For The Love of a Greaser
Chapter 23
Prince Charming
"So, you wanna tell me why your face is blue?" Joe asked again.
I swear, the look that he gave me when I first came in. Lord have mercy. It was like I had grown another head.
"Let just say the boys had a field day with the paint you gave us. Dragged me right into the mess too," I told him, scratching at my cheek for a moment.
I bet I looked awful funny though, with my skin stained blue and all. I looked like one of those 'Smurf's' as Two-Bit called them. Although, personally, I still thought that I looked like a blue bimbo. That was just me though.
It had taken me all night to get that stuff out. After I scrubbed most of it off of my skin, I had to have Darry help me get it out of my hair. It probably took him a whole hour to get the stuff out. I was still thankful for the help though, I really was. I'd say he'd probably never really washed anyone else's hair , but his own. He didn't seem to mind though much when he helped me, he just took it all in stride and set that little grin on his face. He'd even pulled a chair up for me to sit on so that he could wash my hair in the sink.
"Hey, Joe?"
"Yeah?" he turned to look at me as he wiped his hands off.
"Have you…ever heard of a smurf?" I asked, my face heating up a bit.
"A what?"
Oh great, now I'd just made a fool of myself.
"Nothin', just somethin' that Two-Bit said last night," I told him, going back to fixing the table up.
"I wanna hear this now," Joe grinned.
I just groaned as I pushed the salt and pepper to the end of the table, wiping off the ketchup bottle afterward.
"It's nothing really," I assured him, setting the menus in their place.
"If it were nothing as you say, then you wouldn't have said anything," he pointed out.
"Look, it's just some stupid comic book a kid at school got a hold of," I told him.
"And?" he pressed, leaning on the counter as he stared over at me.
"There's these little blue people in it and he said that I looked like one," I mumbled, wishing the red in my face would just go away.
I stood there waiting for him to start laughing. It only took a minute before he did, bending over against the counter in fits.
"See, this is why I don't tell you things. It took me all night to get that stuff off, even with Darry's help," I complained.
"Oh, so he helped you clean up a bit?"
I opened my mouth to say something and quickly shut as he stood there with a grin on his face. I should have known better than to tell him something like that because now he'd be picking at me.
"And how'd that go?" he asked, smiling over at me.
I gave him a dry look before moving to the next table.
"He washed my hair, in the sink," I added, making sure that there were no gaps left open for discrepancies.
Unfortunately, I knew that there were times when Joe could be as bad as Two-Bit or Steve. Not quite as bad as Dally, but I wouldn't put it passed him if he were in a pretty good joking mood.
"Ah, the lovely maiden and her dashing prince," he chuckled.
"Joe!" I cried, my face going red as usual when he pulled such things.
"Aw, come now Abigail, it just means he loves you all the more if he's willing to clean your hair for you," he grinned.
"Now stop right there mister," I said, pointing a finger at him. "How long do you intend to keep embarrassing me like this?" I asked, hand still raised and finger erect.
He tapped his chin for a moment as though thinking it through making me roll my eyes.
"You know, that's a good question, how much more do you got?"
I narrowed my eyes at this.
"Joe, stop it," I said, walking around him to get the soap.
He just stood there laughing, hand on his side.
"I'm sorry dear, but you're just too fun," he admitted, before patting me on the back.
He really was a good man, but man oh man could he get under my skin at times.
"Now, about that man of yours," he started.
"Joe!"
"Come now, I'll stop, I'm just curious," he assured me.
I sighed at this, running a hand through my hair.
"How are things going? The last few nights we've been rather busy and haven't been able to talk much," he said, leaning against the counter.
"They're still going good," I told him, walking back around with a wet soapy rag.
"Still havin' those nightmares?"
I froze when he asked that, biting my bottom lip. I then swallowed and started wiping the table down.
"Yeah…" I whispered, but still loud enough for him to hear in the empty diner.
Yes, I was still having those nightmares, but it wasn't as bad. It seemed to get a bit better as long as I was close to Darry. I guess it was because I felt safe in his arms, that, and his words calmed me. At least once a week, he would tell me about the countryside before I went to sleep, filling my head with something peaceful. Although, there were still times when my mind would wander away from that and back to that night. Occasionally, they would be mixed with nightmares of my father, but Darry would always be there to calm me when it happened.
"It helps though, being with him," I told him as I wiped the seats in the booth down.
"You know, Abigail, I'm glad that you're happy," he told me. "From what I've seen of that Curtis fellow, he truly seems like the right man for you."
I felt a faint blush creep onto my cheeks when he said this, but at the same time, I felt a small smile pulling at my lips.
"He is…isn't he?" I said quietly.
"Just make sure that he comes to me first though before askin' ta marry you," he said.
"Joe!"
T
After that, the next few week went by pretty much the same. We'd finally finished the kids' room, leaving with the rest of the house to decide on. I had pointed out to Darry that the bathroom needed the wallpaper taken down and painted. It was all torn up and needed done, so I took it upon myself to do, that way Darry could relax a bit. It didn't stop him from trying to help though. In fact, Joe was even nice enough to give me a portion of the day off just so I could paint. I nearly laughed when Darry tried to do the same, making sure that he worked bright and early in the morning so that he could be back around noon.
"Hey, Darry, could you grab me a glass of water?" I asked with a yawn.
I hadn't gotten much sleep and it left me tired, but I still pushed forward, intent on finishing what I was doing.
"Sure," he said, getting up from his chair and walking passed the bathroom into the kitchen.
I heard the water running as I pulled the tape from the wall, leaving behind a fresh clean border. I was happy when I looked it over, standing up and stretching for a moment when I found absolutely no problems with it.
"Here ya go," he said, walking over and handing the cup to me.
I gave him a smile in thanks, before taking a drinks and sighing. I'd likely have to scrub the other walls a bit before painting, that way the paint will go on nice and clean. The thought of having to scrub anymore walls at the moment though made me frown on the inside and apparently Darry noticed.
"Something wrong?" he asked, picking up one of the paint brushes and taking it to the kitchen sink so that he could clean it out.
"I just realized that I'd have to scrub the walls in the living room before applying the paint," I said.
"I could help with that," he told me, running water over the brush.
"Yeah, I know, but I'm too tired right now," I laughed nervously.
"Yeah, I figured as much. You didn't sleep too well last night," he commented.
"I didn't mean to keep ya up last night," I sighed, running a hand through my hair.
"Don't worry about it," he told me, before coming back over and throwing his arms around my shoulders.
He just led me over to the couch before sitting down with me, my head coming to rest against him with a yawn.
"Maybe you should take a nap?" he suggested, pulling his paper onto his lap.
I looked down at it for a moment, trying my best to cover a yawn. My eyes skimmed over the headlines, the words blurring together a bit as I did so. A moment later it was placed to the side, his other arm wrapping around me and pulling me closer.
"Go to sleep. If you really want to look at it, it'll be here when you wake up," he told me, running a hand over my arm.
I just sighed before nodding my head, my eyes closing as I rested against his chest.
"You want the radio on?" he asked.
"Nah, I'm good," I yawned, letting my hand lay on his chest, my fingers hooking on to a bit of the fabric of his shirt.
I just wanted to lay there and listen to the sound of his heartbeat like I normally did. That was always something that relaxed me, allowing me to sleep easier at night. That was one thing that I don't think I could live without at this point, that piece of mind that he gave me. It was because of Darry that I could actually sleep through the night now, unlike when it was just me and Eden. He was a part of my life now, one that I couldn't see myself without anymore.
T
A hour later, everyone was at the house. Steve, Two-Bit, Soda, even Johnny. Ponyboy was nowhere to be seen. According to Two-Bit though, the kid had mentioned something about going to the movie theater.
"Man, what'd you do to tire her out Dar?" Steve asked.
Darry just gave him a dry look, before shaking his head.
"I didn't do anything, she didn't sleep too well last night," he told him, looking down at the girl resting against him.
"How long has she been asleep?" Soda asked, pouring himself a bit of milk.
"I don't know, maybe a hour," Darry shrugged, leaning his head back against the couch.
"Want me to take her so you can get up?" Soda offered.
"Yeah, sure."
With that, they carefully switched places, leaving Soda sitting on the couch with her.
"Now, why do you get ta hold on to her," Two-Bit complained as he went and turned on the TV.
"Because I asked first," Soda laughed.
"You guys wake her up and you've had it," Darry warned, before stepping into the bathroom and closing the door.
That left the guys alone with her, meaning Two-Bit's poking and prodding as usual.
"Lay off Two-Bit," Soda said, trying to swat him away.
"Aw, but it's fun," he whined, before letting loose a laugh.
Soda felt Abigail twitch a bit as a result, feeling her fingers curl around his shirt like she normally did with Darry when asleep or tired. That'd been one thing that he'd come to notice with her. Her hand was always curled around his shirt when she was asleep, almost as though she were clutching at something that might possibly disappear.
He felt sorry for her when he saw it, even though he didn't know everything. All that he knew was what he'd been told. Especially, since he'd never bothered to ask her about it. He wasn't sure that he could ask her though, that was the problem.
He'd seen her wake up from nightmares before, just like the others had, and that was before the whole incident with those Socs. He knew that something else had happened to her before, but he didn't know what it was. He knew that it had to be something back though with the way that she had reacted.
"You thinkin' about somethin'?" Steve asked, catching the look on Soda's face.
"It's nothin'," he said, shaking his head.
"Bet you were thinkin' about her," Two-Bit laughed, referring to Abigail.
"She's Darry's, not mine," he pointed out, watching as his brother came back out of the bathroom after washing his hands.
"I'm going to fix a sandwich, you guys want one," Darry offered as he walked into the kitchen.
Everyone made a sound of agreement at that, before going about their business.
T
"Would you leave her alone?"
"I ain't doin' nothin' wrong."
"Just leave her be Two-Bit."
That's what I woke up to, along with the feeling of someone continuously prodding my leg with their finger.
I let out a small groan at the feeling, cracking my eyes open. Light flooded them, making me blink a few times.
"Great, you woke her up," I heard Soda say, his voice closer than I thought it would be.
"Stop poking me," I groaned, kicking my foot out until I got Two-Bit in the leg.
He merely laughed at this and started doing it again, making me open my eyes the rest of the way. I was surprised when I found myself laying on Soda instead of Darry, a small smile on his face.
"Have a nice nap?" he asked, letting me rest against him just a bit longer.
"Yeah, that is until I woke up to this," I said, staring pointedly at Two-Bit. "Would you stop it," I whined, trying to move my leg away.
He just went after it again until I finally got up off of the couch. I found Johnny sitting in the reddish chair by the door, his hands stuffed in his pockets.
"Hey kid," I greeted.
"Hey."
His voice was small and I could see a red mark on his cheek. It was likely from his parents.
I swear, I truly felt sorry for him. A life like that was no life for a kid and I knew that personally.
I felt another poke at my leg.
"Would you stop that?" I groaned, shoving Two-Bit onto his back with my foot.
He just laughed as he fell backwards, a huge grin on his face like usual. I just rolled my eyes at this before letting out a yawn and stretching. My back was a bit stiff, the same with my neck, but what can you expect after leaning over for as long as I did trying to paint? Even after taking a nap I was still sore.
"How long have you been sitting there Soda?" I asked curiously.
"Maybe half a hour," he said with a shrug.
I just nodded in response, before walking into the kitchen where Darry stood over the sink.
"Have a nice nap?" he asked.
"I figured you would have heard my answer already," I said with a small smile.
"I did, but I thought that I'd still ask," he told me.
I just shook my head at this, before walking over to the back door, the annoying sound of screeching tires meeting my ears. It was probably some idiot messing around. Then again, the engine sounded a bit different, sounding kind of like one of those souped up cars. I soon found out just how right I was though when I stepped outside. The sound of threats hitting my ears along with Ponyboy's cries.
"Darry!" I yelled, before Ponyboy started yelling the same thing. "Get the hell away from him!" I yelled.
A second later, everyone was racing outside toward them as they hurried to get back in their car. My first response was to go to Ponyboy, quickly falling down beside him as he laid there on the ground, blood running down his neck.
As I looked over at the others, I saw them trying to pull the guys from the car, throwing punches in all directions. Two-Bit had been the first to reach them, getting shoved down to the ground, then Steve and Soda. Soda jumped over the hood of the car and went after the guy in the driver seat while Steve went after the one on the passenger side, grabbing and pulling at the guy's hair and jacket. Steve and Two-Bit nearly pulled the guy out as they put it in reverse, leaving Steve skidding across the ground like he was on a pair of skis.
"Ponyboy, are you okay?" I asked, carefully placing a hand on the side of his face, causing him to flinch.
The poor kid was scared stiff.
"Let me see," I said softly, pulling his head to the side a bit.
The bastards had pulled a knife on him and cut neck. He was lucky that they didn't cut any lower, otherwise they might have hit an artery.
I barely even noticed as Darry knelt down beside me, his eyes checking Pony over.
"They didn't hurt you too bad did they?" Darry asked.
Ponyboy merely gave out a muffled no as Soda came running over, taking a spot on the other side of me.
"Pony, they pull a blade on you?" he asked, placing his hand on his shoulders.
Ponyboy just looked away as he said yes, sounding as if he might start crying.
"They ain't gonna hurt you no more," Soda told him before helping him up.
I was the last to stand up though, my eyes glancing around at everyone. It was almost like being on a quick high of adrenaline, my ears buzzing all over the place.
"Walking by yourself, you don't ever think," Darry said, getting on his brother.
"All I did was walk home from the movies," Ponyboy said quietly, his head down a bit as he pulled at the neck of his sweatshirt.
"Movies and books, movies and books," he started as though he were tired of hearing it. "You know, I, I wish that you could just concentrate on something else just once in awhile," he said, messing around with the small stick he had come to have in his hand.
"Why don't you concentrate on girls and cars? Works for me," Soda said in a friendly manner as he turned his eyes toward Darry.
Darry's eyes went back to Ponyboy though as they stood there, the others coming up behind them.
"Look, if you had to go by yourself, you should have carried a blade," Darry told him.
I was about to say something about that, but Soda beat me to it.
"Oh yeah, that would have been a great excuse for the Socs to cut his neck a little more there," Soda said, gesturing toward Ponyboy.
Unfortunately, I knew that that could have gone both ways. Yes, Soda was right, but so was Darry. Ponyboy shouldn't have gone by himself without anything to protect him, but having a blade could have made things even worse on him.
"If I want my kid brother to tell me what to do with my other kid brother, I'll ask ya alright, kid brother," Darry said in irritation before turning and walking back toward the house, throwing his stick down and kicking at the dirt with his foot.
"Geez Soda, why's he always gotta be like that?" Ponyboy asked.
"I'll go talk to him," I offered, before turning and going after him.
I didn't like it when any of them were upset. I sure didn't like it when they were upset with each other, so I left the others to talk.
"Darry?" I called, walking into the house.
He was in the living room, a hand in his hair and a look of frustration on his face.
"He never thinks!" he exclaimed, throwing his hand out of his hair and down to his side.
I just sighed as I walked over to him, placing my hands on his shoulders.
"Darry, Soda's right though," I said, making him look at me. "It could have gone either way. Yes, he shouldn't have been walking by himself with the way that things have been, but if he would have had a blade on him and those Socs saw it, he'd have been in a mess of trouble," I told him, trying to get him to see reason.
"I know, but…"
"No buts," I said firmly. "I know that you worry, but try not to be so hard on him, alright?"
He looked down at me for a moment before nodding.
"Thank you," I whispered, before leaning up and pressing my lips lightly to his cheek.
I could feel the corner of his mouth pulling slightly as I did this, before he went toward the front door and opened it.
"Hey, Ponyboy, you've got homework," he said, letting the door close back on it's own.
Ponyboy soon followed, stepping inside the house. He completely avoided Darry, going up to his room and closing the door behind him.
"I'll be back in a few," I said, quickly making my way out the front door.
Dally was still there, obviously taking his good old time in walking off. I had a pretty good idea that it had to do with me.
"Dally!" I called out, running out the gate and across the street to meet him.
He just stood there, a smile on his face and a cigarette in his mouth.
"Hey there princess," he greeted. "How ya been man?"
"I'd have been better if you hadn't gotten yourself thrown in jail," I said quietly, rubbing my arm.
"Well, from what I hear, you gave the cops an ear full," he said with a grin, taking one last drag of his cigarette, before throwing it to the ground and grounding it out with his shoe.
"Yeah, well, they were bad mouthing you," I told him, grabbing his attention.
"You stood up for me, didn't you?"
I didn't say anything at first, merely staring down at the ground.
"You did, didn't you?" this time, it was more of a confirmation than a question. "Heh, you're somethin' else," he said, letting loose a chuckle.
"I never got to really thank you," I voiced.
He just gave me one of those looks, I don't really know how to explain it. His seemed to soften for a short moment though, before grabbing me and pulling me toward him. Saying that it startled me would be an understatement.
"All you gotta do, is keep being yourself," he told me, his hand under my chin. "And if I remember it correctly, you said you were going to smack me when I got out," he said with a smirk.
That was very true. I had told him that very thing, but to be honest, I didn't feel like smacking him.
"What, you're not gonna smack me anymore?" he laughed. "And to think, I was looking forward to it."
I gave him a dry look when he said that, a sigh escaping my lips.
"And you think I'm something else?" I breathed out, shaking my head.
"Never said I was perfect," he chuckled, before letting me go.
"You don't have to be," I told him, meaning every word of it.
He wouldn't be himself if he were any different.
"But if you get yourself thrown back in jail again, then I really will smack you," I said, pointing a finger at him.
"Well, I wouldn't stop ya for tryin'."
After that, it was silent, just the two of us standing there. It was almost as if we were at a stand still, but also a clear understanding.
"Just remember, if you ever need anything, I'll be here," I said, looking up at him.
I saw the side of his mouth pull at my words, before nodding and pulling me into a headlock.
"Sure thing princess," he chuckled, letting me go a moment later. "Now get back in there before I gotta fight off some more Socs," he said, a smirk on his face.
"Heh, see ya Dal."
"Later Winters," he called, turning around and walking down the street, his hands shoved in his pockets.
That's what I saw as I stood there, a faint smile on my face.
"Good ol' Dally."
Yay! Chapter 23! I hope that everyone liked it? At this point, the next few chapters will be following the story line for the most part. Please, REVEIW and MESSAGE me with your thoughts, opinions, and ideas on this chapter/story. I love hearing from everyone. REVIEWS make me happy and help me write! Thanks everyone! :)