Summarry: Sometimes you have to learn to forgive. Sometimes you
should give second chances. But not always.

Disclaimer: I own nothing, no matter how much I wish I did.
Okay?

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Meet Mr. Matthews
One

"Man, you realize that guy's been followin' us for about twenty minutes now?"

"How observant of you Pone," Steve said, his voice dripping with sarcasm, his mouth curled into a cruel sneer.

"Aw, c'mon, lay off him for once, will ya Steve?" Two-Bit said, a smirk just begging to form on his lips. Steve and Ponyboy had never grown to be... tolerant of eachother. Steve thought Ponyboy was a follower, or in other words, a tag-along. Ponyboy thought Steve was an asshole, a jerk, (and whatever other rude word you can come up with) and was trying to steal his brother, Sodapop, away from him. Needless to say, they disliked eachother. A lot.

"Jerk," Ponyboy muttered, so that only Two-Bit could hear. Of course, he smirked, glancing at Steve out of the corner of his eye. He, Two-Bit, was the type of guy that loved to joke around. The type that was almost never serious. At all. Don't get me wrong, he could be serious when it was needed, but when it wasn't, well, you could say he was pretty... immature.

However, Steve glanced over his shoulder again and cursed.

"Man," he groaned. "That guy's still followin' us. What do you think he wants?"

Two-Bit grinned, and stole a glance at the man as well. He looked to be in his early fourties.

"You wanna find out?"

Steve stopped in his tracks, and gave him a look that clearly said: 'Don't even think about it.' But Two-Bit wasn't one to be stopped, nor was he one to be told what to do. And so, he turned around, that goofy grin still plastered across his face. It was a shame, really, because he had absoloutely no idea what he was getting himself into.

Ponyboy and Steve exchanged skeptical expressions before each of them grabbed one of Two-Bit's arms in an attempt to drag him away from the man, who's head was held high as he headed directly for them. Two-Bit however, had no idea what they were so afraid of. After all, it was just a man. A stranger. Someone they didn't even know. And he didn't look like the type to carry a weapon either. But, as the man got closer, he could make out the colour of his hair. A rusty brown colour that matched his own. The two colours weren't similar, they were exactly the same, which was odd, because Two-Bit had never come across anyone with the exact same hair colour as himself. But the creepy resemblance didn't stop him.

"You gettin' tired of followin' us yet?"

The man looked shocked for a minute, but his composure was quickly regained as a small, warm smile spread across his face. This man seemed... friendly, which kind of disappointed Two-Bit. He'd been ready for a good fight. After all, why else would someone be following them all over town? It just didn't make sense. At all.

"Pardon me," he said in a slight drawl. His voice was rough, yet the sound of it relaxed Two-Bit, and he didn't know why. All he knew was that he'd heard that voice before, but he just couldn't place it. "But I was wondering... if... well..."

His face had taken on a pained expression, and it seemed hard for him to get the words out. All the three greasers could do was wait patiently for the man to...

"Spit it out!"

Ponyboy nudged Steve harshly, and gave him a look that clearly said to shut up. And, for once, he actually took an order from Ponyboy, and did exactly that as the pained expression on the man in front of them's face grew. The three exchanged glances, not knowing what to think, or even what to say.

"Look, if you're looking for money-" Two-Bit started, but was instantly cut off.

"No, I'm not looking for money," the man said, seeming to have regained some of his composure. That confident tone was back. "I was just wondering... is your name Keith?"

Two-Bit was startled. How did this stranger know his name? His real name. The small amount of people that knew him around here, other than his friends, knew him as Two-Bit, not Keith. It really made him wonder, who was this man, and what did he want with him? Was he a hitman? A police man? Oh god, did his mother die? Was this an officer come to break the news to him?

He suddenly remembered the night Mr. And Mrs. Curtis died. A police officer had come straight to the door. He still remembered the grim expression on his face, as he gave Darry, Ponyboy and Sodapop the news they dreaded to hear. The news they hadn't been expecting. And he still remembered the expressions on the three's faces too. Expressions of pure sadness. Grief. Unimaginable grief.

"Yeah, I'm Keith. I'm known around here as Two-Bit, though..." he said, giving the man a confused look.

"Ah," he replied, a smile creeping onto his face. "See, I wouldn't have know that. I ran out on my own family before my second child was even born. Looking back on it, it was a dumb thing to do."

He was staring directly into Two-Bit's eyes. The smile had long since disappeared, and was replaced by a frown. And suddenly, he knew. He knew who this man was.

"So I guess you're a deadbeat dad then, huh?"

The man nodded, a grim expression now appearing along with the frown.

"Yeah. Your deadbeat dad."