I never fit in anywhere. At least, I didn't then. It was all different then. Before fitting in, before friends. Before love. At 13 years old you would probably say, " She's a kid, she doesn't know anything." You'd be wrong. I found out more in my 13 years than you probably will in 35. Living not on the wrong side of the tracks but not the right side either will do that to you. It'll teach you have you don't really fit in. Sure, Greasers live, 'on the wrong side' and Socs live 'on the right side'. Greasers get all the trouble and Socs get all the breaks. What about the ones in the middle? The ones who aren't rich or poor? The ones that don't really belong anywhere. The ones that are always the loners. Greasers have gangs and they really stick together. They have to if they're gonna survive. Socs have their 'clubs' and their 'groups' and they basically keep together. They have rumbles and fights against each other. They have something specific to hate. What about us? We're not Greasers and we're not Socs. We're not anything. We're ignored. To get noticed, you have to be one or the other and so far there's never been an honorary Greaser or honorary Soc. At least, not back then. To explain everything that happened; how all us 'Middlers' changed over a simple two months, I have to start at the beginning.
I moved out of the movie theater, still breathing in what I had just seen. I was thinking, "Paul Newman sure is tuff." Tuff was a term I had picked up from the Greasers. I was wearing an ankle length skirt and a brand new T-shirt. One of the signs I was a Middler. Soc skirt and greaser skirt. Although not all Middlers were so obvious I seemed to relish in the fact that everyone knew I didn't belong. Occasionally I'd 'go Grease' or 'go Soc'. I seemed to get away with it. Movies and books were my only escape from a world of one or another. There was only one other person I knew who went to the movie theater and the drive-in as much as I did. Ponyboy Curtis. He relished in the movies as much as I did. You could tell by the look in his eyes after the movie that he had become the characters as I did. I suppose he went for the same reason I did. To get away from one or the other, to go to a place with just regular people. I used to like watching him. He seemed so....... different. I like different. I saw the Soc's car pull up. Or rather, I saw it start to follow him. I tried to call out to him, to warn him. " Ponyboy, watch out for those Socs." But he didn't hear me. He was still lost in his own world. I couldn't do anything but watch as he turned the corner and disappeared. "Hey Belle! Yo, over here girl!" I turned around and saw Lemon coming towards me. I had known Lemon, nicknamed 'Lem', since I can remember. While us Middlers never really had 'best friends or groups' , we were all kinda of close. Me and Lem had been the closest thing best friends you could get, neither of us, like the rest, knowing where we belonged. " Hey Lem.", I said as she reached me. We started walking, going nowhere in particular. "What are you doing in that movie house again?", she asked teasing. " Oh, you know. Getting lost." I smiled at her, "You know I can't pass up a good excuse to get away." " Yeah, I know.", she said, punching my arm lightly. Like me, she wore half and half, except in reverse. Socy shirt and Greaser capris. No one really bugged us. Socs were all preoccupied with greasers and Greasers were all preoccupied with Socs. We kept walking. " Lem, let's go down to the DX Station. My baby's in the shop again." I said
" Which baby?" said Lem teasingly. She knows that I absolutely love Sodapop Curtis, Pony's brother. I tsked. " You know what I'm talking about. My car gave out again. The DX is the only decent place around. Besides, me n' Soda are just friends. I'd never stand a chance with all the girls after him. C'mon, you can se Steve." Steve is Soda's best friend. Has been since they were in kindergarten. Lem has a huge crush on him. Strangely enough, she always left Soda alone and went for Steve.
" Well, all right but only because I know how much you like...cars." she said laughing.
I have a thing with cars and guys, so I work the register part time. Whenever my "baby", a midnight blue Mustang my dad got me for my birthday, broke down, it went to the DX. Steve and Soda have a way with cars. Me and Lem have a thing for them. We walked to the DX Station. There were about ten girls there as usual. They all come to flirt with Sodapop. We fought our way through the crowd and into the garage. " Hey, Soda! How's my baby doing?"
" Hey Belle! Just got finished with her. Not too bad this time. You go any faster though, she ain't gonna run anymore!", he laughed and smiled at me.
" You know I can't resist the wind in my hair." I pulled my hair out of my pony tail and shook it around my face. I laughed. I hadn't stopped smiling since Soda had turned around. He has that effect on people. Especially me. " And what about you, Mr. Drag-Racer?" I asked teasingly.
" All right, all right. You win.", he laughed. " You dig OK Belle."
I went over to my Mustang, literally nicknamed Baby. Lem had somehow snuck her way over to Steve. Soda followed me. " Your hair gets lighter and curlier every day.", he said, messing with the top of it.
" Thanks.", I blushed a little and left it messy. I looked under the hood. " I really burned her this time huh?"
" Yeah you did. Nothing I couldn't handle though.", he puffed out his chest and looked thoroughly pleased with himself. Then he let all the air out and we laughed again. You laugh a lot around Sodapop Curtis. " How's the fan club? " I said sarcastically, leaning on the side of my Mustang.
" Oh, you know. Annoying.", he said blushing. He punched my arm. " You working tonight?, he asked.
" Yeah, I think I will. I gotta get Lem outta here first though," I said, jerking my head in her direction. " Or she won't ever leave." Lem was flirting nonstop with Steve. Actually, they were flirting with each other. I told you she had a thing for Steve.
" Yeah, OK." He smiled. I went over to Lem.
" C'mon, we gotta go. Baby's fixed." We looked at each other sideways and cracked grins. " All right, see you later Steve."
" See ya."
We got in the car and backed out. We waved to the guys and turned the car around. " Bye boys!" we yelled.
" See ya later girls!" they yelled back, all of us ignoring the gathering crowd of girls at the sight of Soda. I put on my sunglasses and dashed outta there at 65. I love going fast.
I moved out of the movie theater, still breathing in what I had just seen. I was thinking, "Paul Newman sure is tuff." Tuff was a term I had picked up from the Greasers. I was wearing an ankle length skirt and a brand new T-shirt. One of the signs I was a Middler. Soc skirt and greaser skirt. Although not all Middlers were so obvious I seemed to relish in the fact that everyone knew I didn't belong. Occasionally I'd 'go Grease' or 'go Soc'. I seemed to get away with it. Movies and books were my only escape from a world of one or another. There was only one other person I knew who went to the movie theater and the drive-in as much as I did. Ponyboy Curtis. He relished in the movies as much as I did. You could tell by the look in his eyes after the movie that he had become the characters as I did. I suppose he went for the same reason I did. To get away from one or the other, to go to a place with just regular people. I used to like watching him. He seemed so....... different. I like different. I saw the Soc's car pull up. Or rather, I saw it start to follow him. I tried to call out to him, to warn him. " Ponyboy, watch out for those Socs." But he didn't hear me. He was still lost in his own world. I couldn't do anything but watch as he turned the corner and disappeared. "Hey Belle! Yo, over here girl!" I turned around and saw Lemon coming towards me. I had known Lemon, nicknamed 'Lem', since I can remember. While us Middlers never really had 'best friends or groups' , we were all kinda of close. Me and Lem had been the closest thing best friends you could get, neither of us, like the rest, knowing where we belonged. " Hey Lem.", I said as she reached me. We started walking, going nowhere in particular. "What are you doing in that movie house again?", she asked teasing. " Oh, you know. Getting lost." I smiled at her, "You know I can't pass up a good excuse to get away." " Yeah, I know.", she said, punching my arm lightly. Like me, she wore half and half, except in reverse. Socy shirt and Greaser capris. No one really bugged us. Socs were all preoccupied with greasers and Greasers were all preoccupied with Socs. We kept walking. " Lem, let's go down to the DX Station. My baby's in the shop again." I said
" Which baby?" said Lem teasingly. She knows that I absolutely love Sodapop Curtis, Pony's brother. I tsked. " You know what I'm talking about. My car gave out again. The DX is the only decent place around. Besides, me n' Soda are just friends. I'd never stand a chance with all the girls after him. C'mon, you can se Steve." Steve is Soda's best friend. Has been since they were in kindergarten. Lem has a huge crush on him. Strangely enough, she always left Soda alone and went for Steve.
" Well, all right but only because I know how much you like...cars." she said laughing.
I have a thing with cars and guys, so I work the register part time. Whenever my "baby", a midnight blue Mustang my dad got me for my birthday, broke down, it went to the DX. Steve and Soda have a way with cars. Me and Lem have a thing for them. We walked to the DX Station. There were about ten girls there as usual. They all come to flirt with Sodapop. We fought our way through the crowd and into the garage. " Hey, Soda! How's my baby doing?"
" Hey Belle! Just got finished with her. Not too bad this time. You go any faster though, she ain't gonna run anymore!", he laughed and smiled at me.
" You know I can't resist the wind in my hair." I pulled my hair out of my pony tail and shook it around my face. I laughed. I hadn't stopped smiling since Soda had turned around. He has that effect on people. Especially me. " And what about you, Mr. Drag-Racer?" I asked teasingly.
" All right, all right. You win.", he laughed. " You dig OK Belle."
I went over to my Mustang, literally nicknamed Baby. Lem had somehow snuck her way over to Steve. Soda followed me. " Your hair gets lighter and curlier every day.", he said, messing with the top of it.
" Thanks.", I blushed a little and left it messy. I looked under the hood. " I really burned her this time huh?"
" Yeah you did. Nothing I couldn't handle though.", he puffed out his chest and looked thoroughly pleased with himself. Then he let all the air out and we laughed again. You laugh a lot around Sodapop Curtis. " How's the fan club? " I said sarcastically, leaning on the side of my Mustang.
" Oh, you know. Annoying.", he said blushing. He punched my arm. " You working tonight?, he asked.
" Yeah, I think I will. I gotta get Lem outta here first though," I said, jerking my head in her direction. " Or she won't ever leave." Lem was flirting nonstop with Steve. Actually, they were flirting with each other. I told you she had a thing for Steve.
" Yeah, OK." He smiled. I went over to Lem.
" C'mon, we gotta go. Baby's fixed." We looked at each other sideways and cracked grins. " All right, see you later Steve."
" See ya."
We got in the car and backed out. We waved to the guys and turned the car around. " Bye boys!" we yelled.
" See ya later girls!" they yelled back, all of us ignoring the gathering crowd of girls at the sight of Soda. I put on my sunglasses and dashed outta there at 65. I love going fast.