Hello Young Lover

A Long way From Brooklyn

Y/N is shaken awake by the vibrations of the rubber tires on the rough gravel. She opens her eyes, shielding her face from the bright sunlight. In front of her, she sees a rundown, small bungalow, and her aunt and little cousin waving excitedly from the porch. She pulls down the rear view window, and checks her self, seeing her hair tousled, her lips plump from sleep.

        "I don't know why you decided to dress like a trucker," her mother mutters passive aggressively.

          Y/N looks down, and fixes her white wifebeater tank top, and flared out jeans. "I don't know what you expected. I wanted to be comfortable, and I'm not seeing anyone but family."

          "Y/N," her mother turns to her, suddenly serious, "promise me you'll be on your best behaviour while we're here. Be nice to people. This is a fresh town. A fresh start."

           "Once again, you think very little of me."

           Her mother smiles slightly, taking out a Marlboro, and holding it between her long bony fingers, lighting it before opening the door to the car and slamming it behind her. Her thin red lips erupt in a row of straight teeth, slightly discoloured from decades of cigarettes, greeting her sister who grins wildly from the porch steps. Her mother opens her long waif like arms, and Y/N sees her aunt crash into her mother, crying and hugging tightly. Reluctantly Y/N decides to follow suit, and leave the shelter of the car, plastering a smile on her face.

        "Oh my God, Y/N, you look more beautiful every time I see you! Here let me help you with that," Her Aunt May said, teary eyed.

          "Thanks a lot," Y/N smiled, returning the hug, "how've you been? Where are Tara and Keith?"

          "Oh we've been good, you know my work at the diner keeps me busy, and so does keeping Keith out of trouble. Oh, Taras inside, getting y'all something to drink, and Keith's over at a friends, he'll be back for dinner. God how long has it been since you've last seen each other, five, six years?"

          "Probably," Y/N replied, "is he in college now? He's 18 isn't he?"

          "College? Please, the kid's been a junior for the past three years, and his mouth is no help. Maybe you could help him out, being in the same class and all."

           "No problem," Y/N chuckled, shaking her head, relieved to see that one thing in her life has stayed consistent, even if it's just her cousin.

  *At the Curtis House*
      The small house is filled with smoke, loud music and laughter. Seven boys sit together, laughing and drinking and talking about everything and nothing, creating for each other the family that none of them had ever had. A small, quiet boy, had been watching the ruckus, smiling, grateful for the security his gang had offered him. His eyes trailed from the two boys in front of him wrestling, to a yellow car driving down the street. He had never seen that car. He watched it pull into a driveway of of one of his friends homes. He saw Two's mother rush out and greet an older, middle aged woman, who seemed worn and cheap, desperately trying to hold onto her youth with red lacquered lips and short skirts, that desperately fought to conceal her age, to no avail. Behind her, he saw a girl, his age he guessed, get out of the yellow Camaro. He straightened up.

        "Hey Two, who's that at your place?" The smaller boy asked curiously.
        The two guys stopped wrestling, and one of them answered, "The hell you talkin' bout Johnny?" Johnny, wordlessly pointed to the window.

        The group of seven crowded around the small window. Two responded, "shoot, that's my aunt and my cousin, they moved up here from New York. Didn't know they'd be up here so early. Better head back."

      The boys kept staring at the girl. She was struggling with the last of her luggage, her hair falling into her eyes, and her skin glistening in the sun, coated with beads of sweat. One of the boys whistled.

       "Shoot you didn't tell us you had a cousin," a dark haired boy said, coyly lighting a cigarette and taking a swig of his beer bottle, "nice looking broad."

        "Dal, don't even start," Two warned, "she's a real nice girl, real uptown, her dad was some big guy in Brooklyn. I don't know what happened but he split with my aunt and they moved down here. Leave her alone, alright? I mean it. See y'all later."

       "Hey Two, why don't you bring her down tomorrow?" Johnny chimed, "yknow, she's new, might not know anyone. And she'll probably be going to the high school right? Maybe she can hit it off with Ponyboy," he looked over at the boy next to him, who shrugged.

         "We'll see, bye y'all," Two said before shutting the door and strutting towards the home.