AUTHOR'S NOTE: Wow, you like me! You really like me! Just kidding, but
thank you guys (SodasGurl, Sammie, TimeTravllr) for the great reviews. I'm
really glad that you're liking the story so far. Anyway, if you have any
ideas they are greatly appreciated in the review section and here is the
next chapter, sorry it's so long again but hope you guys enjoy it!
CHAPTER THREE
DARRY
Everyone else enjoyed Saturdays but me. Work was long and tedious, especially since we were roofing for a cranky, hard of hearing old woman named Mrs. Reynolds who demanded it be done by lunch. Luckily, I managed to pick up the pace and we finished, though we worked through most of our lunch break. I placed a quarter into the first pay phone I found and called home. Soda and Steve were already at the DX, while Ponyboy and Two-Bit were just on their way out. I needed to know that I wouldn't come home to a trashed house.
After I hung up the phone, I decided to see what Kat was up to. I dialed her number and waited until I heard a voice, "Hello?"
"Hello, is this Kat?"
"Yes sir, it is, can I help you?" asked Kat. I heard soft crying in the background but I didn't pay too much attention to it.
"Hey, Kat, it's me, Darry."
"Oh, hi, Darry," Kat said. Her voice lifted and she sounded pleasantly surprised to see me. "What's happening?"
"Nothing really, just got off work," I told her. I mustered up my nerves, "Um, I was wondering if I could see you.maybe today?"
"Oh." paused Kat, thinking it over. Then she said brightly, "Okay! I just need to drop off my clothes at the Laundromat, can you pick me up, because Crick drove his Impala to work today and I only drive if I have his car."
"Sure," I said eagerly. "I'll pick you up soon, okay?"
"Great, see you soon," Kat said. We hung up immediately thereafter. I treaded off to my truck and hopped in, driving at a normal pace. I felt my hands grow clammy.
Get a grip, Darry, I thought to myself. She's just Crick's sister. I rolled up the windows to my truck as I approached her neighborhood. I saw lanky teenagers, younger then Ponyboy, with blades and chains, lounging on the bench looking hungrily at prepubescent girls, laughing and giggling as they braided their hair. I hurried up the stairs to her apartment and knocked on the door.
I was surprised to see who answered it. She was a little girl, with dark brown hair and brandy colored eyes. Roughly guessing, the girl looked about two, and had her fingers in her mouth.
"Cloud, how many times do I have to tell you to stay inside when the door knocks--" It was Kat's voice, and she hurried over to the front door. She smiled when she saw me, "Hi, Darrell. Just a moment." Turning to a present and younger teenage Hispanic female, she handed a crisp five-dollar bill, saying, "This is all I can really afford, Corazon. If you have any problems, Ms. Lopez is just downstairs."
"That's okay. This money, it's fine with me, just have fun!" she said cheerfully. The younger girl closed the door and I escorted Kat down the stairs. She was carrying a basket of clothes and had curlers in her hair.
"Hey, I'm sorry, this'll be quick," gushed Kat, referring to the dirty laundry.
I shrugged nonchalantly, "No problem." Her pink polo was just short enough to see the navel tattoo of a crescent moon. Despite the fact she looked relatively poor, she carried herself like a normal woman.
"Here, the Laundromat isn't too far from here," Kat told me. I was fine with the fact she needed to drop off clothes. We walked the streets, and she completely ignored the calls of some hoods. They looked like they were part of the Brumly outfit, but I could never be sure. They seemed to know her as well, because they were referring to her by name. I held open the door for her as she hurried into the Laundromat. She slipped in four quarters and then dumped her laundry in.
"Okay, have that done," said Kat, wiping her hands and taking the curlers out of her hair so it could blow in the wind. We didn't have much time to talk, for just then Kat gasped, "Oh God, hide me." She immediately put on shades and clutched my arm. I looked up to see who was there. A slouching, angry looking Hispanic man strode over. His hair was heavily greased, his nose looked like it had been broken and he had a nasty looking scar. He was wearing a white bandana and brandishing a knife.
"Well, well, well, if it ain't the lovely Miss Noriega," the hood snickered. "How's my baby girl doing."
"Stay away from me, Julio," Kat hushed.
Julio glided closer, "I don't think so, Katerina. How's my little angel doing, huh?"
"The court was final, Julio, now scram!"
"I don't think so--"
I stepped in, "You heard her. Get out."
Julio looked to me and then Kat. He was bulky, nonetheless, but still couldn't beat me, and I think he got the idea he couldn't win. Julio smirked, "Is this your new lover, huh? Have you told him?"
"Leave me alone, Julio," cursed Kat. Julio was about to step closer but I grabbed his arm, and firmly said, "Go." Julio glared at me, and then at Kat, and sauntered off, muttering curses under his breath. I turned to face Kat, and she looked like she was about to cry. Her bottom lip was quivering, her entire body was shaking and her gaze did not leave the direction Julio had gone.
"It's okay, he's gone," I told her. Then she did something rather strange. She threw her arms around my neck. I could feel her body shaking, but she was not sobbing. I held her there for what seemed like eternity, brushing her black hair and comforting her. Kat wiped off tear trails from her face and we started walking, the rest of the time was spent in silence. Eventually, we found a picnic table beside an old willow tree, and she sat down to rest her feet.
"So, I bet you're wondering what he meant," Kat said quietly, speaking for the first time. I sat down beside her, "That's up to you."
She paused, and then continued, "If you haven't figured out by now, the girl you met at the door, Cloud, she's my daughter. And Julio.Julio's her father." I thought for a moment. Cloud was a beautiful little girl; it was a shock that Julio had fathered her. What was even more of a shock was the age Kat had her at.
"When did you have her?" I asked.
Kat swallowed a lump in her throat, "I was eighteen. Cloud's two years old, if you're wondering about that. She's my little angel, really. As for Julio, you're probably wondering what I ever saw in him--"
"Not particularly, that's none of my business," I told her plainly. She looked up at me, and smiled slightly.
Kat ran a hand through her hair and looked off, "I don't know, I was eighteen, Julio and I had been dating for months. It was my first time and I thought I was ready.and then I realized I wasn't. I told him it, and he just blew a fuse, started swearing and trashing the place.
"I couldn't have a bum like Julio raising my daughter," Kat told me, pleading. "I had no money, no idea what I was supposed to do, and I was pregnant. I told Julio he should send child support. To this day he still hasn't. So I took it to court and they took away his custody. Not that it was anymore then just a title," Kat paused, gazing off into the distance. I was shocked, but not angry. The fact she was managing to raise a little child and still live life was amazing. I mean, I was raising Ponyboy and Soda on a high school education alone, but they were in their teens when Mom and Dad died.
"If it means anything to you, I've been raising my two kid brothers for about a couple years now," I told her. She looked up at me, appraising my words to see if I was lying to her. She then leaned back and looked on, "So I guess this is the end, huh?"
I glanced over to her, and then leaned closer. I felt myself drawn to her lips, and kissed her softly. Kat did not fight, but reciprocated and kissed me back. When it ended I looked back into her eyes and nodded slightly, "Is that a good enough answer?"
Kat flashed me a grin, "It'll do."
SODA
Little do officials know what goes on Saturday afternoons amongst us teenagers. Me, Steve, Anya, Two-Bit and Pony merrily strolled down to the Slash J. Two-Bit was laughing at a bevy of nicely dressed middle class girls, and Steve swore them out. Anya and I walked arm and arm down the street, attempting to stay behind from the others but not succeeding at all.
"Whadya know, Stevie, Soda's got a girl," kidded Two-Bit, pretending to just realize that me and Anya were together.
Steve mockingly glared at me, "She better be home by ten, Sodapop Curtis, or I'll call the cops." Ponyboy laughed and Anya blushed slightly, playfully shoving him.
"Aw, lay off, Stevie, the boy's in love," Two-Bit said. I couldn't deny that. He burst into singsong lyrics, "Soda's got a girlfriend."
"If you two don't stop, I'll knock both your heads together," I said, trying to sound serious. I failed miserably. I just can't be serious. So I started to laugh and chase after Steve. I wrestled him to the ground, with Anya laughing as she came to join us as well. Two- Bit and Ponyboy were right there with us.
"You lose!" shouted Steve, managing to snag me in a headlock. He let go and we all laughed joyously. I started to pant from laughing so hard. Anya's hair, which she had worked hard to make look nice, was tousled by now.
"You just be a good boy to my country cousin," Steve said lovingly, lightly hitting on Anya the arm, "'cuz if you don't I'm gonna come after ya."
Anya smiled coyly, "Does that mean I get to come after you if Evie ever broke your little heart?"
"Don't get your hopes up," snickered Steve. We all resumed walking to the Slash J. The Slash J was probably one of the favorite places for a teenager in Tulsa to go; there was car racing, rodeo, barrel racing, and various other illegal organized games. Being illegal made it even more fun to go.
We kept walking until we met Tallulah Beckett at the register. Tallulah was one of our kind, greaser, and Two-Bit's occasional girlfriend. She giggled, "Hey Two-Bit, how's it going?"
"Pretty good, sister, how about you?"
"Better now that you're here," she smiled seductively. "I'll let you guys in for free." Tallulah waved us in but held Two-Bit back. I had an idea that they were going to slip out, but I wasn't going to say anything. The rest of us, Steve, Anya, me and Pony kept strolling by. I wanted to do rodeo, but Dad had made me quit when I tore a ligament. I'd always wanted a horse though, ever since Mickey Mouse, my old horse that I used to train, got bought by some rich stiffs. I sighed.
"Hey, I'm going to get some Pepsi, all right?" Anya told me. I nodded, "Sure, be back soon though."
"And don't talk to anyone," Steve shouted at her as she skipped off. He always got real protective over Anya. He looked to see me and Pony grinning, "What?"
"You're sounding more and more like Darry every day," Ponyboy said, beating me to the punch. Steve lunged at him playfully and tackled him to the ground. It was nice to see they were getting along better. I turned to see three girls slithering towards us. They were Socs, but from the way they acted they could have given the grease girls a run for their money. I remember seeing them at the DX not too long ago, when that Soc and his girlfriend that I'd met at the Prom gave Ponyboy a hard time.
The first cheerleader, a good-looking girl with long platinum blonde hair named Adrienne, spoke first, "Hey, it's those cute greasers at the DX!"
"Dibs on the one with red-gold hair," the second one, a short girl named Trista, proclaimed.
"No fair," whined the last, Marguerite, "that was going to be my pick."
"Whadya want, sweet little girls?" Steve asked. Pony and I tried to look tough and scare them off, but they did not look like they were prepared to leave. In fact, they seemed very comfortable with us, and in fact crept closer. Adrienne gazed into my eyes while Trista and Marguerite splintered off to Steve and Ponyboy.
"C'mon, greaser, aren't I not irresistible?!" asked Adrienne, licking her full lips. Trista hurriedly put on lipstick and did the same to Steve.
"At the moment, since you're standing on my foot, I guess I can't resist you," I told her. Adrienne glanced to see if what I had said was true and then clumsily said, "Oops." Adrienne then flipped her hair and looked back at me, leaning closer, "Now, where were we."
"Adrienne?!"
"Trista?!"
"What the hell are you doing?!" Adrienne's eyes grew large, and so did the other two cheerleaders', and they all turned on their heels to see who had spoken. As if to make the event even worse, the two male Socs we met the other day at the Prom, Spike and Chris, followed by another unknown male follower, swaggered over. Spike grabbed Adrienne while Chris and the other Soc, David, took Trista and Marguerite. They seemed to have gotten over their two good lookin' ex-girlfriends, Sarah and Gloria, quite quickly. Ponyboy's eyes grew large when he saw Spike.
"What are you doin', hangin' around trash like them?!" demanded Spike. He recognized Ponyboy and pointed a warning finger at him, "It's that kid, the punk that was scammin' on my broad!"
"It was all their fault!" shouted Adrienne, pointing to the three of us. She noticed a crowd had begun to gather and began to speak as if she was dying in a bad B movie melodrama, "They forced themselves upon us! It was them, Spikey, all their fault, we had no choice in the matter!"
"Oh really?" asked Spike, cracking his knuckles and tossing his cigarette butt, "we'll just have to solve this." Like the moronic lummox he was, he swaggered over, fully prepared to beat up Ponyboy. I couldn't let him beat up my kid brother, so I stepped in front of him.
"Whadya want, grease?" shouted Spike.
"You got a problem with my kid brother, you deal with me," I told him sternly, staring him directly in the eye.
Spike glared, "All right, how about this.we settle this in a car race. You win, we let it drop. We win, I get to beat the living shit out of all three of ya." Just then, a worried looking Anya and Two-Bit hurried over to side with us. I knew that he would never hold his side of the bargain up, but just to see him humiliated.it would be just too rich to pass up. I looked to Steve, and he nodded.
"Deal," I said.
To make it an official deal, Spike shoved me for good measure, "Meet me on Pickett and Sutton, if you think you can win." Spike laughed and then he, his girlfriends and his buddies hurried off.
"I'm gonna need to borrow someone's car," I said to Steve.
Anya hurried up beside me, grabbing my arm, "Soda, I need to tell you something-"
"Not now," I told her. I hated brushing her off to the side, but right now me and Steve needed to find a car that would go pretty damn fast.
"The girl's gotta say somethin-" began Two-Bit. But I couldn't hear him over the uproar of the crowd. After Steve threatened to beat the hell out of a weak looking Soc, a car donation was made to our cause. It was a fast little baby, nice little sports car. I drove the car up to Pickett and Sutton, where Spike had already arranged a nice little crowd. I needed to win this fight simply to annoy the hell out of Spike.
"Soda, listen to me," pleaded Anya. I turned to her and kissed her passionately on the lips. She didn't seem to mind, but something was bothering her.
"Anya, baby, I'm real sorry, but the race is starting-"
"It's not about the race--" insisted Anya. I couldn't say anything more, so I stepped into the car. Spike had already accepted cheers from his pals and girlfriends, and glared over at me, before flipping me the Bird. I ignored him, and start to focus mostly on the yells from some judge, older then all of us, who basically told us that we had to go around the block, that the race ended back where it started and to play nice. Like that would ever happen. I looked over to see a worried-looking Anya, a smug Steve and Two-Bit closing the betting pool. I sighed and Steve gave me the thumbs up. I heard the gun shot and the race started.
I pressed my foot down firmly on the accelerator. I felt a heavy crash, and looked to see Spike, who was ramming his car into mine. He pushed me off the track and onto the street, where pedestrians fled from my out of control car. I swerved to the left and back onto the road, although slightly behind Spike. My adrenaline was pumping, I needed to catch up. I sped up slightly ahead of Spike, and then when the lanes became narrow I edged him out. Directly in front of him was a fountain, and he crashed into it.
By now I was far in the lead. Spike's crash had given me that few second edge that I needed. I looked over my shoulder to see if he was still chasing after me. Yep, he was, but we now had the attention of the fuzz, who were speeding to catch up to us.
I managed to avoid destroying a bench, but sent the pigeons and homeless birdfeeders spiraling out of the way. I could now see the finish line. But there was a new addition to the crowd. Standing there, blonde hair, china blue eyes, very tall.Sandy. I couldn't take my eyes off her. Sandy was standing there, right there! She hadn't bothered to talk to me since Johnny and Dally had died, and now there she was. It was just a brief glimpse, for she had disappeared into the crowd, but I knew for a definite that I had seen her.
I went over the finish line and into the garbage bins at the end. Two- Bit laughed confidently as he made the betters that had lost pay up. Steve and Anya hurried over, now smiling and laughing.
"We whooped 'em, Sodapop, we really whooped 'em!" shouted Steve. But I didn't hear his voice, for I was still searching the crowd for the now-missing Sandy.
PONY
I never meant for it to happen. Really. The fighting, Spike, all of it. That's why I'm out cruising in a car I managed to borrow with Sarah van Pelt while Soda's whooping Spike's Socy ass. Very immature of me, but I at least stayed long enough to know that Soda was okay and had indeed won the race.
After Soda and Spike had had their confrontation, I searched the crowd for a familiar face. Why was I letting Soda fight my battles? Because the grudge me and Spike had went beyond Sarah, that it was the same tale that had gotten Bob killed and Johnny and me out into the country.
"Hey." I turned to see who it was. Sarah. Perfect timing. She was looking really cute though, with her hair pinned up and a plaid dress. Many a male Soc had thought she was talking to them, and was very disappointed that she was in fact talking to me.
"Hey," I told her quietly, watching Soda, Steve, Anya and Two-Bit go in search of a car.
Sarah sighed and looked like she was having a hard time saying what was on her mind, "Look, I'm sorry about Spike again, this has just blown way out of proportion--"
"It ain't," I told her, staring into her olive green eyes. I turned away and blushed, "It's always been like this, if I had been a Soc I don't think Spike would've exactly given me a medal either."
"It's not like that," Sarah said. We started to take a walk. "Spike's a jealous man, Ponyboy. I'm amazed he hasn't killed anybody yet."
"This ain't the best place to be talking about stuff like this," I said.
Sarah agreed and nodded, "We'll take my car." I looked around. Soda and Spike had already started the match. I asked myself a dozen questions as I followed her out of the Slash J. She walked over to her car, a tuff lookin' red Sting Ray, and she tossed the car keys to me.
"There isn't going to be many cars on the road today," Sarah told me. "Let's see how well you can drive."
I shrugged, "Sure." I tried to hide how excited I was. When Darry wasn't around to criticize me, Soda used to let me drive the truck around the block. "Where we headed?"
"Didn't you mention something about wanting to see the country?"
"Yeah.?"
"I haven't been there yet, Windrixville sound fine?"
"Sure." And that was the end of it. We hit the freeway (with surprisingly few problems) and then the long road out to Windrixville. I hadn't been to that town since.since Johnny and Dally died. I'd almost forgotten about what had happened, the church, everything. Sarah had cranked up the radio, pulled her hair out of its barrettes and had taken her high heels off, which she now waved about in her right hand as wind blew through our hair. I frankly was enjoying her presence, and was completely forgetting about time and the fact that I needed to go home at some point but just cruising around was too damn fun. The mood changed when we hit Windrixville.
I stopped the car, and Sarah stopped laughing and grew real worried, "What's wrong, Ponyboy?" I stepped out of the Sting Ray and hit the road, with Sarah trailing behind me. I had an idea where I was going, but I wasn't paying attention to logic. When my feet stopped I knew exactly where I was. The church. It was nothing more then a mere ruin, a reminder of what it had once been. A temporary home for Johnny and me. Burned shambles, that was all it was now.
"Pony?" asked Sarah. I'd forgotten she was there, and her voice seemed distant. "Pony, is this the church?"
"Yeah," I said, nodding. "This is the church that killed Johnny." In a sense, it killed Dally too. I closed my eyes, and breathed in the smoke. The flames crept higher and higher. My eyes watered from the mixed combination of flame and smoke. I pulled the first kid and threw him out the opening. Saving him. That's what me and Johnny were doing. We saved the kids. The ones that had been out on a picnic, with their pre-school teachers, that's why they were there. Dally swearing at us, telling us to get back in the damn car but still following us. I jumped out of the building after the last kid was safe, but Johnny was still inside. I remember hearing Johnny scream as the burning church collapsed in, with Dally jumping in and saving him. He hit me so damn hard that I went unconscious. Why hadn't those kids been more careful? Why hadn't we been more careful?
"Pony? Pony, are you okay, you look sick," said Sarah worriedly. I snapped out of it. That had been months now. Johnny had died a hero, while Dally had broken down, robbed a store and then crumpled under the street light. Like a Southern gentleman going off to fight the Civil War. Just like Johnny had described it. But no one except the cops noticed Dally's death. No one wrote editorials and news articles praising him for all that he had done for us. He was just another obituary.
"I'm sorry, Sarah," I said, closing my eyes and swallowing the lump that had formed in my throat. "It's just being here, after everything that happened."
Sarah put a hand on my shoulder and nodded, "Don't speak. I understand, Ponyboy." I looked in her olive green eyes as she gazed at the ashes of the church. They seemed to share in my sadness, as if she understood exactly what was going on.
"Nothing gold can stay, Ponyboy."
I looked at her surprised, "What?" Sarah cleared her throat and spoke. "Nature's first green is gold, Her hardest hue to hold. Her early leaf's a flower But only so an hour. Then leaf subsides to leaf. So Eden sank to grief, So dawn goes down to day. Nothing gold can stay."
When she had finished, Sarah looked over at me to see my awestruck reaction and then blushed heavily. I smiled slightly, "Robert Frost."
"Yeah," she said meekly, "just something I picked up."
I grinned even bigger then before, more then I had in a long time, "I know the feeling, Sarah." We then stared off into the sunset.
CHAPTER THREE
DARRY
Everyone else enjoyed Saturdays but me. Work was long and tedious, especially since we were roofing for a cranky, hard of hearing old woman named Mrs. Reynolds who demanded it be done by lunch. Luckily, I managed to pick up the pace and we finished, though we worked through most of our lunch break. I placed a quarter into the first pay phone I found and called home. Soda and Steve were already at the DX, while Ponyboy and Two-Bit were just on their way out. I needed to know that I wouldn't come home to a trashed house.
After I hung up the phone, I decided to see what Kat was up to. I dialed her number and waited until I heard a voice, "Hello?"
"Hello, is this Kat?"
"Yes sir, it is, can I help you?" asked Kat. I heard soft crying in the background but I didn't pay too much attention to it.
"Hey, Kat, it's me, Darry."
"Oh, hi, Darry," Kat said. Her voice lifted and she sounded pleasantly surprised to see me. "What's happening?"
"Nothing really, just got off work," I told her. I mustered up my nerves, "Um, I was wondering if I could see you.maybe today?"
"Oh." paused Kat, thinking it over. Then she said brightly, "Okay! I just need to drop off my clothes at the Laundromat, can you pick me up, because Crick drove his Impala to work today and I only drive if I have his car."
"Sure," I said eagerly. "I'll pick you up soon, okay?"
"Great, see you soon," Kat said. We hung up immediately thereafter. I treaded off to my truck and hopped in, driving at a normal pace. I felt my hands grow clammy.
Get a grip, Darry, I thought to myself. She's just Crick's sister. I rolled up the windows to my truck as I approached her neighborhood. I saw lanky teenagers, younger then Ponyboy, with blades and chains, lounging on the bench looking hungrily at prepubescent girls, laughing and giggling as they braided their hair. I hurried up the stairs to her apartment and knocked on the door.
I was surprised to see who answered it. She was a little girl, with dark brown hair and brandy colored eyes. Roughly guessing, the girl looked about two, and had her fingers in her mouth.
"Cloud, how many times do I have to tell you to stay inside when the door knocks--" It was Kat's voice, and she hurried over to the front door. She smiled when she saw me, "Hi, Darrell. Just a moment." Turning to a present and younger teenage Hispanic female, she handed a crisp five-dollar bill, saying, "This is all I can really afford, Corazon. If you have any problems, Ms. Lopez is just downstairs."
"That's okay. This money, it's fine with me, just have fun!" she said cheerfully. The younger girl closed the door and I escorted Kat down the stairs. She was carrying a basket of clothes and had curlers in her hair.
"Hey, I'm sorry, this'll be quick," gushed Kat, referring to the dirty laundry.
I shrugged nonchalantly, "No problem." Her pink polo was just short enough to see the navel tattoo of a crescent moon. Despite the fact she looked relatively poor, she carried herself like a normal woman.
"Here, the Laundromat isn't too far from here," Kat told me. I was fine with the fact she needed to drop off clothes. We walked the streets, and she completely ignored the calls of some hoods. They looked like they were part of the Brumly outfit, but I could never be sure. They seemed to know her as well, because they were referring to her by name. I held open the door for her as she hurried into the Laundromat. She slipped in four quarters and then dumped her laundry in.
"Okay, have that done," said Kat, wiping her hands and taking the curlers out of her hair so it could blow in the wind. We didn't have much time to talk, for just then Kat gasped, "Oh God, hide me." She immediately put on shades and clutched my arm. I looked up to see who was there. A slouching, angry looking Hispanic man strode over. His hair was heavily greased, his nose looked like it had been broken and he had a nasty looking scar. He was wearing a white bandana and brandishing a knife.
"Well, well, well, if it ain't the lovely Miss Noriega," the hood snickered. "How's my baby girl doing."
"Stay away from me, Julio," Kat hushed.
Julio glided closer, "I don't think so, Katerina. How's my little angel doing, huh?"
"The court was final, Julio, now scram!"
"I don't think so--"
I stepped in, "You heard her. Get out."
Julio looked to me and then Kat. He was bulky, nonetheless, but still couldn't beat me, and I think he got the idea he couldn't win. Julio smirked, "Is this your new lover, huh? Have you told him?"
"Leave me alone, Julio," cursed Kat. Julio was about to step closer but I grabbed his arm, and firmly said, "Go." Julio glared at me, and then at Kat, and sauntered off, muttering curses under his breath. I turned to face Kat, and she looked like she was about to cry. Her bottom lip was quivering, her entire body was shaking and her gaze did not leave the direction Julio had gone.
"It's okay, he's gone," I told her. Then she did something rather strange. She threw her arms around my neck. I could feel her body shaking, but she was not sobbing. I held her there for what seemed like eternity, brushing her black hair and comforting her. Kat wiped off tear trails from her face and we started walking, the rest of the time was spent in silence. Eventually, we found a picnic table beside an old willow tree, and she sat down to rest her feet.
"So, I bet you're wondering what he meant," Kat said quietly, speaking for the first time. I sat down beside her, "That's up to you."
She paused, and then continued, "If you haven't figured out by now, the girl you met at the door, Cloud, she's my daughter. And Julio.Julio's her father." I thought for a moment. Cloud was a beautiful little girl; it was a shock that Julio had fathered her. What was even more of a shock was the age Kat had her at.
"When did you have her?" I asked.
Kat swallowed a lump in her throat, "I was eighteen. Cloud's two years old, if you're wondering about that. She's my little angel, really. As for Julio, you're probably wondering what I ever saw in him--"
"Not particularly, that's none of my business," I told her plainly. She looked up at me, and smiled slightly.
Kat ran a hand through her hair and looked off, "I don't know, I was eighteen, Julio and I had been dating for months. It was my first time and I thought I was ready.and then I realized I wasn't. I told him it, and he just blew a fuse, started swearing and trashing the place.
"I couldn't have a bum like Julio raising my daughter," Kat told me, pleading. "I had no money, no idea what I was supposed to do, and I was pregnant. I told Julio he should send child support. To this day he still hasn't. So I took it to court and they took away his custody. Not that it was anymore then just a title," Kat paused, gazing off into the distance. I was shocked, but not angry. The fact she was managing to raise a little child and still live life was amazing. I mean, I was raising Ponyboy and Soda on a high school education alone, but they were in their teens when Mom and Dad died.
"If it means anything to you, I've been raising my two kid brothers for about a couple years now," I told her. She looked up at me, appraising my words to see if I was lying to her. She then leaned back and looked on, "So I guess this is the end, huh?"
I glanced over to her, and then leaned closer. I felt myself drawn to her lips, and kissed her softly. Kat did not fight, but reciprocated and kissed me back. When it ended I looked back into her eyes and nodded slightly, "Is that a good enough answer?"
Kat flashed me a grin, "It'll do."
SODA
Little do officials know what goes on Saturday afternoons amongst us teenagers. Me, Steve, Anya, Two-Bit and Pony merrily strolled down to the Slash J. Two-Bit was laughing at a bevy of nicely dressed middle class girls, and Steve swore them out. Anya and I walked arm and arm down the street, attempting to stay behind from the others but not succeeding at all.
"Whadya know, Stevie, Soda's got a girl," kidded Two-Bit, pretending to just realize that me and Anya were together.
Steve mockingly glared at me, "She better be home by ten, Sodapop Curtis, or I'll call the cops." Ponyboy laughed and Anya blushed slightly, playfully shoving him.
"Aw, lay off, Stevie, the boy's in love," Two-Bit said. I couldn't deny that. He burst into singsong lyrics, "Soda's got a girlfriend."
"If you two don't stop, I'll knock both your heads together," I said, trying to sound serious. I failed miserably. I just can't be serious. So I started to laugh and chase after Steve. I wrestled him to the ground, with Anya laughing as she came to join us as well. Two- Bit and Ponyboy were right there with us.
"You lose!" shouted Steve, managing to snag me in a headlock. He let go and we all laughed joyously. I started to pant from laughing so hard. Anya's hair, which she had worked hard to make look nice, was tousled by now.
"You just be a good boy to my country cousin," Steve said lovingly, lightly hitting on Anya the arm, "'cuz if you don't I'm gonna come after ya."
Anya smiled coyly, "Does that mean I get to come after you if Evie ever broke your little heart?"
"Don't get your hopes up," snickered Steve. We all resumed walking to the Slash J. The Slash J was probably one of the favorite places for a teenager in Tulsa to go; there was car racing, rodeo, barrel racing, and various other illegal organized games. Being illegal made it even more fun to go.
We kept walking until we met Tallulah Beckett at the register. Tallulah was one of our kind, greaser, and Two-Bit's occasional girlfriend. She giggled, "Hey Two-Bit, how's it going?"
"Pretty good, sister, how about you?"
"Better now that you're here," she smiled seductively. "I'll let you guys in for free." Tallulah waved us in but held Two-Bit back. I had an idea that they were going to slip out, but I wasn't going to say anything. The rest of us, Steve, Anya, me and Pony kept strolling by. I wanted to do rodeo, but Dad had made me quit when I tore a ligament. I'd always wanted a horse though, ever since Mickey Mouse, my old horse that I used to train, got bought by some rich stiffs. I sighed.
"Hey, I'm going to get some Pepsi, all right?" Anya told me. I nodded, "Sure, be back soon though."
"And don't talk to anyone," Steve shouted at her as she skipped off. He always got real protective over Anya. He looked to see me and Pony grinning, "What?"
"You're sounding more and more like Darry every day," Ponyboy said, beating me to the punch. Steve lunged at him playfully and tackled him to the ground. It was nice to see they were getting along better. I turned to see three girls slithering towards us. They were Socs, but from the way they acted they could have given the grease girls a run for their money. I remember seeing them at the DX not too long ago, when that Soc and his girlfriend that I'd met at the Prom gave Ponyboy a hard time.
The first cheerleader, a good-looking girl with long platinum blonde hair named Adrienne, spoke first, "Hey, it's those cute greasers at the DX!"
"Dibs on the one with red-gold hair," the second one, a short girl named Trista, proclaimed.
"No fair," whined the last, Marguerite, "that was going to be my pick."
"Whadya want, sweet little girls?" Steve asked. Pony and I tried to look tough and scare them off, but they did not look like they were prepared to leave. In fact, they seemed very comfortable with us, and in fact crept closer. Adrienne gazed into my eyes while Trista and Marguerite splintered off to Steve and Ponyboy.
"C'mon, greaser, aren't I not irresistible?!" asked Adrienne, licking her full lips. Trista hurriedly put on lipstick and did the same to Steve.
"At the moment, since you're standing on my foot, I guess I can't resist you," I told her. Adrienne glanced to see if what I had said was true and then clumsily said, "Oops." Adrienne then flipped her hair and looked back at me, leaning closer, "Now, where were we."
"Adrienne?!"
"Trista?!"
"What the hell are you doing?!" Adrienne's eyes grew large, and so did the other two cheerleaders', and they all turned on their heels to see who had spoken. As if to make the event even worse, the two male Socs we met the other day at the Prom, Spike and Chris, followed by another unknown male follower, swaggered over. Spike grabbed Adrienne while Chris and the other Soc, David, took Trista and Marguerite. They seemed to have gotten over their two good lookin' ex-girlfriends, Sarah and Gloria, quite quickly. Ponyboy's eyes grew large when he saw Spike.
"What are you doin', hangin' around trash like them?!" demanded Spike. He recognized Ponyboy and pointed a warning finger at him, "It's that kid, the punk that was scammin' on my broad!"
"It was all their fault!" shouted Adrienne, pointing to the three of us. She noticed a crowd had begun to gather and began to speak as if she was dying in a bad B movie melodrama, "They forced themselves upon us! It was them, Spikey, all their fault, we had no choice in the matter!"
"Oh really?" asked Spike, cracking his knuckles and tossing his cigarette butt, "we'll just have to solve this." Like the moronic lummox he was, he swaggered over, fully prepared to beat up Ponyboy. I couldn't let him beat up my kid brother, so I stepped in front of him.
"Whadya want, grease?" shouted Spike.
"You got a problem with my kid brother, you deal with me," I told him sternly, staring him directly in the eye.
Spike glared, "All right, how about this.we settle this in a car race. You win, we let it drop. We win, I get to beat the living shit out of all three of ya." Just then, a worried looking Anya and Two-Bit hurried over to side with us. I knew that he would never hold his side of the bargain up, but just to see him humiliated.it would be just too rich to pass up. I looked to Steve, and he nodded.
"Deal," I said.
To make it an official deal, Spike shoved me for good measure, "Meet me on Pickett and Sutton, if you think you can win." Spike laughed and then he, his girlfriends and his buddies hurried off.
"I'm gonna need to borrow someone's car," I said to Steve.
Anya hurried up beside me, grabbing my arm, "Soda, I need to tell you something-"
"Not now," I told her. I hated brushing her off to the side, but right now me and Steve needed to find a car that would go pretty damn fast.
"The girl's gotta say somethin-" began Two-Bit. But I couldn't hear him over the uproar of the crowd. After Steve threatened to beat the hell out of a weak looking Soc, a car donation was made to our cause. It was a fast little baby, nice little sports car. I drove the car up to Pickett and Sutton, where Spike had already arranged a nice little crowd. I needed to win this fight simply to annoy the hell out of Spike.
"Soda, listen to me," pleaded Anya. I turned to her and kissed her passionately on the lips. She didn't seem to mind, but something was bothering her.
"Anya, baby, I'm real sorry, but the race is starting-"
"It's not about the race--" insisted Anya. I couldn't say anything more, so I stepped into the car. Spike had already accepted cheers from his pals and girlfriends, and glared over at me, before flipping me the Bird. I ignored him, and start to focus mostly on the yells from some judge, older then all of us, who basically told us that we had to go around the block, that the race ended back where it started and to play nice. Like that would ever happen. I looked over to see a worried-looking Anya, a smug Steve and Two-Bit closing the betting pool. I sighed and Steve gave me the thumbs up. I heard the gun shot and the race started.
I pressed my foot down firmly on the accelerator. I felt a heavy crash, and looked to see Spike, who was ramming his car into mine. He pushed me off the track and onto the street, where pedestrians fled from my out of control car. I swerved to the left and back onto the road, although slightly behind Spike. My adrenaline was pumping, I needed to catch up. I sped up slightly ahead of Spike, and then when the lanes became narrow I edged him out. Directly in front of him was a fountain, and he crashed into it.
By now I was far in the lead. Spike's crash had given me that few second edge that I needed. I looked over my shoulder to see if he was still chasing after me. Yep, he was, but we now had the attention of the fuzz, who were speeding to catch up to us.
I managed to avoid destroying a bench, but sent the pigeons and homeless birdfeeders spiraling out of the way. I could now see the finish line. But there was a new addition to the crowd. Standing there, blonde hair, china blue eyes, very tall.Sandy. I couldn't take my eyes off her. Sandy was standing there, right there! She hadn't bothered to talk to me since Johnny and Dally had died, and now there she was. It was just a brief glimpse, for she had disappeared into the crowd, but I knew for a definite that I had seen her.
I went over the finish line and into the garbage bins at the end. Two- Bit laughed confidently as he made the betters that had lost pay up. Steve and Anya hurried over, now smiling and laughing.
"We whooped 'em, Sodapop, we really whooped 'em!" shouted Steve. But I didn't hear his voice, for I was still searching the crowd for the now-missing Sandy.
PONY
I never meant for it to happen. Really. The fighting, Spike, all of it. That's why I'm out cruising in a car I managed to borrow with Sarah van Pelt while Soda's whooping Spike's Socy ass. Very immature of me, but I at least stayed long enough to know that Soda was okay and had indeed won the race.
After Soda and Spike had had their confrontation, I searched the crowd for a familiar face. Why was I letting Soda fight my battles? Because the grudge me and Spike had went beyond Sarah, that it was the same tale that had gotten Bob killed and Johnny and me out into the country.
"Hey." I turned to see who it was. Sarah. Perfect timing. She was looking really cute though, with her hair pinned up and a plaid dress. Many a male Soc had thought she was talking to them, and was very disappointed that she was in fact talking to me.
"Hey," I told her quietly, watching Soda, Steve, Anya and Two-Bit go in search of a car.
Sarah sighed and looked like she was having a hard time saying what was on her mind, "Look, I'm sorry about Spike again, this has just blown way out of proportion--"
"It ain't," I told her, staring into her olive green eyes. I turned away and blushed, "It's always been like this, if I had been a Soc I don't think Spike would've exactly given me a medal either."
"It's not like that," Sarah said. We started to take a walk. "Spike's a jealous man, Ponyboy. I'm amazed he hasn't killed anybody yet."
"This ain't the best place to be talking about stuff like this," I said.
Sarah agreed and nodded, "We'll take my car." I looked around. Soda and Spike had already started the match. I asked myself a dozen questions as I followed her out of the Slash J. She walked over to her car, a tuff lookin' red Sting Ray, and she tossed the car keys to me.
"There isn't going to be many cars on the road today," Sarah told me. "Let's see how well you can drive."
I shrugged, "Sure." I tried to hide how excited I was. When Darry wasn't around to criticize me, Soda used to let me drive the truck around the block. "Where we headed?"
"Didn't you mention something about wanting to see the country?"
"Yeah.?"
"I haven't been there yet, Windrixville sound fine?"
"Sure." And that was the end of it. We hit the freeway (with surprisingly few problems) and then the long road out to Windrixville. I hadn't been to that town since.since Johnny and Dally died. I'd almost forgotten about what had happened, the church, everything. Sarah had cranked up the radio, pulled her hair out of its barrettes and had taken her high heels off, which she now waved about in her right hand as wind blew through our hair. I frankly was enjoying her presence, and was completely forgetting about time and the fact that I needed to go home at some point but just cruising around was too damn fun. The mood changed when we hit Windrixville.
I stopped the car, and Sarah stopped laughing and grew real worried, "What's wrong, Ponyboy?" I stepped out of the Sting Ray and hit the road, with Sarah trailing behind me. I had an idea where I was going, but I wasn't paying attention to logic. When my feet stopped I knew exactly where I was. The church. It was nothing more then a mere ruin, a reminder of what it had once been. A temporary home for Johnny and me. Burned shambles, that was all it was now.
"Pony?" asked Sarah. I'd forgotten she was there, and her voice seemed distant. "Pony, is this the church?"
"Yeah," I said, nodding. "This is the church that killed Johnny." In a sense, it killed Dally too. I closed my eyes, and breathed in the smoke. The flames crept higher and higher. My eyes watered from the mixed combination of flame and smoke. I pulled the first kid and threw him out the opening. Saving him. That's what me and Johnny were doing. We saved the kids. The ones that had been out on a picnic, with their pre-school teachers, that's why they were there. Dally swearing at us, telling us to get back in the damn car but still following us. I jumped out of the building after the last kid was safe, but Johnny was still inside. I remember hearing Johnny scream as the burning church collapsed in, with Dally jumping in and saving him. He hit me so damn hard that I went unconscious. Why hadn't those kids been more careful? Why hadn't we been more careful?
"Pony? Pony, are you okay, you look sick," said Sarah worriedly. I snapped out of it. That had been months now. Johnny had died a hero, while Dally had broken down, robbed a store and then crumpled under the street light. Like a Southern gentleman going off to fight the Civil War. Just like Johnny had described it. But no one except the cops noticed Dally's death. No one wrote editorials and news articles praising him for all that he had done for us. He was just another obituary.
"I'm sorry, Sarah," I said, closing my eyes and swallowing the lump that had formed in my throat. "It's just being here, after everything that happened."
Sarah put a hand on my shoulder and nodded, "Don't speak. I understand, Ponyboy." I looked in her olive green eyes as she gazed at the ashes of the church. They seemed to share in my sadness, as if she understood exactly what was going on.
"Nothing gold can stay, Ponyboy."
I looked at her surprised, "What?" Sarah cleared her throat and spoke. "Nature's first green is gold, Her hardest hue to hold. Her early leaf's a flower But only so an hour. Then leaf subsides to leaf. So Eden sank to grief, So dawn goes down to day. Nothing gold can stay."
When she had finished, Sarah looked over at me to see my awestruck reaction and then blushed heavily. I smiled slightly, "Robert Frost."
"Yeah," she said meekly, "just something I picked up."
I grinned even bigger then before, more then I had in a long time, "I know the feeling, Sarah." We then stared off into the sunset.