Things would always be rough for the Greasers, with them being poor, looked down upon, and misunderstood by everyone. But for as long as any of them could remember, none of that had really changed. People had become more aware of it, but not much was different. Everything was different, until one year got the best of them.

"What are we gonna do today?" Ponyboy asked. He was now sixteen, but still a dreamer who hoped everything was going to be fine.

"Who knows?" Sodapop asked. At eighteen, he had never gone back to school and was still happy working on cars. Not much had changed for him either, except for the fact that his girlfriend, Sandy, moved away to Florida two years prior. "Don't you have some homework to do or something?"

"Soda, you know teachers," Ponyboy lit up a cigarette. "They don't assign homework until the next week."

"No, he doesn't know teachers," Darry, now twenty-two and still working like a madman, said as he slapped his younger brother on the back. "It's been over two years since he's been in a room with one."

"Darry, please," Soda begged.

"Please nothing. Did you know that if you kept going with school, you'd be starting college by now, little buddy? When you first dropped out, I didn't care as much as I do now. But oh boy, do I worry about you now."

"Relax, Darry," Ponyboy told him. "What are the chances that Soda here gets taken off to war?"

Darry looked at his youngest brother like he had just sprouted another head. "There are bigger chances than you'd think."

"What makes you think you're not gonna get hauled off?" Soda asked. "You ain't in college either."

"No, I ain't, and now I was."

"Well, I'm not too worried," Ponyboy took another drag. "Nothing much concerning the war has happened to us."

"It could," Darry reminded him. "Tomorrow you could wake up and everything could be totally different."

This didn't seem possible to any of the brothers, especially Ponyboy. He wanted everything to stay the way they were, and if they changed, he'd fight his hardest to get them to what they should be.

Just then, Dally and Two-Bit walked into the house. They were now nineteen and twenty and a half, and Two-Bit had finally graduated high school in the previous year. His reason? It all felt like too normal and he was too used it now. He was still big on making jokes and drinking as much as he could, and he wasn't in college either. Dally hadn't changed since he was seventeen, he was still taking part in rodeos and causing all the trouble imaginable. There were no girls for either of them, but Two-Bit didn't seem to be into girls at all lately. No one knew what caused it.

"Hey guys," Two-Bit said somewhat cheerfully. He turned to Ponyboy with a sly grin. "Pony, guess where I was today?"

He sighed, knowing what was coming next. "Where, Two-Bit?"

"Not at school! Hold the applause, I know I'm tuffer than all of you!"

"Yeah, yeah, we know you're in love with yourself," Dally sneered. "Just don't blow yourself kisses. So, anybody wanna go to the nightly double with me tonight?"

"I will," Ponyboy said. "Wait- Darry, can I go?"

Darry sighed, which meant he was giving in. "All right, but only since it's the second day of school. You're graduating this year, so your grades matter more than they ever did."

"I know, I know. Johnny'll probably wanna go too, except I don't know where he is."

"He'll show up," Dally assured him. "Damn, am I glad he never has to see those parents of his again."

"Uh-huh. You coming, Soda?"

"Sure, why not?" he smiled. "I got nothing to worry about."

"You've got a job at a gas station to worry about," Darry reminded him. "And you've gotta try to stay away from Vietnam."

"Come on, Darry, don't make him worry about that," Two-Bit begged. "Nothing's ever gonna happen to any of us except for a few Socs using us a punching bags."

"Let's hope."

"Are you coming too, Two-Bit?" Ponyboy asked.

"Nah, I told Darry yesterday that I'd help him do something around here. Now that you guys are leaving it gives him less to worry about."

"All right." Johnny walked in, eyes wide and looking quite scared, but not as afraid as he usually did.

"What the hell happened to your eyes?" Two-Bit asked, scanning his skinny body.

"Ran into some Socs," he started, "and let me tell you, they ain't Socs anymore. They saw me and they were talking about getting the soldiers outta Vietnam and keeping the peace everywhere. One of them said something about acid, and how I should do it."

"Hippies?" Sodapop asked, interested. "They still wearing madras?"

"No! That's what scared me! They're all wearing bell-bottom jeans and jewelry."

"Jewelry?" Dally repeated. "Come on, Johnny, I don't believe it. What kind of jewelry?"

"Necklaces. Big, beaded necklaces."

Dally made a sour face. "That's just dumb. We gotta get outta here, I don't wanna talk about these damn Socs."

"See ya, Darry," Ponyboy said as they left the Curtis house.

Sneaking into the Dingo was easier that it had ever been, because almost every staff member was smoking something.

"That's the reason why people should do drugs," Soda laughed.

"Now you're talking," Dally looked out to see where they could sit. He saw a tall girl with long, dark hair, and no one sitting in her row.

"Looks like we got a place to sit," he smirked.

Everyone followed him as he took the seat next to the girl, realizing that she was truly the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. And he found himself thinking that wasn't a lie.

"What the hell is this?" she snapped at him. "I sit down here alone, liking to be alone, and four guys sit down next to me. You know, I don't even care if you're my kind, I like to be alone!"

"Well, that's weird," Dally said smoothly. "We hate it." He found himself wanting to smile at her genuinely; it was a feeling he'd never had before.

"I guess that makes us opposites, then," her voice was a lot calmer now. "What's your name, anyway?"

"Dallas Winston. You can call me Dally."

"Maybe I don't want to. The name's Skylar Rayne Wood, but you can call me Sky."

"If you talk to me like that, Sky, maybe I don't wanna call you anything, either. Besides, I thought the hippie era was now."

"You just did. And you don't have to be in an era to have a unique name."

Sky was amazed with herself. She had never had any experience with romance, even though she was already nineteen, and her social life was basically nonexistent. Now there was a guy talking to her who seemed to like her, somewhat, and he had the worst reputation she'd ever heard of. Maybe, she found herself thinking, things would happen between her and Dallas Winston.

"Guess I did, then. Hey, I think you're right about unique names. The guys over here are Sodapop and Ponyboy Curtis."

Sky smiled brightly at them. "Names like those are the kinds of names I like. Funny, when Dally said 'we hate it' I thought he had some multiple personality disorder. I forgot there were three more of you."

"And the quiet one over here is Johnny Cade," Dally explained. "Multiple personality disorder?"

"Yep. Who knows, there might be a smaller side of you that's nice to people."

"I doubt it."

Dally was confused about everything he felt toward Sky already. She seemed independent, smart, tough, and she was without a doubt gorgeous. The chills and sudden fevers going up and down his body were unfamiliar, and he wasn't sure what they meant. Surely he had heard people talking about feeling this way when they were falling in love. But he was Dallas Winston, rock-hard and emotionless. It was impossible for him to be falling in love.

"Listen, Sky," he started, having to clear his throat and swallow every other second, "how would you feel about leaving with me?"

"Right now?" she asked. Of course she was up for it- she wanted to know how he really felt about her. More so, she wanted to know exactly how she felt about him.

"Yeah."

"All right. What about your friends?"

"They're fine."

Without even thinking, he grabbed her hand and they left. When they were both standing side by side, they were the same height. He didn't know why he hadn't said a word to her yet, but it felt like she understood everything he was thinking. Sky felt the same way. Actions must speak louder than words, because every time she thought about how happy she was to be with Dally, he got closer to her.

"Where are you taking me?" Sky finally asked him.

"My rodeo partner's place," Dally muttered. "He's a drunk. You don't gotta talk to him. Hell, he's probably too drunk to notice I'm there and that I brought a girl."

She nodded and gripped his hand tighter. For a Greaser girl, she had never done anything really wild, and she knew this was her first real adventure. Dally was the first male to talk to her who didn't want to give her a hard time.

"Come on," he whispered to her. "We're here."

As they walked in, Dally couldn't help but feel slightly embarrassed by where he had taken Sky. The music was Hank Williams, which had to be the worst music he'd ever heard, and the scene was even worse than other Greaser parties.

"It's okay," Sky told him. "I don't mind. You should see the parties my cousin throws. He's thirty-seven and wilder than you."

"How did you know…" Dally began.

"I just did."

They walked up to the bedroom so they could be alone. Dally let Sky sit down before he did.

"What were you thinking when you first saw me?" she asked him as she stroked his face.

"To be honest," he sighed, "I thought we were all gonna try to pick you up and watch you get pissed off. But then I realized how gorgeous you were."

"And you mean that?"

"Yep."

Sky stared at him with glassy eyes and her mouth open only slightly. She couldn't get over the way he made her feel, it was almost hard to think about.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked with a small laugh.

"You just…" she breathed, "seem amazing."

"Dazzling?"

"That's a better word for it."

For a while, they were silent, and then Dally turned to Sky nervously. He had done this with other girls before, but he never felt this way about them before. Yes, now he knew he wasn't falling in love with her. He was long past that stage, and was fully in love with her now.

"Now you're looking at me funny," she giggled.

"Yeah, I know. Sky, you seem amazing too, and you're amazing me right now. There have been other girls in my life, but not one like you. I've never loved anything, and I think that's changing now."

"Dally," she started, trying to keep her voice even, "are you trying to get me to have sex with you?"

"Yeah. It's okay if you don't want to. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I think I respect you."

"And I respect you. I also want to."

They were in bed together now, and everything was easy for both of them. Sky knew she loved Dally, and somehow she knew he loved her. As they kissed, Dally remembered that his biggest fear was getting her pregnant. By now he knew that he was ready to love Sky and be completely devoted to her, but he knew he wasn't ready to take care of a baby yet. He would never leave her, even if that happened.

She pressed her head against his chest and murmured, "I love you."

He sighed and didn't even have to think about his response. "I love you."

Eventually, they stopped and fell asleep. When they woke up next to each other, many thoughts were going on through their heads.

What would happen next? Sky thought. Would Dally stay with her? Or was this some kind of trick? Most importantly, would this ever happen again?

Dally was still asleep, but woke up immediately after Sky shook his shoulders and kissed his nose. He looked at her beautiful face and managed to get lost in her big, brown eyes.

"Hey," he chuckled and kissed her lips softly. He wondered if he would still feel the love he felt for her later on, but just by looking at her he knew the feeling was still there.

"What do we do now?" she asked with an apprehensive smile.

"I take you to meet my gang."

"Didn't I already meet them?"

"Not all of them. You still got Darry, Steve and Two-Bit left to meet."

"Oh. Should we go now?"

"If you want to."

Once they were out of bed and dressed, Dally took Sky's hand and led her outside. He was more than in love, because he truly loved her. Things were changing around there, and it would start with the rebel falling hard for the smart, sensible girl. But neither of them wanted anymore to happen, even though more had to.