Disclaimer: These boys simply don't belong to us, but we do thank S.E. Hinton and her wonderful mind for thinking them up. We owe her a lot. We also don't own Matchbox Twenty's song, "Damn."

This cold girl well
Don't she make you wanna scream,
"Damn."

Ellie shivered in her coat and Dally, in spite of himself, hitched his own tighter around himself. His idea to take bring Ellie to the drive-in had been a good one in theory. It would finally get her alone with him without the rest of the gang in the way, and it would keep all of her attention on him. With the seasons changing, and winter right around the corner, Dally knew the drive-in would be close to desolate. The damn place nearly went out of business every winter, despite the small heaters they offered near the rows of seating in front of the concession stand. That meant even fewer people distracting them.

However, he hadn't expected it to be so damn cold. He also hadn't expected Buck to be such an asshole and hide the keys to his car. Dally's boot connected roughly with the lousy heater, and he grumbled to himself.

In reality, the drive-in was a bad fucking idea.

Dally crossed his arms tightly against his chest and leaned back in his seat. The thin gaps between the slats on the seats only circulated the air around them completely. He fought a shiver that tried to make its way down his spine.

"Why don't we go somewhere else?" Dally asked.

"Like where?" Ellie asked through clenched teeth.

"I don't know. Somewhere warmer."

She furrowed her brow and repeated herself. "Where?"

"Buck's is warmer than this place," he suggested.

She tried to glare but the way her chin trembled in the cold made it look anything but menacing. "That doesn't qualify as a date."

In the weeks since the party, Ellie had casually rejected any suggestion Dally made to hang out there. He knew he shouldn't be surprised in her reaction, especially when he had yet to get her to admit that she didn't regret sleeping with him in the first place. She stayed far away from the topic and, needless to say, a repeat incident.

"It seemed to be okay for a date not so long ago," he stated.

He glanced over to see her clenching her jaw and staring up at the screen. His foot met with the heater once again until it sputtered and died.

"Nice," she muttered, pulling her coat tighter.

He pulled out a cigarette and lit it, considering taking the match to his jacket. That would be guaranteed to warm him up. The wind whipped around him and blew the small flame out. He cursed under his breath.

The cartoon that was introducing the movie was just ending and Dally cursed again. They were already miserable and the movie hadn't even started yet. It was going to be a long night.

He tried to sit still through the opening credits, but he was finding it difficult. He couldn't feel his face anymore. In fact, the only thing he could feel was the violent trembling going on in the seat next to him. He could hear Ellie's teeth crash down on each other every so often.

"Do you wanna go yet?" he snapped. Suddenly her trembling slowed and her face was painted stubborn again.

"This was your idea," she said, not looking at him.

"Yeah, well, it was a pretty lousy idea," Dally admitted. He just wanted to get out of the cold. If admitting all of his faults got him near a heater faster, so be it.

Her lip faintly twitched before she set it in a firm line again. "Yeah, it was."

"So we can go?" he asked, practically leaping out of his seat.

"I didn't-" she started but was cut off by Dally tugging her out of the seat.

"We're going," he told her, leaving no room for argument. She grudgingly followed beside him.

This old heart's had a whole lot of breakin' down.
She's got all these reasons in her head.

"So where are we going?" she asked, trying to match his long strides and keep up with him.

"The Dingo. Where else would we be goin' on this road?" he said impatiently. "It's the closest and it's got a fuckin' heater."

"What? You can't handle the cold?" she asked, her words catching between her shivers.

He looked over at her, narrowing his gaze at the grin on her lips.

"You're the one shaking like a leaf," he blasted. "And your lips are turning blue."

"They are not," she contested.

"I'll warm them up when we get there," he assured her.

They finally got within eyesight of the restaurant, and Dally took a quick look at the cars parked in the parking lot to see who was there. He caught sight of a familiar Bel Air and twisted his wind-chapped lips into a grin.

"What?" Ellie asked, peeking her face out of the collar of her coat that was buttoned as high as it would go.

"Shepard's here," he told her, walking toward his car.

"So?" she complained. "Dal, let's go inside."

Dally ignored the plea and sauntered up to Tim's car, scanning the lot to make sure no one was outside. He grinned wickedly, suddenly happy it was cold enough to force everyone inside.

"What are you doing?" she asked in a harsh whisper.

Dally looked at her. She was standing on the curb in front of the car staring at him. He hadn't forgotten the little stunt that asshole pulled with Ellie. He'd be damned if he'd let Shepard get away with kissing his girl.

"You got a key or something?" he asked, fumbling around in his own pockets with numb fingers to find something that would make a wide enough scratch.

"Are you kidding me?" she asked, her voice high pitched with surprise. She pointed a shaky finger at the building beside them. "He's right inside!"

He looked over toward the big picture window that faced only a small portion of the parking lot. The dumbass had parked well out of sight of that window, and Dallas was intent on giving him a wake up call.

"What are you so worried about, Princess?" he asked.

"Why do you two do this shit? It's stupid," she asked.

"Because I fuckin' feel like it. Do you have a key, or what?" he asked, holding his palm out impatiently.

She looked back toward the picture window and the people milling about inside.

"No one will see shit," he said. "Shepard's a dumbass for not parking his car down there."

She sighed and, with a roll of her eyes, dug into her coat pocket and pulled out a key ring.

"Just don't tell him it was my key," she said, handing it to him.

He snatched it out of her hand and singled out a key. Walking toward the front of the car on the passenger side, he dug it into the paint just above the tire and went for a short walk. The scrape of metal against metal sent chills up and down his entire body, but he didn't stop until he was well beyond the back tire.

"That'll do it," he said, admiring his work.

"He's going to kick your ass," she said, taking in the deep scratch in the paint.

"We'll just have to wait and see about that," he said, leading her back toward the sidewalk.

"Can I have my key back 'fore you decide to use it again?" she asked, trying to snatch it out of his hand.

Dally pulled his hand away from her, and catching her off guard, he backed her into the brick wall behind them.

"Still cold?" he asked, holding the collar of her coat with both hands and lowering his face so it was close to hers.

"I'm freezing, Dallas. Are we going in or what?" she asked, that chatter still in her teeth.

"Not yet," he said. He kissed her slowly and deliberately. He could almost feel the ice crystals melting off of her as she kissed him back. A stiff breeze picked up and she forced her hands into his pockets and pulled him closer against her.

They were hot and heavy when Dallas heard the low whistle behind him. Breaking away from her, he turned and saw Tim standing just a few feet away with a girl by his side.

"Who's the flavor of the week, Shepard?" he asked, his hands still holding Ellie's face, his body still pressing her against the wall.

"I see you're still datin' yours, Winston," Tim acknowledged, nodding toward Ellie with a wink.

Dally narrowed his eyes at that, but the thought of the new décor on Shepard's car brought a small grin to his face.

"Where y'all headed?" Dally asked, stepping back and pulling Ellie with him.

"What's it to you?" Tim asked.

"I ain't got a car but you do, and I'm willin' to bet you and Miss Vanilla are headed for Buck's," Dally said.

"Does Miss Shortcake want to go to Buck's, too?" Tim asked. "You lookin' to get her trashed again?"

Ellie tensed up beside him, and Dally evened his glare.

"Quit fuckin' around, Shepard. It's like the damn North Pole out here. You goin' or not?"

"Yeah, we're going. You want to bum a ride or something?" Tim asked.

"What the hell have I been saying?" Dally retorted.

"Dal," Ellie said loud enough for only him to hear. "That probably isn't such a good idea."

"Ain't no skin off my back if you freeze out here," Tim said.

"Tim, just give them the ride. It's freezing," the blonde broad piped up.

"Yeah, Timmy. Just give us the ride," Dally mimicked.

"You call me Timmy again, Dallas, and you'll find yourself under my car before you're in it," Tim threatened, whipping out his keys and pulling his girl toward the car.

Dally smirked and led Ellie toward the car. He was almost disappointed Tim wasn't gentleman enough to open his date's door. He watched the blonde girl- he thought her name was Linda- for any reaction to the scratch, but she was too busy popping her gum and fussy with her hair to notice anything but herself. Ellie grabbed his arm as he climbed into the backseat.

"What's wrong with you? He's going to see what you did and drop us both off in the middle of nowhere," she hissed.

"Cool it, El. He didn't see shit," he replied.

She slid into the seat beside him. "But he's going to."

Dally looked at Tim staring back at him in the rearview mirror and said, "You better believe it."

"What the fuck are you whispering about?" Tim asked as he pulled the car out of the parking space at breakneck speed.

Dally gave Tim the biggest grin he could. "Not a thing, Timmy."

Tim took the next corner too fast, squealing the tires and sending Dally and Ellie flying into the corner of the backseat.

"You better watch yourself the next time you're walking somewhere, Dal," Tim warned, still staring in the rearview mirror. "I wasn't lying about running your ass over if you called me that again."

"I'll keep my eyes peeled, buddy," Dally reassured him with a cocky grin.

What's the matter girl?
Don't you think I'm good enough?

The warmth of the car was short lived. Ellie had barely thawed out when Tim pulled up outside of Buck's. Even from the backseat of the car she could hear the music pulsating from the jukebox. Tim was staring at her from the rearview mirror, and Ellie felt her stomach tighten. She really didn't want to be there when he saw the scratch on his car.

The four of them got out without so much a word and headed inside. Ellie held her breath and hoped Linda didn't see the scratch Dally left on the car. As much as she didn't like the way Tim treated her, she wasn't looking forward to watching him and Dally fight.

Tim led the way up the porch steps to Buck's and held the door for his date. Dallas grabbed it from him and let Ellie duck under his arm. She stood in the entryway, looking over the ruckus and wishing like hell she wasn't there.

"Want a drink?" he asked, leaning close to her ear so she could hear.

Looking back at him, she shook her head.

"Want to go upstairs?" he asked, his voice a bit huskier. "It'll be warm."

Ellie hesitated. In the hustle and bustle, she could still make out Tim and a handful of other boys she knew must be in his gang and gaggles of girls in low cut blouses and short skirts making her feel a little obsolete. Sylvia was in the corner sitting on Will's lap and kissing her way to a room of her own.

She knew what he was going to expect if she said yes to go upstairs, and her emotions toyed with her, emoting from a certain want and need to total fear. She wasn't drunk this time, and she was actually thinking things through which was only making her decision more difficult.

The more she looked around the bar, the more she didn't want to stay downstairs. Dally's arms were wrapped around her, and she breathed in that mix of Kools and cologne and she couldn't ignore the stirring in her stomach.

"Okay," she replied.

He didn't ask if she was sure this time. Instead, he grabbed her hand and yanked her toward the steps, meandering through the crowded bar and nearly losing her in the throngs of people. Once they made it to the top of the steps, he led her down the hall and opened the door, pulling her inside.

With the door shut, Dally backed her into it and picked up where he had left off against the wall of the Dingo. Hardly breaking the kiss, he shrugged his coat off and yanked his shirt over his head. Her hands touched his lean build, traveling from his midsection to his shoulders. Her stomach stirred.

"Take this off," he said, pulling away and helping her with the buttons on her coat. She slid it off of her shoulders and tossed it where his lay on the floor.

His lips crashed back down onto hers, his hands busy undoing her blouse and his own jeans. He pulled her away from the door and lay her down on the bed. His kissed his way down her neck and the weight of his body on hers started to induce panic deep within her. There were too many things that could happen, and she had to stop them.

"Dally," she begged, fighting for breath.

"What?" he mumbled, kissing her lips again.

Ellie turned her head, fighting to get away from him.

"Stop it," she demanded pathetically. "Stop."

He wasn't getting the clue and Ellie tried to sit up. They knocked heads and Dally cursed, rolling off of her and sitting up beside her. She didn't look at him. Instead, she closed her eyes and held her head where she'd bumped it, trying to not think about the look she knew must be on his face.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his tone sharp.

Ellie turned her head slowly and looked at him for a long second.

"I can't do this right now," she told him.

"Why the hell not?" he snapped.

"I don't know," she said, hugging her knees.

"Fuck," he mumbled. "What're we supposed to do now, Miss Priss?"

"Stop calling me that," she snapped back.

"What do you want me to call you? Frankenstein?" he asked. A sour smile twisted onto his lips.

Ellie stood up and glared back at him. He was trying to hurt her, and she'd be damned if she gave into that again.

"I have a name you know," she blasted, getting up and grabbing her shirt off of the floor. "It ain't Miss Priss or Princess or Frankenstein. It ain't Darlin' or Dollface or anything like that. Just call me by my name. Okay?"

She finished yelling at him and stood in the center of the room with her shirt hanging loosely from her thin frame. The silence was awkward, and Ellie looked away, embarrassed.

"You never answered me," he said.

With a sigh, she sat on the edge of the bed. He moved behind her and brushed her hair over one shoulder.

"What are we supposed to do now?" he asked, close to her ear.

"I don't know," she replied. "We could go back downstairs."

"Ain't gonna happen," he said. "They saw me go up here with you, and I ain't going back down until morning."

"What? You're worried about what they think?" she sassed, half-heartedly.

He kissed between her neck and her shoulder, sending chills down her spine.

"Nah," he said, close to her ear. "They'll start saying shit about you and then I'll have to kick in everyone's head. I gotta save my strength for Shepard."

"All because you had to key his car," she said.

"He shouldn't have kissed you," he replied, snaking an arm over her shoulder and undoing the buttons she'd just buttoned.

"He was just trying to piss you off," she said, slapping his hand away. "Just like you're pissing me off now."

"Christ," he muttered, standing up and pulling his jeans on. "You're such a fuckin' tease."

"I am not," she snapped, standing up and matching his stance.

"Guess you gotta be drunk off your ass to have any fun," he said, turning to the window and sliding it open.

"I do not," she retorted.

"Seems like it. You're stuck up as hell anymore," he said, turning back and looking at her.

"Is that how you get girls into bed? You insult them?" she asked, feeling goose bumps pimple on her arms.

"I usually don't have a problem with it, Dollface," he said.

He sat back on the bed and pulled the blankets over him and looked at her smugly.

"Cold?"

Ellie looked at the curtains billowing in the breeze blowing through the window. She could make out the frost that had accumulated on the sill and she hated that he always left that damn window open. The easy option would have been to shut the window, but she knew he would just open it again himself. She gritted her teeth when he threw the blankets back a hair, the warm bed inviting her cold body into it.

"Fine," she grumbled, giving in and diving under the blankets. She pulled them up to her chin and said, "You're crazy and you're going to get us sick."

"I don't get sick," he said. Ellie scooted close to him and he wrapped an arm around her. "Works like a charm."

"You're a jerk. You know that?" she asked, resting her head on his chest.

"Yeah, well, goes without saying," he replied.

He reached over her and grabbed his cigarettes from the nightstand.

"Want one?" he asked.

"Sure," she said.

He took hold of the Christopher medal around her neck and struck the match. Flaring to life, he stuck two cigarettes in his mouth and lit them both with expertise. Handing one off to her, he took a long drag on his own and looked at her.

"What?" she asked, the smoke not doing much to calm her nerves.

"Do you regret sleepin' with me?" he asked, his tone serious for once.

"I-I…," Ellie stumbled over her words and looked away.

"You what?" he asked, impatiently.

"I don't know," she said. It was the honest truth.

"Well, fuck if I know," he growled, blowing smoke at her. "What the hell does that mean?"

"It means I don't know," she snapped, glaring at him. "I don't know what to think."

"What's your problem?" he asked. "I'm not going to talk shit about you like the guys all seem to think I'm goin' to."

"You just said we couldn't go downstairs because everybody else would see," Ellie recalled.

Dally frowned at her. "I can't help it if those idiots assume shit. What are you so afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid," she said quietly.

"Bullshit. You were ready and willing to go when we got up here. What the hell happened?" he asked.

Ellie leaned over and stubbed her cigarette out on an ashtray on the nightstand. She watched the last of the smoke stream into the air and dissipate slowly.

"Just be patient with me, Dal," she said, looking at him imploringly. "I think too much sometimes and I scare myself."

"What the hell are you so afraid of? I've known you since, hell, I don't even know," he said, reaching across her and stubbing his smoke out. "It ain't like I'm going to hurt you, kid."

"You've known me since before you went to New York," she said, leaning her head back against the headboard. Her eyes wandered on the far wall and finally came back to his.

"Yeah, so a long time," he said. "What's the problem?"

"I'm not exactly used to this," she said, holding her other fears back.

"It's just sex," he commented.

"Yeah, and stuff happens," she replied, beating around the bush.

"What?" Dally asked. "Look, it ain't nothing. Everyone is going to fuck around tonight like they do every weekend. It's not a big deal."

Ellie's fingers played with the fraying blanket. "Things still happen," she said.

"What? Like your mom gettin' knocked up with you when she was just a kid?" he asked.

Ellie's eyes widened at the comment, her mouth falling slightly agape. She couldn't believe he'd actually brought that up. She thought that would be one conversation he'd run from as fast as he could.

"Yeah, and her dad kicked her out. They aren't going to let me stay if it happens to me," she said, her voice rising and falling. "And what about you?"

She saw the annoyance on his face, followed by the shock of the question she'd asked.

"What the fuck is the matter with you?" he blasted. "Who the hell talks about this?"

"You brought it up," she argued.

"Bullshit I did," he snapped.

"And what about your parents?" she asked. "Your dad stuck around."

"That bastard didn't do shit, Ella. She wasn't much older than you and so what if he stuck around at first? He beat the hell outta both of us 'til she left, then he got rid of me too. He ain't nothing but a name on a birth certificate," he told her.

Ellie sat there, eyes wide in shock at a truth she'd never really known.

"Oh," was all she could say.

"'Oh' what?" he snapped.

"I didn't know that," she replied quietly.

"Jesus, Ellie," he hissed, turning onto his side, his back to her. That said more to her than his words did.

"What?" she demanded, growing frustrated with his sudden mood swings.

"You sure know how to kill the fucking mood, don't you?" he said. "You work better than a cold fucking shower."

Ellie frowned at his back. He was the most unpredictable person she had ever met and it pissed her off to no extent, even if she did feel sorry for him right then. She knew he would be annoyed with her decision, but she hoped he would get over it. She wanted to kick herself for expecting so much out of him. She turned on to her side, away from him. Two could easily play this game.

"Go to hell, Dally," she muttered.

"It'd sure be a lot warmer than this freezer," he replied.

She felt a sudden urge to cry or yell or kick him. She didn't know which would have the best result, so she simply tugged the blanket tighter and closed her eyes. He was easy to get angry with, and she was more than willing to let herself be mad at him.

When he pulled the blankets back, leaving her with barely enough to pull around her, she wondered who ever said that the sun should never set on an argument. He would have changed his tune pretty quickly had he ever met Dallas Winston.

She's taken her time 'til
I thought I would die.
And I can't sit still.

A/N: We know, we know. We're really, really slow with the updates. Honestly, we work on them for a good while, but school is getting in the way at the moment. It keeps us busier than we like.

What's everyone thinking about this couple? Are they enough fire and ice, or a little of the the same? Does she regret it?