Golden

Six; Up In Flames

Warning: Major Dalden feels ahead! And yes, I realize that it gets very very very cheesy, and Dal gets way OOC, but not for long, don't worry.

Six; Up In Flames

•••Linden's POV•••

For the last few days we've been living off of baloney, the water from the pump in the back, and - in Pony and Johnny's case - cigarettes. Pony's been reading aloud from Gone With The Wind to help pass time, but if I'm being honest, I wasn't as in to it as him or Johnny.

Pony and Johnny have been playing poker, as well, and from what I know, Pony owes Johnnycakes about a hundred or so dollars.

Pony had also cut his hair and bleached it light blonde, as a disguise. I helped Johnny cut his hair a little, too, and he washed the grease out as well.

I huddled closer into Dally's jacket as I tried to sleep on one of the pews.

Did he mean that kiss? Does he...like me? Love me, even?

It's been almost an entire week, and he hasn't come yet. Did he get arrested for something? Is he hurt? I wouldn't be surprised, Johnny killed one of the Socs and they'd without a doubt be out for blood.

I jumped as a hand fell on my shoulder.

I rolled onto my back and looked up at the owner of the hand, my eyes meeting the hard blue ones that belong to none other than Dallas Winston.

"Dally!" I whisper-shouted, still aware of Johnny and Pony sleeping a few feet away.

I threw my arms around his neck, and hugged him tight, smiling as he hugged me back just as tight. "I thought you would never come!" I told him, pulling back and looking into his eyes.

He went to reply, but Ponyboy rolled over onto his back, and sighed, mumbling slightly in his sleep.

"Lets talk outside," he said, grabbing my hand and gently pulling me up from the pew.

We sat in the dewy grass on the hill a little ways away from the church, and looked at the view of the countryside.

"I was at the Curtis' a few days ago, and I was told something," he started, looking down at his hands as he twisted a long blade of grass between his fingers.

My blood ran cold.

"Why didn't you tell me?" His voice broke, and my heart twanged. I've never seen Dally so vulnerable, so broken as he is now.

I breathed in deeply through my nose, watching dandelions wave in the winds, their tufts of seeds breaking off and getting carried away in the breeze. "I don't know, Dal. I really don't. I didn't know how to tell you."

He turns towards me, and takes my face between his hands, looking deeply into my eyes. "You can tell me anything, Linny. I know I'm a jackass most of the time, but I'd do anything for you."

I blushed slightly at the nickname, but played it off as I looked back into his eyes. "Can you do one thing for me?" I asked him, resting my own hand on his cheek.

He nodded. "Anything."

I gently rubbed my thumb along his strong cheekbone. "Never change, Dally. You may be a jackass, but you're you. And it's the best person you can possibly be in my eyes."

Dally gently pulled me closer to himself, and rested his forehead against mine. "And you, Linden James, can never be anyone other than the beautiful, kind, golden girl you are," he whispered, gently tucking a strand of my hair behind my ear.

He pressed his lips gently to mine, kissing me slowly and gently. It was completely different than our first kiss, which was rushed, and hard, and desperate. This kiss felt warm, loving, and patient. He pressed his lips slightly harder against my mouth, and I reciprocated, kissing him back just as hard.

His arms wound around my back, and I pressed my hands to his chest, and slid them up so the rested on his broad shoulders.

He pulled away, and pressed his forehead against mine again, our eyes closed still. "I'm fallin' for you, Linny. And I'm fallin' hard," he whispered.

I smiled, my eyes still closed. "I hope you're ready to catch me, 'cause I'm fallin' for you, too."

He kissed my nose, chuckling slightly. "I'll catch you. and I'll never let you go."

I kissed him hard on the lips, before pulling back and resting my head on his shoulder.

We sat in silence for a few moments, just watching the sun rise into the morning sky.

He sighed, starting to climb to his feet. "C'mon, we gotta go back inside. I gotta letter for Pony, and I'm sure the three of you are hungry."

He pulled me to my feet. "You have no idea."

We walked back into the church, where Pony and Johnny were already awake. Pony had a cigarette dangling between his lips, and Johnny was shuffling a deck of cards.

They looked back as we walked in. "Dal?" Pony questioned, taking the cigarette out of his mouth.

"Hey, sleeping beauty," Dal said, perching himself on one of the pews.

Pony rolled his eyes.

Dal dug a folded piece of paper out of his pocket. "I gotta letter for you," he said, handing it to Pony

"Who's it from?" Pony questioned, taking the wrinkled paper.

"The president," Dal joked. "Nah, it's from Sodapop."

Pony unfolded it, and read it.

•••

Dal took us to a Dairy Queen for some food, which I was extremely thankful for. I finally got that bologna taste out of my mouth.

I was working on my second cheeseburger, and I believe Pony and Johnny were chowing down on their their third burgers.

I heard Dallas chuckled, and when I turned towards him, his thumb came up and wiped something off the corner of my mouth. "You had some ketchup on your face," he explained, making me blush.

I wiped my greasy hands on a wad of napkins, and turned to the car door. "While we're here I'm going to use an actual bathroom."

I did my business and washed my hands, looking up at my reflection. My hair was dull with grease, and lifeless. My face was slightly grimy. Overall, I felt disgusting. I wanted a shower, new clothes, to be back home; with the gang. Sure, I had Pony, and Johnny, and Dal. But I'm home. I'm on the run, hiding from police.

I sighed, drying my hands off on a paper towel, and tossing it in the garbage.

When I got back to the T-Bird, the three greasers inside were ready to go.

"All set, sweetheart?" Dal asked, giving me a crooked grin.

I grinned back. "Yeah. All set - let's go."

Dal sped out of the parking lot, the wind whipping at our hair, and stinging our faces.

As we came around a bend in the road, smoke billowing into the air became visible.

"Holy smokes!"

The church was on fire.

•••
A/N:

I AM SO SORRY FOR THE LONG WAIT!

Nonetheless, I hope you liked this chapter, despite Dallas being majorly out of character, and the major cheesiness.

I suspect that there's about 2-3 chapters left in this story.

See you next chapter!
Thanks for reading!