A/N: S. E. Hinton owns all rights to the characters in The Outsiders and her other stories, I only own my imagination.
"No, I swear I'm not exaggerating, Darry. This little kid looks just like Johnny! Same name and everything. Cathy told me about him." I twisted the phone cord around my finger excitedly.
"Well, maybe she's seeing what she wants to see. Sometimes kids can remind you of a certain person and turn out to be completely different. Take Shane for instance- he looks, talks, and acts like me, but he is the craftiest one outta all three of my kids. Yesterday, I was called into a meeting with the principal because he'd hotwired his teacher's car so he could take it for a spin."
"You really need to learn some parenting tips, Darry. I'm pretty sure an eight year old kid shouldn't have hotwiring capability." I struggled to bite back a laugh.
"Maybe if I hadn't needed to parent you two numbskulls, we wouldn't have this problem. I'm exhausted just thinking about all the shit my kids are doing behind my back. Last week, I found a bag of weed-laced cookies under Patrick's bed, and when I questioned him about it, he offered me some. He said they were from the neighbor down the street. And he's only four! At least Mikey can't do a whole lot yet. He can't even reach the door handles. The worst he does is poop in the trash cans."
"Sounds like you really have your hands full. How's Soda doing?" I made a mental note to check the lasagna in five minutes.
"Not great. He just sits in front of the TV all day, staring at either static or infomercials. I guess Steve's not much better, but at least he has heroin as an excuse."
"Has the VA offered to put him on meds or anything?"
"He told me that he didn't want to start popping pills. I can't say I blame him, but if they would help him function normally, I don't see why he's resisting that option."
"I think he wants to try and get better on his own. He's always been like that, you know."
"I know. Hey, listen, why don't you and Cathy come over for dinner tomorrow night? We could talk more about that kid then."
"Sounds great. I've got dinner in the oven, and I need to make sure it's not on fire or something, so I guess I'll let you go."
"Okay, it was nice talking again. See you tomorrow, Pony. Tell Cathy I said 'hi'."
"I will, tell Soda the same. Bye, Darry."
"Bye."
I didn't burn the lasagna, but the garlic bread could've been used as a pumice stone once I set it on the table. I guess my cooking skills could still use some work. Cathy and I had a good laugh about that once she finished changing. "I honestly think that Johnny's the one, Pony. You know how they say you'll find the right kid at the right time? I think these are the perfect circumstances." She said, scooping salad onto her plate.
"I just don't know, Cath. You said he'd been abused, right? Maybe he's too far gone for us to do much for him."
"Trust me, Pony, you'll love this kid when you see him. He looks just like how you described Johnny. He definitely has some issues, but I think we can work through them all right."
"What about his parents?" I took a bite of lasagna.
"I don't know anything about them, other than the abuse they perpetrated. Poor kid."
"How old is he?"
"He's only four. Just come with me tomorrow, he'd love to see you, I just know it!"
"Oh, tomorrow night we're going over to Darry's to have dinner."
"Perfect! So you can tell them all about Johnny after we visit." She smiled and batted her eyes at me. I've never been able to resist that smile.
"Okay, I'll go with you. Just promise me that you won't hold it against me too much if the kid doesn't like me."
"He will adore you, I swear."
The next day, we went to the St. Jerome Emiliani orphanage to visit Johnny. One of the nuns on duty led us to a bright, airy playroom. "He's over here in the corner, playing with Buttons. I'll get his attention for you." While she ambled off toward the kid, I just watched him. Cathy was right, he looked remarkably like the Johnny I'd known thirty-some years before- a mop of thick straight black hair framed his tan face and his coal colored eyes were soft, though nervous. He was clutching a tattered sock monkey in his scrawny arms, holding it tight against his chest, and he'd shoved a thumb into his mouth.
"Johnny, this is Mr. and Mrs. Curtis. You remember Mrs. Curtis, don't you?" the nun whispered, crouching down to his level. Johnny didn't move an inch, looking for all the world like a deer in the headlights.
"Maybe you'd like to talk to him for a while. I'll go get him a snack." She left us alone with quick, soft steps, and I sat down a couple feet away from him. I figured that if he wanted to get close to me, he would do it on his own. I knew better than to force it. I smiled at him, and he analyzed every move I made. Cathy sat down too, and eventually, the nun came back with chocolate graham crackers.
"These are his favorite. Feel free to have some too, I brought plenty." Once she left again, I noticed that he was staring at the graham crackers. I took one and broke it into sections, holding one piece out for him. He watched me for a long time before he reached for it. His fingers were sticky from being sucked on as they closed around the treat, and he gave me a small smile before shoving the cracker into his mouth.
I kept giving him the sections until he'd eaten the whole cracker, and once he'd finished, he held Buttons out to me. I took the monkey, making it wave to him, dance, and finally run back to him, which made him giggle. Cathy was smiling, but she had tears in her eyes. I took another cracker.
"Want more, Johnnycake?" His eyes widened and he nodded, crawling close to me. I put my arm around him, breaking it in half. He took one half and laid it on Cathy's leg, putting the other on my knee.
"I want to share." He whispered.