I'm baaaack! Special thanks to One Wing in the Fire and FrankElza, who was my main motivation for continuing to write! I know it's been foreverrrrr since the last update, but that's because I'm working on two other stories!
Me: *wants to write just one non-dramatic chapter*
Also me: *literally cannot*
If you want to write a chill chapter for me hmu because I need one lol!! Lol jk I'll try with the next one thoughhhh haha x) This chapter isn't too well-written but I'm also working on that for future chapters!!
ALSO! I know I haven't been putting Angela in this story at all, so can we just pretend she's at her grandparents' house or something:) When all this calms down then I might go into that but this story is way too busy as it is at the moment so haha :)
Get ready for chapter seven because it. IS. HERE!!!
Curly's eyes traveled over Trev until he and the other boy were locked in a seemingly endless staring match. Trev's eyes were filled with hatred and Curly was sure his looked the same way.
"Trev," Curly acknowledged at last, hating how weak his voice sounded. His health was going downhill rather rapidly and he was starting to get pretty concerned. Was it normal to feel this sick in such a short period of time? Maybe the craziness of the day was just catching up to him.
"Shepard," Trev returned in a mocking voice.
Damn, Darry needs to hurry the hell up.
"What do you want? We ain't fighting yet!" Curly said reproachfully. He wished Trev would leave already. Somehow, no matter where Curly went, trouble just seemed to follow him around everywhere.
Trev smirked at him. Curly had never been more inclined to murder someone in his entire life.
"I was gonna use the phone, but I guess you got to it before me. Who're ya calling? Your big brother to come pick you up and take you homeeee?" Trev said patronizingly. "Oh! Wait! I forgot, he's in the hospital! Well, that's so fucking disappointing, isn't it?"
Curly would have taken a swing at Trev right then and there if he had thought he could stand up without getting ridiculously dizzy, but at the moment, he felt worse than he'd ever felt, so he settled on a death glare and another snide remark.
"What's disappointing is your shitty insults. Now, go somewhere else and bitch at someone other than me for once, yeah?"
Trev clearly had nothing better to do that irritate Curly all night long since he refused to leave; the hood pretended to consider Curly's suggestion for a moment and then shrugged with another smirk.
"Nah. I think I'll just stay here with you! Let's bond!" he said in the worst fake-cheerful voice Curly had ever heard. He was acting so idiotic that Curly was getting more and more tempted to strike out at him any minute now. Thankfully, he was saved by whatever would have happened next by Darry appearing at the end of the hallway. Even Trev seemed to recognize the oldest Curtis brother instantly. It was hard to forget Darry; his authoritative air and ridiculously strong body physique weren't that common among people in this town. Curly waved him over.
"Darry! Hey!" Curly called.
Darry walked over to the two of them and Trev quickly made his escape, slipping past Darry and heading downstairs. Curly almost wanted to laugh at the how pathetic Trev was for being entirely willing to torment him all night and suddenly having something else to do the moment Darry showed up.
"Curly? You're not looking too good." Darry said with a frown.
"I'm not feelin' too good either," Curly added miserably with a yawn. He slowly stood up, still relying on the wall to support him. Darry seemed to notice it and helped keep him steady the entire way to the truck, which Curly was thankful he didn't mention when they were driving back to his place.
Unfortunately, he couldn't avoid the other questions Darry had.
"So," Darry started, "You wanna explain what you were doing at Buck's?"
"Um. I just wanted to get some rest," Curly answered, not offering up any other information. It wasn't really a lie - he had been trying to get some sleep. Darry raised an eyebrow at that.
"At Buck's?! The only place in town with parties all day and night?" Darry asked incredulously.
"It was either that or the street."
"The street?" Darry repeated, surprised. "What about your house? Why didn't you go there?"
Curly was suddenly very interested in the passing scenes outside the window. Why didn't he go there? Maybe because his dad would have beat the shit out of him?
Instead of everything more complicated, Curly settled on a simple, "I dunno."
He could tell Darry didn't buy it, but he didn't keep asking questions, and so Curly was okay with it. Besides, he felt like a human furnace and didn't want any more confrontations tonight. The sight of the Curtis's house had never been more welcoming. He was about to clamber out of the truck when Darry turned around in his seat to face Curly.
"Wait, Curly. You know you're always welcome to come stay here whenever you need a place to go?" he asked sincerely.
"I know," Curly lied. In all honesty, he didn't feel that it was his place to be another person who Darry needed to feed - he had his hands full with his brothers and his other gang members. Darry nodded.
"Okay. Can you get out without my help?"
"Course I can."
Curly did manage to make inside, where he instantly tossed himself onto the couch and shut his eyes. He was out less than a minute later. Darry quietly shut the door and noticed Curly already fast asleep on the couch. Poor kid. He must be exhausted.
Darry quickly fetched a spare blanket and lay it across Curly's form. Just as he was getting ready to head back to bed, Soda appeared in the doorway of his and Pony's room. "Dar? What are ya doing up?" he asked sleepily.
Darry debated whether or not to tell Soda the truth or not. He figured that his younger brother would find out in the morning anyway; it was probably better to just tell him now.
"Soda. I had to go pick Curly up from Buck's because he wouldn't sleep at his own house. I think there's something he's not telling us."
"Like what?" Soda immediately asked. "Something bad?"
Darry immediately hushed him. "Soda, not so loud! One, I don't want Curly to hear, and two, he's sleeping and I think he has a fever."
Soda whispered, "Sorry," and motioned for Darry to follow him into Darry's own room. He sat on Darry's bed and as soon as the door was shut, Darry joined him.
"Alright. So, as I was saying, I think something's up with him. It just doesn't make sense why he would choose Buck's over his own house to catch some sleep. He can't say he didn't know Buck's has a party going on almost every day."
Soda slowly nodded, taking everything in. It didn't make much sense to him either, and he could immediately tell what Darry was trying to tell him. He was pretty great at reading people.
"You think something sketchy is going on at his house and you want to know what."
Soda stated it matter-of-factly. It was obvious to him that was exactly what Darry had been trying to tell him without outright saying it. He was just like that at reading people.
Darry gave a slight nod.
"Yeah, you think-"
"Don't worry, I'll get Steve to help me get to the bottom of it faster than you'll believe, Dar!" Soda assured him. "Now, you get some rest," he said with a pointed look at Darry.
Darry smiled at him. "Alright, alright. You too, little buddy!"
"You got it," Soda agreed, getting up and giving Darry a small wave as he shut the door behind him.
Darry remained sitting on his bed for a good another ten minutes, just sitting there in silence and thinking everything over. When he'd had enough of dwelling on the current situation, he made himself comfortable and finally fell asleep.
Many hours later, after everyone had slept in well into the afternoon, Darry was woken by a persistent knocking on his door. He rolled over unhappily and groaned in annoyance, "What?" as he made his way towards the door. He came face-to-face with a concerned-looking Soda.
"Soda? What's up? Did something happen?" he asked, more awake now.
Darry was hoping more than anything that something else did not happen.
"No, it's just that Curly said he really had to talk to you and he wouldn't tell me anything about what he wanted," Soda said with a lost expression. He looked dead tired, but Darry was positive that everyone would look like that today. He sighed and reluctantly nodded.
"Just send him in here."
As Soda yelled for Curly, Darry glanced over at the clock. Two o'clock.
"Shit, wait! I was supposed to go into work today!" Darry suddenly exclaimed. "I'm already two hours late! My boss will have my neck if he hasn't already halved my paycheck! Soda, I have got to go right now! Tell Curly to talk to you or Pony," he said in a panic, rushing around to get ready just as Curly appeared in the doorway. The second he was ready to go he was out the door and headed to work in record time.
Curly, who had been silently watching him leave the whole time, looked up at Soda with an expression of betrayal.
"You said he was going to talk to me and he just rushed out!" he said accusingly.
Soda shrugged self-consciously. "He said he was already two hours late to work and...he needs to keep that job. Just talk to me or Pony?" he offered awkwardly.
"You wouldn't get it!" Curly said in frustration. He may have been giving Soda a little less credit than he deserved, but he was worried that Soda would just tell everyone else whatever Curly said and he didn't want that. Pony would probably go to Soda and tell him too; he'd specifically wanted to talk to Darry because he honestly believed that whatever he told Darry wouldn't be spread to his fellow gang members within minutes.
Soda stared at him silently, taken aback. He personally thought that he was great at understanding things and couldn't fathom any reasons why Curly would need to specifically talk to Darry.
"You know what, just forget it. I'm going out!" Curly snapped, whirling around and shoving the door open, stomping out into the street. Soda quickly stepped out onto the front porch.
"Curly! Get back here!" Soda shouted. If Curly ran off one more time he thought he'd have a heart attack or something. The kid could not just stay put.
Curly didn't respond and vanished around a bend. Soda was tempted to chase him, but he couldn't leave the place without telling Pony or someone else. He didn't need them thinking that Darry, Curly, and him had all been kidnapped or something equally as crazy, and he was the only one besides Curly who knew where Darry went.
"Pony!" he hollered. "Steve! Johnny! Two-Bit! Come here!"
The urgency of his voice must have made the others nervous because they were all out in a matter of seconds. Steve yawned and blearily asked, "What's up?"
"Curly just ran away again, and Darry went to work cause he was already late."
"Curly ran away? Again? Damn, no one has any fuckin' control over that kid," Steve growled in frustration. Soda quickly nodded and then said, "Maybe true, but right now do any of you know where he would have gone to? I don't know where he hangs out and I'm worried he'll do something irrational."
It was then that Pony decided to speak up. "He'd either go to his own house, the house of one of his gang member's, or Buck's, right? Isn't he always at one of those places?" Pony hesitantly asserted.
Soda mulled this over for a brief moment before conceding.
"Probably. He wouldn't go back to Buck's, most likely-" Soda added, seeing everyone's confused looks they gave him, "-I'll tell you later, but I don't think his own house is very likely, which I'll also tell you why later, and so that leaves one of his gang members' places? You know any, Pone?"
Pony immediately shook his head, much to Soda's disappointment.
"I don't ever go on the Shepards' turf unless Curly or Tim is with me."
"Okay, alright, um...guess we're gonna do that today, then?" Soda replied nervously. He'd heard stories of uninvited visitors crossing into Shepard territory and the things that had happened to them and wasn't really looking forward to it.
As soon as he got a wary nod of agreement from each of his friends, they all set out in the direction that Curly had gone to.
"We'll be spending our whole lives chasing Curly all over town," Steve remarked unhappily. He was the least okay with this little trek into foreign territory because he'd been the only one who had a near run-in with some of the hoods on this side of town once before. He still wasn't sure how he managed to escape unharmed, but he wasn't itching to risk his life again; however, he also definitely didn't want to have Soda go wandering into this place with just Pony, Johnny, and Two-Bit.
"You know, guys, I've actually been here before," Steve casually said. "And I wouldn't go down that road because that's where all the hoods who are just barely members of Tim's gang stay, and they don't really care about his rules if I'm being honest."
This earned him a few weird looks. "How would you know?" Pony piped up. He thought he was the only one who knew even the slightest bit about this place.
Steve just shrugged.
"I have my ways," he vaguely answered, picking up his pace so that he was walking with Soda instead of behind him with Pony and Johnny. He wasn't in the mood to launch into a big discussion with Pony at the moment.
The five turned down the street that Steve suggested and Steve suddenly halted, causing Johnny to run straight into him. Both of them stumbled and Steve harshly whispered, "Johnny!" Johnny whispered back, "Sorry," even though he wasn't sure why they were even whispering. As soon as Steve noticed Soda about to ask what was going on, he put his hand over Soda's mouth and pulled him down, motioning for the others to get down too. The tangly bushes growing along the sidewalk were somewhat of a cover.
"Look!" Steve quickly whispered, pointing beyond the bushes.
There, standing face-to-face, was Curly and some other boy who didn't look all that friendly. In fact, Steve was pretty sure he'd rather have a run-in with a grizzly bear than this guy, who was no doubt one of the hoods who hung out on Tim's turf all the time.
A split second later, the relative silence was broken with yelling and cursing of all sorts. The other guy had thrown the first punch and now he and Curly were really having it out right in the deserted lot.
For a moment, all the boys watching the fight go down were too shocked to do anything, but finally, Two-Bit was the first to leap into action. He stood up and ran towards the two, shouting, "Hey! Both of you chill out!"
Curly yanked himself free from Trev's grasp and shoved Two-Bit back. "Fuck off! Just stop sticking your nose into my business all the time!" Curly growled. He wasn't all that surprised that he'd been followed. He knew the second he'd taken off that Soda would come after him one way or another, either with or without his gang.
Two-Bit wasn't having Curly's attitude. "You can fuck off! I just saved your ass! Now come back with us!" he demanded, motioning to the rest of them. The recent events had taken their toll on Two-Bit as well, and he wasn't in a mood to play around with Curly.
"No. Again, fuck. Off."
Soda went to stand beside Two-Bit before things got out of hand.
"Hey, hey! I think we should both calm down a little. Curly, can you please just come to my place?" Soda asked gently.
Trev's previous taunts of someone always having to save him echoed throughout Curly's head.
"No! I'm not a kid, I can handle things! It's not like I'm an invalid or something," Curly hissed venomously. He could see Trev smirking at him from behind Soda and quick as a flash, he'd darted around the middle Curtis brother and leaped on Trev. He'd show the bastard that he wasn't no kid.
He tuned out everyone's shouts and when he felt someone trying to pull him off Trev again, he swung out without thinking and heard a crack. Turning around quickly, he was met with the stunned green eyes of Ponyboy Curtis. Everyone froze for a moment before Pony slowly raised his hand up to his nose and drew it away, studying the blood that was smeared on his palm.
"Pony, I-I'm sorry!" Curly stammered. He hadn't meant to break his friend's nose and was suddenly mad at his own stupidity.
Pony numbly nodded and tentatively touched his nose again. His face screwed up in pain - he'd never had anything broken before and it hurt like hell - and Curly was so distracted that Trev's punch to his face took him by surprise and he was knocked backwards, his head hitting the ground with a harsh thud. Trev took advantage of his fall and was on him in an instant. Curly struggled, but the blood running into his eyes was making it impossible to see anything and his head was pounding. Eventually, the weight on top of him vanished, and he heard Two-Bit's voice shout, "Get outta here!"
Curly dizzily sat up, wiped his eyes, and promptly noticed Trev's retreating form. Just when he thought Trev wouldn't turn around, he did, and shouted to Curly, "Watch your back, kid! And stay away from Tim's gang because you're not Tim and I just beat you fair and square. Don't forget our deal," he yelled, turning back around and hastily retreating.
Curly didn't have the energy to tell him that yes, he wasn't Tim, but no, that wasn't a fair fight. In a fair fight, people weren't trying to pull the two fighters apart every chance they got because that completely distracted both of the people fighting. He'd gotten distracted, and now he just lost control of everything Tim had worked for his entire life because he couldn't stay focused on a damn fight. He was hurting too bad and wasn't strong enough to challenge Trev again. Besides, he knew that the sick feeling he'd gotten earlier was probably contributing to his now worse state. He sure did hate himself a lot right now, though.
For that reason, when Soda leaned down and asked if he needed any help getting up, he entirely ignored the offer and stood up on his own.
The blood running down his face was warm and unsettling, and he considered just going home with the Curtis's gang and not making his situation worse, but he couldn't face Pony again tonight. Plus, he knew it wasn't fair, but he blamed them for interrupting his fight and now how would he get the gang back? This was what he and Trev had agreed on to decide who got to control the gang, and Trev was probably spreading the word right this very instant. No one would believe Curly if he tried to argue against Trev now, given how Trev was clearly the better-off one of them both after this fight.
He immediately turned on his heel and started heading towards his house, having to wipe his face every few moments to keep the blood from his head from blurring his vision again. He was thankful that no one tried to stop him because he didn't want to hit someone else.
The one thing that he was grateful for was the fact that his father wasn't home like he usually was. He could finally get some decent rest for once in his life. He didn't even want to bother with cleaning all his wounds at the moment, and he trudged off to his room. He halted as soon as he passed Tim's door and instantly decided to go in there instead. Usually, Tim's room was off limits, but there was no one around to reinforce that currently, and Curly didn't feel the least bit guilty about walking into Tim's room. Shutting the door behind him, Curly was glad to climb into Tim's unmade bed and make himself comfortable under the covers. The familiar scent of cigarette smoke and that cheap cologne that Curly never could stand the smell of were suddenly the two sweetest scents Curly had ever smelled in his entire life, and it was only a matter of seconds before he'd fallen asleep.