A/N: Okay. This new story isn't gonna stand in the way of "Crash n' Burn", its just an idea that I had at the time. I didn't want to forget it. But, completely new story, hopefully better. Please R n' R if you could. Thanks! :)
Disclaimer: S.E. Hinton owns the Outsiders. Not me. But I would sell my soul if I could own Dally and Steve. ;)

My footprints left small indents in the snow. I could see my breath in the cold air. It was quiet outside. Where am I going? I kept asking myself. The truth was, I didn't know. I just needed to get out of my house. Screams and yells were something I was used to, being in Tulsa, but I was terrified at the sound of it in my house. So I got a bag full of clothes and left.
"Lanie? Is that you?" a voice in the dark asked. I whirled around to see the owner of the voice.
"Oh, hi Two-Bit. What are you doin round here?"
"Just walked Kathy home. Ain't she your neighbor or somethin'?"
"Ain't ain't a word. But yes, she is. I forgot y'all were together again."
"Haha, very funny. Well, wanna come to the Curtis place with me? "
I would've kept walking if I hadn't seen him. I was ready to run away.
"Aw, what the heck. It's better than my place." We started walking toward the Curtis's house.
"Ain't ya cold? You don't got a jacket or anything."
"I'm fine. The cold distracts me."
"Well, do ya want mine? A lady is lady, and I'm a gentleman." He offered me his Mickey Mouse jacket.
"Two-Bit Mathews, a gentleman? You're kidding. But yes, I'll take it. Thank you, my good sir." I curtsied to him with a smile. Two-Bit could make anyone smile no matter their mood.

We walked into the Curtis place. A game of poker went on between the younger Curtis boys and Steve Randle. Darry was in the kitchen making something that smelled delicious, probably chocolate cake. Two-Bit joined Dally and Johnny on the couch and watched the poker game.
"WHY YOU GOTTA CHEAT, SODA?" Steve yelled. He threw down his cards while Sodapop smirked and raked in all of the coins.
"WHY YOU GOTTA YELL, STEVIE?" Dally jokingly yelled at him. The gang laughed. I just stood by the door, watching all of this. It was amusing, but I wish my family was like this. My brother was locked in his room all day, and when he wasn't he was yelling at me or trying to hit me. My sister was never in my house. My guess would be that she was either at Bucks or somewhere with drugs and booze. My parents just didn't care. They stopped caring years ago, and I don't know why. After that, things went downhill. They yelled and fought everyday. Me, I was the only Carter who didn't change into something horrible. I just took the beatings and coped with them.

"You okay Lanie? Why are you crying?"" some voice said. It snapped me out of my thoughts. I was crying? I felt my face, and sure enough, it was wet. My cheeks flushed red.
"I'm fine. Just had a rough day."
"Well, do ya wanna join us?" Soda asked.
"Sure," I moved to sit with them. Hopefully a game of poker would cheer me up.

XXX

Even though I promised myself I wouldn't return to my house, I did. Dad's car was gone, so I was safe for now. I climbed up the steps to my house and walked through the door.
"Delanie, honey, is that you?" "Yeah, mom. It's me." I ran up the stairs to my room before being interrogated. As soon as I got there, I flopped myself on my bed. I took out the one picture of my family I owned.

It's sad. The photo just radiated a sense of fakeness. My parents' smiles weren't even real. They didn't seem to enjoy being with us anymore. Heck, my brother and sister weren't even looking at the camera. They wanted to be somewhere else, not with us. And me? I was smiling. I was so oblivious to the fact that my family was falling apart, that I didn't realize that I was the only one truly happy to be there. What's even sadder is that this photo was taken when I was 9.

6 years. 6 years ago my family started breaking down. I don't even know why. It like, the "Being a Family" switch blew out.
The fights and arguments started, bruises formed, people changed, life got bad. But then, I met the only people who would genuinely be nice to me and accept me into their family. Those were the Curtises, the Mathews, Steve Randle, Johnny Cade, and Dallas Winston. These guys were the only family I had. And, boy, was I grateful for them.

A knock at the door interrupted my thoughts. I ignored it until the door opened. When I saw who it was, I immediately got scared.
"What the hell? Why aren't ya opening yer door?" My brother, Brock, was big and brute. He wasn't afraid to hit anyone, and he really liked to hit me. Once you got him mad, well, you won't want to get him mad again.
"Where were you last night, huh?"
"None of your damn business, Brock. Leave me alone." I was always the one with the snappy mouth. Brock was getting angry, but frankly, I didn't care.
"I'mma ask you one more time. Where the hell were you last night? It better have not been with them damn Curtises. Damn pansies."

I didn't answer. I just rolled over and pretended to sleep. A minute later, he grabbed me by my shirt and pulled me face to face with him. I looked into his angry blue eyes. He slapped me, hard, across the face.
"When I ask you a question, you better answer, you hear?" He threw me down on the floor and left my room. I landed on my back.
I got up, crying, and looked in my mirror. My face already had a nasty red mark on it, and my back was killing me.

I got my backpack again, grabbed my secret stash of cash, and climbed out my window. Once again, I didn't know where I was going.

A/N: Sorry for the short chap! It's only a kinda introductory chappie, so please don't be mad. Please review if you could! Thanks, lovelies.