Hey guys! I have returned! So I realized that I've forgotten to disclaimer-ify some chapters. And I don't really want to go back and take the time to change them. So let's just set this down right now: I don't own The Outsiders! I totally wish I did though! Then certain people wouldn't die! *Coughs conspicuously*
Please excuse the possible terrible-ness of this chapter. I have a fever and am feeling kinda out of it. :/
Haha, anyways, please follow/favorite/review if you are inclined to do so! Enjoy this next chapter! :)
~Gracie~
It took about four days for me to recover. Much of it was spent sleeping and drifting in and out of consciousness. I heard strange sounds and unfamiliar whispers during my every waking hour. But slowly, surely, I regained my strength, and by the third day I was healthy enough to stay conscious - most of the time.
I noticed that Johnny was usually there with me. Sometimes he was asleep, but usually he was barely awake. I think he had stayed up all night for the past four days to make sure I was alright.
Sometimes, when we were both feeling more awake than usual, we would talk to each other. It did take awhile for me to get him to be less shy around me, but eventually he let his guard down. We started off just talking about simple things, like school and stuff like that. I learned that he didn't like his school, because the teachers never gave him any time to process what they were trying to shove at him, and I told him that I did okay at school, but I thought it was awfully boring and quite pointless. After all, when would we ever have to analyze theme statements when we went out in the real world to make a living?
I guess it was a while before I started getting to know the real Johnny. But I eventually did. I could tell when that perpetually nervous, suspicious look finally left his eyes. He was starting to feel more and more comfortable around me, and we slowly graduated from talking about frivolous things.
"...but my parents don't really care if I'm stupid in school or not, anyways. They don't really care about me at all." Johnny had been saying. Damn it. That look was back in his eyes again.
I looked up at him curiously. My eyes asked him to elaborate.
"My mother is barely ever home, and my father -" He paused. I could see that painful memories were resurfacing in his mind. "- he drinks a lot. Too much, really. He, uh, hits me sometimes."
My eyes were wide with sorrow and surprise. My parents don't really give a hang about me, either, but they'd never hit me. Never…
"Johnny, I'm so sorry…" I couldn't even imagine how it must have felt to know your parents hated you.
"Aw, it's fine, Gracie. At least when he's hittin' me, he knows I'm there," he replied quietly.
It wasn't fine. It wasn't fine when your parents didn't care about you. It was even less fine when they hit you -
"That's not what's usually botherin' me anyways," Johnny finished. I wanted to ask him what he meant, but he turned his face away before he stopped speaking. He clearly didn't want to talk about it. Then, for the first time, I took real notice of the scar on his cheek.
Suddenly, I realized it. He had been hurt, too. Not just by his father, but by the Socs. That was why he took me out from that alley. That was why he cared so much about whether or not I ended up alright. "I just didn't want them to hurt you… a girl… like… like…" That was what he had said. I could finish that sentence in my head now: "...like they hurt me."
I had learned a lot about him on that day. We had spoken like old friends, and he had told me things that I was sure he had only told a select few people in his short, sixteen-year life. But I knew that all good things must come to an end.
On the fourth day, it was clear that I had fully recovered. The bleeding in my neck had stopped a while ago, and all that was left was a long, red scar. My mind felt clear for the first time since the Socs jumped me.
"Johnny." I said, and he started. He had been absent-mindedly staring off into the distance until then. "I should leave. Now."
"But why?" He asked. His huge, black eyes were wide.
"Well, I feel better now. I don't want to overstay my welcome."
He seemed to understand, but looked disappointed. "Gracie…"
"Yeah?"
"I just… I mean, I… Well, thanks for talkin' to me all of the past couple days." He reached up to push his long hair out of his face. "You're a real nice girl."
I smiled at him. "Thanks, Johnny." Then I slowly stood up to leave. Honestly, it was kind of difficult, and I stumbled around a bit before regaining my balance. After all, I hadn't been on my feet for days.
As I turned to walk out the door, I looked back at Johnny. "I guess this is goodbye."
He stood there uncomfortably. "Guess so." He put his hands in his jeans pockets. "Hey, uh, Gracie?"
I stopped in my tracks and looked at him. "Yeah?"
"Do you wanna maybe hang out sometime? Like, at the drive-in or somethin'?"
I smiled. "Definitely." Then I turned to walk out the door.
Well! That's it for today, guys! Again, sorry about any weird phrasing or other errors in this chapter: I am sick, after all. :(
Thanks for reading, and please follow/favorite/review if you are inclined to do so!
XOXO,
TheMuffinChild