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G O L D E N
S L U M B E R S
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❝Sleep pretty darling, do not cry, and I will sing a lullaby.❞
— The Beatles, 'Golden Slumbers'

THE YEAR IS 1965. Tulsa, Oklahoma is ruled by the social divide between two groups, namely the Greasers and the Socs, who are in constant dispute with one another. Grace Bergmann, seen as a Soc, is condemned to live like one of the rich kids. She has everything a Soc could want — a nice house, a cookie-cutter family, pretty clothes, friends aplenty. And yet the only thing missing from her 'perfect' life is... well, just about everything.

Grace has always felt like a pariah in the dictionary definition of a Soc. Wild and passionate at heart, she can't relate to the cool and sophisticated demeanours of her so-called contemporaries. Her status has always felt meaningless to her, leaving her lost and confused in a world where it seems to be all that matters. Look the part, play the part. It is all anyone ever seems to do, from her people-pleasing sister Edith, to the obnoxiously haughty Marvin Haynes at school.

But one night, when she finds herself on the wrong side of the tracks, Grace stumbles upon a fragile boy named Johnny beaten to a pulp by her own kind; and subsequently she gets one foot into the lives of the Greasers. The more time she spends with them, the more she sees they aren't so different at all. All she sees are boys who like books and sunsets, boys hardened beyond open-heartedness to survive in this cruel world, boys who had to grow up fast and carry all their burdens on their aching backs. Especially in Johnny Cade, the broken boy with a heart of gold, Grace finds hope for a life beyond the labels of Greasers and Socs, as both their lives and their souls intertwine...

However, things are never so simple. Over the following months, Grace and her friends (from both sides of the tracks) learn slowly but surely that while Greasers and Socs can see the same sunset, the bitter truth is this — nothing gold can stay.

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STARRING...

Winona Ryder as
Grace Bergmann

❝Greasers or Socs, what difference does it
make? We're all going through something.❞

Ally Sheedy as
Edith Bergmann

❝I guess we just weren't ready to let
each other into our lives, were we?❞

Megan Follows as
Donna McGuire

❝I would say that's unusual, but I'm
the one who roller-skated here, so...❞

River Phoenix as
Warren Hart

❝I like to just sit back and watch it all.
This whole charade... it's meaningless.❞

Gale Hansen as
Marvin Haynes

❝Hey! No scratches on the Thunderbird.
This baby cost good, plentiful money.❞

ALSO FEATURING . . .

norma bergmann ━ cher
david bergmann ━ harold ramis
kevin bergmann ━ young!joseph gordon-levitt
alan spector ━ judd nelson
jimmy mcguire ━ michael j. fox
susan bradford ━ mare winningham
charlie donahue ━ anthony edwards
( more may be added later )

&& THE OUTSIDERS CAST . . .

johnny cade ━ ralph macchio
ponyboy curtis ━ c. thomas howell
darrel 'darry' curtis ━ patrick swayze
sodapop curtis ━ rob lowe
dallas 'dally' winston ━ matt dillon
two-bit stevens ━ emilio estévez
steve randle ━ tom cruise
sherri 'cherry' valance ━ diane lane

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DISCLAIMER.

I do not own the plot or characters of The Outsiders, this is a work of fan-fiction merging elements of the 1967 book written by S.E. Hinton and the 1983 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola. I only own my own characters (e.g. Grace, Edith, Donna, Warren and Marvin) and their respective storylines.

WARNINGS.

This story will contain themes and/or depictions of class divisions/prejudices, violence, underage smoking/drinking, domestic abuse, misogyny/sexism and death. If you are sensitive to these topics, please either read with caution, or avoid this book. I will try and include trigger warnings in chapters where I feel they are necessary.

DEDICATIONS.

To anyone who loves The Outsiders as much as I do! Also a few special users who I hope will enjoy this fic, either for loving the fandom or just being rays of sunshine:
stilestastic 
wishfuIthinking
heartofhugs
Iydiamartin
ROGUEANDOR
bananapopsicIes
bIumenthaIs
deadpvets
callum-turner
-johnnycakes
georgiathesloth

FOREWORD.

I have no idea how long this Outsiders fic has been sitting in my drafts, but it must be a pretty long time. I would say late 2018 to early 2019 I started this? So yeah, its publication is very overdue... and also very impulsive right now. AHHH.

Ever since I watched and read The Outsiders, I've been dearly touched by the characters in the story. It holds such a special place in my heart, because I discovered it at a time when I needed it most, and a particular scene which I resonated with in the story still sticks with me. Plus, it's undoubtedly a masterpiece — and to think that S.E. Hinton was sixteen when she wrote it? Forever one of my biggest writing inspirations!

One thing I want to try and do in this fic is still try and focus on the core values of the book and movie. Although a lot of this story is driven by the relationship between Grace and Johnny, their bond is meant to be deeper than romance, and for Grace at least it is a catalyst for learning about the Greasers' world and accepting them. This goes for the other pairings in this story too. I think this is really important for any fic for The Outsiders, because the story touches on so many important topics and has had a massive impact since S.E. Hinton first wrote it. Anyway, that was just a little disclaimer-ish/preaching thing I wanted to get out of the way...

Also, side note, I thought I would try using face claims (mostly) from the 1980s to match with the other actors in the movie! It felt more natural to me than using more current ones, and it was also an excuse to use young Winona Ryder (and others) in a fic, so... WINONA FOREVER ❤️

And with that, I wish you happy reading ✨ stay gold...

— starryeyedturtle

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IMPORTANT DATES.
[ Started: January 2019 (approx) ]
[ Published: September 3rd, 2022 ]
[ Completed: TBA ]