Disclaimer: Never have and never will own S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders
It has been a few months since the robbery occurred, yet sometimes it still scares me. It scares me because the guy who did it never got caught and he could be anyone, maybe even someone I know.
I was thinking about the robbery this afternoon because I was once again walking around town after seeing a movie. Only this time I wasn't going to Josh's workplace. This time, I was wandering aimlessly just to pass the time.
I would have been hanging out with my two best friends, but for some reason, they seem to have deserted me. For some reason beyond my comprehension, I've gone to a small Catholic school for the past seven years of my life. I've never really fit in with the other kids in my class who rich and are completely obsessed with material possessions such as designer clothes and purses. My two best friends, Matty and Sasha weren't like that.
Sasha was a trouble maker, sent to Catholic school by her parents in hopes that religion would rub off on her. It didn't. She always talked back to the teachers and she always had a crazy plan that usually ended up with one or the both of us in the principal's office. I think the other kids didn't accept her because of her wildness, but I liked her. While she could be a little extreme at times, she lived on the edge and made life interesting. She was expelled at the end of last year after accidentally dropping a lit cigarette in the bathroom and nearly setting to school on fire.
Matty, on the other hand, went to Catholic school on a full scholarship. He was a quiet guy, but I admired him. He was neither leader nor follower but his own person. He never spoke much in front of other people, but I was a pretty quiet person too and we both got along really well. I felt bad for him because his family was far from rich and he always got into arguments with his parents. He left the school after losing his scholarship when his grades fell.
Sasha and Matty seem like completely different people, but they both got along really well. I think Matty liked Sasha's outgoingness and daring. Too bad that's all over now.
I haven't spoken to either of them since June-- nearly a year ago. We had told each other that we would keep in touch and for a while we did, but then school started and they both went off to public school.
My catholic school and their public school have been long-time rivals. Whenever one school gets invited to another's school dance, a fight is sure to break out. I don't really understand it, but catholics and publics just don't mix. Maybe that's why we haven't spoken in so long, I thought.
A familiar figure sweeping past me on the sidewalk pulled me out of my thoughts. For a moment I thought I must be daydreaming to be seeing him. "Matty?" I tentatively called out.
The figure paused, as though trying to decide whether or not to respond. He spun around, and sure enough, I found myself facing Matthias Johnson. "What do you want?" he asked.
His cold voice surprised me. He was usually so much nicer than that and was too quiet to be mean. "I-I just wanted to see how you were doing since we haven't spoken for so long" I whispered.
He had a dark look in his brown eyes, like he was distracted by something. "Well, I'm not busy or anything so you wanna go to the movies, like we used to?" he asked, his whole manner changing.
"Sure. Since Sasha's not here, will we go the normal way?" I said, the "normal way" meaning paying to get in rather than sneaking in. We both usually preferred to do things the legal way, but Sasha hated everything to do with rules and authority, so with her we usually snuck in. We never got caught though, so it's nothing to worry about for us.
"Why not? It'll be like old times minus Sasha heightening the risk factor," he told me as we began the walk to the nearest movie theater.
The movie was pretty boring with an overused plot, but I didn't mind. It was better than walking around by myself, a habit I had recently formed just to get away from Simon.
By the time the movie was over, it was just after sunset. I probably should have been home already, but I wanted a chance to talk to Matty. We walked in silence, but I knew exactly where we were going. There was old park in the woods near Matty's house. It was a cool place to hang out, but I could tell tonight would be different from the fun times we used to have there.
When we arrived at the park, I broke the silence. "Matty… something's wrong. You're different than how you used to be. Something happened since June. What is it?"
He shrugged, "June was almost a year ago. A lot can happen in a year"
"Yeah…" I agreed, "But what did happen?"
"I don't know. Everything just stopped making sense," he whispered as he sat down underneath a tree.
I looked at him in confusion as I sat beside him.
"I mean, our schools are always at it for no reason and with everything going on at home…" he sighed, "…I just don't know how much more of this I can deal with. Don't you ever wish you could just get away from it all?"
"Yeah," I quietly told him, "Around here, everybody fights, but nobody really knows why. Maybe someday we'll be able to get away from it all. Just not now."
"But I need to get away now!" he shouted.
His outburst shocked me. I didn't think I had ever heard him yell before.
"…If I don't, I'll kill myself or something…."
"Matty, you can't!" I told him, "You're life may not be great now, but someday it might be. Someday you'll be able to get away from here and all the fighting will be over. It can't last forever."
He paused and looked away for a moment before asking, "Have your brothers ever hit you?"
I was a little taken aback by his question. "No," I answered.
"But do you think they would, if they were angry enough?"
I took a moment to think about this. Josh, I knew would never in a million years harm me in any way, intentional or not. Simon, on the other hand was always yelling at me… But only yelling, I told myself.
"No. Neither of them would. Never," I positively told him. Just as I said that, I was reminded that I was already late getting home. I knew Matty needed to talk to me, but at the moment the only thing on my mind was how late I was and what Simon would say.
"You're l--" "What time is it?" I interrupted.
Matty pulled his phone out of his jeans pocket. "About two in the morning," he told me.
My heart skipped a beat. Simon will ground me for life when I get home, I thought. "Matty, I'm sorry, but I have to go. We should talk again soon, though," I said. "Okay, I'll see you around," he quietly said. Not bothering to say a proper good-bye, I quickly left him.
I ran as fast as I could to my house, partially because I knew I was in deep trouble and didn't want to make this worse by staying out longer and partially because it was creepy being out alone so late.
But the with the disadvantage of being so small for my age, I couldn't run for too long. I was panting so hard, I nearly collapsed on the sidewalk. Luckily, an old familiar, beat-up car pulled up next to me. Two people were in the car: Two-Bit was driving and in the passenger seat was Steve Randle.
Seeing Two-Bit around was nothing new; he was always checking up on us because he says that he owes everything to our father and I guess he likes that Simon reminds him of our dad. Steve, however, was a different story.
He was a year younger than Two-Bit but seemed several years older. He was a war hero from fighting in Vietnam alongside my Uncle Sodapop. Usually, Steve stayed at the nearby Veterans home, where my Uncle Soda lived. My uncle was crippled for life since the war, and Steve was always there to take care of him. That was probably why he was never around much. I guess it was also because he didn't seem to like kids very much.
"Two-Bit! Steve!" I panted, "What-- are you-- doing--here?" I asked between gasps for air.
"Lookin' for you. Your brother's goin' crazy wondering where you are. Now, come on," Two-Bit said.
I gratefully got into the car. Then it sank in to me that if Simon had to call people to look for me, I was going to be in huge trouble when I got home.
"What were you doin' out so late?" Steve asked.
"I was just hanging out with an old friend and lost track of time. No big deal." I told him.
"It is to your brother. They were afraid to call the cops, so they called us to look for you," Steve said.
My heart skipped a beat as I thought about how much trouble I would be in. I hate getting yelled at.
Two-Bit must have noticed how scared I was because he said, "You know, you kids remind me so much about the old gang. I remember one time, your Uncle Pony…" I stopped paying attention. Usually I enjoyed hearing stories about my parents past, but not tonight. I hated being yelled at and I knew that Simon would be really angry with me. Then I realized that Two-Bit and Steve had both said my brother was worried, not brothers.
We arrived at my house in no time. My glimmer of hope was shot down with, "You want me to go in with you to face Simon?" Two-Bit asked. "No, that's okay," I whispered, "Thanks for the ride". I got out of the car and walked up to the front door.
I cautiously peered through the window. Simon was pacing around the room and Josh was nowhere to be seen. Taking in a deep breath, I opened the door and walked inside.
Author's Note: Sorry it took my so long to update with a new chapter. This chapter was really hard for me to write. Please review. I am open to any suggestions or comments.