Author's Note: I've been planning how the next few chapters will go ever since I've started writing this story, so they won't take as long as they usually would unless my schedule slows me down. Please vote in my poll on my profile when you can; it would be a great help to me and my writing (so, in a way, it kinda helps you, too). Thanks!

LMDG:)

P.S. The name of the horse is dedicated to ThatNerdyFashionista, and although it may make no sense, it does to her, me, and Kyokitty 4ever, and I just had to put it in somehow.

Disclaimer: I don't own The Outsiders; I only own my OCs, and in the next few chapters, there will be many!

Now I was finally ready. I needed all my sleep in order to be at my best tomorrow, when we start off on our road trip. My breath slowed, and my eyes closed. Here we go…

January 30, 2012; 6:15 am

Our goodbyes were quick, because we wanted to get to our first house as soon as possible. First Lea and Onyx gave Granddad hugs and hold him they were going to miss him; then it was my turn. I walked up to him, unsure of what to say, but then he pulled me into a hug and whispered in my ear like he did when I was a little girl.

"I have faith in you, Kim. I'm so proud of you."

I felt the sting of tears welling in my eyes as those words took my heart and threw it in a shredder. Hearing Granddad say those words to me… knowing that he was there in the past for me to save Onyx and will be back home waiting for me to come home in victory... the feeling was unimaginable. I wrapped my arms, which were weak and frail in comparison to his, around him tightly, wishing that I didn't have to go. I wanted to be here and now in the safety of his company; why couldn't I have that?

I heard the roar of the van that Onyx offered to drive with his nice, new driver's license (he just turned sixteen—I was so extremely jealous because my sixteenth birthday wasn't for another five months), and I felt Granddad's embrace slacken. It was time for us to go. I kissed Granddad on the cheek, hoping it was enough, seeing how I was too choked up on my tears to speak, and sprinted against the brisk winter wind to a seemingly endless journey to 1967.

January 30 2012; 6:45am

Earlier that morning, we had planned out our route. Our first stop would be in Colorado, at my cousin Jeremy's ranch. We would get there by around four that afternoon if we left a little after six in the morning; then we would be there until after dinner and drive off to Chicago, Illinois, where Camryn Randle apparently lived with her parents in an apartment complex. We didn't have the times (or other stops, for that matter) planned out yet for that part, but hopefully we would by the time we got to Jeremy's.

About a half hour into the trip to Colorado, we were extremely bored with the awkward silence that hung in the air. In a desperate attempt to break the ice, I plugged in my iPod and played my favorite playlist. I had no idea that the stereo's volume was up way too high; the second I pressed play, the van literally began to shake to "Rumour Has It" by Adele. That was the last time I ever played anything without checking the volume, because I was sure my eardrums had shattered after that even more awkward experience.

January 30, 2012; 3:57pm

After being on the road for hours on end, it was such a relief when we pulled up to Jeremy's ranch. It felt so good to be on solid ground; we had been cooped up in that van since our last stop at a gas station at around two.

I hadn't seen him since Thanksgiving because he had a horseback riding competition. 16-year-old Jeremy was the kind of guy who always had your back, and now that I think of it, he was a lot like his grandfather, Sodapop, who lived with Jeremy, his parents, and their 3-year-old daughter, Macy. Jeremy's parents met through a competition in Arizona, and so they decided that their passion for horses would most certainly be passed down to their son by making him take lessons and attend competitions just like they did. It was a good thing he loved horses, or I wouldn't know how he would've managed in that setting. Other than Granddad, he was the closest one to me in my family.

The Curtis ranch in Colorado was huge, and I'm not exaggerating. Their property took up at least four acres, their house covering about one of them. A huge wave of nostalgia washed over me; Granddad and I would come here for Thanksgiving and Christmas every year.

I turned around and saw Onyx's and Lea's eyes, which were wide in shock, but they sucked it up and followed me when I turned and approached the fence to the riding grounds.

Just then, a rider cantered out of the trees atop a beautiful chocolate brown stallion. The rider and the horse leaped over each jump on the grounds, but then they slowed down and trotted over to us when the rider spotted us. When the rider removed his helmet, I saw the happy face of Jeremy Curtis. He tied his stallion's harness to the fence and, to my surprise, pulled me off the ground in a bear hug.

"Good lord, Kimmy, I missed you!" he gasped in his jolly country twang.

"Missed you too, Jer," I replied with a grin when he put me down.

"So… what brings you here?" he asked, motioning for us to follow him as he led his horse back to the stables.

I waited until we were in the shade of the stables before answering. "Long story, and I have to explain to the family all together."

"That important, huh?" he sighed, noticing the sudden solemnness of my tone. "Well, can you at least introduce me to your buddies here?" he smirked as he took the leather saddle off his horse.

"This is Lea Matthews and Onyx Cade. Their grandfathers were friends with ours back when they were our age," I explained.

Jeremy shook their hands eagerly. Onyx smiled at him like the sweetie he is, but for some reason, Lea just nodded, which was a bit out of character for her. Maybe it was the day on the road that made her like this; I wasn't exactly sure.

"Who's this?" Onyx asked curiously. I don't think he's ever seen a horse in person before.

Jeremy smiled brightly; talking about horses was probably his second favorite thing to do besides riding them. "Ah, this is Butter. I know, funny name… but it just fits 'im, you know?"

Onyx and I nodded in understanding. I knew what he meant; Jeremy was crazy like that.

Lea just yawned and said, "Well, I'm gonna go inside and look for a bathroom. Emergency," before dashing off.

Yeah, the road definitely did something to her.