I hesitantly walked into the living room. Silence fell upon us and Darry stared at me.

"Would you like to explain why you are forcing yourself to throw up?"

"You don't understand! I don't force myself to-"

"What do you mean you didn't! We all just watched you!"

"You don't understand! Let me explain!"

"What that you are trying to kill yourself?"

"NO! You don't understand anything! You know nothing about me!"

Darry's face turned deep red as he wound back his fist and let it fly. My head snapped backwards from the impact and I fell backwards. Darry was still coming though. He was angrily stalking towards me as I backed up against the door. He drew his fist back again and this time I felt blood. I reached my hand up to touch the cut right above my eye and felt blood gushing down my face, blocking my vision.

"Darry please stop! You're hurting me!"

He paused for a split second and I bolted out the door. I heard more yelling and footsteps behind me. I felt blood and tears rolling down my face. I saw darkness then nothing.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Beeping, sirens, crying, yelling and silence. It sounds I like a high pitched screech that you can hardly hear, but it drives you crazy.

Blinding lights, sickening green, puke brown, metal, and shadows. It looks like stepping into a bright, horribly painted room, after being in complete darkness.

Tears, thick blankets, hands, and someone's hair in my face. It feels like burning in an itchy hay stack.

When I focus my eyes I see Dally right next to me, cops questioning Ponyboy and Sodapop, and Darry being taken away in handcuffs. When Dally saw I was awake he had my head in his hands with tears streaming down his face.

"Wow, Dally. You're crying! We gotta mark this day down on a calendar," I weakly chuckle.

He gives a small relieved chuckle, and presses his forehead to mine. He is still crying a little but I just let him calm down. I look over at Darry and suddenly feel worried.

"Dally y-you know I don't force myself to get sick. M-my parents starved me a-and eating rich, dark, chocolate cake makes me sick..." I rush.

He caresses my cheek, looking straight into my eyes.

"Shh, it's okay. I know. No one is mad at you. I explained the whole thing."

"But what about Darry? Why was he taken away in handcuffs?"

He sighed.

"He is being arrested for child abuse. Even if we bail him out, you, Soda, and Ponyboy are being taken away to a foster home. Luckily y'all have the same foster parents."

I started to cry, but it did no good. The next day, a couple came to bring us to the foster house.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Janette and Charlie. Our foster parents. Nice people, but they aren't the gang. Actually, they were only nice the first day. After that they beat us senseless too. Oh, we have had 4 different foster homes before this. Didn't take long for the government to move us again.

This couple is nicer. Leona and Thomas. Leona is pregnant and works all the time. I don't know what Thomas does, but I know he is passed out drunk a lot. I don't mind them. Leona treats us like her own, and Thomas is passed out half the time. The other half of the time he yells at us though.

They are way better than the rest of the couples though. Leona showed me to my room and left to help Ponyboy and Sodapop. My room is small but Leona and Thomas are greasers. It is a plain baige color, has a small bed in the corner, a small desk, and a small closet. This will work.

Sodapop and Ponyboy have a slightly bigger room, but they are sharing so... There is a slightly bigger bed in the corner, a slightly bigger desk, and a slightly bigger closet. They're fine. Just depressed about being taken away. Don't blame em. I am too.

Leona and Thomas live in Tulsa, so I asked if I could go see the gang with Sodapop and Ponyboy. Leona let us go, but we have to be back by 10. I thanked her and ran out the door dragging Sodapop and Pony behind me.

I didn't stop running until we reached the Curtis house, which was only a couple houses away. I burst through the door and hugged the first person I saw, Steve.

"We're back!"

He just stood there and sighed.

"Yeah, yeah. Go see Dal. He's been a wreck without you here."

"Well where is he?"

"Pickin' a fight with Shepherd's gang. Probably in the lot."

He didn't have to finish before I was out the door running for the lot. I got there just as Dally was walking away from Shepherd's gang, both are bruised and beat up. I got so excited that I jumped on his back and tackled him to the ground.

"DALLY!"

He must've thought it was Tim or someone because he flipped me off his back and held his switch to my throat. I froze stifling a laugh. He looked irritated for a second then a smile spread across his face.

"Rylee!"

He dropped the switch and picked me up off the ground. He kinda just held me in a hug, but I'm short so my feet were off the ground. I pulled back and looked at the bruises on his face.

"You're hurt. Why?"

"I got in a fight."

He then gingerly tapped the bruises on my face.

"You're hurt. Why?"

"Foster parents 1-4. Or as I like to say foster failures 1-4."

He shook his head in slight amusement and pulled me in for a kiss.