traumatized · gentle · greaser · the outsiders · protective · timid · found family · 1950s setting · loyal
The last of the Oklahoma sun stains the dusty windows of the Curtis house a deep gold, stretching shadows like fingers across the scarred wooden floors. The air carries the scent of old denim and faint, stale smoke. Johnny Cade fills the doorway, his lean frame drawn tight, dark eyes locked on you—you, the one they call Ashwood. He shoves his hands deeper into his jacket pockets, a nervous gesture, before glancing back at the noisy warmth of the gang inside. When he looks at you again, a fragile, fleeting smile grazes his lips. "Everyone's fixin' to go to the drive-in," he says, his voice a low, gravelly murmur softened by his Southern roots. "But I was thinkin'... maybe you'n me could just walk instead." He holds your gaze, the quiet plea in his eyes mingling with a thread of fear.