Chapter Text
August, 1960
The summer heat bore down relentlessly over the residents of Tulsa who were desperate to try and stay cool. Women fanned themselves in the shade, men held cool bottles to their necks, and children moped under trees. So when Lynn and Annette came racing down the street the bewildered stares of strangers followed them; despite the sweltering heat both girls were pushing themselves as hard as they could to take the lead. Being one year older and one inch taller Annette ran ahead of red faced Lynn with a smug smile.
"Netty!" Lynn shouted at her cousins back "we're supposed to share!" Rounding the corner Annette's smile grew to a grin when she spotted the DX. Her hand touched the warm metal of the door handle and she made a face at Lynn before flouncing into the station.
By the time she caught up Annette was looking in the soda cooler with great self satisfaction.
"Uncle Tim said that money is for both of us to buy something," Lynn whined, pushing hair off of her sweaty forehead. Flicking her own damp, honey-brown hair over her shoulder Annette grabbed a soda and turned to Lynn putting on the best 'rational and superior' look she could being eleven and pink cheeked
"MY dad gave it to ME," she said pushing past Lynn to the candy shelf "that means I'm in charge. And besides, it's not my fault you couldn't keep up." Heat and anger rolled off Lynn in waves as she stood there scowling at her cousin, she made a grab for the two dimes clamped in Annette's hand but Annette simply held if above her head. Furious at the unfairness of the situation Lynn's temper flared; before Annette could move Lynn aimed a swift kick at her shin. The cry of pain barely left Annette's mouth when Lynn felt herself being yanked back by the collar of her button up. Nostrils flared and lip curled the gas station attendant gave Lynn a shake
"I don't tolerate any of that in my store," he said gruffly. Still scowling Lynn tried fruitlessly to pull her shirt away and even considered kicking the man as well "you apologize to this young lady. Now." He demanded pointing a greasy finger at Annette. Crocodile tears may have been rolling down her face but Annette was looking at Lynn like she'd just eaten a canary; not only was Lynn in trouble with this strange adult but Annette was sure to tell her parents and Lynn's father all about what happened while they were out. Glass shattered against the floor the next aisle over causing the attendant to lose focus. While he was distracted Lynn ducked down out of her button down- grateful she'd worn an undershirt- and scrambled out of the building hoping that no one was chasing her.
Once there were a few blocks between her and the DX Lynn let herself slow to a meandering pace, going back to her aunt and uncles and explaining to her dad why she didn't have her new button up was something Lynn was in no hurry to do. The bright side was when she returned her father would most likely be ready to take her home which she was really looking forward to. Lynn was sure that if she had to spend one more day with her snotty cousin she'd drop dead out of sheer annoyance. The past three days Annette had done everything in her power to make sure that Lynn always got the short end of the stick; if they were playing dolls Annette wanted to play with Lynn's doll which aunt Judith made her hand over, and once Annette had the doll it ended up 'accidentally' missing its head. Lynn had tried to return the favor but ended up sitting in the corner until lunch.
Trying to vet her frustration Lynn kicked a rock and watched as it skittered across the pavement. She smiled with each rock she kicked at, imagining they were her cousin's head or the gas station attendants rolling away from her. Some one tapped on Lynn's shoulder, the gas attendant still on her mind Lynn jerked away and tripped over her feet trying to escape the shoulder tapper. Above her however was a gangly boy with shaggy, gold hair and a wide, goofy smile, he held out his hand
"I didn't mean to scare you," he told her brightly "you really pissed off Mr. Bailey." With great caution Lynn accepted his hand
"I kinda figured as much," she said dusting off her shorts "who are you?" He grinned at her proudly
“I broke the jar, Bailey wasn't too happy with that either but you got away and-" he raised his other hand and offered her a bottle of soda "I was able to swipe this from behind the counter, I'm not as good at it as my friends but you getting chewed out helped." Lynn accepted the bottle with a small, mischievous smile. The boy twisted the cap off for her and they began walking down the street
"so you live around here then?" She asked looking at the shabby houses around them. Other kids in the neighborhood were still hiding under trees and porches from the sunshine looking at the pair like they'd lost their minds.
"Yup, I've lived here my whole life, with my mom and dad and brothers,” he told her in a very animated fashion. He told her all about the trouble he and his friends got into, how cool his older brother was, how sweet his baby brother was, he burned through topics like a chain smoker through cigarettes. “My house is just up the road- do you know that guy?”
Lynn frowned and nodded as they approached a beat up green truck with a very stern looking man staring at them through the wind shield
“it's my dad,” she muttered. Her father opened the truck door and leaned against the hood waiting for the two kids to reach him, both had slowed to a snails pace. Jerking his head toward the cab of the truck Lynn’s father held the door open for her
“I don’t wanna hear one damned word until we reach the high way, do I make myself clear?” Lynn nodded and waved good bye to the boy before scooting past the drivers seat into the passenger side of the cab “best head home young man.”
The boy watched the truck drive away wishing he’d gotten more time with his new friend. A hand came down on his shoulder and he knew it was his older brother who watched with him as the truck rounded the corner and the girl gave him one last small wave from the window.
“Who was that little buddy?”
“a girl, we were just hanging out,” he said shoving his hands into his jean pockets. His brother pushed his shoulder playfully
“a girl friend?” The boy scrunched his face in distaste
“NO- I don’t- that’s gross Darry. We just- I dunno we’re friends.”
“So you wanna explain to me why your cousin came runnin’ home with a big bruise on her leg and why you’re walkin’ around with some strange boy?” Lynn’s father asked her over the noise of the wind through the rolled down windows. Slumping back into her seat Lynn crossed her arms and gave him an indignant look
“’cause she wasn’t bein’ fair and that dumb gas man wasn’t bein’ fair either. Dad he had no right to grab me by my shirt like that, shakin’ me like some dog that got into the trash.” He raised his eyebrow at her and Lynn clamped her mouth shut
“I know your cousin is- difficult-”
“you mean spoiled as rotten milk,” Lynn interjected, getting another warning look in return
“alright spoiled. But that don’t mean you can go around kickin’ her, it ain’t always fair but sometimes you gotta take your lumps and just keep your head up after. And you’re right that man shouldn’t have put his hands on you, but we ain’t here to cause any kinda trouble are we?” With a heavy sigh Lynn shook her head
“no.” Gently her father prodded her shoulder
“still waitin’ to hear about that boy Lynnie,” she looked out the window and smiled
“just some boy who helped me.”
October, 1964
It had been four years but to Lynn Tulsa looked exactly the same as her last visit. The streets were dusty and the houses were shabby. She'd figured that if wandered around long enough she'd run into King Street or at least a familiar landmark but now she was more turned around than when she'd started. If she ever made it home the first thing she wanted to do was smack her cousin upside her stupid, perfect head. Annette was supposed to walk home with her after school but when Lynn had approached her and her friends Annette scoffed at her
"it's bad enough we go to the same school I am not walking around with you. Besides," she flicked her long ponytail behind her "I'm not going home right now." Lynn had wanted so badly to yank the hair out of Annette's head as she and her friends left, instead she turned and started heading toward the house.
It was a terrible maze of streets and back alleys, none of which seemed to lead to the street she wanted. After a moment of deliberation Lynn turned down an alley hoping for better results; instead she got a chill up her spine. At the other end of the alley a group of boys saw her and turned so they were heading right for her
"hey," one called as they got closer "you're that new girl aren't you?" Lynn held her head high and didn't respond.
"Hey we're trying to talk to you," another said his tone amused and overly friendly
"I'm just trying to get home," Lynn told them cooly. They laughed and blocked her path trying to get her to look at their faces
"you live around here? You live in this neighborhood?"
"You a greaser?" At this Lynn's eyes snapped up to look at the boy who'd spoken, her eyes dangerous and unfriendly
"what did you say?"
"she is, natural born." Lynn threw down her books and held her fists up; if she was going to have to fight she at least wanted to be ready for it. At the left end of the alley someone approached them snagging an empty bottle from the ground just before they reached the group. Lynn recognized his from the school office that morning, tall guy with beautiful gold hair and a crooked smile, he'd informed the very irritated lady at the desk that he was dropping out then left giving Lynn a cheeky wink before he'd made it through the door. Now he stood with a tense but friendly smile looking at the guys around Lynn, the bottle held loosely in his hand
"there you are, I've been looking for you little lady," slowly he approached Lynn and bent to grab the books she'd dropped "we're gonna be late if you don't hurry." It took a bit of effort but Lynn unclenched her fists and took her books back from the boy; placing one arm around the small of her back he lead her through the now quiet and weary gang of assailants who were all watching the hand holding the bottle. They walked together, both stiff and hyperaware of the sound of walking feet behind them. It wasn't until they made it out to the street and concluded that they weren't being followed that they both relaxed a bit, Lynn sidestepped out of the boys hold and frowned
"thank you for that." The crooked smile returned and his relaxation revealed a slight slouch and an easy going demeanor
"it's no problem, those assholes have been hanging around more and more. You really should stay on the main streets though, more people around." Lynn gave him an awkward smile holding her books a little tighter
"yeah, I was just trying to get home I'm new to the area and I got turned around."
"What's the address?"
"King Street?" Lynn said hopefully. The boys face lit up
"that just two streets up from me I can show you the way."
Neither could place it but as they walked home together they both felt a sense of deja vu that couldn't be shaken. Out of the corner of her eye Lynn looked over at the boy whose eyes darted from her to down at the sidewalk pretending like he hadn't been watching her
"thank you again," Lynn said quietly, Soda gently waved away her thanks
"I don't mind playing the hero, although-" he gave Lynn a mischievous smile "I believe the hero gets a kiss from the damsel after he rescues her right?" Stopping in her tracks Lynn met his joking with a stony, unamused look
"I ain't kissing you," she told him matter of factly. He laughed and gestured for them to continue
"no kissing, just your company."
September, 1965
As she buckled her good shoes Lynn went over all the reasons she should and shouldn't go with Annette and her aunt to the Cade's house. She hadn't known Johnny all that well but he was always polite to her when they interacted with one another. It wasn't that she didn't want to pay respect to his memory but offering condolences to his parents didn't feel like the right way to do it. Everyone in the neighborhood heard how Carrie and Thomas Cade treated their son. Then she remembered that Sylvia and her mom would probably be there and Sylvia would probably like to have a shoulder to cry on. There wasn't going to be any kind of memorial for Dallas which, despite how they'd ended things the week before he died, really bothered Sylvia.
So Lynn held the casserole dish and walked behind Annette and her aunt Judith to the Cade's broken down little house where people milled in and out, all dressed in black or the nicest clothes they owned. Aunt Judith nodded to the kitchen once they were in the house before going over the the living room to comfort the sobbing Mrs. Cade. To her left Mrs. Matthews sat with a pinched face placing reluctant pats on the distraught woman's back. Lynn sat the dish of potatoes on the kitchen table with the other sympathy dishes before standing in the corner with Sylvia. She was wearing a knee length, dark blue dress that Lynn suspected came from her mothers closet; they hugged and Sylvia gave her a covert eyebrow raise
"we should go outside," she whispered. In the front yard more of their peers stood together talking in soft voices and waiting for their parents to finish paying lip service to the Cades "can you believe this mess?" Sylvia hissed out with an eyeroll "one time I heard Mrs. Cade call Johnny the 'dumbest bastard to breath air' and now she's in there blubbering all over herself like she ever actually gave a shit about that poor kid." Lynn shook her head slowly in agreement
"I thought Mrs. Matthews was gonna break a tooth from trying to keep her mouth shut." The chain link fence clanged catching Lynn's attention and Sylvia's steely glare; Steve and Two-bit who'd already been in the yard were greeting the Curtis brothers. Soda and his younger brother stayed in the front yard while their older brother went into the house carrying a chocolate cake and looking like he might be sick if anyone spoke to him. Sylvia let out a huff of air through her nose
"they have some nerve showing up here," she bit out with an unwavering glare. For reasons she refused to properly elaborate on Sylvia blamed Steve, Two-bit, and the Curtis' for Dallas' death. If Lynn believed what was going around town they didn't have anything to do with his death but they had witnessed both their friends die in one brutal night. Rubbing her arm with her hand Lynn slowly approached the group, Soda saw her and met her half way across the yard. Dark circles hung under his eyes and there was no relentless, happy-go-lucky charm in his eyes like usual
"I just wanted to say- I'm sorry about your friends. They were good guys," Lynn told him softly, mentally cursing herself for how lame she sounded. He was able to give her a shadow of a smile and was about to reply when Mrs. Cade let out a shrill shriek from inside the house
"you killed my son!" Soda's brother came storming out of the house looking green, the others followed him out of the gate back to their own house. Just before he closed the gate Soda looked up at Lynn's concerned face and mouthed 'thank you' before going to catch up with his brothers.
Judith and Annette came out of the house looking scandalized
"I won't pretend Carrie is any kind of saint but the nerve of those boys to show up at her house, and with cake of all things," Judith tutted "nothing but trouble."