I don't own the Outsiders!
"Tim, do you want to stay for dinner?" Randy asked me again. "Will she care?!" "No she wouldn't" Randy said in a firm tone. "All you got to do is change your shirt, wash your hands, and come down stairs." "What's wrong with my shirt?" "It's got holes all through it, plus it's stained. That's a shirt that you fight in isn't it?" "Yeah, it is…" "Here, try this" he said as he tossed me a plum colored plaid shirt. "Bathroom's right here" he said as he opened another door. I buttoned and tucked in the shirt. Then washed my hands, I took a look in the mirror. I fixed my hair with the comb I kept in my back pocket, man I looked like a Soc! I opened the door to the sound of Randy laughing at me. "Tim Shepherd, if the greasers back home could see you now! You look more like a Soc, than some of my friends!" "Oh shut up! Whose shirt is this again?" "It's mine, but I am a Soc!" "Let's just go down stairs, I'm starving!" "Alright" he said as we ran down the stairs. "Mom, Tim's here!" "Tim who?!" I heard her ask, as we stopped by the kitchen door. "Timothy Shepherd! It's been a while, how's your momma doing?" She asked as tipped toed to hug my neck. I bent down to let her hug me, "Mom passed, the cancer took her about a year ago… "Oh Timothy, I'm so sorry. She was a fine woman." "Yes ma'am" "We are having hamburgers and French fries, does that sound good to you?" "That sound's great, Mrs. Adderson." "Timothy, you know me better than that, call me Jenny!" I smiled like I haven't since mom died. That reminded me that to her I was still a kid. I wasn't Tim Shepherd the gang leader, or Tim the parent. I was Tim the kid from the old house next door. I had just turned 18 when mom died, and I fought just as hard if not more than Darry to keep my siblings. It was hard to win that case. I was barely old enough to drop out, I had a record but no job and our house was barley still standing. I did the cooking and the cleaning at our house, not that I would admit to it. It's nice not to worry about that for a while. I got a job working nights at the steel mill, two weeks out of every month. I would just tell everyone that I was in the cooler. "How are Charles and Angela doing?" "They are just fine. Curly got in trouble for fighting in school, and Angela got another boyfriend." "I seem to remember another green eyed boy who used to get in fights at school." She said, with a pointed look in my direction. Then she asked "how are you Timothy?" "I've been better; I graduated and got a job. Been taking care of them, the best I know how." "You know that you are always welcome in my house. It doesn't matter what side of the tracks it's on." "Thank you" "Hey Tim, I've got to get the grill ready, you want to help?" "Fine with me" So we went out to the backyard. I was shocked when I saw they still used the same grill from when we were kids. "What was your G.P.A. when you graduated?" "What brought that up?!" "Well everyone I know from up here says you're a dumb hood. I know you're a lot smarter than they think, you did get moved up in elementary school." "I did, but don't go telling the world. I had a 3.7 G.P.A. on the day I graduated." "Tim, that's almost a perfect score, why didn't you get a scholarship?!" "At the time I didn't have a job and 'unemployed gang leader, with four extra pages for a police record' isn't what good collages are looking for." "Smart people who are willing to do the work, is exactly what they are looking for." "Sure if you have the money to pay for it and no reason to stay." "Well you ready to eat?" "Yeah" "Come on" he said as we went inside to eat.
