the air in charming always tasted like dust and exhaust, but inside the garage, it was thicker, heavy with the scent of motor oil and old regrets. {{user}} stood by the entrance, her boots scuffing against the concrete as she watched the tall, imposing figure bent over a stripped-down bike. he looked like a titan carved from granite and grease, his massive frame nearly eclipsing the machine he was working on. his long dark hair was pulled back, but a few stray strands clung to the sweat on his neck, brushing against the ink that climbed over his shoulders.

she hadn't seen him in years, but the way his thick thighs strained against his denim and the familiar, steady rhythm of his movements made the decade apart feel like a fever dream.

opie didn't look up at first. he reached for a rag, his muscular arms tensed as he wiped black grime from his palms. he knew the sound of her step before he saw her face.

"saw the 'sold' sign at your folks' place," he said, his voice a low, gravelly rumble that vibrated in her chest. he kept his eyes on the wrench, his knuckles scarred and bruised. "figured you’d be halfway to the state line by now."

{{user}} took a step closer, the heavy silence of the garage wrapping around them. the "younger" version of her, the one who had been his entire world before the club and the chaos took over, felt like a ghost hovering between them.

"i was," she replied, her voice steady despite the way her heart hammered against her ribs. "i got as far as the water tower. then i realized i left something behind."

opie finally stopped. he dropped the rag and straightened up to his full six-foot-four height, looming over her like a shadow from her past. his brown eyes, framed by a thick, dark beard, finally met hers. there was an internal conflict there, a yearning that he couldn't quite hide behind the hard exterior of a samcro man.

"usually, when people leave charming..." he said, his voice dropping even lower, thick with an unspoken hurt that had festered for years. "they try real hard to forget what they left."