Reham: Hey y'all! I'm back with a new story!
Steve: I know this one is going to suck because your going to try and make meand the bastard get along.
Pony: This should be fun to watch
Steve: They can't watch it, dumbass - you have to read
Reham: I know that most of the people on this "Outsiders" section hate Steve because Pony hates him, but I don't think that's fair to him, so I'm going to try a weak attempt to change your point of views. Steve should be liked as an equal character. Just because the main character of the book doesn't like him doesn't mean that you shouldn't.
Two-Bit: But this is a funny story - please read it!
Soda: --gasp-- Two-Bit said please!
Dally: THE OPOCALYPSE! THE OPOCALYPSE!
Johnny: I'm going to go get Dally's medication
Pony: Reham doesn't own us, or S.E. Hinton's writings, or anything but her possessions
Darry: That did not make any sense what-so-ever.

…:Savings:…

:Darry's PoV:

I was just waiting for the boys to come back with the news. It was going to be great news, anyway. Since the beginning of the year, each of the gang has been saving their money for this day. And when Soda and Steve came back with their paycheck, we'd add all the money up to see if we had enough for my grand idea.

Two-Bit was sitting on the couch, accompanied by Johnny and Dally, and was holding a beer to his mouth as his eyes watched the TV in his "Mickey Mouse trance". Ponyboy was sitting on the floor with his head stuck in a book, his favorite at that. I was about to tell him to turn on a light because his eyes would hurt when the front door was slammed open.

"We got it!" came Steve's triumphant voice. He pushed Soda forward with a grin on his face. Soda was holding a piece of paper in his hand and a goofy grin was plastered onto his face. He stumbled forward like he was drunk, which I well knew he wasn't, and handed the paper to me.

"You guys all wait in the room while I count up the money," I said to everyone in the house at the moment. Everyone nodded absentmindedly because they were all too absorbed with the TV, or in Pony's case, a book. I strode back into the kitchen where several money bills and papers were piled up.

Pony and Johnny weren't able to get any money, seeing as they were still in school and didn't have a job. Soda and Steve got their money from their work, and they've been good little angels this year to get paid extra. Dally got his money from riding in rodeos – and that brought in a lot, seeing as most of the rodeos were fixed so he would always win (but everyone knew he would try his hardest and honestly rode the horses for the fun of it). And Two-Bit got his money from only God knows where. I, of course, got my money from my work.

I sat at the table and counted it all up. I had a paper with me to do the math. First I added up Dally's money and it came up to be more than what I expected. I was already at half of what I wanted! Then came Two-Bit's money and that was an excellent amount – I wondered where he got it all from. I counted Bevis and Butthead's money next, and already we were over the amount of money needed. So that all came down with my amount and I knew we had extra money. This was going to be a winter vacation no one was going to forget.

I walked back into the living room with a smile on my face. I walked over to the TV and shut it off, causing Two-Bit to playfully kick me from the couch. "Why'd you cut off Mickey?" he asked jokingly.

"Because, stupid, I've got the news."

"Oooooooooh."

I swear, sometimes Two-Bit is just the stupidest person in the world. "Before Mr. Mickey over here interrupted me, I was about to tell you all about the trip. Thanks to everyone, we've made more than enough money for the vacation I've planned."

There was a round of whoops and cheers and then everyone silenced. "So what's the trip gonna be, Dar?" Dally asked me.

"We're going to be staying in a cabin on the mountains to go fishing, hiking, etc . . . where us Greasers can just have a carefree Soc week. No Socs, no rumbles, no nothing but campfires, playing dirty jokes on each other, s'mores, and scary stories!"

I knew everyone was in awe. They just didn't think of me as the kind of person that would do something like that, but I just wowed them. Heck, everyone needed a break. I arranged with Soda and Steve's boss a few days ago to let the two off for the entire winter vacation and he miraculously agreed. Then I had to get it past my boss, which also agreed, although reluctantly. Two-Bit's mom was the easiest – she even joked with me that it would be grateful to have Two-Bit out of the house for a week. I didn't even bother going to Dally's, Johnny's, and Steve's parents, seeing as they wouldn't give a hang.

Two-Bit stood up and walked over to me, pretending to knock on my head. "'Scuse me, but is Mr. Darrel Curtis in there? 'Cause I think he took a trip down town and ain't comin' back for a while," he said, which sent the rest of the gang into fits of laughter. I even had to grin at that.

I took his hand and twisted it around his back playfully. "I told you we all needed a break," I said as I pushed him into Dally. Dally shoved him over onto the floor and we all broke out into laughter when Johnny "accidentally" kicked him while getting up for a piece of cake.

"So when are we leavin'?" asked Soda.

"Tomorrow," I started, "at seven thirty in the morning."

I got grumbles from that. "Darry, you know I can't wake up 'til five in the afternoon," Two-Bit said, only half-jokingly.

"C'mon guys. It's gonna be fun!" said Soda. Good ol' Soda. I knew if he was in, everyone else would follow – especially Two-Bit, who would follow what everyone was doing in a heartbeat, even if it was pounding yourself with your Aunt's fruitcake.

"I want everyone to go home right now and start packing. Bring some heavy clothing 'cause it's all snow up in the mountains, and probably your toothbrushes, other clothing, some food, and whatever other junk you need. Then when you're finished, you come back here and sleep over. Is that clear?"

"If Darry's in charge of this trip, I think it's gonna feel like boot camp," grumbled Steve jokingly.

I swatted him across the head half-playfully when he exited. Then I turned back to everyone else. Two-Bit had turned on the TV again and everyone was looking at it like it was a talking dog with tap shoes on and it just started playing poker with its friends. "Get goin' everybody!" I shouted. Two-Bit scrambled up from the couch and ran off, but not before going to the refrigerator and grabbing a beer, which caused Soda to laugh. Dally grabbed Johnny and walked out, leaving only what was left of my family.

"Hey, that don't leave you two off the hook," I commented.

"Aw, c'mon Darry, can't you just pack for us?" asked Soda with a fake pleading look.

"Move it, little man."

Soda got up and put on a mock hurt glance as he passed me. Ponyboy closed his book and smiled at me before going into his room. This was going to be one hell of a trip.

I started packing my essentials, and when I was finished with that, I monitored my brothers' so that they packed all of the right things. It was a good thing I did, because Soda packed all of his T-shirts and wife beaters in there, and there wasn't a single long-sleeved shirt to be sighted. So I took his bag, flipped it upside down, and dumped all of its contents onto his and Pony's bed. Then I went through the closet he shared with Pony and took all of the heavy clothing out. I threw it to him and he stuffed it into his carrying bag.

Ponyboy's packing was nothing I had to worry about. He was a smart kid and took everything that I would have recommended. I smiled at Soda's fussing and walked out of the door, telling Pony to keep an eye out for his brother.

Fifteen minutes later, I was in my armchair reading the morning's news (which unsurprisingly, I hadn't had time to read). Pony had resumed his place by the couch with his book and Soda was setting up the table with cards for a poker game. He had taken an extra deck in his backpack in case he got bored.

"Hey Darry, did you get any food for the trip?" he asked me as he placed one more chair at the table.

"I got everything, don't worry. And I've hidden it so you won't be able to find it." That was true. I had packed marshmallows and chocolate and graham crackers, as well as the other snacks we'd need. But knowing Soda, he would try and find the marshmallows, so I hid it all in only a certain place – and I won't tell you, either!

The door opened and Steve came in with a new bruise on his cheek and a single bulging bag on his shoulders. I hoped he'd packed enough things for the coldness – I didn't want any of the gang to freeze up on the mountains because it was my idea. He put his bag down by the couch and plopped himself onto the couch tiredly.

"Hey Steve, did you meet a Soc on your way?" Soda asked as he came in while shuffling the deck in his hands. "You got a tuff bruise on your cheek, did you know that?"

"Yeah, I knew that," said Steve. "My dad was drunk again, so he took a swing at me. Fainted right after, so I had a chance to get my stuff." He paused for a second, looking at the deck in Soda's hand. "I'm up for a game of poker!"

Two-Bit entered the house (slamming the door behind him, of course) with two backpacks – one on his back and the other on his chest. He put them both down besides Steve's and then went directly to the couch.

"What's with the two bags, Two-Bit?" Steve asked as he got up from the couch.

"Well, one's filled with clothes and junk, and the other's filled with magazines, if you know what I mean." He went into laughter after that. I glared at him, which made him stop. "You know I'm just jokin', Superman!" he said to me.

"I'm going to make sure," I said. I wasn't completely convinced. It was Two-Bit for God's sake! So I walked to his two bags. I felt the first one and it felt like clothes to me. Then I went to the second one and opened it. I blew out a sigh of relief, and I knew I was going to be giving an apology soon. It was filled with chips, pretzels, and God only knows what other snacks, but no dirty magazines were seen. "Sorry Two-Bit," I grumbled.

"Aw, no worries, Darry! I knew you wouldn't have believed me if I even gave a Scout's Honor!" he replied back. He walked over to the table Soda had set up and took a seat.

"That's because you're not a scout!" I shouted back to him when I had gone to the kitchen. I took out the large pitcher of cold chocolate milk and set it on the kitchen table while I went for some cups. That's when Dally and Johnny arrived. Dally had one backpack, as well as Johnny. Figures. It was a good thing that we'd all brought together money to buy Johnny's some new winter clothes for his birthday. His birthday was in the autumn, where the air began to get chilly.

"Hey Dal, you up for a game of poker?" called Soda.

"Count me in," he said as he put out his cigarette that had once been dangling in his mouth. I was thankful that he didn't put it out on my carpet, or I would have beaten his blond head in.

"I'm game," said Johnny. "Hey Pony, you wanna join us?"

Pony looked up from his book and shook his head, returning to it in an instant. I doubt he even knew how to play poker. Wait – what am I saying? He lives with Soda for cryin' out loud! But it was a good thing he had refused because I needed him.

"Hey Pon, can you come in here for a sec? I need your help!" I shouted to him. He was with me in a flash. That kind of creeped me out, but I shook it off.

"Carry these glasses over to the table with me, will ya?"

He agreed and took two glasses while I miraculously took three. He set one down in front of Soda and I was expecting him to give one to Steve, seeing as Steve was directly besides Soda, but he didn't. He gave one to Dally, who was as far away from Steve as possible. Steve mumbled something and Pony's expression changed from neutral to anger. What was up?

I handed the drinks to the remaining guys and walked back into the kitchen. Pony didn't seem fazed at all because he just returned to his book. Okay, I guess he just thought Steve wasn't looking, or Dally was extremely parched or something like that. Whatever.

Hours later, after screaming and shouting and wrestling in the living room (in which Two-Bit won over Soda and Steve because they were blocking his view from Mickey), it was getting extremely late (more like one o'clock in the morning). Dally had already fallen asleep in the armchair and Pony was in his room (probably asleep anyway), but everyone else seemed to just wake up.

"Alright everyone, light's out," I said in my commanding voice. For once, they seemed to obey. I think it was because of the fact that they all had to get up early. Steve and Two-Bit fought for the couch, which resulted with Two-Bit on the floor besides Johnny and Steve with an even bigger throb in his newly acquired bruise. Suddenly, I didn't think that going on this trip was such a good idea . . . think of all the cops we'll bring to the cabin!

Reham: I think this is one of my greater stories - I just have a feeling.
Two-Bit: I like the plot - what do you guys think?
Soda: I'm game
Steve: I ain't.
Pony: Same here - there is NO way you'll get us to like each other
Reham: Oh, I have powers . . . mystical, malicious powers.
Darry: Believe what she says. One time, I woke up and I was in a ballerina outfit because she told me to put it on. She has mind-controlling powers, guys.
Dally: Yeah right
Johnny: Reham wants to hear some of your thoughts, so please review.
Reham: BTW, the next chapter is absolutely HILARIOUS! so before you judge this story, read the next chapter and then make your decision.
Two-Bit: Yeah, next chap is when I get to tell stories! I love my stories! Hey, did I ever tell you about the time when I got stranded on an island and I -
Reham: They'll have to read the next chap for that. Peace n Mahalo people!