Oh…my…G-d…yeah it's been like over a year. So if anyone is actually reading this I am amazed. And very, very sorry. But, here's the final chapter of New York.

Third Person

Many people were in the hospital waiting room that day, but Dallas Winston was blind to them all. His eyes were opened when a hand was rested on his shoulder. With a start, he turned to Riff who was staring at him with an equal amount of sadness. Riff however, was trying to hide his feelings, putting his best friend's first.

"How you holdin' up?"

"How do you think?" Came the distraught answer. With a sigh, Riff slung his arm around Dally and said no more. Jets and Falcons poured into the room until both gangs in their entirety were sitting there, earning glares from doctors in nurses. But unlike usual, there was a dreary silence fallen over them all.

Sean sat alone at the opposite side of the room than most other people. His brother had come over to him, but when he received no attention, he left, figuring Sean wanted to be alone.

The loud silence was screeching in everybody's ears, deafening them all. It was broken, much everyone's relief, by a somewhat nervous voice.

"Um…where's the girl's parents?" The doctor asked the room.

"She has a name!" Sean yelled out, his first words since he'd notified Dally and Riff.

"She hasn't got none. She lives with me." Dally glared.

"Who are you?" Dr. Edwards asked.

"Her brother."

"You can come in, then." Without a word, Dally followed the man inside. The scene before him shocked him. His baby sister lay there, completely unconscious. There was tubes coming out of her mouth and it was the only thing to ever scare Dallas Winston.

"What the hell is that!" His fear spoke for him.

"We had to insert tubes, Mr. Winston. To help her breathe."

"What do you mean 'help her breathe'!"

"She wasn't breathing on her own. The bullet hit her lungs." Dr. Edwards asked. "You can talk to her if you'd like. We aren't sure if she'll make it." Dally wanted to throw the man against the wall but he restrained. He took his nurses and left the room, allowing the brother some time alone with the person he couldn't live without.

"Cassie, listen to me." Dally said hurriedly as he pulled a chair to her bedside. "You gotta wake up, all right, kid? You gotta come back. I dunno what I'd without ya, and if you don't wake up, I don't know what I'll do." He was expecting some kind of answer, but none came. "Cassie, come—" He was cut off by a loud beep, and before hek new what was happening he was being ushered out by a nurse.

"What happened!" Riff and Sean's voices came in unison, as everybody else's looks asked the same thing.

"I…I dunno." There was a sickening feeling, shared by all the people in the room, and everybody tried their best to ignore it. The rapid beeping from within slowly steadied until it was just a long stable beep. The sickening feeling deepened, and was added with a mixture of fear. Sean stood up, fighting back tears. Riff gripped onto his chair to keep from punching a wall, and Dally just wanted to run out.

"Mr. Winston," Dr. Edwards came back out with a grim look on his face and suddenly Dally never hated anyone more.

"We did the best we kid, yet we were unable save her." It sounded like the line had been said so many times, it had lost its meaning. Dally wanted to punch him, but Riff actually did; and before anything else could happen Dally ran out. Everyone was on their feet, Action and Ice holding Riff back. Jack hurried over to his brother and walked him out of the room because he didn't want anyone to see him cry, and as soon as they were in the clear, that's just what he did. Jack held his brother to his chest, holding him tightly, trying to do whatever possible to ease his pain, yet knowing there was really nothing to be done to do so.

Meanwhile, Ice and Action had managed to get Riff seated and somewhat calmer. A nurse had come out and hurried the doctor inside. Slowly, the room emptied out, until Riff was the only one sitting there. It took him a long time to compose himself, he wasn't even aware of how long exactly he was. Hours later, he stood and walked out. He needed to find Dally before he did something stupid.

"There you are." It was late at night, and Riff had finally found Dally sitting alone in an abandoned lot on the other side of town. He was crying, for the last time he ever would.

"What do you want?" Dally asked annoyed.

"Come on, Dal." Riff began.

"I'm moving." Dally suddenly said.

"What?" Riff couldn't even begin to comprehend how this would solve anything.

"I said I'm moving. I can't take it here anymore."

"Oh come on. Even if you did move, where would you go?"

"I dunno…" Dally begin. "Somewhere opposite of here. Cassie always wanted to live in the country."

"Dally, that's insane."

"No, it's not! I'm never going to be hurt again! I'm never going to care about anyone again, and this will never happen! I'm gonna get so tough nothing at all can ever touch me." Riff sighed and began to try and talk his friend out of it, but to no avail, because a week later Dally was at a train station, and he was really leaving.

"If you ever need anything, I'll be here. There's always a spot for you among the Jets." A week before, Dally would have hugged him and thanked him. But he was too tough, too uncaring for that now. And with a sad sigh, Riff watched the man he called his brother, step onto the train, and he never saw him again.

"This is pathetic…" Dally mumbled as he stepped onto the streets of Tulsa, Oklahoma. "When I said opposite, boy, I meant it." He started to walk around the town, looking for some place to claim as his own.

There was a boy walking in the opposite direction of Dally, looking down. He bumped into him and Dally grabbed him, pushing him against a wall.

"Watch where you're going!" The boy was scared out of his mind, and incredibly confused. But when Dally looked into his eyes, he saw something there that made him choke. He somehow saw Cassie and let go.

"What's your name kid?"

"Johnny Cade." Came the fearful reply. Dally nodded slowly.

Fin. The story is now over. If anyone is still reading, bless you.

Thanks for your patience,

Ale