Hey, I am on a roll! I realize these chapters are a bit slow, but they'll pick up soon, and I hope you're all excited to see what I have in store for Pony, Soda and Johnny!!!!!

Thanks for reading!!! R and R Please!!!

Disclaimer- I do not own the Outsiders…S.E. Hinton does!

Pony's POV:

As soon as Soda and I had started walking towards the school, heads were turning. I could feel myself blush, but Soda was in all his glory! Every single girl, smiled at him as he walked by, every girl! I can't believe this! We haven't been here for two minutes and he already has a chance at love. I was going to have to be positive if I wanted to make it anywhere.

So far, all my classes have been easy. I understood everything, and everyone was really nice. It was two minutes before the bell would ring for the next period.

Lunch.

The period I dreaded most. Where would I sit? Who would it be with? What was the food like?

I saw everyone stand up around me, the bell had rung. I grabbed my stuff and walked to my locker first. It was close to the cafeteria, so I wasn't in a rush. People were pushing and shoving to get to the cafeteria. It was hectic, much more than in Tulsa. I would usually go and eat lunch with Two-Bit and Johnny at the DX; at least there it was nice and quiet, I also knew who to sit with.

With all my stuff in my locker, my books for my last few classes in hand, I walked towards the dreaded dungeon.

I walked into the cafeteria and stopped in my tracks. It was packed! I had no idea where to start. Thankfully, I saw Soda standing on the other side, with the same baffled look on his face.

"Pony!" he yelled. Everyone turned and stared at him. They must have thought he was insane; I mean a kid yelling "Pony!" randomly is a little weird.

My face turned red and I waved, letting everyone know I was the kid named Ponyboy. I love my name, but sometimes I like to tell people on my own, not have my brother scream it across a crowded room.

Soda ran up to me and grabbed my arm, "Found some people we can sit with. Really nice guys and some choice girls mixed in!"

Only Soda would find the best girls around. I shook my head and laughed. As I followed him to the table, I saw the people he was talking about. My mouth dropped. The guys had muscles bigger than Darry's and they all wore letterman jackets. The girls made the greaser girls back home look tame. They weren't dressed skimpy or anything, but they were, as Soda put it, "Choice". They seemed nice, but I wouldn't know for sure until I actually talked to them.

"Soda, hey glad you found us man! Thought we were going to have to send for a search and rescue," the biggest guy at the table said. His eyes were ice blue, like Dal's, but they weren't hard or mean. They actually looked calm, but intense at the same time.

"Yea, had to get my little bro first," he said, messing up my hair. I gave him a shove and fixed my hair. I hate when he does that.

"Hey, little bro, so you got a real name?" the kid asked smiling.

"Yea, the name's Ponyboy, but you can call me Pony," I replied holding my hand out.

"Nice to meet ya, Pony. I'm David and this is my elite team of football players!" he said, shaking my hand then pointing to his other friends.

"Hey, don't forget us girls. Without us you wouldn't have any inspiration!" a girl with blonde curly hair remarked. She turned to look at me, winked, and then patted the seat next to her.

"You can sit here Pony. My name is Susan, captain of the cheerleading squad," she said with a big smile. Her eyes were also blue, but darker. She wore her cheerleading uniform along with the other girls at the table. Was I really just about to sit with the popular kids at school?

I sat down next to her and placed my books on the table. Everyone settled down then, and some left to get their food. I was about to follow, but Soda stopped me.

"What do ya want Pone, I'll get it for you," he offered.

"Oh, okay, um whatever looks appetizing, I guess," I replied. Soda left and I was alone at the table with a couple of the guys who were talking about football, typical.

A was about to get up and find Soda when a girl around my age walked up to the table. She had dark brown hair and bright green eyes that complimented her baggy shirt and flared jeans.

"Hey boys, is my brother in line?" she asked quietly. She glanced at me, smiled then looked back at the guys.

"Yea, him and like the rest of the group. How've you been Sheila?" one of the guys asked.

She sat down on top of the table and crossed her legs, "Good, but this place is crawling with newbie's…" she glanced towards me.

I felt my face get hot and I looked down at my feet.

"Oh, hey there, you're new aren't you?" she asked as if she was surprised to see a "newbie" sitting there.

"Yea, my name's Ponyboy Curtis, my brother is Sodapop…" I answered quietly.

She sat there analyzing me; starting with my books on the table, to my torso, which I felt very uncomfortable with, then finally my face. I looked away, then back at her. She was still watching me. Why was she watching me?! I was about to say something, but she started talking.

"So, Pony… mind if I call you Pony?"

I nodded my head, and she continued on.

"So, Pony, what are you doing after school?"

I was taken aback by her question. She smiled a wide smile and sat down next to me.

"Um, well, I don't think I'm doing anything. Homework, if I have any, but other than that…"

"Great! You should hang out with me and my friends down by the beach. We'll teach you how to surf," she said, singing the last part.

"Okay, sounds…fun. Mind if my brother Soda comes along?"

"Are you talking about me, Pony?" Soda had come back with food. He set the tray down in front of me and nodded towards Sheila.

"Hey there, met my brother have ya? He isn't boring you with book talk is he?" he goofed.

"No, I was actually inviting him to the beach after school with me and a couple of friends wanna come?"

"Oh, actually I was going to hang with these guys, but if you want to Pony," Soda said smiling.

"Alright, it's a deal, you're hanging with me Ponyboy," she jumped off the table and walked away.

Just like that, I already had a social outing with some new friends.

Johnny's POV:

School went real well. Charles, who later told me I could call him CJ because his last name was Jenkins, kept his promise. People were already saying "hi" to me in the halls and asking me to hang out with them after school.

I was beginning to think that moving to a new place was one of the best ideas I've ever had. Well, it wasn't really my decision, but I'm glad I obliged.

I was sitting in my backyard that over looked the ocean. The waves rolled in and out, the seagulls sang their songs above, and I felt at peace. I am so glad school went well. I was curious as to how Pony was doing though. Did he have friends yet? What was his school like? Did he and Soda miss me?

"Johnny! How was your first day of school?" Robin asked sitting in my lap.

"It was good, I made new friends, even got invited to some of their houses tonight," I replied smiling.

"Why didn't you go?"

"Cause I wanted to spend time with my younger sister whose name I can't remember," I said jokingly.

"Hey! You know my name!" she exclaimed giggling.

"Oh, that's right, its Gladys isn't it?"

"No!"

"Bob?"

"No, that's a boy's name silly!" she stood up and stood over me.

"I have no clue…can you help me?" I said trying to sound confused.

"Robin!" she yelled jumping into my arms.

We rolled around laughing, and then we started chasing each other around the yard. I felt so good. No worries were flooding my mind. I was playing with my family. People who cared for me; people I can love back. Robin was the sweetest kid ever. She was really excited to have an older brother, and I was happy for a little sister.

"Robin, Johnny, dinners ready!" Shirley yelled from the house.

"Okay, we're coming!" I turned towards Robin and knelt down in front of her, "I'll race ya?"

"You're on!" she said, and she was off. I purposely ran slowly so she would win. She didn't let that one down for the rest of the night.

Later at 2 a.m.

The house was quiet and calm. Darkness engulfed the empty rooms; it was hard to see where I was going. My head hurt and I was shaking like a leaf. My eyes darted back and forth as I looked for a light switch… no luck.

I was about to open the front door when I felt a hand grab my shoulder and spin me around with so much force that I feel to the ground. I looked up to see a figure looming over me. My throat tightened up and my palms were getting sweaty. My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest as he reached down and grabbed my upper arm. Pain throbbed through my arm, but the force he appeared to have on me didn't look like it should hurt that bad.

"You're a lousy good for nothing son! I should've killed ya when I had the chance," he said looking me in the eye.

I screamed for help, but no one came. I screamed for Pony and Soda, but they didn't answer. No one answered.

His hand was coming down at me and I flinched away but…

I shot up in my bed, tears streaming down my face. My mouth was wide open as if I'd been screaming. The next thing I knew Kenneth came barging into my room, Shirley shortly behind.

"Johnny, are you okay?" Kenneth asked frantically.

I couldn't say anything. My throat was still tight and my mouth was really dry. Shirley walked over to my bed and sat down next to me.

"Is everything okay? Was it a dream?"

Yes. It was just a dream. So why did I get scared?

I nodded my head and whispered a response, "yea, just a dream…" but as soon as I opened my mouth, I lost it. I started crying uncontrollably and I clung onto Shirley like my life depended on it. I was actually scared; I couldn't understand why I was crying. I couldn't understand why I was shaking, and why I had that dream.

Shirley held me and rubbed her hand on my back to calm me down. It took me a while to compose myself, but when I finally did I found myself embarrassed.

"It's okay Johnny, no need to be embarrassed. It happens to a lot of people who have been through a difficult experience. You witnessed a scary event. You were sent to a juvenile center, and you lost your best friends. Then you had to move to a new state, school, and make new friends…"

That didn't help me, because I started crying again. She reminded me of everything I lost and why the dream occurred. I was holding it all in. I should've told someone about everything. Holding in all those emotions was not good for me. I couldn't handle it alone. I needed someone who understood, someone who went through it with me…

I needed Pony and Soda.

So? Was that a quick enough update? Hope you enjoyed!!! If it seems to be moving slow…don't worry the fun starts soon!!!!!