Ace Merrill leaned back against his black 1950's chop-top Studebaker & wiped the sweat from his forehead with a grease covered wrist. "Hey, Ace!" Billy Tessio called out from the porch, "You got a weed?"
"Not for you, Asshole!" He retorted, taking a toothpick from his mouth. "I'll trade ya for a beer!" Billy called back. Eyeball Chambers laughed out loud practically double over, if Ace a vice bigger than cigarettes…it was beer.
"Shut the fuck up!" Ace snapped, he sure could use a beer though. Summer was on it's way & the heat had come early this year. He & the rest of the Cobras stood in the farm yard with their sleeves rolled up trying not to sweat too much while they carved into each other's arms.
They were interrupted by the loud, obnoxious roar of a school bus full of teenagers zooming by them. "What was that?" Jackie asked as he looked up from his dirty magazine. "It's the kids from Morgan Academy in Castle View." Vince replied in a Matter-Of-Fact voice. "They come here a week before school gets out for the big award ceremony."
A group let out a simultaneously groan. The kids were from Castle View, that would mean that they were a bunch of Jocks & Socs. The kind of people that made Ace Merrill sick to his stomach.
A red 1950 Buick Road Master trailed behind the bus. Behind the wheel was a young woman with long blonde hair, dressed in men's Greaser clothes. "You don't suppose she's following' 'em, do ya?" Fuzzy inquired as he spit his chew into the dirt.
"She looks like a hood." Charlie said as he watched the car park over on the side of the road, directly across from where they stood. "Hey, maybe she's lost!" Eyeball crowed, his beer bottle landed on the edge of the yard.
"I'm gonna check her out." Ace smirked & strode confidently across the road. He approached the vehicle smugly & leaned over into the front of the Buick. "You need help doll?" He asked, raising an eyebrow at the young woman. "Well," She sighed. "I lost track of them." She motion toward the now empty road in front of her. Aced gathered that she meant the bus from Morgan Academy. "But I know where I'm going, so it's no sweat." She smiled at Ace & he noticed that she had a slight over-bite.
"Speakin' of sweat," Ace Began smoothly, "You look a little hot…you want a beer?" "I don't drink beer." She said, blushing. "You got any Coca-Cola?" She was embarrassed. Here she was trying to flirt with another Greaser & he had turned down alcohol for soda-pop! She blew it, big time!
"Sure, we got Coke!" Ace smiled & took her hand & expected her to simply leap over the car door. No doubt he was a little taken-aback when her saw her reach for a wooden cane as she opened the door & then he noticed the metal leg braces faceted to her boots.
"Oh." Ace said out loud unintentionally. He quickly removed his hand from hers & only then, realized that the entire gesture could be perceived as rude. He left a stray mark of grease on the back of her pale hand. "Oh my!" She exclaimed & casually wiped the back of her hands on her blue-jeans.
"Here." She said, removing a white handkerchief from her cleavage & handing it to Ace. "Thanks." He said sheepishly as he mopped his brow. "So are you gonna be in that award ceremony?" Ace asked as he followed her across the road.
She looked at him with her uneven smile. "Yep! I know I don't exactly look like a scholar, but I am one. So I'll be here for a week." Ace nodded & then began to grin. "A whole week." He muttered, "That's great."