I do not own the characters of The Outsiders. They rightfully belong to S.E. Hinton. I only own this idea and the characters I have created for the purpose of this story. Reviews are appreciated. I love to know what you think.

"Boys! Up and at 'em! Let's go or you'll be late! Sodapop, Ponyboy, let's go! Steve, Two-Bit, you, too!" called out Darry from the kitchen as he finished off making the rest of the breakfast for his brothers and the gang, setting it all out on the table. He could hear muffled groaning coming from the living room, more than likely from Two-Bit, who was always reluctant to wake up early, but did none-the-less.

"Why's it got to be s'early?" asked Two-Bit as he stumbled into the kitchen, rubbing at his eyes in an attempt to wake himself up.

"Don't ask me, kid. I didn't make the rule up for it." explained Darry as he nudged the teen towards the fridge where he was already stumbling his way to in order to get the chocolate cake out for the rest of them. Once he was sure that Two-Bit wasn't about to trip over his own two feet, he walked back the hall to his youngest brothers' room, nudging the door open with his foot.

"If you two aren't awake and out of bed in the next two minutes I'm getting the water bucket." explained the oldest Curtis as he leaned against the wall outside of the door.

"You wouldn't dare." came the muffled reply from Ponyboy, from where his head was buried underneath his pillow.

"Try me, kiddo." chuckled out Darry before he turned around and made his way back to the kitchen, where Steve and Two-Bit were seated, followed seconds later by Dally and Johnny, who was now sporting a tiny cut to his left temple.

"Hey, Superdope. Soda up yet?" asked Steve around a mouthful of chocolate cake, the icing pooling at the corners of his mouth.

"I am now, but only because he threatened the damn water bucket." grumbled out the middle brother as he shouldered his way past his older brother to take a seat at the table, grabbing a knife to smear a good portion of grape jelly across his breakfast.

"Language, Pepsi-Cola." reprimanded Darry as he poured a cup of now semi-warm coffee into a mug, narrowly avoiding bumping into Ponyboy who was making his way to the table. As Johnny made his way past the oldest Greaser, Darry reached out and gently grabbed his arm in a way of keeping him from walking any further, using that same hand to tilt his head to the side to get a better look at the cut on his temple.

"It's really not that bad, it doesn't even hurt that much." explained the smallest of the gang quickly, as if hoping to just dismiss the manner completely.

"Grab something to eat and then I'll clean that up for you in the bathroom before you leave for school." ordered Darry with a soft smile as he nudged the teen to the table, who accepted the plate that was placed in front of him by Pony.

(Time Lapse)

"You take him for half the day and I'll take him for the rest. Just do what Darry said and keep an eye on the kid, no matter what it takes." explained Two-Bit as he shut his locker after having to use his blade to open the lock, having forgot his combination.

"I'll stay to the back of his classes and skip my fifth one so we're both in the cafeteria with him. Socs don't need to be making any moves towards him in there." replied Dally from where he was leaning against the wall by the others locker.

"It's too crowded of a place for them to try anything. They'll try and get him alone first before doing anything." explained the other Greaser as he round back into the hallway to make his way to his next class.

"They'll never get the chance." growled out the the blonde Greaser before he walked in the other direction.

(Time Lapse)

"What is it with these Socs and using their fancy ass cars in drag races, then bringing them here to us?" asked Steve as he slid out from under a red Mustang. It was quite a flashy color for the Socs, but by now, nothing was surprising when it came to them.

"At least they're bringing them to us, man. That's all we can ask for." replied Sodapop as he tossed a towel at his best friend, who started to wipe at the grease covering his hands.

"Maybe we could ask for them to wreck it next time." ground out the smaller Greaser as he tossed the towel back.

"If only, buddy. If only." replied Sodapop with a grin splitting his lips as he pushed his best friend back towards the Mustang.

(Time Lapse)

The final bell of the day had rung out through the classrooms and through the hallways, signaling the end of the day to everybody. Doors were opening and books were being crammed into backpacks, crumbled papers being thrown away and lockers being slammed shut. Ponyboy gathered up his textbooks off of his desk and rose from his seat, tucking them up under his arm to rest on his hip as he walked, rolling his eyes a bit as he was flanked by both Two-Bit and Dally in the hall.

"Alright, spit it out. You two have been following me the entire day. What is going on?" asked the youngest Greaser as he reached his locker, spinning the combination in just as Johnny joined the trio.

"What? We can't want to hang out with you?" asked Two-Bit as he slapped the kid's arm with his own textbook, earning him a playful glare.

"You both followed me into a few classes that neither of you even take." replied Ponyboy as he closed his locker and walked to Johnny's side, nudging him with his elbow.

"We really felt like hanging out with ya'. Hey, Johnnycakes." said Dally as he wrapped his arm around the smaller boy's shoulders, drawing him close to him.

"Hey, Dal. You guys fixing for a Coke or a Pepsi? Let's head to the DX, yeah?" asked Johnny as they made their way out of the school, the doors slamming shut behind them as they made their way down the front stairs.

"Might as well go see Sodapop for a while, hopefully he'll be on break or something." explained Ponyboy as the four of them made their way down the sidewalk, the pressure of the school being left behind in their wake.

"Let's hurry up then, kid." ordered Two-Bit as their steps picked up in pace, the Greaser kicking a stone down the sidewalk as they walked. It didn't take long for them all to reach the DX, seeing the distinct DX sign hanging in front of the garage, the lights on the 'OPEN' sign flickering and flashing in their usual neon manner.

"Here come the hobos!" called out Steve from under the Mustang, his voice muffled by the clacking of the tools that he was using to try and pound a dent out of the rim cover near the back bumper and tire.

"How did you even see them, you're under the car?" asked Sodapop as he walked out from behind the counter, tossing a magazine down onto the glass counter.

"I can see their shoes, ya' dummy." replied Steve as he slid out from under the car, rubbing the side of his hand and his wrist to work out some of the soreness from pounding out the dent.

"Call me that again. I dare ya'. What do you four want?" asked Sodapop as he leaned against the side of the counter, his arms crossed over his chest.

"A Pepsi. Johnny wants a Coke." replied Ponyboy as he gestured towards where they were kept behind the counter, smiling at his brother when he went behind the counter to retrieve them both.

"Free of charge this time." explained the middle Curtis brother as he tossed the one bottle to his brother before tossing the other to Johnny.

"Come on, Pone. Darry said straight home after school and I'm not facing him for not getting you home on time." explained Two-Bit as he tossed his head towards the door, none of them hearing the chime as somebody had walked in.

"But you see, there's going to be a little problem with doing that." explained Luke as the door closed behind him with a soft click, his hand twirling the tire iron around in a circle that he was holding.