reckless 【 the outsiders 】

two.

Leigh, Bug, and Gigi found seats right in the middle. A whole empty row, for now at least. Leigh sat beside Bugsy. Gigi, who was still doing her best to completely ignore Leigh, sat on his other side. Leigh only sat for about thirty seconds before groaning out of boredom. "Can I see your heater, Bug?"

He furrowed his eyebrows at her request, shaking his head. "No, ma'am. It's loaded." Leigh groaned and almost decided to take it from him anyway, and likely would've if she were really in the mood to stir something up.

"So? I know how to handle a gun."

"I know but I ain't even supposed to have it, so I ain't gonna take it out in the middle of the drive-in."

She rolls her eyes at the older boy. She wasn't surprised by his response at all but sometimes she just wants to see what he'll say. "Ain't you supposed to be all dangerous and that crap? Have some fun."

Still shaking his head, he easily replied with "No."

"Fine. Later then?"

"When we ain't around so many people, sure."

Leigh agreed, "I'mma hold you to that." She really had no good reason and would be fine twiddling her thumbs and bothering Gigi rather than messing around with a weapon if Leigh wasn't already getting sleepy. She'd already nodded off multiple times and it was only halfway through the previews. She wasn't sure if she was tired because she had nothing to do or because she hadn't slept long enough. She looked all around her to find something interesting: the seats they sat in, the sky, which was turning shades of red, purple, and pink, she even started looking at the people around her, making up stories and lives for each of them, all more satisfying than her own. When Levi and V came back with the snacks, she was beyond thankful to have something to occupy her, physically. "This ain't sprite, you idiot," Leigh complains to her brother.

"They were out, Sawyer, cool it."

She drank the dark soda while watching as the seats filled with couples and small groups of threes and fours and she listened to the collective chatter get louder as everybody filed in. Finally, four boys took the seats beside her and one of them was so close to her that she had to take a moment to calm herself from the uncomfortable nerves that followed as his jean jacket rubbed against her bare skin. She didn't look at who the guys were, not wanting to make anything awkward, but felt an arm that wasn't Bug's around her shoulders, a cold hand resting comfortably against Leigh's shoulder. She removed it and fixed her hair, still looking up at the screen now playing a preview of The Sound Of Music.

"We should go see that," she says to her friends, "Shouldn't we G?"

"I'm not speakin' to you."

Leigh felt the arm snake back around her shoulders and couldn't help but feel both uncomfortable and annoyed as she removed the hand again but pretended not to notice as much as she did. "You just spoke to me, sweets."

"Dammit," the other girl cursed.

"I don't wanna see that chick flick," Levi said, rolling his eyes.

"It is not a chick flick," Leigh says.

Gigi agreed, "I don't think so either."

"Yeah, that because y'all is girls. Girls don't think a chick flicks's a chick flick," V commented.

As Leigh was leaned forward speaking to the group she was with, she felt the arm now make it's way to her waist and she'd finally had it. "Take a hint, will you? Quit it," she says, snapping her head around and forcefully moving the hand that she realized belonged to the infamous Dallas Winston upon looking at him. She could feel the people beside her tense up automatically in defense but they kept cool on the outside. She tensed up as well, knowing he would probably be at it all night and his friends wouldn't bother to stop him. She remembered Two-Bit's face and he was just as loaded as ever, taking everything lightly, and she saw two young boys, what they were doing with him, she probably wouldn't be able to guess.

"Sorry, babe, I was just stretchin'."

He gave her a smirk but she wasn't having it. "Well learn to keep your hands to yourself." He shrugged and she went back to looking at the screen where the movie was finally starting in front of the dark orange sky which was getting darker every passing second. She looked at Levi and Bug who both gave her a similar look to which she responded with a calm nod and motioned that she was all good. They knew better than to interfere when Leigh thought she could handle it.

Throughout both movies, she had to move her chair to the left, further and further away from the guy on her right. People were complaining at her the whole time while Dallas just chuckled and continued bothering her, saying everything under the sun he could think of. Levi was fuming and wanted nothing more than to rough this guy up but he knew Leigh wouldn't have that and before listening to his temper, he'd listen to Leigh's voice of reason, he sure couldn't wait to get out of there. When the end of the second movie came, Leigh shot out of her seat and left quickly behind the rest of her friends who were just as annoyed as she was.

While she began walking away, nearing the gate to exit, she felt Dally's familiar cold hand on her wrist as he roughly tugged at her arm to turn her around. "So, when are we goin' out, babe?"

"In your dreams, Winston, and don't call me that."

"Y'know, I like my girls to be a little tough."

Leigh wanted nothing more than to get out of this situation and not even just because she was uncomfortable. She knew that if he wouldn't leave her alone, the guys would step in and the last thing she wanted to do was make an unenjoyable night worse with a fight. She couldn't help but roll her eyes, the boys that were with him just laughed and either went along with him or continued with their other conversations. I guess chivalry is dead. "Why don't you find some other chick to bother. It ain't workin' on me."

"You wanna do somethin' about it?"

"Hey man, we ain't lookin' for no trouble but if you don't leave Autumn here alone we's gon' have a problem," Bugsy's voice was more stern than before and he stepped between the two. Gigi grabbed onto Leigh as V and Levi stepped up when Winston's buddies did the same. Leigh couldn't hear anything else said by the guys before Dallas threw a punch and they were in an all-out brawl. Gigi and Leigh dipped out after Gigi had a moment to watch.

"Boy are you lucky, I'd just about fall out if a boy as handsome as Dallas Winston asked me out."

Leigh chuckled, shoving Gigi before putting an arm around her. "That's your problem, baby."

"It's not a problem to me."

"Well, I ain't interested."

Gigi chuckled. "Y'know, if he really got his eyes on you, he ain't gonna quit."

"Well, then it's a good thing he don't know nothin' about me because he can't really have his eyes on me can he?" Gigi giggled at her friend and they continued on their way home.

autumn is leigh's middle name.
edited 12-27-21