Authors Notes:: This felt so weird to write. I hope everything looks alright. 0 Don't be afraid to give me heavy critique if something comes of as retarded or unrealistic. I'm kind of nervous 'cause this is the only chapter where Addy and Blanc were actually seriously involved with the main characters. In the next chapter, I promise more angsty-cokehead Johnny. I mean I like appreciative nice Johnny, but angsty-cokehead Johnny kind of wins, too. Opening lyrics from Bannana Pancakes by Jack Johnson.

It's so easy when the whole world fits inside of your arms,

Do we really need to pay attention to alarm?

Wake up slow...

Curled up against Dallas for most of the day, Johnny found himself having unusually pleasant dreams. There was one about a ship, sailing forever happily on seas of blue. He was heading South, and Johnny never figured out why, but he found himself feeling jealous of the boats freedom. It had been sailing pleasantly across peaceful oceans of green and blue... Nothing could touch it out there. There were no rocks to scrape it's side, no storms. Everything...was just perfect.

He'd awakened slowly at around 1:00. All the lights were off but that didn't matter much - The brightness of the snow outside the living room windows seemed like enough to move by. The sky was bright and gray, and it was raining. He was only half asleep, but that was really the best time to enjoy such a moment - He was exhausted and all his thoughts were so honest, surrendered from his subconscious. He came to the conclusion that he liked rain, he liked the doll he'd salvaged, and he liked Dallas. In fact, he liked Dallas a whole lot. There was a tired murmur from the mouth of the man he was using as a pillow - His chest rose and fell in a peaceful sequence, and it calmed Johnny. He sank a little lower into the other, allowing his muscles to relax some. He felt hands in his hair, long fingers entangled in the locks, and knew that Dally must've been awake too.

When Johnny looked up, though, he saw closed eyes, a very red nose, and barely parted lips. He smiled to himself and closed his eyes. The rain, the simple touches, and the darkness of the living room reacted with the medicine he'd only taken a few hours ago, still swimming in his bloodstream. With a final sigh, he fell back into tranquil sleep, and silently prayed for pleasant dreams again.

---

Sodapops shift ended at exactly 6:00. He always made it home in time for dinner with his brothers and what he considered to be the extended family - whoever happened to show up. Almost always Two-Bit dropped by, but didn't stay to long because his mother liked to have him home at night. Dallas usually wasn't around, because he was out with girls or down at Buck's getting his dinner. Johnny stayed a lot of the time but he hadn't been around lately. In fact, nobody knew where he'd been spending his time at night now, because the lot was almost always empty and he no longer had a home... But if he was in some serious trouble - The phrase that came to Steve's mind was in deep shit - He would speak up, wouldn't he? Steve had always counted on the gang, the way they could support each other like brothers... But if Johnny supported that idea, why was it only now he was learning he had brothers?

Soda was chatting cheerily with the younger one. He looked younger, Steve noted. Blanc smiled more, he made eye contact when he was speaking with Soda. Adrian was taller, shifty-eyed, and didn't seem to happy about anything at all. Both of them made Steve suspicious. Blanc was much too friendly and Adrian wasn't friendly enough. It was all off balance. He heard Soda's voice and focused on it, suddenly back to earth. His eyes never left Adrian, who, he realized, looked a lot like Johnny. His hair was silky and black - a bit wavier than Johnny's, though - And his eyes were huge and dark. There was no mistaking those black eyes. Never in Steve's life had he seen any family, any human being, with darker eyes than Johnny's.

"Where've you been, then? He's been stuck in that god-awful house of his for far to long." Sodapop sounded stern, like he was really letting this guy have it. At the same time his voice was gentle, understanding, seeking an answer. Blanc sighed, shaking his head. His shoulders slumped. It appeared he was actually ... Feeling guilty about something.

"Stuff came up, alright? It's not something I'm proud of... Besides, Dad didn't want see me." He shook his head. "We had a fight the day I left. Over money, no less. He wanted me to send some. I told him to get a fucking job." Blanc sighed. "Yeah, so we left on some not so good terms. Mom was really mad at me, said if I was turning my back on the family they were turning their backs on me. And that was that." He rolled his shoulders in a shrug, and looked to Adrian. Soda was looking at him too. Finally, Steve didn't feel alone in his suspicious stare. Adrian looked up, eyes wide and black and curious behind his bangs. "Que?" This only earned him more staring.

"Haven't you been paying any attention?" Blanc said, his frustration obvious in his voice. Adrian shook his head. "Did I miss something important?"

His younger sibling sighed. Soda was walking backwards, now, knowing this route like the back of his hand. He was studying Adrian. Yes! Soda thought he was odd, too. At least, Steve thought he thought so. He had to have. Steve knew him, and Steve thought this guy was shady. Surely Soda, such a good judge of character, would pick up on that too? "I'm just wonderin' why you never visited. Blanc said your from Oklahoma City - That ain't all that far from here. Did you not want to see him or somethin'?" It was a rather serious personal question, and Adrian thought about it for a minute. All the while, those dark eyes were focused on Soda, their expression blank. It took a few minutes for him to articulate his explanation. It was not a very good one, but Soda decided it was best not to call him out on it. "It's, ah, kind of hard to leave work. There's so much to be done, stuff I can't... I mean, I really can't trust other people to do what needs to be, ah, done... And besides," He added, rather quietly. "He wouldn't want to see me. He doesn't remember me. He didn't the last time I saw him. Has he been getting the money I've been sending, at least?" Adrian looked to Soda, who shrugged his shoulders. "Well, you can ask him yourself. That house is ours." He pointed to a house only two lots down, and Adrain bit his bottom lip nervously. "What if he doesn't want to see us? We haven't exactly won the brothers of the year award." He looked to Blanc, obviously directing the quiet question at his brother. "Of course he wants to see us! We're his brothers, regardless of whatevers happened in the past." He swung an arm around Adrians shoulders. "And you'd better smile when you see him, too." Soda had not really seen Adrian smile, and he nodded his head. It only made sense - Johnny wouldn't be so edgy if they made him feel more comfortable, more reassured by warm grins. Before they came to the house, Soda stood in the yard and glanced at Adrian. His expression was serious, a glint of protectiveness in his eyes.

"You just remember ya'll are gonna have to tell those stories to Johnny, and you don't even know the kind of hell you could've saved him from in that house. I hope you have better excuses for him."

As they came to the Curtis porch, Adrian took a seat on the swing. Steve stood out with him, reaching for a carton of cigarettes. He popped one between his lips, offering the box to Adrian. He took one, and Steve lit them both up. "You go in first...Talk to him a bit." Blanc nodded. Adrian was more worried than anything else Johnny would not remember him, and it depressed him. And then, even if he did remember him, he wouldn't like him. This the man seemed sure of. Soda wanted to reassure him - Of couse Johnny would love his own brother! - but Blanc had already turned the doorknob and was stepping inside. He was greeted by the warmth of the living room, a great relief from the winter outside, and the sight of two people curled up asleep on the couch. The shade of his hair, the color of his skin... Blanc knew the smaller one must have been Johnny. "Addy, come on in. He's asleep," Blanc laughed, making his way over to him. Gently, he knelt down before the couch, brushing some hair away from his closed eyes. "My God, he's grown up a lot since I last saw him. I wouldn't have even have recognized him if it wasn't for the skin." He was curled up against another boy, one who looked older than him. Blanc noticed how red their noses were, the way they were wrapped so tightly in a blanket. Johnny had a doll resting against his arm, and Blanc remembered that doll. He remembered when they'd used to have a sister. She had played with it all the time, little Maria... Named after her mother, of course. He remembered the tragedy of her dissapearance, and his mother sobbingly confessing those men from the black market had taken her away. He'd only been a child of nine years, and he hadn't understood it then. She'd burnt all the clothes, thrown out all of the toys to rid herself of the awful memories - only, she'd kept the doll. It had been hers, it had been grandmothers, and one day, the next girl birthed in the family would take it as their own, too. Blanc thought jokingly that she'd never have pictured it here, in the arms of her eighteen year old son. He brushed his finger across Johnny's warm face. The boy squirmed a bit, moving. "Ugh..." He groaned sleepily.
"Hey," Blanc said softly. He wanted to talk to him - He really did, he was absolutely thrilled to be seeing him for the first time in ages. His baby brother... It had been far to long.

Adrian had been ushered into the room by Blanc's voice - Steve and him had made sure to stomp out their cigarettes, because Steve warned him that Darry did not like it so much when the house filled with the scent of smoke. Right about now Sodapop was introducing him to Darry, and despite his obvious suspiciousness, his shifty walks, his downturned eyes, he shook his hand the proper way. Their eyes met. "It's nice to met you, Darry." He had said, and he seemed to be being very professional, very polite in his interaction with this man. Soda guessed his tune had changed because Darry was older, and the man of this house that Adrian was a guest in - It warranted a certain kind of respect that needed to be taken into account, after all.

Johnny's eyes were flickering open. His nose was clear, not nearly as stuffed as it had been earlier, and he took a deep breath. The blurring vision began to straighten itself out. The dreamy images faded away, crumbling into reality, and he found himself suddenly peering into black eyes. He only remembered seeing those eyes...

"Mom?" He said weakly. Blanc smiled, and it was a warm, sentimental grin. He hadn't realized how much he'd missed his baby brother, and now he wasn't a baby anymore. Gosh, he was a man, now - He should've been about seventeen, eighteen by now. "No. Don't you remember me, John?" And Johnny was confused by this being with the eyes of his mother and the voice of a man. He sat up a little against Dally, who moved only to put a protective arm around Johnnys shoulders and grunt in a tough-sounding way(because, well, everything Dally did had to be tough). His eyes focused a bit, and he rubbed the sleep out of them. His eyes widened again, this time focusing on the man infront of him.

"...Blanc?" He said quietly. That was the only person this stranger could be, this stranger who was touching him so lovingly. Blanc nodded, and Johnny's perplexed expression changed to a sleepy smile. Blanc extended his arms wide and proceeded to hug Johnny in a way that ripped him from Dallas. "I can't believe how big you've gotten!" He gasped, releasing Johnny suddenly. His eyes scanned the face of his younger brother, and he was suprised to find a bruised eye. It was nearly completely faded, now, healing well, but it was still there - and a scratch on his cheek. He decided this would not be the proper time to question them.

"But Jesus, kid, do you need a steak." He let his arms fall to his sides and examined how thin his brother was. "What has your diet been consisting of?"

These questions, this sudden appearance, and the sickness swimming in his bloodstream weakened Johnny. He fell back into the comfortable curve of Dallas' arm, placing his hand on Dallys' to keep his arm there. "You shouldn't have hugged me. I've got a cold," He sniffled, looking to Blanc with red rimmed eyes. They were itchy and Johnny resisted the urge - He knew it would only make them worse. That was one of the things Mrs. Curtis had taught him when she'd been around, and it was one of the things

he'd never forget - It was, after all, important.

"Oh, Addy, Addy, get over here! He's waking up. You remember Adrian, don't you, John?" It was strange for Steve to hear Johnny be called 'John'. It seemed so much less endearing, so much more impersonal. Johnny had a sort of love to it as a nickname.

Blanc turned in the direction of the oldest Cade brother, and Johnny's gaze flickered to him as well. He appeared nervous, looking down at his feet.

"Adrian Aurelio Cade," Blanc said sternly, in a voice that made Adrian look up. "Get your ass over here and say hello to your baby brother. Now." Blanc was not in the mood to play - Adrian had a duty as Johnny's sibling to see him, and why was he being so shy all the sudden? Still nervous, Blanc guessed. Adrian did make his way over as instructed, though, and moved his bangs aside so he could peer at the boy on the couch. Johnny stared.

"Adrian..." He repeated, staring at him. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion. This didn't appear to put the aforementioned man at ease. "I have two brothers?" He asked, turning to look at Blanc. He nodded.

"Yeah, but Addy didn't really live with us," Blanc explained, grabbing the hand of his older brother. He tugged, causing the other to fall to his knees beside him. "Excuse his rudeness, would you? He's a bit nervous." Adrian shot Blanc a glare, but his gaze softened as it landed on Johnny. "Hey," He said, and he was smiling. Adrian smiled weakly back, his bangs falling back into place on their own. Johnny laughed a bit as Adrian reached up to fix them away.

"I almost didn't think you were coming back for me," He said quietly, looking up at Blanc with wide black eyes. It had been so long since he'd seen his sibling face to face - He had thought he was surely dead or had forgotten about him. What a suprise this was, that Blanc had not only come - but he'd also brought him another brother. Surely, he'd be taken care of now. Blanc sighed. "I'm sorry I didn't come sooner. We'll talk about it, alright? I promise." The words hung unanswered in the air for a few moments, and Johnny nodded. Dallas shifted a bit beneath him, seeming uncomfortable. "...'m ...age..." He mumured, his eyes slowly opening. He had seemed so peaceful a moment ago, but nearly as soon as his eyes had opened and registered the forms of Adrian and Blanc, his face resumed it's usual grimace. "Who the hell?"

"Oh, stop moving," Johnny murmured, turning on his side. "You're more comfortable that way."

Adrian smiled a bit wider at the obvious affection Johnny felt towards this man. It was sweet in the most friendly way. Soda had rejoined them now, leaning against the back of the couch as he peered down at Johnny and Dallas. "You feelin' any better? Need a tissue?" Soda grinned, half-joking. Dallas looked up, glaring playfully towards the Curtis. "Shut up," He demanded, and promptly hit Sodapop with a pillow.

Of course, this would only lead to a pillow fight. Soda tossed the pillow back, hitting Dallas in the ear. The older of the two immediatly sat upright, causing Johnny to roll off onto Blanc. The next thing Johnny knew, Dallas was ontop of Sodapop, and they were wrestling.

"Is it always this crazy around here?" Adrian asked, looking to Johnny with a smile on his face. The youngest of the Cade children nodded, sitting up. He was rubbing his head where it had collided with his brothers knee. "Yeah, pretty much. You get used to it." He answered. He scratched at his arm - That feeling was back, the feeling that there were dozens of spiders crawling up and down his body, their legs tap - tap - tapping against his skin. He realized for the moment he'd have to try and ignore it, enjoy the family reunion - This was all he'd wanted, after all. There was a moment or two of smiling and staring, their gazes flickering from the wrestling match on the floor to each other. Finally, Johnny simply pounced at Blanc, giving him a tight hug. "I missed you!" He announced, and the older boy hugged him back. "I missed you, too!" He laughed. Adrian watched, sighing. At least his brother had always been in the company of such caring people. These were friends you kept a lifetime - He could just see it in how comfortable the atmosphere of the house was, how utterly family like it was - but if Johnny had them, did he really need Blanc and him? Adrian doubted it.

He glanced back over at the wrestling boys and was suprised to see that Dallas had won in the few minutes he'd been thinking hard.

CLOSING NOTES:

Anyway...I've been avoiding this because I've been to lazy to go to my reviews and find everyones name but I really do wanna thank everyone who reviewed. :/

Stereochick - I personally replied to you. / your hear for honorable mentioon.

Secret Pleasures - I'm glad you think it's believable. I was a little worried about that part, to be honest.

Creeno -Your review is kind of old but I'm still replying to it. C I will finish.

WickedFun - Yeah, I'm trying to make it a little different. A lot of fics in this catagory are so alike!

Fosterchild - Thanks for the review. I hope I continue to entertain you.

Pictures - Why did you change your screen name? Ohhgeezz was pretty cool, ya'know, I'm just kind of curious xD

Minami Ozaki Wannabe & Maddie - You guys have left me good reviews and I appreciate it, it's very cool of you and I'm glad you're enjoying what I'm putting out there. C

O BY THE WAY 8D