Chapter 25: No, Ponyboy
Not even a few days later, Two-Bit ran into another familiar face from the gang, surprising him.
This time it was Ponyboy.
Two-Bit's eyes widened, frowning when Ponyboy ran up and hugged him, throwing his backpack down onto the ground.
"Two-Bit!" Pony hugged him tight, not having seen his buddy in days, completely relieved.
"Ponyboy? Wh-what are you doing here?" Two-Bit frowned, looking at his friend.
"Oh Two-Bit, i'm so glad you're alright! I'm here now, buddy, I'm here!" Pony smiled widely.
Two-Bit blinked, frowning softly. "Pony…..?"
Pony's smile slowly fell, his eyes soft. "Okay Two-Bit look, I ran away from home, to see you! I wanna be with you Two-Bit!"
"Wait a minute, wait a minute," Two-Bit interrupted. "You ran away from home?! From Darry and Soda?" His eyes went wide.
"Yeah, I did. I can't stand Darry anymore," Pony huffed. "Not after what he did to you. He's just a jerk. You're my real friend, Two-Bit. I wanna stay here with you."
Two-Bit frowned deeply, shaking his head no. "Pony, Pony, Pony, you can't be here, you gotta go back home…..!"
"No I don't," Ponyboy frowned. "Imma stay here with you, Two-Bit. You and your new gang."
"What? No no no no….." Two-Bit immediately rejected the idea.
"What do you mean, Two, I can stay with you, I can-"
"Pony, you're missing the point," Two-Bit breathed out. "You have to go back home, you belong with your brothers. It's your home."
Ponyboy's eyebrows furrowed. "Well if you're gonna say that to me then I can say the same to you, you have to come back home too, Two-Bit."
"Pony, listen, as touched as I am by this-"
"Two-Bit, you're my best friend. Even after Johnny. We've always been friends. I admire you so much, buddy. You're like one of my heroes. I want to be here with you Two-Bit, I don't like Darry anymore, I hate him! He's-"
"Pony, you don't hate your brother," Two-Bit frowned at him. "We all know you don't hate him."
Ponyboy huffed. "So? Don't mean I can't stay with you. I want to, Two-Bit. I brought some clothes."
Two-Bit frowned deeply, shaking his head. "Pony, I-I'm sorry but you just can't stay. You belong with your brothers, it's the way it is. And I don't want you to be here with me, this place ain't safe for someone like you."
Ponyboy didn't understand. "What the hell does that mean? You don't want me to be with you?" He almost growled.
"No Pony, it's my gang, they ain't-"
"But I came all this way! I ran all the way here, don't you get it?" Pony scowled, getting angry. "You know how long it took me to get here?"
"Well yes, I'm touched Pony, but your brothers, they must be worried sick, I know I would be. You have-"
"The boys are worried sick! About you!" Pony interrupted, voice rising. "We want you to come back, Two-Bit! Why won't you?!"
"Pony, I-"
"No, no more! I'm staying here, Two-Bit! You can't tell me otherwise!" Ponyboy growled, crossing his arms over his chest.
"No Ponyboy, you ain't. You-You can't. Please. You belong back home with Darry and Soda. Not me." Two-Bit said calmly, frowning.
Ponyboy's eyes flickered, suddenly angry. "What kind of friend are you? If you were my real friend, you'd let me stay! I came all this way and now you don't even want me to stay?"
Two-Bit frowned with big eyes. "Pony, you know i'm just trying to protect you. I don't want your brothers to worry and what do you think Darry would say if he heard you were with me if that was what started this whole spiel in the first place?"
"I don't care about Darry," Pony growled. "I just want to be with my friend again."
"I do too, but-"
"No you don't you liar," Pony huffed, pushing Two-Bit away. "To think, I came all the way out here for nothin'." He growled, glaring. "You ain't my real friend."
Two-Bit frowned deeply, shoulders sinking, hurt. Eventually, he sighed, turning away. "I'll go call your brothers for you." He mumbled under his breath, walking off.
Ponyboy frowned, watching his friend go, guilt slowly rising through him, expression softening.
"Wait…...Two-Bit…i-i'm sorry…." He whispered with a deep frown, not wanting his friend to leave him again.
Later that day, everyone at the apartment at Riff's, Two-Bit pushed Pony and the gang out of his mind as he shared a beer with Dermot and the boys.
"Dermot, how old are you?"
"Seventeen going on eighteen," He grinned. "Birthday's in two weeks."
"Yeah, he turns eighteen on Halloween!" Christian chirped, laughing. "He's a Halloween baby!"
"Yeah, Yeah," Dermot chuckled, grinning. "I am."
"What about you Christian?" Two-Bit asked.
"I'm seventeen, brother. You?"
"I'm eighteen and a half….." Two-Bit shrugged, chuckling with his friends. "Wait, Dermot, what do you wanna go into when you're older?"
"Oh me? I wanna keep bein' a musician. I wanna play in bands and even in orchestras. I wanna play my whole life." Dermot smiled, nodding.
"Oh. Cool. Christian?"
"I wanna perform in plays, in musicals, I wanna be with the big times man!" Christian laughed, drinking some beer, smiling widely.
"What about you, Two-Bit?" Dermot asked softly.
"Me? Me uh…..um, I guess I don't really know what I wanna do. Never really thought about it really." Two-Bit shrugged.
"Well, what do you like to do man?"
"Well…...I-I-I dunno. Help people I guess."
"Like a police officer?" Christian grinned.
Two-Bit had to laugh at that. "Nah, I-I don't think so….."
"Well, you could be. I could see it."
"Yeah, I could too." Christian nodded.
Two-Bit shook his head. "Well gee, that's funny guys but I've been arrested plenty of times to know I am not cut out to be a boy in blue."
Suddenly there was pounding at the door before some boys suddenly burst into the room, startling Two-Bit and the others.
Standing up, they realized it was the Waves, a whole bunch of 'em, bursting in and snickering, looking dangerous.
"Speakin' of boys in blue….." Two-Bit murmured under his breath. The Waves had been giving them a lot of trouble lately, picking on them and being mean and stuff. Two-Bit was sick of them by now.
The Waves was smirking, chuckling as they came in, eyeing everyone over.
Riff got up out of his chair, snarling and glaring, balling his fists. "What the hell do you want, Waves?! Get out of my apartment!"
"Hey Riff….! Heard you like tying up your boys…..! Let's get 'em guys!"
Riff snarled as the Waves started fighting with his boys, punching and brawling it out.
Two-Bit snarled, wrestling with his guy, punching and kicking.
He heard someone yelp and looked over to see someone grabbing Rami, throwing him down to the floor, starting to tie him up.
Two-Bit gasped and saw the same happening to Jay, trying to scramble over to help them before an arm wrapped his neck, throwing him down too. He snarled at the rope, thrashing and kicking around, swearing.
"Get off me, lay off! Quit it!"
Two-Bit got kicked in the face, making him yelp, swearing as the Waves tied him up, squirming.
"Get with the others!" One of the Waves dragged him over to where the other Flames that had gotten tied up sat, put into the circle.
Two-Bit swore at them, snarling, pulling at his wrists at the ropes, glancing at Rami and Christian and Matt, able to hear Judd swearing too, seeing him getting tied up too.
"Stop it! F*** off! Let them go!" Riff was shouting, fighting with three Waves, looking furious, wide-eyed. "Leave my boys alone!"
"Ri-Riff!"
Two-Bit gaped and looked over, seeing one of the Waves had an arm wrapped around Dermot's throat, choking him.
The Waves were laughing, smirking at Riff. "Hey Riff! We got your little slave! How do you like that?!"
Riff looked over, doing a double-take, eyes widening, suddenly looking scared. "N-No! Let him go! Stop it!" He tried to rush over to help but the Waves grabbed him, holding him back.
Dermot coughed, trying to pry the Wave's arm off his throat, whimpering softly, looking pained as he coughed and sputtered, struggling weakly.
Two-Bit watched with wide eyes, gaping at Riff as everyone else was tied up and thrown into the circle, some Waves guarding them while the others messed with Dermot and Riff.
"Dermot! Rrrr, stop it! Let go of him, let me go!" Riff snarled, reaching out with wide eyes, trying to pull away from the Waves holding him back.
"Ha ha! Aw, poor Riff," The Waves taunted, slamming Riff up against the wall hard, punching him hard in the stomach, Riff yelping. "He's useless without his little slave around!"
Riff coughed and whimpered, struggling, wide-eyed as he watched Dermot get shoved to the floor and kicked all over, gasping. "No!"
"Two-Bit, what do we do, we gotta stop them!" Christian whispered to Two-Bit with a rushed voice, wide-eyed.
"We gotta help Riff!" Jay hissed.
Two-Bit's eyes were wide, eyebrows furrowed, trying to think of what to do, flinching as he watched Riff and Dermot get beat up, desperate to think of a way to get himself and the others free.
He glanced at all the Waves guarding them, scowling. Then Two's eyes widened, knowing how to get free.
Reaching his hand into his back pocket, he pulled out his knife, holding his breath, starting to saw at the rope around his wrists with his blade.
He almost gasped when he cut the rope free, relaxing.
"Here," He handed the knife over to Jay, eyeing the Waves closely. "Pass it around. We'll jump 'em when I say go."
Two-Bit watched Riff as he waited for them to cut themselves free, watching Riff cry out with a frown.
"Stop it! L-Leave my boys alone! Leave Dermot alone!" His voice sounded scared, eyes wide, yelping when he got punched again.
"Hurry guys," Two-Bit hissed lowly. He eyed the Waves, who had no clue that they were trying to escape.
"Here." Christian handed Two-Bit back his knife.
"You guys all free?" Two-Bit whispered, taking it.
"Yeah."
"Okay, now…...go!" Two-Bit gave the command and he and the others boys lept up, jumping on the Waves, startling all of them who hadn't seen them coming.
Two-Bit's eyes narrowed, he rushed over to the Waves kicking Dermot, his knife in his hand, punching both of them furiously, glaring.
"Beat it! Get the hell out of here!"
He hurried over to Riff and then punched his guys away, snarling, knocking them down.
When he was free, Riff growled and shoved at them, opening the door and ushering them out. "Get the hell out of here! Don't ever mess with me or my boys again! Get!"
The other boys were helping beat up the rest of the Waves as well and the Waves had finally had enough, scrambling to get out of there. "We'll be back, Flames!"
Two-Bit glared as they left, holding his knife tightly, scowling with anger at them.
When they were all gone, the boys panted, Riff hurrying over to Dermot, who lay on the ground, holding his ribs.
"Dermot, Dermot, you okay?" He pulled Dermot to his feet gently, looking worried, hugging him. "Oh thank god you're alright….!"
Dermot blinked at the hug, looking a little surprised. "I-I'm okay….."
Riff hugged him tightly, looking relieved, letting out a deep breath, pulling away. "Everyone else okay? Y'all alright?"
The boys were picking themselves off their feet, helping each other up, catching their breaths. "We're okay, Riff."
Two-Bit ran a hand over his face with a frown, glad he could relax again, letting out a breath.
Riff went over, examining the boys' faces closely to make sure they were alright. "How'd y'all get free from that rope anyhow?"
"Two-Bit got us free. He used his knife." Rami nodded, pointing to the other side of the room where Two-Bit stood.
Riff slowly turned, looking over at Two, who shrugged, swallowing softly.
"Well i'll be darned," Riff smirked and came over, patting Two's shoulder softly. "You really are a great member of the team, brother. I'm proud to have you in my gang." Riff smiled, giving him a brief hug.
"What?" Two-Bit tensed and froze, blinking, a frown forming on his face.
Riff shrugged, continuing to smirk. "I'm proud to have you in my gang. You're loyal and good to my boys. You're a real good friend to have around. Sure is too bad your previous gang couldn't see that in you."
Two-Bit blinked, his mouth a little 'o', frowning softly, not sure what to say, touched. The gang had never said anything like that to him.
"Th-Thanks Riff….." He said quietly.
"'Course." Riff chirped, patting his shoulder, turning to the other boys. "Alright boys, now that those a****** are gone, we can relax. Remember, we're a gang. We stick together. After that, no tying up anyone else tonight. Let's all go out for supper, how 'bout?"
The boys perked up and smiled and Two-Bit raised his head, smiling softly, glad that Riff was slowly improving with his behavior towards the gang.
Riff hadn't been as violent these past few days and was starting to act like a real leader, Two-Bit realising Dermot was right in saying Riff wasn't all that bad of a guy, just a little different in how he showed it.
But now, having witnessed that, Two-Bit had seen a different Riff back there, one that was worried and afraid and he recognized that Riff really did care about what happened to his boys.
He was really reminding Two-Bit of Tim Shepard, how he acts and treats his boys.
Two-Bit thought of the gang again, frowning softly, missing them.
He wasn't sure how much more of this turmoil he could take, torn between the two gangs, still heartbroken.
A/N: Next Update might not be for a long while :/ I'll do my best to update quick. Reviews would be great, thanks :)