"Are you going to be okay?" Cherry had shown up at Dallas' work about an hour earlier before the benefit, just as Dallas had arrived.

She was all dressed up, as cute as can be. Her hair was red and wavy; it reminded Dallas of those beautiful, rosy-colored drapes that hung in her house. Her skin had a beautiful glow, and the essence of her smile was so subtle and serene, it could light up the whole room. She wore a navy blue and white polka-dotted blouse, which was tucked into a dark maroon skirt that hung just above her knees. She was a life-size doll.

Dallas was dressed in his assigned uniform. Although he felt slightly uncomfortable being forced to wear such an outfit, he wore a fitted white t-shirt, black pants, scuffed white sneakers, and a black apron with the words "The Shack" printed onto it. Ideally, all employees were supposed to wear a matching hat that tied the whole outfit together, but Dallas refused to wear it, no exceptions.

"I'll be fine, trust me," Dallas replied. As he began setting the surrounding tables, he continued, "I've played out the whole thing in my head at least ten times by now, I think I know what I can expect from your parents."

But the truth was, Dallas really had no idea what to expect. He only said this to reassure Cherry; she had been a nervous wreck ever since she had been back at home with her parents. Dallas had no clue what to expect from Cherry's mother and father. Were they to call him out in front of everyone? Were they going to ask him to move in? Or, worse case scenario, could they completely ban him from seeing Cherry and the baby altogether? Dallas had never been raised by strict parents, nor had he ever been around any friends who had strict parents.

Cherry walked over to one of the chairs at a nearby round table and sat down. She watched Dallas as he quickly set down plates and utensils for each and every table, one by one. He seemed to be very focused on what he was doing. To Cherry, she saw Dallas working hard to get the job done before the benefit had started. To Dallas, however, it was a different story. He moved quickly, making absolutely no eye contact with Cherry, only because he was nervous. Every time he took one look at Cherry, he became anxious; and Dallas was never anxious. But it wasn't so much that he was scared of Cherry's parents necessarily. It was more of the fact that this night could determine the fate of where he stands with Cherry for the rest of his life, or her life for that matter. Look, even if they don't let me see Cherry, Dallas thought, it's not gonna do shit. Dallas knew that no matter what her parents told him, he wouldn't abandon her. Thinking this to himself did calm him down, but only slightly.

Cherry got up and walked over to Dallas, who was still staring down at his hands, laying down plate after plate in the spaces in front of him. Cherry came from behind and wrapped her arms around him, linking her hands together in front of his chest. He stopped, and then continued laying down utensils, moving much slower.

"You're such a hard worker." she kissed his back, as she buried her head into him. She then spoke softly, "Dallas, don't be so tense. You'll make me more nervous." Cherry tried to laugh off the feeling of discomfort that she could feel between them. Dallas took a break from the tables as he turned around to give her a quick kiss.

"I'm not tense," Dallas said, "I just got a lot on my mind."

Cherry began to feel sick to her stomach. Not literally, but she had so much going on within her mind that she could barely hold herself together. Seeing Dallas act nervous wasn't helping it either. Here she was, trying to calm Dallas down; but why couldn't she even calm herself down? She had already dealt with the drama between her parents and herself, and now it was Dallas' turn. Perhaps she was afraid that her family would drive Dallas away. What if all the drama and responsibility that came along with the pregnancy was too much for him? He said he would stay, Cherry thought. But what if Dallas couldn't stay? Where would that leave her?

The next few sentences out of Dallas' mouth were certainly not about to help Cherry's fearful thoughts.

"Cherry," Dallas lowered his voice, "I need to ask you something."

"Yes?" Cherry replied.

Dallas took her hand and sat her down in the chair in front of him, as he sat next to her. Facing her, he continued, "Do you really think this'll work out?"

Cherry shook her head, "Dallas I told you not to think about this anymore. Whatever goes on with my parents tonight, it doesn't matt-"

"Nah, nah. Not that. I mean, with the kid and everythin'."

Cherry stared into Dallas' eyes, she was awfully confused. What do you mean, Cherry thought, You're bringing this up now? Out of all the possible times, you choose now?

"Dallas," Cherry responded slowly, "What do you mean?"

Dallas covered his face with his hands, rubbing his eyes upward and downward, and then grabbed one of Cherry's delicate hands. As he looked down at her soft fingers, his thumb moved back and fourth across her tiny wrist.

He continued, " Cherry, when I was a kid, I didn't have shit. My old man didn't give a shit where I was, what I wanted-he didn't even care if I were alive or dead. Still doesn't."

Cherry was not ready for a conversation like this. She couldn't tell if Dallas was blowing her off, or if he just wanted to talk about how terrible of a father he'd be. Either way, she didn't want to hear it. However, she continued to listen.

Dallas went on, "I'll give anything-and I mean anything- to this kid, not only because it's mine, but because it's a part of you. I'de give my life to you, and anything that means the world to you. You understand that?"

"Yes, but what, I don't get it, do you not want to raise this kid? Because that's what I'm getting from the first part."

"No. See, you're not listening, " he replied in an annoyed tone. Dallas got out of his chair and flung out his arms. He walked towards the stand of plates and resumed to his work, while answering back, "I need to know that you're okay with this. And by 'this' I mean…" Dallas opened up the palm of his hand and motioned towards the entire room of the restaurant, as if he were referring to his job, "This!" he raised his voice slightly.

"I need to know that you're okay with me makin' minimum wage eight hours a day, seven days a week. I need to know that me workin' my ass off in this shitty joint, is enough, for the three of us. I need to know, Cherry-are you listening? I need to know that you're okay with the fact that this is everything I'm giving you. 'Cause believe it or not, Cherry, I'd rather die than live my drunk-of-a-father's life."

Cherry stood up from her chair and paused with her mouth open, as if she were going to say something. She was unbelievably upset. Not upset; she was frustrated and confused. Overwhelmed was probably the best word suited for her at this moment. She opened her mouth once again, but this time, words came out.

"I don't need this right now." She grabbed her purse, and Dallas watched as she walked straight out of the restaurant.

What the hell did I even just say? Dallas immediately thought to himself. Dallas, like Cherry, also possessed quite a confused reaction from what he had just said. How could he confront Cherry about any of his thoughts, when even he himself couldn't decode what his own feelings were about the situation? "Fuck," Dallas muttered to himself. He knew should have never brought it up in the first place.

Two hours into the benefit; the band was live, the music was playing, and there were crowds and crowds among tables, eating and chatting away.

Meanwhile, Cherry was faking a smile to all who called her name at her table. Cherry sat between her mother and father as the two of them babbled on about-well, she wasn't exactly sure what they were babbling about- all she knew was that whatever it was, it involved her name, and school.

Cherry was never fond of her family's conversations; they had become so repetitive over dinner. Day after day, year after year, all she could talk about was her future plans. How is school, Sherri dear? they'd always ask. And let's not forget her favorite, We have got to get together with Bob's family soon! Cherry often used to fear that her life would become this very scene; married with children, living in a wealthy family-owned home in the suburbs, babbling away to other rich families about some cruise she just went on, or how her son had earned a scholarship, or some other junk. It's all fluff. Fluff fluff fluff, blah blah blah, Cherry used to always think repeatedly to herself during dinner time. When Cherry fantasized about a life with Dallas, however, it always put a smile on her face.

Dallas would come home, after a hard day's work, and spot her sitting on the couch. I'm home, sweetheart, he would say. He reaches over to grab her, and begins to hold and kiss her passionately. Dinner's waiting at the table, Cherry would say with a smile. Then, a small voice would approach the two of them from the near hallway. Daddy! he yells. Dallas' grin grows ten times larger as he kneels down to hug his one and only son. There's my boy, Dallas smiles and pats him on the back.

"Sherri, sweetheart, your father is talking to you!" Cherry suddenly launched herself back to reality, as her mother tapped Cherry's lap with her dainty hand.

"Oh," Cherry muttered, "I'm sorry. What did you say Father?" Cherry wanted to laugh at herself for dozing off into such a cheesy daydream. At this point, however, imagination was the only thing saving Cherry from strangling herself. After sitting at the table for just over two hours now, she was surprised that she had barely survived.

"I said," her Father repeated sternly, "When can we see this Dallas Winston face to face?"

"Dallas? That boy! What could you possibly be wanting to do with a boy like Dallas?" another friend of Cherry's parents laughed.

"Cherry's seemed to grow…fond of him. Of course she realizes now what a mistake that boy is to our town." Cherry's mother cut in.

"No I haven't." Cherry spoke aloud. The men and women at her table had widened their eyes at this. She continued, "And I'll have you know, just because he's not a complete replica of all of you folks, doesn't mean he's a mistake."

"-Cherry that'll do." Cherry's father interrupted, before she could go any further. He continued to laugh nervously, "The child, she's been acting awfully confused. With the passing of her sweet, young friend, I'm afraid it has taken a toll on all of us."

Cherry sighed, realizing that there wasn't much more that she could do. She would rather sit back and pretend to not exist, than actually participate in what these people called 'conversations.'

"So?" her father continued while looking into Cherry's eyes. Cherry looked back with a puzzled look on her face.

"When? When can we see him?" he continued. "Dad, wouldn't you rather do this in private?" Cherry asked.

Her father laughed, "Why would I bother doing such a thing? He's a big boy right? Send him over, Sherri."

Cherry looked around to see where Dallas was. Finally, she spotted him. He was across the room, standing by a table in the far corner of the opposite side of the room. At the table sat all of Dallas' friends, and a few that Cherry couldn't recognize.

However, a strange feeling had come across Cherry when seeing Dallas' face. He looked so…happy. He looked like his old self, talking and goofing around with his friends, laughing as they watched other stuck-ups walk past their table. She began to feel the familiar sense of pain once again; the guilt pain that had rummaged through her stomach several times before.

Cherry had several occurrences in which she had felt so guilty of robbing Dallas of his life. Even though she often thought this, Cherry had always failed to realize that the pregnancy hadn't only robbed Dallas of his freedom, but it had robbed hers as well, so there was no use of feeling that Dallas was getting most of the punishment.

Cherry had begun noticing Dallas talking to a girl, who also sat at the table with his friends. She couldn't recognize her, but she had no reason to worry. Ever since the pregnancy, Cherry had never really been the jealous type.

Dallas looked around and then turned to the girl, "I should prob'ly split soon. The boss has been lookin' for me, dumb prick has been giving me shit this whole week for nothin', man."

And just like that, Sal approached just behind Dallas' chair with a loud grunt. The looks on Two-Bit and the girl's face made Dallas realize that Sal was behind him already. Dallas turned around as Sal spoke with a raspy tone, "This ain't no time to socialize, there's plenty of time for that elsewhere. You want a job, dont'cha?"

"Jesus," Dallas muttered, "Ay, I set up this god damn place. If it weren't for me, these penguins would be eating on the floor." Dallas tilted his head towards the next table, referring to the crowds of people who wore suits. This made Two-Bit nearly laugh himself off his seat.

Dallas put a hand on Sal's shoulder, "Why don't you go get yourself a drink, Sal, instead of spendin' the night talking to me."

Sal shrugged off Dallas' hand and walked off. Dallas was too much of a handful to control at times like these.

Dallas spotted Cherry walking towards his table, and he immediately knew what was coming.

"Cherry baby," he stood up, "This is Diane, I don't think you ladies met." He gestured towards the girl that he and Two-Bit were sitting next to. Diane smiled towards Cherry.

"Nice to meet you," Cherry smiled back and continued towards Dallas, "Dally, my father would…you know," she tilted her head towards their table.

Dallas sighed and nodded, "Right, look I'll see you guys in a bit."

Dallas and Cherry walked beside each other towards her mother and father's table. "You okay?" Cherry quietly asked while continuing to look straight ahead of her.

"Yeah, you?" Dallas asked. Cherry didn't answer, as they had already just arrived at the table. Cherry was completely startled and yet surprised when she immediately heard Dallas strike up the conversation,

"Mr. and Mrs. Valence, I'm Dallas." Dallas held out his hand. If Cherry weren't as nervous and uncomfortable as she was, she would have laughed at how odd and peculiar Dallas was acting. It was like he was putting on some sort of act.

Cherry's father stood up, without acknowledging Dallas' hand, and tilted his head towards the door, signaling for Dallas to follow him as he got up. Cherry looked at Dallas, and was slightly reassured by the look he gave her. For some reason, she felt almost as if it were a trusting look, like she didn't have anything to worry about. Something about Dallas was brighter, better.

Dallas tried to convince himself he wasn't nervous, which sort of worked to a certain extent. The more he pretended like this was all some sort of joke, the more he bought into it and became more comfortable with the situation. As the two of them exited the restaurant and walked around the corner, Cherry's father immediately leaned in and punched Dallas in the stomach.

"What, the fuck, were you thinking?" Mr. Valence exclaimed. Dallas wrapped his arms around his stomach in shock, as he hunched over with his side against the wall. He moaned in pain as he replied, "Listen, Mr. Valence,"

"-No, you listen to me you little punk. Walk away. And I mean what I say, because if I ever catch you in this city again, I swear to God-"

Mr. Valence looked as if he were almost about to cry, and yet he continued to lose control of his anger. Dallas could see his lips quiver, his eyes burning with frustration, his hands clasped into fists.

Dallas finally recovered as he stood up straight, and began to speak. "Look, I get it, alright? You're afraid of this an' that, that your daughter's probably gonna have this kid, and move out, and never talk to you again, and live on the sidewalks, and let guys take advantage of her everyday, and you'll wind up havin' to explain to your special friends why you're a failure. Is that why you're talking to me?"

"Don't be smart with me, don't even start, kid." he replied.

Dallas started getting angry, "Well you know what's funny is that you think you can talk to me like you're my fuckin' parent, and you're not. And another thing that's funny, is that you're standin' out here talking to me, when really we should all be out here. If you wanna solve this, then Cherry needs to be here. I know this can be almost impossible to believe," Dallas laughed, "but it takes two people to make this kinda' mistake. Your daughter was one of 'em. I'm not the only one at fault. So you can tell me to fuck off, move far away, and I'll never see your daughter again. But if this goes through, then I can guarantee you that Cherry will never speak to you again."

The two stood silent across from one another. Mr. Valence, in awe, watched as Dallas lit up a cigarette while glancing at the cars driving in the streets behind him. He looked so careless, to Mr. Valence, like his words were so final. As much as he wanted to blame Dallas for 100% of his family's problems, he just couldn't. Not to say that he felt that Dallas was any less at fault; he still wanted to strangle the kid. But that was exactly what troubled Mr. Valence so much, he couldn't wrap is head around the idea that Cherry was somehow responsible.

"You don't know how badly I would love to kill you right now," Mr. Valence spoke through his teeth with a lowered voice.

"Then do it." Dallas muttered.

Cherry had no clue how this night would turn out. As she watched the two of them walk out of the restaurant, she felt so tense. She needed a distraction. As she looked up, she had noticed Two-Bit waving her over at their table. Cherry stood up and proceeded to walk over.

"Just kill me now, will you?" she sighed as she sat down next to Diane, right across from Two-Bit.

"Aw, nah. It can't be that bad can it?" Two-Bit replied.

Cherry took a sip of whatever drink was in front of her at the table. She had not clue what it was, all she knew was that she needed it.

"Well, the worst that could have possibly happened, happened. So pretty much anything goes at this point."

Diane cut in, "I think it's beautiful."

Cherry, with a confused look across her face, gave Two-Bit a strange look. Two-Bit shrugged with a smile right back at her, as if he hadn't a clue what Diane was talking about.

Cherry finally turned to Diane with curiosity, "I'm sorry, what?"

"The baby and all. I think it's beautiful what you guys are doing. Dallas is going a long ways for you; you two must really be in love."

Cherry was beginning to feel slightly uncomfortable with her tone. Looking at Diane, she seemed to be a very peculiar person.

She was beautiful, no doubt. She had long, brown hair, and it nearly reached down to her petite waist. She wore a little black dress, and had a denim jacket that draped over her entire body, almost swallowing her body whole. The only thing that would strike Cherry as strange was the way she talked. Such a soft voice, and each sentence was like its very own story. It felt like forever before she'd finally reach the end of it.

"Thank you." Cherry simply responded.

Although it made an awkward first impression, Cherry and Diane ended up talking for quite a while. Before she knew it, Cherry had realized that everyone at their table had gone other than herself and Diane, who continued to talk about Dallas as an old childhood friend.

That's who Diane was, a childhood friend of Dallas. She moved here when she was sixteen, and coincidently found out through Two-Bit that Dallas had moved here as well. She knew more about Dallas than anyone in this city, and that was what made Cherry so interested.

"It's no wonder he loves you, Cherry," Diane continued to speak, "You're so caring. Dallas never had the advantage of being around people so caring like you. I remember he'd always come over to my house, and he'd eat breakfast with my family and I. We were only like, seven, I think. And he'd always just come over. That was way back when he thought he needed a family. Now he has you."

"I bet he was the cutest little kid." Cherry smiled.

"You bet he was, now imagine what your kid's gonna end up lookin' like. Two many good looks to go around." she laughed.

Cherry laughed, she was enjoying Diane's company. Not once had she felt worried about Dallas since they had talked.

Diane looked at Cherry as she watched her sip from her straw. Diane could see the happiness in Cherry's eyes when she mentioned Dallas' name. Diane smiled and said, "Hey, Cherry."

Cherry looked back at her.

"You wanna go for a drive?"

Cherry looked puzzled and laughed, "Drive? Where?"

Diane laughed, "Anywhere! C'mon honey, when's the last time you said 'fuck it all', huh? When's the last time you actually got to go out with your friends?"

Cherry thought about this. When was the last time I went out? Cherry thought. Uh, never…She told herself.

And just like that, Cherry and Diane ran to Diane's car and floored it onto the nearest road.

had moved on to his final plea, "Dallas. How much will it take for you to leave this city?" He began to take out his checkbook and pen from his jacket. Dallas just stared back at him with disgust.

"Are you fucking with me? You think this is about money?"

Mr Valence continued, "Regardless of who's decision this was, Winston, I want you gone. I would rather help my own daughter raise the child than keep you around. God knows that I'd rather die than have to see your pitiful, disgusting face for the rest of my life. My wife and I aren't going to tolerate it. Now how much do you-"

Dallas began raising his voice, "I told you old man, I'm not taking any money from you."

"How. Much. Do you want." Mr. Valence said with a sharp tone.

"You can give me a million dollars if you'd like." Dallas replied.

"Jesus Christ, son. You're a greedy prick, you know that?" He began to hesitantly write, when Dallas replied, "But I'm still gonna see your daughter."

Mr. Valence put away his check book. He began to sense the feeling that this was never going to end. "This isn't a joke, boy. If you're not gone, I'm calling the police. If you think I'm joking then so be it. "

Diane drove with the top down and the music blasting, as Cherry closed her eyes and sang along. This was the therapy Cherry had needed for the longest time.

"Hey, I know this show we could go to. I wanted to go but my parents said I had to go with them today." Cherry said.

"Let's do it! Where to my dear? You wanna drive?"

Cherry was hesitant at first, because she had been drinking. However, she was not drunk. "Sure, why not" she laughed.

They headed west down the roadway, and Cherry had never felt so free. They each took turns singing verses from the songs on the radio, while Diane mimicked playing instruments on the dashboard of the car. At this moment Cherry realized that everything was going to be fine. Dallas was right all along. Who cared what her parents would think? Dallas and Cherry were destined to remain together. Diane said so herself.

Just as things were becoming beyond perfect, a slight obstacle managed to approach them.

"Cherry-CHERRY" Diane screamed as she spotted a car speeding towards them on their left side. It must have been either a drunk or reckless driver, because Cherry had the green light. Cherry didn't even have enough time to understand what Diane was saying before the cars collided at nearly 70 miles per hour. The speeding car continued to push Diane's car down the street, finally seizing to a halt when crashing into a side wall of a building.

After about five minutes, Diane managed to move a few inches out of her seat, saying Cherry's name over and over, waiting for a response.

"Cherry, hey Cherry. You alright?"

But she wasn't alright.

She laid with her head resting upon the wheel, hands clenched, eyes closed.

At the sound of several sirens, Diane remained frightened and still, watching Cherry sit lifeless in the driver's seat.

TO BE CONTINUED. THANKS FOR SUBSCRIBING/COMMENTING!