as he scoffed and rolled his eyes, “I’m not some dog.”

“Please, Jax-”

“Quiet.” He barked as he opened the door, shoving the ragdoll to the floor with the force of the wood knocking her off balance as he made his exit, down the hallway without looking back or closing said door, “I didn’t say I wouldn’t do it.”

Ragatha groaned in pain as she slowly prompted herself up from the ground, fighting the dizziness of falling on impact of the door flying into her body. She winced when she initially moved. Without looking back to see his figure disappear, she croaked out her weak answer, “Thanks.”

That was days ago.

Now, the rabbit did as she asked and had to let fate take the reins.

Now what?

The rabbit stood with his back leaning against the doorway, his expression tired and his shoulder slumped as his eyes laid to rest with Ragatha’s plushie propped up against the pillow, like she held all the answers in the world.

He didn’t deserve her.

With lazy, dragging feet, he walked over, taking the carefully made plush into his hands, looking down at it as he sat on the edge of his bed. A lone digit carefully dragged down the smooth fabric, from the little plushie’s mouth to the centre of its chest, where he knew a purple heart was carefully sown into the fabric, by his dearest Ragatha.

He admired the plush again, seeing the work she put into every stitch, even having gone as far as giving the doll a dress she made separately. The face was embroidered with a precision that only Ragatha’s steady hands could manage; her smile was as patient as ever. The plush was soft, he would’ve known.

There was no way he’d ever admit sleeping with it at night.

A sigh left him as he buried his face into the plush, taking in her scent. It was still so strong and brought him a comfort he couldn’t get from a real hug, despite also desperately wanting to hold Ragatha, but it’s something he just couldn’t stand; too much touching.

There were ways around it, though.

Blindly, Jax felt the covers behind him to find a dark blue blanket. When he found it, he made quick work to spread it out over his head, and wrapped it around him while the Ragatha plush laid sprawled over his lap. The motion of the large crocheted blanket draping over his head, caused his rabbit ears to cave under the weight and drooped down next to his face on either side, much like the ears of a bloodhound.

Ragatha made this for him too.

He remembered how long it took for the doll to crochet the large expanse of fabric, not having known it was for him yet. Stitch after stitch, she poured all of her time and effort into making it between Caine’s wild adventures. Even back then, he bothered her relentlessly, finding it amusing when she, in turn, misjudged the distance of the next stupid stitch. That little mistake caused a funny domino-effect, making it into a little hole, only for Ragatha to find it when she recounted the stitches by the end of the long row. She’d groan in helplessness when she realised that she had to undo everything done, just to fix it. Sometimes, back then, her patience would wear thin with his antics, making her unintentionally tighten the stitches in some sections. He didn’t understand the specifics of it, but in tightening the stitches in certain areas, made the fabric more scrunched in those areas than others.

It was a mess.

He loved it.

It struck the hare by surprise when the ragdoll approached him from behind the couch they utilised so much during their rare, quiet moments. She unceremoniously flopped the blanket down onto his lap; heavy and complete. Her scent hit him like a freight train, causing his mind to go blank.

Maybe that’s what messed him up.

“There.” Ragatha’s words were so haughty back then, “It’s yours now. It’s got holes and uneven rows, with annoyingly tight stitches in blotches, so I don’t see any reason to keep it. Your mess, your problem.”

As he currently sat on the edge of his bed, he waited for the scent to overwhelm him, only to find himself waiting for a moment that never came.

He couldn’t smell her anymore.

How disappointing, that just wouldn’t do.

He wanted to feel her wrapped around him again...

He tried to bunch the fabric to his face and search for the watered down scent that was Ragatha, but it was lost on him, like mist fading in a sunbeam.

The hare stood up with new determination.

Now that he had nothing to do, what better than to pay his ragdoll a visit? The silence was boring and his counterpart had been sulking around long enough, he felt. There was also a slight possibility that a member was getting into their own head, plaguing her thoughts to the point of losing her mind – and he couldn’t have that; that was his job.

If Ragatha was going to abstract, he promised himself that he would be the reason.

Nothing else would have that privilege.

The snake within him rattled in anticipation, while a muted voice inside him raised a crumb of concern regarding the implications of said thought, but it was disturbingly easy to brush aside. She knew what she was getting into when she made him like this. There was no backing out of a snake pin, especially since she was the one who dug it.

It wasn’t long before he found himself in front of her door, blue blanket in hand.

He didn’t feel particularly nice today, so he unlocked the door quietly, before practically kicking the door open with a menacing grin.

“Honey, I’m home~!”

The sight that he was graced with, was one that made the snake of a man curl into knots with the delight he felt. There she was, sitting on the ground with her back to the side of her bed and knees drew up against her chest. She was previously, clearly sitting with her head buried in her arms, that she held folded over her knees. She seemed to be caught off guard by his rude entrance – she sported a dazed look on her face, lips slightly parted and eyes droopy like she was dozing off before.

How adorable~

“Aw, geez, is that the welcome I’m getting?” The rabbit chuckled as he used his large foot to casually knock the door shut behind him; his eyes never leaving her curled up figure on the floor, “And before you ask, yeah, whatever, I talked to Crybaby and all that. Tch, I think she’s going through a phase or something, but I’ll tell ya; it’s a cringe-fest.”

The doll blankly stared up at him, almost expectantly, without as much as a peep.

Her silence was infuriating.

“Ugh, can you be any louder?” Jax sneered with a scowl, “Little brat.... but fine, she’s gonna talk to her dear little donation toy-box junk pile some time soon, alright? Now quit sulking and face life head on, will ya? I’m bored already.”

He wasn’t lying; he was really... REALLY bored.

The rabbit, holding the blue blanket under one of his arms, promptly grabbed it into 2 hands to roughly shake it out. He unceremoniously tossed it to more or less dump over the red head. It covered her eyes and weighed her petite body down by a fraction, making her look even more adorable in Jax’s secret opinion.

His eyebrow arched curiously when he saw her stiffen and freeze upon the impact of the blanket being tossed over her head, wondering if it really was that much of a jab, or if she was just unnervingly sensitive at that moment.

The curiosity within him sprouted into surprise when he saw her shoulder begin to shake rhythmically, while her soft breath stuttered from gritted teeth in an anguished grimace as shiny droplets rolled down her cheeks. He was about to run his mouth on how her reaction was disturbing him, but the words caught in his throat as the woman bunched up the fabric and buried her face into it, pulling the indigo blanket tightly around her body.

The revelation shattered Jax’s soul.

Now that Ragatha’s sweet scent had faded to nothing since the rabbit slept with it every night, he didn’t even consider it;

The blanket had his scent now.

“Oh, Sweetheart...” Jax treaded lightly, as if approaching roadkill, “You’re breaking my heart, here.”

That, she was.

The rabbit proceeded to sink down onto 1 knee in front of the doll as her quiet tears stained her forearms. He knew that he should have been feeling pity, but all he felt was intrigued as his eyes glanced over her entire shaking form. He was torn inside; fighting between comforting his doll and enjoying the sight of her spilling her tears for him.

He always did think that she was beautiful when she cried.

Golden eyes trailed to the side of the rag doll in the empty space to her left and he slowly shifted his weight to plant himself next to his doll. Once settled in his spot beside her, he leaned his shoulders back and rested his weight to the side of the bed where he boredly looked at his ragdoll. She was still crying, but less prominently so. A quiet voice urged him on to rest his arm over her shoulders, but he cringed at the idea, scrunching his nose for a split second at the phantom sensation.

“All this for a blanket, ey?” The rabbit’s voice rung quietly then, with a more conversational tone, “I never figured you’d be the type to steal a guy’s cologne-doused clothes, but here we are… Not that we have cologne here, but- ugh, whatever, you get it.”

The air around them breathed down Jax’s neck and he felt more compelled to speak as the moment stretched into nothingness. Neither of the pair minded the quiet, but it didn’t seem like the right time to bathe in silence.

Not while he waited for her essence to flood over his blanket, now draped over her.

Such a delightful scent…

“Do you remember the smell of rain…?”

He didn’t recognise his own voice when he asked that. A twitch of his long ears confirmed that he heard how Ragatha’s quieted down sniffles stuttered once in response to his question.

“It’s funny, ain’t it?” the man’s thoughts trailed in gentle wisps, “I remember it so clearly; how the ground seemed to rise to life when the sky came crashing into it. I can even make out a picture of it in my head… but I can’t, for the life of me, remember if I was the type of guy to like that sort of thing.”

It was frustrating and empty.

“All I know, is what I am now; and god, I’m not sure if I should be bothered by it or not. Who was the guy I used to be?” Jax’s words felt like coal in his mouth, “Would I have liked him?”

Ragatha was eerily quiet by then, peeking up to him in silent curiosity at his honest confessions. There was no doubt that she consciously held her tongue, desperate to soak in the weighed down words of the troubled man next to her.

Moments like these where heartbreakingly rare for the snake.

“I don’t even know if I like the guy I became while stuck in here, but one thing’s for sure; if we ever get out of here, I’m gonna struggle to stay out of jail for a while.” Jax chuckled knowingly, “I’ll probably really hurt you a lot while figuring things out again. You’ll forgive me, though, right Raggs?”

Those words made so much sense in the circus, but what it all meant in the real world, was something only a vile monster would say.

“You know, maybe I won’t struggle staying out of jail. I’d probably kill someone within the first few minutes to confirm that it’s not one of Caine’s little tricks – then get sent to prison where I could just keep going the way I have been doing for the past few years now.” The rabbit spoke in a contemplative tone, like he was solving a puzzle, then shrugged with raised eyebrows as if weighing his options, “The only thing that would be different, is how many friends I’d have.”

There was a beat of silence, before the man turned his head to look at Ragatha with a deadpanned expression, “Oh, wait, that wouldn’t change at all.”

A huff of quiet chuckles left the ragdoll as an unbridled smile cracked onto her face.

He liked that too; she also looked pretty like that.

“Yeah, yeah. I knew you’d like that one, sweetheart.” His voice was unguarded despite him playfully rolling his eyes with a dumb smirk on his face, before he perked up, “And you? You’d fall back into society like a champ, wouldn’t you? I don’t imagine seeing your face behind bars.

“Yeah, no, you’d be fine. Come to think of it, you strike me as the sales lady-type. With that smile, you’d sell honey to beekeepers, no doubt. Ugh, I can already see it; you pushing your luck and being so annoyingly friendly that the buyer would agree to whatever you’re selling just to get rid of you. Heh, your life sounds so normal compared to mine…”

Upon sensing a shift of the atmosphere, the rabbit looked over to the ragdoll again. Her eyes were sombre and held a certain depth of pity that he didn’t like. Without thinking, he snarled and averted his gaze.

He couldn’t tell if it was jealousy or offense, but something about that look irked him.

No way in hell-

“Ya know what, Raggs? F$&% you. Now you’ve done it.” He grumbled as he pulled his knees to his chest and rested his forearms atop it, refusing to meet her eye, “You don’t have to look at me like that. These are all stupid hypotheticals – I won’t necessarily get locked up. No, scratch that, I won’t get locked up – just to say, ‘I told you so.’ I’ll adjust as if none of this ever happened, just you wait. Hell, I’ll even go to college and rub it in your face! Make more money than you ever will.

“And you better believe I’d keep in touch and track you down if I must. To hell with whoever will try to stop me. Sure, you’d be living your la-di-da life with a stable career or whatever, but I’d catch up in a heartbeat. You’d never get rid of me. None of you will.”

The words left him faster than his mind could comprehend, but he meant every last one of them. He wasn’t a lost cause.

He could be anything he wanted out in the real world.

Jax turned his face to Ragatha, ready to run his mouth a bit more, before her expression stopped him dead in his tracks. There was no pity. There was no condescension.

She just looked proud. Earnest.

He shouldn’t have liked it.

Do you remember the smell of rain?

“You’re so noisy today.” He huffed, training his eyes to stare stubbornly before him, “I wonder if you are just as annoying in the real world. I’d have to keep you in check just to make sure you don’t go off selling your soul to any idiot thinking they can push their luck.”

He’d have to look out for both of his girls, came to think of it.

“I think you were stuck in here for too long.” Jax chided, nudging the doll’s side briefly with a matter-of-fact tone, the touch brief enough for him to stomach, while also being enough to get his doll’s breath to hitch, “I think we all were, actually. What was I thinking to say I’d keep in touch? What 22-year-old would willingly hang around a 30-year-old, anyway? Imagine what people would say…”

Why not let them talk?

“What I’d give to have that problem now, right, Raggs?” Jax chuckled to himself, resting his hands behind his head as he looked up to the glow-in-the-dark stars.

“To have to worry about people undermining me for chatting up a cougar while you would probably get stuck with people callin’ you a cradle-snatcher. God... I’d have to work my fingers to the bone just to prove to everyone else that I’m serious about being man enough to take care of you.

“And no doubt... Those who wouldn’t mind that, would definitely pat you on the back for stringing along a little boy, thinking that you’re some wild vixen that seduces brainless college jocks like it’s an Olympic sport.”

A small, amused scoff beside him told him all he needed to know about what his dolly thought.

“Hey, now, I’m not wrong.” Jax huffed back with a smug expression, egging the girl on to humour him, “We’re practically two different generations! People will talk, doll, I know it. I’m not leaving any time soon, sure, but we got our work cut out for us if we’re gonna make it work between the two of us.”

Much to the hare’s delight, the doll nodding along with a playful, challenging expression, feeding into the sky castles he was building.

“Think of it, Sweets.” He said, holding his hands out before him as if he was framing a picture, “Me, a lawyer, fresh out of school and making it big. You, my PA or something, no, to hell with it, you don’t need to work if you don’t want to. And the town absolutely losing their minds over us.

“And we’d struggle our @$$#s off to maintain our house and those stupid horses you like so much, with me telling you off every day for caring about those expenses on four legs. No way we’re getting rid of them, though, you’d kill me.”

Ragatha stifled a giggle, wrapping the blanket around herself a bit tighter, laying his head down onto her forearms that was braced onto her knees, watching Jax in mild amusement.

“Oh, and you better believe I’d be getting under your skin every single day. I’d still annoy the hell out of you just to keep you on your toes. Only then, I’ll do it because I want to.”

Not because I have to.

“You’re not getting rid of me, Raggs.” Jax said, his distant, excited smile making the doll’s heart twist painfully in her chest, “If we get out of here, I won’t be able to keep my hands off you. It’ll be different out there. It must be.”

It hurt to think that it may not have been.

“If we get out of here, I’ll take good care of us, ya hear?” The excitement so easily shifted to a weirdly desperate one, making him seem sightly more unhinged than he meant to look, “If we get out of here, we are going to live like we’d never see the light of day again. We’ll run, singing in the streets and dancing in the rain like mad people! If we get out, you’re never getting rid of me.

If.

The word hung in the air like the smell of a rotting corpse.

Jax slumped back, catching his breath as his dazed eyes stared ahead of him, clearly trying to rein himself back. The muted scent of Ragatha’s presence beside him, reeled him back and he let out a heavy sigh, blowing away the castle in the sky.

It was fun to dream.

If only the circus could be a nightmare he could wake from…

After thinking it over for no longer than a second, he shook his head at himself; he didn’t want it to be a nightmare. The pain of Ragatha being a creation of his own mind would be too painful, much more than the suffering to continue living on in the circus.

He vowed to continue this suffering if it meant that he could stay by this woman’s side.

Even if he had to be a monster to keep her.

“I remember the smell of rain, Ragatha.” The man said tiredly, burying his face into his hands for a moment, before sliding them down and mentally collecting himself, not sparing her a glance, “I bet you don’t.”

Jax stood up, dusting himself off; he had to leave, or he never would. It didn’t take much for the hare to get his legs to move, despite his cold, dead heart roaring to life just to scream at him to stay. He walked to the door, unable to find the strength within him to say goodbye.

It wasn’t a goodbye – not for as long as he was sane.

She smelled like rain.

Ragatha heard the door click shut. A part of her wanted to drag her tired body out off her floor and rip her door open, only to pull the young man back into her space, despite his displeasure upon her touch. Instead, she listened to his footsteps fade outside her door as another silent tear bled its way down her cheek.

The doll desperately clutched the indigo blanket tighter around her body, letting her head hang low as she quietly began to cry, knowing the enchantment on each of their doors made it that whatever happened inside of their rooms could not be heard from the outside.

“I remember the smell of rain, Jax.”

Oasis: TADC AU list Masterlist

[girlyimsotired]

Jax sighed. "I don't like talking about myself you know!" He flopped onto the floor, his back hitting the wall as his tail cushioned his fall.

He turned away from Pomni, and she held her breath as she heard a tiny sniff.

Pomni sat down next to him, and waited. She sat there while his body shook, but no sobs came out of his mouth. It was probably five minutes before anything came out of his mouth, and it wasn't a sob.

"Why do you feel the need to be close to me?" Jax hissed.

"I feel... Like you need it?"

Jax laughed, a sad, sarcastic laugh. "Yeah so did she."

A long silence held out, and when it was clear Jax wouldn't say anything Pomni did. "She?"

Then a single tear fell down Jax's cheek. "My.. sister.."

Pomni looked at his face just as he turned away. He stood up quickly. "Now that's enough trauma dumping for today!" He tried to fake being upbeat but Pomni grabbed his hand, pulling him back down.

"Spill."

Jax turned back to her, and looked into her eyes, looking to see if she was genuinely asking, sitting in the silence for just long enough the Pomni wondered if she made a mistake before Jax sighed. "My sister."

Pomni nodded.

"I don't talk about my past yknow." Jax shuddered, his voice cracking. "It's cause of her." He rubbed the tears out of his eyes. "She was eight when I got here." Pomni kept her eyes locked on him, showing she was listening, and he sighed before continuing. "She got diagnosed with cancer." Pomni's gasp was met with a wet sniff. "They said that it would be easier to put her in hospice than... than wait for..." He rubbed his eyes, willing the tears to stop.

Pomni put her hand on Jax's and he pulled his hand away. He pushed the heels of his hands into his eyes. "She was determined. Strong. She decided not to let it get to her, she wouldn't just give up and live the rest of her life in sad depression. She kept at it with the chemo. She was the strongest little eight-" He sniffed, a sob finally escaping him as he pulled his knees in to hide his face.

Pomni scooted closer.

"She wanted to do everything." He sighed out shakily. "She wanted to go everywhere, do all the things she could.. just in case.." He turned away and went to stand up again, but Pomni grabbed his hand and sat him back down.

He pushed his back to the wall and pressed his ears to it, his eyes looking to the ceiling, his attempts to stop the tears futile.

"She and I did everything together. We went skydiving. Hot air balloon riding. Scuba diving..." He looked at his hands, shaking and covered in tears. "Abandoned building exploring."

His sentence ended there, and Pomni knew exactly what that meant for him.

"I don't even know if she is still alive or not!" He screamed, then curled into his knees again.

Pomni put her hand on his back, and rubbed small comforting circles, and this time Jax accepted it, turning to cry into her shoulder.

[cherrymissz]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Amazing Digital Circus (Web Series) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Jax & Ragatha (The Amazing Digital Circus), Jax/Ragatha (The Amazing Digital Circus) Characters: Jax (The Amazing Digital Circus), Ragatha (The Amazing Digital Circus) Additional Tags: Bunnydoll, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, One Shot, People Pleaser Ragatha (The Amazing Digital Circus), Soft Jax (The Amazing Digital Circus), Stargazing, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Late Night Conversations, Tenderness, Ragatha Needs a Hug (The Amazing Digital Circus), Jax is Bad at Feelings (The Amazing Digital Circus), slow burn in a single night, The Digital Stars Are Witnesses Summary:

Ragatha has a secret spot on the hill behind the circus - the one nobody else seems to care about. She goes there when Caine's adventures leave their marks. On her body. On her mind. Tonight, she needed it more than ever.

She wasn't expecting company. She certainly wasn't expecting Jax.

But he sits down anyway. And somehow, impossibly - he stays.

[inkandanarchy]

Five Candles and a Ghost From the Past

Summary: You grew up in SAMCRO as Filip 'Chibs' Telford’s daughter, running through the clubhouse halls beside Jackson 'Jax' Teller and Harry 'Opie' Winston long before you understood the weight of the cut on their backs. Years later, after Abel Teller is born early and his biological mother disappears, you become the one who stays.

The Teller house had never been quiet on Abel’s birthday.

Not since the first one.

The backyard buzzed with noise that felt like its own kind of music. Harleys lined the street outside in a crooked row of chrome and black, sunlight bouncing off metal like sparks. The grill smoked near the fence where Piney and Chibs argued over burgers like it was a sacred ritual. Music drifted from the open windows, something old and southern humming through the speakers while laughter rolled over the yard.

Kids ran wild between picnic tables.

SAMCRO filled half the lawn like a pack of leather-clad wolves trying to pretend they were civilized for the day.

And right in the middle of it all stood the heart of Jax Teller’s world.

Abel.

Five years old today, bright blond hair catching the sunlight while blue frosting covered half his face. He clutched a plastic sheriff badge proudly pinned to his shirt, something Juice had given him ten minutes ago.

“Mom!”

The word came flying across the yard before the boy did.

You barely had time to open your arms before Abel crashed into you, small arms wrapping around your waist like he’d been gone for weeks instead of minutes.

You laughed softly, brushing frosting from his cheek.

“Buddy… what happened to your cake?”

Abel held up a mangled handful of blue icing like it was treasure.

“I saved you some.”

Across the yard, Jax watched the moment unfold.

He leaned against the porch railing with a beer in hand, sunglasses pushed up into slicked blond hair. The look on his face softened in a way it rarely did around anyone but you and the boys.

Tig followed his gaze and smirked.

“You’re staring again.”

Jax didn’t bother looking at him.

“Yeah?”

“Like the rest of us ain’t here.”

Jax huffed quietly.

Didn’t deny it.

Because watching you with Abel still did something to his chest.

It always had.

Maybe because he’d known you almost as long as he’d been alive.

You weren’t just some woman who wandered into the club’s orbit.

You were family long before you ever wore a ring.

The daughter of Filip “Chibs” Telford.

Which meant you’d grown up in the same dusty lots and cluttered garages as Jax and Opie. Three kids orbiting the club like tiny moons around a violent sun.

You had been there when Jax scraped his knee falling off a dirt bike at eight years old.

There when Opie broke his arm trying to jump a ramp he swore he could clear.

There through every birthday, every clubhouse barbecue, every late-night ride in the backseat of someone’s truck when the adults thought the kids were asleep.

You were woven into SAMCRO long before you understood what it really was.

And somewhere along the way, Jax had fallen for you.

Hard.

But timing had always been a cruel bastard.

Teenage years came with bad choices.

Other relationships.

Too much pride and not enough courage.

So the feelings stayed buried.

Until Abel.

Jax remembered that hospital room like it had been carved into his bones.

Wendy shaking from withdrawal.

Doctors whispering about complications.

The tiny, sandy-haired baby fighting to breathe inside a plastic incubator.

Jax had been standing there, drowning in the fear of losing his son before he even knew him.

Then you walked into the room.

No hesitation.

No judgment.

You simply stepped beside him and reached through the opening of that incubator, letting Abel wrap his impossibly small fingers around yours.

The baby calmed instantly.

And Jax saw something then that he’d somehow missed his entire life.

You belonged there.

With him. With them.

From that moment forward you never left.

Midnight feedings.

Hospital visits.

Sleepless nights when Abel cried and Jax felt like the world was collapsing around him.

You stayed through all of it.

Somewhere between the exhaustion and the quiet late-night conversations in the kitchen, something shifted between you and Jax.

It wasn’t sudden.

It wasn’t reckless.

It was slow.

Real.

Four years married now.

Two-year-old Thomas sleeping upstairs in his crib.

And a life that somehow worked even with the chaos of the club breathing down its neck.

Abel tugged your sleeve again.

“Mom, Papa Chibs showed me how to flip the burgers!”

Across the yard, Chibs raised a spatula proudly.

“Aye, lad’s got talent.”

You laughed.

Jax pushed off the porch railing then, walking toward you. His arm slipped around your waist like it had always belonged there.

You leaned into him automatically.

He kissed the top of your head.

“You surviving this circus?” he murmured.

“Barely,” you whispered back.

Abel wedged himself between you both proudly.

“My birthday’s the best birthday ever.”

Jax ruffled his son’s hair.

“Damn right it is.”

For a moment everything felt perfect.

Then the front gate slammed.

The sound cut through the yard like a gunshot.

Conversations died instantly.

Everyone turned.

A woman stood just inside the gate.

Thin. Pale. Nervous hands clutching the strap of a worn bag.

Your stomach dropped.

Jax went rigid beside you.

“Shit,” Tig muttered.

Because everyone recognized her.

Wendy.

Abel’s biological mother.

The woman who had vanished five years ago after the hospital. After the drugs. After the mess that nearly killed her and the baby.

She hadn’t come back once.

Until today.

Her eyes locked onto Abel.

Your grip tightened slightly on Jax’s hand.

Abel looked up at you, confused.

“Mom?”

You forced a gentle smile.

“It’s okay, baby. Go show Uncle Juice your badge again.”

Abel ran off happily, oblivious.

Jax stepped forward slightly, placing himself between Wendy and the yard.

“You got some damn nerve showing up here,” he said flatly.

Wendy swallowed.

“I’m clean now.”

No one spoke.

She took another hesitant step forward.

“Two years,” she added quietly. “Rehab. Meetings. Everything. I just… I want to see my son.”

The tension in the yard thickened.

Wendy’s eyes slid toward you.

“You kept him from me.”

Your chest tightened.

Before you could speak, Jax barked a bitter laugh.

“Kept him from you?” he repeated.

His voice sharpened instantly.

“Where the hell were you when he was fighting to breathe in the NICU?”

Wendy flinched.

“Where were you when he learned to walk?” Jax continued. “When he had nightmares? When he cried for his mom?”

Jax pointed directly at you.

“She was there.”

Wendy shook her head.

“He’s my son.”

Jax stepped forward again, anger simmering under his skin.

“And she’s his mother.”

Your heart pounded.

Wendy looked at you then, eyes wet.

“You replaced me.”

You shook your head slowly.

“No,” you said quietly.

Your voice was calm despite the storm building in your chest.

“I raised him.”

Silence stretched across the yard.

Abel’s laughter echoed faintly from the porch.

Wendy’s voice cracked.

“He deserves to know who his real mother is.”

That’s when Jax snapped.

His voice cut through the air like a blade.

“Real?”

He gestured toward the house.

“Real is the woman who held him every night when he was sick.”

Another step forward.

“Real is the one who stayed.”

His voice dropped low and dangerous.

“She’s his mom.”

Wendy wiped her eyes.

“I just want to see him.”

You looked toward the porch.

Abel was running toward you now with a balloon in hand, grin wide.

Your heart clenched.

Because he was happy.

Safe.

You took a breath and stepped beside Jax, lacing your fingers through his.

His thumb rubbed your knuckles automatically.

“If you’re really clean,” you said gently, “then prove it.”

Wendy blinked.

“You don’t meet him today. Not like this. Not crashing his birthday party.”

Her shoulders sagged.

“But if you stay clean… if you show up the right way… someday we can talk about it.”

Wendy stared at you, stunned.

Jax glanced sideways at you.

Then nodded slightly.

“Meetings,” he added gruffly. “Proof. Time.”

Abel barreled into your legs seconds later.

“Mom! Can we open presents now?”

You crouched and kissed his forehead.

“Yeah, baby.”

Jax pulled Abel into his arms, hugging him tight and pressing a kiss into his hair.

“Happy birthday, little man.”

Abel giggled.

Behind you, Wendy stood quietly.

Watching.

Because the truth was right in front of her.

Abel Teller already had a mother.

And Jax had known she would be you long before either of you had the courage to admit it.

[inkandanarchy]

PART 1

PART 2

Jax Teller never wanted a cat. But when you and Abel bring home a Bengal kitten in need of rescuing, he’s outvoted fast.

PART 3 Reaper’s Ride

The late-afternoon sun burned warm across the Teller yard. Jax was crouched by his Harley, rag in hand, polishing chrome until it gleamed. The low hum of a radio spilled from the garage, but otherwise the world was quiet — until small feet pattered across the gravel.

“Daddy!” Abel’s voice rang out.

Jax didn’t look up, just smirked. “What’s up, little man?”

Abel appeared, grinning ear to ear, helmet wobbling on his head. In his arms, tucked like a baby, was Reaper. The kitten looked entirely unbothered, eyes half-lidded, tail flicking lazily.

“Reaper wants to ride with us.” Abel set the cat carefully down beside the bike. “Can he, Daddy? Please?”

Jax sat back on his heels, running a hand over his beard. “Jesus Christ,” he muttered. “First it was the house, then the clubhouse, now the bike?”

“Yeah!” Abel nodded fiercely, blond hair sticking to his forehead. “He’s family. He’s gotta ride too.”

You stepped out onto the porch, arms crossed, amusement written all over your face. “Don’t look at me,” you teased when Jax’s eyes flicked to you. “This one’s all his idea.”

Jax groaned, dropping the rag. “You’re killin’ me, babe.”

But Abel’s hopeful eyes were locked on him, wide and pleading. The same look Jax could never say no to. He scrubbed a hand over his face. “Alright, little outlaw. But only around the yard. And if that cat claws up my bike, he’s banned for life.”

Abel squealed with joy, hugging Reaper before bouncing on his toes. “Thank you, Daddy!”

Jax shook his head, standing. “Gimme that furball.” He reached down and scooped the kitten up, surprisingly gentle for all his bitching. Reaper blinked, then stretched out, purring against his kutte.

“Fuck me,” Jax muttered. “He actually likes this.”

You laughed from the porch. “Told you he’s one of us.”

Jax rigged up a small crate with a blanket and bungeed it to the passenger seat. Abel helped, handing him straps like a proud prospect. When it was secure, Jax set Reaper inside. The kitten sniffed around, then promptly curled up like it was his throne.

Abel clapped his hands. “See? He’s a real biker!”

“Don’t push it,” Jax warned, but his lips curved into a grin.

He swung a leg over the Harley, patting the tank. “Hop on, little man. Just ‘round the yard.”

Abel climbed up in front of him, helmet sliding crooked. Jax fixed it, tugging it snug under his chin. “Gotta keep you safe. Both of you.” He glanced at the kitten. “Even you, furball.”

When the engine roared to life, Abel whooped, throwing his arms up. Reaper lifted his head, ears twitching, but didn’t flinch. The vibration seemed to lull him; his golden eyes half-closed, tail flicking steady.

Jax eased them forward, slow laps around the gravel lot, the Harley rumbling beneath them. Abel laughed so hard his helmet rattled, one hand gripping the tank, the other reaching back to touch Jax’s knee.

“We’re a gang, Daddy!” Abel shouted over the engine. “Me, you, Mommy, and Reaper!”

Jax felt it hit him, deep in his chest — the weight of it, the beauty of it. His boy. His woman. This ridiculous little cat. A family he never thought he’d have, never thought he’d deserve.

He slowed the bike to a stop, killing the engine. Abel hopped down, racing to the crate. “He loved it!” Abel insisted, scooping Reaper out and holding him high like a trophy. The kitten yawned, stretched, and promptly rubbed his face against Abel’s cheek.

“Yeah,” Jax admitted, sliding off the bike. He tugged Abel close, ruffling his hair. “Guess he did.”

You walked over, slipping your arms around Jax’s waist, leaning into him. “Knew you’d give in eventually.”

Jax kissed your temple, smirking. “Don’t get used to it, darlin’. Still not a fuckin’ cat dad.”

But when Abel ran off across the yard with Reaper bouncing in his arms, Jax didn’t look away. He watched his boy’s laughter light up the afternoon, the kitten keeping pace like he belonged.

“You love it,” you whispered.

Jax exhaled, long and low, pulling you tighter against him. “Yeah, babe. I fuckin’ love it.”

For the first time in a long time, the outlaw had everything he needed — his family, his little outlaw, and the unlikely Reaper who had carved a place in their world.