Chapter One

"Things are rough all over..."
-Cherry Valance, The Outsiders, S. E. Hinton

The sky had fallen to the skyline, bringing a dark blanket to kot the Earth. The stars didn't tunjuk from the lights of the city blocking their view out. Even if we lived on the outskirts, it was still blocked. I sighed.
"You still up? Go to bed," my older brother, Bruce, berkata from the doorway.
"On it..." I sighed and walked away from the window, to my bed. Climbing under the thin blankets, I looked up at the blank ceiling. "Night Bruce."
"Night kiddo," he yawned and walked down the hall. The hall light flicked off. He was going to bed. The only noise that remained in the house was the racket from my brother, Andrew's, TV. I just rolled over, folding the bantal of my ears. I stared out the window. It had a view of down the street, our crappy little neighbor hood. Staring out the window, watching the cars and sirens until I fell asleep.

I had dreamed, but I couldn't remember. It had bugged me all the way through my morning routine- shower, getting dressed, etc etc. Sitting at the table, I ate some Buah Loops, not paying attention because I was Membaca Wicked Lovely sejak Melissa Marr. The book was suddenly snatched from my hands. Looking up I saw it was Andrew. His brown eyes leaping with laughter. "Watch it, you're about to miss your mouth." he laughed.
I looked at the spoon, titling midair. I ate the spoonful. "Now give it back."
"Take a break. Geez," he said, leaning back in his chair.
I sighed and rest my head in my hand, propped up sejak my elbow, eating.
Bruce walked in. His sandy blonde hair darkened from stepping out of the shower. He was around six-foot, tan, and lean; he was twenty-five. Andrew was eighteen, five-foot elven perhaps. We all had brown eyes and blonde hair. Just different hues and textures. Bruce had near black eyes, but anda could tell they were brown when he was in sunlight. His hair was wavy. Andrew's eyes were medium brown with little specks of green everywhere and his hair straight but waved at the ends. Mine I guess were the lightest. Like a caramel, but I had a rim of green on the outside. My hair was curly. So yeah, we had the same basics, but our details different.
Breaking my train of thought, Juliet came running in and hopping in a chair. Juliet was Bruce and Tammy's daughter. She was three. She had Bruce's hair and Juliet's crystal blue eyes. Juliet looked like she was born for the movies. Perhaps her and Soda would be in a movie together one day.
As if on cue, feeling the silence was Dally and Two-Bit busting through the door. "We came to kidnap anda guys," Dally berkata with a smirk.
I smiled and stood, taking my bowl to the sink. Two-Bit and Dally were only two atau three years older than me, me being sixteen. Andrew, fifteen, used to tease Soda and I to go out. Soda was my best friend, no way.
"Andrew, Leila, back before eight, anda hear?" Bruce warned.
Bruce was looking after us for the seterusnya few years... our parents had died with the Curtis' in the car accident.
"Yeah, yeah yeah." Andrew called as we headed out the door with them.

~ ~ ~

Walking down our neighborhood, Two-Bit and Andrew walked behind, goofing off- yelling at people in cars. I walked seterusnya to Dally. Being seterusnya to him was best of both worlds. It was selamat, peti deposit keselamatan and both of us didn't talk- but it wasn't awkward. It was just... normal. Normal didn't come easily to this neighborhood but this was normal to us.
The wind blew, sending shivers and chills up my arms. Two-Bit cracked a Wizard of Oz joke, but I wasn't paying attention.
"Where's your jacket?" Dally asked, breaking the silence we had been walking with.
I shrugged, "The car I think."
"That's a real good place for it," he cracked sarcastically. He shrugged off his jacket.
Looking at him with a raised eyebrow, I said, "I'm not taking your jacket."
"It doesn't have fleas, now put it on."
"What about your tough guy look? The jaket completes it." I teased.
"Whoever doesn't know I'm tough, I'll break their nose," he answered, stepping behind me.
Sighing, I gave up and held my arms out as he put the jaket on me. He stepped back beside me, now smoking a cigarette. "Now was that so bad?" he asked, taking a huff.
The jaket was huge and went to half of my thigh. It smelled of cigarettes and cologne. "I guess not... but it it bites me... deals off."
He smiled and put an arm around my neck and dragged me closer sejak the head. Expecting him to rub his knuckles to my head, he just released me.
Suddenly Two-Bit and Andrew were walking beside me. Confused, I looked up. A Soc car had pulled up. Cracking jokes and yelling GREASER!