Thank you so much to everyone who had read and especially to all of my reviewers. I appreciate you all so much. Also, a special thank you to Simona for helping me with ideas and being a great sounding board! Talking with you is always fun!

Closer

Steve and Two-Bit had found me after class, Two throwing an arm around my shoulder and Steve pretending to punch me in the stomach as I tried to stop from dropping my books. I threw the books inside my locker with my backpack, then slammed it shut. "Come on, Johnnycakes. We're going to the DX for lunch." Steve invited, grinning.

"Yeah? What if I don't wanna eat lunch at a filling station with a couple of hoods?" I asked, making Steve laugh as he crossed his arm, all of us keeping an eye out for socs in the hallway. I didn't ever have money for lunch in the cafeteria, even if Two or Steve would always spot me, so we sometimes went to the DX. Other times, I'd hang out in the library, doing homework. Sodapop gave us sandwiches for free, though, which was less embarrassing than letting one of the guys give me money, so I followed them out the side door since, technically, we weren't supposed to leave campus for lunch.

I climbed in the back seat of Steve's car, Two-Bit shouting 'shotgun' as he raced ahead of us, throwing the passenger door open and jumping in. Steve rolled his eyes and dropped into the driver's seat, starting his car and pulling out of the parking lot before a teacher could spot us. I wondered if Dally would meet us as I stared out the window, watching the trees fly by until I caught sight of a familiar figure only about a block away from the school. I jerked upright, grabbing Steve's shoulder. "Hey! Stop!" I called, shaking him, and he slammed on the breaks, him and Two-Bit both staring at me.

"Johnny, what's…" Two-Bit started to ask when Steve rolled his window down and Ponyboy approached the car, looking between the three of us warily. Steve and Two-Bit both invited him into the car…it took a minute but he finally agreed, climbing in beside me and giving me a hesitant smile. He was scared of us. I wondered for a minute how bad his uncle was if he was this scared of us when we hadn't even done nothing to him. We'd been real nice to him and everything, and he still acted like he were gonna hurt him or something.

Steve pulled into the DX parking lot, shutting the car off and we all climbed out, heading toward the station. Ponyboy hung back, apparently about to follow at a distance, but I hung back too, shoving my hands in my pockets. Two-Bit glanced back at us, then jerked his head for Steve to walk with him. He glanced at me, the corner of his mouth turning up in a smile. "How you been, man?" I asked.

"Um…I'm okay." He shrugged. I didn't quite believe him. He'd stayed over at Two-Bit's house the night before, and Steve and I had caught up with him at school earlier before class.

"How was the kid?" Steve had asked, uncharacteristically interested. Well…maybe that wasn't fair. He was a nice guy, but he usually didn't care about people that weren't in our gang. Then again, if it were up to me, or Sodapop, Ponyboy would be one of us. He lived in our neighborhood now and he needed friends, especially with his uncle being such an ass. I knew what it was like, living with people that hated you. It sucked. Having friends helped a lot. I had a feeling Steve kind of liked Pony, but Ponyboy didn't trust any of us. I didn't blame him. He didn't really have any reason to trust us. But he'd saved me and I owed him. He'd jumped into the middle of a fight that had nothing to do with him and he'd saved me.

"Fine…" Two-Bit had trailed off, both of us waiting. Sodapop had been real worried the night before, and I knew Darry kind of felt bad. He hadn't meant to make Ponyboy uncomfortable but I knew he worried a lot about losing his little brother. "You know his birthday was a couple of days ago?"

"Really?" Steve had asked, glancing at me. "Poor kid had a shitty birthday."

"He woke up late last night…I heard him talking to my mom." He'd told us softly then, crossing his arms and lowering his voice. "I think…the kid's got it pretty rough." We'd known that already, but to hear Two-Bit say it like that, I had a feeling something more serious was going on.

"You know what your schedule is yet?" I asked Ponyboy as we made our way to the DX, him dragging his feet and me hanging back with him.

"They're gonna tell me tomorrow. Said I can pick it up at the front office." He told me, then glanced back at the guys ahead of us. "Is, um…is Sodapop not in school?"

"Nah. He dropped out last year. Needed to help Darry with the bills and besides, he said he didn't like it anyway." Pony nodded, humming a little. "So it's just me, Two-Bit, and Steve. Susie's around too…you met Two-Bit's sister?"

"Yeah, yesterday." He told me, his eyes on the ground as we headed for the station.

"You hungry?" I asked. "Sodapop always gives us sandwiches."

"He ain't gotta do that," Ponyboy told me, shrugging uncomfortably.

"He does it because he wants to." I told him, grinning. "He don't mind." Ponyboy didn't look too convinced, so I changed strategies, getting out the words I'd wanted to say for a while now. "Hey, Ponyboy?" He hummed, pausing and glancing over at me. "I never really got to thank you, you know? For jumping in like you did." Immediately he was uncomfortable and I reached out, gripping his upper arm. He flinched but didn't pull away. "I mean it. They might have killed me if it hadn't been for you. So thank you." He blinked, wide-eyed and surprised.

"It wasn't nothing…" He muttered, but I cut him off.

"Yeah, it was. They beat the shit outta you because of me, and you didn't even know me then." He was quiet for a second, then nodded, smiling just a little.

"You're welcome."

We caught up with the other two who were stepping inside the DX then, Ponyboy staring at his feet the whole time until he almost ran into Steve. He snorting, punching Ponyboy on the shoulder. "Watch it kiddo." None of us missed how pale Ponyboy got when his fist came up, but when it bumped gently against his shoulder, he smiled just a little, the look so hesitant that it was hard to watch. Then he nodded to Sodapop who looked up from the counter with a grin.

"That time already? Hey, Ponyboy!" Ponyboy muttered a hello, trying for a smile. It came out as more of a grimace. "How's it going, kid?" He came out from behind the counter, nodding to me. "Hey, Johnny."

"It's going fine." He told Soda as Steve headed over to the cooler, looking through the sandwiches. Two-Bit remained where he was over by the chips, probably picking out a snack.

"His uncle enrolled him in school today," I spoke up, figuring Pony was feeling uncomfortable. He didn't like being the center of attention, apparently. I didn't much blame him. Usually, I didn't talk all that much, but it looked like Ponyboy needed someone to speak up for him.

"Yeah? When do you start?" Sodapop asked, crossing his arms and leaning against the counter, another guy that worked there stepping through the door and taking his place behind the counter. We took that cue to grab some sandwiches and head outside…well, all of us except Pony who didn't take any food. Two-Bit grabbed him one anyway.

"Uh, the principal told me to come tomorrow."

"You like your old school?" He wondered. Trying to make conversation with Ponyboy was kind of like pulling teeth, but Soda didn't seem to mind.

"It was fine." He mumbled. We all stood around the counter, Two-Bit holding out a sandwich to Ponyboy. He shook his head. "No thanks." He tried to wave him off, but Two-Bit reached out and grabbed his arm. Pony froze, eyes wide as Two-Bit turned his hand over, putting the sandwich in it, then let him go. Steve snorted and asked Sodapop something about work, and I scooted closer to Pony.

"They always have a lot of extras at the end of the night," I told him quietly, unwrapping mine and taking a bite. After a moment, he did the same, nibbling at it. "Steve works here part-time, and their boss don't mind them giving away sandwiches sometimes." Ponyboy glanced over at me, nodding a little, and I took another bite while the guys talked. Ponyboy seemed happy to just sit back and listen, so I joined in, both of us eating and listening, occasionally grinning a little when someone else would make a joke.

After a while, though, our lunch break was over and we had to head back to school. Steve turned to Pony. "You want a ride back to your place, kid? We got some time."

"No thanks." Pony tried his best to smile, hands deep in his pockets as he slouched next to me. "It ain't far." I think Two-Bit wanted to argue, but Steve just shrugged.

"Alright. See you around, Pony." He nodded to Ponyboy and headed to his car. I hesitated, turning to Ponyboy.

"See you tomorrow at school," I told him.

"Hey, Ponyboy?" We all paused when Sodapop called him back, Ponyboy sticking his hands down in his pockets again. "Why don't you come over for dinner tonight? Darry's making chicken. You can sleep on the couch if you want."

"I better not." He told Sodapop simply, shaking his head, that light in his eyes going dim again.

"Kiddo, it ain't no trouble. We don't mind…the guys always come over for dinner. Besides, your uncle's gonna be around and…"

"I'll be fine." Ponyboy cut him off, voice sounding dead as he tried to smile, then nodded to all of us. "Thanks for lunch. See you guys around." He turned then, ambling off toward his house where, hopefully, his uncle wasn't around. Soda stared after him for a second, jaw tight, and I knew he was worried. Ponyboy was friendly enough, but he was quiet and scared all the time…didn't seem like he had a lot of fun. I didn't think he really trusted us either. Hopefully we could change that.

The next day I woke up early, throwing all my stuff in my backpack and slipping out before my old man could wake up. He was passed out on the couch, mouth open, three empty beer bottles on the floor beside him. I snuck by, careful not to slam the door. My mom was in her bed, and I wondered if my dad had lost his job or something. He'd been home a lot lately, which meant I'd been sleeping elsewhere a lot lately.

It was a quick walk to Darry and Sodapop's house where I usually caught a ride with Steve and Two-Bit. Two's truck was broken down or something and he needed to get it fixed, so he'd been riding with Steve too. Darry sometimes gave us a ride in the truck when he had time if Steve couldn't do it, but I'd catch a ride one way or another. It was kind of a long walk to the school and it was cold out.

"Hey, Johnnycakes!" Darry called from the kitchen when I opened the front door, trying to be careful not to slam his door. I knew he hated that. He poked his head out, grinning. "Want some cereal? Steve's not here yet."

"Sure…thanks." I dropped my backpack by the door, joining him in the kitchen and pouring myself a bowl. He put another bowl on the table, I guess for Soda since the shower was running, and I took a bite, trying to hurry.

"How you doing, kiddo?" He asked, dropping into a chair with his own bowl.

"Uh…fine." I shrugged as the shower shut off in the other room. "Did Sodapop tell you Ponyboy was starting school today?"

"Yeah, he mentioned it." Darry took a bite, glancing at the hallway. "I think Tim had a talk with his uncle."

"Really?" I asked, surprised. I hadn't thought Tim had even known about Ponyboy.

He nodded, taking a bite of his cereal as Soda all but ran into the room, dropping into his chair and attacking his cereal. Darry snorted, rolling his eyes. "Chew, Pepsi cola." Darry advised, ruffling his hair with a grin.

"I am chewing." He told Darry around a mouthful of cereal, milk dribbling onto his chin. Darry pushed a napkin over then turned back to me, ignoring his brother's table manners.

"Dally told Tim about Ponyboy's uncle." Darry explained. "I guess he asked Tim to have a chat with him since they work together."

The front door slammed and Darry closed his eyes for a minute, sighing. Soda fought a laugh, then choked on his cereal as Steve stepped into the kitchen, lifting an eyebrow. "You okay, man?" He asked, pounding him on the back, and Darry rolled his eyes, taking his empty bowl to the sink and muttering something about 'living in a barn.'

"Yeah." Soda managed as I took my bowl to the sink where Darry grabbed it.

"You guys better leave soon." He told us, scrubbing our bowls. Sodapop grabbed a glass and took a drink of water, coughing a little, and we all hurried out the door, me grabbing my backpack, then hesitating.

"Hang on a sec!" I called to Steve who was climbing into the driver's seat of his car. I figured Two-Bit was driving himself or walking since he was usually the first one to the Curtis's.

"Where the hell you going, kid?" Steve called after me, then shut up when I headed over to the house next door, running up the path and knocking on the door. When I glanced back, they were both in the car. His uncle's truck was gone, so I figured it was safe to knock. Plus Steve and Soda would back me up if the asshole came after me.

Ponyboy opened the door, wide-eyed and startled. "Hey." He muttered, glancing behind me at the car where Steve and Soda waited. He looked like he wanted to hide from me or something, his eyes unsure…almost scared. "What's going on?" He asked.

"We're headed to school. Want a ride?" That seemed to shock him, and he stared at me for a minute before managing to open his mouth.

"I…you ain't gotta…" He stammered.

"Get in the car, kid! Come on!" Steve called, leaning over Soda who laughed, trying to push him off, then laying on the horn.

"There's room in the car. Come on." I grinned, jerking my head for him to follow me, and after a second, he grinned back slowly, grabbing the backpack by the door and shutting the door behind him.

He climbed in the car, sitting behind Steve, and I barely had time to shut the door before Steve was taking off. Pony gripped the door handle, glancing wide-eyed at me, and I laughed. "He's great at fixing cars but he can barely drive them." Steve reached back, trying to hit me, but he missed and had to swerve back into his own lane.

Sodapop turned in his seat, seatbelt forgotten and grinned at Ponyboy. "How's it going, kiddo? Excited for your first day of school?" I knew he was checking him over, but he didn't seem to have any new bruises, even though his face was still kind of rough looking. Ponyboy shrugged, fighting to look between Sodapop and his own hands in his lap.

"Uh…I guess."

"Man, my parents always had to drag me out the door on the first day."

"First day after summer break ended, first day of every week, every other day of the week…" Steve muttered and Soda slugged him, still grinning. "Thought I'd get to sleep in after dropping out, but our boss makes me come in early anyway." He shrugged. I knew Darry hated that he'd dropped out, but Soda really didn't seem to mind working at the DX too much. Pony just gave him a strained, unsure smile, but Soda wasn't put off. "Darry was always the brains of the family. Got a couple of football scholarships, but it wasn't enough to pay for college. Hopefully, after I'm 18, he can start saving up again and go. What about you, Ponyboy?"

"I couldn't afford it."

"Bet you could if you ran track. Get a bunch of scholarships. You any good in school?"

Ponyboy hesitated before answering that one, speaking real soft when he finally did, eyes down like he was admitting something bad. "They wanted to bump me up a grade in my last school." He told us, and Soda's grin got bigger.

"Shoot, you must be smart then!" He reached out, punching Ponyboy on the leg. This time, Ponyboy didn't flinch, just looked up in surprise. "Bet you could teach these greasers a thing or two." Steve snorted, swerving a little and knocking Soda off balance so he fell against the window. Ponyboy let out a surprised laugh at that, and Soda looked thrilled.

Sodapop turned back around in his seat as Steve pulled up to the DX, snatching the hat off of Steve's head and putting on his own, ducking out the door before Steve could grab it back. "See you guys later!" He called. Steve snorted, honking the horn as Soda crossed in front of the car, and Soda flipped him a cheerful bird.

As he pulled out of the DX parking lot, it was quiet again, and Steve floored it so we could get to school on time, fiddling absently with the radio and eventually leaving it alone.

Beside me, Ponyboy was wringing his hands, then looked up, taking a deep breath. "Um…thanks for the ride, Steve." He murmured after a few minutes of silence, glancing up and meeting Steve's eyes in the rearview mirror.

Steve nodded, his voice pretty quiet when he answered. "Anytime, kid." I knew he meant it.

There were barely any parking spaces left, so we had to park in the back, all of us speed walking to get to the building on time, especially Pony who had to go to the front office and get his schedule before homeroom started. There were a couple of guys lingering in the parking lot, sitting on their cars or on the steps, and a few girls stood in a tight group, all giggling and talking. Two-Bit walked by them, appearing out of nowhere, and lifted up one of their skirts. She shrieked, turning around and smacking at him, and Steve snorted.

"That's Two-Bit's girl, Kathy," I told Pony while Two pulled her close, kissing her as the other girls scattered, all of them giggling or whispering together. "And that's Evie, Steve's girl." I pointed and Steve turned around, grinning when Evie took his hand.

"What about you?" Pony asked, voice barely above a whisper as we headed for the front door. I followed, hurrying up the stairs with him. "You got a girl?" He was having a real conversation with me and I smiled.

"Nah." I shook my head, pulling the door open as we both stepped inside. He moved out of the way of a soc who would have shoved us if we hadn't moved, glaring at his back. "You?"

He snorted but didn't look really amused. "No." He told me shortly, pausing as we reached the front office. "I'd better…" I nodded, shoving my hands in my pockets. "You ain't gotta wait." He told me.

"Go on, Ponyboy. I'll show you where your first class is." I urged, leaning against the wall, and Pony smiled for real, nodding and hesitantly meeting my eyes.

"Yeah…okay. Thanks, Johnny." I didn't know if he trusted me…not yet. But he seemed to be relaxing a little as he headed into the office.

I walked him to his homeroom, pointing out his other classes on our way, then had to head to my own class. I didn't see him again until lunch. Two-Bit had asked when his last class before lunch was, and after I told him, we all milled around outside his classroom until Ponyboy emerged, pausing and staring wide-eyed at all of us as he froze in his tracks.

"Hey, kid." Steve nodded, and I grinned a little.

"Hi, Ponyboy."

"Hey…" He muttered, looking between the three of us and looking like he was about to run back into his classroom and jump out a window.

"Time for lunch," Two-Bit told him, throwing an arm over his shoulders and pulling him along. He hesitated, looking worried, then let Two-Bit drag him forward as he led him toward the cafeteria. Steve snorted, elbowing me, and we followed. When we got to the lunchroom, Pony pulled away from Two-Bit, heading toward a table. "I don't know how you guys do it in Kansas, but here we get our lunch before we sit down and eat it." He was grinning but Pony shrugged.

"Ain't got no money." He told Two-Bit, and I knew he was trying to be nonchalant, but his ears turned red and I knew he was embarrassed. Two-Bit lowered his voice, leaning in.

"Heck, kid, I can spot you…"

"No," Ponyboy told him, his voice going hard. Two-Bit started to speak when Steve grabbed his shoulder.

"We're gonna grab food, kid. Be right back." He told him, pulling Two-Bit along. I let them go, dropping down on the bench across from him.

"Ain't you gonna get food?" He asked. I shook my head.

"Nah. I ain't got no money either," I told him easily. "Sometimes the guys spot me…" I shrugged. "It sucks, but they don't mind."

"They're your friends." He muttered, staring at the table. I wanted to tell him that they'd be his friends too, but it was probably too early for that.

"Yeah…they're good friends," I admitted, grinning. "A couple of times we go to the DX…that's about as many times Soda can get away with giving out sandwiches for free."

"He's really nice."

"Yeah…they're all good guys. They're like my family, really. My parents suck so…" I hadn't admitted that to anyone before. Not really. He nodded though…I knew he'd get it. I mean, Steve and Dally would get it too. But Ponyboy was different somehow. He wouldn't try to brush it off or make a joke or nothing…he just nodded and looked sad.

"They don't care…about you staying with Darrel sometimes?" It was kind of funny to hear Darry's full name like that…it was what people had called his dad. I didn't comment on it, though.

"Nah. Long as I'm not around, they don't care what I do." He grunted.

"That's lucky." He told me, his voice low as people walked around us, a couple of guys in fancy clothes glancing at Ponyboy and me but not bugging us. "If I'm nearby…I mean, sometimes he leaves me alone for a while. But then he changes his mind…it's like he wants to beat on me for fun." He shrugged. I flinched.

"That sucks." He nodded, then, before I could say anything else, Two-Bit and Steve sat down with us, Steve on my side and Two-Bit on Ponyboy's.

Two lifted a hand, gesturing grandly to our surroundings. "So what do you think, Ponyboy? How does it compare to Kansas?"

Ponyboy kept staring down at the table, and for a second I thought he was going to ignore Two-Bit. Then he shrugged again. "'Bout the same." He told Two-Bit in a quiet, hesitant voice. "Bigger."

"Yeah?" He pointed down at his fries. "Want some?"

"No…no thanks." Pony shook his head, glancing around again. At a table across from us, a bunch of soc football players were laughing loudly, talking and elbowing each other.

"Those are socs. Football players." Two-Bit told him. "Better stay clear. They're the kind of guys that beat you and Johnny up." Ponyboy nodded, but still seemed withdrawn. "You sure you don't want some?" The kid nodded again and Steve struck up a conversation about the DX, probably guessing, like I had, that Ponyboy was uncomfortable. He didn't seem like the kind of guy who wanted attention.

I thanked Steve when he pushed his half-empty tray over my way, snagging a few of his fries. I'd probably end up having dinner at the Curtis's house, maybe even sleeping over there. My mom and dad had been fighting worse than usual lately, so I tried to stay clear. Darry didn't mind none, and they had a spare room if me and Steve both needed to sleep over.

When lunch was over, I headed out with Pony who didn't wait for Two-Bit or Steve, both of whom were dumping their trays. I didn't think he was trying to be rude or nothing…didn't seem like he trusted us much though, or even liked us. He gave me a confused look when I joined him. "I gotta get to class." He told me, lips turning up at the corner just a little, more of a grimace than a smile. For a second, I wanted to say that was fine…that if he was gonna go out of his way to avoid us, then he could fend for himself. But his eyes were scared. And I knew how he felt.

"Sure thing. See you around, man!" I called, waving and heading to my own class. He'd come around.

Thank you for reading!