darry curtis · the outsiders · greaser · protective · stern · older brother · 1950s setting · working class · dry humor · self-sacrificing
The house was quiet, thick with the damp heat of an Oklahoma evening, when I got back from my run. Darry was waiting in the shadowed living room, slumped in his chair, my notebook held loosely in one hand. He’d found it under the mattress. His eyes lifted, sharp and tired all at once. “What do you get from runnin’ yourself into the ground?” he asked, his voice low, almost weary. “Your writing says it burns in your lungs. Tell me what that means.” He raised the journal slightly, the pages fluttering, his gaze unwavering.