My side was still hurting when I woke up. I struggled to get up, but I somehow managed to get out of the bed. I glanced at the clock… 10:37am… "What day is it today?" I thought. I shrugged and went to living room expecting to see everyone there but instead, I just saw Dallas sitting on the couch with a beer in his hand. "A little early for that, don't ya think?" I asked and leaned my left side against the wall.

He jumped a bit when he saw me and sat up, "Whoa, what're you doin' up?"

I sat down at the table. "You know I can never just lie around and do nothing, Dal… where is everybody?"

"Darry, Steve and Sodapop are at work… Two-Bit, Ponyboy and Johnny are at school… and I'm here." He smirked a bit.

I rolled my eyes and scoffed a bit. "Let me guess… Darry left you in charge if e since you don't go to school or work and hang around all day like a lazy ass bum?"

"That is correct. Now… while we are in the topic of so named, Darrel Curtis," he got up and sat across from me at the table, "Why don't you tell me what happened with them Socs and how they got ya?"

"What does that have to do with Darry?"

"Well, Darry said if you got up I should try to shake it outta ya… cause if I don't, he said he's gonna ask you 'bout it when he gets home… so basically, it's me or Darry. Take your pick," he shrugged.

"Fine, I choose you."

"Then spill." He leaned back in his chair.

I sighed and rested my elbow on the table and my head pressed against my hand. "I was walking around cause my parents were being as lovely as they always are and I didn't feel like dealin' with 'em. So I was on my way here, and you can probably tell what happened from there."

"So you were walkin' alone?" I nodded hesitantly at his question. He gave me a stern look, "Rain, you know what we told you..." He wasn't yelling yet, but I knew that tone in his voice, that he was ready to yell and that he was holding it back a bit.

"I know, Dallas! But I thought maybe I'd be ok on our side." I was close to yelling like he was.

"It's never safe for us, Rain!" he yelled, "Look, you should've known it would happen. I know you don't wanna hear this, but you're lucky they didn't rape you!" He gave a heavy sigh. "None of us need this right now, especially with Mr and Mrs Curtis in that wreck a month ago!"

That hit me in a different way. "You're acting like I control everything that's going on! You think I wanted to get jumped?! You think I wanted to have surgery?! You think I controlled what happened in that wreck?! This may be something new to you, but we all went through that! I already feel like a burden on those three cause of this and I don't need you making me feel worse than I already do!" I yelled, standing up and going outside, sitting down on the steps to the house.

A few minutes later, I heard the front door open and shut, Dallas came and sat next to me. "Rain, I didn't… I didn't mean any of that." I kept my eyes fixed on the ground. "I didn't know you felt that way," he continued.

Dallas would only show this side to very few people, and I was one of those people. I don't know who else he would to, sometimes Johnny and Ponyboy, but never too much. Maybe cause I was the only girl he was really friends with? I don't know. But even then, I could count on one hand how many times he actually showed his apologetic, soft side to me, and it was only when he got me really mad or I was really upset about something.

"I try to be as tough as you and the rest, but I still have feelings, Dal. And those feelings can be hurt just as much as any other person," I said quietly.

He sighed. "I know, I know… everything just caught up to me, I guess."

That was his way of apologizing. Like I said, Dallas had a soft spot for me. Even the rest did, actually. They didn't like getting too rough with me around, which bothered me sometimes. It made me think that they would sometimes think that I was some weak girl instead of like them. I actually was as strong as them, maybe even stronger with some things, believe it or not. But I didn't like when they acted less of how they usually were.

He sighed, "There's just a lot goin' on right now and it caught up to me. I didn't mean to snap at ya like that." I still looked at the ground. He sighed again, "Say somethin', would ya? You're makin' me nervous."

"Somethin', would ya? You're making me nervous," I teased, still looking at the ground and trying to bite back a smile.

I heard him chuckle a bit. "At least now I know you're still talkin' to me."

"I didn't mean to yell at you neither…"

He nodded. "We should head back inside." He stood up and turned to the door. I cleared my throat and he turned back to me. I held out my arms forward so he could help me up. He laughed, "Really?"

I nodded. "Please? My side hurts to get up on my own." He chuckled and helped me up. "Don't laugh at my pain," I said and he laughed again.

Dallas was like an annoying big brother. Couldn't live with him, couldn't live without him. When you were mad or something, he would either make you feel better or he would piss you off- there was no in between. Like I said, he had a soft spot for me… yes, even the big, bad Dallas Winston can be a complete softie. I've seen it, and it's actually pretty weird seeing him like that.

"Never thought I'd see the day," he said when we got back inside.

I leaned against the wall again, "See the day when?"

"When you'd yell back."

He was right. Usually when someone did something to me, I didn't fight or yell back, depending on the situation. I could probably count on only two hands how many times I had fought back with certain things. I mean, when I was fourteen, Dallas hit on me and I beat him up. And believe it or not, he was hurt pretty bad. Mostly, he couldn't walk straight or without jockage for a whole week and a half. If I could do that, I could do anything.

"Ya know, Darry wanted you to rest today."

"But I don't want to." I sounded like a little kid.

He shrugged and plopped himself on the couch, "Then you deal with him. I don't want my head pounded in."

I sighed in defeat and fell down next to him on the couch. "Fine, but I'm staying right here the rest of the day."

He shrugged again. "Whatever the hell floats your boat."

"Can I ever get a real opinion outta you?"

"Just this once… no. I thought you'd be used to that from me… how long have we been friends again?"

I shrugged. "I don't know… nearly ten years?"

"Then you should really be used to my answers to things."

This chapter is shorter :( whatever… this was kind of just a thing that showed her relationship with Dallas. I'm planning on doing a little chapter like this at least once with the rest :P so yeah, hope you liked it!