Sometimes if you want to escape a bad situation, you have to do things you don't want to do. This time the thing Lynn didn't want to do, was to move to Tulsa Oklahoma, but here she was.
The old beat-up Cadillac stopped in front of the equally worn out house. The once White House was covered in dirt, the grass was overgrown and the paint chipping.
"This is it!" Joni cheered. It wasn't exactly what she expected, but you get what you pay for, And they weren't paying very much. Neither of them had been in the house yet. for all they knew, the house was an empty shell with no lights or plumbing. If the outside was any indication, they were in for a mess.
When they stepped into the house, Lynn told herself 'this could be worse.' The wooden floor could use a mop, the kitchen could use a good bleaching and she's never seen dirtier Windows. At least it smelled decent.
She went into the kitchen and out the back door. They didn't have much of a backyard, it was mostly a dirt alleyway shared by all the houses. Old rotting tires and overgrown grass was all there was.
"Stop!" A voice yelled from the other end of the alley. Just as she was about to Peak around the side of the house, a boy ran past. Several boys followed behind him, screaming and shouting. She stood there in shock for a moment watching these well-dressed boys and sweaters chase down and Tackle a young boy. He squirmed beneath them, as he tried to get away.
She was frozen, until one of them pulled out a knife. The spell was broken and she moved quickly. She picked up a discarded pipe from her own yard, and dropped it down onto one of the boy's back.
"You leave him alone!" She shouted and When she lifted the pipe for a second round, another group of boys came running down the alley. they were dressed in leather and had greased back hair. They moved quick, their fist clenched, ready for a fight.
The well-dressed sweater boys took off towards their car, and the boys from the alley chase after. She knelt down next to the boy they had been chasing, blood streamed down his neck. She dug into her pocket and pulled out her handkerchief.
"Here use this." She held it out to him. He slowly reached for it, his eyes wide and full of concern. "Are you alright?" She asked.
"I-" His voice was weak and his hands trembling.
"You alright Ponyboy." One of the other boys came and knelt down next to him. She turned around and watch the car full of boys, drive away. "They didn't hurt you too bad did they?" Asked the older boy.
The young boy looked like he was going to cry, but he was holding it in. Lynn stood up and as she did, the older boy turned his eyes to her. She became very aware of her surrounding. It was unlike her to get mixed up into other peoples problems. yet, she had barely been in the new house ten minutes and she was trying to stop a fight between two gangs.
"Lynn!" She heard Joni calling her name from the kitchen. Before the boys could say anything else, she ran all the way to the back door and into the kitchen. She could feel their Gaze on her, and hear their Whispers, but that only pushed her to move faster.
She found Joni standing in the living room, a few boxes in hand. "What were you doing?" she curiously looked into the kitchen.
"I was outside, and some of the Neighbors-" Before Lynn could finish, Joni interrupted.
"You met the neighbors? What are they like?." Joni asked. She dropped the boxes next to the couch and moved into the kitchen.
"I didn't really meet them." Lynn said softly.
"Well did you see any boys?" Joni stuck her head out the window. "I don't see anyone out here." She then ventured further out into the back yard.
Lynn let out a sigh. it was going to be interesting living with Joni. They had a lot of things in common, but their biggest difference was Joni's obsession with men. Lynn picked up the box with her name on it and carried it to the room at the end of the hall. She could still hear Joni talking as she shut her door.