A/N: Hey guys! This is my first fanfic but hopefully it does justice and you guys like it (: Anyways I don't own The Outsiders or the song Quicksand Jesus. Enjoy!

Are we ashamed of our own fate
Or play the fool for our own sake
Tell me who's behind the rain

The sound of leaves crunching beneath the bottom of my shoes pierced my ears with every step I took. The smell of firewood burning filled my nostrils as we got closer and closer to the house. A cool breeze snuck into my black velvet pea coat, sending chills down my spine. A smile escaped from my lips…fall was finally here.

The house was even bigger inside than it was on the outside. A crystal chandelier hung above the dining room table and the champagne colored walls was embroidered with little French detailing. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought I was dining with royalty.

She took my coat – a very expensive coat that Randy bought me once the temperature started dropping several degrees – and took it to the coat closet down one of the never ending hallways.

Mrs. Adderson was a doll, she truly was. She had a heart the size of Texas, and never denied a single person no matter what they're social status was. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but something about her reminded me of my mother. Maybe that's why I came over here so often. Or maybe it's because the butler James was such an incredible chef. Either way, I spent more time here than at my own home – if you can even call it that.

The little shack I call a home is all the way on the other side of town – the poor side of town. The side where all the boys put too much grease in their hair and all the girls wore shorts a size too small and bras a size too big. I didn't want to be a part of that. I like to think to myself sometimes that I was just born on the wrong side of the tracks. I like to think to myself that maybe in my before life I was a wealthy gal on this side of town. I like to think that everybody makes mistakes, even God, and that's why I'm stuck on the east side.

As a child, money never meant anything to me. It was just pieces of paper, so who care's how much you have? It was just paper and I never liked paper; it just meant more writing to do in school.

But that all changed after the incident a year ago. Things became real heated between the socs and greasers. Money meant power and power meant winning. And who doesn't like winning? Darry noticed the rapid change in my appearance. He saw the way I covered up, keeping my body preserved and away from all the perverts. His vision of it was just that his baby sister wasn't one of those easy girls on this side of town. He was too blinded by the rest. He didn't see past that. He didn't see beyond what his eyes allowed him too. He didn't see what I was really doing. Darry, he was a smart guy. But he still ceased to never see what was right smack in front of him.

"No thank you," I denied the caramel. It stuck to my teeth and it made me chew like a cow just trying to break it apart, and that wasn't very lady like.

Cara was the one who taught me that. She taught me all of my manners. Growing up with all boys, I just wasn't blessed with that kind of knowledge.

I envied Cara, I really did. She looked like a life sized Barbie doll – pin straight blonde hair, pacific blue eyes, skinny and slender yet curvy in the all the right places – she had the whole nine yards and I was jealous of every bit of it.

Cara and Caitlyn weren't twins, or even sisters, but that didn't stop them from doing absolutely everything together. They were inseparable. They might as well have been conjoined by hip to hip because they were the definition of butt buddies.

They were the perfect mix too. Fire and ice. Cara was the fierce and feisty one while Caitlyn was the quiet one, but they both can still give you that three degree burn, if you know what I mean.

The warmth of the fireplace reminded me of another reason why I was always over here – my house didn't have heat. For Christ Sakes, the Sauna was even heated. That was our hang out place too – Cara, Caitlyn, Ashton, Josh, Randy, and I.

It was like we were our own little clique. Maybe that's why I'm here so much – I feel like I belong somewhere for once.

Josh was the unofficial leader and even though I could think of a million reasons why he shouldn't be, he was Randy's best friend so I always just kept my trap shut.

Ashton reminded me of Steve in a lot of ways. We weren't exactly friends or anything, but we had a mutual respect for each other, and that's more than I can say about Josh and I.

"Halloween's coming up!" Cara squealed hopping off of the hood of her new 1966 mustang convertible.

You could be one of those long haired hippie's stoned out of your mind, and still know Halloween's coming up with all of the decorations hanging around school, due to none other than Cara Jansen herself. Home Décor was Mrs. Jansen's profession, and you know what they say, the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree. I don't mean that as a bad thing either, I admire it really. Decorating wasn't really in Darry's forte, so I got used to plain and ordinary pretty quickly.

"Yippee," I rolled my eyes and groaned.

It's not like I hated Halloween or anything; I really just don't have the money for a costume. It's nothing new, but at least in the past my mom would sew me up one the night before.

"Oh come on!" Josh butted in, "Is the wittle pwincess afwaid of wittle ghwosts and gwoblins?" he rolled his head back and howled in laughter.

I just rolled my eyes and kept my comment to myself. I learned not to sass Josh a long time ago – I learned that the hard way.

"We're throwing a big Halloween bash Saturday night," Ashton piped in, "It's gonna be great."

Cara and Ashton Jansen were the ultimate party throwers. They can use any and every excuse in the book to throw a party and to drown themselves in a little whiskey.

"Parents leaving town?" Randy questioned.

Ashton clapped his hands together and grinned from ear to ear, "Vegas baby!"

Mr. and Mrs. Jansen went to Vegas quite often. Some may call it a gambling problem, but they call it 'We have a nice house on the nice side of town and everything we could possibly want and still have a shit load of money so why the hell not.'

"I love Halloween man!" Josh jumped onto the hood of the mustang, "Love scaring the ba-jee-beez out of the little fella's," he smirked looking at me, "Specially when they cry."

"That must make you feel like a man," I mumbled monotoneously.

He cocked his head to the side and gave me the stink eye, "What was that?"

"Nothing."

"Randy," he hopped off of the vehicle, not losing his gaze on me, "You're chick here has quite the mouth on her," he walked forward, "A big pair of balls too," he cocked his head to the other side.

"The size of Texas," I stated sarcastically.

He shook his head, "Where'd you find this broad anyways? In the dumpster?" he asked as if I wasn't standing right in front of him.

Randy was the only one who knew I was poor or where I lived. Nobody else ever asked so I just simply never told.

"Hey man, quit it alright?" he smiled like it was some kind of joke.

That was the thing. Randy and Josh have been best friends for years – way before I ever met him. Josh never owned up to his wrong doings and Randy never stood up to him.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Ponyboy waiting for me by the top of the hill.

"Uh, I have to go," I grabbed my book bag from Randy's car.

"Come on, don't leave, he's just joking around," he whispered in my ear.

"I promised Darry I would walk Pony home today," I nodded my head to the direction my youngest brother was standing at.

He kissed me below my jaw line, making my knees weak, "Let the kid walk by himself. He's a big boy."

I pulled away, "Randy, he's still my brother."

He half smiled and handed me back my book bag, "Here."

I kissed him on the cheek, "Bye Randy."

"Later Nik."

"I've been waiting for a half an hour," he complained as soon as I reached the top of the hill, "I was about to go down there and introduce myself," he shined his bright set of pearly whites.

Me and him both knew that that was a bluff, and I was grateful for that too. As much of a pain in the neck Ponyboy was, we knew each others limits and strayed away from them. It was a mutual thing.

"I'm so sorry," I apologized.

"He treats you good, right?" he asked out of no where.

I smiled, "Yeah… of course, why?"

"Just making sure I don't have to introduce myself."

I had to laugh at that. I thought it was cute that Pony tried acting like an older brother even though he was younger than me by two years.

"What about you? Are you crushing on a girl?"

His face and ears flushed to a tomato red color, "Nah."

If my brother was one thing, it was that he was a terrible liar. TERRIBLE liar, "Awe come on spill! Who is she? Do I know her? What's her name? What grade is she in? How old is she? How did you meet her? Is she in any of your classes?"

"Exhibit Z why I don't tell you these kind of things," his walking pace grew faster.

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" I caught up to him.

"It means," he paused looking around, "You don't keep that trap of yours shut."

I laughed, fully knowing that its true, "Come on, pleaaase!"

He looked around the area again thinking of something to change the subject, "Race ya to the end of the street!"

The wind blew through my hair tangling it into a big knot.

"Jeez Ponyboy you gotta cut down on your smoking," I laughed beating him by a few feet.

"Okay mom," he placed his hands on his knee's gasped for air.

"I'm serious, you're not going to make track next year."

"Okay Darry."

I sighed. He always compared me to Darry – everyone did. They all say we're too alike for our own good and we're both stubborn blah blah blah la dee fucking da. I never saw it… I refused to see it, but maybe that's why we always end up screaming and wanting to tear each other's heads off.

"Nikki, do you wanna head down to the DX?" Ponyboy suggested when he realized nobody was home.

"Sure, why not."

It's not like I had anything better to do. It was Darry's late night tonight at work, and the DX actually had heating unlike some places...

Are we ashamed of our own fate
Or play the fool for our own sake
Tell me who's behind the rain

A/N: So what do you guys think? (: I know, there's really nothing to think about it since nothing really happened and its pretty boring but it's just the beginning and the first chapter, so you know, its just a little introduction. But I promise it will get a lot lot lot lot lot better (: Anyways follows, favorites, and reviews are always welcome ;)