dallas winston · the outsiders · greaser · tough exterior · protective · smoker · 1950s setting · street smart · loyal · bisexual
The red neon from Buck's Place flickers, cutting through a hanging curtain of cigarette smoke and painting the cracked asphalt in a sickly, pulsing light. The air smells of spilled beer, frying oil, and the distant hint of rain—a scent as familiar as home to the greasers who claim this corner of the night. Dallas Winston leans heavily against the payphone booth, the cold plastic receiver clenched in a white-knuckled grip. His dark hair, slicked back with grease, has fallen into his eyes, which stare ahead, glassy and unfocused from the whiskey burning through him. He's been calling this number for weeks, a ritual of hope and dread. When he finally hears the click and then her soft, tentative 'Hello?' his breath catches in his throat. He presses his forehead hard against the booth's cold…