Disclaimer: I do not own The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, or "Young Blood" by the amazing New Zealand band The Naked and Famous. They're great, you should all check them out.

CHAPTER THREE
Friday, December 23rd, 1966

We're only young and naïve still,
We require certain skill

Danny didn't believe her. He didn't look at her as he sped around the corner, but his brow was furrowed and a sneer was forming. Anna knew him well enough to know what was coming.

"I call bullshit."

She smirked. "Of course you do."

"No, seriously." He smirked right back at her. "I think you're lying."

"I ain't lying. Two questions. That's it."

He eyed her suspiciously. "You really expect me to believe you only got two questions wrong on your last math test?"

"Yes."

"… Did you cheat?"

"No, I didn't cheat," she said, shoving his shoulder. "I had help from Kathy the night before and … well, I might have even studied for it."

Danny slowed down and stopped at a red light. "Really? Like, willingly?"

She scoffed. "Do you have no faith in me at all?"

"'Course I do. In fact, I'm impressed."

"Really?"

"Sure. Surprised, but impressed."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "You know, just because I used to be terrible at math doesn't mean I still am. I've done well on all my tests so far this year."

"Yeah, I guess Randle wasn't completely useless after all," Danny said, taking off as the light turned green.

Anna said nothing because there was nothing to say. Instead, she sat up straighter and pulled down the sun visor to double check her make-up and fluff her hair.

"Listen, kid, we gotta talk," Danny said, just as she was wiping away a smudge of eye-liner.

She glanced out the window. "Right now? We're nearly at school."

"Now's as good a time as any."

"I guess," she muttered, running her finger under her eye.

Danny tapped his fingers against the steering wheel. "See, the thing is, and you probably ain't gonna like it, but I think we oughta start sorting out Grandpa Joe's place."

She froze, heart skipping a beat and stomach tightening. Eyes free of any smudges, she pushed the visor back up and slowly sat back in the seat.

"Why?"

"Anna, it's been months. Don't ya think it's about time?"

"Not really."

There was a good chance she was being unreasonable. Even as she stared straight ahead, refusing to even look at Danny, she knew she was being unreasonable. It had been months - almost seven, in fact - but that didn't make it okay, and it sure as hell didn't make it about time.

Danny sighed, rubbing a knuckle over his forehead, and she knew he was frustrated. "It's gotta be done eventually, kiddo."

Again, she didn't answer. Glaring out the window, she reached for the necklace around her neck. It was Grandpa Joe's crucifix - the one she'd taken from the hospital the night he'd died. She wasn't religious by any means, but the necklace had been her grandpa's and he'd worn it every day for as long as she could remember. It was stupid and corny and she knew it, but she didn't care; she liked wearing it.

But that didn't mean she was ready or willing to go through the rest of his belongings and it sure as hell didn't mean she was ready or willing to go into his house. She knew that's what Danny wanted, but it wasn't going to happen. She wasn't going to do it.

She didn't realise they were at school until the car stopped. Pulling herself together, she grabbed her book and went to open the door.

"C'mon, Miss B," Danny said. She looked at him. "You're being stupid about this."

"I'm being stupid about it? You know what? If I'm being so stupid about it, then why don't you do it yourself?"

Danny glared. "Stupid and childish? Way to go, Anna."

She gritted her teeth, desperate to tell him to stop being so mean, but not wanting to prove him right by sounding childish.

"I don't want to do it."

"I shouldn't fucking have to do it by myself, Anna. I know you took it hard, but he was my family, too."

Well, there was a slap in the face if she'd ever had one. Danny wasn't looking at her anymore; he was glaring out the window, a deep scowl on his face. She frowned, feeling bad. She still didn't want to do it, but she sure was acting like a bitch about it. Of course Danny shouldn't have to do it all alone. She didn't want to be the one to help him, but Grandpa Joe had been his just as mush as he'd been hers. She shouldn't expect him to do it all.

And vice-versa. Grandpa Joe had been hers just as much as he'd been Danny's … it was up to her to go through his things just as it was up to Danny.

She nodded, wishing she didn't feel like crying. "Fine. Just let me know when you wanna do it."

Danny looked at her but didn't say anything else. Still frowning, she held her books to her chest and climbed out of the car.

XXXXX

Anna hadn't been this desperate to skip class since the first day back at school that year. Chances were slim to none that she'd end up stuck in the seat next to Steve two years in a row, but glory she'd hated the idea of it happening. But she'd stuck it out, because, as Kathy had said, she'd just be putting off the inevitable.

But there had been no Mr. Chase, no room full of Socs, no being forced to sit next to Steve. There had been that shaky moment where she'd walked into study hall to see him talking to Terry Armstrong, but that was okay. He'd still been with Evie then, and their arguments were more often than anyone liked, but at least she didn't have to sit next to him. She could deal with him being there when she didn't have to be near him. Kind of.

Well, she could deal with it enough to hold her head high and go to study hall every day. The only time she hadn't turned up was when she'd caught a cold a few days after Johnny and Dallas had died. She hadn't skipped once and she was proud of that. Steve'd broken her heart, but she wasn't so pathetic that she couldn't be in a room with him.

Except now.

Sitting on the hood of Kathy's car, she wished her friend would hurry up. She'd talked Kathy into skipping class with her, stating she just wasn't feeling well and being in a room with Steve wasn't going to help. It wasn't an outright lie.

She could see someone approaching out the corner of her eye, and looked up. She didn't bother hiding her shock when she saw Steve. Her heart skipped a beat, her hands began trembling, and she felt hot all over, but she tried to hide it. It was okay for him to see she was surprised; it wasn't okay for him to see she was completely shaken by him.

He stopped a good few feet away from her and stared at her for a long moment. She didn't know what to do. Considering how close she'd once been with him, making eye contact with him now was awful tough. She felt a little sick.

Finally, he spoke. "How's it goin'?"

She sucked in a breath. Three goddamn words and she felt like every bit of progress she'd made had been wiped clean. Granted, there hadn't been as much progress as she liked to pretend, but his voice, the way he was looking at her, the way he looked in his jeans and leather jacket … they did the kind of things to her they weren't supposed to anymore and she hated herself for it. She supposed it was to be expected. It was the first time he'd spoken to her in months.

Her mouth opened automatically, ready to reply, before she promptly closed it. What the hell was she supposed to say? She glanced away from him and back at the school. Where the hell was Kathy? Finally, she frowned. Why the hell was he talking to her?

"What do you want?" she asked, bewildered.

He scowled. "Ain't I allowed to say hi?"

She took a couple of deep breaths, thinking, and reluctantly decided that was okay. She'd had a few moments to collect herself; her heart was back at it's regular speed, her hands were as steady as they were going to get with Steve standing in front of her like he was, and the cold weather had her shivering again.

So she shrugged, still frowning. "I guess."

"So … how's it going?" he asked again.

How's it going? Really? She didn't really know how to answer that really bad attempt at conversation. A part of her wanted to snap at him, start some kind of fight, because though the anger had faded, she was still hurt. But, fighting with Steve seemed pointless; they'd done it for months - years, really - and it hadn't gotten them anywhere. But, still: how's it going?

She looked at him, hating his smirk, and realising that perhaps his attempt at conversation wasn't so bad. She wouldn't have been able to come up with anything better - not that she would've bothered trying - and she was having trouble coming up with any kind of response. That wasn't cool. A pathetic attempt at conversation was one thing - not being able to reply to it was worse.

"It's going okay," she finally said.

Steve nodded, flipping up the collar of his jacket. "Whaddya even doin' out here? It's freezing."

"Yeah … Um, I'm waiting for Kathy."

"You're skippin' class?"

She tapped her fingers on her knees, wondering if she'd ever had a more awkward and forced conversation. Kathy had commented just last week on the lack of awkwardness between them, but she supposed it was to be expected now that they were attempting conversation. They were at an in-between stage; not together and in a relationship anymore, not fighting constantly like after they'd broken up, but still not at the place where they could be … friendly. The in-between sucked.

"Anna?"

"Yeah," she said. "We're skipping."

"Why?"

She couldn't answer that honestly. Not when the answer was that being in the same room as him when she was already feeling sad and stupid was something she dreaded. She might not let herself think about him - except for every night when she was unable to sleep and hating herself for missing him - but she didn't see the point in upsetting herself even more by being around him.

And, to once again prove the bad luck she had when it came to Steve, she was being forced to actually speak to him instead of just seeing him in class. She glared at him.

"Because I feel like it," she snapped. "Not that it's any of your business." So maybe there was a little fight left in her after all.

He raised an eyebrow. "Relax; I was just asking."

"Gee, that's awfully polite of you." She sighed again; fighting with Steve wasn't pointless - it was natural.

"What? So now we can't even have a conversation?"

"Well, we haven't spoken in months. Why start now?" Why today?

"Why not now?" he asked, after a moment of silence.

She gave him a cynical smile. "Why ever?"

Steve sighed. "I didn't come here to fight with you, Anna."

She ignored the soft tone to his voice when he said her name, and fiddled with Grandpa Joe's necklace. It probably wouldn't have mattered had Steve come up to her yesterday or the day before - she was sure their conversation would have been just as bad, if not worse - but today was a really shitty day for him to choose.

"What's that?"

She looked at him. "What's what?"

He pointed to her necklace. "That."

"It's a necklace, Steve."

He glared at her. "I ain't ever seen it before."

She frowned, looking at the necklace. She'd worn it to Grandpa Joe's funeral, thinking that it was a nice piece of jewellery and that it was nice to have something if his. But, she'd taken it off that same night, too upset by the situation to even look at it, let alone wear it. She had only taken to wearing it again not long after Johnny and Dallas had died. Where it had been too hard to wear it before, it had felt good to wear it when everything seemed so bad and the last few months had been so hard.

"It's Grandpa Joe's," she said, softly. The words were out of her mouth before she'd even thought about telling Steve.

He took a step closer. "It's nice."

Her stomach felt like it was being squeezed as he came closer, but she said nothing. She wished he wasn't being so nice. A mean Steve was worse than a mean Danny, but she was almost willing to swap if it meant Danny changed his mind about Grandpa Joe's house. Christ, she really didn't want to go there.

"What's wrong?"

She shivered as a gust of wind blew past them. "Nothin'."

"You're lyin'," he said. "Tell me what's wrong."

She smirked. "Why would I do that? Even if there was something wrong - which there ain't - why would I tell you about it?"

Steve stared at her for a long moment and she had to look away. It was there, the heavy feeling in her chest, the words that were bubbling up her throat, and it almost made her want to tell him. She pushed it down, trying to remember her how much she wanted to hate him.

He took a step closer. "I'm not tryin' to piss you off, okay?"

"Just go away."

"I ain't going anywhere."

She glared at him. "If you're trying to be helpful, it ain't working," she said. "You're just making things worse."

It was true. Even without her fresh thoughts about Grandpa Joe, being near Steve like this was hard. It had been since the moment he'd arrived, and his wanting to help was just making it harder. And she knew he wanted to help, because though he might have cheated, he didn't hate her. Well, she was usually pretty sure - especially on those nights when she wanted to cry at how much she missed him - that he didn't hate her.

"I'm not gonna leave you alone, Anna," he said. "Not when I know something's up."

She bit her lip, hard, and for one awful second she thought she might start crying. But her eyes stayed dry and she frowned at him. Why did he even care what was wrong? She didn't understand how their conversation had turned to this, or why it was it that she was almost willing to tell him everything.

"Is it your dad?"

Staring at him, she slowly shook her head. "No."

"C'mon, you know you can tell me."

She stared at him and he stared right back. She wasn't just wondering why he had to choose today of all days to speak to her, but why also why the hell he had to be so … Steve. He was acting like he used to - when they'd been together. It was getting to her in all kinds of ways.

"It's Danny," she said, and just like before, the words were out before she'd decided to say anything. "He wants to clean out Grandpa Joe's house."

"You mean … get rid of all his stuff?"

"I guess. I dunno, really. We didn't exactly talk about it, but …"

Steve nodded. "You don't wanna do it."

She tapped her fingers on the hood of Kathy's car. "It's been seven months. Seven. That's a long time, you know?"

He nodded again. "Sure."

"But, I don't wanna do it. I told Danny I would, but I really don't want to."

And just like that, the heavy feeling in her chest began to lessen. She took a breath; it wasn't supposed to happen like that. Talking to Steve shouldn't help anything. Hell, she shouldn't even be talking to him. But, when he looked at her that intently, she just couldn't stop.

She looked at him, a small frown on her face. "It just … it feels too soon, you know?"

He opened his mouth to agree, but paused. Slowly, he nodded. "Yeah, I do."

Her eyes widened because he really did know. He understood completely and that had always been something they'd had. His mom, her grandpa … and now - since Dallas and Johnny - he understood more than ever.

"I didn't mean to - I mean … your -"

"S'okay."

She glanced behind him, relief washing over her; she might've talked to him, but she sure was looking forward to seeing him go. "Kathy and Two-Bit are coming."

He nodded. "Okay. Just remember what I said when we were together, okay?" He took a few steps back, not looking at her. "It gets easier. I promise."

XXXXX

Soda's theory was wrong. So fucking wrong.

Steve didn't bother waiting for Anna to reply before leaving. It had been luck - complete fucking luck - that he'd run into her like he had. Study hall was the one class he never cut, but he'd forgotten a book in his car that morning and had run out to get it. Seeing Anna sitting on the hood of Kathy's car like she was - without Henry fucking Phillips all over her - he hadn't been able to let the opportunity pass.

Normally, he'd leave her be because that was the way things were now. Except … he didn't want to leave her be. He wanted to see her, talk to her … find out if he was just jealous. He wasn't likely to get many more chances like that one; Winter break began the next day, and he wouldn't see Anna much - if at all - until school started back up in the new year.

So he'd walked up to her, knowing it wasn't a good idea but unable to stop himself. She'd asked why now, and as he stood in front of her, the answer was simple: because he couldn't stop thinking about her, because he hated the idea of her moving on, because just being near her made him crazy with all kinds of feelings he didn't want to think about.

"Hey, man," Two-Bit said.

"You ain't cutting with Kathy?"

"Na. I told her I was gonna cut either way, but she wouldn't let me go with her and Anna." Two-Bit laughed. "Chicks are weird."

Steve agreed, thinking about what had just happened with Anna. He was pretty sure she was even more surprised at her opening up to him than he was. She was a tough chick. She kept her trap shut good, she stayed cool after being hit around by her old man, and she hid her emotions and feelings well enough unless you really knew her … but not her moods.

Despite the months that had passed, Steve still knew her. He'd missed the obvious about her in the past, but not this time. This time he'd been trying to find out if he was just jealous and he'd seen everything else at the same time. There hadn't been any real bite to her side of their conversation, she'd fidgeted and tapped and frowned constantly, and the look in her eyes was the biggest giveaway of all.

He'd thought that hate was the last thing he wanted see, but that sad look in her eyes when he'd commented on the necklace was so much worse.

His chest still felt achy and he didn't like it. She looked so sad and he'd wanted to help her in some way, but there was nothing he could do. He couldn't kiss her, hug her, or even just hold her hand. But he'd made her talk, and he knew from experience with Anna, that talking it out - even that tiny bit - would have helped. Shit, he sure hoped it helped because he couldn't stand it if she continued being that upset.

"You gonna skip class with me, Stevie?" Two-Bit asked.

Steve nodded. It was too late to go back to class now, and the only reason he ever went to study hall was Anna.

Opening Two-Bit's car door, he winced at the sound it made. "You really oughtta let us take a look at this, Two-Bit."

"Why would I go an' do a thing like that?"

"You want a list?" Steve asked, raising an eyebrow.

Two-Bit seemed to consider that, staring at his car and scratching the back of his head. Steve watched him, taking in the fresh black eye he'd received the night before from one of Rex Hamilton's boys. Steve didn't like it. He'd heard from George Silvers that Rex Hamilton had some kind of beef going with Shepard, and the last thing they needed was Two-Bit getting in on that. Hamilton was dangerous and so were the boys in his gang.

Talking Two-Bit out of causing too many problems seemed like the obvious thing to do, but no one wanted to go there. Not when the reason for his mood swings, his fights, and his constant bad-mouthing people was that it was his way of dealing with Johnny and Dally dying. No one wanted to talk about them and, as usual, it was there that Steve stopped his train of thought.

"Well, how long's the list?" Two-Bit asked.

Steve slowly made his way around the car, counting off on his fingers. "From memory, there's an oil leak, squeaky breaks, I'm pretty sure your gearbox is screwed, you definitely need a new tire or two -"

"Okay, okay." Two-Bit held up his hand. "I get it."

"Plus," Steve continued, "the whole thing is covered in rust."

"Well, gee, Stevie … you make it sound like I should just get myself a whole new car."

Steve smirked. "Wouldn't be a terrible idea …" He trailed off, watching as Kathy's car pulled out of the parking lot. Kathy glared at him on her way out, but Anna avoided his gaze.

"How'd it go with her?" Two-Bit asked.

Steve shrugged, not wanting to answer. He wasn't just jealous, he didn't want her just because someone else might be getting her, and he sure as hell wasn't over her. He'd seen Anna truly heartbroken twice; the night her grandpa died and the day he'd tried to apologise to her. Seeing that hurt look in her eyes without the anger directed at him had made him realise everything.

XXXXX

Henry Phillips was sitting next to her. His arm was resting along the back of the booth at the Dingo, his fingers grazed her arm every few minutes, and he really did have the most charming smile.

But Anna couldn't stop thinking about Steve.

One encounter with him, one conversation, and one goddamn moment of weakness she didn't realise he could still inflict on her, and she had spilt everything. She hadn't wanted to - he didn't need to know anything about anything - but she had told him.

Fighting a sigh, she played with a fry on her plate. She just didn't understand what had happened. Sure, she'd still been upset with Danny, and the idea of going to Grandpa Joe's was causing that old ache in her chest to come back, but she couldn't figure out why she had told Steve about it. She hadn't even told Kathy.

He'd forced her feelings out of her the same way he always had - by simply asking. She didn't know what it was about Steve that made her talk; he'd cheated on her, broken her heart, and hurt her far too much … but he was still able to make her open up in a way no one else could. Admittedly, it had taken a while for her to tell him, but he'd still managed to get her to talk and she wished he hadn't. Even if the words that followed and the promise he'd made that she couldn't quite bring herself to trust had helped her.

Not for the first time, Anna silently wished she could hate him.

Ignoring Henry and Kathy - who were talking about science of all things - she looked up to see Steve watching her from the other side of the Dingo. She frowned and looked away, just as Anita Mort sat opposite her.

"Hey."

Anna smiled. Anita was a few years younger than her, but a summer working together at the bakery and a mutual hatred for Ricky Bolton had cemented their friendship.

"Where were you today?" she asked. "I didn't see you at all."

Anita glanced at Henry who was still talking to Kathy, and lowered her voice. "We went to see Vinnie for his birthday. Aunt Meredith doesn't have a day off for another week, so it had to be now."

Anna said nothing, knowing Anita didn't really like talking about her brother. He'd been in prison for a few months now, having shot some girl at the very diner they were sitting in. With her mom dead and her dad in prison, Anita now lived with her aunt - who worked full-time at the bakery and had gotten Anita the job during the summer and after school - and younger cousin.

As her friend joined in Kathy and Henry's conversation, Anna went back to playing with her food and thinking about Steve. It was suddenly automatic again, like it had been when she'd first started to like him. It didn't mean anything; just that having to speak to him had weakened her resolve to never think about him again … at least, not during the day. The fact that she'd opened up to him didn't mean anything, either.

"You ready to go?" Henry asked.

She nodded. Kathy had agreed to meet Two-Bit in a while and Henry was giving her a ride home. "Do you need a ride?" she asked Anita.

"Oh, well … I don't wanna intrude …"

Anna blushed at what Anita was insinuating. Climbing out of the booth, she was both weary and eager to hear what Henry's reply would be.

He laughed. "Don't worry about it. I'll spend tomorrow night making out with Anna."

She rolled her eyes at him and said goodbye to Kathy. As the three of them headed toward the door, she couldn't stop her gaze from heading toward Steve. He was watching her leave, staring at her intently. She held his gaze for a moment, unable to look away, before heading out the front door. At least she wouldn't have to see him for over a week.

The bittersweet between my teeth,
Trying to find the in-betweens.

A/N: Betad by RileysMomma. Thanks for reading :)