It was early Sunday afternoon as I walked up to the Dingo to get a coke. I was crossing the almost empty parking lot when I noticed Shepard fighting this guy who looked like a mix between a bum and a hippie. I stopped and pushed myself on the hood of a car to watch the fight.
Shepard was one hell of a fighter, he fought in a typical greaser way, his shoulders slouching, moving constantly. His eyes were fixed on the other guy, calculating, watching his every movement like a hungry cat watching it's prey. It wasn't a long fight, the bum/hippie was chanceless against Shepard, who ducked under his punches using that moment when the guy made his attack to launch one of his own. Three blows to his jaw were all it took before he was on the ground.
Shepard stood over him, getting a cigarette from his pocket lightening it as he watched the guy squirming. When the guy tried to crawl away his nose bleeding like crazy, Shepard kicked him in the chest in one swift movement, his cigarette dangling from the corner of his mouth. The sound of cracking ribs was loud enough for me to hear on the other side of the parking lot.
Shepard stood watching the guy for a while then turned around and saw me looking at him; he didn't move he just watched me watching him. His face was blank, that usual smirk of his missing. I felt uncomfortable being caught staring at him like that and wanted to lower me eyes but found I couldn't, his eyes were fixed on mine, hard and cunning. And then he started walking towards me, he didn't stop until he was standing so close to me that my knees touched his thighs, I felt the heat radiate from his body. He flicked his cigarette away his eyes still fixed on mine. All I could think over and over in my confused mind was that his white t-shirt was pricked with tiny dots of blood.
He let his eyes wander over my body and when he met my eyes again I felt this weird feeling in my chest. My heart felt tight, pressed together like a tiny hard ball bouncing up and down. I couldn't make up my mind what made me feel like that, but I did know that I didn't like it. It scared the shit out of me him standing so close, that cold emotionless look in his eyes. He looked at me something in his eyes changing. Suddenly he tore his eyes away and took a step back; lightening up a new cigarette he placed himself next to me, leaning against the car. My heart was pounding like a hammer in my chest.
"So you here all by your lonesome Curtis?" he asked his dark blue eyes fixed on something in the distance.
"Yeah" I managed to get out. He turned to me smirking slightly saying;
"Come all this way just to look at me?" he grinned at me his teeth shining in the afternoon sun.
"You wish" I answered feeling more at ease "came to get a coke"
"So what are you sitting here for?" he asked, standing up he began to walk towards the entrance. "Come on, I´m notgonna bite you" he said motioning for me to follow him. I did.
"You ever looked at a sunset?" I asked Shepard taking a drag from my cigarette. I was thinking about that letter Johnny had given to Pony before he died. Pony had told me about Johnny wanting to tell Dally to watch a sunset, and as I sat there talking to Shepard I felt like asking him to watch one. Maybe Johnny was right, maybe Dally wouldn't have been so hard if he had looked at sunsets the way Pony did.
"I've seen´em" Shepard answered simply, folding his hands on the table.
We had been sitting at the Dingo for some time talking, Shepard had just been cursing good-heartedly about Curly being in the reformatory. He had a look in his eyes when he talked about Curly that I hadn't ever seen on him before; he looked proud and almost happy.
"I think Angie has a thing for that brother of yours" He said a wicked smile appearing on his face "the quiet on" he added and chuckled lightly. He had known us all our lives and still he didn't know our names, except for Darry and Two- bit and of course Dally.
"Yeah, I kinda figured that" I said smiling up at him "she came by the lot yesterday you know" Shepard turned his eyes away from me and looked out the window smiling slightly.
"Yeah? She's such a little bitch" He laughed but it wasn't a hard, cold laughter, it was heartily and I could see admiration in his eyes. He was proud of her.
As I sat there watching him I realized he wasn't as cold-hearted as I'd thought him to be, he loved his siblings as much as I loved mine.
He had been taking care of them just as Darry took care of us; only difference was the way we came out. Curly and Angela were hard, cold hoods just like their brother, they never had the chance to be anything else and they seemed to like it. Me, Soda and Pony were greasers only because of where we lived, the fact that we didn't have any money. If Darry could he would move us away from here so fast it would make our heads spin. I guess the only difference between Darry and Tim was the way they were as persons, Tim liked being a greaser and a hood, Darry hated it, but they did their best trying to protect their siblings in their on way.
As I looked around me I saw a pretty red- headed girl walking up to Shepard, she leaned in close to his face and asked for light, she lookedhim in the eyessuggestively, smiling. He didn't smile back at her as he lit her cigarette but when she walked away he followed hermotions with a smirk on his lips. Then he turned to me smiling confidently and I suddenly felt sick of him. He was looking at me curiously, that annoying smile plastered on his face.
"That's one nice looking broad, she's quite good in …" That was it, I had had it.
"Ever wonder if she says the same about you?" I asked smiling sweetly at him an edgy tone to my voice. He looked at me his eyes boring holes in my head for awhile, then he just turned his head away smiling slightly.
"You're quite sharp Curtis" he said nodding thoughtfully at me. I didn't understand what he meant but I was glad I didn't have to hear any more details about that girl.
"Well here comes the brothers" he suddenly said looking out the window. As I followed his gaze I saw Soda, Steve and Pony walking up to the entrance. Shepard looked at me, silently asking if I wanted him to leave. I didn't want him to, I was having a good time with him and wasn't gonna spoil that just because my brothers didn't want me hanging with him, besides they were always talking to him themselves, why couldn't I?
The moment they walked in the door Sodas sharp eyessaw us sitting there and he walked over to us, the others following. I saw Soda smiling knowingly to himself. What the hell was he thinking now, why did he always have to read so much into things? At least he had the brains to keep it to himself, or at least I hoped he did.
"Shepard you bastard, you sitting here pestering my sister?" Soda said grinning widely as he extended his hand to Shepard. Shepard chuckled.
"Don't see her complaining..." he said shaking Sodas hand firmly.
Steve grunted a hello and sat down next to me, Pony didn't say a word he just looked at me curiously as he seated himself next to Steve. Soda sat down beside Shepard and began to talk about a fight they had seen outside the movie as they walked by earlier, Soda said one of the guys had looked like this Mike guy that was in Shepard's gang. Shepard listened closely to what Soda was saying and when he had heard the whole story he got up saying hehad to check it out.
"So you and Shepard huh?" Steve said after he had left, a wisecrack- smile on his face. His eyes weren't smiling though; they were glaring daggers at the door Shepard had left trough.
Soda and Pony were laughing lightly.
"Just give it a rest Steve" I said tired of everybody's obsession with me and Shepard talking.
"So how is he? As rough as he looks or is he sweet underneath that hard exterior?" Steve asked still being a smart-ass. I was pissed now, that was just too much.
"How the hell am I supposed to know" I yelled, glaring at him "why don't you ask that girl over there" I pointed to the red-headed girl who had asked Shepard for light. I felt like killing both her and Steve.
"Wow, calm down, I was just joking Nora" Steve said holding up his hands. I watched his face closely seeing that he actually looked sorry. I had always had a hard time staying mad at Steve, perhaps I was to easy on him just to compensate for his lousy temper.
"Nora by the way, Darry wanted to know were you put that shirt you borrowed from him" Soda said looking at me, a loving smile on his face.
And with that small remark he saved the rest of that day for me.
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