Subside – An Outsiders Fanfiction – Darry Curtis Love Story

Chapter 1

I've always been real skinny. Not in the good way, that the Soc girls like. Scrawny. I got bones poking out of everywhere. People say it makes me look tough. Never tuff, just tough. I guess I am. I been in plenty of fights, even though I'm only going on seventeen. Once, I even dressed up as a guy to fight in a rumble. I sure got a whipping from Charlie when my hat fell off though. He's always worrying too much about me. And we even won! I guess I shoulda known that I'm too small to pass for a guy. I'm not too womanly though. I'm too skinny. Charlie thinks it's because I don't eat. It's true that I don't. I hate the feeling of being full. And also I learned young to conserve food. Dad is barely home. He drops of food every two weeks or so, but that's okay. Charlie looks out for me. And when I do run out of food, Charlie or the boys help me out.

I usually stay at one of the boy's houses. Jimmy leaves the door unlocked for me, Charlie told me where he hides the spare key, and Case is usually with me. Charlie thinks that I can't take care of myself. But I can. I may not be as tuff as the guys, but I'm just as tough. Case doesn't talk too much. But we're real close. One time though, when he was in jail, I was sleeping in a field. I got in a fight with Jimmy and Charlie was out doing something crazy. I think he had a girl over. But I woke up in the middle of the night cause I heard a car. I tried to run, but I'm kinda scrawny. They were Socs. They were real scary. All I wanted was to blow off steam. It was summer and warm, so I liked sleeping outside. But they held me down with a knife and I screamed and screamed until someone came running.

Jackhammer rescued me. Jackhammer is real big. There were maybe three of them, and I don't wanna think about what they were gonna do. Usually I'm not worried about rape or anything because I'm too skinny and I seem real mean. But they were drunk. So Jackhammer helped me out.

Boy, Jackhammer was scary. He doesn't get mad too easily, he's always happy and joking. But when he does get scary, it's like an earthquake. He beat up all of the boys, and he picked me up and let me cry in his arms for what felt like an hour. He's a real good guy to have around. He isn't around much though. I was real lucky. He's usually in jail. It was weird to see him out of the slammer and Case in there. Case is level-headed. I don't know what he got in there for, so don't ask.

People mistake me and Charlie for cousins a lot. We're both real skinny and freckled. He has green eyes though, and mine are grayish. They match the hue of Jack's gun. It's a real pretty color, even if that's not a sweet way of saying that. But the resemblance is done there. While I don't top five feet, Charlie is closer to six. He's got bright red hair that he greases back, while I got shaggy blonde hair. I don't do anything with it. I just sorta leave it. I don't even actually brush it that much. But I figure if my hair can grow, so can I. I want long hair and to be tall more than anything. Long hair is tuff, I hate my short hair. And shortness makes people look down at me. I hate it, I do. But Jimmy says that I seem taller than I am. That's good, Jimmy would know. Me and Jimmy used to go together. He's a real wide guy, average height. We were a tuff looking couple, real nice. He said he was surprised at far down he had to bend to kiss me. And he's not too big himself.

Jimmy's a good guy. When we did it, he was always real sweet. It's my fault we broke up. I told him that I liked him a real lot, and loved him too, I just wasn't in love with him. He was a real good time, but I figured we were better as friends.

I was laying on Charlie's bed. It's real comfortable. He's got lotsa blankets. He always has to sleep with a blanket, even in hot summers. I was tryna nap but he doesn't got any curtains. I wasn't tired enough to sleep in the light, but I closed my eyes real tight and pretended it was dark already. I was just about to drop off when the door opened up right in front of me.

It was Case. He flopped on the bed next to me. His dark hair is real short, so he can't hide his eyes. He had to shave it, cause he somehow got fleas. Fleas. I like it better this way. His leather jacket was jet black, brand new, and smelled good. Jackhammer lifted it from somewhere. I don't know how. I'm a wreck at stealing.

"Hey, Ash." He said slowly. He's real thoughtful. When the boys wanna annoy me, they call me Jennifer. My full name is Jennifer Celeste Ashton. I like Ash. It's tuff. Way tuffer than my real name.

"What's up, Case?" I asked, turning towards him. I was just wearing jeans and a windaround top. It showed my abs and my shoulders. I was real proud of my abs. They're flat, like girls like, but defined. That's tuff as anything, and tough. It only covered my chest. Good. I didn't have much to show off anyway. I flicked out my blade and started picking at my fingernails. I hate when dirt gets under them. But I like my nails long. They always get messed up and break though.

"Stop messing with that piece of shit," he said in his steady way. "I got seriousness to tell you. Charlie called. He was with your pa. Your pa called Charlie and asked him to help him fix his car. But some dealer came up and shot at them. Charlie didn't get hit once, but your pa's… he's dead, Ash. The Soc got away real easy. They dunno who it is. Charlie didn't even see 'em. You gotta go to your cousin's house."

I flushed. My cousin, John, was a real sweet boy. He lived about an hour away, in the next city. His ma is real crazy. They look just alike, dark and small, but she's awful. I met them once, last year. I came to visit with Jimmy, who had family there. His ma and pa are nuts crazy though. "What? Why? When?" it felt too unreal for me to get mad or sad. Case was too calm. It made me calm.

"Someone from the court's gonna escort you. Jimmy's off blowing some steam. Charlie wanted to take you, but the court people won't let em. You get the house when you turn eighteen. They're gonna auction your stuff, furniture and television and whatnot. You keep the property though."

I wasn't too sad about my pa. He was a good guy, treated me nice and all, but I didn't see him enough. He didn't like my ma's family. My ma and my uncle were fighting. They fought until she died two years ago. I was real close to her. I miss her a lot. She got knifed while walking home from work, in broad daylight. It was a real shock. I still get sad when I think about it. My uncle got married to the crazy woman. Ma said that he was driven to drink because of her, and they only got married cause she got pregnant.

"What about you guys?" I felt my eyes fill with tears. "You and Charlie, Jackhammer and Jimmy? You guys are my family. I don't wanna go!"

"I hate being the bearer for bad news, Ash. But lookit the newspaper. Isn't that your cousin?" I peered at the picture. It sure was. He got his picture in the paper.

I read the article. It was about how John and two of his friends rescued a buncha little kids from a burning church, saved their lives.

But at the end of the article, two of them died from their wounds. John and his friend were dead.

My first thoughts were selfish.

"So I gotta go to the crazy lady all alone?" I wailed.