Pony's POV

As soon as the bell rang signaling the end of class, I beat it out of there. When I came here with Rachel, I'd had the foolish hope that I would be able to talk her out of sending me to school. Boy was I wrong. Not only did she insist I go to school, she insisted I go to a private school. At least 75 of the kids were Soc. The rest were middle class. I stuck out like a sore thumb.

I had only been here two days but I'd already received numerous threatening glances and remarks. These kids weren't any happier about me being here than I was, so I tried to stay out of their way.

Work was waiting for me as soon as school was over anyway, which gave me an added excuse. I hurried over to the office where Uncle Mark worked. He actually wasn't here this week because he was on some business trip.

It sounded like he was gone an awful lot. Rachel talked big and had lots of "friends" but she seemed pretty lonely most of time. I think she missed Mark a lot.

My work wasn't all that interesting, but it wasn't hard either. I helped file paper work and did whatever odd and end errand jobs the clients wanted me to do. When everyone went home at 6:00 I stayed and helped one of the ladies clean the offices. She was scared to death of me and tried to avoid me as much as possible, which I found amusing. I'd never done anything to her.

Saturdays and Sundays I was supposed to help out with some repair projects that needed to be done around the building. It was all fair enough, and it paid well too. I was making more than Soda, maybe even more than Darry. Guess that's what it's like when you're on the rich side.

By the time I left, the sky was that real dark, deep blue that wasn't quite black yet. I breathed in deeply of the cool air and smiled. My enthrallment with the sky and breeze didn't last very long as I noticed a shadow detached itself from the building and approached me.

"Hey Greaser." The chill in his voice made my blood run cold. I had heard that tone before.

I took off running. Or, I wanted to but my feet wouldn't move. Instead, my eyes stayed fixed on the huge figure approaching me. He wasn't dressed well enough to be a Soc, but he wasn't dressed like a hood either. He must be in some kind of gang. One that wasn't too fond of Greaser no less.

As he stepped up within a few feet of me, I realized just how big he was. He didn't look much older than Darry, but he was definitely bigger. In fact, I think he would have made Darry look like a dwarf. Not a good thing in my book.

He narrowed his eyes, "What are you doing on this side of town, Kid?"

Think Pony. But my brain didn't want to think. How was I supposed to answer that? I remembered what Dally and Two-Bit had always said about acting cool so I pulled out a weed and lit up. "I'm…helping my aunt."

"Don't lie to me kid. People around here don't need help from Greaser punks like you."

I puffed slow, trying hard not to show my fear. "Mine does."

My feet were cooperating now and I found myself starting to walk off. Instantly he had my arm in a death grip. His hands were huge and I knew there was no way I could pull out of his grasp. My heart slammed into my chest as he leaned his face close to mine.

"What's stopping me from teaching you to stay where you belong?"

This guy may beat the life out of me, but I wasn't going to let him see my fear. I summoned every ounce of courage I had and looked him straight in the eye. "Nothing." My voice was even and cool. Dally would have been proud.

I was expecting to get cussed out. I was expecting a blow to my face or my gut. To get kicked or thrown up against the wall. I was expecting a lot of things, but I was definitely NOT expecting what happened next.

The guy released my arm and started laughing. "You're an alright kid."

To say I was stunned would be an understatement. Where had that come from?

"Name's Jasper." I stared at the hand he extended. Did I want to befriend this guy? Did I want to NOT befriend him?

I grasped his hand as firmly as I could manage, "I'm Ponyboy," my voice squeaked. Blast it. My voice had done most of it's changing, but it was still uncooperative sometimes.

Jasper didn't seem to notice. "Where ya headed?"

"Home." The word caught in my throat and almost didn't make it out. It was all I cared to say right then. I turned and began walking again.

I could hear his heavy steps beside me. What did this guy want? Maybe he wanted me in his gang or something.

"What really brings you out this way?"

"As I said, I'm helping my aunt."

"And I still don't believe that's the only reason. But then again, it really isn't any of my business now is it? Where are you from?"

I found myself more and more at ease. This burly guy seemed all bark and no bite. He reminded me of Buck. "I'm from Tulsa."

"Oh yeah, I've heard of it. Been there a few times. Would you happen to know a guy named - uh - Dallas Winston?"

"Yeah. I know Dal. We're pretty good buddies."

"Yeah? Well next time you see him, you tell him I said hey. If he gets a chance, he oughta come look me up."

I came to an abrupt hault as I realized we were about to pass Rachel's house. Jasper almost collided with me. "How do you know Dal?"

"Let's just say we spent some time together."

In jail no doubt. "What are you doing over here?"

"That's a pretty long story."

"I better be getting in. It was nice to meet you Jasper."

"You too. Word of advice for ya - If you wanna keep your head attached, try dressing a little better."

I got defensive. "What kind of advice is that? I ain't ashamed of being a Greaser."

"I'm not saying you are, but I don't really see the purpose in proclaiming it with flashing lights." He gave me a grin and a pat on the back, "Just trying to be a friend. You may need one around here."

As he ambled off, I thought about that. Maybe that was why he was dressed a little nicer. The more I thought about it, the more I decided that it wouldn't be a bad idea to spruce up just a bit. Not to look like a Soc, but a little more middle class maybe. After all, I was way out of my league and I didn't have a gang here to back me up.