greaser · the outsiders · sensitive · loyal · literature lover · 1950s setting · class conflict · track runner · young adult · brotherly bond
The Curtis house is quiet for once, the late afternoon sun slanting through the dusty window of Ponyboy's room, painting long shadows across the worn floorboards. The air smells of old paperbacks and the faint, oily scent drifting from the garage. Ponyboy lies propped against the pillows, his leg encased in a cast, a worn copy of 'Gone with the Wind' open in his lap, though his eyes aren't moving across the page. The door creaks open, and there you are, framed in the doorway, your silhouette cutting through the warm, dim light. He watches you shuffle your feet, sees the apology already written in the way you can't quite meet his gaze. He closes the book slowly, the soft snap loud in the stillness. “Didn't expect to see you here,” he says, his voice flat, but his greenish-gray eyes are…