Chapter Text
Charlotte Curtis was a lot of things, but observant wasn't included in that list.
It took her four blocks to realize that a red Corvair had been following her from the movie theater. The theater was in the 'soc' part of the town, which means the nicer, richer part of town. As a 'greaser', she was considered much too poor to be there, allowing the socs to belittle her as much as they pleased. While she had only been yelled at some, the boys were likely to get jumped for no reason other than existing. She was only about two blocks from home, so the corvair was trailing them on purpose.
"You see 'em?" Ponyboy said quietly, subtly nodding his head back towards the car as it flashed its lights at them. Charlotte nodded and took a step closer to her twin brother, watching him run his hands over his greased hair nervously. Neither sibling was on the bigger side as they had been born a full month premature, but at fourteen, Ponyboy was starting to fill out. Unfortunately, Charlotte was still as small as ever, and the guys joked that she couldn't hurt a fly, not because she was too nice, but rather too weak. While she hated being treated like a child, she knew that she would be no match against teenage boys.
The twins weren't allowed to walk on their own for that very reason, but they tended to ignore that rule. The theater was only a twenty-minute walk, so they didn't want to bother their eldest brother, Darry, because at twenty years old, he worked long hours and rarely had time for his youngest siblings. The middle brother, Sodapop, also worked long hours because, at the tender age of sixteen, he was a high school dropout. He spent much more time with his siblings, but he was too antsy for a movie. With their parents dead in a car crash and no money for a cab, they didn't have much of a choice but to walk home.
"We should've let Two-Bit give us a ride home," Charlotte grumbled, pulling her thin leather jacket closer. A chill was in the air, tinting her cheeks a bright red. With her auburn hair and pale skin, she always looked like she had heavy blush on in the winter.
"Two-Bit is drunk by now," Ponyboy muttered in response, but she could tell by the way he kept glancing back around him that he agreed. Two-Bit Mathews was known for being funny and protective, but at eighteen, he already had a drinking issue, which meant that Darry didn't like any of his siblings in the car with him. He also had the habit of stealing, which was how he got his prized, black-handled switchblade, and Darry was scared that he would get Pony and Charlotte into trouble.
"Shit!" Charlotte hissed when the car suddenly revved its engine, quickly racing forward onto the sidewalk in front of them. Ponyboy immediately grabbed Charlotte and pushed her behind him, his head on a swivel when five socs got out of the car. Charlotte's mind immediately flashed to the image of her best friend after getting jumped by the socs, an image that almost made her throw up even months later.
It was a general rule that girls were not to be touched or even bothered, so Charlotte was able to avoid getting jumped, and as the youngest brother of Darry Curtis, Ponyboy had been lucky as well. The strong smell of alcohol emanating from the car and the way the boys all stumbled let the twins know that these boys weren't in the right state of mind and might even break that unspoken truce. A quick glance around showed no weapons, not even a broken bottle. Steve Randle, one of Soda's best friends, had fought off four guys with a broken bottle, but they didn't seem to be so lucky tonight.
"Hey grease! We're gonna do you a favor and cut off that long, greasy hair for you," the first soc said, sounding way too friendly. His friends snickered as if that was the funniest thing that had ever been said. To a greaser, their hair was the most important thing to them. Most of the greasers had long hair, some even down to their shoulders, and they always wore copious amounts of grease to keep it out of their faces.
"Need a haircut?" another soc questioned, the pale streetlight flickering over his knife as he pulled it out. Charlotte's breath got caught in her throat and she took a step back, straight into the arms of a waiting soc. She was barely able to scream before his hand was over her mouth and his arm around her throat so tight that she could barely breath. Ponyboy's eyes were wide and panicked, unable to do anything as four boys wrestled him to the ground. Despite her best efforts, Charlotte couldn't get out of the tight embrace, the soc not even caring at her scratching his arms.
The soc punched Ponyboy in the chest four times, causing Charlotte to whine and stop fighting. She was forced to watch the soc put the blade to his neck and ask Ponyboy a question. At that moment, Pony started yelling at the top of his lungs, even for Steve, who hated him with his whole body.
"Shut him up!" the lead soc ordered. At the order of his leader, the soc holding Charlotte loosened his hold on her mouth to grab a handkerchief, allowing her to break out of his hold, immediately elbowing him in the nose.
"Fucking bitch!"
Charlotte was grabbed again, this time by two guys. She whimpered when one of them punched her across the face, making Pony scream once again. The sudden pounding of feet made the socs run, dropping her to the ground. It was only a moment later that someone was softly lifting her up to stand, her eyes focusing on a worried and angry Soda. She quickly looked over his shoulder to see a much angrier Darry doing the same to Pony.
"Are you two all right?" Darry questioned, his eyes glancing over Charlotte. He shook Pony a few times, trying to get him to answer.
"Stop shaking me, I'm okay," Pony replied, causing Darry to stop immediately. "Charlie, you okay?"
"My cheek hurts," Charlotte complained, gently rubbing her cheek. "And my elbow."
"I bet," Soda grinned. "That soc's nose looked broken when he went running away like a little girl."
Charlotte elbowed him in the side at the comment, making him raise his hands in defeat. Soda was pretty, and anyone could admit that. He was around six feet tall and slim but muscular, with dark-gold hair that looked brown with his grease. Darry, on the other hand, was a bit taller and all muscle from his time playing football, with dark-brown hair and cold eyes. Pony's hair was a light brown, matching his twins auburn in the sunlight. The siblings were all so alike, but so different at the same time.
"They didn't hurt you too bad, did they?" Darry asked worriedly, abandoning Pony to give Charlotte a once-over. As the youngest in the group, everyone watched over her like a hawk, especially because she almost didn't make it as a baby. At times she was appreciative, but this was nothing like how Johnny, her best friend, had been beaten. It was nothing to worry about.
"I'm fine," Charlotte insisted, adding more force to her words. Darry's jaw tightened and he nodded at her. Wanting the attention off of her, Charlotte turned her attention to her twin. "Pone, you're bleeding."
"Look at Ponyboy! Finally shaving!" Soda teased, but Pony didn't think it was funny, instead grabbing the handkerchief that was left behind and putting it to his neck, where it was quickly stained red by the small cut. Soda's eyebrows furrowed in understanding and he was much gentler with his words. "Easy, Pony. They're gone and they won't come back."
Charlotte sat on the ground, Pony sitting next to her with their shoulders touching. She was glad to feel that he was also shaking, and she hoped that the gang wouldn't notice, especially not Steve. No one knew what the twins had done to make him hate them, but he seemed to despise spending any time with them. He spent most of his time with Soda at the DX gas station working on cars, but he still wanted to spend all of their time out of the store together too, regardless of the twins feelings.
Running back towards the group was Steve, Two-Bit, Dallas Winston, and Johnny Cade. Dallas, or Dally, had longer brown hair that he parted down the middle and a long face with eyes so deep-set that you couldn't always see them. He grew up in the streets of New York, only coming to Tulsa a few years before. He was the most violent out of the group, already having a police record at seventeen. In fact, Charlotte was surprised to see that he was there because he had been in jail for the past few weeks.
Finally, looking more worried than the others, was Johnny Cade. At almost sixteen, he looked like a puppy that had been kicked too many times and was completely lost in a crowd. He was tan with dark black hair and big puppy dog eyes, his hair usually falling in shaggy bangs over his forehead. Today, his hair was pushed back as he ran to his best friends, his chest heaving from anger and a lack of exercise. Without a word, he sat next to Charlotte, lighting up a cigarette for her and Ponyboy each, not saying anything when they took it with shaking hands. Only months before, he had been beaten so badly by the socs that she thought he would die, which left him constantly on edge around everyone except her.
"Didya catch them?" Pony asked.
"Nah, they got away this time," Two-Bit said, spitting in the direction of the car, which was long gone.
"What are you doing here, Dally?" Charlotte spoke up.
"Got out for good behavior," Dally responded, motioning for her to give him her cigarette. Knowing that she had track coming up in the spring, Charlotte handed it over after taking one last drag. "Nice looking bruise.""They shouldn't be hitting girls," Soda said angrily, Two-Bit letting out a sound of agreement, squatting down to see the nasty bruise forming on her cheek, a similar one blossoming on Ponyboy's as well. He let out a whistle and stood up, drinking from a can in a brown paper bag.
"Well, what was she doing out at this time of night?" Steve interjected. Of course he would bring that up, Charlotte thought bitterly, already knowing they would get in trouble.
"We were coming home from the movies," Charlotte responded, anger coating her voice. "And being out at this time of night doesn't mean that I can just be attacked for no reason."
"You're a fourteen year old girl. You should know better. You're lucky they didn't do worse," Steve said with an eye roll. Charlotte stiffened, knowing that he was right. Pony put his arm around her shoulder and glared at Steve while Charlotte blinked tears away, her cheek starting to throb.
"Shut up, Randle," Darry interrupted, an edge to his voice. Everyone knew that he was most protective of Charlotte, and the thought of something like that happening to his baby sister made his stomach turn. "Maybe it's time for the two of you to start carrying blades. 'Specially you, Ponyboy."
"I didn't think anything would happen," Pony said weakly.
"That's the problem! You never think-"
"Can we just go home?" Charlotte interrupted before an argument could follow. In the months since their parents death, the relationship between Pony and Darry had gotten dangerous and they couldn't go a day without a fight. Being his twin, Charlotte found herself drifting away from Darry due to solidarity.
"Leave my kid brother alone," Soda added protectively. "It ain't his fault the socs jump us for existing. And it ain't their fault that they like movies. If he had a blade, they would've cut him to pieces, and maybe even Charlie, too."
Johnny sucked in a breath next to her and Charlotte interlocked their pinkies where no one could see.
"When I want my kid brother to tell me what to do with my other kid brother and sister, I'll ask-kid brother," Darry said impatiently, but he didn't say anything else.
"You boys have fun, I'm going home," Charlotte said, standing up with Johnny instantly by her side. Pony lifted up his hand with half a cigarette still left to let her know that he'd be in as soon as he was done. Darry gave Johnny a look as if to say 'protect her or I'll kill you' and then nodded, his eyes scanning for any other socs in the few blocks between them and their house. She could faintly hear Pony committing her and Johnny to the drive-in the next day with Dally, but she didn't care.
"Are you sure you're fine?" Johnny asked after a few moments of silence. Charlotte considered her options of answering as they turned the corner, and decided that Johnny was one person that she could be honest with.
"No," Charlotte breathed out. Johnny immediately stopped walking and wrapped her in a hug, and she felt the tears spring to her eyes, letting a few fall. Johnny felt them on his shirt and pulled away to wipe them away, giving her a soft smile and then pulling her closer, leaning his cheek on her forehead. While he was smaller than the other guys, he was still much taller than her, letting her fit like a puzzle piece to his chest. She could feel his scars on his cheek from the beating a few months earlier since the soc was wearing rings, which made her move so her face was buried in his chest instead.
With the exception of Pony, no one was closer to Charlotte than Johnny Cade. From the moment they met at the bus stop on her first day of kindergarten and his first day of second grade, they were inseparable and could understand each other with just a look. Johnny was exactly a year and a half older than the twins, and about a year younger than Soda. Soda had met him at school and they became fast friends, but then Soda met Steve and Johnny started asking for the twins instead. When he was alive, Darrel Curtis Sr. would teasingly call Johnny his son-in-law when people asked who he was in relation to the family. Johnny and Charlotte would both get bright red while the brothers would laugh, with their mom telling her husband to lay off. Johnny's parents were both drunks and rarely paid him any attention unless it was to beat him, so he practically lived at the Curtis household until the accident, and now he spent more time at the lot, not wanting to add more financial strain to Darry.
"I've missed you," Charlotte muttered.
"I never left, Lottie," Johnny responded, finally releasing her and urging her to walk, not wanting to be out for any longer than necessary. He knew exactly what she was talking about, but he couldn't tell her the real reason why he was spending less and less time with her.
"I barely see you outside of school," Charlotte complained, for once thankful that the cold air made her cheeks red as she blushed.
"I've been busy," Johnny excused. "You know that I've been helping out doing people's lawns and stuff. I've only got a little over 2 years before I turn 18 and I have to get out of that house the second the clock hits midnight."
"I know," Charlotte mumbled, barely holding the front door open for Johnny to slip in behind her. Johnny frowned at her response, following her into the kitchen, where she grabbed a bag of frozen peas and then pushed past him to lay down on the couch with the peas to her face.
"What if I take you with me?" Johnny grinned at her, sitting down on the floor so they could be eye level. He saw the bag slide, quickly grabbing it and holding it to her cheek.
"I'll still be sixteen," Charlotte reminded him. "Plus, Pony would be mad if I left him."
"You'll almost be seventeen," Johnny countered. "He can come visit. Maybe all three of us can get property and build our own houses."
"No socs?" Charlotte whispered. Johnny let his smile fall for a moment, his eyes softening at her scared tone.
"Never," Johnny whispered before clearing his throat and standing up. "Do you want to go to your bed? Those clothes don't look too comfortable and the guys should be back soon."
"Yeah," Charlotte said, sighing and standing up, looking pitiful with a purple bruise spreading across her face and a bag of frozen peas in her hand. "Thank you, Johnny."
"Anything for you," Johnny replied, and he meant it more than anything in the world.