Rivals 🌈 ✔

24 - Yours

Raine was relieved that besides four of his brothers, also Chibs and the Son's vice-president entered his room. Hopefully he could solve this misunderstanding and prevent a real war. That would only make things more difficult for Juice and him.

His boyfriend had left a few hours ago. Raine had tried to reassure him by telling him that he would make sure that both clubs would reconcile, but Juice's voice of doom would probably turn into a winner again.

He smiled sadly as his brothers hugged him and Esai kissed his forehead.

"You scared the shit out of us, bro," he said quietly.

Raine's glance wandered to Chibs and his blond brother. He didn't know if he was glad that Chibs knew his secret. It might do Juice well, but Raine kept in mind that Chibs might only be this compliant because he was in a hospital bed, with a chance that he might never leave it.

"The Sons insisted on visiting you," Alvarez spoke, the approval in his voice telling him he hadn't been glad about it.

Raine nodded slowly. "Your brothers who were driven off the road... how are they?"

The alert blue eyes of the vice-president studied his face. It took a while before he answered. "One is fine. The other awaits a long haul."

Silence fell. Raine closed his eyes. He felt exhausted; he really wasn't in the mood for a conversation like this. He missed Juice's calming presence, his fingers which wandered across his body in admiration and his soft kisses which made him forget about every pain and fear.

"I saw them driven off the road by a van," he told them eventually. He wasn't sure if someone had asked him a question; for a moment his mind had slipped to a reality in which Juice and he had been alone. His voice sounded hoarse and he felt feverish. Nevertheless, he aimed his eyes on the blond biker. "I knew they were Sons. But the moment they laid their bikes down, I could only see two men in need of help."

"And then they shot you," Esai said in a grunt. "Fuckin' assholes." He scowled at the two Sons.

The blonde raised his hands in defeat. "My man acted out of instinct. He had no reason to assume that a Mayan would be willing to help them. Also, your boy reached for something inside his inside pocket. Hap thought it was a gun."

"I wanted to grab my phone to call an ambulance," Raine sighed. He squeezed his eyes shut – sighing hurt. "But when that bald guy was about to be crushed under his bike, I wanted to help him first."

The two men kept silent.

"I'm sorry things ended the way they did," Chibs said eventually.

Esai snorted. "Easy for you to say. He coulda been dead. Don't think we–"

"Esai..." he sighed. "I knew what risk I was taking. But letting someone bleed to death because I'm a coward – that's not me. I got a bullet in the stomach in return, but I don't think I would change my mind during a next time. I don't want anyone to avenge me. If you want to do something, just shake hands and put this behind you. I know I was transferred to Oakland only a while ago and that I'm not part of the history between your clubs, but it's sad to leave someone to die only because there are different symbols sewn to their kuttes. If I'm judged for helping someone, there might not be a future for me in this club."

"Nobody is judging you, son," Alvarez said, squeezing his shoulder. He turned his face towards the Sons. "Hopefully you are now convinced that we are not the ones who drove your boys off the road."

Raine's glance rested on Chibs, who gave him an almost imperceptible nod.

"You sound sincere," Jax told him when Raine moved his glance to him. "I'm grateful for how you wanted to take care of my men. It shows courage. I hope you will recover well and that we can indeed put this behind us."