Summer had come again.
Summer in Tulsa was hot, definitely, but down by the river a cool breeze fanned the grass and lapped up little waves on the water, especially in the evening. There was a clear, clean feeling in the air, and a sweet smell of the blue sage that bloomed along the banks, and high above the ground sparrows wheeled in the hot blue sky. Cars rumbled across the bridge not far from where we sat, their tinny horns and grumbling wheels just reaching us over the chatter of the birds and the rushing of the river. It didn't seem quite real, that this beautiful place had been the scene of the most horrific moment of our lives. In the warm summer breeze the nightmare we had lived through last fall dissipated like a dream right when you wake up.
I sat on the scratchy flannel picnic blanket and watched as the boys played a makeshift game of 3 on 3 football. Darry excelled, obviously, and I watched in amusement as he broke past Steve to make a touchdown. He spiked the ball towards the ground and did a funny little victory dance, much to Steve's annoyance. I grinned to myself. There was still a sliver of youth in him, despite his premature responsibilities and grumpy exterior.
Things were great with Darry. We had been going steady for months now, and we hadn't lost that honeymoon, lovey-dovey glow. If anything, it had grown stronger as time wore on. Maybe it was the changing seasons, marching steadily towards warmer temperatures, maybe it was the fact that I had moved to my own place not too far from the house but far enough, maybe it was me turning my back on my teenage years forever by graduating high school. Whatever the reason, we were more in love than ever, and I think we both knew then that we were going to spend the rest of our lives together.
Bryon and Ponyboy were rising high school seniors, and Pony had won almost all of his cross-country meets in the spring. Pony told me that he hoped he could win enough to earn the attention of college scouts, because he wanted to get a good scholarship and go to college.
I wanted to go to college, too. I had only an inkling of an idea of what I wanted to major in, but I still really wanted to go. After I had handed in my English journal at the end of the school, Mr. Syme told me I had untapped potential.
Maybe Romeo and Juliet did what was best, I had written. They had to live with their own heartbreak, and their families will have to live with that for the rest of their lives, but because of their sacrifice, things will get better for future generations. My mother and father were like that for me.
"This is strong," he had said. "You sound like you've been through a lot. You shouldn't waste that experience."
It was then and there that I decided that there was something bigger I could do with my life, and college was the first step.
And as for Arnie, he was re-charged with attempted murder. His trial was set for early January; Darry and I sat in the front row of the courtroom for the whole thing. It lasted two full, grueling weeks, but at the end, after seven hours of intense deliberation, the jury found Arnold Stienham guilty of two counts of battery and one count of attempted murder. The judge sentenced him to 14 years in prison with no possibility of parole and shook Darry's hand when it was all over. Things were going to change at last- they already had begun to.
I took a bite of my PB and J sandwich and watched Pony sprint to catch the ball after Soda punted it. A lazy bee bobbed over the dandelion sprouting by my heel, whose fluffy yellow head bobbed in the early summer breeze. The river looked cheerful and serene to me now, despite the horror it had been in the fall. Summer had a way of doing that; it passed over things with its floral balm and softened them somehow. The river had melted with it. Darry had melted with it. All of Tulsa had melted with it.
After the trial, the Socs met up with Curly Shepard, Tim Shepard, and Darry to sort out some kind of compromise. This was the second time, they said, that someone had almost died because of their pointless feud, and they figured it should end. This decision disgruntled Tim and Curly; they liked all the violence a little too much. They started the process of selling their bar and planned to move further north, to Chicago or Cleveland. Tim told Darry that "the old town wasn't the same anymore" and that he and Curly "needed a place that was a little wilder." I wasn't at all sad to see the backs of them.
Since then, there were no more rumbles. The gang still met regularly, it's schedule for the most part unchanged, but we didn't walk the streets in fear of getting jumped anymore. The last few months had been peaceful at last.
"Hey, Diana!" Steve waved his arms at me. "Can you bring over some water for me?"
"Me too!" the rest of them chorused at once.
"Okay," I replied, somewhat bewildered by their enthusiasm.
"I can help you," Darry offered at once.
I felt the familiar warm glow around my heart as he jogged over to help me serve up the water glasses. We had brought a plastic jug of water with us, and some styrofoam cups. I poured out six cups of water, and then Darry scooped up four of them in his large hands to carry over to the rest of the boys. I took the other two over and handed them off to Soda and Pony, who gulped them down almost instantaneously.
"Thanks, Diana," Soda panted, handing me back the empty cup.
"No problem." I raised my eyebrows at him.
"How was your call with Ma?" he asked.
"She's doing good. She found a few of my things in my room still, so she's sending them through the mail. She sends her love."
"She coming to visit soon?" Pony piped up.
"She was just here for graduation, so probably not until the end of summer," I explained. "She said she can't swing any more vacation days, so it'll probably be just for a weekend."
"She musta been happy to hear about the truce."
"Yeah." I smiled to myself, remembering how I could hear her excitement even through the long-distance phone call. "She was glad you all would be safe."
"Sure do love Ma," Two-Bit said, and they all shouted their agreement.
"All right, break's over," Soda said, clapping his hands. "Let's get back to the game."
"I'm gonna sit this round out. I'm getting a little tired," Darry said.
"Aw, come on, then it's two against three!"
"Two against two. Does Pony really count?"
"Hey!" Pony protested, wounded.
"You're right," Soda said. "You can go sit with your girl, then."
I grinned at Darry and looped my arm through his, and the two of us made our way back to the picnic blanket. It was late in the day, that soft hour in the summer when the sun should be down already but because of the time of year it's still hanging on. Darry smelled like chocolate and cigarettes, and I buried my face in his shoulder to surround myself with the sweet scent.
"We sure are the lucky ones," Darry murmured as we walked, almost to himself.
"We sure are," I repeated, smiling up at him.
"I'm gonna miss you when you're off at college."
"Don't be silly. I'm not going too far away."
"Still and all, I'll miss having you around the house." He lowered his voice, and his words vibrated through my whole body, sending pleasant shivers racing down my spine.
"I can come over tonight if you want," I offered, tightening my grip on his arm.
"Don't tempt me. I'm gonna have to get used to sleeping alone, since you're going to have to be focusing on your studies when you're a college girl."
"What if I don't want to sleep alone?"
"You just want to steal another one of my shirts!"
"I do not!" I protested. "I just want to lay next to you all night, and be the first thing you see in the morning..."
"Those words won't work with me, honey. I'm missing three of my shirts and they keep disappearing after you spend the night."
"Alright, alright, you grumpy old codger."
"Hey, now," he growled, intensifying the chill that kissed my bare neck.
We sat down on the flannel blanket, and he laid with his head in my lap. I absently played with his hair while we watched the dying sun dance on the water of the river. I felt him sigh in contentment; he closed his eyes and let every one of his tight muscles relax into me.
"I sure do love you, Darrel Curtis," I murmured.
"Diana Jean, I love you too, you know that?"
"I know," I whispered back, a small smile of pure joy curving my lips upwards.
The sun had begun to fully set, and the world was awash in a hue of pink and orange. Maybe it was the last sunset we would ever see. Maybe it was the first one we ever had. Maybe it was a different one than the Socs saw in the west, and maybe it was the one that all the Greasers saw in the east. Maybe the two were one and the same.
I didn't care; all I wanted was to keep on looking at it, caught in this moment for sweet eternity. I loved that flaming, dying, breathing, glowing, burning East West sunset.