Chapter One: News Leads to Trouble
"We're WHAT?" I shouted back at my eldest brother, Darry. I knew what he had said.I had heard him as clear as day. But I just couldn't believe it.
"We're moving," Darry repeated. "I got offered a better job and it'll be better for us. A new start at life,"
I knew what he was talkin' about. The night Johnny and I got jumped and Johnny killed a Soc. The night we ran to Dally for help. The week Johnny and I hid in a church. When we had saved some elementary kids and Johnny, Dally, and me got burned and, in Johnny's case, broke our backs. Johnny dying and then Dally getting killed by the fuzz. I knew what Darry was suggestin' but he had to be jokin'. We couldn't leave Tulsa, could we?
"You've got to be jokin' Dar," I said. "We can't move. We've lived all our lives here. Mom and Dad's graves are here. School is here. The DX station is here. What's left of our family is here. That's including the gang! We can't just leave everything!"
Darry sighed and I felt like punchin' somethin'. Darry had to be kiddin' me. He just had to. He had to be lyin'!
"I'm sorry Pone," Darry muttered. "Soda ain't taking this well either. He doesn't want to leave Steve. And I know you want to stay here, in the school you've always been in, but I have to do what's best for you guys, and if that means moving, then we'll move,"
I pulled away from Dar and felt the first tears fall. How could Dar do this? Didn't me and Soda have a say in this? Did Two-Bit and Steve know about this? I didn't know the answers to these questions but I knew one thing; I needed to get away from Darry. So I ran out the house, towards the park.
"Ponyboy!" Darry shouted. I didn't stop runnin'. I didn't want to see or hear Darry. I didn't want to see anyone. I needed to get away and I needed a cigarette. I needed to escape.
I ran to the park and sat beneath an oak tree and lit a cigarette, letting the tears fall. Sure, we'd be getting away from the Socs but we have to leave Two-Bit and Steve behind. It didn't seem worth it.
I heard the squeal of brakes and I looked up. It was a blue mustang. The same one that had been at this same park when Johnny killed a Soc. "Shit," I muttered under my breath.
By the time I was standing the Socs were surrounding me. There were six of them. I gulped and tried to look tuff and calm and the Socs took my act seriously. "Hey guys," a Soc said. "This is one of the greasers that killed Bob!"
"What should we do?" another Soc asked.
"Give him a lesson," the Soc said. "Let's see how high we can hang this Greaser from a tree,"
I was officially terrified. I wasn't sure if they meant hang me by the neck or hang me by the ankles but I wasn't going for it. I pulled out my blade and two of the Socs went running. The other four just stood there and grinned. "You gonna kill us too, greaser?" the Soc asked. "I'm sure you won't get it easy this time,"
Suddenly, I was down on the ground with four Socs on top of me. I struggled and got slugged in the face about five times before I stopped. Then they tied me by the ankles and hung me on a tree branch. Two Socs ran back to the car and returned with four baseball bats. "Let's see what a greaser is filled with," the Soc growled.
I did the only thing I could do. I screamed. "DARRY!" I shouted. "SODAPOP! TWO-BIT! STEVE! HELP ME!"
The Socs kept slugging me in the face but I wouldn't stop screaming. I couldn't stop. I wasn't about to let some Socs kill me. I'd rather move and live off of canned fruits then die.
The Socs screamed and ran. I looked up. Sodapop, Two-Bit, and Steve were chasing off the Socs with their blades. Darry was getting me down from the tree. "Ponyboy!" he yelled. "Are you all right?"
I tried to answer him but my felt like it had been hit by a ton of bricks. I shook my head no and gave myself a headache. "Damn those Socs!" Darry muttered under his breath as he put me on solid ground.
"Woo-hoo!" Two-Bit yelled. "We beat those Socs so bad that they were beggin' for mercy!"
Soda came running over. "You all right Pony?" Soda asked.
"My face hurts," I muttered, regretting opening my mouth.
Darry lightly touched my face and I yelped. "He's definitely going to bruise Dar," Steve said.
"We're lucky the Social Services lady already came by this month," Darry muttered as he helped me to my feet. "I'm sure Pony will be fine after a little while. Just some bruises and a black eye. No need for a hospital tonight,"
"You sure he'll be fine Dar?" Soda asked.
Darry sighed. "I'm sure," Darry said. "He'll just be a little bruised up on the right check and a black eye. Nothin' to serious,"
"Alright Darry," Steve said. "Let's just get out of here before the Socs come back with back-up,"
Darry helped me up and we walked back to the house. I still didn't want to move and I knew getting jumped wasn't going to make Darry change his mind. It was probably the big final action that made Darry want to get out of here so bad.
After Darry bandaged me up a little I went to bed and Soda joined me minutes later. "I'm nervous Soda," I said.
"About moving?" Soda asked.
"Yup," I said.
"I'm nervous too," Soda whispered. "But we shouldn't be. Steve and Two-Bit will come and visit and we'll visit them. No more Socs hopefully and we can spend more time together. Probably make some new friends,"
"Yeah," I said. "Night Soda,"
"Night Pony,"