Instead of watching the Oscars, I wrote you all a chapter. :) Enjoy!

My next act wasn't exactly bravery. But it had deep meaning behind it. Gangs hold a lot of worth in the nuances of meaning. The smallest of actions can make you man of the hour while the simplest of mistakes could cost you your life.

It had been nearly four months since Deb's death. A long time, yet it felt like it had passed within the span of a week. My visits to the clinic were becoming less and less of a necessity and I'd managed to gain nearly twenty pounds. Unlike the majority of the population, the extra weight made me glow with pride. I filled out clothes like a normal human being, and my body was finally starting to look strong. It was a good time in my life. Not the best, but much better than it had been.

Joey was always around, to the point where my sofa had become his home away from home. This was a welcome change…most nights.

But not when Steven came over.

Our relationship was…complicated. He worked for my father, fixing cars and doing god knows what else. His loyalty belonged to Bones and he had made it clear that's where it would stay.

But his heart belonged to me. He'd made that clear also. On more than one occasion, he'd shown up just to hold me, too exhausted to do much else. And I didn't mind. It was almost too perfect for someone like me. Steven was gentle, protective, and honest. And when I needed him, I knew he was a phone call away. When I wanted him, he would appear without prompting and give me all I could take. That was more than I could have ever asked for.

It was after one such night that this story begins.

Steven was an early riser, so he'd dressed and gone before I'd even begun to stir. It was normal to find the indent of his body abandoned. Rolling over, I put my face into the spot in the sheets and inhaled, savoring the sweet, faded smell of him. Waking up together had, so far, been uncharted territory. But I fantasized about the day when he would be there, holding me when I slogged from the depths of slumber.

"HARLEY!" A bellow and a storm of knocks erupted from my front door, sending me straight into the air. "OPEN UP, GODDAMN IT!" Scrambling to find some suitable clothes, I tugged on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt before I rushed to unlock the door. My brother wasted no time barging inside, slamming and locking the door behind him.

"Joey! What the hell?" I asked, crossing my arms to fight off the gust of cool air from the hall. He paced around the living room for a beat before he shot towards me, grabbing both of my shoulders.

"I need a favor." Blinking, I studied his expression. It was obvious he hadn't slept, and his eyes were wild.

"What ya need is ta fuckin' relax." I murmured, raising an eyebrow. "Are you high?" He flinched, retracting as if I'd hit him. My mouth fell open.

"JOEY!" He tugged on the ends of his hair, hissing air through his teeth.

"This is fucked." His words were muttered and almost inaudible. I shook my head.

"What the fuck happened? Start from the begin—"

"THEY'RE FUCKIN' COMING! I DON'T HAVE TIME!" Joey screamed so abruptly I winced, stepping away out of fear. He was circling again, mumbling to himself.

"Who, Joey? Tell me who's coming." I'd seen paranoia from drugs before; I'd even felt it myself. Watching him panic, I tried my best to soothe.

"THE GODDAMN COPS." He bellowed and stared at me, panting. His pupils were so dilated; whatever he'd taken was still strong in his system. My calm demeanor was going to get me nowhere.

"Sit." I said, taking a line from Bodie and pointing to the recliner. Joey clamped his eyes closed.

"I don't have TIME!" Stepping closer, I shook my head.

"Sit down goddamn it!" Joey snapped his mouth shut and dropped into the chair, his hands fidgeting on the armrests. I let a breath whoosh from my lungs and ran my fingers through my hair. As I searched for a solution, Joey shot from the chair.

"I need ta leave!" Giving up on subtlety, I shoved him back into the recliner.

"What is your favor?" I asked, trying to get some sort of sense from him.

"I need ya to tell the cops I was here last night." My heart fell into my stomach as his eyes shone with guilt. This wasn't paranoia, something was seriously wrong.

"Why? What happened?" Joey's face crumbled and he let out a long groan, smacking his forehead with both hands.

"I fucked up. I'm fucked. This is fucked. Bill is—" Then he looked up at me, his eyes wide. "Oh shit…Bill. He's gonna goddamn kill me. Oh fuck. FUCK!" He was up again, racing past me to the bathroom. His fear gripped me, freezing me in place as he ran the sink. When his voice rang out from the room, I listened, hand over my mouth.

"They were at the door when I woke up, fuckin' knockin' and yellin' and I ran down the fuckin' fire escape. How many blocks?...Had ta be like thirteen." Walking into the doorway, I watched him ramble, hunched over the sink at he splashed handfuls of water into his face. "I can't think. FUCK!" He was scared, his face turning red as he stared at himself in the mirror. Gently, I walked up behind him and ran a hand over his back.

"It's alright. We'll figure it ou—" I didn't get to finish my sentence. Knocks thundered from the abused front door.

"POLICE! OPEN THE DOOR!" I knew what to do before I could even process a plan.

"Get in the shower." I ordered, ripping Joey's shirt over his head and tugging on his jeans. He nodded, following my direction without asking. It was as if we were on the same wavelength, understanding each other instantly. When he was in his boxers, I grabbed his shoes and turned on the shower, running down the hall to my bedroom.

Burying his clothes in the hamper beneath my dirty work uniform, I had slipped into sneakers as the sound of splintering wood exploded in the front of my apartment.

"FUCK!" I screamed, covering my ears and whirling to face the hallway. Six officers swarmed in, armed to the teeth and aiming their guns at me.

"GET YOUR HANDS UP!" I did as I was told, shaking in honest fear. It had only been moments earlier that I'd stumbled from bed; now I was facing a mass of angry policeman. One motioned to the bathroom door and he put his hand on the knob.

"Don't hurt him!" I yelled. "JOEY!" My words were barely heard over their yells as they busted into the bathroom. I heard his fear under their commands and I started to cry, inching down the hall. "DON'T HURT HIM!" An officer held out an arm.

"Stay back." The sound of a body on the floor sent a jolt of pain through me. Joey let out a muffled groan and the metallic clink of handcuffs echoed in the tiled room.

"Joseph Darley, you're under arrest for the attempted murder of Antonio Jones. You have the right to remain silent…" I tried to crane my neck for a look at the scene. Joey's head appeared, his disheveled and wet hair sticking every which way. As they pulled him out into the hall, I lurched forward to get closer. A cop grabbed my shoulder and wrenched me back.

"GET YOUR FUCKIN' HANDS OFF OF HER!" Joey suddenly screamed, his face red with fury. His outburst earned him a jab in the gut and I clawed to get away from the officer.

"DON'T HIT HIM YOU GODDAMN ASSHOLE!" Tears were blurring my eyes, but it didn't slow me down. I thrashed in the hands of two men. Drawing back an arm in an attempt to escape, I connected my elbow with one of their faces.

"Shit!" The cop yelled, ducking away. I froze for a moment, shocked at what I'd done.

Then I met wall.

"Well, honey, ya just earned yourself a ride with ya little friend." My arms were wrenched behind my back and I whimpered in pain as cold metal clamped around my wrists. Without delay, I was cuffed and forced down the hallway. They dragged me with my brother, reciting the same rights all the way out to the cruisers.

As they paraded us down the sidewalk, I remember seeing the entire neighborhood watching, standing around as I trembled in the cold. In nothing but shorts and a t-shirt, I was pushed into the back seat of a cruiser for all to see.

"The sooner ya tell the truth, the sooner ya can leave." The officer chided for the hundredth time, waving a hand over the table. I let out a groan and ran my hands through my hair.

"I told ya fifteen goddamn times." I muttered. Flicking my eyes up to meet his, I glared with all the hate I could muster. "Joey was sleepin' over on my couch, just like he does all the time." I dropped my hands to the table, spreading them wide. "Ya caught him gettin' in the fuckin' shower!" The officer shook his head.

"Ya know, Harley, I can't give ya unlimited chances." Throwing my head back, I stared at the ceiling.

"Oh my god, it's the truth." I moaned, closing my eyes. "You're wastin' ya time." He snorted a small laugh.

"You're gonna see a jail cell for hittin' that cop. It's not my time you're wastin'." Sitting up, I glared at him from across the table.

"What, so I lie ta save my own skin?" The officer sighed and closed his eyes. "Cuz that's what I'd be doin'. Lyin'. Joey was at my apartment, all fuckin' night." He stood up and crossed the room towards the door.

"Your loss, honey." As he opened the door, I leaned back and shouted after him.

"I want my goddamn phone call!"

I was hauled from the room after a few minutes and shoved in a small cage-like space, watching policeman strut around their comfy nest. A few women sat in the holding cell, the smell of nightlife heavy on their skimpy clothes. I shivered, realizing I must have looked the same way the night Deb had died: strung out and barely standing.

Just then, they were leading Joey through the station, his head held high. It had been almost two hours since we'd arrived and he looked as though his strength had returned. The high was gone, replaced with the stony demeanor of our bloodline. Dressed in whatever the cops had found for him to wear, Joey yanked his cuffed hands away from a female officer as she tried to tug him into a room, preferring to walk in on his own. I smiled at him, wrapping my fingers around the iron bars in front of my face. He caught a glimpse of me and his expression brightened for a fraction of a second as he shot a wink across the room. Then they closed him inside and he disappeared from view.

"Someone sure caught ya with ya pants down." I turned as one of my companions chirped at me from her perch on a bench. She had short, chubby legs and a skin-tight mini skirt up around her thighs. Her boobs were mashed together, shoved into a tube top that was two sizes too small. Make-up was smeared around her eyes and mouth, her hair tossed around her face in a similar form of disarray.

"It's eight in the goddamn morning." I muttered, looking back out into the bullpen. "I was in fuckin' bed."

"With Joe Darley?" She asked. Whirling my head around, I made a face.

"No." The woman gave a laugh, pulling up her top in a vain attempt of containing her massive cleavage.

"Why not? He's hung like a horse." I shook my head and let my face rest between two bars of the cell.

"Ew." I groaned, trying to get the implications out of my mind. She chuckled again.

"Oh I get it. Am I more ya type, sweetheart?" Her voice turned to a thick purr and I couldn't contain a snort.

"Yeah no." I said, turning around and crossing my arms. "I'm not into women." She pursed her lips, smiling coyly.

"Then why aren't ya all up in that? The things I've heard—" I shot a hand out, palm flat.

"Save it." I said, closing my eyes. "Please." The woman stood and shimmied in her tiny skirt.

"Honey, please. Ya can't be that prude. Your ass was hauled in with a Darley…a Darley in his underwear." One of her penciled eyebrows lifted and she pointed a long, plastic fingernail at my ensemble. "It doesn't take a genius ta put the pieces together." I smiled and shook my head.

"Trust me, it isn't like that." Her head shook and the hair stayed in place, stiff with hairspray.

"Oh honey, with a Darley…" She slipped into silence, staring over my shoulder. Following her gaze, I turned and looked just as Billy strut into the front door of the police station.

But he wasn't alone.

Filing in behind him was a tall, thin man in a sharp suit, Bodie, and Rick. I swallowed, watching as the four men walked up to the front desk. Billy spoke first, his voice rumbling from his lips. I couldn't make out what he was saying, but I could hear his anger. The woman beside me moved closer, gripping the bars of the cell. As I glanced to my right, a couple of the others had turned their heads, all paying very close attention to the scene unraveling in the station.

After Billy growled a few commands at the front desk, the man in the suit followed, jutting a finger at the receptionist and frowning as he continued. Bodie was glancing around the room, smirking at cops as they stared. It was much quieter suddenly; people were hanging up phones and lowering their voices.

Rick was the first to find me, his eyes latching on to my figure and a grin lifting the corners of his mouth. Bodie noticed him staring and he found me quickly thereafter, tilting his chin in acknowledgement. I gave him a small shrug, a warm feeling spreading in my stomach. He was communicating with me, reassuring me in his own way.

"Well now…" The woman beside me cooed, turning her body to glance at me from head to toe. "Looks like you're gonna be outta here in no time, baby doll." I smiled and she shook her head. "What's your name, baby?"

"Get 'er out of the fuckin' cell." Billy's voice rose just enough to reach our ears. A few officers exchanged glances, hiding their nervousness by placing hands on their guns. But the suit followed up the angry words with a few of his own; and soon an officer was crossing the room to the holding cell. I breathed a sigh of relief.

"My name's Harley." I answered, stepping towards the cell door. The various other women watched as I was released from the cell, their eyes widening in surprise. Walking calmly through the desks, and officers sitting behind them, I was shown to the other side of the front counter.

"Take her home." Billy grunted to Rick, nodding in the direction of the door. Rick gave a stiff nod and grabbed me around the waist, turning me roughly towards the exit. I glanced over my shoulder at my brother, but he wasn't watching, his gaze burning holes into the female receptionist.

"I like your jammies." Rick purred, his hand slipping down my back to my butt. Shoving him away, I burst through the double doors into the sun, crossing my arms in the cold. I bared my teeth to hiss a remark at him, but the wind left my lungs in a long sigh.

Steven.

"Look at ya." He said, shaking his head. Leaning against the side of Bones' DeVille, he had his arms crossed over his chest. "Ya look absolutely criminal." My heart swelled with happiness. After a morning from hell, all I wanted was to be held by the man I…

…loved?

Stepping into his chest, I wrapped my arms around his neck and gave him a hard kiss. I didn't care that Rick was standing right there, or that any moment someone could see. I was too happy for all of that.

His big hands took hold of my upper arms and he lifted me off, making a face.

"Harley…" I pressed a palm into the middle of his face, pushing off to walk around the car.

"Don't Harley me, I was arrested this morning." He sighed and followed, getting into the driver's side while Rick roughly slammed the passenger's door.

"Arrested my ass." Rick grumbled once we were all inside the car and pulling away. "That lawyer tore holes in that shit without liftin' a fuckin' finger." Steven glanced at me in the rearview mirror.

"Did ya really hit a cop, Harley?" I sighed and crossed my arms, squinting at him from the backseat.

"Yeah, Steven. I'm a closet badass who picks fights with cops in her pjs." Rolling my eyes, I flopped a hand on the seat beside me. "I was tryin' ta stop them from hurtin' Joey, and my elbow caught one in the eye." Steven raised an eyebrow at me.

"By accident?" I shook my head.

"They were all over me, it wasn't on purpose." Rick gave a short laugh, lighting a cigarette.

"That lawyer mentioned police brutality." He turned in his seat, casting a wink into the back. "Did they get a little rough with ya, sweetheart?" Steven said nothing, but his eyes tightened in anger. I glared back at Rick.

"They threw Joey to the floor." Suddenly, I remembered Joey was still at the station. "What's gonna happen to him?" Steven sighed, turning the opposite direction from of my apartment.

"If they can't prove he wasn't at your place all night…" He glanced in the rearview mirror, a tiny smile twitching his left eye. "…then they have to let him go." I nodded and hid my own grin. If he had been there, he wouldn't have gotten much sleep.

"He was high, right?" Rick muttered, hissing a lungful of smoke into the car. I swallowed and leaned my head against the window.

"Yeah."

"You put him in the shower?" Steven asked, steering us deeper into Stokely. I shrugged.

"I couldn't think of anything else." He nodded.

"It was good thinkin'. Probably knocked some sense into him." I continued to stare out the window, watching big, bare trees whiz by.

"I saw some guy do that when a girl was ODing at a party." I murmured. Suddenly, my eyes were very heavy and the heat inside the car was ushering me to sleep.

"Did it work?" Steven asked as my eyes slid closed.

"No." We bumbled on in silence until the sound of the tires blended into the back of my mind, fading into darkness.

WELL. What do you think big brother will have to say? Any predictions on what Joey got himself into? hmmmm.
BIG LOVE to my reviewers.
~xoShortee93, Dancing-Pinky-Flower, Cotton Strings, and Sparkly~
I got my inspiration back enough for this and TWO other chapters! All thanks to you guys…seriously. I get motivated and inspired from the smallest of comments. For that, I adore ya!