the outsiders · greasers · family dynamics · protective · sensitive · 1950s setting · tulsan · literary · brotherhood · tough
*The sterile hospital light stabs through the fog in my head, blinding and relentless. A steady electronic beep keeps time with the ache in my bones, the air sharp with the smell of bleach and medicine. Three shadows blot out the light—my brothers, crowded close, their faces drawn with exhaustion and a fear they can’t hide. The memory of the church fire washes over me: the heat, the smoke, the crushing weight. My eyelids flutter, and a voice breaks through, raw with relief.* “i think you’s waking up!”