Disclaimer: I don't own anything from The Outsiders
5
I didn't go to Church the day after the party incident. I told my mother I was sick and she let it be. Really, I just laid in bed for most of the day and then had dinner and did my chores and just as I was going to go to bed, Danny popped into my room.
"Come on, we're going out."
I sighed. "Danny -"
"After your shit night last night, we're going out," he said, very determined. He walked over to me, throwing the covers off of me, revealing me in my pyjama glory. "Get dressed, Debs, seriously."
"What if I don't want to?"
Danny looked me in the eyes and he started to smile. "I'm gonna show you what a real night of fun looks like."
The night of fun, no surprise, was at Buck's bar. When I walked inside, Two-bit, Evie, Sodapop, Steve, and Pony were sitting around one table, each with a beer in front of them. They had ripped pieces of paper on their foreheads with words on them.
I walked up to the table, touching Two's shoulder. "Hey."
"Hey!" Two-bit smiled, widely, pulling me onto his lap. "How're you doin', baby?"
I shrugged. "I'm okay."
"Heard you had a shit day yesterday," Evie said to me, giving me a look of soft pity. "Here." She handed over her drink with a smirk. "Take this. Steve and I are gonna go dancin'."
I took her beer and took a long sip as Danny Steve and Evie's one seat they were sharing. I saw Danny's eyes widen at me. "Jesus Christ -"
"Our Lord and saviour," I mumbled, pointing at him.
Danny laughed, grabbing Steve's left behind beer. "You're already feelin' better, aren't ya?"
I smiled and nodded. I really was.
"Alright," Two-bit said, pressing something - a piece of paper on my forehead. "We're playin' who am I. You know how to play?"
I nodded, glancing back at him. "Of course. I would play time game all the time as a kid."
"Ha-ha, but this version, Debbie -" Soda laughed, making me look at him. "Is the drinking version."
I laughed, nodding my head. "Alright, let's play."
Every time someone got something wrong - which was a lot - they drank. By the middle of the game, we were the loudest people in the bar, giving a dramatic "Oh!" every tome someone got their guess wrong. Spoiler alert, I was a sink, Two was a shoe, Soda was a piece of toast, Pony was a hammer and Danny was a cow. We all eventually got it, each one of us in our special state of intoxicated.
The second the couches cleared up, we hopped on them. I was on the end, Two-bit beside me and Danny beside him. On the opposite couch was Pony, Soda and Steve and Evie - Evie on Steve's lap of course.
And we were laughing about something.
The laughter died down and Danny loudly said, "Wait, wait, was that the same night you tried to get with both of those girls?"
Soda shrugged, red on his cheeks. "How was I supposed to know they were sisters?"
I laughed, getting nudged by Two in his laughter.
"Didn't you say that was the best kiss of your life?" Two asked once he stopped laughing so hard.
"Oh, yeah," Soda said, a dreamy look coming onto his face.
"Speaking of kisses," Evie said in a tone I could only say was a type of enthusiasm. She put a beer bottle down on the table that was between the two couches. She put it on it's side and spun it. "How about a little game of spin the bottle?"
Everyone except me "Oo'd" and I suspected that they had done this before already.
"Alright, who's up first?" Evie said, looking around at all of us.
"Me," Steve said, a confident smile on his face as he reached forward and spun the bottle. Whether it was skill or pure luck, it landed on his own self, or Evie if you're Evie or Steve. He turned to Evie. "Come here, baby."
They kissed - not like we hadn't seen it before.
"Alright, alright -" Soda hit them and laughed. "Go Evie."
Evie smirked, reaching down and spinning the bottle. It spun and spun and spun and landed directly on me. Her eyes fell on me and I shook my head, leaning away.
"Evie -"
She launched forward, grabbing my face and pressing her lips against mine. Instead of a peck, she made out with me for a solid three seconds. When her tongue touched my lip, I pulled away, laughter coming out of my mouth.
Evie bowed and everyone in the couch area laughed. "Thank you, thank you."
I laughed, wiping my mouth. "Gosh, Evie, you're a good kisser."
She winked at me. "I know. Your turn!"
I looked down at the bottle, shaking my head. "Oh, I think one kiss is enough." But the egging on from every one of my friends prompted me to grip to bottle, flick my wrist and spin it. I watched it slow down and the tip of the bottle point directly and unmistakably at Two-bit Mathews.
"Whoa!" Soda yelled excitedly. "I can't wait to see this!"
I looked down, blushing. I felt Two-bit's hand grab my face and I barely had time to react before I saw how close his face was. My eyes closed automatically when his lips pressed against mine. His bottom lip was between mine, but that changed soon as he tilted his head and kissed more passionately. I didn't really know what I was doing. It wasn't like Scott kissed me like that. And when my tongue touched his, Two-bit pulled away, already facing forward again.
Two-bit clapped loudly, smiled widely and reached for the bottle. "My turn!"
My mouth still open, eyes slightly widened, I watched his spin the bottle.
"Excuse me." Everyone's eyes turned to two very pretty girls. One was on the younger side and staring at my little brother while the other one was probably a year or two older than I was, a low-cut shirt on and a flirty smile on her face. "We're new to town and you guys look like you're having some fun. Mind if we join?"
"Not at all," Two-bit said, and I found myself glaring at the back of his head.
Danny stood quickly holding out his hand. "Only for a dance."
The younger girl took his hand and smiled. "Of course."
They walked away and the other girl sat down next to Two-bit. "My name's Clara."
"What a pretty name," Two-bit said, in a tone I had never heard from him before. "I'm Two-bit." He went around the table. "Sodapop, Evie, Steve." He pointed to me, smiling. "And my friend Debbie."
I waved. "Hi."
She smiled and I didn't like how beautiful she was. "Hi." And nice too. "What're you guys playing?"
"Spin the bottle," Soda told her.
She smiled wider. "And whose turn is it?"
"Mine," Two-bit said quickly, spinning the bottle.
Please don't land on Clara. Please don't land on Clara. Please don't land on Clara.
It landed on Clara.
I stood quickly. "I'm gonna use the bathroom." I said it mostly to Two-bit, but he must've not heard. He leaned toward the girl, grabbing her face and gave her a nice, long kiss.
I felt sick.
All the beers I had started to come up through my throat and I ran outside, hand over my mouth. I gagged, but I stayed strong. I swallowed whatever was about to come up and I sighed, pushing my sweaty hair from my face.
I didn't want to go back inside. I couldn't look Two-bit in the eyes after that.
I ended up finding my way home, paying very close attention to street signs and things I recognized from the walk over. It must've taken about thirty or so minutes to get home and when I did, I was more than surprised of what I found.
Scott's car was in front, Scott himself walking up the front steps of my porch.
"Scott?"
He spun around, surprised look mimicking mine. "Wha -" He pointed to the house and then at me. "Why aren't you home?"
"I went out," I said obviously.
"Since when do you go out?"
I scoffed, looking at him. "Do you need something?"
Scott sighed, walked down the steps and walked toward me until he was a couple feet away. "Look, I'm sorry about last night. Macy can be mean when she's mad at you."
I crossed my arms. "A little?"
Scott got closer. "I miss you." He got even closer, putting a soft and loving hand on my torso, pulling me closer. "What do you say we go to Jax, huh? Get some late-night chocolate shakes?"
The sting of rejection that I felt from Two-bit was slowly soothing the longer Scott looked at me.
I nodded. "Okay." I thought for a second. "But you need to promise me something."
"And what would that be?"
What Macy said really bothered me and I wanted her to know that Scott really liked. Or at least that he really tried to pretend he did.
"Promise me that you're gonna ask me to go steady eventually."
I was prepared for that. I hadn't pushed it because I didn't know if I even liked Scott. I also didn't push it because I was confused about where I was with Two-bit. After tonight, I was pretty sure we were no more than friends.
Scott smirked, sliding his arm around my waist. "Eventually? Go steady with me tonight. Right now, Debbie."
I grabbed his face and pulled it down to me, the alcohol still in me. I kissed him like Two-bit had kissed me, but when my tongue touched his, he didn't pull away. He made a noise of surprise and quickly pushed me up against the car, hands roaming free.
I pulled away, breathing out heavily. "Yeah, okay, I'll go steady with you."
Scott smiled, looking down at me. "Debbie," he said in surprise, seeming to be nothing but happy. "I might love you."
I chuckled, pushing him away. "Shut up."
I woke up the next morning with a hangover. My mom wasn't home and I realized that I was almost an adult who could make the occasional adult decision.
I wasn't feeling up to school, so I didn't go. It was as simple as that, though I hated myself a little bit for it.
I spent the entire morning in front of the TV before I started doing chores and more chores. I would need some weight on my side of the scale for when my mom came home and grounded me. If I had done all the chores, maybe it wouldn't have been for as long.
The phone rang three times while I was vacuuming. I heard it, but I figured anyone calling during the day was calling for my mother and I didn't feel like taking any messages.
"Debbie!"
I gasped, the assumption that I was home alone shattering. I turned off the vacuum. "Danny?"
Danny appeared in the hallway, hair disheveled and only in his boxers. "Why are you being so damn loud?"
"Why aren't you at school?"
"Why aren't you?" he countered.
I sighed, rubbing my face and leaning against the breakfast table. "I'm not feeling well."
Danny smirked. "Hungover?"
"Yeah."
The phone rang again.
Danny walked over to it and picked it up. "Wilson residence." He smiled. "Oh, hey, man. Shut up." He leaned against the wall. "You workin'? Nice." He laughed, eyes falling onto me. "Yeah, she's here."
My eyes widened and I gave him a look. "Who is it?"
Danny held it out to me. "It's Two-bit."
I ran over to him, grabbing the phone and hanging it up on the wall faster than I ever had before. I breathed out, watching the phone for a couple seconds before looking at Danny. "What?"
Danny's brows furrowed. "What the hell, Debbie?"
I sighed. "I just don't want to talk to him right now."
"Is this about last night?"
"What about it?"
"How you made out?"
"That's not it," I said, and it honestly wasn't. I loved kissing him and I didn't feel particularly weird about it.
"Is it because he kissed that other girl?" Danny started to smirk, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl.
I glared at him, imagining that he thought he knew everything in the world. "You wouldn't understand."
"I know what jealousy looks like, Deb."
"Who said I was jealous?"
"You didn't have to." Danny chuckled.
"Well, I'm not," I insisted angrily, grabbing the vacuum again. "Scott asked me to go steady with him last night."
"What?" Danny said in shock, mouth full of apple.
"Chew your food," I told him, waiting for him to do exactly that.
"When?"
"After I left Buck's."
"And you said yes?"
"Yes."
Danny looked confused and annoyed. "Why?"
"Because I like Scott," I said to him, ready to get back to my chores.
"Bullshit!"
I gasped. "Danny!"
He shook his head, walking around me and back down the hall. "I'm not telling Two-bit for you. You'll have to do that yourself."
I turned the vacuum back on, finishing up with the living room. Danny came out of the hallway in some clothes and walked out of the house with no explanation. I put the vacuum back into the closet when I was done and I went to the sink to get the dishes done from my breakfast earlier. After I finished that, I went to the bathroom to put some cream on my elbows and knees.
I flexed my ankle to feel a little bit of pain. It was lingering longer than I thought, but it was definitely not as bad as it was Saturday night.
When I heard a knock at the door, I walked out to the living room and looked through the peephole in the door. When I saw that it was Two-bit, I backed away from the door, tiptoeing to the hallway.
"Debbie!" He banged on the door. "Debbie, baby, come on! You wanna tell me why you're avoiding me? Baby, come on! I know you're in there!"
I sighed, leaning against the wall. I stayed around the corner of the hallway when I yelled, "I'm just not feeling well!"
"You hung up on me!"
"I'm sorry!"
"Open the door!"
I still couldn't look him in the eyes.
"No!"
"I'm not leaving until I see you!"
I groaned, rolling my eyes at his stubbornness. "I'll come see you at work tomorrow, okay? I - I'll drop by after school."
Two-bit was quiet for a second and then he said, "Fine."
I heard his footsteps leave the house and then I heard a car start.
I didn't want to hurt Two-bit. And I did want to see him. But I didn't want to look him in the eyes and all I would see was him and that beautiful girl at the bar. I didn't want that to be what I saw every time I looked at him, because that was what happened at the mere thought of hm.
I was scared.
But I wanted Two-bit in my life.
Needed was more like it.
I sighed as Scott's car pulled up across the street from the DX. "Thanks for the ride." I undid my seatbelt, reaching for the door handle.
Scott reached over and grabbed the door, pulling it closed. "Who is this friend you're visitin'?"
"Just someone I need to talk to."
"Who?"
I looked at Scott. "Why do you want to know?"
"Because you're my girl and no girl of mine is gonna be seen with a grease." He looked around at streets. "You do know this is Greaser territory, don't you?"
"Oh?" I played dumb, sliding across the seat and touching his chest. "Well, I won't be long, but you don't have to wait for me."
Scott turned to me, his nose touching mine. "Okay." He leaned forward, pressing his lips on mine. He pulled my body against his, the feverishness of his kiss increasing more and more by the second.
I slid away, opening the door. "Bye!"
"Okay -"
I ran across the street, waving to Scott and waiting there to make sure that he left before I turned around and walked inside. I saw Soda and I smiled. "Hey, Soda."
He smiled too. "Hey, Deb, what's goin' on?"
"Do you know where Two-bit is?"
Soda chuckled, gesturing to the office at the back. "He's taking a nap back there."
I smiled, thinking of how Two-bit Two-bit could actually get. I hopped over the counter and walked past him. "Thanks." I walked around the cars and Steve tucked under one. I kept walking until I reached the door to the office at the end of the hallway. I opened the door, seeing Two-bit's sleeping figure.
He was sitting upright in the cushioned chair, his neck cranked uncomfortably over the back of it, mouth open.
I laughed, walking to the front of him and tapping his chest lightly. "Two." I pressed my palm against his chest, rubbing it soothingly. "Two-bit."
"Mm."
I smiled. "Two, it's me, Debbie."
His head came up slowly, brows furrowed. When he saw my face, he started to smile. "Baby."
I smiled too, missing that. "Hi."
He stood, wrapping his arms around me. His body was warm and his arms were strong. "I missed my dose of Debbie yesterday."
I laughed, hugging him back. "It was just one day, Two-bit."
He let go of me, sitting back down. His face turned serious. "What was goin' on yesterday?"
I sighed, sitting on top of the desk. "I was just feeling off that was all."
"And what about the night before?" He looked at me with little concern. "You just disappeared right in the middle of spin the bottle."
"Yeah, I - I went home," I said, not wanting to think about that night at all.
"Oh." Two-bit rolled on the chair until he was in front of me. His hands came to the sides of my legs, resting there as he looked up at me. "How's your scrapes?"
"Better."
"And ankle?"
"Almost healed."
"Good." Two-bit smirked. "Cause we're going to the movies tonight, but I think the fuzz are catchin' on. We might need to make a run for it."
I gave him a look that I didn't meant to be sad, but it probably ended up looking that way. "Two..."
"What?" he asked, not a good look on his face.
"I'm going out tonight."
He chuckled. "With who?"
"Scott."
His smile dropped. "Why?"
It hurt me to say it aloud to him, but I had to do it. "Scott and I are going steady now."
Two-bit looked be in the eyes as he stood. His eyes passed mine and he was looking down at me. "He asked you to go steady?"
"Yeah."
"And you said yes?"
"Yes." I offered up a small smile, feeling worse about it than I thought I would've. "But it doesn't mean we can't hangout or anything. I still want to do stuff with you."
Two-bit nodded. "'Course."
I nodded awkwardly, hopping off the counter, my body brushing against his as I moved away. "Right, so I'll call you later."
"Okay."
"'Kay. Bye."
"Later, baby."
I had that same sickening feeling in my stomach. Something wasn't right.
