#book!dally is my favorite dally

[cheryyy-valancce]

Another one heh..

Anyways im gonna be drawing eye pics of all the greasers, heres Johnny's

@gr3ase-g0t-h0ld

[sodasletterrs]

my outsiders hyperfixiation has arisen back from my 6th grade years. i decided to redo my designs for them soooo here :3…

[tulsaspubliclibrarian]

Tim and Dally refuse to admit they like each other on principle, HOWEVER if you look at the facts of the situation they also spend like 90% of their time together and know more about each other than anybody else does so really they’re not fooling anyone

[vaultedoverthehorse]

TWO BIT?? SOLO??? IM SO HAPPY RN???

[sinkjustlikeastone]

ppl thinking we as a musical fandom invented cherrycola because we got bored with marbit….

babe I would die for marbit

I have like 17 wips of them and every picture and art I can find of them saved into my camera roll and tap about thes so much that every time I open my mouth my family has to tell me not to talk about them and you’re saying that we as fans of the musical are bored with it???????

I would shoot you down for them. Stop trying to find ways to hate on fans of the musical!!!!

[violntfemme]

my amrev mooties watching me mass reblog the outsiders stuff and probably being extremely confused or something

[superpotterdiaries]

I saw The Outsiders musical yesterday and it was awesome!

[grlsinterrupted]

hi can you do dally with Curtis sister reader (in between soda and pony's age) and their relationship is a secret because her brothers would lose their minds but Dal only has good intentions and is completely enamored by her. He sneaks into her room at night and the next morning when Darry goes to wake her up he flips out seeing Dallas Winston in his baby sister's bed and that causes Soda and pony to come in and freak out too

i’ll keep you my dirty little secret ✮⋆˙

secret relationship with dally | dallas winston x curtis ! reader ˚ 𖦹⋆｡˚

-

dallas winston, a name notorious even within his own gang. though your brothers were close friends with him, they never failed to remind you to stay cautious around him— god knows what he’d do to a girl like you. dallas has always been dubbed ‘the mean one’, ‘the dangerous one’, ‘the one that had nothing ahead of him.’ in the words of your younger brother, pony, ‘he had been arrested, he got drunk, he rode in rodeos, lied, cheated, rolled drunks, jumped small kids— he did everything.’

despite the number of people that warned you about dallas, there was something so irresistible about him that you couldn’t quite put your finger on. his subtle, yet flirtatious comments, were enough to turn you into a tomato-red mess. over the course of a few months, the two of you gradually spent more and more time together. from late night drives around tulsa to watching the sunrise— you name it, you and dallas have done it. if there’s one thing you’ve learned about him during your secret little dates, it’s that things are not always as they seem. dally isn’t as ‘rough’ as you thought he was, and it would be a lot harder explaining your relationship to your brothers than you thought it’d be.

the clouds outside your window are enveloping the night sky, twinkling stars peeking through the moonlight. despite how loud soda’s snoring gets, you’ve learned to tune it out by distracting yourself with a book. your nose is stuffed into little women, the book that dally recommended to you a few nights prior (and admittedly cried to while reading; his tear stains have literally seeped into the pages.) just as you were beginning to fall asleep, the sound knocking on your window startled you into wakefulness. who could be outside at this hour?

you pull your blanket off, scurrying around the room for something you can use for defense. after all those horror movies you’ve watched where the killer breaks into the victim’s house, you’d think you had at least some sort of knife or a pair of scissors you could use to protect yourself. but for now, that can of hairspray on your vanity will have to do— maybe you could spray your killer’s eyes and blind him?

as you make your way towards the window, the hairspray can in your hand, a familiarly gruff voice begins to utter something. “open up, doll! you’ve got me all romeo and juliet-ing right now!”

you let out a sigh of relief, sliding open the window. thank god it was just dallas, but what was he doing at your window while everyone else is asleep?

“you scared me, you know? i could’ve-“ you look down at your can of hairspray, then set it onto your window sill. “i could’ve sprayed you with that, and then your face would be stuck forever!”

“what, you don’t like my handsome face?” he smirks. it’s that stupid, cocky smirk that he always does, and he looks damn handsome doing it.

you roll your eyes at his remark, sliding the window back down. “just get in bed, you must be cold from standing out there.”

dallas’ eyes dart around your room, taking a moment to observe all of his surroundings. compared to all of the feminine aspects in your room, he sticks out like a sore thumb, practically drowning in a pool of lace and pearls. he then takes a seat on the edge of your bed, rubbing his hand along your floral sheets as he picks out a teddy bear from your collection of stuffed animals lined up against your bed.

“what’s with all these, uh.. stuffed animals?” he holds up your favorite out all the stuffed animals, ruffling the top of its head.

you take the teddy bear, putting it back in its original position. “i guess i never really got rid of them,” you shrug. “we need to get some sleep.”

“we?” he raises a brow.

you slide into your bed, lifting up the blanket for him. “yes, we. aren’t you tired?”

“i guess.” dallas slips into bed beside you, wrapping his arms around you as he takes in your scent. though he’ll never admit it, he’s always loved the way you smelt like freshly baked cookies— it brings a soft of comfort to him that he never received. your scent reminds him of a warm bonfire, the sound of crackling overlapping with laughter. to him, you are the home he never had, the love he never knew existed in such a cold heart like his. you were his solace.

his hand moved up to your shoulder, gently running his fingers through your hair and twirling a strand. his touch was soothing against your skin, careful to not accidentally wake you. soon enough, both of you were asleep, safe and sound.

the next morning, you’re awoken by a loud, screeching noise, but much to your surprise, it isn’t your alarm. your eldest brother, darry, is furiously shaking you and dallas awake.

“Y/N, WHAT THE HELL IS DALLAS DOING IN YOUR BED?”

you groggily wipe your eyes, taking a glance at dally, then looking up at darry. “it’s 8 in the morning, and why do you care that he’s sleeping with me?!”

“i care because it’s dallas we’re talking about, god dammit! get him out of your bed!” darry flips over the blanket, shaking him awake.

the sound of darry’s yelling echoes throughout the house and eventually wakes up pony and soda. the two of them rush into your room, and as soon as they realize that dallas is beside you in your bed, their mouths are left agape.

“holy shit, y/n! you’ve been hanging around with dal this whole time?” soda huffs out a chuckle, too stunned to even be angry at you.

pony rubs his temples, shaking his head. “you guys are gross.”

dallas sits up, groaning and putting his hands up as if he’s surrendering. “okay, we were sleepin’ together, big deal!” he sighs. “just- look, darry, i ain’t mean to make you upset or whatever! ”

darry lets out a rough exhale, taking a step back from the two of you. he motions for pony and soda to leave with a death glare, then looks back at you as they’re making their way back to their room.

“you know what, i’m not dealing with this right now. we’ll sort everything out by the evening, got it?”

the two of you nod, exchanging satisfied grins. maybe by the evening, your brothers will come to their senses and realize that dallas isn’t really that ‘mean’ or ‘violent’ guy they perceive him to be, but someone with so much love in his heart that’s hidden underneath a façade.

’i’ll keep you my dirty little secret.. ’ .ᐟ ₊˚⊹♡

⊹ side note : i’m so sorry this took so long! it usually doesn’t take me more than a week to finish a fic, but i’ve had a lot to do and this fic is a bit lengthier than my others

-

[bejeweledinterludes]

— ⌈ dean x reader headcanons that are way too specific but very important TO ME! ⌋

『 part 2 of @bejeweledinterludes’ headcanon series. 』

read my headcanons part 1 here!

↳ . . . YOOOOO HEYYYY here’s a part 2 since everyone seemed to like the first one! thinking about doing a solely nsfw headcanon post OR some chubby!reader headcanons for deano 😋 bc i’m in the trenches of ovulation week rn and my stupid thoughts have to go somewhere. also, if anyone had requests, i’d definitely be open to that as well! anyhoo enjoy my pookies <3

𖤐 ────────────────────────

> being a decent hunter, the winchester brothers had heard of you before, and you them— you’d heard stories, of course, but you never officially crossed paths until you were at bobby’s house at the same time they were. you’d known bobby— because everybody knew bobby—since you started hunting.

your greeting to them came almost as quickly as your goodbye, nodding at them with a “hey” while clambering down bobby’s front porch to your car, your usual bag full of weapons and books in hand— but not before you notice the jet-black ‘67 impala next to your own.

and you know your way around a car, having your own ‘baby-esque’ vehicle that you love more than life itself (can be vintage or newer model, doesn’t matter, because it’s yours). dean had noticed your car in bobby’s driveway immediately, too— who wouldn’t? the man had eyes.

anyways, you walk past baby in all her glory while nodding appreciatively— turning just a little to dean and tossing a free thumb towards her with a grin before saying a quick: “dude. bitchin’ car.”

and after initially being thrown off by the way you carried yourself, a mixture of confidence, respect, and almost familiarity— dean shoots back with a “could say the same about yours.”

at that remark, you freaking smiled. and dean almost fainted right then and there at the sight. you got in your car, and that was it, due to your visit to bobby’s house really being just a pit stop/supply run before you headed right back on the road again, a new hunt already waiting for you in montana.

> because despite sam and dean being the most good-looking hunters you ever laid eyes on, you weren't one to dilly dally over just a pretty face (when lives were on the line, of course). but somehow, you knew that you’d see them again. hunting wasn’t exactly a booming career field, after all.

> that being said, it took dean a while to get comfortable around you whenever you did end up working together— like a while. you’d only crossed wires with the brothers a few times, helping them out when you could on hunts over the next few years. sam and you made easy friends almost immediately, but dean took longer to warm up to you. but you didn’t mind, or take it personally. you never pushed dean to be your friend even with how much you wanted to be.

> when you guys do work together, though, you and dean understand every single pop culture reference you guys throw at each other. he was shocked when he referenced a classic 80s movie (it was weird science) while working one of your first cases together.

and not only did you understand it and laugh— you made your own joke about it. now you two can’t shut your traps once you get going (for the love of god, do not ask about die hard around them).

> dean and you have also almost blown your cover and gotten caught on hunts because you guys laugh/giggle too loud at what the other says (especially in serious situations).

your favorite running joke is finding old portraits of ugly dead guys, pointing a finger at them and saying to dean “huh, i didn’t know you were alive in *checks plaque under painting* 1837” (and don’t worry, he does the same exact thing to you.)

> dean once fell asleep on your shoulder during a stakeout/recon/watching a potential victim’s house and you didn’t move an inch the entire time. when you finally tried to gently wake him up, he had the audacity to sleepily mumble “jus’ five more minutes” into your shirt and cling to you like a koala in the car. you, being the saint and not wanting to argue, let him sleep for another 2 hours couple minutes.

> and soon enough, dean eventually came around. you knew he cared about you way before he did, but you never forced anything. he appreciated that more than you knew.

and it wasn’t just one single moment of realization like in the movies when dean knew he cared about you. it was quiet, simmering, and when he looked, it was already just… there. but the feelings he hadn’t noticed he’d been pushing down for so long came to a head on a hunt when you almost died— the way they always did when someone he cared about was hurt.

after that, something shifted. you could feel and see it, even if dean didn’t say anything outright to you. for one, he called more often when you were away— he’d need help with something you knew that he already knew damn well how to do, or with something you knew he had much better contacts for.

i mean, come on. he knows freaking rowena, and he’s calling you for assistance on a spell? and sometimes, he’d call for no reason at all, making up some excuse just to hear your voice. you never mentioned it, out of fear he’d stop calling entirely.

> because you always loved when dean called.

───────────────────────── 𖤐

you have two ( 2 ) new messages from the author ! ↓

i genuinely believe that i tweak out over this man at least 4 times a day stg. and the gif i picked lives in my mind rent-free. he looks so ethereal sigh i wish he was real 💔

ANYWAYS here’s my taglist (so far): @blossomingorchids @bluemerakis @ambiguous-avery @maddie0101 @titsout4jackles @deansbeer @sunsbaby @emeraldcrs @h8aaz @honeyryewhiskey @supernotnatural2005 @cowboysandcigarettes @soldiersgirl @figthoughts + if i missed anyone OR if you want to be added/taken off, please let me know! <3

[your-unfriendlyghost]

Two-Bit

He was my favorite character the first time I read the book lol- kinda still is, but upon rereading and watching the film, I started to like all the other characters just as much lol. Never stopped liking him, I just like the others so much that it sorta evened out

And so yet again, Emilio Estevez plays one of my favorite characters in one of my favorite movies lol

Dally design, Johnny design

[winstonsns]

Hii I was wondering if you’d write gang when it’s your birthday? I think it’s be really cool since my birthdays the 27th!! (your inbetween pony and Johnny age wise)

the gang on your birthday (request)

pairings: ponyboy x reader, johnny x reader, sodapop x reader, darry x reader, dally x reader, two-bit x reader, steve x reader (separate platonic)

warnings: cussing

authors note: i won’t be posting anything friday to monday, im going camping! sorry about that, happy birthday! i hope you enjoy 💗

word count: 0.8k

PONYBOY CURTIS

pony looks up to you because you’re a bit older than him and probably the best role model out of the gang

as he can’t get you much because he doesn’t have a job and he doesn’t have money, he’ll somehow get you a book and write you a poem or letter

writing things is like his love language, if he gives you a note or writes a poem or a letter for you, he wrote it with his whole heart

he doesn’t really think much about getting you food or bringing you somewhere, it’s more about giving you something he took time to make

JOHNNY CADE

johnny can’t give you much because he doesn’t have money, will probably steal something from a store or restaurant for you

but he’ll talk with you late at night at the lot, feeling sorry he can’t get you much

you appreciate that he risks getting in trouble just so the two of you can talk for longer, doesn’t necessarily do much for your birthday though

instead of giving you a lot of items and money for your birthday, he talks to you a lot throughout the day about how old you are

SODAPOP CURTIS

on your birthday, soda gives you a cute letter and bakes you cupcakes or a small cake only for you

probably arrives at your house and wakes you up just to say happy birthday, a rainbow party hat on his head and a party horn

makes it everyone’s deal that it’s your birthday, takes you to do crazy stuff in restaurants and gets you food for free because ‘it’s your fucking birthday’

also makes you feel like you’re the most special person in the whole world on your birthday, basically gives you nearly everything you want because it’s your day

DARRY CURTIS

darry probably makes you chocolate cake or cupcakes with his ingredients, although whenever you come over, you have chocolate cake, it feels special when you have it on your birthday

because you’re young, he’ll rant about how you should cherish your days, it won’t be soon before all your time is gone and to take advantage of being young and having fun

sometimes his family would go out and get food for him and his brothers birthdays, so he gets you food or a little snack

he’ll get you a letter too, it says something like how you’re a good kid and and you can come to him if you ever need to

DALLAS WINSTON

dally hardly even celebrates his birthday, so if he gets you something or remembers, you’re lucky

he probably swipes you a gift from your favorite shop, he doesn’t care enough to pay for it and is more focused on getting to you than how he got the item

he might get you a letter if your relationship is truly important to him, writing only a few words, believing it’s the thought that matters

tells you that you better appreciate it, if you voice that you don’t, he’ll say something about his parents never getting him anything for his birthdays

TWO-BIT MATHEWS

two-bit tries to make you as annoyed but as happy as you can on your birthday, also making it everyone’s business

tries to get you as much as you can just by telling people ‘oh, yeah, it’s her birthday. how old are you turning again? wow you’re super old!’ even though he’s older than the seniors as a junior

swipes you a ton of random shit, brings you to the drive in just to mess around with some socs

he either babies you or treats you like an adult just to make you annoyed, he’ll do whichever one gets you ticked off, telling you, “soon enough, you’ll be able to drink beer! man, i’m gettin’ old.”

STEVE RANDLE

steve gives you some money so you can get something you want for your birthday

doesn’t really do much for your birthday, he might give you a letter or a note of some sort but very few words

at most, he’ll take the day off to hang out with you on your birthday

or if you really want to you could hang out with him at the DX and take a lot of free stuff, he lets you because it’s your birthday

[l0stfoster]

The Outsiders Bookclub server made a Whiteboard Fox and so. I had to join.

First time drawing Soda & Dally!! Also DARBIT JUMPSCARE! We talked about Outsiders but everyone's transfem (& Cherry's transmasc) so I had to draw a little funky transfem Two. Dorothy's there too because she's silly; since I drew those, I just had to do a quick transmasc Two because why fucking not. Cringe culture is dead, I'll draw my favs trans because I can. Two-Bit becoming one of my favorites has cursed me, 'cause my design for him is Daryl Tofa instead of the book or movie and,,, I am so bad with intricate details on anything that isn't a full drawing. Begging someone who goes to see the show to ask that man for photos of his tat for the artists.

[decentishoutsidersthoughts]

hey! since you said you liked doing the hc ask, do you have any modern!hcs of the gang?

I love modern AU’s lol, so here are my favorite hcs from that

Ponyboy like constantly has headphones in, it’s a genuine problem. Darry tells him he isn’t allowed to walk outside with them in but lets be honest bro does not listen

The entirety of the story from the book is chronicled on Reddit because Darry made a post asking for advice and had to keep updating it as everything went more to shit

Soda, Two-Bit, and Steve make fake cringe videos and think it’s the funniest thing ever

Dally definitely has multiple burner phones he uses for illegal activities

Soda drinks Monster energy drinks like nobody’s business. Steve once saw him go through five in one day and had to cut him off

This isn’t as much a modern thing as in general, but especially in a modern context Ponyboy is an absolute academic weapon. Like people are FIGHTING over him for group projects

Curly straight up uses Google and chat gpt for all his classes. Bro cheats on everything and it pisses Ponyboy off so much

Soda and Steve are constantly sending each other the most out of pocket Instagram reels. Like Steve will just be going about his day and get smth like ‘I’m glad you didn’t drip down your moms leg, you’re pretty cool’

Soda posts himself crying with Snapchat filters. Ponyboy Caught him doing it once and was like ‘you don’t even deserve comfort’

Ponyboy watches those YouTube video essays to do homework. Soda once caught him watching an 8 hour video on FNAF lore. He doesn’t play FNAF

The gang likes to play horror games and survival games together. I may do a batch of headcannons just about these

Darry is actually pretty well versed in internet trends but pretends not to be because he finds watching the gang try to explain skibidi toilet to him very funny

Soda, Two-Bit, and Steve are constantly screaming ‘GYATT’ at eachother

[brat-pack-it-up-boys]

Ponyboy that was then this is now headcanons

• I’m a big believer in ponyboy continuing to dye his hair blonde after windrixville for sentimentality (also I fuck with the character design aspect)

• so his hairs died blond but it’s also grown out, its the late 1960s and greased hair is becoming even less of a thing than it was before, so his hair is choppily cut above his shoulders and it has the worst grown at roots

• he is the KING of hand me downs, more so than in the outsiders because he fits into more of the clothes that darry and soda actually saved, soda’s flannels, pants, shirts, Darry’s old jackets, he owns his shoes and that it

• okay this one goes more into the au where sodapop is drafted and killed in the Vietnam war because it technically lines up with the twttin timeline. But ponyboy would wear soda’s dog tags literally every day

• more reckless than he was in the outsiders, partially because he’s grown up and partially because of his friends and the people he surrounds himself with

• his friendgroup basically consist of the remainder of the gang, curly and Angela, mark, scout, and two bits sister Brenda I guess

• on the topic of Brenda, ponyboy basically reacreats his and Johnnys relationship with dally with her, they’re so siblings you don’t understand, the brother and sister ever

• very unpopular in school, not in a way of getting bullied but in the way of a lot of kids in his grade being scared of him

“that Curtis kid who helped kill someone”

• the beef Bryon has him is entirely one sided to the point that Ponyboy doesn’t even realize it exists

• despite not having the best reputation he’s finally grown into his looks and if it weren’t for the events of the first book he would be pulling

• Him and Cathy start dating a little bit after twttin, Cathy had been at boarding school during the entirety of the first book so she didn’t have the same stigma against him that the other kids at school

• he actually gets pretty into the Beatles after he starts dating Cathy because they’re her favorite band, he likes the please please me album

• he also adopts M&M into his little gang with Brenda (pushing my M&M and Brenda as best friends agenda)

• in the end all that really means is that he helps M&M with kids picking on him (his reputation from the whole bob incident makes him pretty intimidating), M&M and Brenda also get to tag along on some of Pony and Cathy’s dates to the movies

• honestly I could talk about him and Cathy for hours but as the youngest him dating her and realizing how much she has to do as the oldest makes him gain more of understanding for darry

• also him and Cathy’s song is definitely Do you want to know a secret

@izaacs-notdeadyet because you mentioned you wanted to hear them, sorry it took me thousand years to actually get around to posting this

[ambrozjas]

johnny with a shy reader

johnny and ponyboy x shy!reader hc’s ꨄ︎

johnny cade x reader, ponyboy curtis x reader (separate)

✧˖*°࿐notes 🧸 ᰔᩚ

aaah!! loved this request!! i put my soul into these small blurbs 😭 i got two reqs for johnny and pony x shy reader so i just decided to kill two birds with one stone, yknow?

✧˖*°࿐warnings ᰔᩚ

mentions of scars in johnny’s, lmk if i missed anything!!

. ˚◞♡ ⃗ *ೃ༄ . ˚◞♡ ⃗ *ೃ༄ . ˚◞♡ ⃗ *ೃ༄ . ˚◞♡ ⃗ *ೃ༄

❥ first off, JOHNNY is also a little shy and quiet so you two would legit probably be the quietest people in the room

❥ i feel like youd guys would be very in tune with each other though, like even with just one look, you guys could understand each other

❥ like i could just imagine you and johnny sitting next to each other, you fiddling with his hands when nobody’s paying attention to you two

❥ like you guys can just understand each other, no words needed??

❥ do you get what i mean 😭😭??

❥ that being said though, if needed, johnny will come to your aid

❥ like, if dally’s bothering you an awful ton or you’re getting picked on, he’d def stand up for you in his own little way

❥ you both are quiet but nothing gets better than the late night whispers of affection you two exchange

❥ LIKEE..???

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈ ｡ﾟ

“how come you ain’t talk much either, johnny?” you asked the boy in front of you, who lay on his side in your bed, gazing into your eyes with that kicked puppy dog look as usual.

you and johnny were never chatty, who needed words when you guys could just understand one another just by a blink?

everybody used to joke how you guys could communicate telepathically, but sometimes that thought didn’t seem so silly. it was like you guys were telepaths, and you could just read each others mind at any time.

but even with few words, you two didn’t get bored. it was at night when all the words came out. which is where you were now, tracing johnny’s scars with a gentle hand, nothing but love and admiration coating your touch.

he seemed to think for a moment, eyes darting around your face as if to memorize every feature of your face in case one day he’d never see it again.

“only words i seem to ‘ave are f’you,” he paused, taking a second to lick his slightly chapped lips, “feels like you the only person who actually hears me.” he confessed, looking back into your eyes and almost wincing, waiting for the blows that never come. he waited for the insults that would never dare leave your lips, but when you didn’t say anything, it almost made his nerves worse.

“johnny cade.” you said his name, eyes not leaving his face once. “yeah..?” he whispered, almost inaudible.

“i love you.”

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡ﾟ

❥ you and PONYBOY are literally so cute together

❥ ponyboy is somewhat more talkative than johnny, so he’d be able to make more conversation, even if it’s awkward

❥ but sometimes ponyboy is a bit oblivious , so you might need to be a little more forward with how youre feeling

❥ sodapop always teases you both with how shy you are with each other

❥ would be more direct with telling people off for teasing you with ill intentions though

❥ you guys saw how bold he was for spitting at bob 😭

❥ AND UGH JUST IMAGINE HIM READING TO YOUUU

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈• ｡

your head was in ponyboy’s lap as he read one of his favorite books to you, ‘great expectations’. he was mid sentence before you dozed off, his hand buried in your hair and gently rubbing at your scalp with his free hand.

“.. and the clocks all stopped together. an e..ep—épergne, or center piece of some kind was in the middle of this cloth.’ did i say that right?” he had asked you, unaware that you had already nodded off.

“hey? you there?” he asked, tilting his head forward a little bit to check on your face, before taking notice of your sleepy state.

“oh—! shit..” he whispered. his hand still caressed your head, a soothing mechanism so you wouldn’t wake up. he couldn’t help but look lovingly at you in your serene state, how did he end up with such a perfect partner?

he smiled softly, before readjusting the book in his hand and continuing to read, still scratching at your scalp with his right hand. he didn’t mind if his legs fell asleep, as long as you got some sleep was all that matters.

boy, was ponyboy whipped.

˚₊· ͟͟͞͞➳❥ dkfkejddksk SORRY I HAVENT BEEN PUMPING OUT FICS THAT MUCH IVE BEEEN SOO BUSY WITH SCHOOLWORK !!

kiss kiss ˗ˏˋ꒰ 🍒 ꒱

[specific-dreamer]

my baby, my baby (you’re my baby)

Summary: darry visits his dad and rants. he also cries. </3

Darrel loves each of his kids (and stray kids) equally. No matter how hard Steve tries to pry it out of him, he does not have a favorite.

He loved when Johnny came over for dinner and he’s able to convince the kid to spend the night, he loves when Soda and Steve came home with new stories about their day at the rodeo, he loved when he came home from work and Ponyboy would rush to tell him about the book he’d just finished, he loved attending Ace’s recitals, and he loved when Dally comes over just to sit in their company when he could’ve been causing a ruckus around town instead.

He is, however, a little more partial to his first born than the others. No hard feelings, he still loves his other kids, but Darrel Junior was his first child; the reason he’s the father he was a father, so he’s always going to have a soft spot for him no matter what he does.

Besides, it doesn’t hurt that Junior is the only one who visits him and Karen on a normal basis. Darrel huffs to himself has he sits on top of his grave. Since dying, he’s somehow gained an internal watch, so he knows it’s 3:47pm exactly; when Junior visits it’s usually around 4pm.

Junior’s early today though, Darrel thinks to himself hearing footsteps approaching. There’s not much else he can do but wait for Darry who bends in front of Karen’s grave and leaves her a flower first. If he were alive, Darrel’s heart might’ve clenched. Karen’ll be sorry he missed Darry, but she’s watching over the other boys right now; it’s alright though, Darrel will fill her in when she gets back.

Darry’s head was bent too low for him to get a good look at first, but now that he’s turned towards Darrel’s grave he can see the tears streaming down his face. If he still needed oxygen, he’s sure his breath would’ve caught.

“Hi, Dad,” Darry’s says taking a seat on the ground. Darrel can’t help but notice he’s got his knees pulled to him like he’s trying to protect himself.

He frowns and pulls himself to join Darry on the ground. Hey, kiddo. What’s the matter? He knows Darry can’t hear him, he learnt that the hard way a while ago now, it still brings him a little bit of comfort though.

Darry sniffs. “I don’t know how you and Mama did it.”

Did what?

Darry gestures in the air, “This parenting shit- stuff, I meant stuff, sorry.” Darrel laughs a little; his baby’s twenty years old and still apologizing for cussing.

If he’s honest, Darrel isn’t even sure how he did it. It was in large part thanks to Karen, of course, she kept him steady whenever he floundered. Junior also helped too, though. He doesn’t like to throw the word around, but for all intent and purposes, Darry was a perfect first child.

“The other night,” Darry continues. “I guess Ponyboy had a nightmare or something, I don’t know, but I heard him asking Soda why I hated him.” His voice breaks at the end and Darrel is forced to watch as Junior sobs into his arms.

It’s futile he knows, but after a moment of watching he hugs Darry anyway. Almost as if he could actually feel the hug, Darry stiffens before looking up and staring straight through Darrel. Spooky, he thinks.

“I don’t hate him, I promise.”

I know you don’t.

“I love him a lot, but it’s like he purposely grates my nerves. He knows I’m stretched thin and it’s like he’s trying to see how long until I snap. And that’s not fair! I don’t know how to be a parent, I don’t how to raise a fourteen year old!”

Darrel isn’t sure when it happened, but a flip was switched as Junior started to rant angrily. He doesn’t leave the cemetery too often, but when he did he noticed the two often riled each other up; it was never one sided. He can’t exactly correct Darry though so he hums instead.

“Daddy, you know when you first, um,” he winces. “left, Pony didn’t talk for a week. Okay, that’s fine, I can handle that, but he stopped eating too. I tell him, ‘Pony you have to eat something, you can only go so long without eating before you die from starvation.’ And I kid you not the only thing he says to me that entire week was ‘You’re not dad, Darrel, you can’t tell me what to do’. I never said I was! I just didn’t want him to die too, is that so bad?”

Darrel blinks. That was a lot, and he’s not really sure where to start processing it. He sighs airlessly, It’s not bad. You were worried about him and had his best interests at heart I get it. Is he eating now at least?

Just as fast as it came, the anger seems to leave Darry all once as he lies back on the grass with his hands over his face. “I don’t even know if he eating for real, yet. I’m not home enough to know; I eat my breakfast in the dark, go to work, come home when everyone’s asleep, eat dinner in the dark, go to bed, rinse and repeat.”

Darrel winces. Even he didn’t work those kind of hours and could’ve handled them. Darrel liked his solitude every now and then, but not Darry. No, not his Junior; his Junior is a people’s person through and through, there’s a reason he won boy of his year.

Rubbing Darry’s ankle he says, I know you’re working your ass off, but I’m real proud of you, baby. I know it don’t look it now, but it will all pay off.

There’s a pause, and if he wants he could trick himself into believing his boy heard him, before Darry says something so quietly Darrel has to strain to hear. “I know it’s wrong, and I try not to, but sometimes I wish I let them get taken. I love them, really I do! But Soda wants to drop out of school and Pony hates me and he thinks I hate him back, and don’t even get me started on Dallas— I don’t think there’s a been a weekend where we haven’t haven’t argued or he hasn’t been in jail. I’m trying my best, but I keep screwing up and that’s not fair on them.”

He breaks into sobs again, this time so strong his whole body shakes. Darrel can’t even do anything to comfort him, his stupid ghost body isn’t corporeal. The best thing he can do is stroke Darry’s hair and hope he knows his daddy is here for him. He hates seeing his kids cry and he’s never been more angry that he’s dead.

Between sobs Darry says, “I wanna leave. So I can’t mess anything else up.”

No, sir. You’ll get the hang of things soon enough, it’s a new adjustment and y’all’ve just gotta find your footing. I know it’s hard, but y’all will find it.

“I’m not gonna,” Darry protests. His baby is red in the face and breathing real hard, but Darrel is thankful is eyes are finally starting to dry. “I want to leave but I don’t want to leave them.”

So, what are you gonna do, Junior?

“I don’t know,” he answers. “I wish you were here, you’d know what to do.”

Darrel winces. Actually now-

“Well, never mind. You wouldn’t be dumb enough to get in this situation to begin with.”

Harsh, but he’s probably right. Darrel watches as the gears turn in Junior’s head. He loves all his kids equally, yes. But Darry’s always been his favorite to watch because when he isn’t focused he wears every emotion on his face. He can see exactly when Darrys made his mind up long before he stands up and dusts off his pants.

“You drive a hard bargain, but fine I’ll stay.” Darrel barks out a laugh as Darry checks his watch. It’s 6:29pm, he’s been here for nearly three hours. “Shit, I said I’d make dinner.” Somehow, when Darry looks up he’s staring Darrel in the eyes. “I’ve gotta run, but I’ll see you later.”

Alright, stay tough out there. I love you, kiddo.

Darry’s eyes widen a minuscule amount and he grins as he ducks his head. “Yeah, I love you too, daddy.”