Memphis slowly breathed in and out. Buck had finally agreed to let him play in the bar. Oh my god, what should I play? What will Cat and Cam say? He sighed deeply and began walking home. They'll probably want to come and watch. Ah, Jesus…

"Hey, you." A voice broke him out of his reverie.

"Uh, hey…Two-Bit, right?" The guy nodded and gave a small grin.

"Yup! And you're the kid who sucks at playing guitar!" If Memphis hadn't been putting up a tough front, he would've pouted like a little girl.

"I'm not bad! All you've ever heard is me practicing!" Two-Bit furrowed his eyebrows slightly.

"Kid, are you blitzed or something? Get over yourself!" Memphis's hands clenched into fists, knuckles slowly beginning to turn white.

"I don't drink! Crazy, but true! If you're such a good music critic, come down to Buck's on Friday night. I'll be playing, and I'm sure all hell going to make you eat your words!" Two-Bit cocked an eyebrow.

"Fine, if you're so insistent. I'll even bring friends!" A hand on Memphis's shoulder cut him off from making a retort. Cam glared at him, tightening her hold.

"Mem, are you stirring up trouble again? Cat isn't going to be very happy with you." Memphis shivered slightly. Two-Bit chuckled.

"Sisters. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em." (1) Memphis smiled at him faintly.

"Yeah…for sure. I'll see you Friday, Two-Bit." Two bit raised a hand in a farewell gesture as the siblings took off towards home.

I'm not quite sure what just happened here…hope the guys don't mind that I made us plans.

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"You what?" Kathleen's jaw dropped, along with Cam's. "That's great, Mem! What songs are you going to play?" Memphis rubbed his head sheepishly.

"Not sure yet. I figure I'll throw in an Elvis song or two, to keep the masses happy. Thing is, I'm doing it alone, so I have to shock 'em. I need to play songs that I know really well and won't sound too terrible with just guitar." Cam looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Bob Dylan, maybe? Simon and Garfunkel?" Memphis nodded in agreement.

"That sounds good to me. Probably I Want You and Sounds of Silence. I'm thinking I might play one of my original songs, though. If I did, which one do you think would be good?" Kathleen's face darkened and she smiled sadly.

"Okay, in that case, you should probably sing Freedom Summer. It might be a bit hard for you, Mem, but it's got so much raw emotion. It almost feels like a window into your soul." Cam closed her eyes and Memphis slowly nodded his head in acceptance.

"Alright, Kathleen….alright…"

PLEASEEXCUSETHISPAGEBREAKTYPETHING

Memphis cleared his throat. With Buck's permission, he had created a small stage by pushing two tables together and then dragging a barstool up to sit on while he played. He cleared his throat to try and get everyone's attention. It didn't work so well. He could see Two-Bit's gang in the corner. Kathleen and Cameron were hiding in the corner, not wanting to make him nervous.

He cleared his throat a second time. Upon receiving no reaction, he loudly whistled for attention. The bar grew quieter and most (if not all) of the eyes in the room were on him. Memphis chuckled nervously.

"Um…hey. I'm Memphis Landon. I'll be playing a few songs for you guys tonight. So, sit back and relax. First, I'll be playing a song you should all know: Hound Dog by Elvis Presley. Sorry that it's acoustic." He forced himself to loosen up and started the opening tabs of the song. Soon enough, he got into the song, and so did the patrons of the bar. Allowing for a few seconds of silence after the song, Memphis slowly began to play the next song, Sounds of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel.

His voice came in as a soft baritone. Two-Bit somehow managed to look astounded, eyebrows raised. Steve tapped his fingers on the counter, while Soda began to sing along quietly. Darry leaned back into his chair, taking a long sip of his Pabst.

"Do you see Cat or Cameron?" he looked around the bar, not seeing either.

"Who?" Steve stopped tapping his fingers and looked at Soda. Soda smirked slightly.

"The girl who decked Two-Bit and the guy playing guitar's sister." Steve snorted.

"Ah." He pointed to the corner of the bar. "That them?" Two-Bit nodded. "The black haired one is a real fox." Darry looked at him, amusement flickering in his eyes.

"Really, now? What about Evie?"

"I can still play the field. Lord knows she does." The song ended and Memphis cleared his throat.

"Meanwhile, back at the ranch…."

Memphis nervously smiled at the crowd, a sad look in his eyes. "Now…this is a song I wrote myself. It's about someone very close to me-" a few of the rowdier people in the bar began to laugh and he glared at them. "-and I would really appreciate it if you were quiet until you've heard the whole thing. Here's Freedom Summer." He plucked the strings of his guitar quietly until a melody came out, beautiful yet haunting.

It's been so many years

Gold has turned to gray

I see the memories so vividly

The auburn shimmer of your hair

So many minutes spent alone

So many hours of missing you

I'm still afraid to turn on the lights.

Cameron looked to Cat, angrily brushing tears out of her eyes. "Sure, it got their attention, but why did you have to suggest this song?" Cat smiled sadly.

"Because I know he can handle it."

Back in the summer of '64,

Aunt Jem asked you for some help

Mississippi's sure a rough place for a woman to be.

Racism is starting to take its toll,

The Ku Klux Klan reigning supreme

Lynching returns to common practice

You remain patient.

Memphis's voice cracked slightly, but he remained strong. The bar was completely silent, their attention wholly on Memphis.

A man in a white robe strikes you dead,

The first of many.

Four are killed, four are wounded.

Eighty are beaten, a thousand arrested.

Places of worship and family homes, burnt to the ground.

Voters didn't register,

But old man Crow began to waver.

A defining moment in the lives of many.

You've been gone so long

My heart aches to hear your voice.

Every night for two years, I've had to watch my little sister cry.

Mama, you left us, and I'm not sure I can accept that.

So many minutes spent alone,

So many hours of missing you.

I'm still afraid to turn on the lights.

Memphis's eyes seemed to shake, his pupils growing smaller. "Well, Cat?" Cameron leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "Still think he can handle it?"

The summer sky has turned dark once more

I can no longer hear your voice in my head.

I'm not ready to accept that I'll never again see the auburn shimmer of your hair

That sparkle in your ocean eyes.

So many minutes spent alone,

So many hours of missing you.

I'm still afraid to turn on the lights.

The song ended, and the bar burst into applause. Memphis grinned at everyone before hopping off the table and making his way towards Cameron. She glared at him lightly before smiling.

"You did good, Mem…you did good." Two-Bit appeared behind Memphis and clapped him on the back.

"Hey, you aren't half bad, kid! I guess I was wrong." He looked to Cam and Kathleen. "Hello, ladies. Sorry for the ruckus at your house earlier this week. Hope Darry didn't scare you too bad." Cat raised an eyebrow.

"Who, Mr. Muscles over there?" she pointed at Darry, who promptly rose an eyebrow in return. "Nah. Betcha anything he's all brawn and no brain." Darry's left eye twitched and his face took on a murderous expression. Steve and Soda looked at each other, sensing impending doom.

"Never," he inched closer to Kathleen, who simply stood her ground, "say that again. If you weren't a girl, you'd be cruising for a bruising right about now." She stomped on his foot, the heel of her shoe grinding into his toes.

"C'mon, you guys. I think it's Muscles's time of the month. Let's split." As they waltzed out the door and into the dark Oklahoma night, Darry couldn't help but watch her leave.

What is it about her that makes me so mad?

A/N: Well, that's chapter 3! Quick update, no? The "song" was written by me. Please don't make fun of the horrible-ness! It was written about the Freedom Summer. (1964). It's really interesting, in my opinion. "old man Crowe" is in reference to the Jim Crowe laws. Their mom was one of the folks that went down to try and help, and (fictionally, of course) one of the four killed. In reference to the sister comment: I think I remember Two-Bit having a younger sister? Now, to respond to reviews!

Not Really: Your name somehow got deleted in this section of chapter 2! How odd! Anyhow. Yup, I'm a bit of a reserach-whore. I'm still trying to think of how to insert segregation into the story, though. You like Memphis? I'm glad! He's my favorite, quite honestly. Your reviews always make me smile!

Confuzzled2011: Thank you so much! I hope you like this chapter as well!

Aerodynamics: Ah, man! Thanks for pointing those two things out. I need to start editing more closely. Nope, Mr. and Mrs. Curtis are already dead. So, I suppose Darry was OOC there. Dallas was MAJORLY OOC. I agree completely. I just can't seem to write his character properly. You have no idea how glad I am you like Memphis. Memphis is love.

Have a nice day, everyone!