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Sorry, i suck, i know. Story is still alive and well, for those who were getting worried about my inactivity. I'm just busy. Started school again, so school four days a week and then work the other three. Not much time for writing.
This chapter was supposed to have more in it but i ended up writing too much and had to cut it off at some point. Don't expect an update right away, but I'll try to get it out as soon as possible.
Little to no editing done. Sorry. But enjoy
IMPORTANT EDIT!: I just got an anonymous review that was seriously confused about my use of the word "cut". After guessing that English is not my first language (Which, it actually is. My mistakes, however, are a result of me not proofreading and typing too fast, not a misconception of the actual language) and saying that it is a sloppy mistake that I should fix for that sake of my reputation as i writer, i felt the need to post this. This is not the first time i caused confusion as a result from my usage of the word. In fact, the author that is working on the french translation of this story felt the need to write up a glossary of the biker terms to help non-native speakers understand and cut was not that list of defined terms. No, i didn't mean to say "coat" this whole time and it's not a mistake that i'm just too incompetent or oblivious to fix . It was deliberate. I'm sorry if there is any confusion, that is not my intent. A CUT IS A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF THE BIKER COMMUNITY AND THEY DO NOT CALL THE DENIM OR LEATHER VEST THEY WEAR A COAT. IT IS CALLED A CUT OR COLORS. I chose to say cut in this story but colors could be used also. I will be posting this note on the first chapter as well in an attempt to clear up confusion before the reading begins. I apologize to everyone who was confused at all by the lingo, just trying to make the story seem for real and true to what i know about the biker community. Thank you for listening.
Now you can enjoy.
Sasuke sighed as he came in through the front door, his body aching from a long day. It had been a rather stressful week for him and the raven-haired male was definitely feeling the strain. That Monday morning after vandalizing the car, which he had noticed had stopped following him, he and the boys had spent hours in the chapel going back and forth on the Militia issue. The boys wanted blood but Sasuke wasn't the only one smart and rational enough to realize a war wasn't in their best interest at the moment. It had taken hours to finally get everyone calm enough to talk everything through rationally.
In the end they decided they needed to reach out to Orochimaru. The plan was that they were going to have a nice, peaceful sit down meeting with the fellow. Of course, they would call for blood, their own were hurt in an attack and there was no way getting around that. However, they weren't going to call for everyone's blood, only those that were involved in the attack. And, since the club had taken a pay cut a few years back when they lost a gun buyer and because they were getting tired of always watching their backs, they were going to offer Orochimaru a deal, guns for a the understanding that there is peace between them and they agree to stay out of Konoha. This deal would give the snake more incentive to give up his men to them. After all, what are the lives of an entire MC for only a few?
They sent out word to Orochimaru that they wanted to have this sit down, sending word though the grapevine, and had just heard back from him. He agreed and set the date for early Saturday morning. Of course they wouldn't be going in without a trick up their sleeves, just in case, so they had reached out to the Suna charter and another closer charter. The first charter had only taken a few hours to arrive at their front door while the Suna charter had taken three days. Thankfully the clubhouse was huge and they had enough spare dorm rooms to house both charters comfortably, though the Konoha boys wouldn't be able to crash at the clubhouse like they often did if they got too drunk to make it home. Both charters would be coming with them to the sit down.
Having another charter camping out was quite a handful because once the boys got together all they wanted to do was party. Every night since the first charter had arrived had been a huge party at the clubhouse and, as the VP, part of Sasuke's job was to keep them all entertained and treated hospitality. One charter was a handful enough, but the Suna charter had arrived tonight and there were now twice as many brothers to entertain. Tonight Sasuke had been roped into a boxing tournament, and as the VP of the maiden charter, he couldn't stop until he had beaten everyone who challenged him in order to make his father/president proud. He had done it, but it was getting harder towards the end when he was already tired and his heart had started beating weirdly. He had been forced to take a break, making the excuse that he needed a beer when he actually just wanted to calm down so his heart would stop beating so fast. He had been all too aware of his heart palpitations after days of no medications.
He hadn't really noticed many changes since he stopped his medications, except after boxing so far. Still, he worried. His last check up had been with some quack doctor in Suna, a guy who Sasuke wasn't completely convinced was a legitimate cardiologists but he was the only one he could find quickly and secretly in the area that was willing not to use electronic records for a price. He had given him the meds he needed and given him an exam but he had mentioned that he had noted that his pulmonary valve, which the blood flows through from his right ventricle to the pulmonary artery, was narrowed. This narrowing causes the heart to work harder to pump blood through the valve. He had suggested seeing his usual doctor as soon as possible because he was more familiar with Sasuke's case and was unsure about what was normal for Sasuke and what wasn't. But that had been before Aiden was born, before Sasuke got too stressed and lazy to think about his own health, and Sasuke simply never got around to it. Now he was out of medications and we was worried that his condition would worsen, though at the moment he couldn't really do anything about it since he had just spent another chunk of change he didn't have for Aiden's monthly appointment yesterday. Aiden was healthy but the cash from the next gun deal would go to paying off the bill thus meaning Sasuke's heart would have to wait.
Not to mention that Sakura's brother was coming in tomorrow to spend the weekend with them. He had told his sister he would arrive at noon on Friday, tomorrow, and that he wanted to meet the new boyfriend. Of course, Sasuke was kind of nervous. Obviously Sakura was a great woman, and if he was honest, deserved more than an ex-con mechanic with a GED (since he dropped out of high school to focus on prospecting). Not only was he going to have to prove himself to be sort of good enough to Sakura' overprotective brother, he was going to have to do it while balancing all of the visiting boys and the sit down meeting.
The plan for the weekend was busy. Friday Sasuke had to work in the morning at the shop and catch up on some of the work he had been delegating because he was stressed to some of the other young mechanics who had a habit of fucking things up. Then he was meeting Sakura back at the house to meet the brother. As it turned out, the routine "family" dinner fell on Friday and since there was a surplus of patched members around, Tsunade was throwing a very large dinner at the clubhouse that night versus the same gatherings she had for the Konoha boys at her house. Sasuke had suggested he and Sakura skip out and have a nice quiet dinner at home but Sakura had said no. She knew his responsibly to the club and knew that skipping out wouldn't look good. Plus, she had added, she wanted to see Gaara and Kankuro again. She sort of missed them. Of course, they couldn't leave Ren behind so the brother would be going with them, facing three charters of this crazy MC all at once. Saturday morning was the sit down and then that night was the charity dinner. Sunday the charters would be leaving so Sasuke would be needed there until he successfully saw everyone gone.
The Cutlass was in the driveway when he pulled up and Sakura had texted him when she had gotten off work so he knew she was probably already in bed. She had been working fairly late all week, having only gotten the time to stop at the clubhouse yesterday. She hadn't stayed for long because she wanted to get home to Aiden, but she had shown up to show her face to the visiting charter. They all seemed to be curious about her, as it wasn't everyday that their VP got an old lady. They wanted to see what kind of woman had proven herself worthy enough for their VP and to see what kind of woman would be at the side of their future leader. She had gotten off work at nine that night and had gone straight to the clubhouse where she met all the boys. More than one brother had approached Sasuke later after she left to tell him that they were impressed, and mildly jealous. Sasuke had only smirked and tried not to act too smug as his chest brimmed with so much pride and joy that he felt as if he could burst.
He waved the Prospect, who was waiting outside smoking, off before he entered the house quietly, noting that the only light in the house was the dim flickering light coming from the living room, probably the TV judging by the quiet hum of noise drifting towards him. He moved slowly into the house, spotting his old lady right away. She was still in her scrubs, her hair pulled up in a messy bun and only one sock on her feet, which were hanging off the edge of the couch she was sprawled out on. She was out cold, looking a little worse for wear after what he assumed was a long day at work. He noticed the baby monitor clutched loosely in her hand and smiled softly.
He crept forward and gently wedged his arms under her and pulled her into his arms, marveling at how small she was in his arms. She stirred slightly in his grasp, muttering something about how she still had fifteen more minutes before she had to wake up for the scheduled cesarean section, before she nuzzled her face into his chest. Sasuke chuckled softly before he carried her into the bedroom and gently laid her down on the bed. He took the time to gently strip her of her scrub pants, knowing she hated to sleep in pants of any sort and preferred shorts or simply her panties instead. She didn't stir and Sasuke quickly draped a sheet over her before he exited the bedroom.
He checked on Aiden quickly, stopping to gently place his hand on his son's stomach to feel him breathe for a few moments before he exited. He checked all the doors and windows quickly, making sure they were locked, before he turned off the TV in the living room and made his way back into the bedroom. Stripping quickly, he crawled into bed with his old lady, moving in right behind him so that he was spooning her.
He awoke what seemed like mere minutes later when his alarm was going off. He groaned, not believing for a second that he had slept a few hours and this was some sort of mistake, but was proven wrong when the clock declared that it was six in the morning. He groaned again and silenced the alarm as Sakura began to stir as well.
"Why does that shop have to open so early?" he questioned sluggishly more to himself than anything while Sakura stretched and then rolled back over to go back to bed since she didn't have to work today.
"Well, you're a co-owner, maybe you should change the opening time," she suggested halfheartedly as she snuggled into the pillow as Sasuke started to get up.
Sasuke snorted and rubbed at his eyes sleepily. "Yeah, try to get that past my mother and get back to me on that," he remarked. Even though his biological father's share of the business was passed down to him and Itachi, his mother still called the shots for the most part. She ran the business part of it while he, his father and brother handled the actual work part of it (their father still hasn't passed down any share to Naruto because he doesn't feel he is responsible enough yet). And she was an early riser and someone who firmly believed in hard work as well as getting as much done in a day as you could. There was no way she was going to adjust the business hours just because her son wanted to sleep in. That's what his days off were for, she would say, never mind the fact that he usually had to wake up early for church on his days off.
Sasuke showered and dressed quickly, stopping only to give Sakura a kiss before he walked out the door. Sakura laid in bed, listening to the silence of the house and hearing the now familiar roar of his motorcycle start up and then fade into the distance. Sakura mentally smiled, knowing that Sasuke's elderly neighbor was probably woken up by the noise. The woman hated him enough as it is but Sasuke was always coming and going on his bike so there was always a chorus of engine grumblings loudly announcing his presence, not to mention all the other boys coming and going as well.
She drifted in and out of sleep for nearly an hour, grateful for the sleep after a long week of work and back-to-back surgeries, before Aiden woke up. She busied herself the next few hours with taking care of Aiden and cleaning the house. Still, as the clock slowly drew closer to noon Sakura started to get more anxious. She kept looking out the front window, waiting for her brother's familiar car to pull into view.
She was excited to see him after so long, but nervous as well. She knew her brother well enough to know he was going to have a lot to say about Sasuke. At first glance, she knew what Sasuke looks like- a rough, no-good, irresponsible biker. Ren would no doubt jump to conclusion before he actually gave him a chance, but Sakura was prepared for her over-protective brother. She just needed to get him to give Sasuke a chance so that he could see just how great he was.
Sasuke's house was immaculate by the time Sakura glanced out the front window and saw her brother's car in her driveway across the street. With Aiden in her arms and supporting him gently since he was starting to get more control over his own head now, she quickly went to the front door. She spotted Ren standing on her front porch, knocking and looking in through the front window to try and see if she was inside or not.
"Ren, over here!" she called, waving at him as he turned around. He stared at her in question for a moment, glancing back at her house behind him before he faced her once more as if he to double check if he had the right house. He slowly started towards her.
"What are you doing here?" he asked as he mounted the single step to Sasuke's small porch.
"Well, I'm babysitting, sort of," she said quickly, unsure of how to tell her brother that she had basically moved into her boyfriend's house without officially moving in. While she had all of her clothes and person necessities, all of her things still were at her house. The house and everything inside was Sasuke's, but Sakura had been adding little things gradually of her own personal touches though she had yet to officially move in. Belatedly she realized she should probably talk to Sasuke about this. After all, she was his old lady now, in a committed relationship and basically the mother to his child.
"Who's this?" he asked after he greeted his sister with a one handed hug because her other arm was taken by Aiden. He looked down at the cute baby and gave a big goofy smile, unable to help himself with babies.
"This is the notorious Aiden that I am not dating," Sakura remarked as she guided her brother into the house. He greeted Aiden in a baby voice and a tickle to his stomach, which resulted in a giggle, before he looked around the house. Sakura was suddenly very happy that she had cleaned and added a few more homey touches over the week, such as some candles on the tables, some throw pillows on the couch that Sasuke declared were the best inventions on earth after he came home drunk from the clubhouse the first night the first charter came in and he had face planted into them. She hadn't made big changes, but with Sasuke's permission, she added some little things around the house that would make it look less like a bachelor pad with random baby toys lying around. Sasuke seemed to understand that while Sakura loved him and his house, it wasn't a very woman friendly environment, and let her have her fun.
"He's cute. Do you watch him often?" he asked her and Sakura nodded.
"Yeah. His dad is a single father who runs a few businesses and has a lot of commitments. I take him when I'm not busy or at work," she answered simply, finding it close enough to the truth before she admitted the full truth.
Ren quickly accepted that and together they sat down on the couch and caught up while they played with Aiden. They stuck to safe topics, both not wanting to fight right off the bat after not seeing one another for a while. It seemed like no time had passed at all though when Sakura heard a familiar rumble. Ren heard it too but thought nothing of it while Sakura mentally prepared herself for the moment Sasuke would walk through the door.
The door handle jiggled and soon swung open, followed by a sigh and a curse as Sasuke's keys hit the floor. Sakura stood up with Aiden in her arms and made her way to the door. Sasuke slowly was picking up the fallen keys, looking tired. "You look like hell," she commented as she approached him, mildly aware that her brother was following her.
Sasuke only sighed. "Long, shit day," he muttered simply, his hands still darkened by grease that hadn't been removed by simply wiping his hands. It was a familiar sight to her now as Sasuke usually come home covered in one oil or another, smelling like the garage, leather, tobacco, sometimes alcohol, soap, and a musky something that was uniquely Sasuke that Sakura had found herself loving more and more as the days past. The strange mix of smells comforted her now, making her feel safe and contented as she breathed it in as he walks in the door, picks her up from work, or embraces her as she drifts to sleep. Sakura smiled sweetly as the same sense of comfort and safety swept over her and stepped forward to press a kiss to his lips. It was quick and chaste, but it seemed to make him feel better right away.
"Hey," he greeted sweetly afterwards, a hand hovering over the small of her back.
"Hi," she greeted back before Sasuke turned his attention to his son. He greeted him as well and pressed a kiss to his son's head.
Ren cleared his throat behind them and they both turned to look at him. Sasuke studied him, taking in the similar features he shared with his sister and the similar eyes. He, thankfully, didn't have the pink hair but instead of dark shade of red. He was taller than his sister too, but shorter than Sasuke at an average height. He had an average build, not skinny or too well fed. His body language, however, told Sasuke right away that he was not what he expected for his sister and he was none to happy about him at first glace. Sasuke felt a weight sink into his stomach, knowing exactly what he looked like in his grease stained hands, unkempt hair, unshaven face, his baggy jeans and loose fitted mechanics shirt under his cut. The cut alone was something that earned him more weary glances by strangers than ones of respect or awe. Coupled with his tired, rough and almost thug like clothes, he was sure he was making a grand impression on the seemingly straight laced man in front of him.
Sasuke put on his best small smile despite the weight in his stomach and reached out a hand to shake. "Hey, I'm Sasuke. Sakura has told me a lot of about you," he introduced as kindly as he could.
Ren met his hand in an almost too firm of a shake, as if he was trying to be threatening. Had Sasuke been a lesser man, he might have been slightly intimidated but after everything Sasuke had seen and done this man was physically nothing in the scheme of things. However, this man definitely held an intangible power over Sasuke because he was the older brother of his old lady, a man whom he wanted to be on his good side and prove his worth to.
"Ren," he said simply, staring at him with a guarded expression.
Sasuke hesitantly glanced at Sakura who was glaring at her brother before he released his hand and nodded. "Well, I'm glad that you came down," he said as the three of them made their way into the living room. Sasuke took this moment to remove his cut as well, folding it carefully and setting it aside. Maybe that would make Ren ease up a bit, not having his cut blatantly declaring what kind of man he was to the suspicious man.
Conversation was awkward and stilted as Sakura tried to coax her brother out. But the man had closed himself off, watching Sasuke carefully who was feeling a little more than awkward. This was not going well at all, he realized, as the other man would not give an inch. Everything about him was guarded and Sasuke could practically see the red alerts going off for the man. He was studying him intensely, his eyes suspicious and almost angry. He was sizing Sasuke up, testing him without really giving him a chance and Sasuke had a feeling he was not coming out on top.
"How'd you meet?" Ren asked after a moment and Sakura looked relieved that her brother was putting forth an effort.
Sakura smiled easily, hiding any discomfort she felt at her brother's obvious suspicious and overprotective nature. "A party at the lot of the auto shop. Sasuke and his family own the auto shop in town and they have parties every once and awhile and I went with an acquaintance in town. Sasuke saved me from a really drink guy and gave me a ride home since we live right next to one another."
"She's Aiden's doctor as well. My son was born ten weeks premature in Suna and Sakura took on his case when I moved back home," Sasuke offered up to the conversation.
Ren simply grunted in response, not sounding pleased but not displeased either. An awkward silence filled the air and Sasuke glanced quickly at Sakura who looked to him apologetically. The silence, however, allowed for the three to clearly hear the rumble of a motorcycle approaching and then the engine cutting off after a moment. Sasuke made no move to go to the door, only sighing softly as they waited. A few moments more of silence and there was a harsh pounding on the door; it was quick, impatient and almost threatening in its intensity.
"I'm not home," Sasuke called softly, half-heartedly.
There was a beat of silence before the door slammed open roughly, hitting the wall behind it with a loud bang. Sasuke jumped up in surprise and stepped defensively in front of Sakura who clutched Aiden to her chest in a protective manner. Sakura felt a surge of panic as a man was suddenly in front of them, taking a quick glance around the room before he charged forward. Sakura tried to scream but it all happened so quickly she didn't even get more than a choked noise out of her throat before the man was on top of Sasuke.
"What the hell?" Sasuke yelled out as the man bent at the waist, jammed his shoulder into Sasuke's gut and effortlessly heaved him up into the air and tossed his over his shoulder. It was only then did Sakura realize just how big this man was. Sasuke was tall and lean, an intimidating man. Naruto and Minato were both taller and built much stronger so that Sakura had seen Naruto once lift Sasuke almost effortlessly when they were roughhousing on the lot. This man, however, was even bigger than Naruto, about six four or six and built like a brick wall. The man easily pivoted with Sasuke thrown over his shoulder and was disappearing out the door as quickly as he came.
"Sasuke!" Sakura yelled after him and then quickly but gently pushed Aiden into her brother's arms. As soon as she was sure the boy was secured she rushed after them, moving through the door that had been left open carelessly. She glanced around the street, seeing two bikes parked out front and immediately knowing which one was Sasuke's and which one was this stranger's. However, she didn't see the two men anywhere until she heard Sasuke yelling to her side and she followed the voice to see their neighbor's gate opened wide.
"Don't you fucking dare, you stupid son o' bitch!" she heard and she quickly ran into the old woman's backyard, only dimly aware of her brother following behind her as her heart raced and her panic soared. Who was this man and what was he doing? Was he part of the Militia that ran Sasuke and his brothers off the road? Was he going to hurt him? Should she call Naruto or Minato? Should she go fetch the extra gun she knew Sasuke kept in the bedroom? Could she even use a gun?
Sakura zeroed in on the pair quickly, spotting them at the old woman's pool. She had seen her grandchildren play in it on weekends when the weather was warm, little boys who always stared in awe at Sasuke while the old woman scowled. Now the mystery man was standing at the edge of the pool, smiling evilly while Sasuke squirmed uselessly.
"No! Put me down now!" Sasuke yelled.
"If you say so, baby boy," the man said whilst laughing. A moment more and Sasuke was plunging beneath the waters surface while the man let out an even louder belly laugh. Sasuke resurfaced while Sakura stood at a distance, confused and her heart still pounding but somehow not feeling the same sense of danger as she did moments before. Sasuke coughed and gasped as he resurfaced but glared at the laughing man as he swam easily over to the side of the pool.
"You are so fucking lucky I wasn't wearing my cut, you fucking asshole," Sasuke remarked as he pulled himself over the side of the pool and onto solid ground. He looked like a drowned rat with his already baggy clothes weighed down by the excessive water. He shook out his raven hair, flinging water all over the stranger who laughed and backed up.
Sasuke eyed the man for a moment as he tried to gather himself again. His heart was pounding erratically and it felt as if it was beating out of his chest. His breathing was coming out in harsh pants as well and Sasuke was mildly annoyed that a simple scare had put him in such a state. He rested his hand over his heart for a moment in a fruitless effort to calm it before he realized what he was doing and quickly pulled it away. Not wanting to alert anyone to the worrisome state of his heart at the moment, Sasuke acted quickly to try and pull himself together and give off his usual calm, cocky manner. He grinned mischievously and extended his arms out towards the larger man. "Now give me a hug, you son o' bitch," Sasuke smirked.
"No way, baby boy," he laughed easily before affectionately patting Sasuke on the head, ruffling his wet locks. Sasuke made no move to hug him or attack him, but he smiled and reached out his hand to shake with the stranger.
"Sasuke!" Sakura called after him and the two men looked at her. He took in her wild appearance, her chest heaving slightly and her bright emerald eyes shining at him in confusion and concern. Instantly he wanted to put her at ease so he forced a bright smile on his face and he gestured for the man to follow him as they approached her.
"Sakura, this is Kisame, an very close friend of mine. Kisame, this is Sakura, my old lady," he introduced.
Kisame turned quickly to face his old friend with wide, disbelieving eyes. "You got yourself an old lady? I never thought I would see the day," he remarked before he turned to examine Sakura. Sakura felt mildly intimidated by the large man as he studied her intensely, as if she was this grand puzzle that he was tasked to figure out. "Well, I'll be damned, she's beautiful," he remarked and Sakura founded herself mildly flattered but mostly embarrassed by the assessment.
Sakura took this time to really examine the man. Now, as everything had calmed down and he wasn't moving around so quickly, Sakura could see that he was wearing a cut; an Akatsuki cut under closer examination. He wore no officer patch, but he did wear a 'UNHOLY ONE' patch like Sasuke. Also, she noticed, he wore a 'NOMAD' in the same place that Sasuke had his 'MC ORIGINAL' patch. He was a big man, all muscle like in her first examination. He was a fairly handsome man, not overly and naturally handsome in a god-way like Sasuke, but a regular sort of handsome with good features and looked be older than Sasuke like in his late thirties. He had a pair of intense of pale, wild looking eyes and an almost evilly scary smile on his pale face. He was no doubt an intimidating man, one Sakura would avoid in any other situation, but Sasuke seemed comfortable enough with him so Sakura put some faith in him.
"Yeah, and she has a personality to match too. She's the whole package, way too good for me but for some reason she seems to like me," Sasuke teased as he stepped closer to her and reached for her.
For a moment she almost stepped easily into his arms, wanting the comfort of his arms around her to assure her that he is safe after the scare she had gotten. But then she remembered that he was socking wet and she reacted instinctively, swatting at his extended hand.
"Nope. I'll hit you so hard if you even think about getting me all wet," she said quickly, glaring at him and giving him a look that said she really would do it and he knew it. She wasn't afraid to manhandle him or to yell at him, and she wasn't about to start now.
Sasuke and Kisame laughed loudly at the same time, and Kisame slapped Sasuke's back affectionately. "She looks like a wild one. I like her already," he exclaimed loudly.
Sasuke laughed once before he shook his head, sending more water flying into the air. "Can we take this back inside? I want to get out of these wet clothes and I doubt my neighbor will be happy to find out I took a swim in her pool. She hates me enough already as it is without trespassing."
Kisame nodded and then started back towards the front of the house. He didn't seem to falter for a moment when he spotted Ren standing at the gate with Aiden. In fact, he didn't even seem to notice her brother and instead quickly pulled Aiden into his arms. He pulled him up close to his face, cooing and very gently teasing the boy. It was a strange sight, Sakura couldn't help but notice, as he was such a large, tough looking man and here he was cooing over a baby who loved the attention.
He turned easily and smiled broadly at Sasuke. "He's so big now. Last time I was saw him was when he was just born and so tiny. He was still in the toaster then. Now look at him. He's so big and he looks so healthy. He's gonna be wearing a cut in no time," he laughed while cooing once more.
"He's not a year old yet, I'll worry about that when he turns twenty one," Sasuke laughed while very nonchalantly taking Sakura's hand in his. Sakura welcomed the comforting hand in hers. After her little scare, she needed to touch him and know that he was safe. Unfortunately, she couldn't really hug him or kiss him until he dried off, so this would have to do in the mean time. Sasuke seemed to understand this without her having to say a thing, and together they made their way into the house once more.
"Hey, he could be like you and simply refuse to wait. You were still a baby when you prospected and then patched in," Kisame reminded as he very nonchalantly walked into the kitchen. He seemed familiar with the house, like he had been there many times before.
"I wasn't that young," Sasuke protested as he closed the front door and then muttered that he was going to go get changed. He released Sakura's hand after a quick kiss to her fingers and then swaggered down the hall. Sakura watched him, amazed that he still looked confident and sexy even as his clothes weighed him down like a drowned rat.
"You were to," Kisame yelled from the kitchen and he playfully rocked Aiden in his arms and the boy giggled incessantly, "You were seventeen years old. I remember; I sponsored your dumb ass."
"Sponsor?" Sakura asked as she joined Kisame in the kitchen. Behind her Ren quietly made his way into the room as well, standing back and observing. Sakura wasn't paying attention to him though, focusing on the older man in front of her. He was really good with Aiden, she noted, and she felt satisfied that he was in good hands. Like everyone else, Aiden seemed to instantly warm your heart and draw you in. Kisame was no different and was not immune to the boy's natural charm.
Kisame looked to her and nodded, a mischievous smile breaking out on his face. "You're new, aren't you?" he questioned but didn't give her a chance to answer.
"When you want to patch into a club, it isn't as easy as simply showing up and saying you want to prospect. You first have to hang around the club, let the patched members get a feel for you. Once you have earned their trust you can let your interest be known. If you can somehow convince a member that you could be a good asset to them, they can sponsor you. Basically the sponsor vouches for you and then the members have to vote whether or not to let you prospect. If it works out in your favor, you prospect and basically become the bitch for the club, more so for your sponsor, the president and the VP than anyone else in the club. After you serve your time as prospect the club can vote you in and you become a patched member. We don't let anyone under the age of twenty-one prospect, except Sasuke that is. He was a persistent fucker and he wouldn't leave me alone. So I took a risk and sponsored our baby boy and he patched in on his eighteenth birthday."
Sasuke rejoined them in the kitchen then, dressed in another pair of baggy jeans and a black and white flannel shirt, carefully hiding his tattoos from sight. He knew he was already coming off as a thug or something to Ren, Kisame's theatrically entrance not helping him in the least as far as first impressions go, but as least he could try to hide some things, like his tattoos, to try and come off better than he actually is.
"How's your mama?" Sasuke asked as he easily leaned against the counter.
Kisame smiled brightly and then gestured for Sakura to come over. He started speaking while he passed Aiden into Sakura's arms. "She's in remission now. Doctor says that they got the last of it. She's gonna have to have regular check ups, but she's in the clear for now."
Sasuke smiled and stepped forward to hug the man. "That's fantastic news. She get all the care packages we sent?"
"Yeah, and she's extremely grateful for the help. She knew you had a part of it when she saw those damn muffins in every package. She loves those. She wants you to come down soon to see her. She wants to thank you and finally meet the little man," he said easily and then quickly sobered up. He was very oddly serious all of a sudden, something Sakura had never seen like so far. "She also said that you didn't have to send all that money, we would have figured out a way to pay for her treatments," he said seriously to Sasuke.
Sasuke shook his head and waved off his comment with a flick of the wrist. "It was no big deal, Kisame, the least I could do. You know I love you and your mother. I only wish I could have continued to send the payments but you have to understand that Aiden's care broke the bank after my income was cut when I moved to Suna. Suna only just recently have the pipeline we use, established after I returned home. My income during the time was the strip joint, divided equally among all the boys. I could barely afford to feed myself during that time."
Kisame shook his head, reached out to clasp his large hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "You did more than enough, more than anyone else did. I'm extremely grateful for that. But I'm going to pay you back every dime."
Sasuke shook his head. "Naw, you're Nomad, you don't have the club income. Don't worry about it."
Kisame looked Sasuke seriously in the eyes, gripping both of his shoulders now. "I'm paying you back. I've been thinking about transferring back now that my mama is in the clear. I can start earning again and pay you back in monthly installments. Either way, I'm going to pay you back," he said in a tone that left no room for argument.
Sasuke eyed his friend closely before he relented and sighed, nodding his head slowly. It was a matter of pride for Kisame, that much he knew. Kisame had been forced to take the money Sasuke had sent him, back when he was still earning in Konoha before his move. Had he have any other choice, Kisame would have sent the money right back. But the bills had been piling up because his mama didn't have insurance. But now his mama was in the clear and Kisame wasn't going to simply let it go now. His pride wouldn't let him.
And as much as he didn't want to admit it, Sasuke couldn't deny that the money could help him too. Sasuke needed the cash now. He wasn't stupid enough to think Naruto was going to start paying him back right away but he knew Kisame was more likely to stick to his word. Sure, he wouldn't get anything for at least a month, but if Kisame were determined to pay him back then he would see some cash within the next month. And although it might not a lot, it would at least be something. Maybe a month or two more with the extra cash from Kisame and Sasuke might be able to scape up enough to go pay his doctor a visit. He just had to hold out for a little while more.
"What's nomad?" Sakura asked after a moment, causing both patched members to look at her. It was Sasuke who explained.
"Nomad is just a charter of the club. They are members who aren't attached to any one city. They still have the same responsibilities, same ranks, but they travel from one city or another for their church meetings which are less frequent than a base charter will be."
Kisame nodded and then went to the fridge and pulled out a beer. He popped the top with his teeth, spitting the bottle cap into the sink. He took a long pull from the bottle and then looked to her. "I used to be an MC Original too but I transferred. My mom lives about a day and a half from here and when the doctors found cancer I wanted to go down and take care of her. It was too far to commute all the time while staying here in Konoha so I transferred to Nomad. Gives you a bit more freedom as far as responsibilities go, but it's lonelier. Its why I'm gonna transfer back, I miss my family," he said before taking another long swig of his beer.
Sakura smiled, understanding immediately what he was taking about. The club was one big family and she had just been welcomed in and already she felt so much better. She felt connected, powerful, safe and loved. The other day she went to the grocery store with Aiden. She had been wearing one of Sasuke's old Akatsuki shirts that Tsunade had given her that the older woman had found in storage from when Sasuke was still a teenager. As soon as an older gentleman saw her shirt he let her move ahead of him in line at the register. When he exited the shop she had run into Choiji, who escorted her home and then carried her bags inside. Naruto was often around, treating her like a sister. When she goes on her lunch break at the hospital a few of the boys have stopped by to say hello and see how she was. It was clear that the boys all love her. She could understand that it could be lonely without the family nearby to look out for you.
Kisame then glanced over and seemed to realize that Ren was in the room. He gestured with the beer bottle, leaning casually against the fridge. "I don't know you," he stated plainly, his guard instantly up.
Sasuke seemed to start. "Oh yeah, sorry. Ren, this is Kisame. Kisame, this is Ren, Sakura's older brother. He's in town visiting for the weekend," he introduced.
Kisame nodded but made no move to step over and shake his hand. He looked him over and frowned. "He club friendly?" he asked Sasuke without looking away from the man standing quietly on the other side of the room.
Sasuke seemed to falter for a moment. "Uh, he's good. He's gonna meet the boys and everyone tonight. There is a club dinner tonight."
"You think any of the boys are gonna give him any problems? He looks a little . . . up tight," Kisame stated, still not looking away from her brother. Sakura was reminded again that Kisame was a very intimidating man. Her brother was staring back blankly, but she knew him well enough that he wasn't happy about Kisame staring at him like he was. Ren was very tense right now, his whole body screaming his displeasure.
Sasuke walked over and swatted Kisame in the gut, forcing him to look at him. "Cool it. He's with me and none of the boys are gonna give him any problem when I tell them that. My word has a lot of power, after all," he said seriously and then gave Ren an easy smile that went unanswered. He held the smile for a moment more before he let it drop and he quickly changed the subject.
"Why don't we head out to the clubhouse? Ma has been cooking all day, getting ready for the dinner tonight. She'll want me near to entertain all the other boys and keep them out of the kitchen and out of her way."
Sakura nodded. "Yeah, and I should go help her out. She's basically feeding an army tonight. Plus, I gotta show my face as well," she stated with a smile. She was the old lady to the VP now; she had to keep up appearances now. Tsunade had already made it clear that she still had a lot to learn before Sasuke takes over and the only way to learn is to stick close to the queen and let her "wisdom" rub off on her.
"I'm sure she'll appreciate that, darlin'," Sasuke said while giving his signature grin. He swooped in and pressed his lips to hers, grinning into the kiss.
They pulled apart and got Aiden ready for the trip. Sasuke made sure to keep Kisame near him, never leaving him alone with Ren. He loved Kisame. Kisame was his mentor and then one of his best friends. They served time together and watched each other's back. Sasuke was barely patched in a two months before he got locked up. He served a year alone constantly watching his back before Kisame wound up locked up for five years. You get close to your brothers when you serve time; you learn to trust them with your life because prison isn't a pretty place, especially when you are part of an MC like the Akatsuki who has a lot of friends but a lot of enemies as well. But as much as he loved Kisame, he also knew that he was a dangerous man. He wouldn't do anything to Ren physically, but Kisame was a brash kind of guy. He talked a big game because he could back it up and so he did, often. He liked to run his mouth at times, didn't seem to have a filter most times and he wasn't above getting into your head. Most of the time it was for Kisame's own amusement and he never meant any harm, but Sasuke was already fucking up this first impression thing. He didn't need Kisame to start playing his games and fucking thing up even more.
After Aiden was all set, they exited the house together once Sasuke pulled his cut back on. Sakura guided her brother over to the Cutlass. Ren whistled at the muscle car, unable to stop himself from voicing his appreciation of the classic car.
"Nice car," he murmured, looking at it in awe. "Looks like its in wonderful condition," he stated.
Sakura glanced at her brother quickly and then looked back at the car. She knew it was a very nice car, but she wasn't a car expert. All she knew was that it was a classic car that Sasuke owned and it ran well. Anything else was a mystery to her.
She paused, however, when she spotted a large manila envelope sitting on the windshield of the car. Her heart sank, instantly reminded that no matter how safe she felt under the club's wing, her ex was still out there. She glanced fearfully at Sasuke, who hadn't noticed the envelope yet. He was instantly alert though as soon as he saw her panicked look and he was at her side in an instant, passing Aiden into her arms and reached behind him into the waistband of his jeans where he know doubt had a gun resting. Sakura weakly gestured to the envelope before he could voice his concern and Sasuke's eyes narrowed at the sight of the envelope. He quickly went over to the car and swiped the envelope as casually as he could. He folded it quickly and shoved it in the inner pocket of his cut, turning to Ren and acted as casual as he could.
"It was a mess when I got my hands on it. The former owner smashed it to hell when he left the bar one night and sold it for scrap because he didn't have the cash to fix it thanks to that drinking habit of his. I'm a good friend with Jerry, the junkyard owner, and he sold me the car for cheap. Took me a year to fix and restore everything, from the engine, body, and upholstery," he told her brother, running his hand over the hood momentarily before he grinned.
"She still purrs like a kitten," he said with a smile and then put a comforting hand on Sakura's shoulder when she approached him. Ren nodded his head and went back to admiring the car.
Sasuke used this time to stroke her cheek. "Don't worry about it," he whispered to her before he kissed her gently. "I'll take care of you," he said as soon as they pulled apart.
She nodded. "I know," she whispered before she took a calming breath. She needed to reign in her emotions as to not clue in her brother about her panic. She didn't want him to worry about her. As far as he was concerned, the whole stalker ex thing was over and done with after her restraining order and her relocation. This move was good for her. It brought her protection where she otherwise would have been defenseless against him. It brought her a good job and a new family. It brought her Sasuke and Aiden. She was happy for once in her life. She just needed her brother to see this and that wasn't going to happen if she saw her start panicking.
"Good girl," Sasuke murmured and then kissed her once more when he noted her calm expression. "I love you," he whispered against her lips but then broke away when Kisame let out a catcall. He gave the man the finger and then glanced to Ren who was watching the sense in displeasure.
He quickly gave Sakura a comforting smile and then helped her get Aiden all strapped in. As soon as the boy was good he went over to his Harley and mounted it alongside Kisame who was waiting for them. They waited until Sakura was all set before they pulled out ahead of them, leading the way back towards the garage.
"Does he let you drive his car often?" Ren asked his sister while she focused on the road. She glanced quickly at him before returning her gaze to the road. He was staring out the windshield seriously, almost glaring at the Reaper on Sasuke's back.
"Yeah, he actually gave me the car when the Beetle died on me. He's getting a truck soon and he really didn't need two cars and his bike," she stated and she kept her gaze on the road even though she felt her brother turn to look at her.
"He just gave you his car, for nothing?" he asked, his tone suspicious.
Sakura nodded. "Yeah. I needed a car and he was going to have an extra one soon," she stated simply, refusing to look at him. She didn't want to see the look her brother was giving her.
"With your income, you could buy your own car fairly easily," Ren commented and Sakura shook her head.
"My income isn't any of your concern and that's not even the point. We don't need three cars and a Harley," she fired back and instantly regretted it when her brother's face twisted at her word choice.
"We?" he asked incredulously and Sakura chose not to answer him.
There was a long pause and then Ren spoke again. "Sakura, what the hell are you doing?"
Her grip on the steering wheel tightened. "Don't start, Ren. You don't know him. The moment he stepped through the door you went into overprotective brother mode and refused to give him an inch. You never even gave him a chance because in your twisted little mind he's not good enough for me because of the cut he wears and the work he does. He's the pick of the litter here and the best man I have ever had the privilege to know. I couldn't have gotten any luckier that he took notice of me."
They were pulling into the lot now and Sakura noticed the great number of bikes that were parked. Already the lot was filled with big and scary men alike, walking around and hanging out, all with Akatsuki cuts on their backs. The last time Sakura was on the lot, she had seen the boys from the Konoha charter as well as the Tanzaku charter. Now the Suna charter had joined them. From what Sasuke had told her, the Tanzaku boys were the nearest charter to the maiden charter, their backup if they ever need some reinforcements on short notice. They ran a small casino in the Tanzuku Quarters, their legit business to hide the less than legit club business. The Suna charter owned a strip joint as their legit business while the Konoha charter had their porn studio and auto shop.
Sasuke and Kisame zoomed ahead to maneuver their bikes into the row of Harleys while Sakura took her time moving over to the spot the boys held for her, right next to Tsunade's car. She parked and then wrenched the door open. As gently but as quickly as she could, she pulled the carrier from the cars seat and then closed the door. Ren was already out of the car, coming over to stand next to her. She stepped closer to her brother and glared at him.
"He takes care of me, and I've never been happier than how I am with him. And I love you, you are my brother and I appreciate all that you have done for me. But you need to back off. If you can't give him a chance to show just how great he is or how great the life we built here is than we don't have anything to discuss here. You should just go home," she stated with an edge to her voice.
It hurt her to speak to her brother this way, but she needed him to either back off and give Sasuke a chance or go away. He didn't know how good Sasuke was for her. He didn't know anything about the complicated world that she now lived in with Sasuke at her side. She was terried of her ex, still was especially after said ex was still watching her. She had fooled herself into thinking she was safe but the envelope served as a reminder that he was still lurking, still watching her even if he couldn't get close with her bodyguards always near. But she trusted Sasuke; trust that he would take care of her even if it means her life was different now. Now matter how much more complicated her life was now, it was better than it ever had been before. She belonged here and if her brother can't even see past some leather than she didn't want to talk to him.
"I'm going inside the clubhouse to help the other old ladies. Why don't you stay on the lot with the boys? I'm sure you can take care of yourself. Just don't step on anyone's toes and go to Sasuke if you happen to piss anyone off with your close-mindedness. He'll take care of you," she muttered before she stomped away with Aiden and the diaper bag. She went straight to the clubhouse, ignoring the way Sasuke was staring at her in confusion.
She stopped momentarily at the clubhouse door because Minato and Kiba were just coming out as she reached for the door. They smiled at her in greeting and Minato gave her a big hug. He kissed her cheek gently, smiling at her. "What's wrong with you, baby girl?" he questioned and she shrugged.
"Brother is in town and he's being an idiot. I'm fine though. Is Tsunade inside?" she asked, changing the subject.
Minato nodded and stepped out of the doorway, clearing the way for her. "She's in the kitchen with the girls. She's on a war path so have fun," he said and then pat her on the shoulder.
Sakura shrugged. "Maybe Aiden will help her feel better. I'll go take over in the kitchen and she can take a break to bond with her grandson."
"Good idea, she needs a moment to cool down," Minato said with a laugh and but then paused before he went out onto the lot, "You know, if you need help with that brother of yours we can help. You're family, baby. If you need us to beat someone up we will in a heart beat," he said, starting off serious and then the last part of his statement coming off more as a joke though Sakura didn't doubt that these boys would hesitate to scuffle for her.
She smiled sweetly, giving him her best smile, and stepped closer to him. "I appreciate that. I've never really had a large family, complete family like this so it really means a lot to hear you say that," she said seriously, "I can handle my brother, but I'll keep you updated in case I need you," she joked.
He nodded and gave her another hug. "I've always wanted a son and a daughter. Instead, I got three boys, which, lets be honest, are still a handful. And now I will soon have two daughter-in-laws. I look forward to the day that I have three daughters," he told her before he released her from the comforting embrace. He looked down to Aiden still sitting in the carrier she carried somewhat awkwardly at her side. "Hell, I would like to have a house full of grandchildren to spoil relentlessly."
Kiba chose this moment to speak up, having been forgotten by the other two. He leaned towards both of them, theatrically whispering as if someone would hear them even though no one close enough to hear at the moment. "I bet you and Sasuke will be the next to reproduce. Naruto's too much of an idiot to get his act together and be a father and Itachi is taking his sweet old time despite Tsunade's urgings. Plus, Sasuke already shown that he can't wrap it up."
Sakura stared at him blankly for a moment. "Don't count your chickens just yet," she said before she shifted the carrier in her hand. "I'm going to go try and tame the beast in there."
"Good luck," they wished. Minato reached out and gently gripped her elbow, giving it a comforting squeeze before he released her and then the two of them turned away to make their way out to the lot.
Sakura entered the clubhouse and looked around, noticing some familiar faces and more unrecognizable ones. Although she had already been in there a few times, the clubhouse was still fairly new to her. It was an eclectic sort of place, with everything from baseball bats, stuffed and mounted deer heads, alcohol brand and old Harley memorabilia, and Akatsuki decorations. The Reaper was everywhere within the place, at the bar, by the pool table or by the couches. The bar always was fully stocked from what she could see and there was a lot of framed photos of club members, decorative Reapers, crows, quotes about anarchy, rebellion, and Harleys. The thing that really struck Sakura was the wall of framed photos of each member. Above all the photos was a sign that said, "Akatsuki MC Original". Below were the framed photos of each picture, their mug shots from their various arrests. Sasuke's picture was towards the bottom row, a familiar photo to Sakura since she first saw it when her ex gave her his wrap sheet.
People were milling around, some at the bar having drinks, some at the pool table and others just hanging out. There was a heavenly smell coming from the kitchen and Sakura could see the girls were in the kitchen through the big window in the wall that separated the kitchen from the main room. The kitchen doors were closed and the blinds on the door were drawn. Sakura went straight to the door and was forced to knock when she realized the door was locked. The blinds shifted and Sakura recognized Hinata's makeup clad pale eye peaking through the crack created. The blinds quickly were snapped back in place and she heard the lock turning.
Hinata gave her a relieved smile as she welcomed her into the kitchen quickly with a hug. "Thank god you are here," she whispered.
"Shut that damn door," Tsunade snapped from by the stove, waving a spatula in the air.
Hinata jumped to listen to the older woman, releasing her friend from the hug to quickly close the door behind her. Sakura took it in stride, however, and only smiled at her maybe future mother-in-law. "Hard day?" she asked innocently and Tsunade glared at her.
Sakura quickly looked around the room while she set Aiden the carrier down at the table within the small kitchen. While small, Tsunade had pestered her husband and the boys about updating it so it was very modern. Tsunade was at the stove that was built into the countertop, her stance tense and with a death grip on the spatula. Ino was at the counter beside her, putting together what looked like some sort of casserole while Tenten was at the oven, peaking in at whatever was inside. Hinata was moving back over to a small space at the counter where she looked to be putting together six different pies with different fillings. Sayuki looked more than a little uncomfortable stirring the contents of a crockpot, glancing back at her uneasily.
"These men are driving me nuts. Every time I try to make something I have a different man in here trying to steal it. Like I don't have enough on my plate today with making all this damn food and organizing this dinner for three full charters of bottomless pits, they made it their mission to fuck with me!"
Sakura giggled to herself quietly, having known that Tsunade was going to be like this today. She had grown to know the woman well enough to anticipate her mood when she had something big going on. From her own knowledge and Sasuke's pervious warnings, she knew Tsunade was going to be in a mood today, stressed by the amount of work to be done, in a short time, and with some many people around in her space. Now it was a time for damage control because it seemed the other old ladies in the room were cowering.
She made her way over to the stove very nonchalantly but cautiously. She gently nudged the older woman who glared at her but Sakura tried not to be effected by it. "Why don't you go greet Aiden? He misses his grandma, been getting fussy without his daily dose of spoiling," she teased gently.
Tsunade stared at her suspiciously for a moment and Sakura very carefully reached for the spatula in her hand. "Go, I got this. Take a little break, cuddle with you grandson for a few minutes and then you can take over again and I promise you'll feel better. Nothing is ever as bad after his cute little smile," she assured.
Tsunade seemed to consider her for a moment before she nodded slowly. "Fine, but I'm going to be right there. Don't mess anything up," she barked before she roughly handed the cooking utensil over.
"I'll try not to," Sakura muttered as Tsunade made her way over to the table. Like magic, as soon as the boy was out of the carrier and in her arms she did start to feel better. She sat herself down at the table, cooing over her grandson for several minutes before she glanced up to check to see if the pinkette doctor had burning the kitchen down yet. She was pleasantly surprised at what she found.
Sakura seemed to have quickly taken stock of the other old ladies and their progress before she quickly stepped into the leadership role. The girl obviously knew her way around a kitchen, finishing off the food Tsunade had started fairly easily and then quickly moving on to start other things. Tsunade watched her worked, watched how the girl was able to multitask, get the other old ladies to help her with this and that, find a place for everything, and basically take control of the kitchen.
Silently Tsunade sat back and decided to take a longer break than she had intended. Sakura obviously had things under control and it gave Tsunade time to coddle her grandson some more. She was in fact feeling better now, having her grandson in her arms, but also because she was realizing there was hope in the future. This girl was still new and almost grossly unaccustomed to their ways, but she proving more and more to have potential. At first glance, Tsunade was sure this girl was hopeless. But now she was seeing that with a little more grooming, she could actually take over one day and be the queen Sasuke would need her to be.
Yes, she was feeling better indeed.
Chapter was supposed to have the whole dinner in it but that didn't happen. Sorry.
Anyways, tell me what you think and hopefully you'll hear from me soon.


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Clinginess doesn’t make relationship good; it makes him or her weakened and you may fragile. It generates her or him dangerous. Matchmaking merely getting stronger when you value both, give area, rather than often occupy your partner’s confidentiality.
Examples of clingy choices
Clinginess shall be handled on time before it ruins the dating. So now you understand clinginess definition and you can definition but exactly how do a great Clingy person perform into the a romance. We have offered some situations above but let us talk about a few examples out-of clingy choices in more detail:
It’s one of the most visible examples of clingy behavior. When you find yourself during the a romance that have an effective Clingy individual, you will notice the guy/she won’t give you alone. For many who and your partner commonly with her, your own cellular phone have a tendency to strike due to their messages and you will phone calls. Unless you answer its text message, possibly they will certainly arrived at view you or will struggle with your. For many who call-back on time, you will know that it had been getting little. This can happens frequently.
He/ She’ll get envious of your family relations/ co-employee
Sometimes clinginess and you will jealousy go hand in hand. You will find that him or her will not enjoy it whenever you are talking-to other people, sometimes in the office or on an event. They’re going to keep in mind you and need to know on everything was talking about with that pal or co-personnel.
He/ She’ll wish to https://datingranking.net/cs/green-singles-recenze be doing work in everything.
There clearly was a period when we need to getting alone. You’ll be able to spend some time along with your loved ones or siblings, or you have an invaluable really works situation for which you are unable to capture them, and they will initiate behaving desperately. They wish to feel to you if they is actually acceptance otherwise not.
He/ This lady has ditched people they know.
Those who are in a love tend to spend more date the help of its companion, plus they can also be completely ignore people they know. Here’s what i name hopeless relationships, in which not any other person is essential except one. You will notice that your ex lover will not spend time with their family unit members any further and matches with you if you do so.
You must assures your own like.
It is perhaps one of the most popular examples of clingy choices. You should feel expressive; you will want to inform your companion how much you like him or her occasionally. But when you’re clingy, however want you to state this time after time. No matter how a couple of times you state you adore her or him, it generally does not see them. Needed much more from you.
When you’re brand new clingy one out of your matchmaking, you’ll also reveal an identical types of decisions. But never worry, I could inform you the best way to deal with they. Before you to, let us have a look at the causes of which clinginess.
The causes of clinginess in a love?
Considering psychological professional Rick Nauert, romantic relationships are very important not simply on emotional and you can emotional betterment off men however for the latest really-are out of physical health. Within the proper matchmaking, each other couples have their own welfare, as well as follow him or her. He has their particular label outside of the matchmaking. However when there can be clinginess, it will not just take a lot of time to make for the poisoning; it also renders an enjoying companion hightail it away from you. Exactly what explanations clinginess in a relationship? Let us look.
Early in the day skills and youthfulness products
Often a man will get clingy because of crappy early in the day feel. Folks who are overlooked within the youthfulness or handled defectively features trust things then they end up being eager after they become adults. Typical people see that their moms and dads return over time and you can become better, however, anyone who has come overlooked and you will mistreated have big abandonment situations when they grow up.

domain: psychology


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Savages began their nine-show NYC residency at Baby’s All Right with Swans’ Norman Westberg (pics, setlist)
photos by Amanda Hatfield; words by Bill Pearis
Savages @ Baby's All Right 1/12/2014
"We're not quite finished writing our new album," admitted Savages singer Jehnny Beth. "So we thought we'd come here and try some things. We'll work it out together." Such is the premise for Savages' nine-show NYC residency, which began last night (1/12) at Baby's All Right. Appropriately, the first words sung by Jehnny Beth were a repeated mantra of "I need something new," as the rest of the band slowly built up the kind of dark atmospherics Savages are known for. We got five new songs right out of the gate, none of which strayed too far from the post-punk sounds of their debut. "No" was the best of the bunch, offering the biggest and most memorable hooks (an area, I'd argue, that is Savages' one weak link).
Despite what Jehnny Beth said to us, the new material seemed fully formed -- only on "Adore" (which she dedicated to the victims of the Charlie Hebdo tragedy in Paris) did she pull out a lyric notebook to crib from. The band were tight as usual, and I'd really missed watching powerhouse rhythm section (bassist Ayse Hassan and drummer Fay Milton) lay down the groove. (I hadn't seen them since Bowery in March 2013.) At this point we got a couple songs from Silence Yourself before a couple more new ones -- "This Is What You Get" was the other clear winner of the night -- before wrapping things up with the big bang of "Husbands" and "Fuckers."
It was boiling in Baby's -- my coat was off the second song and my sweater not long after -- and the fog machine was thick. "There goes the drummer," Jehnny joked after one blast obscured the kit completely. It was good to see them again (when the smoke cleared), and it will be interesting to see how these shows vary from venue to venue as we go along. They play Wednesday (1/14) at Mercury Lounge and then Saturday (1/17) at Saint Vitus, both of which are sold out (as is the entire residency). If you're going to one (or more of these), they're selling a cool limited-edition poster, designed by Matthew Vidalis, for the series at the merch booth. Look out for that.
Opening the night was Swans' guitarist Norman Westberg who performed a solo set. I missed that but pictures of his set, along with more from Savages and their setlist, are below...
SETLIST: Savages @ Baby's All Right 1/12/2014
When in Love
This is What You Get

domain: artistic


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In 2020, with the world locked at home, consumer sales of office chairs in the U.S. jumped by 75%. Podcasts, articles, how-tos and buying guides sprouted up seemingly overnight in response to the troubling reality that many white-collar workers now faced: The chairs they had at home were terrible.
Those of us with desk jobs — which in Japan is an estimated 28% of the workforce — share a common and persistent problem called sitting. Even in the years before the pandemic, all sorts of new contraptions had come up on the market — not just standing but walking and cycling desks, not just ergonomic chairs but ones you could kneel on, even ones that bounce.
But the pandemic eliminated the office commute and forced many people to reckon with the fact that they now spent roughly a third of the day stationary in chairs. It became a familiar feeling, getting to the end of the workday only to realize your total steps had been 50 — to the kitchen and back, to the bathroom and back — and intentionally spreading out errands, however inefficiently, just to have somewhere to go and stretch your legs. Prolonged sitting is linked with an increased risk of insomnia, depression, obesity, cardiovascular problems and death. It has been years since people have been calling sitting the new smoking — but three years into the pandemic, we now collectively have smoker’s cough. Sitter’s bum, if you will.

domain: news


We’ll try to replicate this configuration to see if it takes that long to post on our side. We will let you know our findings once tested.
i try another NUC, with BIOS defaults, try chnage HDD to ADATA: ASP600S3-32GM-C but the problem is same.
From our side I have been testing the same model with different SSD and it is working just fine so I think there is a problem with the hardware you are using.
My recommendation is to do a back up and does a low level format in the drive in case there is a problem with the SSD. Besides this, make sure there are no USB devices connected rather than the mouse and keyboard.


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Disclaimer: Please note this article is not financial advice. The purpose of our blog is purely educational, so please consult a professional accountant or financial advisor before making any financial decision.
No matter how small your ecommerce business is, you still have a tax liability. If you live in Canada and sell a few items online, you must still pay taxes on your earnings. There are several different types of taxes that you may be responsible for, but let’s explore the essentials of filing income tax in Canada.
This blog post will break everything down about filing your income taxes. Keep reading to learn more!
Running an ecommerce business in Canada involves understanding and navigating the Canadian income tax system. It’s also important to note that the same tax laws apply whether you’re operating a brick-and-mortar or web-based business.
So, as a business owner, you are responsible for calculating and reporting your income and paying the required taxes to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA).
Here are some of the basics of filing income taxes in Canada:
How you’re taxed and the forms you must fill out during tax time depends on your business structure. Since you’re managing an ecommerce business, it falls into one of these business structures:
Sole proprietorships and partnerships report their income on a personal tax return, while corporations file a separate corporate tax return. In some cases, a Canadian-controlled private corporation (CCPC) may be eligible for a reduced tax rate of 9%.
When calculating income tax, consider both federal and provincial or territorial rates. The federal income tax brackets for individuals range from 15% to 33%, whereas corporations pay a net tax rate of 15% with a basic rate of 38%, reduced to 28% after federal tax abatement.
Rates of territorial or provincial income taxes vary depending on your location. So, aside from your business structure, these rates also apply when paying your taxes.
For ecommerce businesses, it’s essential to charge sales tax on sales made to Canadian customers. If your annual revenue exceeds $30,000, you must charge the appropriate sales tax based on the destination province.
This involves registering for the Goods and Services Tax (GST) or Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) and remitting the collected taxes to the CRA.
In Canada, you can reduce your taxable income through tax deductions and credits. For small business owners like you, tax deductions can bump you into a lower tax bracket, reducing the amount of taxes you pay for the year.
All expenses incurred while operating your business are categorized as business expenses, and you can claim them as deductions on your tax return. For example, if you’re renting a warehouse to store your inventory, the utility costs you incur are a business deduction.
When filing your income tax, you may calculate the taxes owed or any refunds you may be entitled to. If you cannot make the full payment immediately, you can arrange a payment plan with the CRA.
On the other hand, if you overpaid your taxes, you may be eligible for a tax refund. Tax refunds could result from the CRA collecting more income tax than what was rightfully due, and they will refund the overpayment.
Businesses have to pay taxes like individual taxpayers based on their profit. Here are the types of taxes that may apply to your business:
Income tax is imposed on the earnings of individuals or companies involved in business activities. It is calculated based on your taxable income.
Some common types of income are employment income, pension income, investment income, and rental income. Even if you’re self-employed on your full-time business, you still have to pay for personal income tax.
If you’re selling on Amazon and other ecommerce platforms or creating paid content on YouTube, you’ll receive an income statement from these channels. You can use it for reporting within your tax return.
The sales tax in Canada varies depending on the province or territory in which you reside. There are three types of sales taxes: the GST, HST, and Provincial Sales Tax (PST).
The GST is a federal tax, while the PST and HST are levied by the provinces. If you’re registered for GST, you must charge GST on all taxable goods and services made in Canada. The tax rates also differ across provinces.
As a small business owner, income and sales taxes are most likely to be the taxes you’ll pay and charge. Here are the differences between the two:
Once your ecommerce business is registered as a corporation, you must pay corporate income tax on the taxable income it generates. The federal corporate income tax rate stands at 15%. Corporate income tax rates vary depending on the area of jurisdiction and the size of your business.
If you’re an ecommerce business owner with employees, you must withhold payroll taxes from your employees’ paychecks and remit them to the CRA. Payroll taxes include income tax, Canada Pension Plan (CPP) contributions, and Employment Insurance (EI) premiums.
The income tax deductions depend on the employee’s income and personal exemptions declared on their TD1 form.
Filing your taxes can be painless if you take the time to stay organized throughout the year and know what to expect come tax season. Learn how to take the edge off when these tax deadlines are fast approaching.
Proper bookkeeping is essential to ensure a complete and accurate tax return. Keep track of all your income slips and receipts for deductible expenses throughout the year. This will help you stay organized and avoid costly tax filing mistakes.
The easiest way to file is to do it electronically. The income tax e-filing deadline will be less of a headache if you can pay using accounting or tax software. This typically results in a refund being issued in less than a month. Direct deposit is simple and effective. Plus, it’s more secure than sending a paper check.
What if you realized you added too many zeroes to your income tax return after filing it? Don’t panic - this is surprisingly common among many new and veteran business owners.
First, gather relevant information or documents to help you correct the mistake. Then, submit a completed Form T1 Adjustment Request and other supporting documents.
If the error resulted in paying more taxes, you must be prepared to pay the interest or penalties needed. On the other hand, if the mistake decreases your tax bill, the CRA can refund the amount.
If you are unsure about certain aspects of your tax return or require expert advice, it’s best to consult a tax professional. An accountant can help you with complex tax situations, navigate Canada’s unique tax regulations, and assist in finding deductions to maximize your return. Working with a professional will help save you time, stress, and even money in the long run.
That’s it for our tax tips for small online businesses! Tax filing might be overwhelming, especially if you’re still growing your ecommerce business. We also hope we have helped you better understand the Canadian income tax system more.
If you prefer someone else to handle your taxes, Unloop is here to help. With Unloop, you can easily and quickly file your taxes anytime, anywhere. There’s also no need to worry about making mistakes—our expert team will review your return and ensure everything is correct before filing.
We’ll also help you maximize your refund to get the most out of your hard-earning profits. So why wait?
Book a call with us, and we’ll help you in filing your tax returns!
Unloop is the first and only accounting firm exclusively servicing ecommerce and inventory businesses in the US and Canada. With the power of people and technology, our team dives deep into COGS and inventory accounting. You are paired with a dedicated bookkeeping team that prepares accurate financial statements, financial forecasts, and can also pay bills or run payroll for you. Come tax time, everything is organized and ready to go, so you don't need to worry. Book a call with an ecommerce accountant today to learn more.

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Yesterday, Lord Dunlop – the author of the Dunlop Review into the British state and devolution – appeared before a joint meeting of four Select Committees.
It was the first time the Public Accounts and Constitutional Affairs Committee (PACAC), Scottish, Welsh, and Northern Irish committees had sat together, which was fitting given his remit. But the resultant Q&A only highlighted the ongoing tensions in the government’s approach to the Union.
Dunlop is an advocate of what he calls a ‘cooperative Union’. His emphasis is on getting the various parts of the governments of the UK to work together, and building on the past two decades of devolution. He summarised his mission as:
‘How do we get devolution and the Union running through the bloodstream of the Civil Service?’
But what if ‘devolution’ and ‘the Union’ are in tension? What if the reform the British state really needs is not yet more modification to accommodate the devolved executives, but restored capacity to make a visible and positive impact in the home nations directly?
That was the logic underpinning the UK Internal Market Act 2020 (Ukima), and there are plenty of Conservatives (whom we might call ‘Ukima Unionists’) who want to use that controversial legislation as a beachhead for a more ‘muscular Unionism’.
It didn’t take long for the difficulties in Dunlop’s cooperative vision to start emerging. Pete Wishart, the Nationalist chair of the Scottish Affairs Committee, branded the array of ministerial positions Dunlop wishes to create to drive cultural change in government and the Civil Service an ‘invasion force’.
Dunlop himself also had to concede that, whilst he welcomed the Prime Minister’s decision to invite the various first ministers to a ‘Covid recovery summit’, he couldn’t compel them to attend.
This has always been one of the biggest hurdles of his approach: at least one of the devolved administrations is not a good-faith actor that wants the UK to work. Dunlop later conceded that the existing Joint Ministerial Committee is essentially ‘a forum for raising grievances,’ but didn’t seem to offer any compelling reason to expect the new arrangements to work differently given that grievance-mongering is very much in the SNP’s interest.
(Gordon Brown was similarly bereft of a response to this point when I challenged him on it at a conference last spring, just as the SNP were stonewalling COP26. He simply said, ‘we have got to make this work,’ which is no answer at all.)
Robin Millar, one of the leaders of the new Conservative Union Research Unit (CURU), drew attention to another difficulty when he pointed out that the various governments can’t even agree on the basic principles of how the British constitution works.
Both the Scottish Government, which professes the alleged sovereignty of the Scottish people, and the Welsh Government, where Labour were just elected on a manifesto which contained an entirely fictitious description of the UK as ‘a voluntary association of four nations with sovereignty shared among its four democratic legislatures,’ dispute the sovereignty of Parliament.
Reorganising the country so that a ‘council of ministers’ could actually resolve disputes, Millar pointed out, was a direct challenge to the authority of the Prime Minister as the head of the sovereign government.
Dunlop largely evaded this point, stressing that his report was focused on practicalities and in any event the devolved executives derive their powers from Westminster legislation. But constitutional practicalities are necessarily downstream of constitutional theory, and Conservative MPs are right to be worried about approving arrangements which might later be read as endorsing a radical reappraisal of where sovereignty resides.
But the tension was most obvious when it came to money. Ukima’s most controversial – and worthwhile – provisions were those that gave British ministers the ability to spend money directly in the devolved territories on areas of policy not reserved to Westminster.
Dunlop is on the record as saying that this could ‘destabilise devolution’, and his evidence to the committee was in that vein. Whilst he didn’t set his face entirely against such investment, he argued that the government should be ‘supporting and encouraging the devolved institutions, but not seeking to usurp them or elbow them aside.’ The prospect of money, he suggested, should be used to induce the devolved executives to take part in his new structures.
Or in other words, ministers should spend Ukima funds bribing the devocrats to the table, rather than acting directly to build a relationship between the British government and British voters in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
This was further emphasised when Dunlop responded to Ian Paisley Jr, of the Democratic Unionists, who pointed out that the money disbursed by the Northern Ireland Assembly was ‘British money’ and asked what could be done to make sure voters recognised this. Dunlop’s view is that branding should follow ‘democratic accountability’. In other words, when the British state gives cash to the devolved institutions, and they spend it, the devolved institutions should get the credit.
Following this logic, UK government contributions would only be recognised when it has directly contributed additional cash. But in line with his earlier answers, that would rarely happen either.
The evident tension between the witness and some of the questioners perhaps explains why the Dunlop Review was so slow to be published. Dunlop certainly has an audience at the top of the government: Michael Gove in particular is keen to talk up an inter-governmental agenda and was reportedly opposed to Ukima.
But that legislation did pass, and some ministers are already talking quietly about taking it further with a ‘Ukima II’. Given that, it isn’t difficult to see why an approach which takes devolutionary orthodoxy as its starting point might have received a less than wholehearted welcome in Downing Street.


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Why did the divorce happen - Imran Khan Reham Khan - ARY News Headlines 30 Octo
Qazi Kamran Ahmed
Reham Khan’s Make Up Artist Reveals – Why Reham khan And Imran Khan Divorced Happened
Pak Videos Hub
Imran Divorced Reham on Bushra BB's orders? How much party is concenred due to her influence on Imran Khan ?

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Like some constant travelers may have noticed, as of now many Chinese scenic areas have been equipped with self-service tour guiding gadget, with this babe, you’ll almost never get lost even it’s your first time being somewhere and could get the most out of every trip, thanks to its navigation and vocal guiding features.
The convenience comes at a price, varied from place to place. Normally you need to pay between 60 and 100 RMB (US$ 9.5 and 15) to rent a gadget like this.
Launched in this May, YHiker, the Jiangsu Prov.-based startup which positioned its app as everyone’s tourist guide in the pocket is trying to help tourists get rid of that money. With its Android app Onebyone (玩伴儿, translates to TravelMate) installed, you can hands-down have your very own private guide.
Wanbaner’s key features include:
Accurate GPS Positioning: Locating where you’re through smartphone’s GPS device.
Vocal Guiding: Explaining in great details the scene/historic sites in front you via pre-recorded human voice.
Navigating: Walking you through the scenic area, suggesting best routes.
The app to date supports more than 241 tour attractions in 24 Chinese cities. Some top attractions like the Palace Museum, Beihai Park in Beijing, Gulangwu in Xia Men city of Fujian Prov. and other places in Harbin of Heilongjiang Prov. and Luoyang city of Henan Prov. As of the now the app has more than 5 million users.
You can download it here and try it. Next time when you’re visiting some place for the first time, it might be a great help.

domain: travel


Triggers on DAO type pistols have long trigger pull throughs. Nature of the beast. Taking up the slack in these type triggers takes getting used to. Much different than firing traditional DA/SA pistols or revolvers altogether.
This might explain things a bit better.
There is a good case for the .380 ACP as a defense cartridge.
Better than the .32 ACP and smaller cartridges, the .380 ACP has the balance of light recoil and is effective with the right loads as a defense cartridge going for it.
There are those who do not want to carry a revolver and want the cartridge capacity of the pistol. Yet want light recoil and decent protection. Short recovery time between shots over the more powerful cartridges is also a bonus.
There's the story about the jeweler who has 11 Rossi revolvers around his business for protection and used them for that. Now put that same equivalent in a pistol format and that's what you have with the .380 Taurus pistols. Just in one package.
Taurus, Bersas, CZ 83s,Beretta 84,85,86 series, Walther, and the others all have this.
As much that is made over deep penetration and caliber size , these are not the only requirements for defense. The .380 ACP has done that on many occasions as well with the other ballisitic factors included.
Real world records show the .380 ACP does it's job well.
One can use anecdotal evidence or other means to show failure to stop. This can be done for even the larger bores.Police and tacatical journals, as well as other periodicals document these stories with great regularity.
Newer generations of JHPs in all the calibers have been designed to penetrate deeper,stay in one piece, retain bllet weight, and expand or deform at very low velocities. 670 fps and a little higher. That slow enough for you folks?
Actually the .32 ACP bullets has benefited from the same technology as the other calibers, but I digress.
There are those who have trouble shooting the more powerful cartridges do to physical reasons or those who do not like the muzzle blast or more recoil of the larger or more powerful rounds.
Don't have to be old to be in this category. Can be any age. Can affect anyone at any age.
For some,the .22lrf is all they can handle or have the ability to handle. Looking down on these folks is ethically and morally wrong.
So what ever cartridge one is limited to or can handle, my hat is off to them.
Bigger and more powerfull is nice. No argument there.
Then there is a niche where that is not possible,desireable, needed, or wanted. One has to go with what they know and can handle.
Happy trails folks.We're all in this together. 8)


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There are 14 upcoming IPOs this week, which marks the busiest five-day stretch for IPOs since July 28, 2014. They're expected to raise a combined $1.9 billion.
The most anticipated offering this week is Bojangles' Inc. (Nasdaq: BOJA). It will be the second restaurant IPO this year behind Shake Shack Inc. (NYSE: SHAK). SHAK stock roared out of the gate on its Jan. 29 debut and has gained 237% since then.
The Bojangles' IPO could continue the hot streak of first-day pops for restaurant deals. Shake Shack soared 118.6% in its first trading session. Burger chain The Habit Restaurants Inc. (Nasdaq: HABT) doubled its share price on its first day last fall. Shares of El Pollo Loco Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: LOCO) leaped 60.2% on its opening day in October.
Here's a look at the Bojangles' IPO and the rest of the upcoming IPOs this week…
The 14 Upcoming IPOs This Week
Bojangles' Inc. (Nasdaq: BOJA) is a restaurant chain known for its Southern-style chicken and biscuits. The company has 622 stores across 10 states and Washington, D.C. Bojangles' deep-fried offerings don't offer much in the way of health claims. According to Renaissance Capital, a manager of IPO-focused ETFs, Bojangles' instead emphasizes its made-to-order meals and cult following. Investors are drawn to the company's growing sales, with $430 million last year alone. The chain plans to raise $100 million by selling 6.25 million shares at a $15 to $17 price range. It's valued at $629 million and will hit the market on Friday, May 8.
Tallgrass Energy GP LP (NYSE: TEGP) is a natural gas company that owns interests in Tallgrass Energy Partners LP (NYSE: TEP). Tallgrass provides gas transportation and storage services for customers in the Rocky Mountain and Midwest regions. It's on track to becoming the second-largest IPO this year behind fellow energy MLP Columbia Pipeline Partners LP (NYSE: CPPL). Tallgrass is set for a $900 million deal by offering 35.31 million shares at a price range of $24 to $27. The company commands a $4 billion valuation and will begin trading on Thursday, May 7.
Three LPs have raised more than $800 million in the last year. Shell Midstream Partners LP (NYSE: SHLX) raised $920 million last October and is up 79% since the IPO. Antero Midstream Partners (NYSE: AM) priced above its range at $25 and raised $1 billion on Nov. 5. Most MLPs offer midstream assets like pipelines and storage, meaning they lack direct exposure to low oil and gas prices.


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Their true agenda
The thrill of having a new, charming president should be gone now as he and the House and Senate have shown their true agenda: socialism.
The people of Hampton Roads are patriots and carry the legacy of our Founding Fathers, who built this great nation to escape a tyrannical king. We do not want big government taking over and increasing taxes and debt to continue to fail at taking care of the business we can and should be taking care of. This and the cap-and-trade legislation are just more nails in our coffin as they try to crush this great country.
Teresa Altemus should know that it's not political for some of us. We signed the petition for her removal from the Gloucester County Board of Supervisors because we believed that her behavior and that of her friends was unprofessional.
I have served as a trustee in a small community, and I know that the perception of underhandedness and improper behavior leads to suspicion by the public and reduces the effectiveness of government.
However she may justify every action of her group, I am not persuaded that any of them have the good judgment and fairness that should be the hallmarks of a position of responsibility in government, local or otherwise.
In her June 26 letter, "Choose acceptance," Barbara Barham opines that we should all be more tolerant and accepting of others with a different point of view or belief than our own.
I understand her sentiment and agree we should all take a deep breath and try to understand the other side's position. However, there are things that I find that are totally unacceptable and intolerable.
I find it totally unacceptable and intolerable for a 50-year-old man to rape an 11-year-old child. Stoning a woman to death for committing adultery? Unacceptable. Strapping explosives to yourself and detonating it in a crowded market or bus stop? Unacceptable. Masterminding the extermination of 6 million Jews? Unacceptable. I could go on and on, but you get my point.
There is evil in this world, and it needs to be stopped every time we encounter it. I am a proud member of this gun-happy society, and I'm happy I've got mine. If evil comes to my doorstep, we will have a "discussion," so to speak. I hope Barham sees my point, and I hope she is tolerant of it.
One other point, our Congress passing legislation that they didn't even have time to read? Unacceptable. I don't need my gun for that.

domain: politics