temporary | dally winston | the outsiders

7

Dally looked at me wide eyed. He used to be half asleep.
Used.
"Hey Monica."
I was so happy. And then my face went hard.
"What the hell do you want?"
"Just wondering how Oklahoma's going for you."
"Do you even care?"
"Of course I do. I'm your mother."
"You have a funny way of showing it, whoreing around when you're married to the old man, getting drunk every night because you can't deal with anything on your own."
"That hurt Monica. After everything I've done for you."
"What exactly have you done for me?"
Dally took the phone from my hands.
"This is Dallas Winston, anything that needs to be said will from now on be said to me. She doesn't want to speak to you, can't you get that through your thick skull?"
She hung up the phone.
I sat down on the couch because my knees got weak.
"Look, my dad don't give a damn about me, it don't bother me nun. You're better than her."
I shook my head. "The rate I'm going, I'm gonna end up just like her."
"You will not! You're going places, Mon."
"Yeah. Hell." I laughed. "My life is going downhill, Dal. And no one's gonna catch me."
"I'm gonna catch you. The boys are gonna catch you. You're with us now."
I rested my head in his lap.
"It's too much. Just let me sleep."
"Alright." He whispered, petting my head.

"Get up! Soda got jumped!" Steve shook Dally, which woke me up.
"Oh my god!" I sat up and put my shoes on.
"Uhm, Mon, what are you doing?"
I paused. "Going with you?"
"No no no. This is no place for a lady."
I corssed my arms. "Excuse me? Run that by me again?"
Dally looked at me. "It's dangerous. If you get involved, they'll hunt like dogs for payback. Just stay here."
I was beyond pissed off.
"Fine. Go."
I huffed and sat on the couch.

At around 9, all the boys walked in while I watched TV on the couch.
"Oh my god, you should've been there Monica! We stomped their asses!" Steve hollered.
"Oh, Steve, I wish I could've, but I don't have a penis."
"Oh man, y'all played the girl card on her?" Soda looked at Dally. "You know better than to play the girl card on her!"
"You're supposed to lie." Darry said.
"HELLO?!" I yelled. "I'm standing right here!"
"Look, it's nothing personal, Mon. It's just... Gang's don't have girls in them. Girls don't fight guys. Guys don't fight girls." Two Bit shrugged.
I stood up from the couch silently.
I slapped Two Bit across the mouth.
"C'mon, Two Bit. Hit me back."
He shook his head. I could see he was angry.
I looked at Dally and slapped him too. "Dally, how much you wanna hit me back?"
"You have no idea." He growled.
"Okay, so ONE of you boys hit me. Let's go. I won't care."
"Oh my Lord, shut up Mon." Darry rolled his eyes.
"Ponyboy? Hit me! I dare you!"
Ponyboy shrugged.
"My point exactly! Treat me the same."
"We don't treat you the same because you aren't the same. No matter how much you hang with us guys, you're not a guy. You're not the same as any broad at the drive in either. We don't know what to make of you yet, so chill." Johnny said.
We all looked at him puzzled. Johnny never sticks up.
I shrugged. "Fine."
"I have night shift to work." Darry said. "Just came by to grab a few things." He went to the back hall.
"I got a date with Sandy, and Steve works night shift. So bye." Soda grinned.
"Imma go home to my momma. See ya." Two Bit left.
"Me and Johnny were gonna go see a movie, not at the drive in. The one downtown. So, uh, bye."
And then there were two.
"Wanna go to the drive in? Just got my car grooved up." Dally suggested.
"Sure."

For once, we got to sit in the front row with all the other cars and teenagers.
Except everyone in the front are couples, and Dally knows that.
He tucked an arm around me and settled into the movie.
"Look, we could do this, ya know. If we tried, we could."
I nodded.
"Did you think about it?"
I nodded.
"And?"
I leaned up and kissed him. "Shh, I'm trying to watch the movie."
He grinned and kissed my jaw, moving lower.
"Dally, not now."
He continued.
I say up. "I said, not now."
He stopped. "Oh, uh, uhm...sorry."
I swallowed and kissed him again.

As we drove home, my lips were seriously swollen from all the listing that happened at the movies. As we were leaving the drive in, Dally eyed me.
"So, uh, am I taking you home?"
"Uh..."
"Cause like, if you wanna come to Buck's with me, I totally wouldn't mind that."
I pressed my lips together and thought.
"I, um, if I went with you, NOTHING is happening, understood?"
"Yeah, yeah, totally."
"Like, absolutely nothing...of that nature."
"I got you, Mon."
"Then, I guess we go to Buck's?"
"This is the most awkward conversation ever."
I laughed. "Oh my god, thank you, I'm so so sorry."
He grinned as we drove away.