Reviews:

Aahmariya - I'm glad you liked it! And I think most of us want to be greasers (I know I do! :p)

PercyboyCade - Aw, that's great to hear! I'm so happy that I was able to capture your attention with the first chapter. I hope this second one won't disappoint you. :)

AN - Sorry for such a long wait! I needed to figure out where the plot of this was going cause I can't properly foreshadow things if I have no idea what's going on. That being said, a huge thank you goes out to ForeverMandi because she's awesome and helped me figure out the plot. Like, seriously, she is amazing (cause she can write AND put up with me :p) Anyway, please enjoy chapter 2 and if you really like the story, I'd be super grateful if you'd review/follow/favorite it. :D

I was still shaken from yesterday. Seeing my brother like that... A mess of rambling nonsense... He didn't remember, though. Or maybe he just pretended he didn't for my sake. I grumbled a bit as I gathered up the ingredients for my breakfast cause I hated that he never let me in. He always had to be tough when I was around.

But don't you do the same to him? That small voice inside me really knew the score. Not like I'd ever admit to being a hypocrite, but deep down, I couldn't hide. You feel so bad 'bout yourself and he don't know. Ya don't let him in. So why're ya complainin'?

Sometimes, I wanted to hit myself. Maybe then my stupid thoughts would just shut up and leave me alone. I slammed the milk jug I'd been holding down on the table. Two-Bit cringed, looking up from his own breakfast to shake his head at me.

"Take it easy, Care," he mumbled. Then he went on eating. He'd been weird since yesterday, kinda like he never recovered from what happened.

What happened... I didn't actually know how to explain it. Even after I reduced the situation to its most basic components, something wasn't adding up. He talked to the weird girl, came back inside muttering some crap about an 'apocalypse'. Then he just snapped out of it and went on with his day. All he'd said about it was that the girl wasn't right in the head.

He wouldn't talk to me. But I'd never talked to him either. My brother couldn't really handle serious stuff, though. Everything had to be a joke, otherwise it was too painful. I wished I had someone like Soda for a brother. Pony always told me about how supportive the middle Curtis brother was, how he understood everything. Sodapop knew how to listen and offer up advice. Two-Bit didn't.

I loved my brother cause he was good to me and funny and as loyal as they come. But for him, words didn't solve problems. Fists and switchblades did. Nothing wrong with that. It just wasn't too effective when the issue didn't have a physical form to attack.

But maybe if I tried - really tried - he would understand. So I took a deep breath and went with it. "Hey, Two-Bit? Can I talk to ya 'bout somethin'?"

"Course. What's up?"

My back was to him cause I was putting away all the left over food items. But I felt the kindness in his voice, the concern. I shoved the milk into the refrigerator and turned to face him. I sat down across the table, glancing down at my oatmeal, feeling self-conscious.

"You okay?" he asked, setting down his own spoon. I felt his eyes studying me, as if he thought he could figure out what was wrong without being told.

"Well-"

The front door burst open and Mom came storming in. That shut me up real fast. I'd never seen her that pissed off before. Never. And it scared the shit out of me. I averted my eyes, concentrating on eating my breakfast, hoping I wouldn't draw her attention. Even Two-Bit - with his limited understanding of social cues - knew to hunch over his bowl and pretend he hadn't noticed.

Mom paused in the kitchen doorway. I felt her fiery gaze on me, but she said nothing. After a moment, I heard her stomp up the stairs, leaving us in peace. Slowly, I lifted my eyes. Two-Bit sat up straight again, frowning as he stared off at the corner Mom had disappeared around. Then he turned back to me with a small shrug.

"So, what was it you were talkin' 'bout, Carrie?" he asked, mouth full with the last couple spoonfuls of oatmeal.

"Nothin'..." I muttered.

"If ya say so." He got up and put his bowl in the sink. Well, he put his bowl on a stack of dishes that was already in the sink. Nobody'd cleaned in a while... It was a wonder we had any clean utensils left.

I nodded, avoiding his eyes. Just couldn't stand to look at him right then cause I'd chickened out and he knew it. But he didn't know what this all meant. Maybe it was easier if he stayed out of this mess. Whatever horrible thing was happening, I could take care of it on my own. No need for my brother to worry. I'd let him stay happy-go-lucky for a little longer.

"I'm gonna hang out with the guys today," he said as he grabbed his jacket from the couch. He paused by the door, giving me a concerned look. "Ya wanna come with me?"

"Nah, I gotta do the dishes," I replied, waving him along. He waved briefly then left, that look of concern being replaced with a wild grin as he thought of the fun he was about to have.

Watching him go, I felt even worse than before. I really did want to hang out with him, but I knew his friends didn't like me too much. Soda only talked to me to be polite. Steve never called me anything more than 'Two-Bit's sister'. Dally looked through me. I was just a little girl in their eyes, just the baby sister of a friend.

It wasn't fair. I was the same age as Ponyboy and they all accepted him. More than anything, I wanted the gang to take me seriously. And if that was too much to ask, I wanted them to see me as a woman. Once, just once, I wanted one of them to rake his eyes down my body like I was a full-figured broad at some party. But that would never happen. Even if I wasn't their friend's sister...

Not like I really wanted it to happen. I wasn't attracted to one of Two-Bit's friends or anything like that. But I wished someone would notice me for once. Didn't matter who.

"Hey, Carrie!"

I jumped out of my seat, tipping over my half-full bowl. "Jesus, Pony!" I cried out. "When did you get here?"

He shrugged. "Just now. The door was open."

Sighing, I fetched a towel and mopped up the spilled oatmeal. I tossed the bowl into the sink. Wasn't hungry anyway... I turned on the faucet and started in on the mountain of dirty plates.

"Here, let me help ya," Pony said, grabbing another towel. "You wash, I'll dry and put 'em away, alright?"

"Okay."

We did the dishes in silence for a while. I really enjoyed it, knowing that I had at least one friend. And we didn't even need to talk. We just enjoyed each other's company. It was a pleasant change of pace, not having to worry about what he was thinking. But with me, everything good had to end so he started talking.

"Are you feelin' alright?" he asked, drying off a couple of forks. "Soda told me what happened yesterday... It must've been real scary for ya."

"I'm fine." I scrubbed at a stubborn grease stain on our frypan. Eventually, I set it back down to soak some more.

I sensed Pony frowning. So I turned and glared at him. "What?"

"Well, I'm thinkin' we should take a break," he said, throwing his towel down on the counter. He looked awful proud of himself for some reason. "Your hands've been rubbed raw by the soap and I can tell when somethin' is botherin' you. Why don't we take a walk? Get your mind off things?"

Reluctantly, I dried my hands and followed Pony out of my house. This time, I made sure the door was locked before leaving. I thought it would get real ugly if someone decided to burst into the house and mess around. Mom would kill that poor soul - no question.

When I finished agonizing over the lock, Pony grabbed my wrist and pulled me down the sidewalk. It was kinda adorable, actually. The way he sometimes acted like an overly eager toddler, I mean. I let him drag me a couple blocks then finally offered up resistance. He frowned at me, trying to keep pulling me. But I didn't budge.

"Where you think you're takin' me?" I demanded.

"It's a secret."

He took me down a side road and, as we rounded the corner, I could've sworn I saw something following us. This happened a couple times more. By the third time, I could clearly make out the delicate features of the Girl on the Doorstep. My blood turned to ice, but I tried to tell myself that my mind was playing tricks on me.

Pony stopped in the abandoned lot, a triumphant grin taking over his face. I wasn't thrilled. Smiled anyway, though, cause I didn't want to hurt his feelings. From a distance, I heard him explaining the significance of bringing me here - something to do with his brothers.

But I was distracted. Something was wrong... I felt it before I saw it, the presence that cast its miserable glow on everything around it. She was there, standing behind Ponyboy. How had I not noticed her before?

I tried to warn him. Nothing came out of my lips, though, not even a sound. All I could do was watch as the girl reached out a pale hand and touched the back of Pony's neck. He gave a violent shudder just as the girl disappered. His head dropped and there was an eerie stillness in the air. Like everything had died.

"You okay, Pony?" I asked, voice feeble.

As he looked up, I noticed a strangeness in his eyes. Something foreign. Malicious. And when he spoke, it was in hushed tones laced with poison.

"Thief," he whispered. "Stole from me... I'll get him... Get the thief... He'll pay... Trade... Life for life..." He made direct eye contact with me. "When I'm strong... I'm gonna kill you..."