+++

"You guys hooked up?" Jax whispers. He finally found out about the two a few months later. "You guys hooked up!?" Alex keeps her head down as Jax stands from his armchair. "When!?" She goes over to the most recent mugshot and opens the back of the frame, pulling out the arrest report to hand to the biker. He throws the paper to the floor. "I can't believe this. I knew something happened between you guys. Always trust your gut."

"What about that girl from Indian Hills?"

"Wh-what girl? The blonde-?"

"You ass! How dare you stand here and yell at me for something you've also done! You told me you loved me after you came back from Nevada! After you killed my dad-"

"Stop bringing that up! I didn't even pull the fucking trigger! Ope did!"

"Y'know why I slept with Will? Do you!? Because he's always nice to me. He doesn't just keep me as a backup when he gets bored with the other girls! He actually wants me for me and not for some cum bucket. He wants to be with me, not because his trashy ex OD'd-"

"Hey." He gives her a dirty look, pulling a cigarette from a pack from his cut pocket.

"Not because he's freaking out about the girl he got pregnant, but because he actually likes me!" She has tears forming in her chest.

"He had no idea who you were until he came to Charming! The life you built in Alabama is a whole fucking lie!"

"You're fuckin threatened by Will, aren't you?"

"N- No." The color of his cheeks lie.

"You're so-" he clenches his jaw as he starts towards the door. "Hey! I was fucking talking to you!" She shrieks after him as he climbs onto his bike. "You asshole!" She snatches his helmet out of his hands.

"Y'know what? Leave. Go back to Alabama, I don't give a fuck about you anymore." He doesn't mean that at all. He doesn't want to go back to living an Alex-less life again, she's his light. "I don't care anymore."

Her heart crumbles and tears form in her eyes. "Fine. If that's what you want, I'll be gone by Friday." She hurls his helmet back at him and it thuds against his chest. Alex turns and heads back up to her apartment, leaving Jax alone on his bike.

+++

"You did what!?" Opie shouts at Jax a couple days later. "You told her you don't care about her anymore!?" Donna shakes her head as she sits on the chair opposite the couch; the couple had recently moved in together. "Are you fuckin stupid!? What were you thinking!?"

"I don't know! I wasn't!" He shoves Opie back as he stands. "I can't let her leave me again, man."

"Do something romantic for her." Donna says. "Sweep her off her feet."

"She doesn't want to see me."

"You have to do something, man!" Ope shakes his head. "Now." He shoves him to the door before slamming it shut in his face.

Meanwhile, Alex is almost completely packed up. She just has to put a few more boxes in the bed of her truck and she's outta Charming but first she has to break the news to Sig and Marge. She meets them in the bar and sits at a table with them. She tells them that she's leaving later that night and they're crushed. "Can't say I'm surprised." Sig sighs.

"Huh?"

"I mean when Will came by, you've been different. It's like you weren't surround by that dark cloud of trouble anymore. I dunno how else to describe it; he brightens you up."

"I shoulda introduced y'all to him, properly. I'm sorry I didn't." Marge takes her hands in hers. "I love y'all so much." Her mother figure reaches up and wipes away Alex's tears. "I just don't think Charming is the right place for me. I've been in so much trouble here and you're right, Sig, it does follow me 'round."

"That blonde guy. He's the problem." Sig shakes his head. "I swear."

"Maybe. Maybe it's time I see that." Marge pats her hand. "I'm gonna miss y'all."

"We're gonna miss you too, baby." She whispers back. "You're always always welcome home, okay? We will never turn you away. We love you."

Alex can't hold in her quiet sob. "If y'all run into Nick, tell him to call me." She takes a small picture out of her wallet and slides it to them. "He's the only blood that's left."

"You got it, kid." Sig sniffles. "Make sure you call us when you get to where you're going. We may be 35 hours away but we still wanna be there."

"You got it." Alex smiles at them. "Thank you for everything." The three stand and hug before the parental figures follow Alex out to her truck and watch her drive off. The husband and wife comfort each other with a hug as their daughter leave them again.

+++

Jax rushes up the steps to Alex's apartment, swinging the door open. His heart breaks when he sees it void of her things. He turns and heads into the bar. "Hey!" He shouts as he makes his way to the counter, pushing a couple customers out of his way. "Is Alex here?"

"No." Melinda says shortly as she fill a glass from a tap.

"W-where is she!?"

"Talk to Sig." She practically spits.

Jax hesitantly knocks on the office door. "Sig?" He opens the door and leans against the door frame. "Where's Alex?" Sig gives him a look that only a father could give: that look of disappointment and heartbreak. "I need to see her."

"She's gone."

"She said she was leaving Friday! It's Wednesday!" He jabs a finger against the calendar on the wall. "She-she-" he clears his throat. "I need to see her."

"I don't know what to tell you, boy!" He suddenly shouts as he gets to his boot covered feet. "She's not here!"

"Where is she?"

"Where the fuck do you think she is!?" Jax is kind of scared; Sig has never raised his voice like this before.

"Alabama."

+++

"Thanks for lettin me stay here until I can get back on my feet." Alex smiles at Will, he's helping her unpack some stuff into the spare bedroom of his house. "I really appreciate it."

"Of course, darlin." Will gives her a friendly hug. "I'm gonna make some supper, okay?"

She nods and sits down on the bed in the corner of the room. Her cell starts ringing; it's Jax for the fourth time. She ignores it and lays back only to be interrupted by another call: it's Ope. "Hey."

"Hey." It's actually Opie. "Just checking in on you. You doing okay?"

She wants to say no. She wants to tell him the truth. "Yeah, I'm doin okay." She sighs. "How're y'all doing? How's Donna and the baby?"

"They're both doing great! She's due pretty soon I think and we found out we're having a girl."

"Oh awesome! Congrats!" She laughs.

"Jax is driving me crazy." He whispers as the VP is laying boneless next to him on the couch in the clubhouse. "Just talk to him."

"Are you crazy? This is his fault, Hank." She huffs.

"He really hasn't slept since you left. He's been throwing himself deeper in the club." Opie says as he starts pacing around outside for more privacy. "I haven't seen him like this in a while, not even when he lost Wendy and the baby."

"Fine." She sighs. "Fuck. Fine. I'll talk to him. I'll call him in a few, okay?"

"Great okay, yeah that's great. I'll let you go then."

"Bye." Alex groans to herself as she hits herself in the face with a pillow. "This fuckin boy." She stands and goes down the beautiful deep brown wood steps out to the stunning wrap around porch that faces a gorgeous view. "Fuck." She sits on the bench and finally calls Jax.

Ope shoves Jax's ringing cell in his hand and tells him to answer it. "What?"

"Jackson." She breathes. He shoots up, his elbows on his knees, running a hand through his long, dirty hair. "Ope told me to talk to you."

"I've been calling you, Drea."

"I know."

"Why- why did you leave?"

She laughs. "You're seriously askin me that? Do you not remember what happened?"

"I do yeah, but I didn't think you'd actually leave me. I didn't want you to go." He admits.

"Then why the hell did you tell me to go?" She asks quietly, pulling the cigarette from behind her ear to her lips to light it. "You told me you didn't care anymore- you fucking told me to leave!"

"I'm sorry, Drea, I really am."

"Yeah. You've been tellin me that a lot." She exhales smoke.

"I just need to-"

"Supper's ready." Will calls from the kitchen.

"Jax, honey, I gotta go."

"Okay- she hung up on me, Ope." Jax sighs as he stands. "I'm gonna get her and bring her home."

"What? That's fucking crazy."

"She needs to be here with me." Jax heads to his dorm room to get a game plan for the long trek to the other side of the country.

+++

Opie let Jax borrow his truck for his trip to the other side of the Mississippi River, a week or so later. He's finally made it to Huntsville where he pulls off to refuel the truck and asks for directions to Braxton Street. Thanks to some very kind strangers, Jax is standing on the front porch to a big white house. He nervously knocks on the front door. "Can I- Jax?" Alex furrows her eyebrows. Her hair isn't silver anymore, it's a blonde color now and she's ditched her numerous ear piercings. Alex is wearing a tight tank top- no bra- that's tucked into a pair of ripped jeans along with an worn oversized flannel that's definitely Will's. "Jax?"

He realizes he hasn't said anything in a few minutes and clears his throat. "Hey." He runs his hand through his hair. "You're beautiful."

"Why are you here, Jax?" She asks as she crosses her arm below her breasts.

"I- I just needed to see you." He's blushing hard.

She sighs to hide her smile. "C'mon in." Jackson shuts the door behind him then follows her to the kitchen. "Are you hungry?"

"You know it." He sits himself down at the counter opposite her. "You look real pretty, Drea." He props his chin up on his hand with his elbow against the counter top. "Sight for sore eyes."

She rolls her eyes as she adjusts her flannel. "Here ya go." She slides a bowl of southern style chili.

"It's kinda cold outside, hopefully that warms you on up."

"Cold? It's in the 70s!" Jax chuckles, shaking his head as he shoves a spoonful of chili in his mouth. Alex smiles, sitting next to him at the counter. "Nice place you got here."

"Uh, thanks." She smiles, big old house that she has all to herself for the week while Will is out on the road, traveling with ALDOT. "Kinda lonely sometimes."

Jax nods and pushes his bowl aside, leaning back against the chair. "God, you're so beautiful." She blushes and shakes her head. "You gotta show me around town, show me what I'm missing out on."

"You got it, baby."

+++

Jax somehow was able to sweet talk Alex into a quickie. Currently, they're on her bed, the springs squeaking along with their unhindered moaning. She whines, her hands gripping his shoulders while his are around her throat and hip. Jax comes with a guttural moan against her chest and that pushes her over the edge, whimpering as her head falls back. "Holy fuck." She breathes, holding his head against her chest, her entire body trembling. "Woah."

"You okay?" He chuckles, running the tips of his fingers over her sweaty back.

"Just been a while since, y'know." Alex pulls away, tugging her clothes back on. She gets a hold of his jaw and kisses him. "Where are you stayin while you're in town?"

"I was gonna look for a cheap motel-"

"You can stay here. My roommate won't mind."

Roommate?

"I just gotta grab my bag from the truck." He pulls his jeans up and heads outside, shirtless.

Alex leans against the porch pillar with a cigarette between her lips, watching his sweaty tattooed skin glisten in the moonlight. She can't believe he drove thirty five hours for her- over two thousand miles for her.

"Like what you see, darlin?" He asks with that smirk on his face.

"Ready to go again?"

"You gotta be patient, Drea." He leans over and kisses her cheek with his free hand lingering on her hip. She follows him back to her bedroom, bouncing on her bed. "I brought you something." He tosses a bag at her.

"Huh?"

"Cali bud."

She lets out a delicious laugh, pulling a joint out to light it. She exhales with a moan, falling back against the mattress, her eyes fluttering closed. "Oh yeah..."

Jax snags it from her and takes a drag, flopping next to her, his hand slipping into his front pocket. "I gotta try some Alabama grass."

"No you don't." She laughs with a cloud of smoke. "I told you it was laced!"

"That just makes it that much more enjoyable."

"Jax-" She leans up on her elbows to look over at him. "Why are you really here?"

"You don't..." He sighs. "You don't belong here, Alex. You and I both know that."

"It's nice to have a change."

"You belong in Charming with me- with Ope and Donna, and- and with Sig and Marge."

"Everyone outside of my circle hates me. They see me as Lawrence's kid not Alex." Her cell starts ringing. "Fuck." She hands Jax the joint back before answering. "Yeah?"

"Your brother came by." Sig mumbles. "Asked about you and your dad. He doesn't know he died, kid. He doesn't know you're in Alabama. He's a mess."

"L-like how? Is he tweakin'?"

"No. He actually looked kinda sober." She sits up, her hair falling over her face. "He needs his family."

"Way to pack on the guilt, Sig." She huffs. "What should I do?"

"You have to answer that for yourself." He says before he hangs up.

"Who's tweaking?" Jax asks through a puff of smoke.

"They saw my brother."

"He's tweaking?"

"No. Sober. Sig said he doesn't know about Lawrence or me." He passes it back to her. "I can't abandon him, Jackson." She groans, her hands covering her face. "I can't. He's the only family I have left- blood family. I mean, I know what it's like to be alone." He rubs her back. "What the fuck do I do?"

"Honestly?" She nods. "Go home. Get together with him, be his family."

"It's not that easy to just up and go-"

"Bullshit. You got packed in a fucking day."

"Well, I had different motivation."

"I know you better than you think I do, Alexandrea. Underneath that hell raising exterior is a sweet girl that does the right thing even if she doesn't really want to. I know you like the back of my fucking hand."

She bites her lip, he's right. Since his old man passed, they've spent so much time together because of the shit they've been through. "And I know you want to be back in California, back with Sig and Marge."

"You're scrambled up, Teller." She pulls a face at her sentence. "I fucked up so much in Charming. I fucked up everything between us and Tara and Ope. I fucked up my degree. I fucked up Marge and Sig-"

"Listen to me." He grabs her hands. "Tara and I weren't good. Ope is happy with Donna. Sig and Marge absolutely adore and love you. As for school and shit, I can't help you there."

She chuckles. "Thanks."

"And I'm sorry about how things went down between us and with Will. You two just have a vibe that you and I don't."

"And I keep telling you he's just my friend."

"A friend that you fucked."

She rolls her eyes. "I need to be with my brother and you're right, I need Sig and Marge and you and Ope and Donna." She sighs. "I think I have to go back." Jax forces back a smile.

"I'll help you pack-"

"I don't want you to be an ass to me if I'm coming back, okay?"

"You got it, babe."

+++

The following morning, Alex sighs as she sets her last box down in front of Jax. She pulls her flannel tight around herself as she picks up a pen to write Will a note. She basically tells him she's thankful for him but she has to be with her brother. She knows he's going to be so heartbroken when he finds his house empty but she can't deal with another goodbye. Alex tells him that she'll be back to visit, she promises him. She recaps the pen and sets it on her note before she hops into her truck. Jax drives behind her, following her back to California.

The two stop every couple hours for fuel or food or a bathroom break but stay overnight in Tucumcari, New Mexico at a shady motel where they end up having intense, passionate sex. Out of all the times they've hooked up, this has to be the hottest. They drink a little, smoke some grass and nearly an entire carton of cigarettes; they got them for crazy cheap in Alabama.

Before they have to check out, they have one more round in the cramped shower. That sends them on their way home in great moods. Alex and Jax finally make it back to Charming late the following night.

She quickly and quietly moves her stuff back in to her apartment. Jax helps her out with bringing things in and moving things around. Afterwards, they order a pizza, drink and smoke some more then zoink out in her bed together.

Alex'll greet everyone in the morning, or at least the next day.