Chapter 38 – "Is it Family Shopping Day?"

Ponyboy came home at four o'clock. They heard the door close quietly and him walking around in the apartment. Of course he didn't want to wake them if they were sleeping. They had been sleeping but woken up about half an hour ago, and Sodapop got out of bed to get dressed. He tossed Johnny a pair of boxers, socks, and a T-shirt.

"You can borrow pants from Pony."

"How'd it go at the school?" Johnny asked when he and Soda came into the living room. "I mean are there any news and stuff?"

Ponyboy sat down on the couch. "Most of the building is burned down. They're rebuilding it at top speed, but it'll still take a couple of months, they think. There's some vacant beds in some of the dorms in the other Houses and the rest of the students are being accommodated in hotel rooms. Can you believe that? I guess money ain't the problem. Well, it never is here."

Hotel rooms? Sodapop wondered if they would let Johnny stay with them instead. They might as well. He was going to figure that out, but he didn't say it out loud. He didn't want to get Johnny's hopes up if they got a no.

"And you do know you were seen kissing last night, right?" continued Ponyboy. "People are talking about it. Well, it ain't the main subject of conversation - the fire is, of course - but still; they're talking."

Johnny suddenly got a little wide eyed and shot a glance at Soda. He had forgotten that they had kissed last night, but at that moment other people hadn't mattered at all. He had just been so happy to see Soda.

"I guess it's out then..." he mumbled.

"You okay with that, Johnny?" asked Sodapop, a little concerned.

Johnny took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah, I guess. I'm just a bit worried about how people are gonna react."

"It won't be too bad. Most people here are quite tolerant about it. They look more down on you if you're poor or don't wear designer clothes than if you're gay. And just ignore it when someone says something offensive. Then it ain't fun for 'em."

Sodapop thought that Victor and Harry might be the biggest problem; they would be grateful for something new to tease Johnny about. But if Johnny was allowed to live here while they rebuilt their house, it wouldn't be so bad. Besides, who knew what was going to happen to them? If the fire technicians found out that the fire had been caused by them, the school would have to throw them out.

o0o0o

Johnny borrowed a pair of jeans from Ponyboy and they all headed down to the school. When they got there, Johnny suddenly felt awkward since all the students they passed turned their heads to look at them. He gulped and looked down at his feet to avoid getting eye contact with anyone.

"Just act normal," said Soda an placed a hand on Johnny's shoulder

Johnny nodded and walked with him and Pony towards the principal's office.

When they entered the office Lauren looked up and a smile spread on her lips. "Oh, I'm so glad you boys are okay," she said and got up from her seat. "Darry told me what happened." She looked at Sodapop. "He nearly got a heart attack when you ran into the building."

"I know," said Sodapop. "But I had to. I couldn't just stand there and watch, hoping Johnny would make it out."

Lauren nodded. "Of course you couldn't. Well, what can I do for you?"

"It's just..." started Johnny. "I was hoping I could go take a look in my room. See if some of my stuff survived."

Lauren sighed and sent him a sad look. "There were few things we managed to salvage, but since your dorm was pretty much in the center of the fire I wouldn't get my hopes up, Johnny. But if you want to go and check, I'll show you where we put it all."

"I'd like to," nodded Johnny.

Lauren led them down a hall to a storage room. "We write out checks for the students so they can buy new clothes and such," she said as she unlocked the door and showed them in.

Johnny looked around the room. There wasn't much, considering how many dorms had been in the building. The only thing he found of his was his camera; the plastic half-melted and the lens broken. Johnny's chest started to ache and he turned away.

Sodapop stepped up to him and pulled him into a tight hug. "I'm sorry Johnny. I'm sorry you lost your things. I know buying new stuff ain't the same."

"They're... they're just dead things, Johnny," added Ponyboy, wanting to comfort him as well. "It's more important that you got out alive. And didn't get burns and stuff..."

"I know," Johnny sobbed against Soda's shoulder. "It's just a bit hard to see. And I'm rea sad about the presents from y'all. Burned. The gloves and…"

Lauren left the room to let them have a private moment and Ponyboy went with her. "Just come back to the office a little later and get that check," she said quietly to Sodapop before they left.

"Don't cry, Johnny," said Soda. "I'll buy you a new pair of gloves. And they'll be even better than the old pair."

"No… don't worry about it. It's just... your present just meant so much to me."

Johnny pulled away to dry his eyes with his palms.

Soda hooked a finger under Johnny's chin and tipped his face up. "It'll be ok, Johnny," he said and gave him a soft kiss on the lips. "The new present will come to mean as much to you. And you still got me - that's more important than my present, right?"

Soda wiped a fresh tear away from Johnny's cheek with a gentle thumb.

Johnny sniffed and nodded, his lower lip trembling. "Y-yeah. It's the most important thing. I guess I'm just a little sensitive right now. The fire and all…"

Sodapop suddenly got an idea how he could cheer Johnny up. "Wait here a sec, okay? I'll be right back," he said and hurried back to the office.

"Hey, Lauren, do you think they'll let Johnny live with us while the house is being rebuild? Instead of some stupid hotel room?" asked Sodapop.

Lauren's face lit up. "That's a great idea! I doubt it will be a problem. I think they'll be happy to have one less student to accommodate."

"Could you find out for us? Right now? I don't wanna stress you, but it would really cheer Johnny up."

"Sure thing," smiled Lauren and picked up the phone. A few minutes and a couple of calls later she put down the phone and smiled at Soda. "He's yours until the House is rebuild."

Soda rushed off to tell Johnny the good news.

"Hey, Johnnycake," he said as he came back to where Johnny was waiting. "Guess where you're gonna live the next couple of months!"

Johnny looked perplexed for a long moment, then his still wet eyes widened.

"Am... am I gonna stay with you?"

"Yeah! Lauren fixed it," grinned Soda. He picked Johnny up by the waist and swung him around before putting him back on his feet.

Johnny wrapped his arms around Soda's neck and smiled up at him, his eyes bright. "Really? I can stay with you?"

Sodapop nodded and Johnny pulled himself up to kiss him. He felt so much joy by the news that he didn't know what else to do than to just kiss him.

"Yeah," said Soda when they broke the kiss. "You're staying with us. And I hope it takes long to rebuild the house."

"I hope so too. I wouldn't mind if it took the rest if the school year," Johnny said with a grin.

o0o0o

They picked up the check at the office and Sodapop called Steve.

"Hey, Randle. Wanna give us a ride to town? We need to buy Johnny some new stuff. Or you could just lend me your car..."

"No way in hell I'm gonna lend you my car!" Steve said firmly at the other end of the line. "I'll be right out so you just wait by the car."

The three stood waiting and finally a good fifteen minutes later Steve appeared.

"Man... Is it family shopping day?" he said, eyeing Ponyboy.

"Yes," said Soda in an unusually stiff tone, indicating to Steve that he had to be nice to Pony.

Steve looked at Soda for a moment and then back at Pony. "Okay, fine. Get in,"

o0o0o

First stop was the optician. Like Sodapop said: "It ain't no use trying to buy clothes if you can't see 'em."

Johnny tried numerous frames, everybody giving their opinion on each. Steve and Soda also tried some - the uglier the better - and laughed loudly at each other. The staff was getting a little tired of their horsing around, but when one of them told them to cut it out or leave, Soda just turned on the charm, giving her a sweet smile and said they were just having a bit of fun and meant no harm. And had she heard about the fire? And did she know that Johnny was kind of a hero, managing to make it out just in the nick of time? She smiled widely back at Soda and said that of course they could have a little fun, and how about she bring them some hot cocoa? It was so cold outside, after all.

An optician approached Johnny. "Can I help you find the right glasses?"

Johnny turned to her and said in a low voice. "Um, I don't remember what strength I use."

"No problem. We will just check your eyes and find the right strength for you," said the optician with a smile.

After about 15 minutes, Johnny came back out to the others, who were still goofing around

"Look, Soda!" Steve said and took on a large pair of pink glasses. "How do I look?"

"Oh, God, I think I'm falling in love!" said Soda. "Sorry, Johnny..."

Johnny tilted his head and studied Steve. "Yeah, I see why." He turned to Soda. "Can we share?"

Steve, who had just taken a gulp of cocoa, nearly choked.

"What? You want him too?" gasped Soda. "I thought you'd be jealous!"

Johnny grinned at Soda and winked. "Well, how can I compete with that?" He pointed at Steve, who was just standing gaping at them. "But... you don't want me no more?" Johnny asked and made puppy dog eyes at Soda.

"Sure I do. But what d'ya say we try a threesome? I'm sure we can talk him into it..."

Pony couldn't help sniggering although he knew that wouldn't be popular with Steve.

Johnny edged a little closer to Soda and looked over at Steve. "I dunno... I don't think he can handle it."

Steve gulped. "Okay, guys, c-cut it out," he said and forced a chuckle.

"You don't know what you're missing," laughed Sodapop. "But take it easy - you ain't my type at all. And Johnny only has eyes for me - ain't that right, Johnnycake?"

Johnny smiled up at Soda and took his hand. "Yeah. Only you."

Steve took off the glasses. "You guys are fucked up. Like I didn't have enough problems handling Soda. Now he's got back up!"

o0o0o

Next up was clothes shopping.

"Yeah. Clothes is even better! I better help Johnny out in the dressing room. It's always nice have a helping hand in there," said Sodapop, sending Johnny and Ponyboy a wink.

"I can't hear you!" Steve said and covered his ears.

It turned out Sodapop wasn't much help buying clothes. Ponyboy ended up helping Johnny pick out some nice stuff. Even though Pony couldn't afford designer clothes, he had a pretty good sense of style.

"Wow, Pony," said Sodapop, "you're good at that - he looks awesome!"

Johnny wasn't really into fancy looking clothes like most of the rich kids were. He mostly liked jeans and t-shirts, but Ponyboy understood how to mix it together so it agreed with Johnny and looked great. Johnny sent Soda a shy smile as he complimented him. No matter how often he did that, Johnny still got shy.

As they headed toward the car they passed a photo shop and Johnny stopped. He stood and looked through the glass at the cameras on display. Ponyboy just remembered that Johnny liked photography and had shown him some of the pictures he had taken. He must have lost all those photos in the fire.

"Your uncle bought you that camera, didn't he?" asked Pony quietly.

"Yeah, he did." Johnny said, not taking his eyes off the window. "He said it would give me stuff to do and get me out of the house. He didn't like me spending so much time at home 'cause he knew my parents weren't treating me good, I think. But he couldn't do nothing 'bout it..."

"Why not? Why couldn't he do anything?" asked Ponyboy.

Johnny bit his lower lip and dropped his head as he sighed. "If he started arguing with my parents they would just forbid him to visit, and if he turned them into the authorities they might just take me away to some orphanage. So my uncle stayed over as much as he could, when he could take time off work and spend some time with me. My dad usually left me alone when he was there and my mom… well, he could handle my mom." Johnny smiled a little but had a sad look in his eyes.

Ponyboy wondered if he wouldn't rather have been in an orphanage if his parents had been that horrible.

"Your uncle - is he your dad's brother or your mom's?"

"My mom's."

It was probably hard to understand why he hadn't just run away or gone to the orphanage. But Johnny had always been pretty sure he wouldn't have made it in such a place. Also, he had never been able to shake the hope that someday his parents might start to care.

"Well, that camera looks pretty cool," said Pony. "Is it as good as the one you had?"

"I'm not sure. Let's go look."

Ten minutes later Sodapop and Steve came into the photo shop, finding Ponyboy and Johnny busy looking at cameras and lenses that a shop assistant had put out for them.

"Where d'ya go?" asked Soda. "Suddenly you were gone!"

"We're tryin' to find Johnny a good camera to replace the one he lost," said Pony. "There's some real cool stuff here."

Pony didn't know much about photography but it sounded interesting when Johnny talked and explained about what the different cameras could do.

"This one is really good," Johnny said, turning on one of the cameras. "It has a standard lens and the stabilizer is in the camera itself. That means if I wanna get a better lens at some point, for example to shoot pictures of things that are farther away, I don't have to buy a lens with a stabilizer in it. It kinda makes it cheaper."

He raised the camera up and took a picture of Ponyboy. "And it's got a lot of pixels, too," he grinned and showed Pony the photo.

"I didn't know you were into photography," said Sodapop.

"Well... I haven't done much since I got here, to be honest. Pony only knew 'cause he found my photo book once we were in my dorm."

Johnny finally decided on a camera and they left the store. He seemed happy with his choice but Soda noticed he was starting to look peaky and tired. Soda wasn't feeling too good either, he was tired and a headache was starting to develop.

"Maybe we should get home, don't you think?" he asked Johnny.

Johnny nodded and placed a hand on his forehead. He wasn't feeling well and his chest and head hurt a little.

o0o0o

When they were driving home, Ponyboy's phone rang.

"Where are you?" sounded Darry's irritated voice. "I'm making dinner and you should have been home now!"

Ponyboy sighed. "We went to town to buy some new glasses and clothes for Johnny. Steve drove us. We're on our way home now."

"Yeah, yeah, okay," Darry grumbled. "Is Johnny staying for dinner?"

"Yeah," said Ponyboy. "Actually, he's staying with us till they rebuild the house. Lauren fixed it. You haven't talked to her, huh?"

Pony suddenly got nervous. There was no doubt Darry would let Johnny stay, but they should probably still have asked him. Now he was going to get mad. Well, he was used to it.

Darry sighed. Of course he was happy to let Johnny stay, but he would have liked to be included in the decision. He bet that it was Soda who had arranged it and he was going to have a word with him later.

"No, I haven't talked to her. But it's fine. He can stay here. Dinner will be ready in 15 minutes so you better be home by then. "

o0o0o

Steve dropped them off in front of the apartment and they hurried inside. Ponyboy had quietly reminded Sodapop that they had forgotten to talk to Darry about Johnny staying. Soda thought he might find a way to deal with the situation without anybody getting mad.

"Hey, Darry," said Soda, smiling widely. Then he gave a baffled Darry a tight bear hug. "Thanks for giving Johnny a place to live. You're the best!"

Darry looked down at Soda a little confused. He had planned to give him a lecture, but here he was, acting like Darry was some kind of hero.

"S-sure. Of course," Darry said, looking down at Soda, who just smiled happily up at him. "All right, all right… go sit down. Dinner's ready."

o0o0o

"You're going to school tomorrow, Soda," said Darry as they sat at the dinner table. "What about you, Johnny? Need another day's rest?"

"No, I'll go to school," said Johnny. "Any… any news about what started the fire?"

"Not yet. The police talked to most of the students today. They probably wanna talk to you tomorrow as well."

Johnny nodded and took a sip of water.

Sodapop didn't comment. He was very interested, of course, in what the technicians found out about the origin of the fire, but he was convinced he already knew. He just hoped the truth would come out.

When Ponyboy and Johnny had been busy in the photo shop earlier, Sodapop had pulled Steve aside.

"I think I know who did it," he said in a grave tone. "Johnny says the fire started in his dorm and I saw Harry and Victor smoking in the corridor a few hours earlier. Johnny says they do it a lot - in the room too."

Steve furrowed his brows. "Those two brats?" He leaned against the wall of the shop, pulled out a pack of gum, and offered Soda a piece. "But me and Evie saw them outside when we arrived at the parking lot. They weren't in there."

"They could've tossed a bud in the trash can. A thing like that can lie and smolder for a long time if you don't snuff it out properly, and then after a while some paper can suddenly catch fire. That's why they always warn you about throwing buds in the trash can. The fire can start a good deal later. If you want to light a fuse to a bomb and need time to get away, you put a cigarette bud under it. At least that's what I saw in a movie once."

Steve leaned his head back. "You know, even if it is them, they've got a good chance of getting away with it. They're rich and can afford any lawyer they want, man. Damn fuckers... People could've died."

"I ain't lettin' 'em get away with it, Steve," said Sodapop, his gaze hard as steel. "They could've killed Johnny. Unless the technicians find out it's some electric short-circuit or something else in their dorm - then it's their cigarette. And if they ain't even sorry about it... Well, I'm gonna have a little talk with them. Can I count you in? I can't take on both of them at the same time. They're kinda big."

"If I'm in? You bet I'm in!" Steve said and slammed his fist into his palm. "You know I got you're back, man. Always."

A/N: Remember to check out the illustration for the chapter (link on my profile).