Geez sorry for the long wait! Hope everyone had a fantastic holiday, and a great new year! I got some pretty awesome gifts….Outsiders posters to be exact :D If any of you read my other kinda bad stories…my Christmas gift to you is that I'm completely rewriting them, they'll still have the same plot and all that stuff, just a different style. Anyways thanks to all who reviewed! I really appreciate it!
P.S. the plotline will be revealed later, so bare with me:]
WARNING: POTTY MOUTHS IN THIS CHAPTER
Disclaimer: I sadly don't own 'The Outsiders' S.E. Hinton does….she's an extremely lucky duck.
Chapter 2 (joy!)
My eyes never left my older brother as he snatched my cigarettes, then walked out of the house. I started to rise, about to follow him, but the look Steve gave me made me slump back down on the couch. I'm his brother, I know him more than you do, I thought as Steve followed him out, like a puppy wanting a bone. The puppy being Steve, the bone being the emotions and information Soda was hiding.
I placed my ear against the front door, trying to gather as much information as I could. Unfortunately, the only thing I could hear was a faint murmur coming from the other side. The never ending rain was so loud; it drowned out most of the conversation. "Pone, is the rain trying to speak to you? Or are you just fascinated by the doors design?" Two-Bit asked, bursting into fits of laughter as soon as he finished speaking. I rolled my eyes and sighed in defeat, there was no way I would be able to hear anything. Hell, the rain was so loud; we could barely hear the television that was almost on full blast.
I returned to my seat on the couch, straining my ears to even catch a sentence of their conversation. After a minute or so, I finally gave up and tried to direct my attention to the T.V. I rolled my eyes at Two-Bit, who was complaining nonstop about the show on the screen, but was making no attempt to get up and change the channel. I didn't stay focused for long though, my attention slowly turned to the rising volume of the voices on the other side of the door.
Although I couldn't make out any of the words, I was still surprised at what I was hearing. Soda was yelling, in anger. Soda, never in his life, had screamed at anyone when he was pissed. I was incredulous about the acerbity in his voice. But my main concern was why. Why was he yelling? Why was he so angry? More importantly, what pushed him over the edge?
Steve entered the house, giving me continuous glares. Soda never came in though. Darry was in the kitchen and Two-Bit was completely oblivious towards what was happening. What the hell did I do? I kept asking myself that question. Sure, Steve and I were never on good terms, but I hadn't done anything yet to make him this pissed at me. Steve smirked as Darry's voice echoed throughout the house, "Ponyboy Curtis, get in here. Now." Oh shit, I'm screwed, I thought to myself as I entered the kitchen, prepared to meet my fate.
"Care to explain this?" Darry questioned as he thrust a piece of paper in my face. It was a guardian teacher conference to discuss my declining grades. Tragic. Darry's face had a hint of red in it, yet I still I had the courage to say a smart ass remark, "I'd rather not, it explains it all on the paper," I stated. He was fuming now.
"Why the hell is it in my house?" Darry growled. Well that's a stupid question. Obviously I'm not doing well in school. Luckily I bit my tongue before I said something else.
"Let's face it Dare, my grades suck. There's not much to it," my voice shook with every word I said. I was scared shitless.
"Well, then I'm guess you're going to have to bring them up, 'cause you're going to college. Why would you wanna blow that?" Oh no. He was not bringing up this bullshit again.
"What if I don't want to go to college," it was a statement, not a question. To be honest, I was pissed. He never thought about what I wanted.
"Ponyboy Curtis. We're putting you through college. End of discussion," he got up, just about to leave. Then I opened my mouth and said the dumbest words possible, "I'm dropping out. I'm not gonna live the dream that you never got to." His head whipped around.
"You're not dropping out. That's final," Darry said, anger in his voice. I just had to keep egging him on,
"Why? You obviously don't care about grades if you let Soda drop out," I argued.
"Ponyboy Michael, don't you dare bring your brother into this. He has nothing to do with-" I cut him off,
"Yes he does! It's not fair! My grades are just as bad as his were and you are telling me I can't do the exact same shit he did? Real fair Dare, real fair," I huffed, beyond pissed. I was furious, but at who? It wasn't Soda, Darry was right Soda had nothing to do with it. It wasn't Darry; he was just trying to do what's best for me. Was it me? Darry's voice broke my thoughts, "Soda…" his voice trailed off.
"Darry, Soda's not here. He's somewhere else, pissed to no end," I recalled as my brother's eyes moved to something behind me. I silently cursed myself as I turned around to be face-to-face with my brother, who was soaking wet and now had a stoic expression on his face, his eye glazed over.
I was speechless, not because I was surprised, but because I was afraid to say anything else that could completely screw me over. Ponyboy, you're such a dumbass. He heard everything. Grades, fighting, dropout, everything. All eyes were on me, especially Soda's. I couldn't even make eye contact with him. I was struggling to find words as Steve sneered at me, Two-Bit's eyes saying, you screwed up kid. Next thing I knew, I was running out of the house, into the pouring rain at full speed.
There you go Ponyboy, running away from your problems yet again, the little voice in my head kept reminding me as I sprinted down the street. Hearing the footsteps behind me made me run even faster, but not fast enough to miss a reflection in the glass from a store on the side of the road. It was a kid, a sixteen year old to be exact. A teen that just fucked up and was now running, afraid to face the music. A teen who thought he knew everything and would fight to prove he was right. A teen that went by the name of Ponyboy Curtis. A teen who was me. A teen that took all the good things in life and destroyed every single one of them.
I was disgusted with the reflection and kept running with my head down, not wanting to see it again. I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing, where I was going. But I sure as hell looked up to see a Corvette's headlights shining on me. I forgot mom's number one rule, look both ways before crossing the street. I tried to move my feet, but they felt as if they were glued to the cement. In a way, I guess I deserved it.
So this is what Darry meant when he said I didn't use my head, I explained to myself as I closed my eyes, waiting for the vehicle to run me over. Behind my eyelids, I could still see the bright lights coming at me, my face getting hotter with every millisecond as the lights shone directly on me. Then I felt the impact, but it wasn't as powerful, or as heavy as I thought it would be…
Well, there it is. If Ponyboy seems OOC, remember that he is now sixteen and things change. So anyways, I would really appreciate it if you reviewed. They make me happy!:]
