𝓛𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓑𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓭

𝓃𝒾𝓃𝑒𝓉𝑒𝑒𝓃

As the Southside Trailer Park wakes up with the euphoria of yesterday's news, Nellie is about to find out it becomes a lot harder to lie to a snake, 
especially when it lures you from underneath his shadows.

+ + + +

It was late in the morning when Nellie woke up. Her initiate reaction was to jump out of bed and hurry to the Five Seasons but then she remembered. Today was her day off. She happily fell back in bed and cuddled deeper in the blankets. 

She had stayed up hours with F.P. planning and speculating. They hadn't gotten anywhere useful, except for the vague connection between Hiram Lodge and Mr. Kowalski. They assumed Poppa Poutine was also in their midst and that his sudden death must've had something to do with Hiram, whether the man voluntarily murdered the dubious figure or merely played a role in his death. 

The party was already over when Nellie left F.P.'s trailer and headed to Sweet Pea's instead. It was dark and when she entered, Sweet Pea was already heavily asleep. His bare chest was barely covered by the blanket, giving Nellie a front row view of his Serpent tattoo in his neck. His arms were crossed above his head, casting his face in dark shadows. One of his long legs dangled over the edge of the mattress, casting her gaze towards a set of empty beer bottles on the ground. 

Right now, she relished in the warmth of her covers and the sun rays that were shining bright through the small window in her room. Some noise in the adjacent room stirred her from a peaceful nap, remembering her that she shouldn't waste her day off by staying inside. 

With a yawn, Nellie stood up and went to the kitchen, assuming Sweet Pea was already awake. Her assumptions were right as she nearly slammed into the Serpent's bare back when she stepped through the door, still rubbing the sleep from her eyes. 

Surprised, Sweet Pea glanced around, casting a look at Nellie over his shoulder. It gave Nellie enough to time to step back and focus on him. 

He was only wearing black jeans. His hair was still a sleepy mop on top of his head. His eyes were hooded underneath his strong eyebrows. 

"I didn't hear you come back," Sweet Pea said, his voice gruff. He turned his back towards Nellie and continued spreading jam on a toast. 

"I'm not surprised," Nellie joked "You were happily snoring when I came home,"

Sweet Pea huffed but he did not seem amused. Nellie frowned at his reaction, uncertain of where his sudden attitude came from. 

"What's wrong?" she asked, looking at her fingers tracing the edge of the table. 

Sweet Pea remained silent. He couldn't quite pinpoint what was wrong. He didn't know what he had done for her to suddenly go to F.P. and not return for over two hours. He had waited for Nellie outside, watched all his friends go to sleep. The Serpents had come to say goodnight, but even the last drunk partygoers went home before Nellie did. He sat down on his porch, his cigarette clenched between his lips as he looked at the sole light that was still burning on the trailer park. For an evening that had started with so much merriment, the events had taken a bitter turn. 

Sweet Pea inhaled deeply, causing Nellie's stare to fixate on his tanned chest. Her eyes wandered over his muscled stomach and followed the V-lines on his abdomen to where they disappeared underneath his low-hanging jeans. 

"It doesn't matter," Sweet Pea finally concluded, not wanting to let Nellie know how much her behavior affected him. When he rose his gaze, he saw Nellie staring at him, her eyes calculating. She'd put one feet on the bench, her other leg dangling over the edge. Her chin was resting on her knee. 

"What did F.P. want from you anyway?" Sweet Pea said, catching Nellie of guard with his direct question. She should've known he would ask. She had been gone for hours. 

"He's helping me with something," Nellie said, turning her eyes away from the intense look Sweet Pea threw her. He shook his head and took a bite of his toast. 

"And why didn't you ask me to help you?" he said, showing a bit of the back of his tongue. He didn't want to admit that it hurt hearing Nellie admit she'd rather got help from the Serpent King than that she trusted him. 

"It's not that simple," she admitted, still looking at the chipped nail polish on her toes. Sweet Pea frowned. 

"You don't think I can do it?" he huffed, forcefully putting the toast back on its plate. His sudden movement made Nellie look up to him.

"I don't want you involved, it might be dangerous..." she confided, her eyes focused on his large hand running through his ruffled hair. 

Sweet Pea let out a mocking laughter. "Are you hearing yourself, Nellie? I'm a Serpent. Those Southsiders fear me!" he nearly slammed his fist in his chest as he felt frustrated that she choose F.P. over him. 

"You should be more worried about yourself! You're living with a gang. We're not just good looking guys in leather on motorcycles! We have records, we've been in jail. We've hurt people!" Sweet Pea snapped. 

Nellie fell silent in her seat. She had never seen this side of Sweet Pea but for some reason she wasn't surprised by his outburst. It had been lingering in his eyes for days. It was only now that she felt that perhaps he had held up the nice guy act just for her. 

"Don't you have something to say about that, Nellie?" he bursted out, leaving the kitchen behind and getting closer to Nellie. He towered over her, casting a shadow where she sat. Nellie got both her feet back on the ground and stood up. They were so close now that she could practically feel the heat radiating from the Serpent.

"I knew what I got into and I chose to stay," she said, looking up to Sweet Pea. He was trying to collect himself, she saw it in the way he tried to calm his breathing. 

"Your instinct should've warned you," he whispered, suddenly entranced by her proximity. 

"It's my instinct that told me to stay," Nellie admitted raising her gaze to meet his. It would've been so easy to break the distance, crash her lips onto his and finally give in to the instinct that has been pushing her in his direction ever since she lived here. The thought crossed her mind and her eyes darted to his lips. Pink and full, practically demanded to be kissed. 

It was a matter of seconds before she'd finally give up her fight and surrender. But right before she decided to pull the Serpent close to her, the buzzing of her phone drew her attention to the object on the kitchen counter where she had left it yesterday evening. 

Sweet Pea shook awake and turned to the side as Nellie walked past him and looked at the screen. It was a message of F.P. It was short but its contents made Nellie even more worried about the fate of the Southside.

"Lodge bought the Register Newspaper."