Chapter Eight: Baby Blue

June 3, 1971

Evie had never much liked being married to Benny Alonso.

Running around with him used to be fun, back when that's what they used to do. When she first slept with him at a party three years ago, the idea of being with Angela Shepard's husband and Tim Shepard's right hand man was a thrill. She even liked being his mistress, once they started seeing each other regularly. She never minded that he was married; in fact, she kinda enjoyed it. He didn't keep close tabs on her, he gave her fabulous gifts and frankly, back then, Benny fucked her like he'd never see her again, every single time. It was a good change of pace for Evie.

And then Angela served him with divorce papers.

Evie couldn't blame her. Obviously. She hadn't even gotten knocked up, and divorce was slowly rising by then. There was no reason to stay.

But once Benny was technically a single man, he quickly reversed that, by asking Evie to marry him. She didn't want to, not really. But she knew the type of comfortable life she'd have. Really, why not say yes?

That's how she became the second Mrs. Benito Alonso. Because she couldn't think of a reason to say no.

Now, almost a year and a half into the marriage, Evie had several.

First and foremost was his partnership with Tim Shepard. It was easy money and endless drugs. These days, Evie didn't even like to smoke pot. It stressed her out the whole time.

Another was his tendency to touch other women. She should've seen that one coming, what with how they ended up together in the first place. Evie had never had great foresight, though.

But one of the most annoying things about being married to Benny - for Evie anyway - was having Beth Alonso for a sister-in-law.

Evie had liked Beth's older sister Sharon back in high school. Sharon was a year younger, but they ran with the same crowds. The two greaser girls had shared cigarettes at parties and parking lots plenty of times. Sharon cared more about her boyfriend, Ray, than she did any of Tulsa's drama. It was always refreshing, finding someone who didn't want to talk about somebody else. Then Sharon and Ray got married and moved down to Alabama and only came back for the holidays.

As far as Evie could tell, Beth wasn't like Sharon at all. The former Davis sisters looked alike, and they both settled down young, but that was about it.

Unlike her big sister, Beth thrived off gossip. Maybe it was because she had been the talk of Will Rogers High School after Terry Jones got her pregnant at fifteen. Evie didn't know her back then, though.

She didn't really meet Beth until Benny proposed two years ago. Part of being an Alonso was dealing with the family. And unfortunately, the family had included Beth for years now. Benny's younger brother Eddie got her pregnant about a year after she had Terry's baby, but he was besotted with the blonde, for some reason. They'd been married ever since.

Despite Evie's fairly obvious disdain for her sister-in-law, Beth adored Evie. She came by with her children constantly, always asking when Evie was going to give her kids a cousin. She also called incessantly. So much so, that when the phone rang in the middle of a Thursday afternoon, Evie immediately knew who it was.

She took her time getting up and answering, but eventually, she had to pick up the receiver and say, "Hello?"

"It's Beth," the other woman said, every time. Then, like always, she dived in, no preamble, "Have you seen Sandy Morrison?"

"Uh, no, not since 1965," Evie stuttered.

"Oh my god, you ain't heard? Sandy came back into town for her mama's funeral a few days ago. Her and her little girl, apparently," Beth reported happily.

"I didn't even know her mama had passed..." Evie replied softly.

She remembered Vivian pretty vividly, though she hadn't seen the woman in about five years. When they were teenagers, Sandy's mother had been Bible-thumping bitch who slept like the dead. Evie had quite a few stories about Sandy changing clothes in cars and public restrooms, sneaking in through her bedroom window, and still making it to church every Sunday morning. Vivian and Sandy had never had a very good relationship.

"Apparently she had a stroke. I heard Sandy's daddy is real broke up about it."

Of course David was. Sandy's daddy was one of the only men on the Eastside of Tulsa who still genuinely loved his wife. David always tried to smooth things over with Sandy and Vivian, but inevitably, he'd side with Viv. That's how Sandy ended up in Florida in the first place.

It took Evie a few minutes to catch her bearings, but after a beat, she said "Well, this is the first I'm hearing about all this."

"I'm surprised," Beth replied immediately. "Didn't y'all used to be best friends?"

"Yeah. Used to be."

The other woman, eager for information, asked, "What happened?"

At first, Evie didn't know why she punched Sandy in the face after she found out that the other girl cheated on Sodapop Curtis in 1965. Evie loved Soda, the way everyone did, but that wasn't why. Adultery was a sore spot with her after her own daddy skipped town, but that wasn't exactly it either.

It took a few years, but it wasn't until she became Benny Alonso's mistress that Evie truly understood why she was so hurt by Sandy. It wasn't about the pregnancy or the cheating at all.

No, it was because back then, Sandy Morrison was Evie's heart just as much as her boyfriend Steve Randle was. Sandy could've told her anything, and Evie would've understood.

The problem was that Sandy didn't tell her.

That was the issue with all adultery, really; it's more about the betrayal of trust than the action.

But if Evie told Beth that, she would tell all of her little friends, and all of Tulsa would know just how Evie felt by tomorrow morning. Once, when she was younger, she wanted the entire Eastside to pay attention to her. Then she got her wish, and realized it wasn't at all what she thought it'd be.

Instead, Evie put on her best casual, disinterested voice. "I don't know. She moved to Florida."

Beth was undeterred. "Did you know the baby wasn't Soda's? Before everybody knew, I mean?"

"Nope. Speakin' of babies, you ever get your period?" Evie asked, more for a change of subject than actual interest.

"Oh my god, it finally came yesterday!" Beth exclaimed. "A week late, stained one of my favorite pairs of pants..."

Evie stared at the same spot on her kitchen counter for twenty minutes while Beth prattled on. Apparently satisfied that her sister-in-law didn't have any good gossip, the other could talk uninterrupted for hours.

Finally, once the second hand of the clock hit the six and Evie knew it wouldn't be too rude, she interrupted Beth to say, "Hey, I just remembered I need to go grocery shopping for dinner tonight. I'll call you later?"

She hung up without waiting for Beth's response. She knew that even if the other girl was irritated, she'd recover quickly. Beth wasn't one to keep a grudge. That helped a lot, being married to an Alonso.

It was 1:30 in the afternoon, which meant Benny wouldn't be home for at least two more hours. The house was spotless, chicken defrosting in the sink for supper.

Evie thought being a kept woman would be paradise. Benny didn't even want kids. Just a clean house, a warm meal, and a warm body at the end of every night. Easy enough.

In fact, too easy. Too often, Evie found herself bored.

She wondered who would answer if she called the Morrison house. Or hell, if she showed up at their front door. She knew David and Vivian hadn't moved. David still mowed the lawn after church every Sunday.

Sodapop used to do it, when him and Sandy were together. It was his way of trying to brown-nose the Morrisons. He wasn't allowed to go to church with them, so he mowed their grass while they were out. It drove Sandy crazy. He'd get out there, long hair falling in his eyes, arms glistening from the Tulsa sun, and half the girls from the Eastside would find a reason to stroll past Marshall Road, all while she was supposed to be talking to Jesus.

Evie smiled, thinking of how often Sandy would call her before church, begging her best friend to come sit on the porch.

"Just keep an eye out for me, okay?" Sandy would plead. "I don't trust them girls."

And so Evie would. Sometimes with Steve, sometimes by herself. She'd bring Soda a drink every once in a while (he wasn't allowed in the house either), work on her homework, or just keep count of how many girls it was that week.

Truth be told, it was boring, and usually hot. But Sandy was her best friend, and she asked for a favor. Evie generally did anything under those conditions.

Evie physically shook her head, trying to erase the image of sixteen-year-old Sandy Morrison from her mind. After all this time, she had gotten pretty good at not thinking about her old best friend. She didn't know if she wanted to start again.

Looking at the clock again, Evie stood. If she left now, she'd be back before Benny.

She gathered her purse and lipstick quickly, stopping only to spray perfume on her throat and slip into her heels. This routine was quick and easy for her. Unlike so many other things in her life.

Benny had bought Evie a gorgeous baby blue Cadillac as a wedding present. She slid into the car now, smirking slightly. If only he knew where Baby Blue took his little wife.

She kept the radio off, heading downtown in silence. Now that she had a destination, her thoughts had quieted, too. Evie paid attention to the road, carefully taking Baby Blue to the one place in town her husband would never go.

Evie parked at the drug store on Jackson. She stopped in and grabbed a fashion magazine and two Pepsis. Then she walked a block up, crossed the street, and made her way three more blocks down. She tried to keep a steady pace, but it was hard not to move faster as soon as she saw the sign.

When Evie crossed the threshold into Randle's Autoshop, high heels clicking against the concrete, Steve was underneath a car.

"Be with you in just a sec!" He hollered. Clearly, he hadn't realized just who was in his shop.

"Take your time, doll," Evie said casually.

In an instant, he wiggled his way out, beaming and trying hard not to. His cheeks nearly covered his eyes when he smiled like that, making him look as young as he had in high school.

"Hey there," he said, standing up and brushing off his hands. "I wasn't expecting to see you."

"Isn't that sorta the point?" She winked at him.

Evie wasn't cheating on Benny with Steve. But it wasn't for lack of trying.

Steve stood. He didn't say anything, just walked to the big garage door and pulled it shut.

"You know I'm real glad to see you, Evie," he finally said, "but I sure hope you're not here to talk about Sandy Morrison."

She flushed. But that, that right there - that was why she came to see Steve. He always cut the bullshit with her.

"What if I am?" Evie asked defiantly. "And anyway, how'd you find out already?"

He sighed and leaned up against the car, crossed his arms over his chest. "Rosalie Matthews. Man, I can't stand that kid."

"Let me guess, she was bitchin' about Soda again."

"Winner, winner, chicken dinner," he said wryly.

Evie sighed. Things were always the same around here. "I don't know how I feel about Sandy being back in town."

"What's there to feel, Eve? She skipped town six years ago. There's no need to revisit that history."

"C'mon, Steve. You know what it's like. Like you and Soda."

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Steve bristled. "Not exactly."

In return, Evie softened. "You're right. Not exactly. But she was my best friend for a lot of years, and then I broke the girl's nose before she left Oklahoma. I can't help but feel... something. I don't know."

Steve smiled at her warmly. "I remember that day. I thought that was just about the greatest thing you'd ever done."

She couldn't help but laugh. "I think that was even better than the night you got out of the cooler."

He crossed one ankle over another, flushing. "Aw, c'mon, Eve. Don't talk like that."

She made a step closer to him. "You know why I come over here, Steve. You're too smart to play dumb."

He kept his gaze on her, those dark eyes. "You're a married woman, Evie. You gotta park a street away, for God's sake."

"Benny is not the kind of man you make angry. You can't blame me for that."

"I can blame you for marrying him, though."

Clearly, Steve wasn't going to budge. She'd been trying ever since he came home from 'Nam, but he rebuffed her every time.

"I gotta go," she mumbled.

He opened the door for her, as silent as he was about closing it. He knew the routine by now too, even if he didn't like it.

Before she walked away, Evie turned back to give Steve one last lingering look. "I miss you already."

He didn't reply. He never did.

A/N: Yes, I am annoying, and yes, I popped back up with an update after two years... again. I can't help it. This universe just makes me happy. Also, I actually wrote a 3000 word, chapter by chapter outline, so even though it's been a while, I still know where we're going. And it's fun. So thanks for reading, and let me know what you think!