disclaimer:I own nothing.
A.N:Admittedly, the plot line for this one-short is a bit of a rut and it isn't too strong but hopefully,the characterization as well as the idea that the gang might not like Mark too well is plausible enough for !R&R!
Mess Of A Friend
I walked in softly with Mark behind me .I guess I wasn't walking so quietly 'cause within a couple of steps, Soda comes by, bounding out of the living room. "Heyya Pony! Hey! "he said ,surprised. "Who's your friend?" Mark was nearly the same size as me but you can tell he's older and I saw Soda's eyes take all of him as he looked up and down at Mark's strange golden hair and eyes with his worn jeans and baggy shirt. "Hey," Mark drawled. "I'm Mark .Mark Jennings." He stuck a hand out and Soda slowly shook it, noticing the smudged phone number on it. Mark introduced himself with a defensive tone in his voice so I guess he noticed Soda's not-so-subtle staring. I would have been annoyed too.
As we walked by, I saw Steve and Two-Bit lounging on the couch. Two-Bit cocked an eyebrow when he saw Mark. Mark had a rep at school and not the good kinds either(what greaser has a good rep anyway?) .We hung about inside my room(and Soda's , if you're that fussy),getting to know each other better, and I don't mean that in the kind of way Two-Bit would have immediately joked about. Mark was a year older than me but he didn't lord it over me the way the other boys would have. We met over at Jay's through Terry Jones, a buddy of mine from school. I had only known Mark for a few weeks but already he felt like a good buddy, someone I could count on to show up most of the time. He told me about how he lived with his brother and his old lady, the conversation swung to Bryon. He told me a lot about him and though I knew Bryon didn't like me very much (but I didn't know why. Mark wouldn't tell me except for that the reason was a real riot),I thought I could like the guy. When we got up to get a drink, I poured myself a glass of milk while Mark gulped one of the cans of beer from the fridge.
"Kid, you should swing by Terry's parties." he smirked, eying my chocolate milk.
"Yeah ,right, be sure to hold me after I pass out from all the drinking." I said , sarcastic.
Steve walked in then and headed to the fridge to get a can but he didn't walk back out instead he just leaned there, watching us and I felt a little annoyed, its not like he had to just stand there, watching us besides Mark was nearly the same age as him.
"I better get going. Bryon said he might swing by anytime....which would probably be about now."
"Bryon? You guys got a car?"
"Nah, he'll just get one somewhere and I'm on probation for hot-wiring anyway."
At this, Steve's eyebrow nearly rose up onto his hair. Which was no easy feat.
"Oh, yeah."
"I'll teach you someday." he winked, knowing full well what Steve's expression behind him would be.
I laughed Mark reminded me of Dallas a bit, wild and cunning but not (possibly fortunately) full of hate for the world like Dally was.
"Pony, hey, there's a car outside. One of your friends?" Soda called out from the front. There was a crash and I wondered absent-mindedly if it was Two-Bit again. "Must be Bryon," Mark swallowed the last of his drink before getting up and heading to the door. I followed him and to my relief, Steve decided to just stay where he was and not follow me as well.
It was Bryon. He was leaning on the car, a normal car. The kind you see on any other street...which was where I was sure he got it from. Bryon was bigger and taller than me but most boys are. He had a better build than most though and that was one thing I worried about when I heard he didn't like me too much. He was well-liked by girls and I guess I could see why. Its not hard to, when he had a rep even if it was as a playboy(for some reason, the girls seemed to like him in spite of all the hearts he broke before, they were probably deluding themselves he wouldn't do it to them).A rep is a rep in these parts of the neighborhood. They both got into the car and drove off, Mark giving me the bird as a joke.
"Didn't know you were friends with Jennings, Pony."
Two-Bit mouthed off the moment I stepped back in. I shrugged and sat down on the floor, my head beside Soda's legs who was sitting on the couch, flipping through an old magazine. I waited for a bit more, sure they all had something to say. Nowadays, the gang was more....involved into looking out for me. They thought I didn't notice but I did. I bet they would have strip-searched Terry the other time if they could when we ran into each other at the mart. "I don't know, Pone. The kid looks like trouble." Soda finally said, brushing through my hair with his fingers.
"Who looks like?" Darry's voice wafted in as the door swung open. "No one," I said hurriedly but Soda gave me a look. If this was how Soda was acting, who knew how Darry would? We got on better now but I'd just gotten a B for one of my papers and wasn't in any rush to knowing how Darry was going to be about that already. "A friend of Pony's," Steve butted in, finishing Soda's job for him. I gave Steve a look, why couldn't he ever give me a break?
"Yeah?" Darry stepped in, all dusty and tired from roofing before flopping himself into his recliner. "Why's that, little buddy?"he turned to Soda.
"They look like hoods?" Two-Bit supplied in. I snorted and he looked questioningly at me. "What's that mean?"
"Two-Bit, you ever look in a mirror before?" Soda reached over and gave him a shove. " But you are right, that's what I mean."
"Mark might be in trouble now but he's alright." I said, it was true enough anyway
"He has a rep both in and outta school, Ponyboy." Two-Bit spoke up and his tone was enough to make me surprised. He didn't normally sound so serious. "You know, his buddy Bryon there. Ain't he in some trouble with the Shepards with the whole Angela thing?"
"I'm not sure what happened actually." I admitted. "All I know is that they broke up."
Two-Bit looked at me carefully then and I felt a bit uncomfortable, under his steady gaze.
"He's under probation, right, kid?" Steve curled a lip at me and I felt real pissed at him then, he knew he was just making it harder for me.
"Probation?" Darry looked grim. "Doesn't sound like an angel."
"Look. Mark is alright, okay?" I said. "Who's friends with him? You or me?" I mouthed off and as the words left, I knew it was a mistake to mouth off.
"Ponyboy. Stay away from the guy." Darry sighed and I felt really angry then, even more pissed with him than Steve, who were they to tell me this?
"We don't need a visit from the State or anything else going wrong." Darry added.
"Too bad." I gritted my teeth. "Because you already got me and I'm big enough of a screw-up according to you guys, already." I turned around and glared at the TV set.
Behind me, I could see the gang in the reflective surface, exchanging looks, promising me I'd have another talking-to later.
A.N:So there you go!Hope it was up to standard and please leave a review!-mais :D