Stumble

Chapter Twenty-Two

Disclaimer - I do not own the Outsiders. Or Ohio is for Lovers by Hawthorne Heights.

– Spare me just three last words "I love you" is all she heard –

Vanessa wasn't lying when she said she had bad news. It turns out that a teacher at school had overheard her and Pony talking about our father. She had called child services. We were being taken away.

I had told them everything when they'd come to our house. I knew there was no getting out of it. I was sixteen, what could I do? So I told them everything. If my father was going to jail, it wasn't going to be for child abuse. It was going to be for murder. He was going to get what he deserved after what he'd done to my mother.

But all of that faded from my mind as I stared up into those no-longer cold blue eyes, fearing it would be the last time I ever did so. The social worker, despite the fact that she was ruining our lives, was very nice and had allowed us to say goodbye. Only feet away, Nessa stood sobbing in Pony's arms.

"Maybe it's that fate thing again," I finally said, hardly able to keep the tears out of my eyes. "Maybe I was meant to stumble here, just so you could pick me back up. And who know? Maybe we'll both get our happily-ever-after."

"I don't wanna lose you," Dallas said, his voice pleading.

"Don't think of it as losing me," I replied. "Think of it as letting me go."

"I don't wanna let you go," he said.

"I wish we had a choice," I answered, the tears beginning to fall. He pulled me into his arms and I cried into his chest.

"Okay, girls," the social worker said softly. "I'm sorry but it's time to go."

I pulled away from Dallas and looked up into his eyes again. He kissed me. That kiss said all the things that we never could.

I pulled away from him and looked around at the gang. Five guys standing back, watching two of their own doing to hardest thing they'll ever have to do. Say goodbye to the girls they love.

I turned to my sister and grabbed her hand. Together we backed up towards the car, both of us crying. I looked at Dallas one last time, he looked back. I knew in that moment that I loved him wholly and completely, but I also knew that I was going to have to survive being apart from him.

In two years I would be eighteen, I would get custody of Vanessa, we would come back.

With that thought I got in the car.

And I left.

The End

Thank you to everyone who stuck with me this long! I think I can safely say that this is the best thing I have EVER written. I've never been so proud of my own work.

To my reviewers, I love you, you are amazing, thank you so, so much for being my inspiration!!

Until We Meet Again,

Rachel