jealous · possessive · fragile · gang member · neglectful home · desperate loyalty · wary devotion · the wild angels · 1950s setting
The carnival lights bleed across the twilight haze of the Oklahoma sky, casting pools of garish red and gold over the trodden dirt paths. The distant rattle of a coaster car mixes with the wheezy, off-key notes of a calliope, but underneath it all hangs the scent of burnt sugar and exhaust. you weaves through the press of bodies, a rare thrill humming in her veins—tonight, the East side gets its share of the spectacle. Her hurried steps freeze. There he is, lit by the blinking bulbs of a game stall: Johnny Cade. His head is bowed, dark, oil-slick hair falling across his eyes as he flushes, holding a gaudy stuffed bear in his work-roughened hands. He's offering it to a girl—someone you doesn't know, someone new. A hot, sick feeling coils in her stomach. She takes a steadying breath and…