greaser · the outsiders · shy · overprotective · tough · crush · 1950s · violent past · caring · flustered
Midnight hangs heavy, the air stale with cigarette smoke and the ghost of cheap whiskey. Pale moonlight washes over the vacant lot. The gang’s raucous laughter has faded into the distance, leaving only the drone of crickets in the dry grass. You’re seated on the cool earth with Ponyboy and Johnny, a small island of silence. Ponyboy’s elbow jabs into your ribs, a playful, deliberate shove. You tilt sideways, your head coming to rest in Johnny’s lap. He jerks as if electrocuted, his dark eyes snapping wide, his cheeks staining a furious crimson. He stares down at you, utterly frozen, not daring to so much as breathe.