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Cherry hated Dallas Winston. She hated him as much as any Soc girl hated a greaser boy. And maybe a little extra. He was such an asshole and he clearly had no respect for women. Yet when she saw his face in the paper, calling him a hero of all things, something changed.
By some miracle, Johnny and Dallas survived their ordeals. And her mother always taught her that when someone was sick or injured, you did the neighborly thing and brought them something to eat.
Which is why Cherry was standing on the front porch of the Curtis house. She didn’t know if that’s where she’d find Dally, but it’s the only place she could think of. Tucking the casserole under her arm, she knocked on the rickety door.
She wasn’t used to being on the East side. If Cherry was being honest, it made her a little nervous. There were always stories of people being hurt on the East side, she didn’t know how many of them were true, but they were enough to make her keep looking over her shoulder.
“Door’s open!” Someone called from inside.
Cherry was frozen for a moment. She’d never let herself into someone’s house before, even with the invitation, it seemed impolite.
But she pushed open the door and stepped into the Curtis house. It was an absolute mess and definitely smelled a little strange. Cherry had never felt more out of place in her pink gingham skirt and white blouse.
Lying on the couch was a boy Cherry recognized as Johnny. A wheelchair was folded up in the corner beside him. He was still covered in bandages, but lifted a hand to wave at her, “Cherry, right?”
She shifted uncomfortably. She knew deep down that Johnny was a good kid, but being in the same room as Bob’s murderer sent chills up her spine. “Is Dallas here?”
Johnny sat up with a groan, “Nah, he’s at Buck’s.” Then he looked at the hallway, “Pony, Cherry’s here!” He shouted.
A moment later, she heard fumbling footsteps and Pony appeared in the hallway. Pony stood there with a black eye, his hair greased, and baggy clothes hanging from his thin frame.
He ran a hand over his hair nervously, “Hey, Cherry. What are you doing here?”
She held out the casserole, “I brought this for y’all. I wanted to see if you were okay.”
“To see if Dally was okay, more like,” Johnny added, trying to disguise it as a cough.
It took everything in Cherry not to glare at Johnny and kept looking at Pony who was starting to blush as he took the casserole. “That’s real nice of you, Cherry, thanks.”
She smiled, “Well, um, if you see Dallas, can you tell him I was looking for him?”
Pony rubbed the back of his neck, “Yeah sure.”
Cherry gave him another smile and took her exit.
Of course she should have expected that Dallas Winston wouldn’t do the polite thing and find her at the drive in or after school. But when she walked out of the grocery store, he was leaning against the side of her car, smoking.
She ignored him and put the bag in the back of the car. She felt Dally’s eyes on her as she closed the trunk.
“Heard you were looking for me, red. Pony said you make a mean casserole.”
Cherry rolled her eyes, “So you decided to find me on the West side?”
He shrugged, “What can I say, I like a little danger.” Dally blew a cloud of smoke at her. “Can I get a ride over the tracks?”
She sighed, “I should make you sit on a newspaper.” But she nodded for him to get in the passenger side.
Dally ignored her comment and jumped in. “Fancy car you got here, ever let me drive it?”
“Absolutely not,” Cherry choked on a laugh.
“What d’ya want with me?” Dally asked as he kicked his feet up onto the dash.
She reached over and swatted his feet down. “I wanted to make sure you were okay. I heard you got shot and you spent a week in jail.”
Dally shrugged, “Nothing you need to worry your pretty head about, happens all the time.” He leaned over and tugged one of her curls. “And what a pretty head it is,” he crooned into her ear.
Unlike last time, she wasn’t nervous around him. He might have been a hood and a thief and probably worse, but someone who ran into a burning building to save kids wouldn’t hurt her. So she just rolled her eyes, “So you’re alright?”
“Never been better. Especially now that I’m with you.” She couldn’t stop herself from rolling her eyes again. He had that kind of effect on her. Cherry can feel his eyes on her, tracing her face from eyes to jaw. “Were you worried about me, red?”
“What if I was?”
He smiled like a wolf, “Then I think I should be flattered that a pretty Soc girl is paying me so much attention.” This time, he moved her hair from her shoulder. She let him, just keeping her eyes on the road. “Are you afraid of me?”
She turned to him with lifted eyebrows, “Not in the slightest.” That answer surprised him. He actually leaned back, letting her hair fall. Cherry let a smirk cross her lips. “You don’t like that, do you?”
He took a long drag of his cigarette. “Who are you, Cherry Valance?”
She laughed, “Who are you, Dallas Winston?” They drove in silence for a few moments. “I heard about what you did for those kids. I can’t be scared of you after that.”
He tossed his cigarette out the window and instead started to chew on the side of his thumb. “I didn’t do it for them kids. My buddies ran in first and I went in after them. I ain’t a hero.”
Seeing Dallas Winston uncomfortable made her so unreasonably happy. “You are to those kids and their parents. And I bet to Ponyboy and Johnny too.”
“And to you?”
She barely stopped a burst of laughter coming out of her. “I don’t think you’re a hero. I barely think of you at all.”
“Now I know that’s a lie.” He lit another cigarette and offered it to her. She took it and drew in a long inhale. When she passed it back to him, her lipstick stained the paper.
“Where am I dropping you off?” The car rumbled over the train tracks. Dallas said nothing, he just kept smiling at her. She pretended that her stomach didn’t flutter when he took a drag from the cigarette, his lips pressing onto the mark of her lipstick.
“When do I get to kiss you?”
That time she couldn’t stop from laughing. The question was asked so nonchalantly and with so little inflection. “You have to earn that, and you haven’t done that yet.”
He widened his eyes at her, “But I saved all those kids.”
Cherry reached over and smacked his shoulder. “Where do I drop you off?”
He shrugged, “Anywhere is fine.” So just to spite him, she pulled over right there and put the car into park.
Looking at him expectantly she said, “Have a good night, Dallas.”
He smirked, but got out of the car. Cherry watched as he wandered around the front of the car and over to her side, leaning his forearms on the door. “Are you gonna be at the drive-in on Friday?”
“I guess you’ll have to find out.” She plucked the cigarette from his fingers and flicked it away. Before he could respond, she drove away, smirk never leaving her face.
As she turned back towards the West side, she couldn’t help but think of what she said to Ponyboy what felt like years ago. If she ever saw Dallas Winston again she might just fall in love with him. Turns out she knew herself better than she ever thought.