Well, I kind of forgot about this one. Believe it or not, I do that a lot…Anyways, thought I'd jump back on the horse.
Disclaimer: Utterly pointless…
On with the shoe!Monday morning came with the alarm going off down the hall in Darry's room. That was typical. It would be another fifteen minutes before he tried to get me up and then another ten before he managed it. A trip to the bathroom, breakfast and the usual argument over whatever random topic was up for today and I'd be off to school with Two-Bit, Steve, Johnny and Ponyboy. I had a math test this morning. I groaned to myself and buried deeper into the bed. I really did not want to get up today. I wondered if Darry would buy that I was sick? Well, he hadn't the last two times I had tried, but it was worth a try. Mondays made me feel sick, so why not get the day off?
"Pepsi?" Darry called into the room.
I frowned. This was different. He usually just pounded on the door twice, opened it up and gave me the ten-minute warning. He was getting sloppy.
"Come on, Pepsi-cola. You have school today," he said in a gentle voice as he shook my shoulder.
"Go away," I ordered, but that wasn't my voice.
My eyes flew open and Darry was looking at me with a worried expression. I kept his gaze as I patted my chest and ran a hand through my hair.
"You ok?" he asked.
"I forgot," I admitted.
Darry nodded and looked sympathetic. I didn't buy it for a moment.
"I can't go to school like this."
"Get up; you're going."
I glared at him as he ripped the covers off the bed and walked out with them. Damn him and being so smart. I finally rolled over and flopped out of bed, hitting the floor like I did every morning. For some reason, it hurt more this morning. I attributed it to the fact I had more padding on my back end and a cast on the arm I usually caught myself with. I was going to have to get out of bed like a normal person from now on.
I got to my feet and groaned. I really did not want to go. Facing school as a guy was bad enough. Facing school as a girl was something I did not know how to do. I didn't like not knowing how to do something. Which led me back to my point of 'I don't want to go to school today' or any other day until Soda fixed this. Yes, I trusted Soda to fix this because he was the only one who promised. Darry stressed over it and Ponyboy seemed to be tolerating it, but Soda promised. I was going to have to trust him. Until then, it looked like Darry was still the boss since he stole the freaking covers and it was freezing in here.
"Morning, Curtises!" Two-Bit hollered.
"Two-Bit, do you always have to yell?" Pony asked.
"Yep, most definitely."
I rolled my eyes and started going through all the girly clothes in the closet. I didn't want to wear any of it, but it looked like I had no choice. I had no choice about anything. And this damn bra was giving me grief. Life sucked.
"Sodapop?" I hollered. "I need a hand."
"I'll help!" Two-Bit yelped.
"I have a spoon," I threatened before the door could open.
"Soda, Pepsi wants you," he shouted, footsteps retreating from the door.
A minute later, Sodapop popped into the room still dripping wet from the shower. He had thrown on his DX hat and had the towel knotted around his waist. I kept my back to him and held up my hair so he could see the problem.
"I don't know how girls put up with these things," he muttered.
"Because it beats when you don't have one," I pointed out, just as I had yesterday.
"Practice, Peps. I can't keep doing this for you forever."
I stiffened at that, the utter emptiness that always preceded tears gripped me. I bit my lip and nodded.
"With any luck, it won't be forever."
Soda sighed, obviously tired of tiptoeing around my feelings. Hell, I was tired of him tiptoeing around them, too. He stepped away and I threw on the blouse on top of the bedspread. It was the red one.
"Sorry, Sodapop."
"Don't worry about it, Pepsi. Come on and finish getting dressed so you can eat before school."
"Is it too childish of me to say I really don't want to go?"
Soda seemed to be thinking on that for a minute. "No. It's always hard to be the new kid. Not that you've never been there before, but well, you kind of are."
"Well, at least everyone but you and Darry are going to be there."
I wondered if that was a comfort or not.
"Yeah, really," Sodapop said stepping out into the hall.
"Hey there, buddy; you'd better put some clothes on," Steve advised. "There's a law or something."
I mouthed along to the last part. You'd think he'd come up with some new material. He said the same thing almost every morning.
"Yeah, I know. Pony, you seen my DX shirt?" Soda hollered.
"I did wash," Darry answered. "Check the line."
"Darry? You seen my math book?" Ponyboy called as the back door slammed.
"Under my couch," I hollered.
"Thanks!"
"Pepsi? You touch my wallet?" Darry yelled.
"You always assume –"
"It's on top of the washer!" Pony called back as the back door closed again.
"Found my shirt!" Soda declared.
"Soda? You seen my – never mind," I yelled picking up the long socks I was about to ask about
At least something was typical. It seemed like we never were able to find our own things first thing in the morning. It was kind of funny that everyone else knew where everyone else's stuff was. I glanced at myself in the mirror and wondered how the hell I was supposed to get through today? This made day numberfive of being a girl. If this went on any longer, I had some serious butt kicking to do. I glanced at the cast on my arm and frowned. No butt kicking today, at least.
I sighed and ran a brush through my hair. Soda had picked out some hair ties and I figured the headband was an excellent idea. I decided I looked good in red, even if I had to wear the damn green skirt today. The finishing touch was the soft red lipstick I had found in the medicine cabinet. It was Mom's and no one had the heart to touch it; just like Dad's shaving cream. I did so only because I had to and I knew she would have offered it.
"Pepsi-cola!" Darry hollered.
I rolled my eyes, looking like a Soc priss as I did it. Yeah, this was never going to work.
"What's the hold up?" Darry asked, knocking on the door.
"Nothing. I'll be out in a minute and there had better be cake!"
Darry muttered something before his footsteps retreated down the hall. I gave myself one more forlorn look before picking my notebooks up off the dresser and tucking a pencil between the coils. I took in a long breath before opening the door and walking down the hallway with only the sound of those god awful black shoes I was forced to wear clicking after me. I wet straight to the kitchen and leaned in the doorway.
"I can't do this."
Darry turned from the stove and sent me an odd look. "Of course, you can."
"I look like freaking Nancy Drew," I grumbled, walking over to the table where Johnny and Ponyboy were eating toast and cake.
"Better Nancy Drew than Angela Shepard," Pony offered.
"Either goody-goody prep school girl or slut extraordinaire…" I grumbled before stealing a chunk of Pony's cake.
"Fork, Pepsi," Darry scolded and I ignored him.
"It'll be fine, Pepsi," Johnny added and I offered him a small nod.
What can I say? It's rare when he says anything to me, so it only made sense to reward him. Didn't mean he was even close to being right, but that was a whole other can of worms.
"And how am I supposed to explain me?" I asked.
"English, Pepsi," Darry sighed in an overly patient manner.
"Yeah, Pepsi. How am I supposed to explain Pepsi to my teachers?" I asked. "How am I supposed to explain me to my teachers?"
"That's why I'm taking you to school today."
I sighed. Just what I needed: a Darry escort. See, this way he was making sure I actually went to school. How he knew I was ready to bolt was beyond me…
"Hey Darry? I've gotta take off. Two-Bit says you got Pepsi?" Soda asked popping his head into the kitchen.
"Yeah. Ponyboy, Johnny, get going, too," he ordered and they both got to their feet.
"We'll see you at lunch like always, Peps," Pony reminded.
"I've been turned into a girl, Pony. I haven't lost my memory."
He gave me a funny look before shrugging and following after Johnny. Two-Bit was hollering something about bad influences and Steve was trying to hurry them all along so they weren't more than their customary twenty minutes late. I really wanted to be with them rather than picking at what was left of Pony's toast and cake.
It was ten minutes later when Darry and I left the house. On the way over, I got told off for chewing my nails – something I had never done before since that was Ponyboy's nervous habit. My nervous habit was to do something stupid or fidget like mad. On that note, I fidgeted for the rest of the ride over. Darry seemed short on patience by the time we walked into the school. The receptionist let Darry on in while I stood around because I apparently didn't sit like a girl. Yeah, that one made me roll my eyes, too. It was about five minutes of the typing of keys and secretary gossip when a couple greasers I knew walked in. They were all from Tim's area of town, but I couldn't tell you if they were in his gang or not. I sat down with my left hand under my knee hoping to whatever god watched over boys cursed into girls with broken right hands that they wouldn't notice me. The last time a guy noticed me was Dallas the morning this whole fiasco started. After that, I couldn't even let Darry look at me. I did not need that again.
"Let's go," Darry said a minute later, throwing those boys a particularly threatening look.
I stood and we went out into the deserted hall. "What did you tell him?"
"I told him that you're staying with us for a while and I thought it was a good idea you keep up with your education. Pepsi, figuring out we didn't have all that much money, is taking a leave of absence to work and make up the difference. You're to bring home work for the pair of you."
I scowled. Not only was I turned into a girl by evil means, but I was now expected to do double the work. How in the world was that fair?
"You're supposed to head up to class. This is your schedule. I told them you'd just use Pepsi's locker."
"You know, I am getting sick of you referring to me as two people," I snapped and snatched the schedule from him. "Great…I have the exact same schedule."
"That'll make things easier," Darry pointed out.
I shook my head, doubting it. Darry laid a hand on my shoulder and stopped us in the hall. I looked up at him, realizing I was shorter as a girl, and waited for the 'be good talk' I always got.
"I have to head to work," he pointed out the obvious. "Anything happens and you find Steve. He'll take you over to the DX."
I nodded, not liking that I would have to be beholden on Steve for anything, but I wasn't about to tell Darry that. He liked his little plans. He seemed to like thinking up stuff like that, so I usually let him and either went with it or totally blew him off. I thought this time he was really serious, though. You could tell by how his forehead creased just slightly. I finally nodded and he squeezed my arm before turning down the hall towards the front entrance.
"You can do this," he called over his shoulder.
"Don't have a choice," I called back.
A moment later, I was all alone and decided to head upstairs. The math test was always at the end of class. I figured if I made it up there the teacher would let me write it. I hoped, that was. She was a cow. I knocked on the door a minute later and waited.
"…And the quadrilateral function is again followed in these two steps and...yes?"
I shifted my feet in the doorway and walked over to…damn if I could remember her name. I handed her the note Darry had given me and waited.
"Well class, this is …Eleanor Curtis. She's joining our class," she pointed out needlessly and scanned the room "Well, as it appears Mr. Curtis isn't here today, you may have his seat. Not that he routinely fills it, but I had expected him on test day."
I wordlessly held out my second note. She read it and frowned suspiciously. "I thought as much. I take it you two are of some relation, then?"
"Yes ma'am, cousins." I nodded.
"Hopefully you have more potential," she muttered and I was hard pressed not to punch her. "Well then, class, it looks as if Mr. Curtis is taking a leave of absence. Take your seat; the class is about to be administered a test."
"Yes, I know. I'll write it."
"You're sure?" she asked and I nodded. "Well, alright then. You just put your hand up when it gets too much for you dear."
I turned away from her and walked over to my desk, setting my books on it rather harshly. Two-Bit turned around in his seat and gave me a surprised look.
"You looked about ready to kill her, Pe –"
"Don't call me that. Curtis, if anything," I directed before he could say anything. "Same goes for you."
Steve looked up from where he was writing out the last of the instructions from the board and glared at me like he thought I was brain damaged. I shrugged him off and looked down at my paper. Quadrilateral functions. I could do these in my sleep. So I carefully scrawled 'Sunshine Curtis' across the top of the page – no easy feat with my hand cast'd up the way it was. Sunshine was what Mom and Dad were going to call one of us if we had been girls instead of boys. So when Darry asked me for a name I went with that and Eleanor as a middle name. It was Mom's name, and the only thing I could think of. I shook my head, reminding myself that decision took days and there was no going back on it now before looking over the test and getting started. Ten minutes later I was done, so I pulled out my notebook and commenced doodling horses. I had a whole page in that book devoted to Dunn and Goblin. I sighed and wondered when the hell I was going to get to ride again. I didn't even have boots that fit anymore thanks to these tiny girly feet.
"Given up?" the teacher asked and I shrugged. "Well, that's nothing to be ashamed of dear. I'll mark you accordingly since this is your first day with us."
"I appreciate that," I told her.
The bell rang right then and I collected my books. Two-Bit was standing by then, so I wrapped my hand in his jacket and followed him out of the room.
"So…Sunny," Two-Bit said a minute later, "Going to your next class?"
"Yeah, Political Science."
"Have fun with that. Me and Kathy got a date behind the bleachers for gym," he announced and I rolled my eyes.
"Yeah, have fun with that."
"Now, you behave yourself. Make sure you have that spoon in your hand until lunch when I can properly protect you, got me?" he asked playfully and I shoved his shoulder.
"Moron."
"You're the one who's actually going to class," he said with a smile and pushed me towards the Junior Poli-Sci class.
I was going to turn around and tell him off, but I had unfortunately crashed into someone when pushed. I looked up at none other than Randy Adderson and groaned.
"Sorry," I apologized.
"I saw that greaser shove you," Randy dismissed it and picked up the notebook I had dropped. "You're new here?"
"Yeah. I'm from Texas," I answered, tucking stray hairs behind my ears. "Thanks."
I ducked around him and went over to my usual seat. With a sigh, I remembered the notes I was supposed to show to all my teachers and went over to…damn, I needed to learn her name, too. She seemed delighted I was there and at the same time upset that I wasn't there. You know, Darry may have had something with this whole "Past and present Pepsi" thing. Saying me and meaning two people at the same time was not easy to keep straight.
A minute later, Randy was in the seat beside me and I wanted to roll my eyes.
"I'm Randy Adderson."
"Sunny Curtis," I replied.
"There are some Curtis' in town here," he hedged and I nodded.
"Cousins."
He nodded and looked me over. My cast was where his eyes landed. "I take it you're living with them."
And here he was implying my family was abusive. Well, Darry could probably kill someone and Sodapop had one hell of a right hook. Ponyboy could run them to death and I was one hell of a fighter myself. But that wasn't the point. I came from good people, probably better people than he'd ever meet. What an ape face.
"For as long as I am in town," I replied stiffly.
"Sorry, it's just you don't look like a greaser girl."
Yeah, because Darry made me buy these horrible clothes that made me look like a Soc. It hit me then that he was trying to save me from the rivalry around here and ensure that I had a head start. Sometimes I was sure his plotting was getting far too out of hand…but I appreciated it.
"What's a greaser?" I asked innocently.
"One of the poorer kids who lives on the east side," Randy answered.
"Oh. Well, I'm not."
I was a greaser boy. Gotta love half-truths.
"Don't worry; just ignore them and they usually leave you alone."
"Alright ladies and gentlemen, listen up. Today we're learning about The Stock Market Crash and how it was handled politically. Keep in mind that war reparation payments and investments from Germany were lost. I trust you all did the reading."
"You can copy off me if you want," Randy offered. "I took notes on the chapter she's talking about."
I was fair tempted to roll my eyes, instead I just nodded and started taking notes on how the economy plummeted along with peace. I hadn't done the readings because I was a bit too busy freaking out that I was turned into a girl. So I glanced over Randy's stuff and thought his writing was worse than mine at least. After the class, I ditched Randy and headed straight to my locker. I was attacked by my track stuff and decided it needed a wash. It would have to wait for another time. I stashed my books away and picked out the ones I would need for my last period before lunch. I walked in and automatically handed the notes over for inspection before going and sitting down in my usual seat.
"Hi, you must be Sunny."
"I must be," I answered, looking up at Cherry Valance, cheerleader, standing beside my desk looking like a one-man welcoming party.
"I'm friends with Randy. I ran into him in the hall and he suggested I get to know you. I'm Sherry, but most people call me Cherry because of my hair."
She was smiling warmly and seemed friendly enough. I wanted to tell her that yesterday she had blatantly looked down her nose at me.
"Sunny, but not because of my hair," I replied, a little miffed by her.
"Well, today we're working on compositions. If you need help, just let me know."
I nodded and she went back to her seat. I wanted to groan and leave and a couple more childish things. First I wake up still a girl, then I get forced to go to school, and now I'm a freaking Soc magnet. It wasn't even lunchtime…I know what usually happens when someone says this, but could this day get any worse?
Any comments at all are welcome and flames are accepted.
See ya in the funny papers!!!
Tens and Zickachik
