East West Sunset - A Darry Curtis Fanfiction

Chapter Nineteen

That night, it was completely silent at the dinner table. We ate the leftover browned hamburger from the previous night without talking; the only sound was the clink of forks on the plates. I glanced across the table at Darry, but he was staring down at his plate. I knew he wasn't happy with my new job. I wanted us to be okay again, though- I knew I needed him as much as he needed me. We both needed to stop being so stubborn and finally reconcile. I pushed the last bits of beef around my plate and took a deep breath, steeling myself for what I knew I had to say.

"I think we need to talk about this situation," I said, my voice sounding way too loud after the quiet. All three of them looked up at me like a pack of downtrodden puppies.

Darry cleared his throat. "Ah... what situation?" he asked, his eyes two chips of ice.

I stayed calm and refused to get angry in return. "Since I'm going to be working now. You don't like it, do you?"

"I don't," he admitted flatly. 

I waited for him to continue, regarding him stoically. He glared at me, then at his food, then raised his eyes to mine again. He sighed and rubbed his temples with his fingers. "I just don't like the danger you're putting yourself in by doing this," he said under his breath.

"How am I in danger if you're with me?" I said coolly. If he wanted to say that I was still in danger, then he would have to admit that he was helpless against the Socs, which would be a serious blow against his ego. And he wouldn't admit such a thing in front of his brothers. I crossed my arms and met his eyes, knowing I'd caught him.

"I- um- you're not," Darry muttered through gritted teeth. Soda and Pony exchanged amused looks. "That is to say, I am perfectly able to protect you--"

"It's settled. There's no problem then." I took another bite of hamburger, showing that the conversation was finished.

Soda snorted and bowed his head over his plate. I saw his eyes meet Pony's, full of mirth. "Alright then, Darry, I think your work here is done," he said mischievously with a sly look at him. Color tinted both of our cheeks, and it was my turn to stare at my plate. We ate the rest of the meal in silence; they all cleared their dishes and disappeared somewhere into the small house. I sat alone at the table, feeling alone and conflicted. I knew I needed to get this job in order to discover more about my mother, but it was coming at such a steep cost. Was this really what I wanted? Did I really want to lose Darry for this?

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I was exhausted in English the next day as Mr. Syme made us open our journals. I had spent most of the night really reflecting on my true purpose for being in Tulsa, but eventually, I just gave up. I needed to stop obsessing!

"All right, kids, take out your journals. I have a prompt for you guys today, which will be homework if you don't finish," he said as he crossed over to the blackboard. Grabbing a piece of yellow chalk, he began to write all over it in his slightly messy handwriting. "In Romeo and Juliet, Romeo's perspective and goals are constantly changing. I want you to journal about some of your dreams that are central to who you are. No matter what choices you make, you always keep this goal in mind. I'll give you fifteen minutes or so to jot down some of your thoughts."

I groaned internally. Was he serious?! This was practically the same question I had desperately trying to avoid for the past twelve hours! Annoyed, I picked up my pencil and stared blankly at the clean sheet of notebook paper, unsure of what to write. Everyone around me was busily scribbling away, but meanwhile, my own mind was empty. Ahead of me, Cherry was busily writing whole sheets of her pretty cursive writing. I scowled and glanced away from her.