Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

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Fandom: Sons of Anarchy

Pairing: Jax and Tara

Setting: Pre- Season 1/Episode 1 'Pilot'

Summary: Series of One-shots (missing scene from the show), not in chronological order!

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St. Thomas' emergency room was fairly busy tonight, while Dr. Tara Knowles was covering a shift for one of her new co-workers, but she didn't mind, because the busier they were, the quicker the time seemed to fly by. At least it seemed that way to her.

Throughout the day she's seen patients ranging from all ages, races, and genders, but now that it was much later in the evening, they were more of the 'drunk twenty-something got in a bar fight' variety.

But then again, it really shouldn't surprise her all that much, considering it is a Saturday evening here in beautiful Charming, and St. Thomas is the closest ER that's open on weekends, near Lodi and even Rio Vista.

Jax is married, and he's going to be a father.- Even with all the hustle and bustle of the ER, this thought still manages to creep its way into the forefront of Tara's mind several times tonight, no matter how many times she tries to ignore and forget it.

It's a thought that hurts her heart, and she knows it will keep on hurting until she too, manages to move on ... someway, somehow, like Jax obviously has. The only upside about the way Jax and his family affairs seem to occupy her thoughts these days is the fact that she hasn't once thought about Josh Kohn or what he'd put her through back in Chicago. She's somehow replaced one heartache with another. It's sad, but true!

Tara wills her thoughts back to the here and now, standing behind the main desk, near the ER entrance, and grabs the clipboard for the next patient in line.

So now, with clipboard in hand, Tara begins to step over to room number three, but stops short in surprise when she looks down and recognizes the name on the intake form. What are the odds?

She clears her throat, knocks, and waits the appropriate amount of seconds before she opens the door and finally steps inside.

She has been smiling brightly upon entering, yet when her eyes take in the state her impromptu date from just last night is in, the smile quickly vanishes and is replaced by a horrified look of concern. "Oh my God, what happened to you?"

Tara had met him just last night, at a newer, small bar in Lodi, where she'd gone out with a few of her new co-workers in yet another attempt to get her mind off of Jax and his expectant bride.

And it had actually worked, at least for a little while. He had been just the right mixture of sweet and cocky, and good-looking with a chiseled jawline too. Another plus was that he had only moved to the area about a year ago, so he was still kind of new-ish around here, and she'd liked the thought that he wasn't aware of and brought up her history with Jax the way most people did.

They had talked for hours over some burgers, fries, and a couple of cold beers, only to eventually part ways with phone numbers exchanged and the promise of a text or a call.

But now he was here in front of her, bleeding from his nose, and from the looks of it, it is undoubtedly broken. His lip is busted up too, and has swollen up to almost twice its normal size. Then there is the distinguished darkening beginning to appear around one of his eyes, which will surely be a full-blown shiner in just a little while. But what stands out the most to her, is the split open wound on his cheek, which she immediately knows will be requiring stitches.

But all of his injuries don't seem to diminish his charm or his good looks for that matter in the least. And not for the first time Tara realizes that his cocky expression feels strangely reminiscent of a younger Brad Pitt in 'Fight Club', never mind the fact that his name is actually Tyler. His mesmerizing dark blue eyes look up to meet hers and he tries to crack the faintest of smirks, and winks at her flirtatiously when he greets her. "Hey, doc."

Tara would be lying if she said the attention he was giving her wasn't soothing some of her bleeding heart, but sadly, the feeling is fleeting at best, and she quickly slips back into doctor mode once again.

"Hi." She smiles stepping closer and hurries to slip on a pair of purple latex gloves. Then carefully angles his face to get a better look at the cut, only to confirm the assessment she has already made in her head. "This is gonna need stitches." She shakes her head at him and pulls back enough to really meet his eyes once more, "What the hell happened to you?"

But she's not even waiting for his answer and already begins to methodically clean up his wounds as if on autopilot, wondering momentarily what is keeping the nurse, who is supposed to assist her with this.

"Apparently you did, gorgeous." He answers her with a little sigh, even cracks another smile, as best as he can under the circumstances, when he meets her eyes.

Tara looks utterly confused for a second at what he's said, but since she has noticed the smell of alcohol - albeit faint - on his breath, she chalks it up to that and wonders just how much he's had to drink tonight. And then momentarily wonders if she should give him a banana bag I.V. to sober him up more quickly, before she even begins to stitch up his handsome face. "You're drunk, aren't you?"

"I had barely two beers. So no, not drunk at all." He begins to shake his head, but then flinches for the first time since she's entered the room. "Maybe I'd be in less pain though if I was." He wonders out loud.

"Well, then .. how did this happen, Tyler? What is going on?" She tries to inquire yet again. "You're not making much sense."

"What's going on is that you didn't tell me that you are Jax Teller's girl," Tyler answers without missing a beat this time, and if he is mad at what he is accusing her off, it really doesn't show on his face nor in the look he's giving her. He's curious, intrigued even.

'You are Jax Teller's girl.'- His words cut through her like a scalpel.

Once upon a time the words had been true, and she used to love it when people had called her that. -Jax's girl. Jax's old lady.

But these days Jax's wife obviously claims that very title, and hearing them only serves as a painful reminder of the love she no longer had or ever would have again, and hurting her that much more.

With the most serious face she can muster, Tara draws back, far enough to get a good look at him to see if he's being serious, meeting his eyes in disbelief and confusion. But then she's just as quick to refute, and shakes her head. "I'm not. I haven't been his girl for the last ten years. Why would you even think that?" But the moment she asks that question, something suddenly dawns on her, and she's shocked when she puts two and two together. "Wait ... Jesus, did Jax do this?"

"Bingo," Tyler answers way too cheery for a man in his current condition.

Tara shakes her head, her heartbeat speeding up as she's trying to get her thoughts and feelings about this in order, not entirely sure what to say or how to react.

"He shouldn't have done that." She finally huffs out after much longer than seems normal, embarrassment staining her cheeks when she adds. "I'm sorry."

On one hand, she is feeling ashamed that this has happened to him, but on the other hand she is feeling even more ashamed for the butterflies she can suddenly feel in her stomach, at the mere thought of Jackson fighting over her like he did when they were kids.

Somewhere deep down Tara knew that word of her hanging out with Tyler would eventually make its way back to Jax, but she didn't expect for him to find out this quickly, nor had it ever even occurred to her that he'd react like this.

She really doesn't want to like his reaction, it should feel wrong for so many reasons, but the truth is it elates her, even if she can't allow that elation to show openly on her face right now, because that would not only be unprofessional, but also just plain wrong too.

And yet she instantly thinks back on the last time they spoke after her father had died. Jax had been there for her in her time of need, and they'd both declared each other 'friends' after.

That was then, and now -despite her poker face- she can't help the small voice that speaks up inside her head, wondering if maybe Jax does still care more about her than she had thought? After all, friends don't go around beating each other's dates to a pulp.

"Don't be. Boys will be boys!" Tyler replies in a very nonchalant manner, bringing her back to the here and now, then raises one eyebrow at her in a very animated way. "You know what's really interesting though?"

"What's that?" Tara asks, humoring him, all the while continuing to tend to his wounds, and willing her thoughts of Jax away again. He's married, with a baby on the way! Remember?

"When I first moved to Lodi, about a year ago, I hooked up with this hot blonde. And yes, I knew she was a little crazy, and a whole lot married. But what I didn't know at the time was that she was married to Jax Teller."

"Oh." Tara gapes, staring back at him, clearly stunt into silence as she's trying to process that information.

But before she can find her voice again, he quickly rambles on. "So he walks in on me naked with his wife, - actually in the throes - and what do you think he does?" He pauses for just a second looking at her, but Tara just shrugs, feigning disinterest now, while wishing she didn't have to hear this, so Tyler quickly carries on. "Jax sees us and he just turns around and walks away. But when he hears about me so much as just talking to you, I end up on the ground bleeding, needing stitches. Interesting, don't you think?" He eyes her curiously for a reaction on her part yet again, but she still refuses to give him one that would reveal her true feelings about the matter.

Tara tries to swallow the sudden dryness in her throat away, as she thinks over what Tyler has just shared with her, and it takes everything she has to not crack a smile at his words. But instead she furrows her eyebrows at him in mock concern. "I'm more interested in why you seem to be going after unavailable women?"

"Well,..." He starts, but instantly pauses, seemingly for effect. "My four-hundred dollar an hour shrink says, it's because, behind this rugged and confident exterior, I'm self-destructive and self-loathing to an almost pathological degree." He full-on smirks at her now, despite the pain that shoots through him as his torn skin stretches.

And this time Tara can't help herself, and actually returns the gesture with a smile of her own, while her mind is replaying his earlier words over and over again. 'You're Jax Teller's girl.'

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Author's Note: This was inspired by a scene from Grey's Anatomy, picture Tyler as a younger Mark Sloan if you will. Please leave a review or a comment with your thoughts. Thank you.