Dally's POV
I felt as if I had just pored all of my darkest
secrets out to Sammy, and all I did was tell her a few
things about her brother. God. I was overreacting so
much more then normal lately. And I had almost started
crying. I told myself to tough up and stop acting like
a bloomin' baby. Boy howdy, was I gettin' soft.
"Dally," she said, and I looked at her. Gosh, she
looked real pretty in the moonlight. I was just
staring at her. I got this strange feeling. A feeling
I hadn't felt in a while. But I didn't know
exactly what it was. "Thank you." She was looking
at the grass now.
At first I didn't know what to say. I really should
be thanking her, I thought. But I've always been
uncomfortable around nice girls, although I'd never
let on. Not to mention that I thought she was real
pretty. I mean, I never think that chicks are pretty.
Hot, yea. Worth laying eyes on, yea. But pretty?
That's just not my normal adjective. And she's not
my normal girl. I'm usually with greasy girls that
wear too much makeup and tight clothes. But she did
neither. She was . . . Different. I know I've said
that like, eighty times. But it's true. And I liked
her. A lot. Scary, huh?
"You are a different chick then most, Sammy," I
said. I wanted to tell her what I just told you in the
above paragraph, but I couldn't. I did my best,
okay?
"I'll take that as a compliment." Sammy said
smiling.
"That's what I meant it as," I told her and she
laughed.
"I'm really glad you told me about Johnny," she
said, looking up at the stars again. "I know it must
be tough."
"You know, it was, but it felt good," I told her.

"Yea," she glanced at me. I think she was still a
little uncomfortable around me. I had noticed it the
day I had saved her from coughing to death. She always
seemed a little timid around me, while she was always
laughing and talking around Soda and Two Bit. But with
me, she was more quiet."Sammy?" I started. I had to ask her a question
that I knew she had the answer to. I never have really
talked to girls seriously. I usually just flirt and
tell them lies about how beautiful they are, ya know
what I'm sayin'? But I couldn't see myself doing
that with Sammy. Don't ask me why, okay? I don't
know. "Why do you think I can talk to you about
Johnny and stuff And why am I so... Drawn to you?"

"Because," she started and sat up. She looked me
in the eyes and I could see she was thinking hard.
"Because we've been through a lot of the same
things. I lost Johnny, and he was all that I loved,
just like you. And I didn't have proper parents
either."
"What?" I asked. I knew that Sammy had loved her
foster mom.
"Can I tell you a story?" Sammy asked and I
nodded. "Alright. When I was born, we were in my own
home. My parents weren't able to afford hospital
care, or so I'm told. Anyway, when my dad came home,
he was rip-roaring drunk, of course. When he saw that
I was a girl, he told my mom he didn't want a girl
and grabbed me. He put me in his car and delivered me
to the adoption agency. I was adopted by a woman who
soon became my best friend. Then, when I was 13, she
died of lung cancer." I looked at Sammy and saw that
she was tryin' not to cry. I wanted to hug her and
tell her it was gonna be fine. But I couldn't.
"I was sent to live with her brother. He was awful.
I went to bed crying myself to sleep almost every
night. I wrote to Johnny and soon grew to love him
more than anyone else in my life. He was my only
friend." Her voice shook, but she went on. “Then I
came here and found out, you know." She turned to
me. "When you said, earlier, that you were drawn to
me, what did you mean? Did you mean like friendship,
or you know, do you understand what I'm trying
say?"
I did, all of a sudden. And I knew what I had meant
when I told her I was drawn to her. I could substitute
the word 'attracted' for the word 'drawn' and it would
still be accurate.

"I think so." I said, and I swear I don't know
where this came from. I reached down and kissed her.
Now, I've always been a sort of, rough kisser. ButI'm a rough person, you know? This was no exception.
Rough and forced. It's just my nature. I think I
startled her at first. She hadn't been expecting it
and BAM! I just help myself. That's how I do
everything, though. My own way.
When we pulled apart, she was just staring at me,
which was what I was doing to her. And my heart was
beating a mile a minute. I hadn't been that caught
up in a girl in a long time.
"Is that what you were trying to say?" I asked
her. I can be very irresistible at times, and
eventually just started saying stuff like that out of
habit. Not because I was trying to be hot, you know? I
just said it.
"Yes," she laughed softly.
"Then why don't you?" She shrugged and leaned
forward to kiss me back, sending shivers up my spine.
She wrapped her arms around me and ran her fingers
through my hair. God, it felt good.