Tough Love, Johnny Cade (Jally)

One: Dallas Winston

"What the hell are you doing, man?!"

I jumped so quick, I nearly was still asleep. I tried to get my bearings, remember where I was and what my quiet excuse would be.

"Dally?!" I sighed heavily. "Dally, you scared me!"

That's right. I was at the lot. I fell asleep watching the stars. Again. Pony, Dally and I, and the rest of the group came here a lot to play football, or watch a rumble. It had become a sort of hang out spot for us, and I came out here to sleep when I didn't want to go home. Usually, Pony was the only person I'd run into after dark. Dally sat beside me. I was still laying down, so I sat up.

"Always find you sleeping in the most random places." Dally said. He took out a cigarette and put popped it in his mouth as he searched his pockets for a match. "You 'otta be careful Johnny, one of these days your gonna be found by the wrong person."

Dally's tone was mean as ever, and I struggled to find the courage to speak. I managed to say, "It's dark out here, I'm okay."

"You'd better hope. Got a match? I told Two-Bit he couldn't bum any, he musta' took 'em while I was asleep."

I found a nearly empty box of matches in my pocket and handed it too him. "Keep it."

Dally took a match and struck it, lighting his cigarette and taking a long hit. He looked me over with his icy eyes before tossing the matches back.

"What are you doing out here?" He said finally. "It's almost three."

"Sleeping." I said, feeling the urge to wipe the grass and dirt from my jeans. I crammed the matches back into my pocket. "What about you?"

"I was crashing at Two-Bit's, but he snores like a dog, and I needed a walk." Dally sighed and laid back on the grass. He hit his cigarette again, and the soft glow reflected on a white strand of hair that hang close to his face. He wasn't looking at the stars, he was watching his cigarette. He blew a ring of smoke. It floated close enough for me to get a big wave of it. I inhaled his secondhand smoke.

I never understood the way I felt about Dally. He was everything I wasn't. Brave, confident, and respected. Even if it was all for the wrong reasons, I wished I could be like that. I wished people would fear me, so then I would never have to be afraid. I wished I got in trouble for doing bad things, so maybe I wouldn't get hit just for doing nothing at all. I wished I could be selfish and ruthless, because maybe I'd hate myself a little less.

I know that all sounds dramatic, but it's all true. I wished I could be everything bad about Dallas Winston, so maybe there could be something good about me. I supposed that's why Dally stood out from the rest. He wasn't close to me like Ponyboy, or gave me lots of hugs like Sodapop, Pony's big brother. But I couldn't stay away from Dally if I wanted to.

"What are you looking at?" Dally said. I realized I was still looking at him.

"Sorry, I was just thinking."

Dally grinned and chuckled to himself. "You're spending too much time with Pony, man."

"Maybe." I muttered with a small smile. I finally lay down too. Dally passed me his cigarette, and I took a hit off it.

"Johnny." Dally said as I passed him the cigarette. "See those clouds, looks like rain."

I looked in the east, and sure enough, there were rain clouds building closer in the sky. I sighed and sat up. "I don't want to go home, Dally."

"Yeah, me too." Dally said. He stood up, looking at the sky with raised eyebrows. "Let's crash at Darry's. At least we'll have something decent to eat in the morning." Darry is Pony's oldest brother.

I almost smiled at the thought of sitting on the Curtis brothers' living room floor, eating chocolate cake while all my friends shouted into the other room. I'd try to scarf down my piece, not knowing when Steve would walk in the door and complain about all the cake being gone, making me feel bad and offer him the rest of my piece. The three Curtis brothers lived alone, because their parents had died about five months back.

"Yeah, okay." I said. Dally put a hand out, and I grabbed it. He pulled me to my feet and we started for Darry's. We walked in silence down the street to the house, Dally finishing his cigarette and pulling his jacket close around him.

"Sure is chilly for June." He said, and I silently recalled it was now June 15th. We were now walking up the sidewalk to the porch, overgrown with grass and weeds. We both silently slipped into the house. The house was quiet, and the living room was dark and empty.

"I'll take the floor." I said quietly. Dally looked me up and down as he threw his jacket onto the coffee table.

"Take the couch." He said dryly. He started kicking his shoes off.

"I'll be fine, you take the couch." I said, mocking him and removing my shoes. Mine were off just as fast as his, and we both stood in our socks.

"You're sleeping on the couch." He said finally.

"Okay." I agreed quietly.

Dally fell into the tan chair, and I tossed my denim jacket over the back of the couch, laying down.

"Night." I said quietly. I didn't get a response. I wasn't sure if that was because Dally was already asleep, or if I had said it too quietly.

Maybe Dally just didn't want to say goodnight.