Alright, here's the next chapter.
I do not own The Outsiders
Andromeda swallowed as discretely as possible. Of everyone who she'd expected to show up on the day of her aunts visit, Dallas and Sylvia didn't even make the list.
She opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. Instead, a small creaking noise caught her attention, and she glanced over to see Soda shift in his seat. He looked at Dallas, expression casual as he said, "Hey Dally, Sylvia. I didn't know you two were comin' today."
Dallas raised an eyebrow in response, apparently he hadn't expected the question, and asked, "Why wouldn't we be here?"
He surveyed the room casually before he caught sight of Aunt Marge. His eyes narrowed and his lips thinned incrementally. If Andromeda had any doubts before before, then she didn't have them anymore. Dallas must have forgotten about her aunts visit that day.
Their eyes met, and Andromeda plastered a smile onto her face as she tried to ignore the arm Sylvia had draped over Dallas' shoulder. "Hey." she said, as she reached for a casual tone.
Dallas raised a hand in greeting before he said, "Your Aunt's visit was today." Andromeda nodded in response and managed to say, "Yeah."
Silence filled the area until Sylvia leaned forward, ignorant of the tension present in the room as she said, "Hi, I'm Sylvia, Dally's girlfriend."
Andromeda's face heated up at her words. Despite her knowledge of Dallas' relationship, she hadn't yet given up on him. And while she wouldn't outright flirt with him, she still chatted and made an effort to get close to him. In response to this, Sylvia would make sure to make her position clear.
"And Dallas is Andromeda friend."
Andromeda smiled at Evie in thanks. Ever since Andromeda's rivalry with Sylvia started, Evie had done everything in her power to back her.
Aunt Marge glanced from Andromeda and Evie to Dallas and Sylvia. There was no way she couldn't feel the tension in the atmosphere, but she still managed a smile and waved, "It's nice to meet you both."
Sylvia simpered and Andromeda barely stopped herself from sneering at her in return. Instead she turned toward Dallas and said, "It's been a while since I last seen you. How have things been?" A small frown appeared on Dallas' face as he replied, "Fine. Just life as usual." Andromeda managed to get a smile onto her face as she said, "Still, it would be nice to catch up once in a while."
Dallas made a noncommittal noise as he took a sideways glance at Sylvia who looked substantially less pleased that a few minutes before.
There was the sound of a throat being cleared and Andromeda glanced in the direction of the sound to see her aunt focused on her face. her Aunt didn't say anything. Instead she appeared to scrutinize Andromeda like that was the first time she'd seen here that day. It bothered Andromeda and she fished for something to say until Pony asked, "Um, Mrs. Marge, do you like reading?" Pony looked distinctly uncomfortable and aunt Marge replied, "No need for formalities here, but yes, I do enjoy reading when I have time for it."
From that point on the conversation drifted towards (naturally legal) activities. Andromeda shot Pony a thankful look before she excused herself under the pretense of being thirsty.
Once there she took in several deep breaths of air to calm herself.
It had been foolish really, behaving like that in front of her aunt. Her aunt didn't know about how her experiences in Tulsa had fully affected her, and she feared what would happen if she did.
After worrying for a few minutes, she got a cup and filled it with water from the water from the sink. She slowly drained the glass before she rinsed and replaced it. She hesitated a moment more and heard the sound of kitchen door open, then close behind her.
"You know for someone who supposedly this near saint-like girl, you're quite the little bitch."
Andromeda's head snapped over to see Sylvia in front of the door, her door lip curled into a sneer. Her hand formed a fist as she said, "Sylvia. Do you need to talk to me about something?"
The sneer on Sylvia's face became more prominent as she said, "You should stay away from Dally. He's my boyfriend remember? Mine, not yours." Andromeda bristled at the words as she crossed her arms in front of herself. Sylvia's stare burrowed into her and she could feel the judgement behind it.
She knew Sylvia was right, and she hated it.
Instead of conceding to Sylvia's argument, she shot back, "And Dallas is still my friend if you haven't noticed. I shouldn't have to do anything."
A scornful laugh fell from Sylvia's lips as she snapped, "Oh yes, rationalize your position as much as you want. You 're the only one who thinks you're innocent after all. Everybody else can see the sort of snake you are." She giggled again and added, "Do you really think you deserve Dally's love if you go around acting like a thirsty slut?"
"Do you really think a bitch who's cheated as much as you has any right to judge!?"
The words slipped out of Andromeda's mouth before she could stop them. Anger filled Sylvia's face to the point she looked like a caricature of herself. She hissed, "You fucking bitch!" just seconds before the back of her hand impacted Andromeda's face.
The force of the slap made Andromeda stumble back a few steps as her cheek throbbed.
"You think you're all that." Sylvia sniped, "But, guess what? You're just another socy broad. You're just a pretty little nothing with a whole bunch of money. Do you really think someone like that would appeal to someone like Dally Winston?" She laughed again and sneered, "You screwed up 'Andy'. If you thought I'd let you get away from this unscathed, then you're a bigger idiot than I thought you were. 'Cause I promise you, I'll make your life hell."
Sylvia's footsteps faded and Andromeda was left in silence as she rubbed her cheek she could feel small scratches left behind from Sylvia's nails. Despite that, the words still stung more than the slap did.
"Man, what a bitch."
Andromeda looked over at the door where Soda and Steve stood. Steve frowned and Soda winced sympathetically as he commented, "That has to hurt."
He promptly dampened a wash cloth and held it to Andromeda who gingerly held it against her cheek. "Do you think I'm making a mistake?" The question slipped out before she could stop herself. Steve and Soda glanced at each other before Soda replied, "Your almost-flirting is pushing it, but it isn't something she didn't deserve. Besides, we'd all rather see Dally with a friend like you rather than Sylvia."
Andromeda looked down as she said, "I see." Despite what he said, the words continued to taunt her.
"You shouldn't listen to her."
Steve continued to lean against the wall as he continued, "Sylvia went too far with all of that." His hands formed fists as he said, "I don't like it when people go after others boyfriends, but she isn't winning any sympathy acting like that."
Andromeda nodded, she felt calmer even if she was still miserable. She opened her mouth to speak when the kitchen door opened and Dallas entered as he said, "Sylvia left and I'm gonna follow in a bit, but I was wondering ... "
Dallas' voice faded off as he spotted Andromeda with the wash cloth over her cheek. Andromeda opened her mouth to say something, but Dallas had already pulled the cloth from her cheek.
He frowned and demanded, "You mind telling me what the hell happened to your face?"
Andromeda hesitated before she explained, "I was trying to open a cupboard, but it got was stuck and I whacked myself." Dallas' eyebrow raised as he replied, "You smacked yourself with a door." Skepticism was palpable in his voice and for good reason. Her excuse had been terrible.
"I wouldn't have believed it either if I hadn't seen it happen." Soda's expression was light, but determined and Steve nodded to back up his statement. Dallas glared at group, but no one said anything further.
Finally, he turned around and called over his shoulder, "Just make sure to be more careful." He exited and Andromeda let out a slow breath.
It bothered her, lying to Dallas. But there was no way she could have told him the truth about what had happened.
Well, The next episode should be up in a week.
