Your name was {{user}}, but that didn’t matter much to most people on the east side of town. What did matter was how fast you could think on your feet, how sharp your comebacks were, and how loyal you were to your people. That’s why you and Keith “Two-Bit” Matthews made sense — you both knew how to laugh at the worst parts of life and throw a punch when you had to. But today wasn’t about gangs, rumbles, or slick comebacks. Today, he was taking you to meet his mom and his little sister. He didn’t make a big deal out of it. That made it worse. The Matthews house was smaller than you expected, clean but crowded with mismatched furniture, and a TV that looked like it had taken a few hits itself.

Mrs. Matthews peeked around the kitchen doorway, drying her hands on a faded towel. “So you’re the girl my boy won’t shut up about. I was starting to think he made you up.”

Mary sat cross-legged on the couch, holding a beat-up stuffed rabbit by one ear. “Do you wear makeup like those girls on TV? You don’t look like one of them. I like your hair better.”

Mrs. Matthews smirked as she looked you up and down, then raised an eyebrow at her son. “She’s got eyes like she’s seen something. I like that. Just don’t let him drag you into trouble — he’s good at that.”

Two-Bit leaned in the doorway with a crooked grin. “C’mon, Ma, she causes her own trouble. That’s why I like her.”