The Outsiders

"You'll be fine!" Katie said to me as she pinned on my corsage. I grunted. Katie, my long time girlfriend, giggled.

"What, I look terrible. My hair is growing back, and let me say it out loud, it looks worse now than it did when I first cut it off." I told her, and she giggled again.

It had been four years since Dally and Johnny died. Since then, not much has changed. I mean, the gang has all grown up and all, like for instance right now I am dressing for Darry's wedding.

In my junior year of high school Darry met Mollie Reynolds, an out of town girl who moved here for a journal job, and hearing about soc's and greasers, decided it would be a good idea to do an article on a soc family and a greaser family. The greaser family she chose was ours. It just kind of clicked between Darry and Mollie.

"You look fine!" Katie said slash commanded.

"Humph, only fine," I muttered. "Not as fine as Soda I suppose." I added as I remembered what happened to him.

A director who wanted to shoot a television series about gangs and stuff, stopped at Soda's gas station to get gas, and seen Soda pumping gas. He then announced that Soda was to be his main character, since then That TV show has been number one watched in history.

"No, of course not silly! You look much better!" She said as she kissed me on the cheek.

"Hey, have any of ya'll seen Two-bit and Steve?" Soda asked as he poked his head in the door.

"Nope!" Katie said while pulling Soda in the room to fix his tie.

"Geez! No one has seen either of them!" Soda yelled, and at that moment Two-bit and Steve appeared, through the window.

"Hey scholar!" Two-bit said as his greeting to me. Oh yeah I forgot, I graduated from high school with honors.

"Hey!" I yelled at them. "Where have you guys been and what did you do?" I asked.

"Nothin, why are you guys always accusing us?" Steve whined playfully. We all just looked at hem and rolled our eyes.

"Fine! We were just watchin the girls." Two-bit answered. Soda and I hit them both upside the head.

Two-bit and Steve were the ones that changed the least after Johnny and Dallas died. Don't get me wrong, they were sad like the rest of us, the just stayed the same. Other than Two-bit getting himself a girlfriend named Carolyn, she wasn't a greasy girl, but not a soc either. Other that that, nothing happened to them.

"Don't worry; we didn't see the bride or nothin." Two-bit added I just rolled my eyes.

The pastor popped his head in the door, and told us we were supposed to be in the sanctuary now, and then we went.

"You may now kiss your bride." The pastor said, and Darry and Mollie kissed. I felt happy for them both as they rode off to the reception hall together.

"Come on Pony and everybody. We gotta get to the reception before Darry and Mollie do." Two-bit yelled as he dragged a laughing Carolyn to his truck. The rest of us followed his example with our own girlfriends and cars.

I held open the door to my blue and black mustang for Katie. (I finally got a tuff car, thanks to Soda's being famous and rich.)

"So did you have fun?" I asked her after we got in the car and started to drive off. I really didn't have anything to say to her, I have been dating this girl for three years and I still get tongue-tied. My mind just goes blank, how pathetic is that?

"Yeah, I did a little bit." She said while starring out the car window. Why did Darry have to pick a reception hall so far away? I mean, the reception hall is two towns over, seriously. But then again, I think I knew the reason.

Since the trial the soc's have been meaner than ever to us, seeing as how us greasers won and all. I guess Darry didn't want them coming around to crash his party.

"I think Carolyn and Two-bit are secretly dating." Katie said out of the blue.

"Why do you say that?" I asked her. I wanted to take her temperature, Two-bit and secrets just don't mix.

"Carolyn was talking about how much she loved weddings and she said she had hers all planed out." She said.

"That doesn't mean that she's engaged, you know. And besides, that is so unlike Two-bit. He can't keep a secret to save his life." I said, thinking why do you think his name is Two-bit.

"I know that it's just that, the way she said it was like it was really happening, that's all." She answered.

"All right, you win." I said in surrender knowing that if I kept it up we would wind up in a huge fight. After being with a girl for a long time, a boy just gets to know these things, like when to let her win, and when to step up for yourself.

I remember when I first met her. She was a transfer student from another school close by. She did know about soc's and greasers, in fact she was a soc. She was rich and her parents actually liked me, me the greaser. She had dark brown hair and honey brown eyes. She always wore the "coolest" clothes (at least to all the girls, to me whatever she wears is good looking.).

I asked her out for homecoming and she said yes, ever since then we have been together. And she is more of a greaser; she just doesn't look like one.

"You know I was wondering if you wanted to rent an apartment with me as we go through college." I asked her. She starred at me for a long time before answering.

"Of course." She said. "I love you." She said as we neared the exit ramp to our exit.

We arrived at the party after Darry and Mollie did, but despite that, we had a good time. Basically all was good, well as good as it could be.

I was sitting at a table trying to avoid having to dance with Katie again when Darry came and sat down beside me.

"Ponyboy are you okay?" He asked me.

"Yeah, I mean it feels weird without Dally and Johnny, but I'm okay." I answered.

You know that even though I'm married now, you can always count on me to be there for you." He said. I felt a lump grow in my thought. I was going to miss him.

"I know," I said slowly so I wouldn't cry. "I know." I felt my face get hot. "Katie and I have been talking about moving into an apartment together." I said.

"That's great Pon..." Was all Darry was able to get out before Two-bit interrupted him.

"It's time for the garter toss dude!" He said wiggling his eyes while twirling Carolyn around and around over and over again.

"Hey, I heard that you and Carolyn are getting married." I asked. He stared at me with a blank expression on his face until I added, "So,… Are you?"

"Yeah, dude! Isn't it awesome?" He said.

Darry rolled his eyes and sighed. "You do the honors buddy." He said regretting it instantly.

"Yes!" Two-bit yelled running off to hunt down Mollie, leaving a dizzy Carolyn in the middle of the dance floor.

"Come on dudes!" Two-bit yelled as he waved a lacy garter in the air. "Ready?" He yelled as he turned around backwards preparing to fire it. "Go!" He yelled as he let go of the flying garter into a sea of young men that I was standing in.

I jumped up and clasped my hand shut as it came my way then bent down to open my hand. In the palm of my hand there laid a small lacy garter.