Chapter Four
After about three rings, she picked up the phone. " Hello?"
" Hi. Lem, it's me Belle. Guess what?"
"What?"
Come to the DX, I have to tell you in person. It's wayyyy to good for the phone." I said excitedly.
"Oh, all right. Give me fifteen minutes."
"OK, bye"
"Bye"
I waited the fifteen minutes out impatiently until she showed up.
"Oh my God Lem, you'll never guess what happened." I said as soon as she walked over to me.
" OK, I give up. What happened?"
I looked around. I pulled her real close and I said, " Me and Soda." real quiet and excited.
She looked a little confused. " What about you and Soda?"
I looked at her meaningfully with a big smile on my face and started rocking on the balls of my feet a little. " We......"
Suddenly it dawned on her. "Oh my God! Belle, you and Soda? Together?" she said a little loudly. I put my finger to my lips to make her a little more quiet. But I was still rocking on the balls of my feet and my smile got a little wider when she said it.
"Yeah!" I said. And we did that girlish scream where you hold each other's arms and jump up and down and scream laughing. Soda and Steve came in. "What the hell are you two doing?" asked Steve, completely bewildered.
"Oh, nothing." I said, trying not to laugh and keep a straight face. I failed at the straight face part.
"Yeah, Belle was just telling me a little bit of gossip about.....someone." said Lem, trying like me, to keep a straight face, and failing. She glanced at Soda and then at me. WE both burst out laughing. Soda and Steve looked at us like we were crazy and then walked back into the garage, slowly shaking their heads. I thought I saw Soda blush though. "Oh my God Belle. I'm so happy for you! You and Sodapop, I can't believe it."
"Yeah, me neither. But it's true!" I said happily.
" Now I've got a little bit of news for you. It's not happy but it does lightly involve your Sodapop Curtis." she said mysteriously.
"Oh? What is it? Tell me!" I said eagerly. But it wasn't the happy news I had expected, despite Lem's warnings which I obviously ignored. It was juicy all right, but it wasn't just plain old gossip. This was NEWS.
"Last night Ponyboy, Dally, and Johnny came through here right?"
"Yeah. So what?"
"Well, do you know where they went after they left here?"
"No. It was dark by then. I couldn't see where they headed off to."
"They went to the drive-in. And guess who they picked up?"
"Who?:" I asked excitedly.
Lem gestured with her forefinger to come closer. I looked around a little and leaned in towards her.
"Cherry Valance and her very Socy friend Marcia!"
I gasped. "Nooooo." I said, dying to hear more. Cherry and Marcia are two very hotshot Soc cheerleaders. Especially Cherry. I'd had a conversation with her once. I could tell she was different from most Socs, but she was definitely a Soc all the same. "What about Bob and Randy?" I asked excitedly. Bob and Randy are their VERY Soc boyfriends. I know for a fact that they'd hate Cherry and Marcia to even be seen with them, but picked up by them? That must have made them, especially Bob, go off the deep end.
"Cherry and Marcia left 'em when they found out they were drinking. You know those two, guzzling Jack Daniels like it was water and they were in the middle of the desert."
I shook my head in pity. "Yeah I know."
"Anyway, Ponyboy and Johnny started to walk them home. But, guess who spotted them. drunk in that blue Mustang 'n all?"
I gasped. It seemed as if my suspicions about Bob not being very happy were confirmed. But I didn't know how drastic it really was. "Oh,no!"
She nodded. "Yep. Bob and Randy. And didn't they try to start something until Cherry agreed that she and Marcia would go with them?" she answered her own question. "Of course they did. So, after that apparently Pony and Johnny went to the lot. You know how they always go down there. They like to look at the stars or something." I nodded. I knew how much Pony liked stars and sunsets. There was something really......golden about that kid. Lem went on. "Pony fell asleep and when he finally woke up and went back home, Darry was so mad he slapped him clear across the room!"
My eyes grew wide and I gasped. I knew that the two of them fought, but I also knew that Darry'd never hit him before. At all. Hardly ever touched the kid. "Noooo!" I said, only half disbelievingly. I also knew Darry had a temper like the devil. He worried about Pony too much all the time. Didn't know how to make it show though, other than being tough on him.
Lem nodded her head again. "Yes. And neither him or Soda went after him when he ran off. Straight out the door and down the street."
That hit me kinda hard. I mean, Soda ain't the person to let anyone go feeling awful about themselves. Especially Ponyboy. He loved him to death. With Soda's heart, I couldn't believe that Soda would just let him go. " No, Soda wouldn't do that."
"Well, I hate to break it to ya Belle, but he did. Now, can I finish my story?" she asked impatiently. Much as I hated to hear that about Soda, I still had to know the rest. While curiosity killed the cat, curiosity would also kill me if I didn't give in to it. "All right, all right. C'mon let's hear the rest of it." "Thank you." she said, a tiny bit miffed. But she got over it really quick. "Anyway, Pony got Johnny and they decided that they'd go for a nice long walk in the park." My eyes grew wide, remembering the blue Mustang full of drunk Socs, heading towards the park that I had seen the night before.
"No! Bob and Randy didn't go after them, did they?"
"Of course they did, the.." and she proceeded to go off swearing every name under the sun that she could think of for a couple of minutes. "Anyway, when Bob and Randy tried to drown Ponyboy in that fountain, Johnny pulled a blade on them and guess what he did with it?"
"Oh, no! Johnny couldn't have!" I said stubbornly. Then I thought. "Could he?" I asked, doubting my own statement. Johnny had gotten beat up really badly by some Socs. Some Socs in a blue Mustang. Johnny was scared of everything after that. Could the Socs in the blue Mustang be Bob and his little following? If it was, I know Johnny wouldn't let anyone touch him. But especially if the same Soc who beat him tried to drown his best friend. Maybe sweet, scared little Johnny could do something drastic. Unfortunately, I was right.
"Oh yes he could and he did!" Lem said emphatically. "He stabbed Bob with that switchblade until he was dead." I gasped. "And guess what they did then?"
"What?" I asked, almost scared of the answer. I hoped those two had high-tailed it outta town.
"They went to Dallas Winston, who got them outta there. Maybe that hood's good for something after all."
Needless to say, Lem doesn't share my affection for Dallas Winston. While I stood up to him and wasn't scared of him. Actually enjoyed his rude comments and his weird sense of humor, she was like the rest of the world on the point of Dallas Winston: he was a good-for-nothing hood. I knew better. She went on. "No one can find them. Not even Sodapop." That hit me like a ton of bricks. Not even Sodapop. I suddenly understood the meaning of Ponyboy's gone and why he was crying.
"Oh no, poor Sodapop!" I went to the window and looked at Sodapop, working on the cars. Ignoring the fact that he might never see Pony again, and even if he did it'd probably behind some bars at the local prison. 'How can he do it?' I thought. 'How can he just keep going? How does he stay so happy?' Despite what it may seem, Sodapop Curtis is no crybaby. Not by far. He's always happy and positive, and optimistic. He's always grinning and his eyes are almost always smiling. It's only a few times that he's lost control. Only when it gets really really bad. He's just got so much emotion. He can be ecstatic one minute , you can see it in his eyes. But his eyes can go stormy. He could get so angry, only a couple of people would even dare to go within two feet of him. I was one of those people. I'd stopped more fights than I could count. He's perfect. He's gorgeous, smart, funny, he can be totally ecstatic one minute, and then furious the next. He could always make me laugh and see the good in life, no matter what. He got drunk constantly but it wasn't with alcohol. He never touched a drop. He didn't need to. He got drunk on life itself. He was tough and caring. He could fight like mad, beat the hell out of anyone. When he loved someone, really loved them, he loved them deep into his soul. He'd do anything for them. And he understood almost everything. Sodapop was my dream. He was perfect. Especially for me.
After about three rings, she picked up the phone. " Hello?"
" Hi. Lem, it's me Belle. Guess what?"
"What?"
Come to the DX, I have to tell you in person. It's wayyyy to good for the phone." I said excitedly.
"Oh, all right. Give me fifteen minutes."
"OK, bye"
"Bye"
I waited the fifteen minutes out impatiently until she showed up.
"Oh my God Lem, you'll never guess what happened." I said as soon as she walked over to me.
" OK, I give up. What happened?"
I looked around. I pulled her real close and I said, " Me and Soda." real quiet and excited.
She looked a little confused. " What about you and Soda?"
I looked at her meaningfully with a big smile on my face and started rocking on the balls of my feet a little. " We......"
Suddenly it dawned on her. "Oh my God! Belle, you and Soda? Together?" she said a little loudly. I put my finger to my lips to make her a little more quiet. But I was still rocking on the balls of my feet and my smile got a little wider when she said it.
"Yeah!" I said. And we did that girlish scream where you hold each other's arms and jump up and down and scream laughing. Soda and Steve came in. "What the hell are you two doing?" asked Steve, completely bewildered.
"Oh, nothing." I said, trying not to laugh and keep a straight face. I failed at the straight face part.
"Yeah, Belle was just telling me a little bit of gossip about.....someone." said Lem, trying like me, to keep a straight face, and failing. She glanced at Soda and then at me. WE both burst out laughing. Soda and Steve looked at us like we were crazy and then walked back into the garage, slowly shaking their heads. I thought I saw Soda blush though. "Oh my God Belle. I'm so happy for you! You and Sodapop, I can't believe it."
"Yeah, me neither. But it's true!" I said happily.
" Now I've got a little bit of news for you. It's not happy but it does lightly involve your Sodapop Curtis." she said mysteriously.
"Oh? What is it? Tell me!" I said eagerly. But it wasn't the happy news I had expected, despite Lem's warnings which I obviously ignored. It was juicy all right, but it wasn't just plain old gossip. This was NEWS.
"Last night Ponyboy, Dally, and Johnny came through here right?"
"Yeah. So what?"
"Well, do you know where they went after they left here?"
"No. It was dark by then. I couldn't see where they headed off to."
"They went to the drive-in. And guess who they picked up?"
"Who?:" I asked excitedly.
Lem gestured with her forefinger to come closer. I looked around a little and leaned in towards her.
"Cherry Valance and her very Socy friend Marcia!"
I gasped. "Nooooo." I said, dying to hear more. Cherry and Marcia are two very hotshot Soc cheerleaders. Especially Cherry. I'd had a conversation with her once. I could tell she was different from most Socs, but she was definitely a Soc all the same. "What about Bob and Randy?" I asked excitedly. Bob and Randy are their VERY Soc boyfriends. I know for a fact that they'd hate Cherry and Marcia to even be seen with them, but picked up by them? That must have made them, especially Bob, go off the deep end.
"Cherry and Marcia left 'em when they found out they were drinking. You know those two, guzzling Jack Daniels like it was water and they were in the middle of the desert."
I shook my head in pity. "Yeah I know."
"Anyway, Ponyboy and Johnny started to walk them home. But, guess who spotted them. drunk in that blue Mustang 'n all?"
I gasped. It seemed as if my suspicions about Bob not being very happy were confirmed. But I didn't know how drastic it really was. "Oh,no!"
She nodded. "Yep. Bob and Randy. And didn't they try to start something until Cherry agreed that she and Marcia would go with them?" she answered her own question. "Of course they did. So, after that apparently Pony and Johnny went to the lot. You know how they always go down there. They like to look at the stars or something." I nodded. I knew how much Pony liked stars and sunsets. There was something really......golden about that kid. Lem went on. "Pony fell asleep and when he finally woke up and went back home, Darry was so mad he slapped him clear across the room!"
My eyes grew wide and I gasped. I knew that the two of them fought, but I also knew that Darry'd never hit him before. At all. Hardly ever touched the kid. "Noooo!" I said, only half disbelievingly. I also knew Darry had a temper like the devil. He worried about Pony too much all the time. Didn't know how to make it show though, other than being tough on him.
Lem nodded her head again. "Yes. And neither him or Soda went after him when he ran off. Straight out the door and down the street."
That hit me kinda hard. I mean, Soda ain't the person to let anyone go feeling awful about themselves. Especially Ponyboy. He loved him to death. With Soda's heart, I couldn't believe that Soda would just let him go. " No, Soda wouldn't do that."
"Well, I hate to break it to ya Belle, but he did. Now, can I finish my story?" she asked impatiently. Much as I hated to hear that about Soda, I still had to know the rest. While curiosity killed the cat, curiosity would also kill me if I didn't give in to it. "All right, all right. C'mon let's hear the rest of it." "Thank you." she said, a tiny bit miffed. But she got over it really quick. "Anyway, Pony got Johnny and they decided that they'd go for a nice long walk in the park." My eyes grew wide, remembering the blue Mustang full of drunk Socs, heading towards the park that I had seen the night before.
"No! Bob and Randy didn't go after them, did they?"
"Of course they did, the.." and she proceeded to go off swearing every name under the sun that she could think of for a couple of minutes. "Anyway, when Bob and Randy tried to drown Ponyboy in that fountain, Johnny pulled a blade on them and guess what he did with it?"
"Oh, no! Johnny couldn't have!" I said stubbornly. Then I thought. "Could he?" I asked, doubting my own statement. Johnny had gotten beat up really badly by some Socs. Some Socs in a blue Mustang. Johnny was scared of everything after that. Could the Socs in the blue Mustang be Bob and his little following? If it was, I know Johnny wouldn't let anyone touch him. But especially if the same Soc who beat him tried to drown his best friend. Maybe sweet, scared little Johnny could do something drastic. Unfortunately, I was right.
"Oh yes he could and he did!" Lem said emphatically. "He stabbed Bob with that switchblade until he was dead." I gasped. "And guess what they did then?"
"What?" I asked, almost scared of the answer. I hoped those two had high-tailed it outta town.
"They went to Dallas Winston, who got them outta there. Maybe that hood's good for something after all."
Needless to say, Lem doesn't share my affection for Dallas Winston. While I stood up to him and wasn't scared of him. Actually enjoyed his rude comments and his weird sense of humor, she was like the rest of the world on the point of Dallas Winston: he was a good-for-nothing hood. I knew better. She went on. "No one can find them. Not even Sodapop." That hit me like a ton of bricks. Not even Sodapop. I suddenly understood the meaning of Ponyboy's gone and why he was crying.
"Oh no, poor Sodapop!" I went to the window and looked at Sodapop, working on the cars. Ignoring the fact that he might never see Pony again, and even if he did it'd probably behind some bars at the local prison. 'How can he do it?' I thought. 'How can he just keep going? How does he stay so happy?' Despite what it may seem, Sodapop Curtis is no crybaby. Not by far. He's always happy and positive, and optimistic. He's always grinning and his eyes are almost always smiling. It's only a few times that he's lost control. Only when it gets really really bad. He's just got so much emotion. He can be ecstatic one minute , you can see it in his eyes. But his eyes can go stormy. He could get so angry, only a couple of people would even dare to go within two feet of him. I was one of those people. I'd stopped more fights than I could count. He's perfect. He's gorgeous, smart, funny, he can be totally ecstatic one minute, and then furious the next. He could always make me laugh and see the good in life, no matter what. He got drunk constantly but it wasn't with alcohol. He never touched a drop. He didn't need to. He got drunk on life itself. He was tough and caring. He could fight like mad, beat the hell out of anyone. When he loved someone, really loved them, he loved them deep into his soul. He'd do anything for them. And he understood almost everything. Sodapop was my dream. He was perfect. Especially for me.