AUTHOR'S NOTE: Wow, chapter four. Okay, I really like this chapter because
it's (I think) packed with emotion and I had a fun time writing it (even
though at the end it's kinda depressing). It shows varying degrees of
character development (in my opinion). I have to thank SodasGurl,
CuteCarly and TimeTravller (I got your name right!) for reviewing. At this
point I'm beginning to run low on ideas, so if you think you can help me
out, then just suggest something. Sorry it's so long. Thanks for reading,
guys, and here's Chapter 4.
CHAPTER FOUR
PONY
Dead meat, I thought. Darry's sure to have killed me by now. I checked my watch. 4 AM. Time wasn't exactly on my side. What was? Had it been my fault that Sarah and I had stopped at Dairy Queen before heading back to reality, where I'd dropped her off at her house and then fallen asleep in a vacant lot and not awaken until recently?
This is too familiar, I thought. This had been the way everything had started, with Johnny killing the Soc and us running off with Dally's help then turning ourselves in and rescuing the kids and becoming local heroes and all. It wasn't gonna happen all over again. I remember my history teacher telling me those who don't learn about history are doomed to repeat it. I was probably the only one in the class listening though.
I sneaked up to the porch, the old boards creaking. I knew I was probably gonna get stuck painting the porch again. Just like that kid in that one book that Mark Twain wrote, Tom Sawyer. The lights were on. Not a good sign. I sucked in a deep breath and opened the door.
Boy, was I busted. Darry was sleeping in the armchair, his newspaper sprawled on the floor. Soda and Anya had fallen asleep on the couch, while Steve and Two-Bit were playing poker and drinking Heineken.
"Man, this is the crappiest beer!" Two-Bit exclaimed before downing the rest of the bottle happily. He saw me and, probably since he was boozed and sleep deprived, grinned and said, "Hey Ponyboy." This awoke the sleeping Darry, who jumped to his feet.
"Hey, Pony, mind telling me what time it is?" asked Darry sarcastically. I shrugged. What was the point? He wasn't going to wait for an answer anyway. "Four in the morning, bucko. I'm really looking forward to hear your excuse now."
"Can it wait until tomorrow?" I asked. I had been in a good mood and I didn't want it to come crashing down, like it was doomed to be.
"Nope," Darry told me, crossing his arms and looking parental and stern. "Pony, you gotta use your head about these situations. We've told you before; you've got a curfew of eleven. What do you not understand of that?"
"I just went to Windrixville with Sarah van Pelt, alright?!" I exploded. I bit my tongue and wanted to smack myself. The room grew quiet. Everyone knew what happened in Windrixville, even Anya, who had arrived only a little bit later.
"Windrixville?" asked Steve. Soda began to yawn and smack his lips as he woke up. He squinted and smiled sleepily, "Hey Ponyboy."
"Who's Sarah?" Darry asked, concerned.
"Didja hear?" interrupted Two-Bit excitedly. "Soda whooped Spike in the car race." His voice lowered as he saw Darry glare at him so he picked up his beer and said, "I think Mom will probably want me home by now. Bye, y'all." And Two-Bit dashed out the door. Steve sighed and walked over to Anya, nudging her softly, "C'mon, kiddo, time to go."
"Do you need to stay here?" asked Darry. Steve shook his head as Anya yawned and stretched, "Nah, me and Dad are on speaking terms this week. C'mon, Anya." She kissed Soda on the lips briefly before Anya and Steve exited after Two-Bit. Hoping that that distraction had been a long enough to make a getaway, I began to sneak down the hall and to my room.
"Don't think you're getting away with this," Darry said warningly, ruining my hopes. He yawned, "Aw, it can wait till tomorrow. Soda, Pony, get to bed." Whatever had put Darry in a good mood, I wanted to personally thank but didn't have the time, so I scurried off into the room Soda and I shared.
SODA
Work today was dreary since Anya wasn't going to be able to sneak out of school to have lunch with me and Steve. She had to make up some damn chemistry test. I was hoping she could sweet talk her wait out of it, but I doubt that's what Anya would do. So now my day's already a little darkened. We were meeting at the vacant lot to star gaze and just talk like we usually do. I have to be blunt, I miss her even though it's only been about six hours since I last saw her.
Nothing really worth mentioning had happened until Larry stopped by. Me and Steve felt awfully bad for him; he was telling us about how he got nearly beaten to death by some Socs.
"Damn Socs," Steve said, shaking his head and spitting. "Some day I'm gonna get my hands on one of them."
"Aw, they ain't all bad," Larry said, wincing as he readjusted his weight so he could lean on his crutch. "Their two girls didn't seem too bad. One even tried stopping him."
"Sonuvabitches," muttered Steve, "Socs can't go around treating us like that." Frankly, Larry was hardly a blue collar. He was well educated actually. Just two things held him back; the fact he was black and the fact he wasn't incredibly rich.
Larry nodded, "Yeah, I know. I'm thinking about packing up and heading back to Harlem. It'd be nice to go back and visit my family, maybe going back to boxing," he playfully punched me in the arm, "just like Cassius Clay."
"Hey, he won, who knows, you could be next," I laughed. Larry was a good guy, frankly. He had a wife and at least two kids back in Harlem, along with the rest of his family. If that's where he wanted to go, then I was all for it.
"Good luck to ya, Larry," I told him. Larry nodded a "thanks" and began to hobble back to his car, which Pony and I had returned to him the other day. He bumped into someone at the door, and I didn't see who it was because I was counting the change, and I heard him say, "Sorry, miss."
"It's okay." I couldn't believe it. I didn't want to, either. My suspicions were confirmed when I happened to gaze up. Yep. Sandy, standing there, in the flesh. She was wearing a too-big blue sweater and a short skirt that showed off her thin legs. Her hair was cut unevenly short, just below the ears, and she looked like she hadn't had a good night's sleep in days.
She rubbed her arms, as if to protect herself, "Hey Sodapop."
"I better go." Steve said, noticing who it was. He hurried outside to help a family of seven that had just pulled in.
I looked down at the counter and whispered, "Hi Sandy." There was an annoyingly uncomfortable and long pause. Why was she coming back? Was there anything left to be said? My letters were returned unopened, she left for Florida to live with her parents. Sure, her family life wasn't what one would call stellar, but they beat Steve and Anya's, or a bunch of other greasers I could name.
"Why are you here?" I asked.
Sandy shrugged, "I thought you needed an explanation, that's all."
"I don't think I want to hear one," I said coldly, brushing past her because I suddenly needed to count the new order of Baby Ruths we had just ordered. Sandy followed, shuffling her flip flop covered feet.
"Soda, do you think I had a choice in the matter?" asked Sandy.
I shrugged, "You didn't seem to mind too much--"
"Soda, I didn't return your feelings, okay? I mean, you didn't really expect me to date you throughout the rest of my life, did you?" She noticed the dead seriousness in my face. I hoped it make her saddened. "Oh.you did."
"Sandy, I was gonna ask you to marry me!" I snapped.
"I didn't have a choice!" cried Sandy, pleading. She knelt before me, "Soda, you know my parents didn't like you in the first place. I needed a better environment, Soda. My grandparents enrolled me in a prep school, a prep school, Soda!"
"Guess them preppies aren't good enough for me, huh?" I said bluntly.
"Soda, I'm visiting my parents here," Sandy said, cutting straight to the point. "It'll be for the summer. I don't know, maybe we can salvage something--"
"What are you doing here?" I nearly jumped. From Sandy's reaction, the flinching, the twisted agony on her face, she almost did too. We turned to see who had spoken. Standing in the doorway was Anya, arms crossed, face determined. Steve was behind her. He looked like he was trying to apologize, so I just nodded.
"Anya, hey," Sandy said. When Anya used to come up, Sandy and her were best friends. "How's everything lately?"
"I don't know," asked Anya. "Ask Sodapop. We are dating now, after all."
"Anya, you always had a crush on Soda, don't tell me you've progressed to some sort of twisted hallucination now." Sandy quit when she noticed Anya was not kidding. She turned to me, "Is she serious?"
I nodded. Sandy did not look too happy with that answer. I didn't know why she had any say in the matter. "How long did it take to replace me?"
"Gee, Sandy, let me walk you through this," said Anya, enraged. "To answer your question, several months. You left him, Sandy! You broke his heart and now you expect that you're back in town that you can start this, this charade, this game you've been playing up again?"
"Stay out of this, Anya," snapped Sandy.
"No," said Anya. Steve and I were surprised. Anya never got sassy or brazen like this. "Sandy, I lived in mortal fear of this moment, and now it's come. Just, just go ahead." Anya began to walk off. I stood up to chase after her, "Anya, what are you saying?"
"She's back, isn't she?" replied Anya, pointing to Sandy's general direction, as if she was afraid by saying her name she'd have to acknowledge the fact she had indeed returned, "This is what you wanted, go and take it."
"What do you mean, Anya?" I still couldn't understand what she was trying to say. Sandy put it for me, "She's saying she's dumping you, Soda. So we can get back together--"
"Anya!" I shouted. Anya began to walk off, but Steve grabbed her arm. He stared her dead in the eye. At the beginning, Steve didn't approve too much of our relationship, but I think he came around to the idea. "Listen to what he has to say, Anya." Anya sighed and turned back. She was beginning to tear up, and even began to shiver slightly, "What is it, Sodapop?"
I turned back to Sandy and shook my head, "I'm sorry, Sandy, I just can't."
"Can't what?" asked Sandy indignantly.
"I can't get back together with you," I told her bluntly. I looked back to Anya, "I love Anya, and she loves me. That's something you didn't give back, Sandy." Sandy crossed her arms, and looked angrily off to the side for a moment and then back to me and Anya, disgusted, the sight of the two of us making her physically sick. Figuring that it was truly over between us, she decided to nudge one last bitchy remark at us, "Don't expect Wonderland to last forever, Anya."
"Get out," ordered Anya, gritting her teeth. Sandy sighed, and then stormed out of the store, pushing past customers as she hurried down the street. I looked to Anya, excitedly, but she seemed like she was in utter shock. "What, Anya?" I asked.
"You really turned her down?" she asked in response. I nodded, "Yeah, Anya. I want to be together." Anya looked off in the distance, surprised. Tears began to spill down her porcelain face.
I brushed her tears away, "Marilyn, don't cry."
Anya shook her head, "I'm not. I'm just happy!" She threw her arms around me and sobbed into my shirt. I patted her dark blonde hair and looked up at Steve, who was nodding, approving of my decision. This was the moment. It couldn't wait till tonight.
"Anya, I have to tell you something," I told her. She wiped off her tears and ruined mascara and nodded to acknowledge that she was all ears. I knelt down before her, and pulled out a small box out of my side pocket. I was going to wait until she graduated high school, but that was one year off, too long. This needed to be said now. I had saved up nearly all my money to buy this, I even went in debt but it didn't matter. I opened the box and held out a small band for her to see, "Anya, will you marry me?"
At first, Anya seemed generally shocked. Then she began to cry all over again, and knelt down beside me. "Yes!" she gasped through sobs. "Absolutely, Sodapop!" I couldn't believe it. I gathered her up in my arms and began to kiss her. We looked up to see Steve, leaning against the side of the door, still nodding but smirking as well.
"Looks like we're going to have to find a minister," he replied. Anya jumped up, ecstatic, and ran over to Steve, hugging and crying and laughing all at the same time. He seemed to enjoy the attention, even though he didn't want to admit it. "Ah, kid, don't cry all over my uniform, this is standard issue!" I chuckled and then hugged Anya as tightly as I could, preventing nearly any force to hurt us.
DARRY
"Hey, Crick, where does Kat work?" I asked as the two of us strolled off to our respective vehicles. Crick paused for a moment. Crick may not have been the brightest person, or even the most hard working, but he was a nice enough guy to know.
"Oh, that Winn Dixie on Pickett and Sutton," he said. He replied slyly, "Why, what would you want with my baby sister?"
I grinned back, "I just remembered I needed some groceries."
Crick laughed, "Peace out, brother." He then sped off and so did I. The Winn Dixie he was referring to wasn't too far from the roofing site we had worked at, so it was a pretty quick drive. I parked the truck and then hurried into the store.
Kat was working at check-out 9, while slamming her broken register and balancing Cloud on her hip, who was crying. She was trying to hush her.
"Oh, baby, don't cry, here's a lollipop," Kat said, giving her daughter a lollipop from a nearby container. Cloud amused herself by attempting to find out how to open the candy.
"You overcharged me," said an old woman, Mrs. Reynolds. She was the same crabby one we had roofed her house days before.
Kat looked at the receipt, "Damn, I'm sorry, Ms. Reynolds. I was never good at math anyway--"
"This is the third time this week!" snapped the old lady. "What kind of fool hires you?!"
"Do you need help taking that to your car--" began Kat, offering to take the bags from the old lady. Recoiling from Kat, Mrs. Reynolds slapped the cashier with her newspaper, "Bah, bad service, and that kid's hurting my ears!" She waved her newspaper at Cloud. Kat sighed, and suddenly noticed I was standing there, and gave me a quick wave before attending to the next customer, a slimy, greasy looking nebbish. He had buckteeth and a cowboy's hat.
"Hey, Kat, Kat's okay with us since we're practically best buds right? Anyway, did I tell you how amazing you look--"
"Buck, if you're wondering if I can let you slide by with your purchases, I'll just have to say no."
"But c'mon, Kat. It's just a beer!"
"Buck, count how many cans there are. There's six there!"
Buck looked over to the six pack of cans, "I only see four."
"There's six, my daughter could count better then you!" Noticing that she had been referred to, Cloud began to cry. "Shhh, Cloud, I'm sorry." Seizing the opportunity, Buck snatched the beer, hid it in his coat, and ran out. Kat hollered after him, "Hey, hey, you need to pay for that!" She sighed. Just then, a hefty looking manager with tortoise shell glasses and a handlebar mustache hurried over. His red hair indicated he was Irish.
"I'm sorry, Katerina," the manager told her, "I'm losing customers--"
"No, I'm the one that should be apologizing," Kat said, looking slightly saddened. "I promise you won't lose anymore."
"Let's hope so," replied the manager, before turning and leaving. It was interesting to note that although he looked purely Irish, he spoke with a French accent. I strolled over to Kat, "Hey, Kat."
She immediately looked happier, "Hey! What's going on, Darry?"
"Nothing too exciting," I told her.
Cloud pointed to me excitedly, "Darry!" Kat and I had a pretty good laugh about that one. Kat walked over to me and stood chest to chest to me. She began to stand on my tennis shoes, and looked up at me.
"Anyway," I told her. "I was wondering if maybe, if this is all right with you of course, that maybe we could, provided that Cloud had a babysitter, we could.see each other tonight?"
Kat smiled, and she looked happier then I had seen her all day, "Sure. They're playing 'Giant' tonight at the drive-through. I always was a big fan of James Dean." Her voice trailed off, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," I said. Frankly, movies bored me to death, but if a movie was what Kat wanted to see, then a movie was what she was going to get.
"Oh, bad idea, huh?" Kat asked, picking at a fingernail.
"No, I'll go--"
"It's a bad idea?" reiterated Kat. I nodded, "Yeah, Pony's the one who loves movies," I said, hitching my thumbs in my jeans.
"Oh, your youngest brother right?" I nodded, pleased she had remembered. Then she shrugged. I decided to step up, "I wanna take you somewhere nice tonight." I had no idea where or if I had the money to spoil her like I wanted to.
Kat shrugged, "I think I'm up for being pampered. I'll ask Corazon if she can watch Cloud tonight."
"Great, does eight sound good?"
"Perfect," Kat told me. "But don't be mad if I'm a little late, Cloud usually drifts off to sleep then." She patted her daughter on the head and smiled lovingly at her. I grinned as well.
Work seemed to feel like an eternity afterwards. I just kept thinking about Kat. Where would I take her? I didn't have enough money to take her to a ritzy restaurant, so I decided on the diner Two-Bit's mom worked out. The whole gang was pleased when Two-Bit's mother quit her job as a barmaid and started work as a waitress; Two-Bit's mom was a nice woman and didn't deserve to be treated like she was being treated at the bar. I called up Kat and reconfirmed everything, and she seemed perfectly alright with going to a diner.
"Hey Darry, we're gonna run out of Dapper Dan's if you haven't used it all up by now!" shouted Soda from the bathroom. So I tried making my hair look nice. And trying to hide the cowlick in the back that I inherited from my father, but then again, I don't think Kat would've particularly cared either way.
"Sorry, little buddy!" I called. For once, the gang wasn't all at our house, just Soda, who was in the bathroom, and Pony, who was on the couch reading Les Miserables.
"Pony, did you finish your homework?" I asked.
Pony shrugged, "Yeah, for some reason. I don't see why we need to do it, we're graduating in a couple days--"
"Hey, I want you to keep those A's up," I told him. "Scholarships aren't just being handed out, we want you to get in somewhere good, you hear?"
"Yeah, yeah, good luck with the girl," Pony told me, not looking up from his book.
"Wait!" called Soda, hurrying in before I took off. "There's something I have to tell you and Pony-" Just then, the doorbell rang. I walked off to get it, and saw Kat standing there. She looked really stunning, to be truthful. Sure, she was wearing jeans and a flannel blouse but they were a nice pair of jeans and a blouse.
She smiled sheepishly, "Crick lent me the car. Sorry if I disturbed anything."
"Not at all," I told her. I began to hurry out, but Soda and Pony just had to meet this girl. I hadn't had a real date since I graduated high school. No other girl that I didn't need to beat off with a stick would come close to me.
Soda rushed to the front door and held out his hand, "Well, hello, miss, I'm Sodapop Curtis, Darry's kid brother. So you're the little lady who's taking my brother out for dinner tonight?"
"You're gonna be mincemeat if you don't cut that out," I grumbled. Soda grinned anyway. I couldn't stay annoyed at him for long.
"Hello Sodapop," responded Kat, smiling. "And I am the girl who's taking Darry out for dinner tonight. Proud of it too."
Ponyboy walked to the door and curtly said, "Ponyboy Curtis."
"Hi, I'm Kat," she said, shaking his hand.
"Well, have fun!" called Soda. "And loosen Darry up, will you? I need to ask if I can borrow a fiver." Kat took my hand and we walked to her Impala. She stepped into the driver's seat and started the car. The diner was only a short distance away, so it wasn't too long before we hopped out as well. By then we'd already covered quite a few topics.
"I'm real sorry I couldn't afford you something as nice as I was hoping," I said bashfully as the waitress took our orders. "It's just-- "
"You don't need an explanation, Darry," Kat told me, placing her hands in my enormous ones. "We all have problems. Trust me, I have my fair share."
"You're being too hard on yourself," I told her.
"Who's paying for this?" asked the waitress bluntly.
Kat looked into her jean pocket and pulled out a wallet. She only took out a few dollar bills, "This is all I got on me now."
"Don't worry, I'll pay," I told her. I noticed that Kat didn't order anything too expensive. I didn't want her to feel guilty, so I told her, "Don't worry about it." Just then, Two-Bit's mother hurried over, "Kat, is that you?"
"Shirley!" Kat said. The two hugged like good friends.
"You two know each other?" I asked.
Mrs. Mathews nodded, "Sure, Kat used to work here. How's the baby?"
"She's doing all right," Kat told her. "She can say the ABC's now."
"Really? She sure is a doll," Mrs. Mathews said. Another waitress rang the bell. Mrs. Mathews yelled and then said to us, "Well, I got to skiddaddle outta here. You two have fun!"
Kat shrugged, "I used to work here before I switched to Winn Dixie. Cloud got me fired here as well." Her face darkened.
"Kat, look, don't worry, you're gonna be alright, that manager would be insane if he fired you," I told her. I really wanted to make her feel better, especially since she seemed so down.
Kat nodded, "You're right." We thanked the waitress before consuming our food. Kat sipped a bit of her milkshake before asking, "Your brothers seemed nice."
"Yeah," I agreed. "Soda's real cool to be around, loves attention, probably can make just about anyone laugh."
"I think I've seen him down by the DX," replied Kat. "He was always real nice to me, didn't talk dirty like I was some piece of meat. What about Ponyboy?" I grew quiet. Ponyboy, what could I say about him?
"Frankly, I don't think he likes me too much."
"Why not?" asked Kat. She seemed generally surprised.
"I think he thinks I pressure him too much," I told her. "Things got a little better after Johnny and Dally died, I think he started to realize what I was trying to do, but it's still never good enough. I'm only trying to do what's best for him, since I couldn't go to college after my mom and dad died."
Kat nodded, and was listening earnestly, "That's terrible, Darry. Pony seems like a good kid."
"He is. He gets straight A's and reads a lot, it's just sometimes I wonder why that kid can't use his head," I told her. I couldn't believe I was actually telling someone my actual thoughts. I didn't feel like I had to be Superman around her, it was like I could actually take a break from being stern, tough Darry.
"I'm real sorry, Darry," she said. "I wish there was some great words of wisdom I could give you, other then that all guardians go through tough times raising children. Cloud's had her performances. Don't be so tough on yourself, though."
"It's not your fault," I replied. We finished up our meals and then drove around town a little bit. We parked her Impala at her apartment and I gave her a piggyback ride up the stairs and to her apartment. We were in hysteric tears from laughing so hard.
"I've never had so much fun," laughed Kat. To be truthful, I hadn't either. She took out a door key to her apartment and opened it, "Just hold on a minute, I owe you $2.95."
"I told you not to worry about it," I insisted. But Kat was persistent and shook her head, "No, I need to pay you back, it's only fair." She opened the door, and invited me in. I stepped in and saw the abject horror that crossed Kat's face.
"Mother?" Standing in the middle of the room was a tall and erudite looking woman. I could see where Kat got her beauty, although they looked nothing alike. This Caucasian woman was very slender but built like a woman, with blonde hair, full lips and blazing gray eyes. She was a beautiful woman, to be blunt.
She stormed over to Kat, "Katerina Bianca Noreiga, don't you "mother" me! You've brought shame to my family already, bringing a child in out of wedlock, and now you're living here." I noticed a man stepped out of Kat's kitchen. He was a regular looking middleclass man, wearing khakis and a buttoned up T-shirt. His dirty blonde hair was cut in a military crew cut, and his eyes were a humble hazel. He and Kat's mother looked like they were roughly the same age.
"Hey Kat," he said.
Kat sniffed, "Hi Clint."
"Don't bring my husband into this!" hissed Kat's mother. "We raised you properly, we listened to everything the psychiatrists said and yet you still turned out like a bum, just like your brother Crick! It's your good-for-nothing father, isn't it?"
"Crick is not a bum!" shouted Kat. "And leave Dad out of this!"
"Don't you tell me what I can call my son or not!" shrieked Kat's mother. "I brought you into this world, I can take you out! I swear, Katerina, I am not kidding when I say I'm calling the social workers."
"No!" gasped Kat.
Clint said, "Rubella, dearest, you're taking this too far. Cloud's Kat's daughter, she's an adult now."
"And hardly acting like one!" cursed Kat's mother, Rubella. She glared at me, "What's this, the latest hoodlum you've picked off the street?"
"He's not a hoodlum, 'Mother', he's probably the greatest person I've ever met, not that anything would ever be good enough for you," snapped Kat. She shouted to the ceiling, "I'M A TWO-PIECE WHORE WHO DOESN'T DESERVE TO BREATHE SAME AIR AS YOU! Are you happy now?!" Her eyes were full of rage.
Rubella pondered this for a moment and then sighed, "At least you came clean with it."
"Don't talk to her like that!" I snapped. Didn't she even realize how beautiful all around Kat was? Why was Kat's own mother treating her like this?
Kat placed her hands to hold me back, "Let me handle this, Darry."
Rubella shrugged, "Hmm, aggressive, just like the rest."
"You shut up, Rubella!" snapped Kat. She turned to Clint, "Dear God, is this what you have to put up with? Why the hell did you marry her?"
"Kat, that's showing disrespect-" began Clint. He never got to finish, for Rubella stormed over and smacked Kat across the cheek. I wanted more then anything to step in, but this was between Kat and Rubella.
"HOW DARE YOU TREAT ME LIKE THIS?!" she hollered. "After all I've done for you?!"
"What?" asked Kat, taking the blow. "Belittling me? Hiding us away when you needed to impress someone? Sending me away when I was only eighteen after making a mistake? You haven't seen your beautiful little granddaughter--"
"I don't have a granddaughter," Rubella said stiffly. "That child is yours."
"It's been two years, Rubella! I understand that you weren't happy with me, I know I wasn't the best teenager, but this has nothing to do with it anymore! This just has to do with you and your god damned ego!"
"I refuse to stand by and listen to your lies," Rubella said. "Clint, we're leaving. Don't think you're safe, Katerina. I'm going to have a social worker be watching you very carefully." And with that, Rubella stomped off.
Clint walked up to Kat and gave her a warm hug, "I'm sorry about your mother's behavior--"
"Don't bother," Kat told him. She glared at her impatient mother, "Just send my regards." And then Clint joined his wife and the two left. I saw that Kat's eyes did not leave the door.
"Kat, are you going to be alright?" I asked. I was concerned for her, her mother was a raving.to hell with it, bitch who couldn't even begin to appreciate her daughter for her talents.
Kat nodded, "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." I noticed she was shaking. I walked over to her and enveloped her in my arms. Silent tears were pouring down her face. I stayed for as long as I could, just sitting on her couch, holding her as she wept. The poor girl cried herself to sleep in my arms. I managed to pay the concerned babysitter with my money when she brought Cloud over, and I put her to bed. She seemed strangely accepting of me, and fell asleep after I told her a bedtime story. I walked back into the living room and tucked the still sleeping Kat into bed. I didn't want to leave her there, but there wasn't too much else I could to. So I called home, told Soda that Kat was having a problem (he understood) and then curled up on the armchair and fell fast asleep.
CHAPTER FOUR
PONY
Dead meat, I thought. Darry's sure to have killed me by now. I checked my watch. 4 AM. Time wasn't exactly on my side. What was? Had it been my fault that Sarah and I had stopped at Dairy Queen before heading back to reality, where I'd dropped her off at her house and then fallen asleep in a vacant lot and not awaken until recently?
This is too familiar, I thought. This had been the way everything had started, with Johnny killing the Soc and us running off with Dally's help then turning ourselves in and rescuing the kids and becoming local heroes and all. It wasn't gonna happen all over again. I remember my history teacher telling me those who don't learn about history are doomed to repeat it. I was probably the only one in the class listening though.
I sneaked up to the porch, the old boards creaking. I knew I was probably gonna get stuck painting the porch again. Just like that kid in that one book that Mark Twain wrote, Tom Sawyer. The lights were on. Not a good sign. I sucked in a deep breath and opened the door.
Boy, was I busted. Darry was sleeping in the armchair, his newspaper sprawled on the floor. Soda and Anya had fallen asleep on the couch, while Steve and Two-Bit were playing poker and drinking Heineken.
"Man, this is the crappiest beer!" Two-Bit exclaimed before downing the rest of the bottle happily. He saw me and, probably since he was boozed and sleep deprived, grinned and said, "Hey Ponyboy." This awoke the sleeping Darry, who jumped to his feet.
"Hey, Pony, mind telling me what time it is?" asked Darry sarcastically. I shrugged. What was the point? He wasn't going to wait for an answer anyway. "Four in the morning, bucko. I'm really looking forward to hear your excuse now."
"Can it wait until tomorrow?" I asked. I had been in a good mood and I didn't want it to come crashing down, like it was doomed to be.
"Nope," Darry told me, crossing his arms and looking parental and stern. "Pony, you gotta use your head about these situations. We've told you before; you've got a curfew of eleven. What do you not understand of that?"
"I just went to Windrixville with Sarah van Pelt, alright?!" I exploded. I bit my tongue and wanted to smack myself. The room grew quiet. Everyone knew what happened in Windrixville, even Anya, who had arrived only a little bit later.
"Windrixville?" asked Steve. Soda began to yawn and smack his lips as he woke up. He squinted and smiled sleepily, "Hey Ponyboy."
"Who's Sarah?" Darry asked, concerned.
"Didja hear?" interrupted Two-Bit excitedly. "Soda whooped Spike in the car race." His voice lowered as he saw Darry glare at him so he picked up his beer and said, "I think Mom will probably want me home by now. Bye, y'all." And Two-Bit dashed out the door. Steve sighed and walked over to Anya, nudging her softly, "C'mon, kiddo, time to go."
"Do you need to stay here?" asked Darry. Steve shook his head as Anya yawned and stretched, "Nah, me and Dad are on speaking terms this week. C'mon, Anya." She kissed Soda on the lips briefly before Anya and Steve exited after Two-Bit. Hoping that that distraction had been a long enough to make a getaway, I began to sneak down the hall and to my room.
"Don't think you're getting away with this," Darry said warningly, ruining my hopes. He yawned, "Aw, it can wait till tomorrow. Soda, Pony, get to bed." Whatever had put Darry in a good mood, I wanted to personally thank but didn't have the time, so I scurried off into the room Soda and I shared.
SODA
Work today was dreary since Anya wasn't going to be able to sneak out of school to have lunch with me and Steve. She had to make up some damn chemistry test. I was hoping she could sweet talk her wait out of it, but I doubt that's what Anya would do. So now my day's already a little darkened. We were meeting at the vacant lot to star gaze and just talk like we usually do. I have to be blunt, I miss her even though it's only been about six hours since I last saw her.
Nothing really worth mentioning had happened until Larry stopped by. Me and Steve felt awfully bad for him; he was telling us about how he got nearly beaten to death by some Socs.
"Damn Socs," Steve said, shaking his head and spitting. "Some day I'm gonna get my hands on one of them."
"Aw, they ain't all bad," Larry said, wincing as he readjusted his weight so he could lean on his crutch. "Their two girls didn't seem too bad. One even tried stopping him."
"Sonuvabitches," muttered Steve, "Socs can't go around treating us like that." Frankly, Larry was hardly a blue collar. He was well educated actually. Just two things held him back; the fact he was black and the fact he wasn't incredibly rich.
Larry nodded, "Yeah, I know. I'm thinking about packing up and heading back to Harlem. It'd be nice to go back and visit my family, maybe going back to boxing," he playfully punched me in the arm, "just like Cassius Clay."
"Hey, he won, who knows, you could be next," I laughed. Larry was a good guy, frankly. He had a wife and at least two kids back in Harlem, along with the rest of his family. If that's where he wanted to go, then I was all for it.
"Good luck to ya, Larry," I told him. Larry nodded a "thanks" and began to hobble back to his car, which Pony and I had returned to him the other day. He bumped into someone at the door, and I didn't see who it was because I was counting the change, and I heard him say, "Sorry, miss."
"It's okay." I couldn't believe it. I didn't want to, either. My suspicions were confirmed when I happened to gaze up. Yep. Sandy, standing there, in the flesh. She was wearing a too-big blue sweater and a short skirt that showed off her thin legs. Her hair was cut unevenly short, just below the ears, and she looked like she hadn't had a good night's sleep in days.
She rubbed her arms, as if to protect herself, "Hey Sodapop."
"I better go." Steve said, noticing who it was. He hurried outside to help a family of seven that had just pulled in.
I looked down at the counter and whispered, "Hi Sandy." There was an annoyingly uncomfortable and long pause. Why was she coming back? Was there anything left to be said? My letters were returned unopened, she left for Florida to live with her parents. Sure, her family life wasn't what one would call stellar, but they beat Steve and Anya's, or a bunch of other greasers I could name.
"Why are you here?" I asked.
Sandy shrugged, "I thought you needed an explanation, that's all."
"I don't think I want to hear one," I said coldly, brushing past her because I suddenly needed to count the new order of Baby Ruths we had just ordered. Sandy followed, shuffling her flip flop covered feet.
"Soda, do you think I had a choice in the matter?" asked Sandy.
I shrugged, "You didn't seem to mind too much--"
"Soda, I didn't return your feelings, okay? I mean, you didn't really expect me to date you throughout the rest of my life, did you?" She noticed the dead seriousness in my face. I hoped it make her saddened. "Oh.you did."
"Sandy, I was gonna ask you to marry me!" I snapped.
"I didn't have a choice!" cried Sandy, pleading. She knelt before me, "Soda, you know my parents didn't like you in the first place. I needed a better environment, Soda. My grandparents enrolled me in a prep school, a prep school, Soda!"
"Guess them preppies aren't good enough for me, huh?" I said bluntly.
"Soda, I'm visiting my parents here," Sandy said, cutting straight to the point. "It'll be for the summer. I don't know, maybe we can salvage something--"
"What are you doing here?" I nearly jumped. From Sandy's reaction, the flinching, the twisted agony on her face, she almost did too. We turned to see who had spoken. Standing in the doorway was Anya, arms crossed, face determined. Steve was behind her. He looked like he was trying to apologize, so I just nodded.
"Anya, hey," Sandy said. When Anya used to come up, Sandy and her were best friends. "How's everything lately?"
"I don't know," asked Anya. "Ask Sodapop. We are dating now, after all."
"Anya, you always had a crush on Soda, don't tell me you've progressed to some sort of twisted hallucination now." Sandy quit when she noticed Anya was not kidding. She turned to me, "Is she serious?"
I nodded. Sandy did not look too happy with that answer. I didn't know why she had any say in the matter. "How long did it take to replace me?"
"Gee, Sandy, let me walk you through this," said Anya, enraged. "To answer your question, several months. You left him, Sandy! You broke his heart and now you expect that you're back in town that you can start this, this charade, this game you've been playing up again?"
"Stay out of this, Anya," snapped Sandy.
"No," said Anya. Steve and I were surprised. Anya never got sassy or brazen like this. "Sandy, I lived in mortal fear of this moment, and now it's come. Just, just go ahead." Anya began to walk off. I stood up to chase after her, "Anya, what are you saying?"
"She's back, isn't she?" replied Anya, pointing to Sandy's general direction, as if she was afraid by saying her name she'd have to acknowledge the fact she had indeed returned, "This is what you wanted, go and take it."
"What do you mean, Anya?" I still couldn't understand what she was trying to say. Sandy put it for me, "She's saying she's dumping you, Soda. So we can get back together--"
"Anya!" I shouted. Anya began to walk off, but Steve grabbed her arm. He stared her dead in the eye. At the beginning, Steve didn't approve too much of our relationship, but I think he came around to the idea. "Listen to what he has to say, Anya." Anya sighed and turned back. She was beginning to tear up, and even began to shiver slightly, "What is it, Sodapop?"
I turned back to Sandy and shook my head, "I'm sorry, Sandy, I just can't."
"Can't what?" asked Sandy indignantly.
"I can't get back together with you," I told her bluntly. I looked back to Anya, "I love Anya, and she loves me. That's something you didn't give back, Sandy." Sandy crossed her arms, and looked angrily off to the side for a moment and then back to me and Anya, disgusted, the sight of the two of us making her physically sick. Figuring that it was truly over between us, she decided to nudge one last bitchy remark at us, "Don't expect Wonderland to last forever, Anya."
"Get out," ordered Anya, gritting her teeth. Sandy sighed, and then stormed out of the store, pushing past customers as she hurried down the street. I looked to Anya, excitedly, but she seemed like she was in utter shock. "What, Anya?" I asked.
"You really turned her down?" she asked in response. I nodded, "Yeah, Anya. I want to be together." Anya looked off in the distance, surprised. Tears began to spill down her porcelain face.
I brushed her tears away, "Marilyn, don't cry."
Anya shook her head, "I'm not. I'm just happy!" She threw her arms around me and sobbed into my shirt. I patted her dark blonde hair and looked up at Steve, who was nodding, approving of my decision. This was the moment. It couldn't wait till tonight.
"Anya, I have to tell you something," I told her. She wiped off her tears and ruined mascara and nodded to acknowledge that she was all ears. I knelt down before her, and pulled out a small box out of my side pocket. I was going to wait until she graduated high school, but that was one year off, too long. This needed to be said now. I had saved up nearly all my money to buy this, I even went in debt but it didn't matter. I opened the box and held out a small band for her to see, "Anya, will you marry me?"
At first, Anya seemed generally shocked. Then she began to cry all over again, and knelt down beside me. "Yes!" she gasped through sobs. "Absolutely, Sodapop!" I couldn't believe it. I gathered her up in my arms and began to kiss her. We looked up to see Steve, leaning against the side of the door, still nodding but smirking as well.
"Looks like we're going to have to find a minister," he replied. Anya jumped up, ecstatic, and ran over to Steve, hugging and crying and laughing all at the same time. He seemed to enjoy the attention, even though he didn't want to admit it. "Ah, kid, don't cry all over my uniform, this is standard issue!" I chuckled and then hugged Anya as tightly as I could, preventing nearly any force to hurt us.
DARRY
"Hey, Crick, where does Kat work?" I asked as the two of us strolled off to our respective vehicles. Crick paused for a moment. Crick may not have been the brightest person, or even the most hard working, but he was a nice enough guy to know.
"Oh, that Winn Dixie on Pickett and Sutton," he said. He replied slyly, "Why, what would you want with my baby sister?"
I grinned back, "I just remembered I needed some groceries."
Crick laughed, "Peace out, brother." He then sped off and so did I. The Winn Dixie he was referring to wasn't too far from the roofing site we had worked at, so it was a pretty quick drive. I parked the truck and then hurried into the store.
Kat was working at check-out 9, while slamming her broken register and balancing Cloud on her hip, who was crying. She was trying to hush her.
"Oh, baby, don't cry, here's a lollipop," Kat said, giving her daughter a lollipop from a nearby container. Cloud amused herself by attempting to find out how to open the candy.
"You overcharged me," said an old woman, Mrs. Reynolds. She was the same crabby one we had roofed her house days before.
Kat looked at the receipt, "Damn, I'm sorry, Ms. Reynolds. I was never good at math anyway--"
"This is the third time this week!" snapped the old lady. "What kind of fool hires you?!"
"Do you need help taking that to your car--" began Kat, offering to take the bags from the old lady. Recoiling from Kat, Mrs. Reynolds slapped the cashier with her newspaper, "Bah, bad service, and that kid's hurting my ears!" She waved her newspaper at Cloud. Kat sighed, and suddenly noticed I was standing there, and gave me a quick wave before attending to the next customer, a slimy, greasy looking nebbish. He had buckteeth and a cowboy's hat.
"Hey, Kat, Kat's okay with us since we're practically best buds right? Anyway, did I tell you how amazing you look--"
"Buck, if you're wondering if I can let you slide by with your purchases, I'll just have to say no."
"But c'mon, Kat. It's just a beer!"
"Buck, count how many cans there are. There's six there!"
Buck looked over to the six pack of cans, "I only see four."
"There's six, my daughter could count better then you!" Noticing that she had been referred to, Cloud began to cry. "Shhh, Cloud, I'm sorry." Seizing the opportunity, Buck snatched the beer, hid it in his coat, and ran out. Kat hollered after him, "Hey, hey, you need to pay for that!" She sighed. Just then, a hefty looking manager with tortoise shell glasses and a handlebar mustache hurried over. His red hair indicated he was Irish.
"I'm sorry, Katerina," the manager told her, "I'm losing customers--"
"No, I'm the one that should be apologizing," Kat said, looking slightly saddened. "I promise you won't lose anymore."
"Let's hope so," replied the manager, before turning and leaving. It was interesting to note that although he looked purely Irish, he spoke with a French accent. I strolled over to Kat, "Hey, Kat."
She immediately looked happier, "Hey! What's going on, Darry?"
"Nothing too exciting," I told her.
Cloud pointed to me excitedly, "Darry!" Kat and I had a pretty good laugh about that one. Kat walked over to me and stood chest to chest to me. She began to stand on my tennis shoes, and looked up at me.
"Anyway," I told her. "I was wondering if maybe, if this is all right with you of course, that maybe we could, provided that Cloud had a babysitter, we could.see each other tonight?"
Kat smiled, and she looked happier then I had seen her all day, "Sure. They're playing 'Giant' tonight at the drive-through. I always was a big fan of James Dean." Her voice trailed off, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," I said. Frankly, movies bored me to death, but if a movie was what Kat wanted to see, then a movie was what she was going to get.
"Oh, bad idea, huh?" Kat asked, picking at a fingernail.
"No, I'll go--"
"It's a bad idea?" reiterated Kat. I nodded, "Yeah, Pony's the one who loves movies," I said, hitching my thumbs in my jeans.
"Oh, your youngest brother right?" I nodded, pleased she had remembered. Then she shrugged. I decided to step up, "I wanna take you somewhere nice tonight." I had no idea where or if I had the money to spoil her like I wanted to.
Kat shrugged, "I think I'm up for being pampered. I'll ask Corazon if she can watch Cloud tonight."
"Great, does eight sound good?"
"Perfect," Kat told me. "But don't be mad if I'm a little late, Cloud usually drifts off to sleep then." She patted her daughter on the head and smiled lovingly at her. I grinned as well.
Work seemed to feel like an eternity afterwards. I just kept thinking about Kat. Where would I take her? I didn't have enough money to take her to a ritzy restaurant, so I decided on the diner Two-Bit's mom worked out. The whole gang was pleased when Two-Bit's mother quit her job as a barmaid and started work as a waitress; Two-Bit's mom was a nice woman and didn't deserve to be treated like she was being treated at the bar. I called up Kat and reconfirmed everything, and she seemed perfectly alright with going to a diner.
"Hey Darry, we're gonna run out of Dapper Dan's if you haven't used it all up by now!" shouted Soda from the bathroom. So I tried making my hair look nice. And trying to hide the cowlick in the back that I inherited from my father, but then again, I don't think Kat would've particularly cared either way.
"Sorry, little buddy!" I called. For once, the gang wasn't all at our house, just Soda, who was in the bathroom, and Pony, who was on the couch reading Les Miserables.
"Pony, did you finish your homework?" I asked.
Pony shrugged, "Yeah, for some reason. I don't see why we need to do it, we're graduating in a couple days--"
"Hey, I want you to keep those A's up," I told him. "Scholarships aren't just being handed out, we want you to get in somewhere good, you hear?"
"Yeah, yeah, good luck with the girl," Pony told me, not looking up from his book.
"Wait!" called Soda, hurrying in before I took off. "There's something I have to tell you and Pony-" Just then, the doorbell rang. I walked off to get it, and saw Kat standing there. She looked really stunning, to be truthful. Sure, she was wearing jeans and a flannel blouse but they were a nice pair of jeans and a blouse.
She smiled sheepishly, "Crick lent me the car. Sorry if I disturbed anything."
"Not at all," I told her. I began to hurry out, but Soda and Pony just had to meet this girl. I hadn't had a real date since I graduated high school. No other girl that I didn't need to beat off with a stick would come close to me.
Soda rushed to the front door and held out his hand, "Well, hello, miss, I'm Sodapop Curtis, Darry's kid brother. So you're the little lady who's taking my brother out for dinner tonight?"
"You're gonna be mincemeat if you don't cut that out," I grumbled. Soda grinned anyway. I couldn't stay annoyed at him for long.
"Hello Sodapop," responded Kat, smiling. "And I am the girl who's taking Darry out for dinner tonight. Proud of it too."
Ponyboy walked to the door and curtly said, "Ponyboy Curtis."
"Hi, I'm Kat," she said, shaking his hand.
"Well, have fun!" called Soda. "And loosen Darry up, will you? I need to ask if I can borrow a fiver." Kat took my hand and we walked to her Impala. She stepped into the driver's seat and started the car. The diner was only a short distance away, so it wasn't too long before we hopped out as well. By then we'd already covered quite a few topics.
"I'm real sorry I couldn't afford you something as nice as I was hoping," I said bashfully as the waitress took our orders. "It's just-- "
"You don't need an explanation, Darry," Kat told me, placing her hands in my enormous ones. "We all have problems. Trust me, I have my fair share."
"You're being too hard on yourself," I told her.
"Who's paying for this?" asked the waitress bluntly.
Kat looked into her jean pocket and pulled out a wallet. She only took out a few dollar bills, "This is all I got on me now."
"Don't worry, I'll pay," I told her. I noticed that Kat didn't order anything too expensive. I didn't want her to feel guilty, so I told her, "Don't worry about it." Just then, Two-Bit's mother hurried over, "Kat, is that you?"
"Shirley!" Kat said. The two hugged like good friends.
"You two know each other?" I asked.
Mrs. Mathews nodded, "Sure, Kat used to work here. How's the baby?"
"She's doing all right," Kat told her. "She can say the ABC's now."
"Really? She sure is a doll," Mrs. Mathews said. Another waitress rang the bell. Mrs. Mathews yelled and then said to us, "Well, I got to skiddaddle outta here. You two have fun!"
Kat shrugged, "I used to work here before I switched to Winn Dixie. Cloud got me fired here as well." Her face darkened.
"Kat, look, don't worry, you're gonna be alright, that manager would be insane if he fired you," I told her. I really wanted to make her feel better, especially since she seemed so down.
Kat nodded, "You're right." We thanked the waitress before consuming our food. Kat sipped a bit of her milkshake before asking, "Your brothers seemed nice."
"Yeah," I agreed. "Soda's real cool to be around, loves attention, probably can make just about anyone laugh."
"I think I've seen him down by the DX," replied Kat. "He was always real nice to me, didn't talk dirty like I was some piece of meat. What about Ponyboy?" I grew quiet. Ponyboy, what could I say about him?
"Frankly, I don't think he likes me too much."
"Why not?" asked Kat. She seemed generally surprised.
"I think he thinks I pressure him too much," I told her. "Things got a little better after Johnny and Dally died, I think he started to realize what I was trying to do, but it's still never good enough. I'm only trying to do what's best for him, since I couldn't go to college after my mom and dad died."
Kat nodded, and was listening earnestly, "That's terrible, Darry. Pony seems like a good kid."
"He is. He gets straight A's and reads a lot, it's just sometimes I wonder why that kid can't use his head," I told her. I couldn't believe I was actually telling someone my actual thoughts. I didn't feel like I had to be Superman around her, it was like I could actually take a break from being stern, tough Darry.
"I'm real sorry, Darry," she said. "I wish there was some great words of wisdom I could give you, other then that all guardians go through tough times raising children. Cloud's had her performances. Don't be so tough on yourself, though."
"It's not your fault," I replied. We finished up our meals and then drove around town a little bit. We parked her Impala at her apartment and I gave her a piggyback ride up the stairs and to her apartment. We were in hysteric tears from laughing so hard.
"I've never had so much fun," laughed Kat. To be truthful, I hadn't either. She took out a door key to her apartment and opened it, "Just hold on a minute, I owe you $2.95."
"I told you not to worry about it," I insisted. But Kat was persistent and shook her head, "No, I need to pay you back, it's only fair." She opened the door, and invited me in. I stepped in and saw the abject horror that crossed Kat's face.
"Mother?" Standing in the middle of the room was a tall and erudite looking woman. I could see where Kat got her beauty, although they looked nothing alike. This Caucasian woman was very slender but built like a woman, with blonde hair, full lips and blazing gray eyes. She was a beautiful woman, to be blunt.
She stormed over to Kat, "Katerina Bianca Noreiga, don't you "mother" me! You've brought shame to my family already, bringing a child in out of wedlock, and now you're living here." I noticed a man stepped out of Kat's kitchen. He was a regular looking middleclass man, wearing khakis and a buttoned up T-shirt. His dirty blonde hair was cut in a military crew cut, and his eyes were a humble hazel. He and Kat's mother looked like they were roughly the same age.
"Hey Kat," he said.
Kat sniffed, "Hi Clint."
"Don't bring my husband into this!" hissed Kat's mother. "We raised you properly, we listened to everything the psychiatrists said and yet you still turned out like a bum, just like your brother Crick! It's your good-for-nothing father, isn't it?"
"Crick is not a bum!" shouted Kat. "And leave Dad out of this!"
"Don't you tell me what I can call my son or not!" shrieked Kat's mother. "I brought you into this world, I can take you out! I swear, Katerina, I am not kidding when I say I'm calling the social workers."
"No!" gasped Kat.
Clint said, "Rubella, dearest, you're taking this too far. Cloud's Kat's daughter, she's an adult now."
"And hardly acting like one!" cursed Kat's mother, Rubella. She glared at me, "What's this, the latest hoodlum you've picked off the street?"
"He's not a hoodlum, 'Mother', he's probably the greatest person I've ever met, not that anything would ever be good enough for you," snapped Kat. She shouted to the ceiling, "I'M A TWO-PIECE WHORE WHO DOESN'T DESERVE TO BREATHE SAME AIR AS YOU! Are you happy now?!" Her eyes were full of rage.
Rubella pondered this for a moment and then sighed, "At least you came clean with it."
"Don't talk to her like that!" I snapped. Didn't she even realize how beautiful all around Kat was? Why was Kat's own mother treating her like this?
Kat placed her hands to hold me back, "Let me handle this, Darry."
Rubella shrugged, "Hmm, aggressive, just like the rest."
"You shut up, Rubella!" snapped Kat. She turned to Clint, "Dear God, is this what you have to put up with? Why the hell did you marry her?"
"Kat, that's showing disrespect-" began Clint. He never got to finish, for Rubella stormed over and smacked Kat across the cheek. I wanted more then anything to step in, but this was between Kat and Rubella.
"HOW DARE YOU TREAT ME LIKE THIS?!" she hollered. "After all I've done for you?!"
"What?" asked Kat, taking the blow. "Belittling me? Hiding us away when you needed to impress someone? Sending me away when I was only eighteen after making a mistake? You haven't seen your beautiful little granddaughter--"
"I don't have a granddaughter," Rubella said stiffly. "That child is yours."
"It's been two years, Rubella! I understand that you weren't happy with me, I know I wasn't the best teenager, but this has nothing to do with it anymore! This just has to do with you and your god damned ego!"
"I refuse to stand by and listen to your lies," Rubella said. "Clint, we're leaving. Don't think you're safe, Katerina. I'm going to have a social worker be watching you very carefully." And with that, Rubella stomped off.
Clint walked up to Kat and gave her a warm hug, "I'm sorry about your mother's behavior--"
"Don't bother," Kat told him. She glared at her impatient mother, "Just send my regards." And then Clint joined his wife and the two left. I saw that Kat's eyes did not leave the door.
"Kat, are you going to be alright?" I asked. I was concerned for her, her mother was a raving.to hell with it, bitch who couldn't even begin to appreciate her daughter for her talents.
Kat nodded, "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." I noticed she was shaking. I walked over to her and enveloped her in my arms. Silent tears were pouring down her face. I stayed for as long as I could, just sitting on her couch, holding her as she wept. The poor girl cried herself to sleep in my arms. I managed to pay the concerned babysitter with my money when she brought Cloud over, and I put her to bed. She seemed strangely accepting of me, and fell asleep after I told her a bedtime story. I walked back into the living room and tucked the still sleeping Kat into bed. I didn't want to leave her there, but there wasn't too much else I could to. So I called home, told Soda that Kat was having a problem (he understood) and then curled up on the armchair and fell fast asleep.