Disclaimer: I do not own The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, or "Blue Jeans & White T-shirts" by The Gaslight Anthem.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Sunday, May 13th, 1967

I'll love you forever if I ever love at all.

Anita's dad kind of scared Anna. He was big and tough-looking, and had more tattoos than anyone she'd ever met before. He glared a whole lot, didn't speak very much, and seemed to spend a lot of time looking over his shoulder as though waiting for someone to shove a knife in his back.

But every time he looked at Anita, he would frown slightly. Not in a bad way, but in a way that seemed as though he couldn't quite believe she was his. He'd been in jail for six years before getting out, and, though he'd seen Anita twice a year when she and Meredith visited, he hadn't spent any real time with her since she was a kid.

That small frown he would give her whenever she said something funny or smart or mature was the only thing that kept Anna from going quiet and acting nothing like herself whenever he walked into the room. Billy Mort was a million times more intimidating than Tim Shepard.

Leaving him where he was standing at the edge of the property, Anita headed toward Anna. She sat next to her on the porch, wrapping her arms around her knees.

"You okay?"

Anna nodded. "Yeah. You?"

"Of course. My dad's back; yours is about to leave town."

In less than half an hour. Though she'd known about this for weeks and been prepared for it, she still found it hard to believe. Boxes had been taking up space in the hallway, her dad had been making frustrated calls to people about the mortgage, and Danny had been making up all kinds of stupid new rules he told her she'd have to follow once their dad left. He really was funny, her brother.

The last few weeks had gone so quickly, and it was leaving day for her dad, Meredith, and Meredith's son, Alex. But what Anna found even harder to believe was that she knew she would miss her dad. Not just his decent cooking, the allowance he gave her even though she had a job, or the way he always bought her baking ingredients in the groceries.

She'd just miss him.

Staring at Danny, who was talking to Anita's dad, she shrugged. "It'll be okay. Danny's still here."

"Yeah." Anita leaned back against the steps behind them, looking more relaxed than Anna had ever seen her. "At least you'll always have Danny. Unlike my brother, he's not stupid enough to get himself locked up for too long."

Anna smirked. "He's had to promise Dad he won't get locked up at all. I don't turn eighteen for a month, and he needs to stay out of jail until then. Preferably longer, but I'm not gonna push my luck."

"What happens if he gets locked up?"

"I dunno. This isn't exactly like the Curtises, you know? The state doesn't know I'm being left with Danny, so it won't make much difference to anyone but me if he gets put away for a couple of weeks."

A small frown - one that was awfully similar to her dad's - came over Anita's face at the mention of the Curtises, but it didn't last long. That had just been another benefit of Anita's dad being around - Sodapop had stopped being the biggest thing in her life. She had her dad back, and was happy. Not over Soda, Anna was sure, but not letting him walk all over her like she had been.

"You can come stay with us whenever you like," Anita said. "Though I doubt you will; not when you could go to him."

Following Anita's gaze, Anna's heart thudded. Steve was heading toward them, looking so good that even Anita had noticed.

"Hey," he said. Stopping in front of them, he looked at Anita. "Soda's been askin' about you. I think he wants to see ya, but I also think your dad scares the shit out of him."

"Good." Anita smirked, but that frown was back.

Steve moved to sit next Anna on the porch steps. Not needing any encouragement, she leaned into him. His skin was hot when he wrapped his arm around her shoulders, but she wasn't about to complain.

"Okay?" he asked, whispering in her ear.

She nodded. She'd miss her dad - more than she'd ever thought possible - but she'd always have Danny, and she had Steve. And maybe her thoughts were as sappy as what she had witnessed between Evie and Joey that first night.

Whatever. She loved Steve and Steve loved her. There was no real fighting, no jealousy, and no lack of trust. For once, things were good. She knew where she stood with him, and it wasn't just a relief, it was everything. And if that meant occasionally being as pathetic as Evie, then so be it. Evie wasn't a problem anymore, and Steve just proved it when Anita brought her up in conversation.

"Is Evie's family coming?" she asked.

"Nope. We had dinner with them last night and they said their goodbyes then."

Steve didn't say or do anything. His fingers continued curling a piece of Anna's hair between his fingers, and he stayed sitting where he was, relaxed against the steps behind him. He didn't tense or scoff or even sigh in frustration, and Anna was glad for it. His tensing when they'd run into Evie at school last month meant he wanted nothing more than to be away from her, and that had meant everything to Anna.

But, as far as she was concerned, his lack of reaction now meant even more. It meant Evie was just another girl. Not his ex-girlfriend, not the girl he'd cheated with, and not the girl who'd caused too many problems for them. She was just Evie; Anna's cousin.

When Meredith called out to Anita, she stood. "Be right back."

Once she was gone, Steve slipped his hand beneath the back of Anna's blouse, fingertips grazing her skin. "I was thinkin', you wanna go see Bradley this afternoon?" he asked.

Pulling her gaze away from where her dad and Danny were looking under the hood of her dad's car, she raised an eyebrow at Steve. "You even have to ask? That kid is my favourite person in the world; 'course I wanna see him."

Steve scowled. "I thought I was your favourite person in the world."

"Second favourite. Right after your super-cute little brother."

His scowl turned into a smirk. "But before Danny?"

She didn't answer, but was pretty sure the look she gave him said everything. She couldn't quite admit he was right - it seemed far too mean even if Danny didn't know about it - but Steve knew how she felt. The line didn't blur anymore. It was just him.

"Hey, Randle," Danny called. "Come take a look at this."

Steve gave her a quick kiss before getting up and heading to Danny. She watched as they both bent over the engine, talking in low voices, until a shadow fell over her. Looking up, she found her dad staring down at her. She stood, pretty sure this was as close to an emotional goodbye as they would get.

"You sure you wanna stay here with those two talkin' about cars non-stop?" he asked.

"I'm just glad Danny ain't aiming to hit Steve."

"I think he had every right to do that."

Anna fidgeted, not realising her dad knew that much about what had happened with Steve. In fact, she kind of wished he didn't. It was bad enough Danny thinking the worst of Steve - she didn't need her dad doing it, too. She also really didn't need her dad knowing that much about her relationship.

"You just …" Stan paused, frowning. "If he hurts you again, you make sure you tell your brother, all right?"

"He ain't gonna hurt me."

"Make sure he looks after ya, too," Stan continued, as though he hadn't heard her.

"I will."

Silence. Really awkward silence. She supposed there wasn't really anything left to say; in the last year Stan had acknowledged his bad behaviour of the past, he'd apologised for hitting her, and he'd told her to make sure her boyfriends treated her well. She smirked; it couldn't get much more fatherly than that.

Throwing caution to the wind, she leaned forward and gave him a brief hug. He surprised her right away by hugging back, far more tightly than she'd expected. For the first time since he'd said he was leaving, she actually felt sad. She had known she would miss him, but it was just hitting her that she didn't know when she would see him again.

"I'll miss ya, kid," he said gruffly. Letting her go, he stared at her. "And not just your baking either."

She smiled. "I'll miss you, too, Dad."

XXXXX

Shoving the falling-to-pieces box to the side, Steve sighed; he was getting dust everywhere with this pointless search of the basement. He reached for the next box closest to him. They littered the floor - most of them having not been opened, touched, or looked at since his dad had put all his mom's stuff away - and Steve was pretty sure he was making paths through the thin layer of dust covering the floor.

All for a goddamn blanket.

"Have ya found it yet?" Anna called down from where she was sitting on the third step down. She wouldn't come right down with him, and though she wouldn't admit it, he was pretty sure it was because she was scared of the spider webs on the ceiling.

"Not yet. You know, you could come help me."

Silence. Then, "What're you even lookin' for?"

"Uh - a blanket." Discarding the box at his feet, he stood straight. Turning, he found her staring at him. "Um, it was one I had as a baby. I though Millie might want it for Bradley."

"Aww -"

"Shut up."

Anna stood. "Steve, that is the sweetest thing I have ever heard."

"I said shut up."

"It makes me wonder, you know?" she said, coming down a few steps. "Why I didn't take you back sooner when you're so damn adorable."

"Are you finished?"

"I've changed my mind. You beat out Bradley as my favourite person in the world, because this is even cuter than any drooling or fist flying he does."

Sighing, Steve made his way to the railing of the staircase. "Really? Are you finished yet?"

"Yeah, I'm done."

"You're a pain in the ass, you know that?" His words had no bite, and even as he said them, he wrapped his hand around her wrist and tugged. She leaned forward, and his lips met hers through a gap in the railing.

"Kathy thinks you're only ever always nice to me," she whispered when he pulled back.

"I am."

She smiled. "You want help? I can help if ya want?"

"Nah." He paused, knowing she was a little upset about her dad leaving. It was half the reason he'd suggested going to see Bradley, after all. "I'll look through one more box then we'll go whether I find it or not."

It wasn't in the next box, but Steve paused as he looked inside it. It was full of his mom's things - clothes, jewellery, perfume. He knew those boxes were down here, but all he had found so far were old table clothes, ornaments, or garden tools. Licking his suddenly dry lips, he picked up a cream coloured sweater.

It was soft to touch, softer than anything he owned, and he could remember it on her. He could remember times when she'd worn it, times when she'd hugged him while wearing it, times when he'd buried his face into the fabric of it. He swallowed, feeling a little sick.

"What is it?" Anna asked, still on the stairs.

He shoved the sweater back in the box. "Nothing."

She was silent for a few seconds, and his lie rang clear between them.

"Okay."

He hated himself for lying to her, but loved that she didn't push it. Loved her for not pushing it.

"Steve?"

"Yeah?" He tore his gaze away from the sweater to look at Anna.

"I'm gonna get a drink. You want one?"

He nodded. "Thanks."

She hesitated before heading up the stairs, and he felt even worse. He knew she wasn't being nosy; she was actually interested in what he had found, probably knowing it was something of his mom's. But he couldn't tell her, not yet. It was the first piece of his mom's clothing he'd touched in years … he needed to get over that being a big deal - especially when it just shouldn't be - before he told Anna anything.

Taking one last look at the sweater, he went to close the box when something caught his gaze. It was another box with some kind of pattern printed on the top. Frowning, he tried to make the white pattern out, but it just looked like a bunch of strange shaped white lines. With his curiosity getting the best of him, he reached for the box and knew what it was the moment his fingers touched the cool porcelain.

His mom's jewellery box. He hadn't looked at this in years, and even then it was only when his mom was deciding which necklace to wear out to dinner … back when his old man hadn't been such a bastard and had treated his wife the way she had deserved to be treated. Not hearing Anna coming back yet, he slowly lifted the lid, unable to remember any of the jewellery his mom used to wear.

The necklaces were tangled, and he made a mental note to fix that at some stage. There was no gold in there, though; everything was silver, pearls, or … feathers. Steve frowned, trying to picture his mom in those particular earrings, when something caught his eye. Silver with a green stone, shiny, round - his stomach dropped as he picked up the ring. It was nice, and he remembered his mom wearing it at one of her birthday parties - the coolness of it against his cheek as she held his face and kissed him happily.

He thought back to that afternoon on Soda's couch, when Anna had held his face the same way and kissed him in a much different way.

"You find it, Stevie?" Anna asked softly from the stairs.

He could tell by the nickname and her tone that she wasn't pissed he'd lied. If anything, she was worried, and it just made him hate that this was affecting him so much even more. Not knowing why or even thinking it through, Steve shoved the ring into his jeans pocket and the jewellery box back into the cardboard box.

"Nope," he said, standing. "We oughtta get goin', though. We were s'posed to be at Millie's a while ago."

XXXXX

Anna was kissing him, driving him mad with small touches and barely there presses of her body against his. Her tongue slid against his own, hinting of the banana splits Millie had made them for dessert. Digging his fingers into her hips, pulling her closer as she straddled him, he hoped like hell she never stopped what she was doing.

Her lips left his, and he muttered a hoarse curse as they travelled across his jaw, sending chills down his back. He wanted to touch her, make her as crazy as she was making him, but she was far too distracting. When her hands slipped beneath his T-Shirt and tugged it up, he could barely remember to lift his arms.

"Christ, Anna."

She smiled. "What?"

"You're drivin' me fuckin' crazy, that's what."

"That's kinda the point."

He hadn't been sure she'd want to stay with him that night. It was her and Danny's first night without their dad in town, but it didn't seem to really matter to either of them - at least not enough for them to make a big deal out of it. Anna had been strangely quiet all day, and Steve knew she was a little upset, but she hadn't wanted to stay home. Danny had plans with Mary-Louise anyway, and as Anna had said, with her dad gone, it was just like any night he'd had to work or any night he'd spent with Meredith.

That was fine. Steve didn't care what her reasons were, so long as she was okay and so long as she wanted to stay with him. Which she obviously did.

She kissed him again, placing her hands on the back of his neck and wriggling that little bit closer on his lap. He moaned softly into her mouth, still distracted, but desperate to touch her. Desperate to taste her, see her, feel every damn part of her, he released the bruising grip on her hips and went to work on her blouse.

It was harder than it should have been. With Anna kissing him the way she was, slowly caressing his bare chest the way she was, and his own hands shaking slightly, the buttons on her blouse were far too fiddly. He pulled away for a second, taking a steadying breath, before kissing her again. The breath helped, calmed him enough to finally work his way through the buttons of her blouse.

He didn't take it off her; he left it on and unbuttoned because it was one of his favourite sights. There wasn't much sexier to him than Anna, with her skirt hiked up around her waist, her blouse open so he could see the lace of her bra, and her skin flushed pink. He smirked; the only thing better was when she wasn't wearing a damn thing.

She pulled back, looking at him. "What're you smirking about?"

"Nothin'."

Lifting a hand, she ran her fingers over his lips, smoothing away the smirk. "It's only me, right?"

He kissed her fingers. "You know it is."

"Yeah. I guess I just like hearing is sometimes." There was no grin, no sarcasm, and no humour when she said it, and he knew she was serious. It had nothing to do with her ego.

He grasped her fingers. "It's always you. I know I don't say some shit as often as I should, but it's always gonna be you."

She stared at him for a moment, eyes wide and chest lifting and falling with her deep breaths. "God, Steve," she finally said, and kissed him again.

Her fingers tangled in his hair as she kissed him deeply, whimpering into his mouth, and pressing herself against him. He kissed her back just as eagerly, but he was distracting himself. It would always be Anna - he had no doubts about that - and as he kissed her, touched her, thought about always having her, the ring he'd slipped into his pocket seemed to become hot and heavy.

It scared the shit out of him, and his hands began to tremble as he skimmed them up Anna's thighs. He knew without a doubt that, one day, he'd give that ring to Anna.

With wild hearts, blue jeans & white T-shirts.

A/N: Beta'd by RileysMomma.