Draft of Outsider Fanfiction

Disclaimer: You know how it is, S.E. Hinton created these characters, not me.

Chapter 5

1 hour before it all went wrong…

By the time we got home, I was sweatin' up a storm, so I called dibs on showering first.

I was in there for about 15 minutes, but I wanted to go quicker so I could talk to Ponyboy.

I finished up my shower and changed, walking into the room when I found Ponyboy working on something at his desk.

I stood there quietly, not sure what to do or to say, but luckily he made that decision for me.

"I know you're here," Pony said, clear as day. I sighed and sat on the bed.

"Ponyboy, can we talk?" I asked sincerely, hoping to get something outta him.

He didn't respond at first. Then he turned around and looked at me.

"Fine," he replied. Ponyboy sat up and walked to the bed, joining me, though not as close to me as I thought.

"Listen, Pony, I… I'm sorry for bugging you, I was just worried about you, and I want to make sure you're okay, but-"

Pony held up his hand and I fell silent.

"It's okay, Soda, it was my fault. I was just in a bad mood and didn't want you worrying. You were just tryin' to do the right thing and I got mad. It's not your fault," he said, scooting in closer. He suddenly pulled me into a tight hug.

I smiled and hugged him back.

"Even if you're almost 15, you'll always be my kid brother," I whispered and closed my eyes while I continued to hug him.

He chuckled timidly. Suddenly, Pony jumped up.

"My Paul Newman poster! I'm gonna go get the mail!" he shouted with a wide grin and ran outta the room. I laughed to myself and decided to get up, too.

I walked into the living room and watched through the window as Ponyboy bolted to the mailbox, grabbed his package, and ran back inside.

He set the package down on the kitchen table and started ripping it open almost as fast as he ran. Darry walked into the kitchen and stared at the scene.

"Uhh, what is going on?" Darry asked. I chuckled.

"Ponyboy said his new poster came in today," I told Darry as we watched Ponyboy toss away the bubble wrap and hold up the poster. Ponyboy stared at it as if it were the biggest diamond on Earth.

"It's illustrious!" he said. I stared at him blankly, trying to figure out what that meant.

"Illustrious means it's pretty," Darry explained quietly. I let out a long "Oh!" and watched as Ponyboy started to pop the bubble wrap.

"This is so much fun!" he said, smiling. I grinned. I guess it had been a while since I'd seen him smile like that. I looked over at Darry.

I could tell Darry was getting tired of hearing: pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop. This went on for an hour. Eventually, Darry spoke up. He poked his head into the living room where Ponyboy was.

"Hey Ponyboy, can you go get the groceries? I'm making pasta and I need more ingredients."

I figured he was just looking for a way to get Ponyboy to stop playing with the bubble wrap, but I stopped to think for a second.

The last time Ponyboy was sent out of the house alone, he got jumped. I didn't want that to happen to him again, so I had reason to do what I did next.

"I'll go, too! Just to make sure the kiddo's safe," I added. Darry nodded and handed me the money. When he left, I turned to look at Pony, but he looked… Not happy. Weird.

I brushed it off and put on my shoes, not expecting much from his small trip.

Boy, was I in for it.

Notes

I know this is pretty short, but I'm almost done with the next chapter and should be posting it tomorrow! That's pretty much all I have to say, I've reminded you guys too much to review, so we're not gonna do that. Have a good day and drink water!

I'M SERIOUS, DRINK YOUR WATER.