Chapter Text
Cordelia O'Brien was not happy.
After only three of driving, she felt like she would go crazy if Elvis' voice came out on the radio again. Mrs. Elmers quietly hummed along to the radio as she drove, completely ignoring the girl in her backseat. Cordelia didn't mind. Years of being ignored had made her immune to caring. They hadn't said more than ten words to each other the whole drive, but it didn't bother either of them. They were well acquainted and while they didn't hate each other, they knew that there was no point in trying to have a conversation.
Cordelia perked up a little when the car slowed down in a run-down neighborhood. Dogs barked at the car as it passed and the owners glared at the Corvair, their eyes narrowed with concern and anger. Some of the houses looked like they could fall down if someone blew on them, yet kids still ran around the front yards with bright smiles and laughter that made Cordelia grin to herself for a moment.
"Cordelia, get your bags ready."
The sixteen-year-old grimaced at the woman's high-pitched voice as she grabbed her two bags anyway and got ready to get out. Her hands started shaking with anxiety, but she put them under her thighs and focused on the house they were stopping in front of. It had a big tree in the front yard with a tire swing blowing in the soft wind, and a chain link fence around the front and backyards. The house itself wasn't as bad as some of the others, but it obviously needed some work done. The porch looked like it could collapse if too many people stood on it at once, it needed some paint, and some of the decorative shutters were hanging on by a single nail. However, the family inside had a porch swing and a few chairs on the porch, and the lawn was carefully mowed to show that they at least semi-cared.
"Now remember, this is a last-minute placement due to everything that has occurred. Tulsa will give you a chance to experience something new if you let it," Mrs. Elmers lectured once more. Cordelia had already gotten the same talk from her multiple times so she no longer felt any optimism about the placement. Instead, the familiar anxiety was building up just like it always did before she met a new family.
"You sure this is the house?" Cordelia asked, her voice cracking from misuse. Most of her foster placements had bigger and nicer homes than the one in front of her since you typically had to have money to take in any foster kids. The brunette up front nodded, but furrowed her eyebrows and checked her binder just in case.
"This is the Curtis family. Now it's late, we need to go introduce ourselves and get you comfortable."
Cordelia snorted at the idea of getting comfortable on the first night, but her back was aching from the uncomfortable seat so she didn't hesitate to get out of the car. The sunset was just finishing as it approached nine at night, faint orange glows lighting the path. Mrs. Elmers was a busy woman and with Cordelia being used to how the system worked, she was usually the last thing that the woman dealt with, this placement being no different.
"Goodness, I can't get it open," Mrs. Elmers complained as she messed with the gate latch. The loud noise drew the attention of several neighbors and the inhabitants of the house itself. The front door was opened and a large man hurried down the path, his arms bulging from his shirt and his face tired. He was obviously young, just on the cusp of true adulthood, but he had the air of someone with much too much stress on their plates. His brown hair was slightly curly and lightly greased to get it out of his face and his skin was tan like he spent most of his time out in the sun, making his pale blue eyes stand out even more. His eyes were cold and narrowed to see better with the only light coming from a flickering streetlight two doors up the road.
"Mrs. Elmers?" The man asked, his voice deep. His eyes flickered over to Cordelia and he stopped before he could open the gate for the woman.
"Hello, Mr. Curtis. Sorry for the late arrival, it was a long drive," Mrs. Elmers apologized, seemingly not noticing his hesitance. Cordelia did and she turned her gaze down to her ratty shoes, tightening her grip on her bags.
"No problem," the man, Mr. Curtis, answered. He took another look at Cordelia and then easily opened the gate for them.
"I won't be long. My hotel is just up the street, so I'll leave the number if you have any issues. I head down to Austin tomorrow, but the Oklahoma City office isn't too far if you need anything," Mrs. Elmers said, walking faster than normal. Cordelia followed behind the two adults without a word and entered the house that Mrs. Elmers let herself into. The man was trying to say something to her, but Mrs. Elmers wasn't always the best at listening.
The walls were a pale yellow with family pictures covering every inch of free space. Several hand-drawn pictures were also framed or simply taped up. Almost none of the furniture matched, but it worked with the atmosphere of the room. The light blue couch was occupied by three people, two of the guys standing up at their appearance. There was another guy with his dark hair twisted in intricate curls sitting in a chair while another guy with brown hair and dark brown eyes sat in the last chair. The other guy on the couch was tan with dark curly hair and dark eyes, a bruise covering part of his face, and a scar on the other cheek.
"Are you my new brother?" A boy with a wide smile and golden blonde hair asked. Cordelia furrowed her eyebrows and looked down at her outfit to see what made the boy think that she was also a boy. Her medium brown hair was down and went to her mid back and her shirt was basically just a tank top with an old flannel on top. The most obvious sign that she was a girl, other than her top, was the fact that she was wearing a skirt at the behest of Mrs. Elmers.
"Last time I checked, I had a va-"
"Cordelia O'Brien!" Mrs. Elmers interrupted a horrified expression on her face. A boy with auburn hair and sideburns chuckled from his spot on the floor while the golden-haired boy cocked his head to the side like a dog, his eyes kind and humored.
"Darry, I thought you said it would be a boy," a pale kid with auburn hair asked. He was small and thin, young enough that he hadn't had his growth sport yet. He was a good four inches shorter than the golden-haired boy and six inches shorter than the first boy, who Cordelia assumed was Darry.
"That's what I was trying to say," Darry said awkwardly, grabbing a familiar Manila folder. "I was expecting a boy, Elijah O'Brien."
Cordelia's jaw tightened and she looked down at the ground. Mrs. Elmers put her hand on her back in an attempt to be comforting, but Cordelia simply shook it off. The woman made a sound deep in her throat and sent the teenager a warning glare before she looked at Darry with her eyebrows furrowed.
"My associate, Mr. Dillon, was supposed to call you. Did he not talk to you?" Mrs. Elmers questioned.
"No, ma'am."
Mrs. Elmers pursed her lips and then made a clicking noise as she sighed heavily. Cordelia blinked away the tears in her eyes and grabbed her bags tighter. It was just her luck that her case once again slipped through the cracks and she would have to go back to sharing a room with fourteen other girls and a bathroom with twenty.
"Elijah had an-an incident of sorts and is no longer in need of housing. This is Cordelia, his younger sister. She has been in a girl's home for the last month, so we thought that she would be a perfect fit in his place," Mrs. Elmers explained.
"How old are you?" Darry asked, not unkindly. His eyebrows were furrowed with worry and he gave her a quick once over when she looked up, not making eye contact.
"Just turned sixteen a few weeks ago," Mrs. Elmers answered when it became clear that Cordelia wouldn't answer. "I apologize for the confusion, Mr. Curtis. We assumed that you wouldn't mind."
"As I told you on the phone, I only agreed to take in Elijah since he would be eighteen in a few months. I'm only doin' this so I can keep my brothers and apply for permanent guardianship," Darry responded. Cordelia shuffled and pulled the flannel tighter around her when she caught the stares of most of the guys, her cheeks blazing and her heart picking up speed. They weren't looking at her in a predatory way, but she was still uncomfortable with all the attention.
"And it is very important that you show the state that you can take care of teenagers," Mrs. Elmers told him. "How about this? Cordelia can stay for the week and I'll write you a letter of recommendation to help you gain permanent guardianship. No promises, of course. By next Friday, we can find another home for her or find a space in a girl's home, and my coworker can come get her."
Darry looked hesitant so Cordelia nodded in understanding and turned to go back outside, the door unintentionally slamming behind her. Mrs. Elmers grabbed her arm in a vice-like grip before she could take a step off the porch. The girl scrambled backward, almost tripping over her own feet, making the woman let go with a disappointed sigh.
"I don't want to stay here," Cordelia spat at the woman. "Make me stay here and I'll run away."
"Now, Cordelia, I know the last few homes haven't been the best, but Mr. Curtis has been properly vetted," Mrs. Elmers sighed. "Just give it a week if he agrees. Please."
"No," Cordelia said, shaking her head and taking another step back. "I told you, I'm not staying with more men. I told you."
"We won't do anything."
Cordelia gasped at the deep voice of Darry Curtis and took another step back. Her foot lost anything beneath it and she squeezed her eyes shut to block out the pain of falling, but a strong hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her up before she could go far. Cordelia gasped again and held onto the strong arm to stabilize herself.
"How about we sit?" Darry suggested when he pulled her to be fully standing. Cordelia quickly stepped away from the man, being careful not to fall off the porch again. Her cheeks blazed from embarrassment as she mumbled thanks, the man giving her an awkward smile in return.
"That would be lovely," Mrs. Elmers smiled. Cordelia played with her necklace and hesitantly sat down on one of the chairs while Mrs. Elmers sat on the other chair and Darry took the porch swing. He had to mutter an apology before he slammed his fist on the glass when the curtains were opened just an inch. Whoever was trying to spy closed the curtains in a rush, muffled laughter making its way outside.
"I'm not staying with you," Cordelia said coldly.
"It's just me, Sodapop, and Ponyboy here," Darry spoke to her, despite the fact that Cordelia refused to look up from the ground. "Those are our friends. I'll tell them to get lost for the next week, and they'll listen. You would have your own room and I'll run to the store and get a doorknob that you can lock from the inside if you want."
"Cordelia hasn't had the best experiences in the past," Mrs. Elmers sighed when Cordelia refused to answer again. "I promise that we'll find another place for her as soon as possible. It might not even be the full week. At a minimum, we would just need housing for tonight."
"I'm open to it if she is," Darry said. "I need that letter. I don't want my brothers separated from me."
"Where are your parents?" Cordelia asked in a soft voice. Darry blinked at her in shock, not expecting her to speak, and then cleared his throat.
"Car accident about eight months ago. I'm only twenty but I took them in. Sodapop, he's the blonde, he's sixteen too. Almost seventeen as he likes to remind us. And the smaller kid with auburn hair, that's Ponyboy. He just turned fourteen last month. They're my whole world and I need them here with me."
"If I stay this week, I'm not cleaning or cooking for you. And I want that lock," Cordelia said.
"Of course," Darry assured her. "I'm not the best cook, but I usually do everything. Soda adds food coloring to all his food and Pony gets too distracted. And I do most of the cleaning too. You wouldn't have to worry about anything."
"And I want to see my brother," Cordelia added, turning to the social worker.
"I'll see what I can do."
"That's not a good enough answer."
"It'll only be for a short bit, Cordelia," Mrs. Elmers soothed. Cordelia hesitated before nodding. "Perfect! I'll call you tomorrow afternoon."
The woman was gone in an instant after passing Darry the correct file. The man blinked in surprise at her quick exit and awkwardly turned to the teenager.
"D'ya want this?" Darry offered, holding out the folder to her as he stood up.
"You're not gonna read it?" Cordelia asked softly, eagerly grabbing the thick folder. Darry chuckled and shook his head as he grabbed her bags for her, Cordelia hesitantly following behind.
"Nah, I don't wanna pry," Darry told her as he used his foot to open the door. The guys all pretended not to stare at her, but they weren't very slick. The dark-headed boy, in particular, seemed mighty interested in the way he was messing with a necklace and raising an eyebrow at her, a smirk seemingly plastered to his face.
"You're staying!" Sodapop said excitedly, jumping up and down on the couch. Ponyboy punched his leg to make him stop while the other boy on the couch held his hands up for protection. Sodapop didn't pay them any attention until the boy with the curls tugged on his arm and he almost fell to the ground, the two of them lightly slapping each other with a grin.
"Just for a week. Maybe less," Darry said. "Now if your last name isn't Curtis, scram."
"Yeah, yeah," the auburn-haired boy sighed jokingly as he stood up. His Mickey Mouse shirt contrasted with the beer bottle in his hand and the drunk giggle that left his mouth or the way that he was stumbling and tripping over his own two feet.
"I gotchya, Two-Bit," the boy with the intricately curled hair laughed while he held onto the other boy and guided him away.
"Need a place to stay, Johnnycakes?" The brunette asked, pushing his long hair out of his face. His eyes flickered over Cordelia once more with yet another smirk and then he turned his attention to the boy on the couch.
"Nah, I'll go home," the tan boy said softly. The house emptied in moments while Darry guided Cordelia to the back. Ponyboy and Sodapop stayed up front after getting a look from Darry, something Cordelia was pleased with. The less people, the better.
"Sorry for the decor. It used to be Soda's room," Darry apologized when he opened the door. Cordelia's lip curled at the sight of car posters and half-naked women on the wall, but the room was overall clean so she didn't mind too much.
"Am I taking someone's room? I don't mind sleepin' on the couch," Cordelia said, turning to look at Darry. The couch would also provide her with an easy way out the door if she needed it.
"Nah, Soda sleeps in Ponyboy's room," Darry assured her. He noticed how her eyes flickered between his body and the door so he shifted his feet a little so he wasn't blocking the door anymore. "If you hear any screaming it's just Pony. He gets bad nightmares. I'm real sorry if it wakes you."
"My brother gets nightmares too. It's fine," Cordelia responded softly.
"Elijah?"
Cordelia's jaw tightened at the name and she shook her head and clenched her jaw.
"Is he alright? Elijah?"
"Fuck off."
Darry blinked in surprise at her harsh tone and held his hands up in defense. He didn't miss how her breath picked up at the action so he lowered his arms and put his hands in his pockets instead, looking a little uncomfortable.
"Alright. Kitchen is up front. You're welcome to anything in there. Bathroom is the door to your right. The boys are in the room right across from you and I'm at the end of the hall. Treat this house like it's your own," Darry told her in a soft tone. Cordelia nodded her head in understanding and focused on her meager belongings instead. Darry didn't waste any time in leaving the room, allowing Cordelia to put the desk chair under the handle.
She didn't sleep the whole night. The blankets were too warm and inviting, the laughter up front too comforting and familiar. Cordelia didn't trust the men enough to fall asleep, so she decided to carefully and quietly examine the room and its contents after she heard everyone else go to bed. Once she was done with her examination, she kept herself awake by sitting on the bed with a baseball bat that she found in the closet. With the sun shining in the air, the house was once again lively as the three brothers got ready for the day ahead of them. None of the Curtis brothers tried to come into her room, but Cordelia heard one of them stop and knock before walking away when she didn't respond. Her body was arguing for her to just lay down, but her mind was racing too fast to even consider it.
"Cordelia? It's eight in the morning. I made breakfast," Darry said through the door, knocking softly.
"Not hungry," Cordelia responded.
"Can I come in?" Darry asked.
"Why?"
"Dunno. Just have a quick question."
Cordelia hesitantly put the baseball bat down on the bed and then carefully moved the chair to open the door. Darry surveyed the room but didn't comment, his eyebrow raising at the bat.
"Just wanted to know if you needed a ride to see your brother. I remembered that you asked Mrs. Elmers about seein' him, and I have the day off tomorrow. I dunno what I'd do if I couldn't see my brothers for a long time," Darry explained.
"He's in Oklahoma City. I doubt you'd want to go that far," Cordelia said softly.
"Yeah, that's a bit too far. I did have a question; I thought the file said you were from Atlanta. Or at least Elijah was," Darry responded, cocking his head to the side. Cordelia's cheeks flamed red and she tried to swallow, but her throat was too dry.
"I'll be out of your hair in a few days. Don't pretend like you care. Now where's the bathroom?"
Darry pretended that he wasn't shocked by her tone and pointed to the door that was already open so she didn't have to worry about anyone else being in there. It clearly belonged to a house of boys because the toilet seat was left up and a razor was still on the counter. Cordelia tried not to grimace and hurried to do what she needed to do, holding back a disgusted groan when she saw that they didn't even have shampoo, only soap. The bags under her eyes seemed to stand out and her hair looked dull and lifeless.
"Excuse me. I need to go real bad."
Cordelia opened the door to see Ponyboy standing outside, looking a little ashamed. His hair was wild and crazy and he was still blinking sleep away. His grey-green eyes made him look so young with how he could barely even look at her. The girl's heart clenched at the sight, and she hurried to step out of the bathroom so he could enter.
"How old is Ponyboy again?" Cordelia questioned when she made her way to the front. Sodapop and Darry both jumped in shock at her voice and then Sodapop was grinning and guiding her to a seat. She flinched at his hands on her elbow, but the boy just smiled to show her that he meant no harm as he pulled out her seat for her.
"'Just turned fourteen. We're hopin' he has a growth spurt soon," Sodapop answered. "I'm sixteen, almost seventeen. Darry is twenty."
"How d'ya like your eggs?" Darry asked Cordelia.
"I'm allergic," Cordelia lied. Darry and Soda both raised an eyebrow at her.
"Toast?"
"Allergic."
"Cereal?"
"Allergic."
"Fruit?"
"Allergic."
Sodapop laughed at her continued lie and put a huge drop of grape jelly on his eggs. Ponyboy came out of the bathroom and sat back down with a big yawn, eating the eggs that Darry had already made. Cordelia found herself staring at him for a moment too long before she turned her attention to a scratch on the table and bit her tongue so hard that she tasted blood.
"So what can you eat?" Darry asked, raising an eyebrow at her.
"Don't waste your food on me. I'll be fine," Cordelia mumbled.
"He got extra 'cause he was expecting your brother," Sodapop explained. "Darry played football too so he knows how much a football player can eat. Where is Elijah anyways?"
"Fuck off."
Sodapop's face fell and Ponyboy looked up from his food with wide eyes. Darry put the spatula down and turned to Cordelia with a slightly concerned and angry look in his eyes.
"You can speak to me that way if you feel it's necessary, but not Soda or Pony," Darry instructed, his arms crossed over his chest. With his muscles bulging, Cordelia's breath got caught in her throat and she focused her attention back to the mark on the table.
"Don't ask about my brothers," Cordelia spat, standing up and returning to her room. She put the chair back under the doorknob and then sat back down on the bed as she blinked away tears. The boys didn't make much noise while they got ready for the day, Darry slipping a note under her door. When Cordelia was sure that they were gone, she got up to see that Darry had put a plate of eggs and toast outside her door and explained that he and Soda would be at work while Ponyboy was at school.
With the house to herself, Cordelia allowed her body to rest as she prepared herself for whatever would come next.