Reviewing Feedback:
Timmycheese: Yes, she is crazy. To much work! And Nina's mum is dead .
QTpie4: I will try!
DramaticAngel: And I like your stories a lot too!
oOoDancingQueenoOo: Not really. You'll see in later episodes, he's kind of immature.
lady rose 05: I really liked your story. Poor Ponyboy :'( Still not over it ,eh. But he always will have his brothers.
Ribellaragazza: :D Hopefully you're not the only one looking forward to more instalments :)
Disclaimer: I am not S.E Hinton and do not own The Outsiders (Well, I do own a copy of the book, muwhahah). All the characters belong to her except any characters that you are unfamiliar with, which are owned by me and any unfamiliar plot.
Author's Note: Yay, I'll keep going :D Just a note, I might not be able to update a lot over the next few weeks, we have The Outsiders to do in English, and our teacher is kind of like a work ethic banshee. To much work in a little amount of time . So I'll try and fit in writing time during it :P
"Ahh… What should I wear?" Nina said our loud as she was looking through her wardrobe. Her clothes were filed by colour and arranged by what they were. Her father noticed that she looked frustrated as he passed her room, so he leaned against the door and got her attention by knocking on it.
"Nina-Bear, why don't you wear that nice purple dress that I bought you?" he said in a heartily manor. Nina pulled her head out of the wardrobe and sighed.
"I would, Daddy, but the weatherman was wrong about the whole day. I think he made up the temperature for today. It certainly didn't get to 60 degrees today. I think I should wear something warmer." She replied dully. Her father let out a light laugh.
"I suppose it wouldn't be a good idea for my little girl to get a cold either." He let out. He was secretly thinking of how much she reminded him of her mother – Kind, Independent and vulnerable at the same time. He smiled and walked off, leaving Nina in utter disarray.
By 5'oclock, she finally had her choice of apparel spread out on her bed. There was a forget-me-not blue sweater next to a teal coloured top and skirt. At the side of the bed were her pair of Mary-Sues – shoes for the posh and that was their motto too. First Nina went to the bathroom and washed her face and brushed out the kinkiness out of her hair. Nina didn't have any make-up, so she just pinched her cheeks to give the appearance of blush – it was a secret taught by a classmate at her old school. Nina didn't know why she was trying so hard to look good for once, maybe because she hadn't gone out with anyone in a long time.
By 6'oclock, Nina was ready and sitting down on the couch, her flowery coin purse in her hands and being squeezed by as she looked at the grandfather clock in the other room.
Finally, a car honk was heard. Nina looked out the window, and there was Millis' father's white Ford Galaxie with its top up. As Nina headed for the door, her father came downstairs and hugged her dearly. She had to get up on her tippee-toes to give him a kiss on his cheek. He farewelled her as she headed out the door.
Millis was waving out the car's window. As Nina approached, she opened the back door where she was sitting, slid over to the other side of the car and let Nina in.
"Hi Millis. Hello Mr. Rowett" Nina said in a polite voice as she buckled up her seatbelt, looking at Millis' father. He was a wide man, with almost greyish hair and a white moustache. He was wearing something that looked like a white tuxedo that matched the interior of the car and a wide cowboy hat.. Mr. Rowett looked in the rear view mirror at Nina.
"Golly, Hello there lil' Lady" he said, tipping has hat forward. "I didn't know that you had cheer leader friends, Millicent." Nina blushed and Millis gentley punched her dad on his shoulder blade. He let out a hearty laugh.
"I tol' you not to call me that" Millis said bitterly. "And Nina's not a bozo cheerleader either". Mr. Rowett raised one eyebrow as he started up the car and started driving.
"Now, now Millis." He said smoothly. Nina recognised the same southern accent that Millis had in his voice. "Your mother and I do think that ya'd make a good cheerleader". Nina saw Millis' hands clench in anger. Nina only saw then what she was wearing. Millis wore a red top with a maroon skirt and had one of her trademark rainbow ski jackets on top.
"We'll I don'" Millis replied. Her father grinned and looked back to the road. Millis saw how Nina was looking at her, and whispered into her ear: "My ma made me wear it. She said I had to look 'Lady Like' when I go out at night. I feel like a sleaze. " Millis said, trying to rub off some blush of her cheeks. It looked as if it was forced onto her. Millis sure did look out of place in what she was wearing.
"I'm guessing that that wasn't your definition of 'wild'," Nina inquired. Millis nodded her head.
"I was going to wear my new jeans, but my ma wouldn't let me. And why aren't you wearing anything 'wild'?" Nina grinned.
"It took me a while to get this outfit together. And if you're meaning pants, I only have one pair, and that's only for Labour Day." Millis laughed. Mr. Rowett turned around from his seat and said, "We're here". Nina just realised where she was. A big white wooden house with a green bushy garden was on the right side of the Rowett's Garage, where they were in.
Millis led Nina into their living room. It was grand and luxurious, but looked wrecked at the same time as if a drunken designer arranged the furniture. A large woman with short brown hair and a flowery apron on was in the kitchen, cooking. She heard them come in and ran to greet Nina.
"Wo! You must be Nina! Millicent has told us so much about you!" the woman said happily. Millis looked red by being referred to Millicent, and Nina didn't understand what she meant by "told us so much about you". Nina hadn't told Millis enough about her as she had told Ponyboy, and that was saying a lot. Nina looked at the woman and smiled shyly.
"Hello, Mrs. Rowett. You have such a lovely house" Nina started, looking around. Mrs. Rowett smiled with pride.
"How about I show you around some, Hun?" she said, grabbing Nina by the arm and towing her around the living room. She started showing her some photos; Millis sighed and followed Nina, as if this was a routine to do to guests.
"And this is my eldest son, Billy, and that's Rex and I on our wedding day" Mrs. Rowett went on. Nina picked up that Rex was Mr. Rowett, Billy was her oldest son and he sure did look like Millis. She kept showing pictures, even baby pictures of Millis and some other boy that were a discomfort to Millis. Nina looked at one picture, and had a question.
"Oh, Is this an oil rig where Billy works at?" Nina inquired about a picture with Billy standing next to a large steel tower on a dusty farm. Mrs. Rowett chuckled and Mr. Rowett came over.
"No lass, that's our farm with our oil rig" he answered. Millis looked perspired for some reason when he said that. "Millis' older brother Billy works out there in Texas. He said he didn' like being a freeloader so he looks after our employees, even though Susan said he didn't have to". There was a short silence, and then Mrs. Rowett turned to Nina.
"How about some dinner, love?" Nina was about to reply when Millis bitterly added:
"We're goin' out to the Nightly Double. We'll stop at Rusty's for a bite." Mrs. Rowett looked disappointed.
"What time do ya' need to be home by?" Mr. Rowett asked Nina.
"10 o'clock, sir" she replied. Mr. Rowett smiled.
"Alright, I'll pick y'all up then at the car park" he said. Nina replied with a faint smile and Millis rolled her eyes and took Nina up stairs to her room. On the way there, Millis' brother interrupted them. He had light brown hair and looked around 16, he had the same grey eyes as Millis and looked like the young boy from Millis' picture. He came out of his room, littered with chip packets and clothes and teased Millis.
"Woohoo. I never know you could make friends like her." He said winking at Nina as he slicked his hair back.
"O, Shut up Mike. She's to good for the likes of you, like all 'em girls are." Millis retorted. Nina bit her lips. She was being hit on. It may have been the true first time, besides what had happened that morning. That's what happens when you go to an all girls' school.
Millis nudged Nina off to her room, Mike stood there and mockingly waved as if she was leaving to a place far, far away.
Millis room was just as messy as Mike's, but instead of chip packets being scattered around the room, there were books. Millis bed wasn't done, her clothes were hanging off chairs and one top was hanging off the light on the ceiling. Nina tried to adjust her glasses a bit as if she couldn't focus on her surroundings. Millis saw her doing that, and sighed, making Nina sit down on a chair and closed the door.
"I guess you realise it already. I'll be 'kay if you don't want to go out now or greet me at school…" Millis said with shame in her voice, looking to a side of her room. Nina stopped adjusting her glasses and looked at Millis with concern and confusion.
"Millis, what on earth are you talking about?" Millis didn't give her eye contact, but went on.
"I won't lie to you… Please don't take me as a hypocrite. I do really like you Nina, I'll understand if you don' want to be my friend anymore". Nina frowned.
"Millis, whatever it is, you'll be my friend". Millis still kept looking in another direction.
"Nina… I'm not who you thought I was". Millis stopped and swallowed. "I'm not a Soc… I'm a Greaser". Thoughts flashed through Nina's mind, she thought she could hear Bob's voice. "What's a Greaser doing here?" Nina understood now.
"Millis, I-I…" Nina stuttered. Millis went on.
"We used to live in Texas… One afternoon, dad started digging a hole to plant a tree in my ma's garden, and all of a sudden a jet of black gold rushed out of the hole… Since then, we moved here because my auntie recommended it, and my dad has been pretending to be a rich retired bank owner from Texas so that we could fit in as Socials." There was a look of sadness in Millis' eye. Nina went red, her eyes full of pity.
"Millis, Look at me!" Nina commanded. "Do I act like a Soc? Do I like being one? Hecl, I ONLY FOUND OUT YESTERDAY AND I HATE IT! I don't care if you're a Greaser or a Soc. I care who you are at heart, and whatever you are, you're my friend because of it". Nina said with finality.
Millis burst out almost in tears. It was sad seeing a nice, tough girl like her with tears in her eyes. Nina went over to Millis, who was sitting on the edge of her bed, and gave her a hug. Millis was breathing deep heavily. She whispered into Nina's ear "I'm sorry if I sound like a hypocrite, with me disproving of Ponyboy and all". Nina coughed gently.
"It's alright, Millis. I'd have probably done the same if you were me and I was you".
They sat there in Millis' room and talked till half past 7. Then they finally decided to go out. Millis grabbed her allowance and Nina and Millis set off to the Nightly Double, Nina waved to Mr. And Mrs. Rowett as she left the their residence.
"Do you still feel up for Rusty's?" Millis asked Nina. Nina shook her head.
"I don't mind. I think it seems a bit of a hassle now anyway, we could always eat popcorn. By the way, why didn't you want dinner at your house?"
"My ma' would have just have gone on how she's married to a retired banker and probably tell some stories about me, Mike and Billy. Besides, I'm still a bit mad that she didn't let me wear my jeans" Millis said with a sigh.
Nina and Millis walked down the street till they reached the Ribbon, an area with 2 laned streets and shops on every corner. There were Socs drag racing on the streets, greasers picking up girls at the corner of the Dairy Queen. Millis lead Nina down the Ribbon that leaded down to the Nightly Double. As they were walking, Millis was pointing out places of interest such as the bowling ally, Rusty's that had a large flashy billboard with bright lights and the interior was furnished with leather and velvet seatings and polished wooden tabled. The place seemed like a sort of nightclub, full of rich kids, playing darts and betting on snooker. Millis was also pointing out places like shopping malls, clothes stores (mostly ones that sold jeans) and dime stores. Nina was also telling Millis about her boarding school days, how her mother had died giving birth to her and about a few books that she wanted to read. Millis exchanged stories of how she used to get into fights in Texas, and how they'd been living in Tulsa for the last 5 years.
"You'd think I'd 'ave lost my accent by now, but nosirybob".
By the time they got to the Nightly Double, it had gotten to 8 o'clock. Millis and Nina payed for their entrance fee, a quarter since they weren't in a car. The clerk at the ticket booth had a hard time giving Nina back her change from her $50 note. Millis laughed impatiently.
Once they were inside the drive in, they went to the concession stand and got themselves some popcorn. Millis got herself a coke and Nina bought herself some lemonade. Then they went over to the seating area, sat down and realised that they were watching "Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine". It was a movie about a Dr. who made a machine that made robot women who married rich men and got them to give all their assets over and the Dr. ended up getting them. Millis and Nina laughed, like many of the other people who were actually watching the movie, besides a few young boys who were fighting in the background.
"Vincent Price is a genius!" Millis roared with laughter. Nina nodded, sipping on her lemonade. She went to pass Millis some popcorn, and ended up dropping her purse on the ground. She turned around and looked under her seat, then a hand stuck out with her purse in their hand.
"Oh, Thank you si---" Nina looked up at the hands owner.
"Good Evening Ponyboy!" she said in a cheerful voice, flicking her hair to her left side. Millis turned around and looked.
"Hi Nina" he replied, handing her the purse. Millis turned around from the film.
"Oh, 'ey Ponyboy and uhhh" Millis said with a handful of popcorn in her mouth. There was a dark-skinned boy wearing denim sitting next to Ponyboy, and Nina realised it just then.
"This is Johnny" Ponyboy pointed towards the boy. Johnny nodded his head and kept looking at the movie.
"I didn't see you when we sat here" Nina said to Ponyboy.
"We just got here" he replied. Nina saw that him and Johnny had no popcorn or drinks yet, and then she looked back at Millis' supply – it was almost out. Maybe they should have gone to Rusty's.
"I'm going to go get some food, Johnny" Ponyboy said standing up. Millis nudged Nina.
"Oh, I'll come. We're running out on snacks" Nina said hastily, following Ponyboy. Millis turned towards Johnny.
"Soo… How are you liking the movie?"
"I saw you on the track earlier. Your very fast!" Nina complimented Ponyboy's track ability.
"I guess, the coach did put me into the A-Squad track team" he replied.
"Yeah, I'd thought he would. You beat the others by a mile". Ponyboy's face turned red.
"That'll be a dollar and 3 quarters," said the lady at the concession stand. Nina took out a 5-dollar bill and handed it to the lady. She was handed back the change and picked up the drinks and large popcorn. Ponyboy had bought 2 drinks and 4 candy bars. As they walked back, Ponyboy told Nina about his brothers. How Sodapop was happy-go-lucky and worked part time at the DX gasoline station and how Darry had to get two jobs to support his brothers.
"Darry sure seems heroic" Nina pointed out. Ponyboy nodded.
"Yeah, my dad used to say he was a real 'chip of the old block'. I never knew what the meant anyway." Nina smiled.
"He does his best to make sure we don't get into trouble. He can be nice sometimes, but usually he's only telling me what to do. If I'm studying, I should be out playing football. If I'm playing football, I should be studying."
When Nina and Ponyboy got back to the movie, they saw that Millis and Johnny were sitting next to each other. Nina sat down next to Millis, and Ponyboy sat next to Nina. They passed the popcorn, candy bars and drinks around. Nina asked Millis what they were doing.
"We were just talking about the movie. Johnny said that the girls in the movie reminded him of a girl named Sylvia or something". Millis whispered in Nina's ear. They continued to watch the movie. During the half time, Nina told Ponyboy how she barely remembered her neighbourhood, as she had only spend about 22 weeks in total being in Tulsa during her holiday breaks since she was 5. The rest of the time, she was at St. Mary's, out in the country. Ponyboy asked her if she liked the country. She nodded her head.
"I loved it. I'm not too sure why. But I loved the sunrises there. The sky would turn all golden and silver. That poem sure reminded me of it. Also, it was really quiet and peaceful." Ponyboy looked up at her and smiled.
"I've only been out to the country a few times when my parents were alive. We'd go fishing and duck hunting. My mum made the best apple pies with the apples that we bought out there," he said. The memories made him seem very cheerful. The rest of the movie went by interrupted, except for a few kids who were fighting and one car accidentally crashed into another's rear.
"Hey Ponyboy, do you want to catch up on Saturday?" Nina asked Ponyboy as they left their seats. He looked at her.
"Yeah sure, I have nothing better to do. Do you know where Pickett and Sutton is?" he replied. Nina titled her head to the side in thought.
"Ahhhh…. Oh yeah, I saw it on our way here. It's by the Ribbon, right?" Ponyboy nodded.
"We can meet somewhere else if you want", he said. Nina shook her head.
"No, that's fine. Goodnight Ponyboy" Nina said, as Millis and her headed towards Mr. Rowett's parked car.
"How was the movie, girls?" Mr. Rowett asked as he drove Nina home.
"It was okay" Millis replied.
"It was interesting" Nina said.
"I remember back when I was young, the only movies we had were in black and white" he said.
"Hey Millis, Pickett and Sutton is by the Ribbon, right?" Nina asked Millis.
"Yeah, I showed it to you, didn't I?" she answered.
"You're going out with Ponyboy?" Millis asked, cocking one eyebrow.
"N-n-no. We're just catching up. That's all" Nina said, playing with her glasses. Millis started laughing.
"Millis… umm… Are you and Johnny going out?" Nina said. Millis stopped laughing.
"What? No!" she said hastily. It was Nina's turn to laugh.
"Thank You for the ride, Mr. Rowett" Nina said to Mr. Rowett as she got out of his car and stepped onto her drive way.
"Any time, lil lady" he replied, tipping his hat.
"Goodnight Mr. Rowett. See you tomorrow Millis!" Nina yelled waving as their car drove on.
She then walking into her lightened up house, ready to go to sleep.
Oo, I made a mistake with the Year. Right now it's 1965, It turns to 1966 after December, and that's the year that the stuff in the book is set in :P.
By the way, Credits go to Jenn K from The Official Outsiders Book and Movie website and forum for answering some questions on where the book was set, what HighSchool Ponyboy/S.E Hinton went too, what the years are called in America and what a Dime-Store was :P Thanks Jenn!