Five For Fighting
Rated: PG-13
Disclaimer: I only own my own imagination and I borrow the rest from S.E. Hinton
F.O.U.R.
I broke my promise to myself the second I strolled, as casually as possible knowing that all eyes would soon be on me, into the living room and into the chaotic tangle of boys splayed around the room.
I paused at the edge of the room on the boarder of the safe hallway and the peering eyes of the living room, and then in what I thought a bold manner, stepped forward into my brothers' world to meet their life long friends. People, who if you don't mind my repeating, should have been my lifelong friends. Still, I figured, fifteen years isn't many in the grand scheme of things, and if I lived to be one hundred and so did they, they'll still have been my friends for…well math isn't my strong point, but some eighty years which is nothing to sneeze over.
I don't rightly remember how long I stood there before Ponyboy looked up from the ground where he had been pinned by a boy with long dark sideburns and dancing eyes that held a jolly nature in them like Soda's did.
"Amber!" He caught the bigger boy off guard pushing him away and scrambled to his feet to stand next to me.
The noise stopped as abruptly as it had started and my throat went dry while my eyes scanned the room. Well, scanned might not be the best word, I was instantly drawn to one set of eyes, eyes that captivated me, and that's what I mean when I say I broke my promise to myself within that first awkward silent moment. Such startlingly blue eyes, a hard, well defined face, white hair…not white like an old person, but a beautiful light blonde that scattered around his face, not held down or shaped like the other boys with hair grease. His hair was as reckless as his eyes, cause his eyes did hold an edge of danger and I couldn't help but sense that he was angry at me already. I never believed in love at first sight until that moment, until my heart clogged my throat and I stared, more rudely than I ever have in my life, at the boy in front of me, falling helplessly in love. Those eyes, you could get lost in eyes like those.
I realized that Ponyboy was introducing me to everyone and I wasn't listening.
"What? Start over Pony" I begged
He looked at me curiously and went back to the left side of the room.
"Two-bit" The boy with the sideburns grinned widely at me,
"Nice to see you again kiddo" He called across the room running over and swinging me around like we were life-long pals.
"Howdy, Two-Bit" I said stopping for the first time to contemplate the odd names that people in Tulsa had acquired, my own brothers included. Let's face it, there aren't many Ponyboys and Sodapops in the phonebook. Maybe in the yellow-pages under Circus sideshows and Beverages. However Amber July isn't the most ordinary name either and I had always wondered as to its origin. I could now safely say my parents were very creative and probably odd people. Don't get me wrong though, I loved our names, odd as they might be.
After my feet were firmly back on the ground he leaned over towards me as if to whisper and instead rather loudly asked "So what do you think to giving ol' cousin Two-Bit a kiss on the cheek!"
I flushed and glanced at Ponyboy who shoved Two-Bit on the shoulder and told him to bug off, but Two-Bit remained faithful, planting his eyes on me until I dutifully stood on tip-toes and kissed him softly on the cheek in one hurried movement, moving closer to Ponyboy once the deed was done.
"You're one classy broad ain't you?"
It was him, with the eyes, not such a charmer once he opened his mouth. Broad was not one of my favorite words to describe the female race.
"Watch it Dallas" Darry warned from the kitchen doorway where he was leaning against the wall, arms folded across his chest.
Dallas
"My deepest apologies" He said sarcastically and settled himself down into the couch making it obvious that he no longer held any interest in me, classy or not.
Still, I could see him peering across the room from half closed eye-lids, eyeing me, sizing me up and I figured from the disgruntled noise he made a moment later I didn't size up alright in his eyes.
"Don't pay no mind to Dally," Pony said, not guessing that I wanted to pay my whole mind to Dallas.
"This here is Johnny" he continued
Sympathy immediately flooded over me as I set my eyes on the dark hair, dark eyes of Johnny Cade. I had been so caught up in my fascination with Dallas that I hadn't even noticed the old wheel chair that sat in the middle of the room holding a frail looking boy with the biggest black eyes I've ever seen. They were settled on me and seemed to have been for some time now, he was openly staring agape at me and I stared back a smile forming on my lips. Johnny didn't look at all upset at his situation in the wheelchair, instead his eyes shinned as though they held the secret of the universe, I found out later that they did. Johnny Cade possessed what every boy in this neighborhood needed - that being the desire to live - but like I said I found that out later - I'm getting ahead of myself again. That night in the living room I knew only that I wanted to get to know Johnny real well. My sympathy vanished as quickly as it had come, Johnny needed no sympathy, nor would he accept any, I could tell already.
"And this is Steve!" Soda shouted pushing forward a boy with hair in complicated swirls that I could only imagine took him hours to get right every morning.
Steve took a mock bow in front of me and openly sized me up, from his grin I could tell that I had done alright by him.
"It's nice to meet you all." I said politely, though I was getting the impression that politeness was lost on them.
And then it was over and the chaos once again reigned supreme in the room.
A poker game was quickly started on the coffee table in the middle of the room, the TV was turned on, but no one watched, and the radio was turned on to full decibel level. Chips and cake, sodas and cigarettes appeared out of no where and the room was filled with smoke.
"Want one?" Steve offered holding the box out towards me.
I looked over towards my brothers, unsure if it was okay that I did smoke on occasion.
Ponyboy who had drifted across the room to Johnny, not talking, more watching what was going on, was already smoking and so I figured it would be okay and accepted the cigarette and the light.
It helped to settle my nerves as I stood feeling a little lost in that crowd of boys.
Darry was keeping a protective eye on me that I could feel across the room as I settled myself onto the far left side of the couch, leaving the whole middle cushion in between myself and Dallas.
I turned to look at him, to try and make conversation but he gave me such a look of contempt that I shut my mouth before any words could form.
"You've got a big surprise coming your way doll-face."
Doll-face wasn't a term of endearment and I couldn't fathom what the big surprise could be.
"Dallas" it was a reproaching voice that Darry used a lot, I could tell.
"What? The kid is going to find out eventually," He turned back to me, "You don't belong here, you're not one of us"
The hatred in his eyes was unmistakeable and I shakily got off the couch and moved away from him.
Everyone's eyes were back on me, they had all heard Dallas's accusations and from the looks on their faces, they had been thinking it too. Though I don't know what they had to go by to back up that assumption. Like I said my naivete was soaring high that night.
Johnny broke the silence, "Shoot guys, don't ruin her homecoming she belongs here like the rest of us, she's a Curtis just like Pony, Soda and Darry after all, so leave her alone."
When the noise had resumed and I had been invited into the poker game I paused to think of the irony that a crippled boy in a wheelchair would be the one to integrate me into the group because no one dared oppose him as he sat with his back erect in what no longer seemed a wheelchair to me, but a throne holding one of the most precious human beings in existence. I came out of my trance, threw away two and folded, taking my place in this group of youths as the Curtis's sister.