Some days later I sat in the kitchen when Two bit and Steve burst through the door and slammed it shut loudly.

"Hi guys" I said and looked down at my homework again.

"Hi Nora" They said slowly and with strange voices, I immediately froze, something was wrong and they were here to tell me. What was it? Ponyboy was in his room taking a nap, but Darry and Soda were both at work, could something have happened to them? I kept my eyes on the table when they both sat down opposite from me.

"Nora, Steve has to tell you something…" Two bit said and received a swift punch on the shoulder from Steve; he continued "…I told him it wasn't his business…but…" Steve hissed something that sounded like asshole to him and punched him again. And then he turned to me and I met his eyes and once again I froze, in his eyes I saw sympathy and compassion. Steve felt sorry for me and that made me feel like crap. What was he going to tell me anyway? It couldn't be about my brothers cause then he would've been upset to.

"I…" he began and drew a sharp breath "…I was at Bucks yesterday and Shepard was there and I knew you were kind of dating so…"

"So what?" I almost screamed wanting him to say it and get it over with. I'd already figured out what he wanted to tell me, Tim had been with some girl again.

"So I talked to him for a bit and then the fuzz showed up just like that, out of nowhere…" Steve was gesturing like crazy and I felt more confused then ever "…they arrested Tim"

I felt myself draw a breath of relief, Tim being arrested wasn't that bad, he'd be out in a day or two; his gang would bail him out. Steve's eyes were still focused on me and Two bit who had been fiddling with his knife suddenly looked up and locked his eyes on mine.

"They arrested him for assaulting two officers the day before, apparently they were pretty busted up, one of them's still in the hospital" Two bit said slowly as if scared of my reaction. I felt my feet freeze and the cold slowly creep up body. Shit was all I could think.

"How long?" I asked holding my breath.

Steve and Two bit looked at each other and then back at me.

"At least a year" Steve said.

I went from freezing to gasping for air as reality hit me. I wouldn't see Tim in a year, I wouldn't touch him or talk to him, I felt a tear slowly find it'd way down my cheek. Damn you Tim! He always had to screw things up. He had been right when he told me he was an asshole. A leaving asshole, always going away, either with another girl or to jail. Shit Tim, why did you do it?

I got of off the chair and ran to my room, tears falling freely blurring my vision.

A week later I had managed to make arrangements to visit Tim in jail with the help of Darry who was driving me there. As I sat in the visitor room waiting for Tim to arrive I felt cold and emotionless, I didn't even know what I was going to say to him. I couldn't break down and cry, asking him why he had done it and why he had left me. I mean he did warn me by telling me he was an asshole and he said himself he didn't think I should see him but still, why couldn't he have changed for me. Couldn't he have slowed down and got a job, but maybe then he wouldn't have been Tim Shepard and I wouldn't have loved him like I did.

I also realized I had to be strong for Tim to, because he had probably already gotten too much shit from his parents and sister. Curly would only be proud of him.

Suddenly the door on the other side of the room opened and I saw Tim walk in his hands in handcuffs, led by a guard by the arm and pushed roughly down in the seat opposite from mine. His pants and shirt was the same greyish blue colour, his hair was cut short only about a centimetre left. He seemed younger with his hair like that, his forehead and face more visible, his blackish eyes bigger and even colder then usual. He scanned the room like a trapped eagle looked for an exit and then his eyes looked on mine. The guard was standing at the door staring blindly into space.

Tim locked his eyes on mine and smirked at me. I could barely return his stare without breaking down. He was so beautiful in all his depressingly hard glory.

"Hi there" he said, his voice both hard and soft.

"Hi" I wanted desperately to touch him, to warm him up and melt away some of the ice in his eyes.

"How'd you get here?" he asked a curios glint in his eyes.

"Darry drove me, he's waiting outside" I wanted to run my hand through his soft hair, I wondered how it felt now that it was short, I didn't want to say anything about it to him, he was probably pissed about having it cut.

"Really?" he said raising an eyebrow having a hard time believing Darry would help me to meet him. I just nodded quietly.

"Two minutes left Shepard" he guard said in a crisp cold voice still staring at nothing. Tim nodded quietly his eyes still on me; he wasn't smirking anymore, now he was just looking at me like he had never met me before, as if he was trying to figure me out. I felt my heart pounding in my chest as his eyes travelled over me, I felt like I wanted to say something to him, to tell him how much I cared but I couldn't find the word and somehow I thought that he knew anyway.

When the guard walked over to him he stood up readily but he didn't just leave, he leaned over the table towards me and whispered;

"I'm sorry" I didn't have time to respond because the guard was now leading him towards the exit, at the door Tim turned his head at me and said in a hard emotionless voice;

"I don't want you to come here again" My trout tightened and tears welled up my eyes as the door slammed behind them. All the worry and the hurt I had felt for the last week ran down my cheeks as I sat there crying.