Introduction…
There is no greater pain then that of a loss. It spreads through you like wildfire, scorching your heart and soul with it's intense heat. I didn't know much about loss. Up until the year of 1962 that is. But with the coming of that new year, One so full promise at the start, I lost everything in a blink of an eye. I was left in this world with nothing but a few boys by my side. Back then i felt i'd lost everything. That there was nothing left for me to live now, I see that the year i previously saw as one of destruction and terror was in fact the year i found a whole new side of myself i never knew existed. A side with strength and confidence. I found love in places I would have never expected. What i saw as a year of loss. Was in fact a year of gain.
I think for you to truely understand what I'm going on about I should start from the beginning. My name is Daisy Lynn Curtis. You see, I was the youngest of four children and the first little girl to bless the lives of Darryl and Maggie Curtis. My family wasn't wealthy. My father roofed houses and a living and my mother worked part time as a waitress at the Dingo. They were hard working people, making just enough to get by. My brothers and I never had anything real fancy like the rich kids that lived across town. But we had love and support. In our North Tulsa neighborhood, We had it real good. I never really noticed the social boundaries between the rich and poor until about the sixth grade. I began to notice the difference between the kids in school. I found myself involentarily placed in the poor group. Also known as the " Greasers". I could never forget the first time i was called that. It was in the seventh grade and i had accidentally got in the way of a rich or a " Soc " boy. Instead of saying excuse me, he pushed me to the ground ,calling me a " dirty greaser". I ran home crying that day and locked myself in my room for hours. It was my older brother Soda who finally got me to let him in. When I finally calmed down enough to tell him what happened. I was shocked to see him fill up with rage. A rage i did not know my care free brother possessed. In fact all the boys were furious about it. They all wanted to " Take care" of the boy who said it to me. They did to. The next week, the boy came into school with a black eye, courtesy of my big brothers.
Some think I have only three brothers. But actually i have seven. The boys in my brothers gang were just as much my brothers a s my actual ones were. They all looked out for me. Two-bit had always been my favorite though. He was the goofball of the group. He was always cracking jokes or pulling pranks. But we loved him for it. Steve Randall was my brother Soda's best friend. The two of us didn't get along whatsoever. He didn't like me or my twin brother Pont much. He thought we were nothing but a couple of nuisances. But we tolerated him for Soda's sake. Then there was Dallas Winston. Daly was one of the toughest hoods is our neighborhood. He came from New York a few years back and somehow found his way into our gang. And last but not least there was Johnny Cade. He was known as the gangs pet. He was really quiet. i guess that was because he was abused by his parents so much. He always came to our house for refuge after a beating.
And of course there's my brothers. Darry was the oldest at twenty one. He was always looking out for someone. Even Dallas at times. He was an awesome football player. He even got a scholarship to Tulsa University for it. And he was very handsome. All of my brothers were good-looking but none were as massive as Darry. He stood at 6 ft 3' and had had the body of a body builder. Darry was our role model and our back bone. He always held us together and kept us in line. Next was Soda. Oh boy where do i start with that one? Well, Soda was sixteen and had more personality then anyone i've ever known. He was the best looking Curtis. With his dark hair and blue eyes, he had all the girls going crazy over him. He also had the purest heart. He knew just what to say in ever situation to make it a little easier on everyone else. I was always closest with Soda. He and i had a bond that was really unique. I may have been Pony's twin but my connection with Soda was even stronger then the one i had with him. Ponyboy was fourteen and my twin. though., he was five minutes older and i don't believe theres been a day in my life where he's let me forget it. I think he pen more time reading a writing then he did breathing. We were both extremely smart but i wasn't nearly as much of a bookworm as Pony was. We were pretty close. I knew Pony always had my back. As for me, I just couldn't seem to find my place. I wasn't a greaser and i wasn't a soc. I was just simply Katie Curtis. We were one motley crew but we stood together through thick and thin.