A/N: OH HAI THERE. Sorry if you're here from one of my other fandoms, but I seem to lack the ability to solely contribute to one fandom. Or even one fandom at a time. Anyways, this idea has been in my head for a while now and honestly wouldn't leave me the fuck alone. So I wrote it. It's probably shit, but that's why I need YOU to give me feedback. Besides, who doesn't love Dally? And Two-Bit and Steve? And Johnny? And Pony and Soda and Darry? And if you don't, why are you in this fandom? ANYWAYS...enjoy!
Tulsa, Oklahoma has got to be the most boring place on earth, Jenna thought as she wandered the streets.
Her parents had sent her here for "family bonding time." Ha. Yeah right. Jenna knew as well as anyone that she was sent here because she was just too much trouble.
Jenna was 16 years old and had strawberry blonde hair. She figures it could be worse. She could have bright red hair. Or worse, blonde. Jenna just knows that she would never ever be taken seriously in her hometown with blonde hair. Ditzes had blonde hair, not the tuff girls. She wished she had dark hair; brown or even black, like her best friend, Lizzie, had. But she could deal with strawberry blonde. She also had green eyes and pale skin that was marred by an ugly scar down the side of the face. But that's a story for another time. She wore cutoffs and over sized t-shirts and was altogether unfitting to be seen anywhere near the relatives that were coming to stay for the summer. So here she was in Oklahoma. With nothing.
She was supposed to be staying with her uncle for a while, but that didn't exactly work out. Jenna's mom told her to take the train and catch a taxi to 473 Salem Street, but that creepy guy had been hitting on her and he was really annoying. So, being the bitchy girl she had always been told she was, she cussed him out and told him exactly where he should keep that hand that had been on her leg. That's when the police came and accused Jenna of causing a "public disturbance."
What a joke.
Her uncle hadn't quite been thrilled when she showed up in handcuffs and a police car. The second the police were gone, her uncle started going on about how she "was never to live under his roof" and how she "was a disgrace to the family name" and all that fun stuff. She was sure that now when her name was mentioned around him he hissed and called her a devil child.
So now she was stuck in this extremely bland neighborhood with no way to contact anyone (not that she'd want to), no money, and no means of transportation. She didn't even have anything to do. And that's how Jenna ended up by herself on the streets of the east side of Tulsa, Oklahoma.
And this is the story of the best time of her life.
Shit, Jenna thinks as she wanders through the streets of Tulsa. She's managed to get herself stuck in a new city with no money, no family, no way home, and no place to stay. I'm fucked, she decides.
Suddenly, a real nice green car drives up. Huh. Jenna didn't think of this as a particularly rich neighborhood. This car is quite a sight to see on the worn Oklahoma streets.
"Hey, Scarface!" the guy in the passenger seat yells to her. Jenna fights the urge to run, and suppresses the feeling that something bad was gonna happen. He hadn't done anything yet, right? Technically, she DOES have a scar on the side of her face. She got it from some broad who was convinced that Jenna was sleeping with her boyfriend. Jenna didn't even know the guy, but apparently he had a thing for her and his girlfriend wasn't about to let that go. Ever since then, the scar was probably one of the first things people noticed about her. It wasn't anything new.
She smiles a tight-lipped smile as way of greeting, hoping they would drive off and take this goddamn foreboding feeling with them. But they aren't done yet. "You look like a grease. You a grease?"
Jenna frowns. "What's a grease?" she asks as politely as she can manage.
"So not a grease?" The guy's eyebrows go up in surprise. "Coulda sworn you were."
One of the boys in the backseat cocks his head to the side. "Take away the scar..." he murmurs. "Maybe she's just wild. She's got the pretty face if you ignore the scar. Put her in a dress...she could be one of us. Or maybe just a middle-class girl out of her territory…"
Jackass #1 narrows his eyes. "Could be right, Tom," he mutters "What're you doin on this side of town, little lady?"
Jenna opens her mouth to say that she really doesn't have a damn clue what side if town she's in, but before she can reply, the boys in the car glare at something behind her. Jenna turns to see two guys, maybe a couple years older than her, sauntering up.
"And how are you Socs on this fine afternoon?" a 6-foot-tall, stocky boy asks mock-politely to the boys in the car. The other one, the one with the elfish face and white-blonde hair, just glowers at them before opening his mouth.
"Get outta here," he snarls. "Before Bit and I make you."
Jenna frowns as they drive away. Those guys just gave her a bad vibe. Turning to the two boys, she asks, "You know those people?"
"Bit" frowns. "Well, no. But I know who they are," he offers.
Jenna's eyebrows furrow. "And who exactly were they? They looked like trouble…" she trails off. The white-blonde, blue eyed one tears his scowl from the direction the car drove off and addresses her.
"Socs," he answers, looking her up and down. He didn't really seem to be checking her out (and trust her, plenty off sleazes have gotten a thorough cussing-out from that). It seemed more like he was weighing her value, whether to keep talking to her or not.
Jenna, however, has more questions. "And they are?" she askes.
The older one jumps in again. "The dirtiest motherfuckers around!"
He casts a side-long glance at blondie, who smiles bitterly. "Which is ironic since they can afford them fancy dry-cleanin, ain't it, Two-Bit?
"HA!" Two-Bit laughs. "See now, that's smart. Where'd you get those bits of wisdom, Dally? Buck give 'em to ya?"
"Buck don't know his up from his down," Dally snaps. "As for those bits of wisdom, I'll let you borrow them sometime, Two-Bit." The boys are obviously friends, joking around comfortably with each other. But Jenna hasn't forgotten the way "Dally" had analyzed her earlier, and can't resist cutting into their easy banter.
"Because you seem like the kinda guy who has smarts to spare," she laughs. She regrets it almost immediately.
Dally turns to her, his eyes blazing and looking, frankly, quite terrifying. Jenna collects herself, though, just in time to hear him growl, "Shut your mouth, tramp!"
Fortunately, it's been a long day and Jenna's taken about enough shit as she can, so she smirks (although she's sure it looks tired and not completely confident). "You lookin for a fight?" she taunts. "Well c'mon then. I don't got all goddamn night."
Luckily for Jenna, Dally puts his hands up in surrender and leers at her. "There ain't no way I'm fighting a girl."
"And there's no way I'm lettin him. We got you outnumbered now!" Two-Bit laughs. Jenna has no choice but to smile. The kid's kinda funny.
"Shut up," she grins.
Dally frowns. "See, why does she smile for you?"
Jenna smiles smugly. "Well," she explains, "that one's funny."
Dally's eyebrows disappear behind the wispy tufts of blonde hair hanging over his forehead. "Wow," he says, almost incredulously. "A smartass AND a bitch."
"What can I say," she chuckles, "I'm a girl of many talents. Speaking of my…talents, are you boys gonna jump me? Cuz if you're not I have problems to attend to," she explains, glancing over her shoulder. Two-Bit cocks an eyebrow at her behavior but reassures her.
"We ain't gonna jump you. Trust me. Dally's a man of morals, see?"
"Oh yeah, sure," Jenna rolls her eyes. "I could tell by the way he ran those rich lookin boys off with a look and a yell. Hell, Dally's gotta be a smooth sonofagun, don't he?"
At this, Dally becomes visibly annoyed. He don't like bein' ignored. "I'm right here, y'know," he barks. She shuts her eyes tight, not likin' being yelled at, before turning to talk to him directly.
"Well, don't ya?" she questions.
Dally goes back to his usual sneer and shrugs. "Can't answer that," he tells her simply.
Jenna gives him an are-you-fucking-kidding-me look. "Why the hell not?" she demands.
"Hey, deny everything." Dally puts his hands back up in surrender and Jenna's startin to wonder if he's had some practice. "That's my strategy with the police," he smirks and Jenna thinks, damn. Well, I guess he does.
"Oh," she grins. "Mine's admit to nothing."
While Two-Bit tries to figure out what the difference between the two is, Dally raises an eyebrow. "You've been arrested before?" he asks interestedly.
"Sure," she tells him uneasily. "Started when I was 9. My best friend's older sister bought us blades, cuz we lived in a…a bad town. Got put in for possession of arms. It was our third warning. It woulda only been one night…but I kinda got in some trouble in the jailhouse…" she trails off. But the boys stay silent and look at her questioningly. She sighs. "Look, let's just say they ain't gonna appreciate it if you kick the guards in the shins durin' dinner time for feeling your best friend up. Not that the police believed they did that."
Two-Bit busts out laughing, and when he calms down, he looks at Jenna with some emotion (Respect? Pity? Both?) in his eyes, though he grins widely at Dally. "Huh. 9? She's got you beat Dally!" Turning back to Jenna, he explains, "He was only arrested at 10."
Jenna's…shocked. She didn't think anyone else got put through that kind of shit at that age besides her. She had assumed God had set it aside as her own special kind of hell. "Yeah, well," she shrugs. "I guess he's luckier than I am, stayin outta trouble til he was 10."
But Dally leers at her and disagrees. "Nah. I've been arrested 42 times. Gotten in trouble over a hundred."
Jenna rolls her eyes, but she's not one to be outdone. "Oh?" she feigns laughter. "I don't keep track of that sorta stuff, and I can't even begin to guess how many times I've been in trouble. Mosta the time they try to let me off cuz I'm a girl and they figure I'm causing more trouble than I am." She doesn't even know why shes pretending to be proud of this, but it seems like the right way to go about it. She changes the subject so she can try to forget about it. "Whatta bout you Two-Bit?"
Two-Bit looks glad to have the attention back on him. "Oh yeah. If you don't get arrested in this town you're not livin right. Or you're a Soc. The girls usually stay outta trouble round here though..." he glances at her, seemingly interested in what she'll say next. She pretends to not be jumping for joy on the outside. Maybe now, she can escape her…awful past.
"Awww thats no fun," she sneers. "You mean girls never get arrested?"
Two-Bit shakes his head, but Dally finally seems to be warming up to her. "But we can change that," he chirps.
"Oh?" Jenna cocks an eyebrow at him, and he turns to Two-Bit and grins.
"She's got you down good!" he announces, and Two-Bit pouts, furrowin his eyebrows. Dally turns back to her, and speaks a little gentler. "But yes, of course we can," he says. But he won't quite meet her eyes.
Jenna manages to muster up some degree of enthusiasm. "...sounds like fun. Where do we start?"
"Tomorrow," Two-Bit suddenly yawns. "I'm tired."
Dally sneers. "Well I guess I've gotta get Two-Shit home for bedtime."
Jenna vaguely hears Two-Bit shouting indignantly ("You better show me some respect, mister. I am your elder!) But suddenly she becomes aware of how unbelievably tired she is. The red-haired girl gets their attention and asks, "You boys know a place to stay? I'm kinda what ya call 'homeless' at the moment."
"Well we all are usually stayin at the Curtis house if we don't got nowhere to stay," shrugs Dally. "You can see if they'll let you stay there, too."
"Which they will," Two-Bit cuts in. "The Curtis's are nice. Nicer than Dal even."
Jenna chuckles. "I'm not sure how much hope that should give me."
"Not much," Two-Bit laughs with her. "But they're still the nicest people I know. C'mon." Jenna looks at him expectantly, but he just stands there.
"Lead the way," she prompts.
"Oh, right!" he grins sheepishly. "You comin Dal?"
"Sure. I can't be seen at Buck's til he cools off. I didn't pay for last night..."
Two-But grins and gestures for them to follow him. "Alright. Follow me kiddies!"
"Kiddies?" Jenna and Dally question simultaneously.
Two-Bit waves away their disgruntlement, telling them, "Well I'm the oldest."
"How do you know that?" Jenna challenges. "For all you know I could be 21."
Two-Bit studies her, before shakin his head. "Nah. You're no older than 16. I can just tell these things," he trails off "mysteriously."
Jenna rolls her eyes. "Ugh. Fine," she complains. "Just lead would ya? It's gonna get cold soon."
"Yes ma'am," Two-Bit grins. "C'mon then."
Two-Bit leads them to the Curtis House and Dally and Jenna trail after him in awkward silence. Suddenly, Two-Bit throws open a door and prances inside.
"Darry!" he screams, "We have guests!"
Jenna hears a deep voice ask from the hallway, "You mean you?"
"Funny," Two-Bit deadpans, before exclaiming dramatically, "You know Mom and my sister are sick. I can't get sick! This is my home for now! And Dally's here."
A tall, muscular, dark-haired boy trudges into the living room. It's obvious to Jenna that he's been working hard, and immediately feels bad for waking him up. "Hush up," Darry snaps. "Pone and Soda are sleeping." Darry nods to Dally, who nods back. "Don't you usually stay at Buck's?" he asks.
Dally grimaces. "Buck's hacked off right now. I ain't itchin to be seen near that place."
Darry casts him a confused look. "You could take Buck," he almost laughs.
"Well, of course. Hell, anyone could take Buck. But not Buck's heater..." Dally explains, furrowin his eyebrows.
"Well c'mon then," Darry shakes his head. "I'll get the mattress outta the closet."
"You got two of those?" Jenna asks timidly, afraid of intruding or being denied.
Darry looks at Jenna, apparently just seeing the poor girl for the first time. "...and who are you?" he asks.
Two-Bit seems to remember the green eyed girl he brought with him. "OH! I made a new friend today, Darry! We met not a half hour ago while she was gettin jumped by some Socs. But we're best friends already, right?" he exclaims, obviously thrilled.
"Riight..." Jenna agrees.
"Yeah! Aren't you proud of me, Darry?"
Darry stares at Two-Bit for a couple seconds before answering dryly. "I'm thrilled."
Two-Bit, though, remains oblivious to Darry's tone. "Well this is Jenna and she's havin home issues in the sense that she don't exactly have one," he explains.
"I see..." Darry thinks for a minute before speaking slowly. "Well I guess you're welcome to stay here. You can take the couch, these two idiots can share the mattress. You need anything for that scar?" Jenna revels in the fact that he seems genuinely concerned. She can't remember the last time someone spoke to her that way. She shakes her head and almost opens her mouth, ready to explain that it's an old wound, but Two-Bit's pouting again.
"Did you hear that? Did you hear what Darry just called me, Dally?"
Dally just rolls eyes. "Shut up, Two-Bit."
Two-Bit, though, is not placated. "Did you hear, Jenna?"
"Idiot?" Jenna guesses, and Two-Bit gasps.
"HOW COULD YOU? I thought you were on my side!" He puts a hand on his heart in mock-despair. Jenna doesn't know how much more over-dramatization one person can have in them. Apparently, it's wearing on Dally's nerves, too, because he snaps at Two-Bit.
"Just go to sleep would ya?"
"Sure, Dal!" Two-Bit's quick to agree. Apparently, angering Dally is not the right choice. He turns to Jenna. "And then tomorrow we'll introduce you to the gang and go shoplifting and beat up Socs who try to jump us and see the Nightly Double! Glory, I'm so excited!"
Darry looks from Two-Bit, who's excited, to Jenna, who's tiredly smiling at his giddiness, to Dally, who's looking like he wants to crack their heads together, and shakes his head. "Ugh," he complains. "I'm too tired to try to understand. You realize it's nearly midnight? And I have work tomorrow. Nice to meet you, Jenna. Night, you three. And behave would ya?"
Dally just grunts and falls onto the mattress, and Jenna lays down on the couch. "Night, Darry," she smiles.
Two-Bit laughs. "No promises," he shouts after Darry's retreating figure, before jumping onto the mattress and Dally.
Just before falling asleep, she hears Dally complain, "DAMMIT TWO-BIT!"
A/N: SOOOO? WHAT'D YA THINK? Should I continue? Or are you just gonna throw tomatoes at me? Why don't you press that lovely review button and lemme know what you think? Flames will be used to heat the Curtis's house in the winter.