I did not write the outsiders, i just used S.E. Hinton's characters and ideas for this story.

DARRY CURTIS-

I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and shoved my foot into my boot for work. It was early and Soda had work and the twins had school. I was glad tomorrow was Saturday and I wouldn't have to worry about getting Ponyboy and Ponygirl off to school by eight.

"Soda! Hurry up! You got ten minutes or you're bein' left behind!" I yelled when I still heard the shower running.

I walked back into the living room to see how the twins were coming along. I found Ponyboy shoving books into his backpack but not Ponygirl.

"Where's your sister?"

I asked impatiently, hoping she was out of bed and dressed. They couldn't be late for school again or they would have detention for a week.

"She's outside."He answered over a yawn.

I poked my head out of the screen door just in time to see my baby sister stomp a cigarette out in the grass. I grimaced again at the sight of her smoking

"You ready for school?"

"Yeah."

"Did you get your homework done like I told you last night?"

I quizzed, looking at her skeptically.

"Yeah." She said looking up at me, annoyed like I shouldn't be asking.

"All of it?"

"Yeah. Do you not trust me?" She rolled her eyes.

"If you wanted my trust, then you shouldn't have lied about it for two weeks."

"Alright, be ready to go in five minutes. As soon as your brothers' outta the shower we're leaving."

"Yeah, okay."

I looked her over; she was wearing a blue dress with her long dark brown hair in a ponytail. That was one thing I liked about Ponygirl. She didn't wear make-up or revealing clothing. I'm grateful every day I don't have to deal with that on top of everything else.

A few minutes later, we were all in the car. Soda was blaring the radio and singing along while the twins sat in the back seat. I turned the radio off. Sodapop turned to me.

"What was that for?" he asked with his usual smile. "I ain't that bad at singin'." He quipped.

"I didn't say you were its just too early for me little buddy." I said rubbing his hair before he hopped out and ran towards the DX where Steve was waiting. Steve waved and I nodded my head before pulling out to take the twins to school.

The rest of the drive was pretty quiet. I pulled into the school and they both ran inside.

"Bye guys have a good day." I said and wasn't surprised when they didn't answer me.

I smiled and rushed off to work. I was already twenty minutes late.

PONYGIRL CURTIS-

I jumped out of the truck and ran towards the school right as the warning bell sounded. I ran to English and Ponyboy ran to science he was in the classes for the smart kids because he was put up a grade. Darry always told me I could be put up too, if I tried hard. I do okay, I don't fail but my grades are never as good as Ponyboy's. He was always the smart one. I came in just in time and dropped my stuff on my desk next to Two-Bit and Debbie, his little sister.

"Hey!" Two-Bit poked me in the back with his pencil.

"What?" I whispered.

"You're late. What were you doin', gettin' yer nails done?" he asked with his familiar wide grin and I had to smile back.

He was always poking fun at how I didn't wear makeup and stuff like all the other girls in our neighborhood. I turned around before we got in trouble. Darry would kill me if I got detention again. Me and Two-Bit were detention partners, or at least that's how he put it because we were always there causing trouble together. I liked Two-Bit a lot. He kept me laughing at myself and always knew how to have fun. A few minutes later the teacher assigned an essay due at the end of the week. And I was gonna have to do it or Darry would skin me for sure. I sighed and picked my stuff up to leave for my next class. Debbie followed to science with me.

"Did Soda make you late again?" she asked, even though she knew the answer

"Yeah, he got up ten minutes before we had to leave. He'll be late to his funeral if he's not careful." I said and she cracked a grin.

We had been best friends since kindergarten. I always considered her a sister. I did that a lot when I was really little because I hated having three older brothers. We were always together and we were always at one of our houses. Usually we were at Debbie's house because the entire gang hung out at our place. I didn't mind the gang, they're my best friends but I like quiet every now and then and in our house, that's a rarity. The rest of the day was pretty uneventful.

I waited for Ponyboy outside so we could walk home and wait for Darry and Sodapop to get off work. Normally we ride with Two-Bit and Debbie, but his car had two flat tires and he couldn't afford new ones yet. So, the four of us hiked over to our house after school. It didn't take as long as I thought it would, mostly because Two-Bit was keeping us busy with a steady stream of jokes.

"Hey, Pony, let's go see Soda." I said as we walked by the DX.

I knew my brother would be wanting a Pepsi right about now and he nodded.

"You guys comin'?" I asked as we turned into the parking lot.

"No, I'm gonna get started on my paper." Debbie said as she turned down our street.

"Yeah and I'm gonna be beggin' Debbs ta do mine so I ain't in freshmen English next year." Two-Bit hollered, running off towards his sister.

I looked at my brother and he shook his he followed me into the DX.

Sodapop rushed to meet us at the door.

"Hey, you two. How was school?" he asked with his movie star smile that never seemed to leave his face.

I shrugged and went into the garage where Steve was just closing the hood on a car.

"Hey there Princess." He said with an evil smile, knowing that I hated the nickname he gave me when I was eleven.

I playfully punched him in the arm.

"Not much."

"Hey," he started quickly, "you doin' anything tonight?" I thought for a minute.

"No, unless Darry decides I'm grounded for somethin'." I answered with a smile.

"Me an' Soda were plannin' on goin' over to the Dingo tonight and I was wonderin' if you wanted to go with us."

"Why are you bein' so nice to me?" I asked suspiciously. He smiled at me.

"You know you're right I can't have you thinkin' I'm a nice guy. Never mind." He shrugged. "I'll just take Evie."

I grimaced inwardly. I never really knew why but I always hated Evie. She just got on my nerves the way she was always all over Steve to the point where she was suffocating him. I felt kind of bad for him, having a girlfriend like that. She was always really jealous. Come to think of it, she never really liked me either. She always gave me this dirty look when she was around and I was hanging out with Steve. I couldn't help it if he was one of my best friends; I always thought she needed to get over it.

I sighed, not wanting to talk anymore about Evie.

"Yeah I'll go with ya'll." I said walking back to find Ponyboy and get him home we normally always stopped at the DX after school when Soda was working. Even though Darry always told us to go straight home to avoid the socs. We walked home in almost complete silence. I'm sure he was stuck in his own thoughts and I was just wanting to get home to get my homework done to maybe butter Darry up to let me go with Steve and Soda. I was jerked out of my thoughts when I spotted the mustang following us down the alley we take to go home. I nudged Ponyboy in the ribs with my elbow and nodded back towards the car, almost afraid to speak. He nodded back. I used to think that socs would be decent and not drag girls into this war but my wishful thinking changed when me and Debbie were walking to the DX one day and got jumped. I ended up getting the worst of it because I had tried to fight them off. But, it's real hard to try to fight five boys twice your size and Steve and Sodapop ended up "saving us." Or at least that's what Steve said when we walked home.

I smiled at the memory, but was pulled back into reality when I heard their car doors slam and I saw Ponyboy stiffen next to me. I remembered how Two-Bit and Debbie had told us they were going home and how Steve and Soda were still at work. None of them were going to hear us. I suddenly wished Darry was home now. I made eye contact with Pony, as if to ask what we should do. I could see beads of sweat running down his forehead and I was starting to shake. My imagination was running wild. I pictured Soda and Darry finding us beaten half to death like Johnny or dead in an ally somewhere. I was starting to have trouble breathing and I could feel tears of terror building just under my eyes. They burned and stung until I finally let one fall out of my eye. I felt it crawl down my face and drip off my chin.

I finally decided to do something. The socs were quickly approaching and I took Pony's arm and pulled him behind as I ran as fast as I could. But we weren't fast enough. They caught the back of Ponyboy's shirt and pulled him to the ground, pulling me to the ground with him. They circle us, smiling. I tried to get up but the tall black haired one in the green shirt pushed me down next to my twin. "Well, well, well. Look what we got here fellas, you got yourself a new broad greaser?" the one in the front asked and I could see Pony's face turn red with anger, frustration and embarrasment.

"She's my sister!" He started and continued to cuss them out.

I sat there shivering and listening.

"You got a dirty mouth greaser." The leader began again. "What do ya' think guys? Should we teach this greaser a lesson about who he's talkin' to?"

I watched as they picked him up by the shirt and slugged him in the jaw. The other two grabbed me up and held me back while the others beat my brother. I was fighting to get loose and did. I jumped on the back of the one on top of my brother. He threw me off his back and kicked me in the stomach. It took the wind right out of me. I started coughing and tried to catch my breath as I stumbled backwards, holding my stomach. The others who had held me back before grabbing me and punched me in the jaw and I felt another fist connect with my cheek. I had my eyes squeezed shut and was trying to block out the pain. I was scarder then I had ever been before in the life and I was starting to hyperventilate. They let me go while they went to help beating Ponyboy and I felt myself struggling to keep my eyes open and I was swaying on feet. I tried to yell for Pony but my speech was slurred and it came out wrong. The last thing I remember was falling to the ground and hearing one of them yell something to the others before I slipped into a peaceful oblivion.

When I woke up I was on the living room couch and I felt a cold cloth on my forehead. My head was spinning and I had a killer headache. I was dizzy and nauseous and cold all at the same time. I stirred and slowly opened my eyes, groaning at the light. When my eyes fully opened I seen Darry, Sodapop, Ponyboy, and Steve spread all over the room, watching me closely, as if I were going to disappear any moment. Darry reached me first and asked if I wanted anything. He looked frantic and I felt bad for worrying him. Sodapop and Steve looked a combination of worried and angry. Ponyboy just looked guilty. He had a black eye and a cut lip and I wished I could've helped him fight them off.

"Are you alright?" Darry asked, a little calmer, probably catching on that is worrying would give me anxiety.

"Yeah, just a headache."

He nodded and handed me two aspirins and a glass of water. I took them with a sip of water and handed it back to him. I looked back at Steve and Soda,

"You guys still up to go to the Dingo tonight?" I asked.

"No one is leaving this house tonight, especially you, you need to rest. You can go out tomorrow if you're doing better." Darry said firmly and I knew there was no point in arguing.

"What happened after I passed out?" I asked, wondering how I got home.

"When you passed out the socs ran off and I ran to the DX to get Soda. Steve carried you home." Ponyboy said, he still looked scared.

"Well, then what am I supposed to do if I can't go out?" I asked Darry in a smart tone. "Sleep and take it easy." He said in an impatient tone.

That night I layed in my bed all night. The only reason I stayed was because Darry threatened not to let me out tomorrow either. I read books mostly and I did sleep. Soda came in once or twice to try and entertain me. By the next morning, I had finished an entire book and I was happy when Darry told me I could go out. It was Saturday and Soda and Steve were off work. We got bored just sitting around by noon and decided to go find something to do. We all went to a Tasty Freeze to get Cokes and me and Pony went to the movies while Steve and Soda went to the Dingo. After, Steve and Soda said they would meet us in front of the theatre after the movie. We went to the theatre and paid for our tickets. We sat in the font. The only people there were two teenagers in the back and a man sitting towards the middle. I was a little apprehensive, Pony had talked me into seeing the scary movie matinee. I never really liked scary movies, when I was really little, Darry and Soda took me to the movies with them and I was scarred for life. I had nightmares for about two weeks. Darry would kill us if he knew what we were watching. We were the babies of the family and Darry tended to treat us like it. Especially me, I was always Mom and Dad's little girl, and I guess Darry wanted to keep it that way.

The movie wasn't so bad, but it was scary. It was about this family that moved into a haunted house. I covered my eyes a few times when there was a lot of blood though, and I was glad Two-Bit and Steve weren't there to make fun of me or say I was being a girl. Soda and Steve were sitting on a bench outside the theatre waiting for us. It was about three then and Darry would be home at six.

"You guys wanna get Two-Bit and play a game of football?" I offered.

"Yeah, that sounds good, how bout you Soda?" Steve asked his best friend.

" Sounds good. What about you Pony?" he asked my brother who had been walking silently since we had left the theatre.

He thought for a minute, then nodded. Soda rubbed his hair and managed to get a smile out of him.

We ended up playing football longer than we thought. By the time we got back to the house, Darry was already making dinner. He looked up from the pot he was stirring on the stove. By then we had all settled in our usual spots in the living room and were glued to the t.v.

SODAPOP CURTIS-

The four of us ate dinner after the gang had left. We had a lot of conversation. Darry said he was hoping to get a promotion at his job and we told him about our football game and how me and Ponygirl whooped Steve, Two-Bit and Ponyboy. We were all laughing and for the first time since Johnny and Dally died, we all looked happy. As if it were finally in the past and we could move on. We would always miss them but I didn't want to be sad forever.

Darry turned to the twins.

"Did you guys get your homework done for Monday?" he asked and, as usual, Ponyboy answered quickly with a yes and Ponygirl was lectured about how if she didn't put it off until the last minute, it would be a lot easier. Though I don't think she was really listening. She never really listened to what Darry had to say. We all went to bed that night pretty early. I had work the next day and I think the twins were just bored. I layed down next to Ponyboy and I seen he was already asleep. I smiled to myself and crawled under the blankets.

DARRY CURTIS-

I sat in the armchair in the living room under the lamp reading the paper. Everyone was asleep and I could finally get some peace and quiet. I was halfway through an article about a robbery at the grocery store downtown when the phone rang. I got up and ran to answer it.

"Hello?" I said into the phone and heard a strong, deep voice speak back.

"Hello? I'm looking for Darrel Curtis Jr." he said and I felt my heart sink, the only people who called for Darrel Curtis Jr. were the people from the state.

"Speaking." I said in a tight voice.

"Hi," he said, sounded like he didn't know where to begin. "You don't know me but I sort of knew your mom and I was wondering if you'd be willing to meet me somewhere." He had a thick accent.

"Sure okay, where do you wanna meet me and when?" I asked, wondering how this man knew my mom.

"Meet me at Judy's bar out on highway 56 tomorrow night at seven." He instructed and I accepted.

"Great." I heard him say on the other end and he hung up before I could even get his name. I shrugged and hung up the phone and went back to my paper.

That night, I kept tossing and turning about who this man was and how he knew our mother, I debated telling Soda and the twins and decided against it, not knowing anything about this man myself, I didn't want to take three kids along. Even though all three would argue they weren't little kids anymore. I finally fell asleep still thinking about the mysterious man who knew mom and what he was like. I was curious if he was a friend, an old boyfriend, or maybe a cousin that couldn't make the funeral. I didn't realize it until the next night that I was wrong and he knew mom the last way I thought possible.