The day after prom, I went to work at the bookstore. It was normal day until Ponyboy burst in during my lunch break. He was panting and leaned on the counter that I was sitting behind.
"What happened?" I asked. "You look like you just ran a damn marathon."
"Look." He took something out of the pocket of his jeans and handed it to me. It was a letter.
"Did they finally write back?" I practically screamed in excitement as I bounced in my chair. I would have stood up and jumped around, but my feet were still killing me from the night before.
"Well, Soda finally did", he smiled. "The mail came while we were gone last night."
I tore open the envelope and started to read.
"Dear Lily-flower,
I now it's been a while but I didn't have any time to write. Basic training is hard and days are long and hot, but it's pretty nice here. One of the guys is from Virginia and I think you and Pony would like him. His name is David and he likes books and movies and all that. He talks about his girlfreind a lot too. Everyone here does. I think every guy here left a girlfreind or wife at home. Me and Two-Bit are gonna get shipped off soon so we probly won't be able to write for a while. I'll remind Two-Bit to write his letter again so you will get something in Tulsa from him. I'm sending Ashlynn a letter to, but just tell her for me that I really love her and miss her alright? I miss all of you and I'll write as soon as I can. Love you doll.
Sodapop Curtis"
"He made some spelling errors", I laughed slightly as I re-read the letter again.
"Yeah, he made some on mine too", Pony chuckled.
"I really miss 'im."
"Me too, darlin'."
"Think he'll come back soon?"
"Not unless he gets hurt…", Pony trailed off, and he didn't have to finish his sentence for me to understand where he was going with it.
I reached across the counter and took his hand, rubbing my thumb along the back of it and kissing his knuckles.
"He'll be okay", I said, mostly to him and partly to myself.
"Yeah", he sighed. "I hope so."
"So you got one too?" I asked.
Pony nodded, taking a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and holding it in the air. "He sent them all in a big envelope to our house. We got 'em last night, but I haven't had any time to see you 'n give you yours 'til now."
"Isn't this your lunch break?"
"Yeah."
"Have you eaten anything?"
"No."
"Did you bring your lunch with you?"
"Damn", he muttered. "I knew I forgot something."
I laughed and waved him over to my side of the desk.
When he came over, I had him sit down and picked up my brown paper lunch-bag from the floor next to me, setting it on the counter in front of us.
"You can share some of mine", I told him.
"It's fine, darlin'. Really-", he started, but I cut him off.
"Ponyboy, you're not starvin' on my watch. Please just eat something."
His lip twitched in an attempt to hide a smile. "Alright, alright. What'd you bring?"
A few minutes later, he turned to me in-between bites of his half off the sandwich I had brought.
"You still doin' that solo for the show in June?"
"Yeah."
"What song are you doin' it to?"
"You'll just have to wait and see", I smirked.
He jokingly groaned. "Can you at least show me part of it?"
"I think I danced myself out too much last night with you", I laughed.
"It was fun, though, you gotta admit."
"Yeah, it was."
"Can you show me, though?" he asked, pouting over dramatically and batting his eyelashes. "Pretty, pretty please?"
"You're not gonna give up on this, are you?" I asked.
"Nope."
"Fine", I sighed with a laugh as I stood up on my sore feet. "This isn't gonna be that good since my feet hurt, just lettin' you know now."
"It'll be great", he assured me. "'Cause you're doin' it."
I blushed and walked further behind the counter, deciding to do the first thirty seconds or so of the dance since I didn't want to show Pony the entire thing and the first part was the calmest. I didn't want to arabesque straight into a shelf of books or concern Mrs. Green with my jumping rattling the walls (which had happened on many occasions).
I did bourrees across the floor en pointe in my Converse with my arms in demi-second, then stopped and stood flat-footed. I brought my arms up to fifth position and let them float down into first before slowly going back up en pointe and lifting my leg up into an arabesque, which I held for a few seconds before sinking back down and curtsying.
"Christ, woman", Pony muttered, causing me to laugh. "That don't look natural, but you look beautiful doin' it."
"Thanks", I laughed as he walked over to me and picked me up in a hug.
"I gotta go back t'work", he muttered in my ear, "but I don't wanna."
"Well, if you wanna make money for college, you gotta go back to work", I pointed out.
"I guess you're right", he sighed dramatically. He pulled away from me slightly and pecked my lips. "I'll see you tomorrow, darlin'."
"See you tomorrow", I smiled back. "I love you, honey."
"I love you too. And I always will."
XxXxXxXxXx
Soon after, I was in study hall with Pony in the library. I was trying to find out what x was on the algebra homework that he had already done and he was studying for a test about the French Revolution in history the next day.
The intercom suddenly came on and the receptionist started speaking.
"Attention, seniors. The results for class superlatives are in and are as follows: the most athletic are Daniel Parker and Missy Kennedy. The most popular are Ilene Taylor and Richard Jenkins. Janet Green and Peter Smith are the best dressed…", she continued on like this for a while and I wasn't really listening very carefully until she got to "Cutest Couple". "…the cutest couple are Ponyboy Curtis and Lily Smith…"
He and I looked at each other and he smiled and gave me a kiss.
"We won?" I asked.
"I guess we did", he laughed.
"All of the seniors that I have just announced, please come down to the gymnasium to get your pictures taken", I heard the receptionist say.
Pony and I stood up and held hands as we walked down the hallway. I was thankful that I had decided to wear a sun dress and my flats with my hair in a braid. With my free hand, I took out my hair and observed the waves that had been formed.
"I'll never understand how your hair does that when you take it out."
"I have mystical powers", I stage-whispered. "I can turn straight hair into wavy hair."
"So Ruth's curling iron has 'mystical powers' too?" he asked, using his fingers to make quotation marks.
"Oh, shut up", I laughed and nudged him a little.
He was wearing his normal outfit of a T-shirt, jeans, and Converse, but it still made him look as handsome as ever.
When we got to the gym, everyone else that had been named was already there, huddled into a mob along the wall.
Mrs. Rote was standing in front of all of us with a clipboard. She looked around and seemed to count us off on her fingers before asking for our attention.
"Excuse me!" she called, causing us all to go silent and look at her. "If you don't already know me, I'm Mrs. Rote and I'm the drama teacher. I'm gonna call up one of each pair of y'all at a time and you're gonna go to that photographer over there." She pointed over to a man with a camera by another wall that was partly covered with a tarp, who looked at us and waved shyly. "Y'all understand?"
All of us either nodded or verbally agreed and she smiled. "Well, that makes my life a lot easier. First up: Boy and Girl of the Year."
The pairs of students were called up; one category at a time. They stayed with the photographer for a while before they left and the next pair was called up.
"Cutest Couple", Mrs. Rote announced with a slight smile. When Pony and I started walking towards the photographer, she gave us a beaming grin.
"Hello", the photographer greeted and shook both of our hands. "My name's Adam."
"Nice t'meet you", Pony and I said.
"Now, y'all are 'Cutest Couple', right?"
"Yes, sir", Pony told him.
"Great", Adam nodded and gestured to the wall. "Now if y'all could go stand over there, that'd be just perfect."
We did as he said and stood in front of the wall.
"D'you want us to do anything specific?" I asked.
"That's what I'm stuck on", Adam sighed. "I don't want the pictures t'be stupid, but I still want 'em to be cute, y'know?"
I nodded in understanding.
"What do y'all like to do?"
Pony and I looked at each other and shrugged.
"Read?" he suggested.
Adam's face brightened and I could tell that he had gotten an idea.
"Here", he said, handing us each a book from the floor next to him. "We used these for another category, but I've got an idea. What're your names again?"
"I'm Lily."
"And I'm Ponyboy."
"Ponyboy, will you please go sit with your back to the wall?" Adam asked as he fiddled with his camera.
Pony nodded and sat at the wall.
"Now, Lily, can you go sit next to him on his left?"
After I did, he directed us again. "Lily, put your head on his shoulder and hold your book open with your left hand. Ponyboy, hold your book open with your right hand and hold Lily's free hand with yours."
We shifted around to get into the position Adam wanted and I squeezed Pony's hand lightly.
"This isn't as bad as I thought it was gonna be", I told him.
"I thought it was gonna be way worse too", Pony whispered.
I liked the position Adam had chosen for us. It felt natural and Pony and I being Pony and I, we had probably been in that position before on the Curtis' couch.
The camera flashed a few times before Adam clapped his hands together in satisfaction. "What else do y'all like t'do?"
"Lily dances", Pony said.
"You do?" Adam asked.
"Yeah", I nodded with a slight blush.
"Ponyboy, do you think you can you dip her?"
"Yeah, I've done it before", Pony told him as he came over to me and put his arms around my waist before dipping me. I laughed and quickly wrapped my arms around his neck.
"If you drop me, Ponyboy Michael, I swear to God…", I laughed as Adam took pictures.
"If I do, I give you full permission to punch me in the arm."
"We're almost done" Adam told us while Pony pulled me back to my feet. "All I want you t'do is kiss. Nothin' too crazy."
Ponyboy smiled down and me, wrapped an arm around my waist while the other cupped my face and kissed me. I stood up on tip-toe and kissed back, holding his face in my hands.
Soon, we unfortunately had to break apart. I stood back on my feet and smiled when my boyfriend gave me a kiss on the forehead.
"Y'all did great", Adam told us. "I hope you like the pictures when you see 'em."
"I'm sure we will", I said. "Thank you."
When we walked out from Adam's set-up, Mrs. Rote called over the next pair.
"How'd it go?" she asked us when we got close to her.
"Pretty good", Pony said, putting his hand in mine.
"Y'know", she whispered. "I wasn't allowed to vote since I'm a teacher, but if I were allowed to, I would've voted for y'all."
"Thank you, ma'am", I smiled. "Have a nice day."
"Y'all have nice day too."
XxXxXxXxXx
In early May, graduation was all that anyone talked about. We were sized for our caps and gowns and I was even starting to think about what I would wear.
On the first day of the month, Pony and I were called down to the office.
"Would Ponyboy Curtis and Lily Smith please report to the office?" the receptionist said over the intercom during the end of last period.
He and I looked at each other nervously and I grabbed his hand. I couldn't remember ever doing anything bad; especially not something bad enough to get us sent to the office, but I was still terrified nevertheless.
"Go ahead", our teacher told us as he continued scribbling away on the chalkboard.
We grabbed our bags and walked down the hallway hand-in-hand.
"Did we do anything?" Pony asked me. "I don't think we've ever done anything bad. What if it's Angela? Or Roger? Do you think someone got hurt?"
"Ponyboy", I said, stopping in the middle of the hall and gripping his shoulders. "Baby, we'll be alright. It's just the office. There's a real good chance that there callin' us down for nothing. We'll be okay, okay?"
"Yeah", he sighed and rested his forehead on mine. "Okay."
My mind was racing as we continued walking. What if it's Soda or Two-Bit? I thought. I was incredibly nervous, but I couldn't let Pony know that. He already looked a little frazzled as it was.
When we got to the office, I took a breath before cautiously walking into the room with Pony trailing behind me. The receptionist looked up at us from some paperwork.
"Hello, ma'am", I said shyly. "I'm Lily Smith and this's Ponyboy Curtis. You called us down?"
"Yep. Just go down that little hall over there and the room where they want y'all is the second door on the left", she told us, practically leaning over her desk while giving us the directions.
"Thank you, ma'am", I nodded and hugged Pony's arm closer to me.
He moved his arm so it was wrapped around my shoulders and hugged me tightly to him as we wandered down the unfamiliar office hallway.
At the second door to the left, we both stopped and peeked into the room, where there was a huge table. It looked like a meeting room and almost every chair at the table was full. Mr. Edwards sat near the head, along with several other teachers. At the very head of the table was a man that I didn't recognize.
Mr. Edwards waved us in. "Come in, y'all."
"Hello, sir", we said.
"Go ahead and sit down", he said as he gestured to the two empty chairs across from him and next to the man at the head of the table.
My heart was racing and I could feel my palms getting clammy. Pony looked down at me and gave me a small reassuring smile, causing me to smile a little bit at him too as we sat down.
"I'm Mr. Jackson, the superintendent", said the man at the head of the table as he shook both of our hands. "I'm guessin' you're Lily Smith and Ponyboy Curtis?"
"Yes, sir", Pony answered. His voice sounded strong to the untrained ear, but I could tell that he was scared. Our hands were squeezing each other's so hard that I wouldn't have been surprised if they were both broken or at the least fractured by the end of whatever meeting we were in.
"You're both probably wonderin' why we called y'all here and I think it'll be a relief to know that you're not in trouble."
We both relaxed tremendously. I felt Ponyboy loosen his grip on my hand from under the table and run his thumb along the back of my hand.
"We're all here to tell y'all that you're valedictorian and salutatorian", Mr. Jackson said.
"Wait, what?" I didn't really believe what was happening.
"Mr. Curtis, you're valedictorian and Miss Smith, you're salutatorian for your class."
I looked at Pony in shock, then back at the adults surrounding us.
"Do our families know?" he asked.
"We're gonna leave that up to y'all", Mr. Edwards smiled.
"If you want, you can go back to class", Mr. Jackson told us. "Congratulations."
"Thank you", we both said, picking up our bags and leaving the room.
When we were out of their sight, I dropped my bag and tackled Ponyboy in a bone-crushing hug. He held me and spun me around as he squeezed me.
"We did it", he whispered in my ear when he stopped spinning and held me in his arms. "We made it, darlin'. We made it."
"We did it", I laughed and kissed him for a while before pulling back and smiling at him.
He peppered my face in kisses, causing me to giggle as he carried me and our bags down the rest of the office hallway.
"I don't know what they told you in there, but congratulations on whatever it was", the receptionist laughed.
"Thank you", we smiled.
Pony put me down and wrapped me in another hug.
"God, I love you", I muttered.
"I love you too", he said into my neck and I could practically hear the smile on his face.
School ended less than half-an-hour later and on the walk home, we told Ashlynn.
"Hey, Ash", I said to get her attention.
"Yeah?"
"Pony got valedictorian."
"And Lily got salutatorian", Pony smiled as he wrapped his arm around my waist.
Ashlynn stopped short. "What? Really?"
"Yeah", I nodded with a laugh.
"Oh my God!" Ashlynn exclaimed, pulling us both into a massive hug. "That's amazing! First you got 'Cutest Couple' in the yearbook and now this."
"Thanks", I laughed as I pulled away. "I can help but wonder why we got them, though, since we weren't voted as 'Most Likely to Succeed'."
I knew why Pony had gotten valedictorian while I had gotten salutatorian, though. He not only was incredibly smart and got good grades, but he also did several sports, which boosted his chances through the roof. I had only gotten good grades and the "Diary of Anne Frank" play.
"I heard that y'all were the only greaser couple on the entire superlative list, so all the greaser seniors probably voted for you whether they really know you or not. That explains the superlative. For the valedictorian and salutatorian, the teachers picked and most of them probably don't have as much of a bias towards Socs as the students."
"That would make sense", Pony admitted and I nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, that sounds more likely."
"But no matter how you did it, you did it", Ashlynn smiled. "I got smartypants friends."
"Like you're any less smart than we are", Pony said.
She shrugged with a smirk. "We'll just have t'wait and see if I get one of your nerd positions when I graduate."
XxXxXxXxXx
Ponyboy's POV
A couple weeks after Lily and I learned that we would be valedictorian and salutatorian, I got home from work to see Darry reading the paper in his recliner.
"Whatcha doin' home?" I asked.
"It started rainin' earlier, remember?" he reminded me. "The boss sent us all home."
I nodded in understanding and pointed to the newspaper. "Can I borrow that?"
"Sure", Darry shrugged as he handed to me. I sat down on the couch and flipped through the pages.
"What're you lookin' for?" Darry asked.
"The weather report for next few days", I responded as I continued to look for it.
"Why?"
"Remember how last month I told you that I'm plannin' on proposing to Lily before we finish school?"
"Yeah, why?" he said. I remained silent and looked at him, hoping he would get the hint. He seemed to figure out what I was hinting towards a few moments later when his eyebrows rose and he sat up straighter in his seat. "Really? You're gonna do it in the next few days?"
"If the weather looks like it's gonna be nice", I responded as I finally found the page with the weather report. My eyes scanned the weekend thoroughly since that was when I was hoping specifically to propose and I was greeted with a report of it being in the fifties and sixties on that Saturday, May 17.
"I think I'm gonna do it on Saturday", I said.
"How're you gonna do it?"
"I'm gonna take 'er to the country after work", I answered. "So is it alright if I take the truck for the night?"
"Of course it's alright. Pony, you're proposing to your girlfriend. Do you really think I'd say that you couldn't do that because I wanted the truck for the night?"
I shrugged. "Just makin' sure."
There was a moment of silence before Darry spoke again.
"Wow", he sighed. "So you're really gonna get married, aren't you?"
"If she says yes, then, yeah, that's the plan."
"She'll say yes."
"How d'you know that?"
"Ponyboy Michael Curtis, I've never seen anyone looks at you the way she does. She loves you to bits. She'll say yes."
"That's what I'm hopin'", I laughed anxiously.
"You're usin' Mom's ring, aren't you?"
"Yeah, how'd you know."
"I remember you as a kid, Pony, and I remember what Mom told you 'bout her givin' you the ring when you found the right girl. Besides, I was the one that sorted out the will and it said in there t'give you the ring."
I smiled a little. "I miss 'em."
"Me too", Darry sighed, moving onto the couch to sit next to me and wrapping an arm around my shoulders. "They would'a loved her. Both of 'em."
"Yeah", I smiled. "They would've."
"Remember when Lily taught you how t'dance in Mom's heels?"
"How could I forget?" I laughed.
I could vividly remember the sparkle in her eyes as she danced and I could tell that she loved doing it more than almost anything. And I loved dancing with her more than almost anything. We had waltzed and swing-danced around the living room for hours before the gang had come home and caught us.
When they asked us if we would show them the dances, I almost said no, but I could see how much Lily wanted to, so I had agreed. It had earned me lots of teasing after she had left that night, but it was worth it to see her that happy. I would give anything to see her happy.
"When we had that talk that day she taught you to dance, me and Soda weren't kiddin' around. You really look just as in love as Mom and Dad did. And that's somethin' special, Ponyboy."
"I know", I nodded with a small smile. "And I really love 'er. More than anything."
"I'm proud of you, Pony", Darry said. "I prob'ly don't say that enough, but I'm real proud of you. You got someone that really loves you and makes you happy, you got valedictorian in school, and you're goin' to Princeton. You're gonna get outta this town, Ponyboy; you an' Lily both, and y'all're gonna do great things. I know you are."
"Thanks, Dar", I blushed. "That means a lot comin' from you."
He smirked and gave me a slight squeeze. "No problem, Pone. Why don't you go read or somethin' while I make dinner. It's my night."
I nodded and went into my room, where I pulled Soda's letter to me off of the bedside table and starting reading it for probably the twentieth time that week.
"Dear Pony,
By the time you get this, you and Lily will have probly have gone to prom already and I want you to tell me everything and send me pictures. I wish I could have been there. I'm real suprised that you haven't proposed yet. I don't want to wait any longer than I already have to for a little sister. Tell me how you are going to do it and send pictures of that to if you can. And if you don't send me a letter by the time you propose or graduate I'm going to fight the generals and officers to send me back home just so I can hit you in the head. Anyway, I'll remind Two for probly the millionth time to write you and I'll try to get another letter to you as soon as possible. Love you Pony.
Sodapop Curtis"
I laughed a little at the number of spelling errors he had made and scanned the words over again. I really missed him and wished he was still home. I knew that I wouldn't be able to go on if he or Two-Bit died in the war no matter what the rest of the gang or Lily did.
As I stared at the letter, I felt a tug in my stomach and felt like I needed something of his to hold. I searched the room and finally found his DX shirt thrown over the back of a chair. I grabbed it and buried my face into it, smelling the gasoline and cologne on the fabric.
I wanted him home so badly. I needed both of my brothers.
Holding Soda's DX shirt in one hand, I reached over with the other and opened the drawer of the bedside table, finding the velvet box that I had placed in there a week before. I pulled it out and held in in both hands before opening it, revealing Mom's engagement ring.
I gently took it out as though it were made of glass and not silver and held it between my forefinger and thumb. I couldn't help but think about how big my hands now were in comparison to the ring and how they would have dwarfed Mom's. She was a slight woman, probably only about five-foot-five in height and 115 pounds. Her hands were small and slim like the piano-player she was, though she hadn't played since she was a teenager. She had wavy caramel-brown-colored hair and her eyes were a shade of green somewhere my green-grey and Darry's icy blue-green. Her voice was smooth and she had a sweet, thick Southern accent. Her smile could warm up a room covered in ice and her laugh made everyone around her laugh too.
She was almost the same exact person as my girlfriend. Lily had a small, lithe body and couldn't have weighed more than one hundred and fifteen to one hundred and twenty pounds. Her hair was just about the same color as Mom's and she had the same sweet, comforting smile and contagious laugh as her. They both loved to learn and read and they were both stubborn and caring enough to keep up with the gang and I.
Lily's accent and eye color were the only things that differentiated her from Mom. Lily's eyes had long black eyelashes surrounding them while Mom's had been blonde. Her eyes were also much darker in the irises, being a warm brown that reminded you of melted chocolate. And while Mom's accent had been wholly Southern, Lily's was different from anyone that I had ever heard. It could sound Southern at times when she didn't say her "I-N-G's" or said "y'all", but for the most part it was a combination between North and South. Since her parents were from Boston, she sometimes slipped into a Boston accent. When she started to talk really fast (which she did fairly often) or became really tired while talking, she wouldn't say her R's and she'd skim over her vowels a little. She hated it, but I loved the way it sounded coming from her and found it endearing.
I looked closely at the ring, trying to see every little detail that there was. The band was silver with an intricate, almost floral design and the setting held a diamond. Every year on their wedding anniversary, Dad recalled their engagement. How he had saved up for months to get Mom the perfect ring. How he asked her parents for their blessing first. How he had proposed in front of both of their families on Christmas morning.
"And your mom almost fainted before sayin' 'Oh, Darrel, or course! You're the most strong, handsome, wonderful man I've ever met. Kiss me, you fool!", Dad would say at the end of the story, making his voice impossibly high when imitating Mom.
"Darrel Curtis, that's not what I said and you know it", Mom would laugh as she lightly hit him on the arm.
"Oh, I know that, darlin'", he would cheekily smile back like Soda. "I gotta spice up the story, though. Make it more interestin'."
I smiled at the memory and lightly pressed the ring to my lips, taking a deep breath before putting it back into the box and into my bedside table, putting down Soda's shirt, and going to the phone. I dialed in Lily's number and waited as it rang.
"Hello?" I heard and knew it was Lily.
"Hey, darlin'", I smiled.
"Hey. What's up, honey?"
"D'you wanna go on a date on Saturday? After work, I mean."
"Sure", she responded with a smile in her voice. "I'll even see if I can get out early. Where're you thinkin'?"
"It's a surprise."
"Alright", she laughed. "If you say so. I'll see you tomorrow, love."
"See you tomorrow. I love you."
"I love you too, honey", she said before we hung up.
It was really happening. I was going to ask her to marry me.
Sorry it's taken me a bit to write again, but school's been keeping me busy (per usual). I have lots ideas for what's going to happen for the proposal, but I think I'm going to do two chapters for it: one from Lily's POV and the other from Ponyboy's POV. I'm SOOOOOO excited for the proposal and I can't wait to write it. I've grown this story from when the two of them were thirteen and fourteen and to see that it has come this far and that they're getting married…it's like my own child is getting married. I love y'all and stay gold!- AthenaRavenclaw
P.S- The spelling errors in Soda's letters were intentional.