Darry's Girlfriend

by DramaQueen7

After everything that has happened in the past year, the absolute last thing on Darry's mind is his social life, let alone dating someone. All of that changes when he runs into someone from his past; someone that he still has feelings for. This story stems from my one-shot series "Darry Has A Girlfriend: One-Shot Series" but I wanted to dive deeper into this relationship.

16. Darry's Birthday

Another really long chapter... oops

(Darry's POV)

My boss had given me the day off for my birthday, saying that nobody should work on their birthday when there were people that wanted to celebrate with them. I told him the gang and my girlfriend would understand if I had to work all day, but he wasn't having it. "Go be a normal kid," he told me after he promised that he'd still pay me for the hours I would miss.

I had a feeling a "normal kid" wouldn't be thinking about bills or taking care of teenage boys on their twenty-first birthday, but my life hadn't been normal for a whole year at that point.

A normal kid also wouldn't be thinking about their dead parents on their twenty-first birthday, but here we are.

Soda had taken the day off and Pony didn't have school, so an hour after waking up to the smell of Johnny's cooking and my brothers jumping on my bed, the three of us Curtis boys went to the cemetery to visit our parents' grave that morning. We had invited Johnny to come with since he loved our parents almost as much as we did, but he shook his head and said he'd clean up around the house while we were gone. I had a feeling he just wanted to let the three of us visit our parents without anyone else around, and my brothers and I all seemed to gratefully accept it.

The moment we stepped out of the truck, I was glad that I had remembered to bring a thick blanket since there was a thin layer of snow covering the ground of the cemetery. I knew that we'd be there long enough that we wouldn't want to be standing the whole time, so after flattening the blanket on the ground in front of our parents' graves, my brothers and I all sat down. Pony immediately curled into himself a little– either from the cold or being overwhelmed by the emotions he was already displaying– and it instinctively made Soda and me move to sit closer to him and each put an arm around our baby brother.

We sat there silently for a minute, then Soda was the first to speak. His voice wavered, but somehow it still sounded strong. "Hi Mom. Hi Dad," he started. "I don't know if they have calendars or anything where you are, but did you know Darry turns twenty-one today? He's already startin' to get grey hairs an' everything."

Pony was quietly sniffling, but Soda's joke caused him to let out a small laugh. I playfully shoved Soda's shoulder and grinned at him, thankful that he was able to lighten the mood, even just by a little.

"He's taken real good care of us, you should be proud, " Soda continued. The water in my eyes that I had tried to hide suddenly started falling down my cheeks. Does he really think that? "And guess, what… he actually managed to get a girlfriend. Can you believe that?"

I rolled my eyes but let myself laugh a little. "You make it sound so unlikely."

"It sorta is," Pony said quietly. I looked at him, but his eyes were glued to a spot on the ground in front of him. "You spend so much time workin' and takin' care of us… you barely have any spare time."

I read the guilt on his face, and I wished it wasn't there. He doesn't have anything to feel guilty about. I lowered my head and tried to get in his line of sight. "I'd do anything for you boys. You know that, right?"

Ponyboy briefly glanced at me, then looked down again. Still, he gave me a small nod and kept sniffling.

"Darry's girl is really something. You guys would love her," Soda added fondly, looking at the headstones in front of us. "She ain't just a pretty face; she's smart and tough. And golly, I never thought there'd be anyone as stubborn as Darry, but Kate proved me wrong."

I felt my face and the back of my neck heat up from Soda's words. It really felt like we were just talking with Mom and Dad but we just couldn't see them, as if they were in a different room or something and Soda was casually keeping the one-sided conversation going.

"Alright alright, we don't need to keep talking about Kate," I said, not able to get the smile off my face. "Why don't we tell them about how you're doing at work or Pony with school?"

"It's your birthday Darry," Pony muttered, his voice a little louder than before. "It should be all about you."

I squeezed the arm I had around him. "I appreciate it Pone, but I'd rather have us talk about whatever comes to mind. It doesn't just have to be about me." He looked like he wanted to argue, but he stayed quiet.

The three of us talked about all sorts of things: Soda and Steve both getting raises at the DX, how Johnny's recovery was going, Pony's grades and his spring track season starting in a few weeks, and everything else we could think of. After a while, the three of us sat in silence, just staring at the names of our parents and the dates they were both born and died.

"I can't believe it's been a year," Ponyboy suddenly whispered. If it wasn't so quiet in the cemetery, I wouldn't have been able to hear him, but his voice almost sounded like it was at a normal volume. "I miss them."

"I do too," Soda replied softly, giving Pony a reaffirming smile.

I squeezed Pony's shoulders and shook him slightly. "We all do, kiddo." It had taken me months after the accident to learn how to identify and manage my emotions, and it was still difficult for me to show my feelings in front of my brothers, but I owed it to all of us to try. "It's okay to still feel sad."

Pony continued to sniffle, then he let out a choked-out sob. "Do you think they blame me?"

Soda and I exchanged a confused look behind Pony's back, then Soda lowered his head and spoke quietly next to Pony's ear. "For what, honey?"

"For… for the accident," Pony mumbled. "They were only driving that night 'cause-"

Soda interrupted him by wrapping him in a tight hug and shushing him.

That's why he looked guilty earlier.

"No baby, it's not your fault," I said as gently as I could, then I started running my fingers through his hair in what I hoped was a comforting motion. "I don't want you to ever think that, okay?"

While still being tightly held against Soda's chest, Pony turned his head to look at me with red-rimmed eyes. "I'm sorry you didn't get to leave Tulsa and live out your dream. You're twenty-one and you have to act like a forty-one year-old single dad."

I shook my head, but still tried to smile at him as I used my thumb to wipe the tears from his cheek. "You don't have anything to be sorry about Pone. It's not your fault, not at all." He didn't seem convinced, and I had to change that. "And you know what? I have a different dream now anyways."

"Really?" he asked curiously.

"Yeah kiddo, I do," I said with a nod. I continued to run my fingers through his hair, which I was surprised didn't have grease in it for once. "My new dream is to keep you and Soda safe and with me as long as you two can stand me. I want you two to be able to live out your own dreams."

Pony's eyes studied me carefully for a moment before he replied. "But what about you?"

"What do you mean? I just told you," I said, not quite sure what he was getting at.

To my surprise, Pony pulled away from Soda and straightened into a sitting position. He looked at me with a strange expression on his face, his eyes hard and stern. "That's all stuff about me and Soda, but what do you want for you?"

I was taken aback by his question. For a year, all of my thoughts, energy, and money went towards my brothers. Sure it was exhausting sometimes, but that's what I signed up for, and I would do it forever if that's what it took to take care of my brothers. "Once you and Soda have grown up and have families of your own, then I can think about going back to school and having a family. But that's years from now, Pony. You don't need to worry about me."

Pony didn't look satisfied with my answer, and when I looked to Sodapop for some help, I was surprised to see that he had the same look on his face that Pony did.

"You don't have to wait years before thinking about yourself Darry," Soda said sternly, but softly, in a way that he had perfected. It was the same way our mom often spoke to us– both loving and firm and the same time. "You're twenty-one Dar, and you have a girlfriend that we somehow haven't scared away yet. Maybe the next part of your life isn't as far away as you thought."

I could sense what Soda was suggesting, but there was no way anything like that was going to happen any time soon. "Don't get ahead of yourself, Soda. Kate and I have only been dating a couple of months, and you two are still under my guardianship. Whatever the next part of my life is, it can wait a little longer."

Pony's face showed a hint of disappointment, but Soda still seemed determined to get his point across. "C'mon Darry, think about it. I'm seventeen, and I'll be an adult in less than a year. And Pony here's growing like a weed; he'll be in college before we know it," Soda said, smiling fondly at our kid brother. Don't remind me. "And sure, when all that happens, you can go back to college, but even before then, you should let yourself be happy."

"I am happy," I said honestly. Even though I worked just about every day, and most of my waking hours I was tired and sore, I was perfectly content. I had my family, my friends, and I had my girlfriend.

"And how much of that happiness is because of Kate?" Soda countered. "How much better has she made your life since y'all started dating?"

I was stunned into sudden silence. I tried to remember how happy I was before crossing paths with Kate at the diner, then I thought about how I felt after dating her for a couple months. It quickly became obvious that I was much happier once I started seeing Kate, and she made my life so much better. I almost hurt to realize that I was probably happier than I had felt since the accident that killed our parents.

I always knew Catherine Miller was special, but within just our first couple of dates, I knew my feelings for her weren't faint or fleeting; in fact, those feelings grew every time I was with her or even simply heard her voice. The more I thought about it, the more I realized I was in love with Kate.

A lot… that's how much of my happiness is because of my girlfriend.

"See?" Soda asked, bringing me out of my thoughts. I didn't realize that I had started smiling at first, but his smirk told me that he noticed it, and apparently Pony did too since he had a knowing grin. "I'm not saying y'all have to get hitched anytime soon, but you don't have to put yourself and your relationship on the back burner, alright? You do a real good job of taking care of us, but you might want to try taking care of yourself and your girlfriend too."

I was left speechless at Soda's words. It was natural to forget about myself in order to provide for the boys, so I knew it would be difficult to get out of that habit, but I owed it to not only myself, but also Kate and apparently my brothers, to try.

"You smile a lot more than before, Darry. Even more than you did with any of the other girls you dated. It's good that Kate makes you happy," Pony said with a smile. "Soda and I ain't mad that you love your girlfriend."

I felt my eyes grow wide. I just realized that I'm in love with her, but I've never said those words to a girlfriend before, let alone my most recent one. "I… I-"

"Careful Pony, I don't think our big brother is ready to say the L-word yet," Soda said with a knowing smirk. "Let's not give the birthday boy a heart attack, yeah?"

Ponyboy laughed at that. "Oh yeah, then we wouldn't be able to go to the arcade later."

Soda laughed loudly at that, and as I watched Pony chuckle at his own joke, I released a breath I didn't know I was holding. Then I rolled my eyes and laughed along with my brothers. "Good to know that I'm just a ticket to the arcade for you, kid," I said before reaching towards him and rubbing my knuckles into the top of his head.

"Not my hair!" Pony whined, slapping at my hands in an attempt to get me to stop.

"Aw you can't be mad, Pony. You haven't even greased it yet," Soda said with a smirk before joining in.

We suddenly had an impromptu wrestling match in the middle of the cemetery, where my younger brothers inevitably ganged up on me and pinned me to the cold ground, but all of us were laughing by the end of it. Once Pony got off of my torso and allowed me to sit upright, I looked at my watch and realized we had been at the cemetery for over two hours.

"We should probably get going," I said to my brothers. Even I could tell that I was a little reluctant to leave our parents, despite the fact it was cold out and we'd been there for a long time.

My brothers both nodded, then after glancing at the tombstones again, they both stood up and silently helped me fold the blanket. Before we left, all of us said our goodbyes to our parents, told them we love them, and assured them we'd be back to visit soon.

---

After our emotional visit to the cemetery, my brothers and I returned to the house so we could meet up with the rest of the gang and Kate so we could all go to the arcade. The plan was for it to be a fun, calm day. After the arcade, we planned on having dinner at the house, then we'd probably just hang out and play cards for the rest of the night.

Even though it was my twenty-first birthday, I told everyone two important things: I didn't want any gifts, and I wouldn't drink more than a single beer with dinner. The second detail disappointed most of the guys, but I reminded them that I had to work the day after, and it wouldn't be good for anyone if I was battling a hangover while on a roof.

With eight of us, it took a minute to figure out the driving situation so nobody was crammed into a car packed full of greasers. We didn't want Johnny to be uncomfortable with his still-injured back, and everyone understood that I was not about to let Kate be sandwiched between any of the guys; she didn't deserve to endure that. In the end, Soda drove Pony and Johnny in our truck, Steve drove Two-Bit and Dally, and Kate drove me in her car. It was weird not being the one who was driving, and Two-Bit made a joke about me being able to drink as much as I want, but I rolled my eyes at him and followed Kate to her car.

As soon as we arrived at the arcade, half of the gang scattered, leaving just Kate, Pony, and Johnny standing with me. While Pony and Johnny stood there, looking at all of the games and everything else, I reached into my pocket to grab my wallet. I knew that since Pony and Johnny both didn't have jobs, they would need money to do anything and have a good time. I had carefully planned how much money I was going to spend on my birthday while still being able to afford groceries and all the other bills, but before I could give anything to either of the teens, Kate gave each of them a handful of coins.

"Wow, thanks Kate," Pony said with a big smile, then he and Johnny scampered off, talking about playing asteroids and pinball.

I froze for a moment, then I gave Kate a look. I hoped that I didn't appear too angry, but I wanted to know why she didn't let me give them the money I already planned on using.

When she looked at me, she seemed puzzled at first, but then she smirked. "It's your birthday, Darry. You shouldn't have to pay for everything."

I was stunned at first, not able to figure out a response. In a perfect world, I'd have enough spare money that pocket change for arcade games would be negligible, but we didn't live in a perfect world. No, the world we lived in took my parents away and made me agonize over every penny I spent. So theoretically, Kate helping out by giving the boys some arcade money should be a good thing, but it rubbed me the wrong way. I could've taken care of it.

"You shouldn't have to pay for everything either," I opted to say, trying to keep my voice neutral, despite my frustration.

Kate looked troubled by my response, then she grabbed my arm and looked at me softly. "Can you let me just for today? Please?"

I was still irritated, but I wasn't quite sure where my poor attitude was coming from. Considering that I was with the gang and my girlfriend at the arcade– a place I chose to go to– I was supposed to be having a good time.

Apparently, I took too long to respond, because Kate let go of my arm and looked at me with a strange expression on her face. Is she worried? Maybe scared? "I can tell you're mad. I'm sorry. Maybe I should just go-"

I quickly reached to grab her arm, and I was careful not to grip it too tight. I didn't want her to go, and I especially didn't want to be the reason she felt like she had to leave. "No, it's okay. I want you to stay."

She pursed her lips, obviously considering her options. "Are you sure? I wouldn't be upset if you wanted to spend your birthday with the guys."

I remembered the night I had asked her to come with us to the arcade, Kate had said the same thing.

When I had gotten home from work a few days beforehand, the whole gang was already over at the house. By the time I took a shower and Soda finished making dinner, Kate had shown up after her shift at the diner. All of the guys were discussing plans for my birthday, and when I asked her to join us, Kate looked surprised, but she happily agreed. After dinner, Pony and I started washing the dishes, but Kate took the towel from Pony and said she'd take over drying duties so he could get started on his homework. For once, my kid brother didn't argue about doing homework, so he must've sensed Kate wanted to talk to me privately. As soon as Pony left, Kate kept her voice down as she spoke.

"Are you sure you want me to tag along for your birthday?" she asked tentatively. I had looked at her with what I was sure was a confused expression, so she elaborated. "I know we're dating and everything, and I'd love to be with you on your birthday, but I wouldn't be upset if you wanted to spend the day with the guys. After all, they're your family. I could stop by for cake or something that evening if you want."

I had studied her carefully, trying to see if there was another reason that she didn't want to be with all of us. There was a moment I was worried one of the guys had said something to her, but when I asked her about it, her eyes went wide.

"No, that's not it at all. Gosh, the guys have been so great to me, and if they had a problem with me, I'd prefer to deal with it right then and there, just us. I don't want you getting into any arguments with them on my behalf," she said determinedly. Then her voice got soft again. "I just know sometimes guys want to hang out by themselves. You know, without their girlfriends or whoever around. I'd love to spend your birthday with you, but I understand if you-"

I let go of the plate I was holding and grabbed her hands as I looked firmly into her eyes. "I want you there, as long as you want to be there."

The kiss she gave me after that solidified our plans, which was why she came with us to the arcade. However, after sensing my frustration, it looked like she was about to change her mind.

I let out a sigh before meeting her eyes again. "I want you to stay. Please?"

She seemed to debate internally for a moment, but then she gave me a small smile and nodded. "Okay."

I leaned down to kiss her forehead, then I gave her a smirk. "But I'm not letting you pay for everything. After a few games, I'll get us some Pepsis, alright?"

Kate gave me her signature stubborn look, but then she relented. "Fine. But the birthday boy picks the first game."

We played several different games before I noticed that Kate kept looking over to the side of the arcade, where the pool tables were. I wondered why she kept looking over there, but then I spotted Ponyboy and Johnny playing a game of pool, Johnny's crutches leaning on the edge of the table. I watched Johnny as he tried to stand steady enough to make a shot, and while he succeeded with a just a small wince from the movement, I wished he would've at least had one of his crutches under an arm in case he fell or even just needed more support. I couldn't help but worry about him; even before his injury, I always hated seeing him hurt or in pain, and that anxiety only increased after his back got crushed.

"Do you want to play some pool?" I asked Kate, nudging her a little with my elbow. She was so focused on the two teens, she flinched a little and instantly turned to face me. "Sorry-"

"It's okay. I just got caught up in watching I guess," she said quickly, trying to absolve my guilt. Then she smiled. "I'd love to play. Let's go," she said right before she tugged my arm and pulled me with her.

The three billiards tables were located next to the wide opening in the side wall, which was also the side entrance to the bowling alley next door. We used to go bowling with Mom and Dad on occasion, but after they died, it became something that was too expensive for us to do anymore. Just one glance into the bowling alley was enough for me to tell it was mostly middle class people that were bowling rather than a bunch of Socs, which was a relief. The last thing we need is a fight in the middle of the arcade on my birthday.

"Hey guys, who's winning?" Kate asked once we reached Pony and Johnny.

Right before Pony was about to make his shot, both he and Johnny looked up at me and Kate. I was happy to see Johnny resting on his crutches when it wasn't his turn because it made it seem like he wasn't about to fall to the floor and injure his back even more.

"Johnny is. I'm not real good," Ponyboy admitted.

My youngest brother had a lot of talents, but billiards wasn't one of them. We had played a few times sporadically, but he didn't understand why the balls wouldn't go where he thought they would. As if on cue, he tried to sink one of the solid balls into the corner pocket, and after he missed, he groaned in frustration.

"That was close Ponyboy," Kate said optimistically. If I had said it, my brother would've rolled his eyes at me, but he at least gave Kate a shrug. Not deterred, Kate offered some of her knowledge. "If it helps, you can think of the whole game as just geometry and physics."

While Johnny moved to line up his shot, Pony gave Kate an unimpressed look. "Math ain't my best subject. I'm not real good with numbers and calculating things."

With grammar like that, it's hard to believe English is your best subject.

Kate nodded understandingly. Meanwhile, Johnny sank a striped ball, so he moved again to line up a shot for the 8 ball. A moment later, Johnny had won the game.

"Wanna rematch?" Pony asked. Then he briefly glanced at Kate and me before turning back to his friend. "Or maybe we can team up and play against Darry and Kate. Then I don't have to keep losin' to you."

"Sure Pony, but I think I'm gonna take a quick break first," Johnny said as he took his crutches and moved to a stool a couple of feet away. As he slowly sat down, he tried to hide a grimace, but I still saw it. Judging by the way he was moving and talking, Johnny was obviously in pain, but he'd never say it out loud, at least not with me or Kate there.

Pony looked at his friend, and I could tell by his expression that he was worried about Johnny too.

"I'm not going to pretend to be a master at pool or anything, but I know a few things, and I can show you if you want some help Pony," Kate politely offered my brother.

"Nah, that's alright," Pony said, pulling his eyes away from Johnny. "You and Darry can play. I'll take a break too."

I was more than happy to spend time with Kate and play a game of pool with just the two of us, but I saw an opportunity for my girlfriend and kid brother to bond a little, so I came up with another idea. "Actually, I was about to get us some Pepsis. You two go ahead and start a game, I'll jump in after," I said as I started taking steps away from them.

A flash of puzzlement crossed Pony's face, but Kate smiled at me before she started gathering the billiards balls to rack them up. I grinned at them and turned to go get four bottles of Pepsi from the guy working the counter in the bowling alley.

As I stood at the counter, waiting for the worker to return with the Pepsis, a gravelly voice suddenly sounded next to me. "How's it goin' Curtis?"

I turned my head and immediately spotted Tim Shepard standing next to me, leaning his back against the counter with his arms crossed in front of his chest. We weren't necessarily close friends, but our gangs were usually friendly with one another, and Tim and I had a sort of unspoken understanding.

"Hey Tim. Everything's good. What about you?" I said politely.

He gave me his impish smirk. "It's alright. Just doin' some business here with Phil," he said, jerking his head towards the guy at the shoe rental counter.

I had an idea of the "business" Tim was talking about, so I stayed quiet, figuring it was best for everyone if I steered clear of that particular topic.

I was a little caught off guard when Tim kept talking. "You know, after I got outta the cooler a few weeks back, I had a chat with my boy Joey," he started.

For a moment, I had no idea who he was talking about or why he was telling me, but then I realized "Joey" must've been the "Joe" that hit Kate at the bar about a month before. Reflexively, I turned my whole body to face Tim, ready to deal with him if he had a problem with me for finding the guy who left a mark on my girlfriend's face.

Surprisingly, rather than challenge me in any way, Tim just gave me a grin. "Yeah, he was real pissed off. He showed up with a bruised face and some busted ribs, complain' how you and Winston pummeled him on two different occasions." I kept a straight face, waiting to see where Tim was going to take the conversation. Oddly enough, the next thing he was did was let out a short, cold laugh. "He even said we needed to rumble with your outfit. Can you believe that?"

"No, I can't," I said steadily as I narrowed my eyes a little. "Did he tell you why he got all those bruises?"

Finally, Tim dropped the act and his normal, hard expression appeared. "Yeah, I heard what happened. That idiot deserved everything he got."

My eyebrows shot up on their own. What did he just say?

"As soon as I heard that Darry Curtis came after him, I knew he did somethin' real stupid," Tim explained plainly. "Then when I found how about him hittin' your girl… I told him he was lucky you didn't send him to an early grave."

I didn't even bother to wipe the grin off my face. "I thought about it, but you know I can't really get in trouble with the cops."

Tim smirked at that. "Yeah, I know."

And I really believed that he did know. Tim and I were very different, but he could still relate to having the responsibility of protecting his younger siblings just like I did; we just had different ways of doing that. Whereas he typically used violence and illegal methods to deal with things and faced the legal repercussions because of it, I dealt with things in ways that kept me away from the cops in order to keep my brothers out of the hands of the state.

"Look, I made it clear to my guys that just like your brothers, your girl is off limits," Tim stated matter-of-factly. "You shouldn't have a problem with them, and if you do, you tell me, alright? I'll deal with 'em."

I studied him carefully, and I could tell that Tim was completely serious. While I could usually keep the guys in our gang in line just by using my words or a quick smack to the back of the head, Tim didn't hesitant to flex his muscles, even on his own guys.

After a moment of consideration, I nodded my head and extended my hand out to him. "Alright, deal." Then, as he went to shake my hand, I added, "but if they mess with any of them, I'll still need to have a talk with them."

He hesitated briefly before he grinned at me. "I can't fault ya for that," he said as he shook my hand. "I'd do the same thing."

Like I said, Tim and I had an understanding.

After withdrawing his hand, Tim turned his head to look somewhere else. "That your girl?" Tim asked, suddenly changing the subject.

I followed his eyes and looked towards the entrance to the arcade, where I saw Kate and Pony leaning over the pool table and pointing at things. I assumed Kate was teaching Pony some of her tips and tricks, and I couldn't help but grin at the sight. "Yeah, that's her."

"She's a looker, that's for sure," Tim muttered.

I felt a sudden rush of protectiveness and anger from Tim's comment. He wasn't wrong, Kate was attractive in every way possible, but I didn't need or want to har anyone else mention it. "Don't get any ideas, Shepard. I'll take you on too," I said as I gave him the coldest glare I could manage.

Tim looked back at me and put his hands up, palms facing me, in surrender. "Trust me Curtis, I ain't tryin' to get on your bad side." Then he glanced back at the arcade. "She seems like a great gal."

I wasn't sure how he would be able to tell that just by looking at her for a few seconds, but I didn't want to talk to Tim Shepard about my girlfriend anymore, so I stayed silent. Thankfully, the guy at the counter suddenly appeared with my four bottles of Pepsi, and after thanking him, I started to gather the bottles in my arms.

"It was good to see you Tim," I said as politely as I could manage while also telling him I was done with our conversation. I also didn't want him to keep staring at Kate, so the sooner I could get back to the arcade, the better.

Tim looked at me again and gave me a single nod. "You too, Darry. And happy birthday, by the way."

I was surprised that Tim even knew it was my birthday, but I didn't feel like thinking too much about it. The guy knows everything that happens in Tulsa. "Thanks." With that, I left Tim to deal with his "business" so I could return to the gang and my girlfriend.

As I walked back the pool tables, I could hear Kate patiently explaining things to Ponyboy while pointing out certain spots on the table. "And if you hit it there with the right angle, it'll go into that pocket," I heard her say.

I stood next to Johnny and handed him a Pepsi as I silently watched my brother line up his shot. After Pony hit the cue ball, the white ball collided with the solid green ball, which narrowly missed going into the corner pocket.

"That was really close, Pony. Good job. It just takes some practice to get the angles perfectly right," Kate said supportively.

Ponyboy looked a little frustrated, but there was an air of ease around him, which told me he truly appreciated Kate's input even though he still wasn't able to make his shots as easily as she made it sound.

"Here kiddo," I said as I walked up to my brother, gaining his attention and earning a smile when he saw that I was handing him a Pepsi.

"Thanks Darry," he said happily, taking the bottle from me.

When I gave Kate her Pepsi, she grinned and kissed me on the cheek. "Thanks babe." I felt a faint blush appear on my face from the combination of the nickname and display of affection, so I took a swig of my own Pepsi to try to get my face to cool down.

"Do you guys still want to play against me and Darry?" Kate asked the two boys.

Before anyone responded, I looked over at Johnny, who was still sitting down. "It's alright if you want to stay off your feet for a while, Johnny. Kate and I can just play against each other, or one of us can play against Pony."

Johnny shook his head and slowly stood up from the stool. "That's alright, I'll play."

"You might want to play against them by yourself, Johnny. I won't be much help," Pony said as a self-deprecating joke.

"It's all just for fun anyways Ponyboy," Kate said compassionately, nudging him with her elbow. "It doesn't have to be a serious competition."

"Did someone say competition?" I heard Two-Bit from nearby. We all turned to see him and the rest of our gang walking up to us. Once the four of them reached us, Two-Bit was giving us all his big, enthusiastic smile. "What kinda competition are we talkin'?"

Glory, how did a simple game of pool turn into a spectacle for the entire gang?

"Darry and I were just going to play a friendly game of pool against Ponyboy and Johnny," Kate said, obviously stressing that it wasn't a serious competition.

Two-Bit glanced at all of us, then his eyes wandered to the rest of the gang. "You guys wanna make things interesting?" Two-Bit asked everyone, wiggling his eyebrows as he looked around at all of us.

"What do you have in mind?" Steve asked, apparently interested in whatever the jokester was thinking.

Two-Bit was rubbing his hands together like he was up to something. "Pool tournament, two-person teams. Everyone chips in some money. Winning team gets the pot," Two-Bit explained with a big grin.

"How much are ya thinkin'?" Soda asked.

"A few dollars a person? Maybe five?" Dally suggested.

I scoffed at him. "Some of us have bills to pay and mouths to feed, Dallas," I spat. I can't waste money on dumb bets when I have three boys to take care of.

Dally glared at me, but he somehow managed to keep himself from saying something harsh, even though I could tell he wanted to. "Fine. How about two bucks a person? That fine with you, old man?"

That was still a bit more money than I wanted to spend, let alone use to gamble. If Soda and I both bet and lost, we'd have to be careful about how we spent money on our next grocery run or two. Still, I didn't want to back down or show any signs of weakness, especially not in front of my girlfriend. Damn my pride.

Despite how much I didn't want to bet my hard-earned money, I found myself agreeing. "Deal."

Dally gave me a wicked grin, like how I'd imagine a predator looks at its prey before it attacks. "Alright, so what are the teams?" Dally asked.

"Steve and I are partners," Soda said immediately, throwing his arm across Steve's shoulders.

Even though I hated to admit it, I knew Soda was going to be the weaker link of their team. He was always up for any game or challenge, but he was impatient, and in the few times we'd play pool in the past, he liked to hit the ball as hard as he could rather than think things through first. Meanwhile, Steve was smart, calculating, and he went to bars, where pool tables were most abundant. Steve would easily carry the team, and I was curious to see how they'd do in our impromptu tournament.

Even though it was probably obvious, I decided to make sure I knew who my teammate was going to be. I put my arm around Kate's waist, pulled her close to my side, and looked down at her with a smile. "What do you say? Want to be partners?"

She shrugged nonchalantly. "I guess that's fine," she said sarcastically. Then she laughed before smiling at me. "I'd love nothing more than to be your partner, Darry."

It really shouldn't be this easy for her to make me blush, I thought when I felt my skin heat up once again.

"Dal and I will team up," Two-Bit announced before punching Dally's arm.

Right away, I knew they'd be the team to beat. Out of the whole gang, Dally and Two-Bit went to bars the most often, which allowed them to improve their billiards talents regularly, as well as earned money from hustling other patrons. On more than one occasion, I had to clean them up after they hustled the wrong people, which led to fights and all-out brawls at the bars they went to. They always managed to keep the money though.

All of us put our money on the table, and with all the cash and coins on display, I quickly started thinking about how much food or gas I could pay for with it. That's more spare money than I've had in a long time.

"Johnny and I will just watch," Pony said softly, sounding a little disheartened.

Without anyone saying a word about it, I knew the two youngest members of our gang would've loved to be part of the bet and the makeshift tournament, but they didn't want to ask for the ante money.

"We need an even number of teams for a fair tournament," Kate said kindly. Then she reached into her pocket and pulled out some cash. "I have some extra tip money from the diner. I'll spot you two."

The irritated feeling I had earlier appeared again, but I tried to shove it down. She's just trying to be nice and include Pony and Johnny. So what if she's giving them money instead of it being from me? I attempted to ignore my frustration, but it was a losing battle. My girlfriend shouldn't be providing for the boys under my care.

"That's okay," Johnny said so quietly that it was hard to hear him. "We won't win, so we won't be able to pay you back."

Kate waved him off before putting four more dollars on the table. "It's not about winning; it's for fun." The other guys were quick to accept Kate's money on the younger boys' behalf, probably because they all figured it meant they'd have more money when they won.

The gang decided that I would keep the money in my pocket while we played, knowing that I wouldn't lose it, and if anybody around the arcade had overheard what was going on, I would be the last person they'd try to steal from.

For the next minute or two, the rest of the gang discussed the bracket and any rules. Two-Bit seemed to miraculously already have everything figured out, and he was just telling everyone else the plan.

As my buddy spoke, I put my lips close to Kate's ear so I could whisper to her. "You didn't have to do that. You didn't need to pay more money."

She looked up at me with a soft smile. "I know, but I wanted to," she whispered back.

"That's four bucks you won't be getting back, you know," I said, hoping she'd understand the consequences of her actions. I don't want you to lose money.

I was surprised when she gave me smug look. "I think I'll get it back just fine."

I raised an eyebrow at her, silently questioning what she meant by that, but when she turned her attention back to Two-Bit and didn't offer another response, I remained silent too.

Suddenly, Two-Bit's obnoxious voice regained my attention. "Alright, let the games begin!"

It was decided that Kate and I would play against Pony and Johnny, while the other two teams would use one of the other tables and play against each other at the same time. The winners of each game would face off for the championship. Even though it was hard for me to accept the fact that I could lose money on my birthday, the joy I always got from competitions was reappearing with vengeance. As Kate started racking the balls into the triangle, I found myself grinning. It feels good to compete in something again.

We let them go first, and Johnny told Pony to break.

Let the games begin.

Pony managed to get a striped ball in on the break, and after he immediately got another one in, he beamed and glanced at Kate, as if to thank her for helping him. During his next shot, he didn't make another one, so then it was our turn.

I was about to tell Kate to go first, but she already took a step away from the table and motioned for me to go. "Birthday boy goes first."

The innate urge to have her to go first almost made me start an argument, but instead, I bit my tongue and grinned at her. I moved to line up a shot for the solid red ball, which I sank. Then I got the blue one in too without too much effort.

"Wow Darry, I didn't know you were a pool shark," Kate said, sounding impressed.

Her compliment immediately boosted my ego, and rather than try to act humble or tell her it was mostly luck, some primal part of me wanted to keep impressing her. "It really is just geometry and physics," I said with a grin and a shrug. I realized my arrogance and overconfidence made me sound like a Soc, but I didn't bother to care.

Despite my cockiness, Kate matched my grin. "Oh that's right; on top of being a jock, Darry Curtis is a math whiz," she said in a seemingly-knowing tone.

My ego skyrocketed, and suddenly, I felt like I was back in high school.

During our football games, girls would always line up in the front row of the bleachers and yell at the players they thought were cute or popular. I had my fair share of girls yelling my name, and it exhilarated me to think that one of those girls' voices could've been Kate. On top of getting attention on the field, I couldn't help but notice when girls would glance in my direction during class or passing time, only to shyly avert their eyes when I looked back at them.

And now, Kate looks at me like that, and she doesn't look away.

As I moved past Kate to line up my next shot, I was strutting around like a peacock, and I even winked at her, which made her smile and tuck some hair behind her ear as her cheeks turned pink. As good as the attention felt in high school, it's ten times better now that I get it from the girl I'm in love with.

I was immediately knocked down a peg by the sound of my kid brother nagging me.

"You gonna make your next shot any time soon, Darry?" Ponyboy teased. "Or should Johnny just go now?"

I turned to give Ponyboy a half-hearted glare. It looked like he was trying to seem irritated, but there was smirk on his face that told me otherwise. "Yeah yeah, hold your horses, Ponyboy," I said before resuming lining up my shot. I sank the solid yellow ball into the pocket, but on my next shot, I narrowly missed getting the purple one in.

"Gee Darry, thanks for finally letting me play," Johnny joked quietly.

I grinned and ruffled his hair gently so I didn't startle him or knock him over. Since living with us, Johnny had slowly become more confident, and it felt good to know he was comfortable to joke around with me rather than reserve it for Pony, Dally, and on occasion, Two-Bit.

Johnny got just one of the striped balls in before missing one on his second shot, then it was Kate's turn.

Kate casually lined up her first shot like she didn't have a care in the world, and she got one of the solids in a pocket. Then it happened again. And again. It happened every time until she sank the 8 ball, quickly ending the game and giving us the win.

I felt my eyes widen in surprise. "So much for me being the pool shark," I said as I wrapped an arm around Kate, causing her to look up at me. "Where did you learn to play pool?"

She shrugged. "Just around. My dad taught me when I was a kid, and when I got older, I picked it up as a hobby. It gave me something to do and kept me out of the house."

If a stranger was walking by, they'd think her response was normal and innocent, but she managed to say the truth without really quite saying it: "I played pool in my free time so I'd spend less time at home with my abusive step-father."

The thought of Kate purposely avoiding her house bothered me to my core, but I didn't know how to respond to Kate's statement. Not only did she continue to talk about her rough home life so casually, but she had an impressive hidden talent that she had never mentioned. I thought that after dating for a couple months we knew each other really well, but I was starting to wonder if we had spent so much time talking about bigger, deeper, and more uncomfortable things that we sort of skipped over discovering the smaller details about each other.

What else don't I know about her?

"You don't need to look at me like that, Darry," she softly scorned.

I wasn't even aware I was giving her any particular look, but I could assume it was one of either concern, anger, or pity, and I really hoped it wasn't the latter. Nobody likes to be pitied. "Sorry, I-"

"I know," she interrupted, still keeping her voice quiet. Then she gave me a smile. "I'm okay, Darry. That's all behind me." Then her smile turned into a smirk, with her eyes having a glint of playfulness. "Besides, nobody would dare to mess with Darry Curtis's girl."

I grinned, then squeezed the arm I had around Kate to pull her closer to me. "Good."

"I wonder who's winning over there," Pony said, drawing my attention away from Kate and to the other pool table, where the second half of our gang was still in the middle of their game.

"Let's go watch our competition," Kate said to me.

We only saw the end of the game, and it was Two-Bit and Dally that won the match against Soda and Steve. I wasn't too surprised at the result, but it was still a fairly close game. After their game ended, Pony told them they'd be playing against me and Kate, and it looked like they were ready to start right away.

"You guys wanna make this more interesting?" Two-Bit asked as he and Dally sauntered towards Kate and me. The two of them looked smug, like they thought they were the coolest greasers in all of Tulsa just because they won a simple game of pool.

"We already put money on this, how much more interesting do you want to make it?" I asked hesitantly. I'm not about to have either Kate or myself bet even more of our hard-earned money.

The two of them exchanged a look, then Two-Bit turned to smirk at Kate. "If we win, we all go to the diner for some free shakes."

I looked at my girlfriend and hoped my expression looked more caring or concerned than demeaning. What if it comes out of her paycheck? I didn't want her to lose money from providing the guys with more free food at her place of work. "You don't have to agree-"

"It's alright," Kate told me before I could even finish the sentence. She was smiling softly and innocently, but was a glint in her eyes, making her expression difficult to decipher. Then she turned to look at Two-Bit. "Okay. But what if we win?"

"Well what do ya want?" Dally asked. I noticed that he softened his typically harsh voice slightly when he spoke to Kate, which I was grateful for.

Kate and I looked at each other, and I could tell she was waiting for me to come up with an answer, but my mind went blank, so I just shrugged and hoped she'd come up with something. I didn't even want to bet anything in the first place.

Her eyes lit up and she grinned at me before turning to look back at our competitors. "If we win, you have to help do chores at the house for the next week."

All of the guys, not just Dally and Two-Bit, looked at Kate with varying levels of surprise.

"Shoot, that ain't an even trade," Two-Bit said, although he didn't really seem upset with the proposition. He just had to make a comment about it because that's what Two-Bit does. "A shake verses a week of housework?"

"Aw c'mon guys, you don't wanna help us out a little?" Soda asked, probably only half-joking. He didn't like doing chores any more than Pony and I did, but the three of us knew they had to be done, especially if we anticipated a visit from the state.

"To be fair, you're askin' to save money. Kate's just askin' for you guys to help some," Johnny pointed out as he tried to hide a smirk. Even though we never asked him to do chores, I constantly found Johnny either doing laundry or tidying up around the house. Maybe if the others help out a little, Johnny can relax and stop feeling like he has to 'earn' his place in our house.

"You guys practically live there anyways," Steve added. "It'd be good for you to pull your weight."

"You say that like you ain't there every day too, Randle," Dally pointed out.

Steve just shrugged. "Yeah, but I'm not trying to up the stakes here." Dally practically growled at Steve's remark, but Steve didn't seem deterred. "You two asked for it. Those are the stakes. Take it or leave it."

"What do you think, Dal?" Two-Bit asked his pool partner after some consideration. "You think it's worth it?"

It looked like Dally was internally debating, but before he said anything, Kate egged him on with a smirk on her face. "You'd only be worried if you thought there was a good chance you'd lose. You scared, Dally?"

Everyone else looked at her, shocked. She's pretty brave to say that to Dallas Winston.

Dally's head whipped around to look at Kate. His eyes were sharp, and his overall body language looked like he was challenging her to say more. Before I could tell him off, he let out a huff. "Alright, deal."

While Dally racked up all 15 billiards balls into the triangle, I glanced at Kate. She looked calm and was playing it cool, but the glint was still in her eyes. It took me a minute to figure it out, but I knew she was confident, and our competitors had no idea that Kate was good at pool. The spark she has is because she's hustling Dally and Two-Bit. I did my best to stifle a laugh. They have no idea what they got themselves into.

Finally, when Dallas finished setting up, we were ready to begin.

"Alright, who's starting?" Two-Bit asked.

"I think the birthday boy should get the first shot," Kate said, moving to stand right next to me, her eyes sparkling with energy.

"You sure?" I asked her. "What happened to 'ladies first?'"

She smiled up at me and put her hand on my upper arm. She gave my muscles a gentle squeeze, which immediately caused my heart to start racing. "You and your muscles would do a much better job at breaking than me. That's not really my strong suit."

The pride I felt earlier immediately reappeared, and I knew I was grinning like a fool, but I couldn't find it in me to care.

After Soda, Steve, Pony, and Johnny gathered stools and sat around the table to spectate, I started the game.

On the break, I managed to get a striped ball in. Immediately following that, I heard Two-Bit mutter something about stripes being unlucky, and I had to restrain myself from rolling my eyes. On my next shot, I got another stripe in, but the white ball followed. Dammit.

"That's too bad, Superman," Two-Bit said sarcastically as he reached into the pocket to retrieve the cue ball. After he put it down on the table's surface, he winked at Kate. "I'll show you how it's done, Kate." If he wasn't my buddy or if I thought he actually meant anything by it, I would've shoved Two-Bit in a friendly way of saying "stay away from my girl."

After Two-Bit pocketed two solid balls in rapid succession, he glanced at me, then grinned slyly at Kate. "Now that's how you don't scratch."

I could tell Kate was faking being impressed by Two-Bit, and I quickly went from being annoyed with him to trying not to laugh at his expense. If only he knew.

On his next shot, Two-Bit cursed after he narrowly missed getting the solid green ball into the side pocket, which meant it was Kate's turn.

"You sure you know what you're doin' doll?" Dally teased as Kate walked around to the other side of the table. Although I knew he was just being competitive and I've heard him sound more condescending, (especially to women,) a flare of anger swept over me at Dally's comment.

"Dal-" I started, but Kate was quick to intercept.

"I don't know, Dally," she said in an airy voice. She leaned forward to line up her shot, then she glanced up at Dallas and grinned. "Why don't you tell me if I know what I'm doing?"

With her first shot, the cue ball ricocheted off of one striped ball and into another, both of them going into opposite corner pockets, leaving the cue ball lined up perfectly for another striped ball.

Words like "damn" and "holy shit" were muttered from our spectating friends, and I grinned when I realized Kate had managed to impress Soda and Steve.

I looked over at Dally. His eyes were wide just for a moment, but then he managed to display his poker face. Even so, I could tell he was stunned and irritated. Serves him right.

Without another word, Kate got a third stripe in. However, when she lined up to get a fourth one in, a certain wisecracking greaser just happened to cough loudly at the exact moment Kate made her shot. The striped ball barely missed its intended pocket, making it the first missed shot I had seen from Kate.

I glared at Two-Bit, and he met my eyes. "Sorry," he said with a shrug and a less-than-sincere look.

"So that's how we're playing this game?" Kate asked, sounding like she was mildly irritated, but mostly joking.

"Sometimes a guy's just gotta cough," Dally said with a elfish smirk as he walked past Kate. "Can't fault him for that."

She rolled her eyes, but didn't respond, before she walked over to stand next to me. While Dally was taking his time to line up his shot, I put an arm around Kate's shoulders and bowed me head to whisper into her ear. "They're a bunch of cheats."

She huffed out a laugh. "They're just scared they'll lose," she whispered back while keeping her determined eyes forward. I nodded, but I stayed silent.

I was impressed by Dally after he got three solid balls in, and after the fourth, I started to think Kate and I would lose sooner rather than later. I guess all the time he spends at Buck's is helpful for something. Too bad it could mean Kate and I are out a few bucks each. Dally thankfully missed on his fifth shot, ending his turn.

As I approached the table, Dally sneered at me. "Nervous yet, Muscles?"

"At least I don't have to cheat," I said nonchalantly before moving my eyes from him over to Two-Bit. "I'm glad your cough is better, Two-Bit."

My buddy tried to suppress a laugh, but he was unsuccessful. "Thanks man. That tickle in my throat came outta nowhere!"

I shook my head, but I couldn't stop myself from chuckling at Two-Bit's obvious lie. "Yeah, right."

I only sunk one striped ball before missing the next. Besides the 8 ball, there were one striped ball and one solid one. With the game being tied, I could only hope that Two-Bit wouldn't be as successful as he was before.

The half of the gang that was watching the game had be rather quiet during the whole thing, but as Two-Bit lined up his shot, I saw Soda and Steve mumbling amongst themselves. Right as Two-Bit was going to strike the white ball with the pool cue, Soda's voice suddenly became loud enough for me to hear. "I heard the diner's actually out of ice cream."

"What?!" Two-Bit exclaimed at the exact moment he hit the cue ball. He whipped his head around to look at Soda, so he didn't even see that he accidently pocketed the striped ball instead of his intended target.

The four greasers sitting on stools all laughed, Soda laughing the hardest. It took me a moment to realize that my brother had distracted Two-Bit on purpose, and it looked like the jokester caught on just a second after I did.

"That was a cheap shot, Sodacan," Two-Bit said as he looked at my brother. It seemed like he tried to narrow his eyes at Soda, but he couldn't manage it. Instead, he was smirking, like he was trying to hold back a laugh. Two-Bit wasn't one to hold grudges, especially not with someone from our own gang, and considering he caused Kate to be distracted and miss her shot not too long before, he really didn't have a valid reason to be upset.

"Dammit Two-Bit, he was just messin' with you," Dally spat. "He's just trying to get outta doing chores."

The snickering from the peanut gallery only confirmed Dally's suspicions.

Two-Bit looked at Dally sheepishly. "Sorry man, but I was worried!" Then a sly look crossed his face, and he looked over at Kate. "We can't let birthday boy miss out on free ice cream on his special day, right Kate? That would just be awful," he said, slapping his hand against his chest. I rolled my eyes at Two-Bit dramatic theatrics.

Kate smiled at Two-Bit. "Of course I wouldn't want to do anything to ruin his day," she said as she walked up to the table. Two-Bit grinned, apparently thinking he appealed to Kate's adoration for me and she would let them win. If I know her as well as I think I do, that's not going to happen. "So I hope I don't miss this shot."

As she analyzed the table in front of her, I realized Kate's shot wasn't going to be easy. Unfortunately, both the 8 ball and the cue ball were against the far edge of the table, and since Kate was right-handed, she'd have to lean across the whole table if she wanted to take the simple route and hit it in a straight line. Since her arms were shorter than mine, I wasn't sure how Kate would manage to do it. Not only that, but the last solid ball was sitting between the other two, near the side pocket, but it wasn't lined up quite perfectly; just enough to be in the way.

"Good luck with that doll," Dally said with a small smirk. It looked like he already assumed he would win, and that bothered me, along with his tone.

Kate ignored him as she walked to the other side of the table. For a second, I wondered if she was going to do the trick shot where someone stands with their back facing the table and they hold the pool cue behind their back. Instead, she calmly pointed to the corner pocket near the 8 ball, said, "that corner," then lined up her shot left-handed.

"What the-" one of the guys said, but Kate kept ignoring everyone and didn't respond.

After a couple seconds of calculating her shot, Kate hit the cue ball. The white ball jumped over the solid maroon one, and it hit the 8 ball, making it go into the corner pocket before it stopped a few inches away from the pocket.

We won!

While Two-Bit seemed surprised and Dally looked defeated, the rest of the gang all jumped off the stools and cheered loudly.

"Holy shit."

"No chores for a week!"

I was quick to reach Kate's side before she was engulfed by the other greasers. I wrapped my arm around her and pulled her close, causing her to look up at me with her beautiful green eyes. I squeezed her shoulders and kissed her cheek.

"That was awesome, babe," I said earnestly.

She was beaming. "Thanks."

"Nice game, Kate. And nice hustlin' if I do say so myself," Two-Bit said with a smile as he nudged Kate with his elbow. "Played all innocent, like you didn't know you'd win. Nice goin'."

"I don't know what you're talking about," she said in a fake snooty tone.

Dallas approached us next, and I felt my arm tighten around Kate slightly out of instinct more than anything. He must've either noticed or somehow sensed it, because his eyes moved from Kate's to mine. "Relax Darry, the smack talk is all just part of the game." Then, to my surprise, he extended his hand out to Kate. "Good game."

Kate nodded her head and shook his hand. "You too, Dally."

"You know, if you're interested, you could come with us to the bar sometime," Two-Bit offered, butting back into the conversation. "Help us win some more cash! What do ya say?"

Kate laughed. "I'll keep that in mind. But I'm going to stay away from the bars for a bit longer, especially after what happened last time."

At the reminder of Kate getting hit at the bar, I felt my anger spike, but while I was upset by it, the rest of the guys simply laughed at Kate's comment.

Pushing past my negative feelings, I looked back at Two-Bit. "You won't be going to a bar for the next week," I said, trying to change the subject. He gave me a look that was both surprised and curious, which caused me to smirk. "Did you forget? You and Dal get to help us out at the house."

The two of them groaned at the reminder.

"And I thought Soda saying there wasn't any ice cream would've been the worst thing I heard all day," Two-Bit muttered.

There was a short pause, then Kate spoke up. "You know what? Even though Darry and I won, we can still go get shakes. My treat."

Two-Bit looked at her with eyes as big as saucers, apparently forgetting how saddened he had just been about the housework he was going to have. "You mean it? Like right now?"

My girlfriend nodded. "Of course." Then, staying enclosed by my arm, she turned to put her hand against my chest and smiled up at me. "Can't let the birthday boy miss out on ice cream, right?"

The guys all cheered and rushed towards the exit, excited simply by the promise of shakes. They're all just a bunch of little kids, I swear.

Kate and I stayed there for a moment as I got lost in her eyes for what felt like the thousandth time.

"Congrats on the win, partner," she said quietly with a smirk.

"You too," I said before leaning down to kiss her. It was a quick kiss, and after I pulled my lips away from her, I couldn't help but smile. "I can't believe I didn't know you're so good at pool."

She just shrugged. "It doesn't come up in conversation often, and I don't play much these days. Although now I think Two-Bit might keep asking me to go out with him to hustle other guys out of money."

I sighed a little, knowing that she was probably right. "Hopefully not. But if he does, let me know and I'll get him to lay off, alright?" She nodded, and then I suddenly remembered something. "Oh, your money," I said, taking a step away from her to reach into my pocket.

"Darry, I don't-"

"We're splitting it, partner," I emphasized with a pointed look. I counted the money, and when I gave her half of it, she looked uneasy, like she was hesitant to take it. I knew I had to convince her before she could argue. "We couldn't have won without you, and you paid for almost half of the players anyway."

She laughed a little at that before she thankfully pocketed the money. Then she looked back up at me. "I just thought it would be better if everyone could join in, you know?"

I remembered how she had given Ponyboy and Johnny for arcade games as well as to get them to join the pool tournament, but I pushed the thought away, not wanting to get irritated about it again.

"Thank you," I said, putting my hands on her hips and pulling her close to me so I could place a quick kiss on her forehead. "And thanks for coming with. Did you have fun?" I asked, hoping that she enjoyed spending the day with a bunch of greasers at a simple arcade.

Kate nodded immediately. "I did. Thanks for inviting me." Then she put her arms around my neck, and I felt her fingers run through the hair on the back of my head. "And we still have shakes and dinner to look forward to."

The look on her face told me she was being honest and that she truly was happy to spend time with me and the group of rowdy greasers that are my family. I stared into her eyes and smiled down at her for another minute before I broke the comfortable silence that we stood in. "We should probably go so Connie doesn't have to deal with the guys alone."

She gave me a smirk and didn't make a move to escape the hold I had on her. To her credit, I didn't move to break apart from her either. "She can handle it," Kate said. Then, after she gently pulled my head down to kiss my cheek, she smiled back up at me. "Happy birthday, Darry."

---

In one of the one-shots I briefly wrote about Kate being a pool shark, so I took that idea and ran with it (for a really long time, sorry).