Authors Note: Hello again. It's been awhile, I know! I'm so sorry. You don't know the trouble this chapter has caused me lol good grief! I had a bad case of writers block and it stumped me. I had 3000 words typed out and then I got writers block, I mean, come on! And those 3000 words couldn't even finish the chapter. Anyway I just want to say a huge thank you to everyone who put this on their faves/alerts, and in general to anyone who enjoys this story, YOU ROCK!

To hopefully save confusion I'm letting you know that this chapter shifts from present tense to past tense when the oc is narrating a flashback. And to anyone who was curious about my OC's name...You're gonna find out! Wooo!

Huge thank yous to - Entangler, Hello random, starryeyedwr1ter, FirstCome-FirstStaked and Hollie for reviewing. You have no idea how much I appreciate it.

Enjoy! Yeah this chapter is loooooooong! Hopefully not too long for ya.

Snakes and Cigarettes?

1962 - Present

"So, are you going to tell me where you've been all week?" I lean on my cue stick and watch my purple stripe hit a corner and roll back. I mutter, "shit!" I missed the pocket by an inch and now he has the upper hand.

Ace ignores my question and chuckles, "Stroke it, babe. Don't poke it!" He studies the spot where the cue ball sits and places his cue stick against the table, he'll go over every option he can take before even thinking about picking it back up again. His motto - always think while standing, not while shooting - comes to my mind.

It's only now that I notice the crowd of people have gone, probably tired of how a simple game has turned into the longest. Even Eyeball has moved on! He's currently leaning up behind a chick - the same blonde he was making out with not too long ago - he's showing her how to pot a ball. Both of their hands are intertwined as they hold the cue stick together and he thrusts his hips into her behind, whilst she giggles and misses her shot on purpose. Something me and Ace used to do all the time.

My attention goes back to our game.

He has three balls left.

I have six.

The outcome isn't looking so great.

Ace pots his green solid. "That's how you do it, honey!" He smirks and picks up a shot glass, it's filled to the brim with bourbon, and he downs it with one gulp. He picks up another and offers it to me, I eagerly snatch it out of his hand and sniff it. "Smell it all you want. It's still gonna taste the same."

I frown at him and bring the glass to my lips. The bourbon goes straight to my gut and I have to swallow the muggy air - trying to stop myself from running to the can - not that it helps, the smell of the bar was almost as rotten as the taste of the bourbon itself. I take a short moment to compose myself. "Aren't you gonna answer my question, Johnny?"

"Go ahead and snoop! It won't get you anywhere. I figured you wouldn't give a shit where I've been. You're the one that told me to leave." He takes the cigarette from behind his right ear and lights it, he inhales and exhales coldly and carries on, "I can't remember if that was before or after you threw a fucking ashtray at my head." Shit! I was hoping he had forgotten all about that. He shoves the cigarette in front of me and I cautiously accept it. "You're goddamn lucky you missed, honey. You wouldn't be standing here today if you didn't." There's no doubt in his voice that he's telling the truth.

"You deserved it!"

"Did I now?"

"You hit on my cousin-"

"She came on to me."

"She's sixteen, Johnny! She might think she's old enough but she don't know no better. You led her on!"

"Fuck!" I can tell he's frustrated. If there's one thing Ace can't stand, it's an argument that repeats itself over and over. "All I said to her was that she grew a set of tits! Not my fault you went batshit crazy."

"You near pulled out my arm socket when you dragged me outta there."

"That was to stop you from ripping out her fucking eyelids."

I'm quickly lost for words and he smirks - he knows he's the only one that's able to stun me into silence. He relishes the fact that he has the last say and he takes the cigarette out of my mouth and takes a draw. Anger boils up inside of me and I'm tempted to direct not only another ashtray at his head, but the empty shot glasses too.

I can't stand it when he wins!

"I ain't the only one who's mad at you, Johnny. Vince ain't too pleased you hit on his baby sister." Though I know he's not gonna give a flying hoot what Vince thinks.

"So, Vince was the one who told you I was here? I fucking knew it!" We both look over to the booth in the corner where Vince could be sat. Bingo! Vince is slumped over the table, he's passed out drunk, and Billy Tessio is currently seeing how many peanuts he can put inside his left ear before he wakes up. And I'm stood wondering when are those guys ever going to grow up.

Ace isn't too impressed with Billy's childish behavior either, he rolls his eyes and brings his attention back to the pool table.

He has two choices, pot the red easily, or pot the yellow, but risk snookering himself between three of mine.

I knew what play I would make, but Ace was so goddamn unpredictable when any game of billiards were concerned.

"Are you gonna take your shot, Johnny?" My patience wearing thin as I wrap a strand of hair round my fingers, "or am I gonna wait all night?"

"Cool down, babe. You should know I always finish a cigarette before I take a heavy shot."

Suddenly it's like I'm sixteen again.

1957 - Past

Have you ever had a time in your life where you wondered how in the hell did I get here? Yeah? Well, I've had plenty! But this one really took the cake.

It was around February, give or take a few months. The two things I'm certain on is that it was a Friday evening and that it was sweater weather.

I was sat on the edge of the leather seat, in a newly painted diner. My hands rubbed the tops of my thighs, almost obsessively, a habit that was almost as bad as the hair twirling. It was something that I did whenever I felt either threatened, uneasy or nervous, but back then I had no clue why I did it. If only I knew then, what I know now, right?

He sat beside me, too close for comfort. Conversation had been non-existent and I knew that this was the last of whatever this was.

I sighed, loudly, out of frustration and I hoped that it gave him the right idea of where the night was headed - an awkward car ride home and a 'see ya later.' that meant 'let's never do this again'.

"What's the matter, baby? You don't seem like you're having a good time?"

"That's an understatement!" I pushed my plate away, the burger I had ordered was almost unsatisfying as Ace Merrill himself.

"Not my fault, you've got the personality of toilet paper," he said, he finished the last of his fries and then lit a cigarette.

"And I've had more conversation with a statue! You've hardly said a word to me all evening." I clenched my fists ready to take a good swing at him.

"Baby, when you're on a date with me conversation is not on the list." He leaned back and swung his arm around my shoulder, his right hand an inch away from my chest. "Is this not what you signed up for?"

Then would have been a good time to whack him one but I didn't, I stayed composed.

I tried shrugging him off, but his arm never budged. I turned my head to face him and watched as he smirked at something in the distance, I glanced over and was met with a bimbo who was giving him the eye.

I made a noise of disgust and finally pushed his arm away.

He chuckled knowing exactly why I was peeved off. "Doll, if I ain't gonna get it from you, there's about fifty chicks lined up to take your spot."

"Please, you're not so special. And you're definitely not getting anything from me!"

"Well, actually I am!" he stated. I watched him stub out his cigarette on my half eaten burger. "You see, somebody has to pay the dear ol' waitress for the food and let's not forget a hefty tip," He fixed a stray hair from his head, "and I don't carry cash."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard," he said, "c'mon, it's not like you can't afford it. You got a nice big house on the view, money for college set aside, and a bright pink Caddy waiting for you when you get your licence. Your old man could buy this whole place if he wanted to."

"I am not paying for your dinner!"

"Suit yourself!" He stood up and gestured for me to move. I obliged.

"Wait! What are you doing?" I frowned. I watched him walk out of the diner door. My eyes widened and I turned to look behind the counter, the unsuspecting waitress had her back turned and she was oblivious to it all.

My head told me to leave the money on the counter, but something dark inside me told me to bolt out of the door and never look back. After all I wasn't a regular customer, in fact I had never set foot in the place before that night.

I bolted outside, ready to make a run for it down the street but I was stopped in my tracks. I had barged into the back of someone. I peeled myself off of the leather jacket my cheek had squished into, ready to apologize to whoever was wearing it.

Ace Merrill turned around and I groaned.

"Well, well , well," he said with delight, "looks like I'm not the only one who got away with a free meal."

"How do you know I didn't pay?"

"It's written all over your face, doll," he chuckled, "what's daddy going to say when he hears his princess is a thief?"

I shrugged. "I'm not a thief! I'll mail them a check!"

"How innocent," he mocked, "it almost brings a sweet taste to my mouth."

"At least I'm not a free loader like you." I crossed my arms.

"That's rich!" He stated and I could sense there was more to this conversation, but he grabbed my arm and yanked me with him as he forced me to walk down the street.

"What-"

"HEY! GET BACK HERE!"

I looked back and my eyes met the waitress who served us. She was followed by the chef, who must've weighed about three hundred pounds.

"I'M GONNA CALL THE POLICE!"

"Keep walking," Ace ordered, "don't even think about going back."

By then our fast footsteps were down to a steady stroll.

"Why are we slowing down?" I asked.

Ace freed my arm from his grip. "You really think that tub of lard is gonna catch up to us?" He looked back at the chef, who by then was red in the face with anger, and gave him a wave.

"No! But she's gonna call the cops!"

"She's giving you a load of crock. She's just trying to scare you, so you go back and pay."

"How do you know? You do this often?"

"As soon as we get out of sight, they'll go back inside and forget it ever happened."

We turned a corner to where his car was parked.

"If you think you're driving me home...forget it!"

"What are you gonna do? Walk home?" he scoffed, "that's a long way. That's a lot of hard work for those little legs."

"You wouldn't know hard work if it bit you on the backside."

"And you would, huh? You're family has been free riding off of your ancestors for years! Your Great-great uncle makes a name for himself...and the rest of your family leeches right off of it."

"You know nothing about my family.".

"I don't have to. It's been whispered about in this town for years, it's now written on the walls."

I watched as he unlocked his car and got inside. He reached over and opened the passenger door. "Get in."

"No thanks! I'd rather hitchhike." I didn't have to tell him twice when he slammed the door and drove off.

It was one of those nights. Where nothing went your way. Believe me, I would come to have many of those nights.

I was stranded in a town I hardly knew and I had no clue what to do. Making a phone call to my folks was out of the question. And just like Ace had said I couldn't walk, it was too far. And back then I was certainly not the kind of girl to hitchhike. The only thing I could think of was to walk the sidewalk and pray I bumped into someone I knew who could give me a ride home, a simple enough solution, right?

God only knows how long I walked up and down that sidewalk. It had been well past an hour. It was dark and it was way past my curfew.

I heard a car pull up beside me from the corner of my eye.

"What's the matter? Nobody wanted to give Princess a ride home?" The tone of his voice still made my blood boil. He chuckled, "If I knew you were still gonna be out here at this time, I might have tossed you a survival guide."

"What do you want?" The scowl on my face would have been enough to scare a ghost, but not him.

"Nothin'. I was just cruising for a game of chicken and low and behold I see your sorry ass still walking by." He opened the car door. "I was taught to always give a girl in need a ride home. And you look a mess, so get in."

I had one foot in the car when I heard the bell of a door open.

Jerry Mitchell and Denny Lachance stepped out of the record store and onto the sidewalk. I sighed with relief.

Jerry's face lit up when he saw me and he greeted, "Hey, Marnie."

"Hi, Jerry." I smiled, "Denny."

Denny acknowledged me with a smile and a nod of his head. He turned to Jerry and said, "Hey, listen, man. I'm gonna shoot. My dad wants to talk to me about Coach's tactics and if I don't go home now he'll have me up all night and I promised my brother I'd bat a few bases with him in the morning."

"See ya, man." Jerry replied. His smile instantly disappeared when Denny left our sights. "Who'd you boost the car from, Merrill?"

"Your mother."

Jerry scoffed and looked at the ground, he ran his hand through his brown hair and then looked at me. And whispered - so Ace wouldn't hear, "What are you doing with that hood?"

"Nothing," I crossed my arms. "he's just driving me home."

"I can give you a ride home if you nee-"

"Get your own girl, Mitchell," Ace sneered from behind the wheel. "or is that too hard?"

"I ain't your girl." I glared at Ace and then smiled at Jerry. "I could really use a ride home."

"Great!" He clapped his hands together. "Then let's go."

"Yeah, okay. Let me just get my purse!" I picked up my purse from the leather seat and Ace grabbed my arm.

"You're gonna let that goon take you home? You ain't heard the rumors about that jackass."

I yanked my hand out of his hold. "Can't be any worse than yours!"

"Fine. Let him drive ya home, but don't say I didn't warn ya."

I should have listened to him, but at sixteen years old I listened to nobody. I should have known from the instant I started rubbing the tops of my thighs. I should have known when Jerry pulled over the car.

"Why are we stopped?" I asked and peaked out of the window. The Shiloh river in my sight, the stream of the river ran quietly.

"It's a nice view. Don't you think?"

"Yeah, I guess. I should really be getting home though."

"C'mon it wasn't like Ace Merrill was gonna drive you home. What's a nice girl like you doing being with him?"

"Me and Ace Merrill aren't anything."

"That's good. 'Cause I really like ya, Marnie. You're a real pretty girl." He moved closer to me. "And I'd hate for you to be brainwashed by that greaser."

"Trust me that's not gonna happen."

"Good. 'Cause your blonde hair just drives me wild." Suddenly his body was on top of mine and he was shoving his tongue down my mouth. Can you believe that asshole was my first kiss? The thought of it still turns me.

With all my strength I pushed him off. "What are you doing?"

He chuckled, "It's called making out! The french do it all the time."

"I'm not French!"

"You don't have to be. We all know what kinda girl goes on a date with Ace Merrill, so what were you doing with him if you weren't going to put out?"

"That's none of your business, Jerry. Just take me home."

"What's the point when you're a frigid bitc-" Up until that night I never knew what the sound of bones' breaking sounded like, it didn't sound like what I thought it was going to sound like. But I tell you the sound of Jerry yelling out in agony was music to my ears. "You broke my nose."

"You're goddamned lucky it was just your nose, asshole," I swore. "I'm not looking like such a nice girl after all, am I?" I hit him with my purse. "I think I'll walk home now!" I clambered out of the car, my hair a mess and my purse split open. I watched as Jerry high-tailed it out of there with his tail between his legs.

I smoothed down the creases on my skirt.

Three hard claps filled the air and a voice spoke, "Who needs the flicker shows when you bring so much entertainment?"

I glared at him from across the street and marched over to him. "You followed us!"

Ace raised his eyebrows slightly, a cigarette in his hand. "So what if I did?"

I was angry. The jackass had been there the whole time and hadn't done anything, so much for being a hood who was always up for a rumble. "What? Were you waiting for him to get his tongue out of my throat? Before you said I told you so?"

He exhaled a puff of smoke and said with a smirk, "I was gonna finish my cigarette before I pounded the guy." He flicked the said cigarette to the road. The sheer cockiness of him was enough to make my blood boil. "Turns out you didn't need me after all. I was right though, wasn't I?"

"You're a pig!"

"I'm more like a snake. C'mon I'll drive ya home, but unlike lanky legs I'll keep my hands to myself."

He drove me home that night and we drove in silence.

He never crossed my mind again that weekend or even during the school week. That was until Friday afternoon at school, when I came face to face with him again, both in my mind and in sight. The bell had rung after lunch and I had met my friend, Emily, who had just finished cheer practice. We both had biology and always met after lunch to walk together, mainly to gossip. I never mentioned to her about what had happened over the weekend.

"Did you hear about Jerry Mitchell?" Emily said as we walked across the grass. "Coach Earl says he's gonna miss this weekend's track-meet. Which means there goes the track teams chances of ever making it to the quarters."

I, just like Jerry, had been stopped in my tracks. "What? Why?"

"After last night's practice when everyone went home Jerry didn't, he wanted to get a few more laps in before this weekend's meet. Well, he was running down the stands and then down he went, his foot snapped in two. Can you believe it? He breaks his nose falling down the stairs and then a few days later he breaks his foot. I mean, can you believe that?" Her nervous laughter filled the yard.

"Hardly," I scoffed. The bell rung again as we made our way to the science lab. But with every step I took something didn't feel right.

It was when we got to the classroom I figured it out. Jerry Mitchell hadn't fallen down the steps of the stands, and if he had, it hadn't been an accident, he had been pushed! It had Ace Merrill's grubby paws written all over it.

"Cover for me!" I told Emily as I pushed her aside and ran down the hallway. I heard her yell something about our teacher and afternoon detention, but I didn't care.

This was all about pride! I didn't want that jackass to think he had done me some sort of favor.

It didn't take me long to find him. In fact - if I think about it hard enough - I think I always knew where I could find him.

He stood outside, behind the teachers lounge, leaning against a wall. Billy Tessio stood next to him and they passed a suspicious looking flask back and forth between them.

Ace was first to notice me and he smiled. His eyes never left mine as I walked over to him and his friend.

"I don't need you to fight my battles, all right?"

"I've got no clue what you're talking about." His smile turned into a sinister smirk. His eyes left mine and he turned to Billy and said, "The chick's deranged." He shoved the flask in his back pocket.

Billy Tessio looked me up and down and he nodded his head in agreement with Ace.

"Oh, you know exactly what I'm talking about!" I clutched my biology book to my chest. "And I'm sure Jerry Mitchell does too! You don't expect me to believe he just happened to fall over and break his foot, do ya? He would never admit that you ruffed him up."

Ace motioned his head to Billy - as if to tell him to get the hell out of there - Billy did so with no questions asked and he hawked a spit and spat it on the grass as he walked away from us.

"If I did touch Mitchell, wouldn't I have done you a favor?"

"The only favor you would do is if it were for your own greater good. You just like fighting!"

"Look, honey, fighting Mr. I'm-gonna-letter-in-track, isn't exactly my idea of a fair fight. I could kill the guy with a single punch if I wanted to. But I never laid a finger on him."

"Sure!"

"It's not my fault every Thursday afternoon I stay to watch the cheerleaders. You should think about joining the cheer-team you'd look good in that skirt."

"So you were there?"

"It was an awful accident."

"Jerry was alone and the cheerleaders would've been gone by then. So why stay behind?" Ace never fooled me.

"I was finishing my cigarette." He grabbed my wrist and yanked me closer to him and whispered in my ear, "It's not my fault he just happened to come running down those steps when I stretched out my legs, is it?"

"You are a snake!"

He chuckled, "Like I said - I didn't lay a finger on him."

"What'd you do that for, man?" Eyeball's voice pulls me back to the present. "Now you're stuck!"

"I like a challenge," Ace says, and that's when I notice he's potted the yellow solid.

To be continued...

Okay, I'm a little paranoid about this chapter. I go back and forth between loving it or thinking it sucks ass, lol. I have to admit I struggled badly with Ace in the flashback part and I'm a little skeptical about if it's true to his character or not. Feedback/Reviews are appreciated.
Well we finally got to know the oc's name! Marnie Merrill, it's got a nice ring to it lol. I'm thinking for the next chapter we find out how those two crazy cats came to get married

Have a great day. :D