By now, it was late in the afternoon. The sun was beginning to set as I wondered around the streets aimlessly. Steve, Evie, Sodapop, and Sandy had all said their goodbyes to me after we finished up at the Dingo. Evie and Sandy seemed to take a liking to me, and asked when they would see me next. I didn't really have a specific answer, but I told them I'd like to hangout again. The two girls seemed cool and different in their own ways. Evie was independent and confident. She was the type of girl that would go after what she wanted. Sandy was also confident, but in a much more subtle way. She was sweet and caring, it was obvious why Sodapop liked her. Sandy reminded me a lot of Erica. Not only because of her looks, but because of her personality. Other than Erica, I never really had any close girl friends. I always blamed it on my mom taking me out of school because of the lack of money we owned.

I often wonder how my life would've turned out if things were different. I always find myself asking these type of 'What if?' questions, but never come up with an answer. I guess it's just this little game that I like to play over and over again in my mind. I keep thinking that if I ask myself all these questions then maybe, just one time, I'll have an answer. It's never happened though. I swear, sometimes it feels like my life is a broken record that keeps skipping back to the beginning. It's like this never ending cycle of not knowing what could have been.

With thousands of thoughts clouding my head, I pressed on through the cold weather, watching my black boots drag along the black, cement sidewalk. I was very bored right now, something that always seems to happen easily. There weren't many teens on the streets and stores would be closing soon.

I stopped at a corner, watching the pedestrian light blink from red to white. A strong feeling of deja vu washed over me as a vision of last night popped into my mind. I could almost hear the low hum of that blue mustang. The thought of it following me creeped me out and caused me to glance over my shoulder, only to see nothing behind me. I shook the feeling off though as I walked across the street.

On the corner, there was a small 24 hour drugstore that I stopped in front of. The glowing neon lights flickered sporadically and made a low buzzing sound. I slipped my hand into the cool, metal handle and pulled the glass door open. The store was almost as cold as it was outside. It smelled like mildew and dust. I walked further into the building, dragging my feet along the carpeted floor as I weaved throughout each aisle. When I got to the clothing racks in the back of the store, I stopped and began pulling out a few items so I would have more to wear. I walked back to the front of the store, stopping at the counter, and placing a pile of clothes next to the female employee that worked there. The lady sent me a smile small before she started checking the tags of the items I was about to purchase.

"Can I get a pack of Marlboro too?" I asked while pointing to the cigarettes that were stacked on shelves behind the counter. The lady nodded and added the cigarettes to the plastic bag full of clothing.

"Is that all?" She asked softly. I nodded and she continued, "It'll be $15."

I pulled my bag off my back, and threw it on the counter, unzipping it and searching for my money. The lady behind the counter watched me intently as I pulled a 100 dollar bill from my stack of cash. I passed the money to her hesitantly. She took the money from my hand and clicked the cashier open, trying to give me the right amount of change. It was strange for me to actually pay for things. There were rare occasions where I actually acquired items legally.

"Have a nice night," the lady said happily as she handed back my change. I smiled to her and picked up my bag of clothing and cigarettes, shoving it into my backpack. I threw my bag onto my back again and made my way towards the front door. Before I left the building though, I stopped at the front door. There was a white sheet of paper taped to the door with a small drawing of a car and writing in bold, black marker.

Drive into the Drive-In!

Movies playing every Friday night (from 8pm - 10 pm) at the parking lot. Bring your friends and family to watch:

Horror!
Comedy!
Romance!
Action!
And more!

Snacks will be available at the stand! Everyone is welcome, so bring your vehicle and get ready to watch a great movie!

($2 tickets will be sold at the ticket booth for entry)

After reading the paper on the door, I tugged it off and turned to the lady behind the counter. "Where is this?" I held up the note for her.

She looked up and studied the writing from afar. "Oh," she exclaimed. "That's on Main Street. Take two lefts and you should see the Drive-In!"

"Great," I nodded. With the paper still in my hand, I crumpled it up into a ball and dropped it on the floor as I pushed the door open and left the drugstore.

I followed the lady's directions, making two lefts, and within 10 minutes, I could see the Drive-In in the distance. There was a short line of people in front of the gates purchasing tickets at the booth. Although I could easily afford a ticket, it would be irritating to watch someone try and break a 100 again, so I casually joined a random group of greasers and slipped into the Drive-In without anyone noticing.

In the front of the old parking lot there was a giant screen that played some space movie I couldn't recognize. Below, there were fancy and expensive cars that probably belonged to the socs. I subconsciously rolled my eyes at the thought of Bob Sheldon and the other guy from this morning. It seemed as though my feelings towards the socs were already turning into hatred.

I weaved through people and cars in an attempt to earn some free money. My eyes scanned the inside of each car to see if there were people inside. When I saw an empty chevy camaro, I paused and looked around to make sure no one was watching me before I reached into the open window and grabbed the wallet sitting on the driver's seat. With a smug smirk, I shoved the wallet into my jacket pocket and walked off in another direction.

There was a group of socs standing by a red, metal railing that separated the cars and seats in the back of the Drive-In. I noticed that one of the boys had some cash hanging out of his letterman jacket. I quickly walked passed the boy and bumped into his shoulder, grabbing the money in the process. The boy stumbled back slightly and glared at me, "Watch where you're going greaser."

"My bad," I said while trying to hide my smirk. The boy rolled his eyes and turned back to his friends. He was completely oblivious to the fact that I had just stolen his money.

I turned on my heel and walked up the ramp and into the area with seats, while counting my new earnings from the soc. "Hey!" I stopped in my tracks, thinking I was totally busted, until I looked around and saw Ponyboy. "Diana!" He waved me over from his seat in the crowd with a warm smile on his face.

I tucked the cash into my jacket pocket with the wallet I had just stolen, and walked through a row of seats towards Ponyboy. I sat down in the empty chair on the side of him and turned around, "Hey, Ponyboy. Long time no see."

"Yeah, I was wondering when I would see you again," he said happily. Ponyboy turned to the two boys next to him, "Guys, this is Diana."

The dark skinned boy on Ponyboy's left sent me a small smile. "Hi, I'm Johnny." His voice was soft and nervous, like he was almost afraid to say something. Johnny had long brown hair that covered the right side of his face. His dark brown eyes were glassy as he blinked in different directions looking for something or someone in the Lot. I noticed that he had a deep cut under his left eye, that would probably stay scarred on his face. I wondered what happened for him to get that.

The other boy didn't say anything as he leaned forward in his chair. His brown eyes looked me up and down before he reached for the cigarette between his lips and blew smoke into my face. "So how much money did you make off of that soc?" He asked with a smirk.

I tilted my head to the side, not really following what he was saying. "What?"

"Come on, I saw what you did back there," he nodded towards the group of boys over by the railing.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Why were you watchin' me?"

The boy shrugged and took a drag of his cigarette. "Guess you caught my eye," he winked as he blew smoke in face again. I glared at the brunette boy as I took my hand and fanned the smoke out of my way. He slowly sat back in his chair and resumed the slouched position he was sitting in before. "I'm Dallas, by the way," he spoke lowly as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"I'd say it's nice to meet you, but that would be a lie," I remarked sarcastically.

Dallas chuckled and smirked. "Glad we're thinkin' the same thing, doll." I huffed and rolled my eyes, turning around in my seat and watching the movie. It was quiet for a few moments before two girls decided to sit right next to me.

"Are you sure you wanna do this?" A short brunette asked her ginger friend.

The other girl nodded firmly. "I came here to see a movie, and I'm gonna see a movie." I rolled my eyes at their frantic conversation. Based off the way they dressed and acted, I could tell they were socs.

"I'm freezing, man," Ponyboy exclaimed as he rubbed his hands together in an attempt to warm himself up. It didn't seem to work though because he was shivering and his arms were covered in goosebumps.

"Why didn't you bring a coat, stupid?" Dallas asked obviously. His remark made me chuckle. It was pretty dumb of Ponyboy to wear a shirt with no sleeves, especially in the winter.

"I forgot," Ponyboy shrugged.

I opened my backpack and pulled out my dark red zip-up, handing it to Ponyboy. "Here, use this."

Ponyboy took the oversized hoodie, and put it on. "Thanks," he said. I nodded to him and smiled. Ponyboy, Johnny, and I continued to watch the movie, occasionally laughing when something funny happened, while Dallas smoked his cigarette and talked to the redhead next to me.

He leaned forward, close to the girl. "Are you a real redhead?" The ginger and her friend giggled softly.

"Come on, Dal," Johnny said, his voice too low for Dallas to hear.

"Are you real?" He asked again. When the girl didn't answer he sat back in his chair and put his feet up on the seat next to the girl, only to fall off the chair and onto the ground. We all laughed at him as he got back up with a smirk on his face. Dallas moved close to the ginger again, who was trying her best to hide the smile on her face. "How can I find out if this is your real red hair?" Dallas asked while playing with her hair.

Johnny shook his head and spoke up again, "Oh, cut it out, Dal." Dallas didn't listen though. Instead, he leaned back on his chair and put his legs back up on the seat next to the girl.

She rolled her eyes and shook her head, becoming annoyed with him. "Get your feet off my chair and shut your trap," she snapped.

Dallas scoffed and took a drag of his cigarette. "Who's gonna make me, huh? Your boyfriend?"

"Leave her alone," Ponyboy pleaded.

"I'm gonna go get a coke," Johnny said quietly. He spoke more to himself, but I was listening. He got up and began walking to the snack bar behind the rows of chairs. I watched as he made his way over to the small building. His hands were shoved into his blue, denim jacket, and his head hung low as he stared at the ground. Johnny was different from any of the people I met in Tulsa. He was young and filled with so much potential, but he seemed so hopeless. His eyes were dull and filled with fear as he flinched at almost every movement. I can't even begin to imagine how he had gotten this way.

The other girl whispered to her friend quietly. "That's the greaser that just got out of jail," she warned. Suddenly, I realized who Dallas was. He was the guy Buck mentioned when he was kicking Sylvia out, and the same one Ponyboy talked about when we were at the DX.

Dallas huffed at the brunette's statement, "Sure, whatever you say."

"You better leave us alone or I'll call the cops," the ginger girl threatened. I really hope she doesn't call the cops because I probably look incredibly suspicious with a pair of handcuffs and a stolen wallet.

"Oh, my, my!" Dallas exclaimed. "You got me scared to death. What am I gonna do now, Pony?" He turned to Ponyboy, who ignored him. It was clear that he didn't want to get involved. "This girl is makin' me shake!" Dallas said with fake enthusiasm.

"Why don't you leave us alone?" The ginger asked with an attitude. "Be nice and leave us alone, please."

Dallas leaned closer to the girl again. "I'm never nice," he smirked.

The ginger's face turned to the same color as her hair from anger. She whipped her head around and glared at Dallas harshly before yelling, "Get lost hood!"

Dallas seemed a bit taken aback by her sudden rage. "I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't know you had this problem of yelling in my face."

I watched the scene play out with wide eyes as I tried to hold in my laughter, but my childish ways caused me to fail horribly. I started shaking my head at the dramatic conversation as a fit of laughter took over. Everyone watched me with either confusion or annoyance.

Dallas was the first to speak. "Is something funny to you?" He asked rudely.

I looked up at him with a wide smile, my laughter slowly dying down. "Oh, no, of course not!"

Dallas rolled his eyes and stood up from his seat. "Didn't think so," he replied absently as he walked away.

The ginger girl turned around to face Ponyboy and looked him up and down. "Are you gonna start in on us too?" She questioned rather harshly.

Ponyboy shook his head, "No."

The girl nodded slowly as her face softened. "You don't look the type anyway.. What's your name?"

"Ponyboy Curtis," he answered.

The girl chuckled softly. "That's an original name."

Ponyboy nodded and smiled. "Yeah, my dad was an original person. I got a brother named Sodapop," he laughed. "It even says so on his birth certificate."

The girl smiled before turning to me. "What's your name?"

I was kinda surprised she asked, but answered anyway. "I'm Diana," I said with a nod.

"My name's Sherry," the ginger introduced herself. "But, my friends call me Cherry cause of my hair."

"Yeah, I know," Ponyboy interrupted. "We go to the same school. You're a cheerleader."

"Yeah," Cherry said happily.

"You don't look old enough to be going to high school," the brunette girl stated. She turned to me and examined my face, "And, I don't think I've ever seen you in school before."

I nodded. "That's because I don't go to high school."

"Oh," she said, surprised.

"What's a nice boy like you doing hanging around with that trash?" Cherry asked Ponyboy.

"Dally's my buddy," Ponyboy admitted. He looked away from Cherry and frowned. "I'm a greaser, too. We're all friends."

Cherry seemed surprised that he was a greaser. She glanced over at me and assumed the same thing before looking back at Ponyboy. "I'm sorry. I didn't know," she said honestly.

I didn't exactly know why being a greaser mattered. It was just a label given by vain teenagers, who think they're better than everyone else. The word shouldn't even hold any value, but anytime it was brought up in front of someone, who belonged to that group, it automatically changed their mood.

"Your brother, Sodapop," Cherry said, changing the topic of the conversation. "He works at the gasoline station, right? The DX, I think?"

"Yeah, that's him," Ponyboy nodded. By now, Johnny was walking back to his seat with a soda in his hand. He sat back down next to Ponyboy and took a sip of his drink.

The brunette smiled and stared off into the distance dreamily, "Soda's the cute one!" She exclaimed.

"Oh, he's a doll," Cherry smiled and nodded, agreeing with her friend. "I should have known you two were brothers."

If Ponyboy hadn't told me that he and Sodapop were brothers, I probably would've never guessed. The two boys don't really look alike and their personalities are very different. Sodapop looked like he just walked out of some Hollywood movie. He was a pretty boy, who was kinda slow at times, but he always means well. Ponyboy was different, he's more complex. He's usually quiet, but you can tell he's always thinking. Ponyboy has this dreamy glint in his eyes. You could easily tell that although he was here, his head was somewhere in the clouds.

"Hey," the brunette girl's voice broke me out of my thoughts. "How come we don't see your brother at school anymore?" She asked curiously. Ponyboy did a small shrug and frowned. He stared off into the distance, avoiding eye contact with both girls. The brunette continued, "Has he been working full time since your parents died?"

Ponyboy completely froze. He didn't answer her question, and instead stayed quiet. A mix of embarrassment and sadness filled his eyes. "Jeez, don't ya know when to shut up?" I said to the girl in a harsh, hushed voice. She turned to me and shrugged apologetically. I rolled my eyes at her ignorance.

Surprisingly, I saw Dallas walking back over with two Coca-Colas in his hands. He sat in the empty chair next to Cherry and passed her a soda. "Here," he said. "I thought this my cool you off."

Cherry took the drink reluctantly as she watched Dallas take a drag of his cigarette. She shot daggers at him with her eyes, but Dallas didn't seem to notice. Cherry took one quick look at her drink before throwing it into Dallas's face. "Maybe that will cool you off, greaser!"

I gasped, shocked, but also impressed by her actions. "Damn," I said through laughter. Marcia, Ponyboy, and Johnny watched with wide eyes, nervous about what Dallas would do now.

"When you learn to talk and act decent, I might cool off, too!" Cherry shouted angrily. She glared at Dallas, while he wiped soda off his face with his jacket sleeve.

"Fiery, huh," Dallas said with a smirk.

Cherry rolled her eyes and yelled at him again, "Just leave me alone!"

"Hey," I snapped my head towards Dallas, glaring at him harshly. Not only was he bothering Cherry, but he was also beginning to get on my nerves too. "I think you need to back off," I demanded.

Dallas narrowed his eyes at me. "And I think you need to watch who you're talkin' to, doll," he spoke in a mocking tone. I could feel the heat rising up to my face from anger, and if there's one thing I know, it's that I hate being talked down to.

"Oh, yeah?" I tested dangerously. Dallas nodded slowly with a small smirk across his lips. I crossed my arms over my chest and copied his expression. "What're you gonna do, 'tough guy'?"

Dallas stood up abruptly and pointed a stern finger at me. "Test me again, and you'll find out," he snapped.

I scoffed and rolled my eyes as I stood up as well. "What? Is that a threat?"

Dallas's face contorted into a sickening scowl, and if looks could kill, I would've dropped dead instantly. He opened his mouth to say something, but was surprisingly, cut off. "Look, leave her alone, Dal," Johnny said sternly. He stood up and stared at Dallas, and for a minute, there wasn't a single hint of dead in his eyes.

Johnny's strong demeanor was short lived as it quickly crumpled under Dallas's low and dangerous voice, "What'd you say?"

"Come on. You heard me," Johnny's voice wavered slightly. "Leave her alone."

"What'd you say, you little shit?" Dallas repeated himself. "What did you say to me?"

Johnny hesitated, "Come on, Dal." His voice was small and pleading now.

Dallas rolled his eyes. "You wise ass," he spat. Dallas took one last look at Cherry and then me. I sent him a fake smile before he turned on his heel and walked away. All of us watched Dallas's retreating figure, still a little stunned by what just happened. I just hoped I wouldn't be seeing him anytime soon.