Chapter Text
The sun slowly rose over the rooftops of the old worn-down houses, the yellow shimmering light reflecting off the windows, slowly reviving the neighborhood from its slumber.
The hooting of a train sounded somewhere in the distance, closing in, telling those who had not yet woken, that it was time to get up, although it was only around six in the morning. Most workers around these parts had to be in by seven. Those who worked at the factory, for instance, like the mean drunk that lived close to the tracks, whose old rundown truck stood parked on the lawn, the tire tracks behind it uneven and swirling through the messy front yard. A testimony of a clearly intoxicated driver having come home late from a bender. No one batted an eye. It was nothing out of the ordinary. He was one of many around here.
This was east side Tulsa. A neighborhood where you didn’t walk alone if you knew what was good for you. Whether you were greaser, middle class, or one of the rich kids from the west side stupid enough to enter greaser turf. No one was safe around here. There was always someone who would want to hurt you, no matter who you were or what status you had.
That was the score the group of seven friends had come to learn in their short lives. But one boy from their small group had to be extra careful with how he conducted himself. His parents had drilled it into him from a young age how careful he had to be.
Yes – Sodapop Curtis was different from his brothers and friends, but they all still loved him and had his back no matter what.
“You know the rules,” Darry said as he dropped his yawning brother off at the DX gas station at seven O’clock.
“Yes, Darry,” Sodapop sighed and put on his cap, adjusting his golden locks behind his ears. “No fooling around with the customers, no matter how smoking hot they are.”
“Soda, I’m serious!” Darry said firmly, but Sodapop just opened the door and jumped out of the car.
“Darry, I know, okay? Mom and Dad told me every week from the time I hit puberty and you’ve told me every day since they died. I know I can’t flaunt what I am. And I don’t, so please cool it, okay?”
The older brother sighed and nodded. “I’m just looking out for you. You’re my responsibility now.”
“Well, you don’t gotta worry, okay? I might be a horny teenager but I can control myself. Otherwise, I woulda jumped on Steve long ago. You know, working with him every day, mostly alone.”
Darry’s mouth turned into a thin line and he put the truck in gear. “Bye, Soda. Have a nice day,” he muttered and set the truck in motion, watching his grinning brother wave at him in the rear-view mirror.
o0o0o
“Hey, man, could you hand me the wrench?” Steve’s voice sounded from under the red Chrysler.
“Sure thing,” said Sodapop and placed the tool in his friend’s outstretched hand.
“Not that one. One size up.”
“You shoulda said!” replied Soda and found the right size.
"Man, you’d think it was Dally who’d been driving this baby. If that bastard keeps driving like he does, she's gonna end in the scrapyard next time."
This particular car came in just about every other week and the greaser who drove it, clearly had no respect for its beauty, and frankly, it pissed Steve off a bit.
"Cars are there to be used," replied Sodapop.
"Right - I forgot who I'm talking to," mumbled Steve.
"Look at it this way: that guy gives us more work. Puts food on the table."
"It's about respect. If you wanna drive rough, you do it in old busted car. Not one like this fine girl. If I could afford something like this, I’d look after it proper. And I sure as hell wouldn't let you drive it."
"Aw, now you're just hurting my feelings," said Sodapop.
After working on the Chrysler for another thirty minutes, Steve rolled out from under it and grabbed a cloth to dry off his hands before patting the hood as if trying to console a friend.
"I'll probably see you back here in a week or so, old girl.” He turned to Sodapop, who was changing a bulb in the tail light of an old Buick. “Since you don’t drink, you can drive tonight when we're taking the girls out to that dance," said Steve, sitting down on a chair for a short rest before moving on to the next car waiting for his magic hands.
"Sure," grinned Sodapop. "Two of my favorite things: driving and dancing!" He went over to the fridge behind the register and fetched a coke. He uncapped it and handed it to Steve. "You look thirsty. It's hot working on a day like today."
Steve took it gratefully and downed nearly the whole thing in one go. He let out a loud burp. "Thanks, man."
A car horn blared from outside.
"Costumers," grinned Soda and quickly ran a comb through his hair. Then he hurried outside, Steve following.
It was a brand-new Corvette carrying three girls and two guys. The girls giggled, like most girls did around Soda, so it was nothing the blond was not used to; but since these Soc-girls were with their boyfriends, he decided to tone down his usual flirting. Boyfriends always got so jealous when their girls were ogling him, and there was no reason to provoke them too much.
"What can I do for y'all today?" he smiled.
To his surprise, the guy who was driving looked at him, not with the usual disdain of Soc guys, but the way the girls did, with hungry eyes.
"Um... fill ‘er up, will ya?" he said and leaned back in his seat, his hands firmly planted on the steering wheel.
Sodapop had already picked up the nozzle and flipped open the lid to the tank. As he stood there waiting for the tank to fill, he caught the driver's eye again. Yes. Soda hadn't misjudged that look. When he handed Soda money for the gas, Soda gave him a subtle wink. The guy looked a little startled and mumbled, "t-thanks," and "keep the change." Then he drove off on screeching tires.
Sodapop turned around and grinned at Steve.
The other greaser frowned. "I know that look. Soda, you stay clear of scum like that, you hear me?"
Sodapop raised an eyebrow, imitating Two-Bit. "Stay clear? I can't exactly stay clear of the costumers, can I?"
"Don't play dumb with me. I saw his look and your wink."
"So what? None of the others noticed," said Soda, walking back inside.
Steve sighed. He wasn't sure this was over. By now, he knew how these things went.
And sure enough - a few hours later, the Corvette came back, and this time with no passengers. Steve stood by the entrance to the garage, watching, as Sodapop went over to the gas stand and talked to the guy for a bit, leaning on the passenger door.
A few minutes later the car drove off, and Sodapop came back, a wide grin on his face.
"Do I even dare ask?" Steve asked. He knew it was not his job to tell Soda what he could and couldn't do (that was Darry's), but what kind of friend was he if he didn't at least try to talk him out of it? "You know it’ll end bad someday, right?"
“Says who?” replied Sodapop lightly. “I’m careful. Not doing anything in front of anybody. And that guy ain’t telling no one, I guarantee it. He was terrified he’d misread my signals.”
“He’s a fucking Soc, Soda!”
“So what? I ain’t gonna be his friend.”
o0o0o
Sodapop leaned over to push open the passenger door to let Sandy in, while Evie jumped into the back seat and cuddled up to Steve. Sandy got in and smiled at the handsome teen next to her. No, handsome didn’t quite cover it. Gorgeous was what he was. It wasn’t that she had forgotten, but it still amazed her every time she saw him. It was such a pity, in a way, that he was the way he was.
“Where’s the dance at?” she asked and adjusted her dress.
Sodapop flashed her a smile. “Over at the Dakota. It’s gonna be a blast! You’re a great dancer, Sandy, so we’re gonna have fun.”
He stepped hard on the speeder and then let the clutch go, so the car took off with screeching tires. Sandy grabbed onto the seat and Evie let out a little scream from behind.
“Glory, Sodapop!” said Steve. “You’re scaring my girl!”
“No, I ain’t. She’s plenty brave. You gotta be brave to go out with you.”
If they hadn’t been going 60 miles an hour down the street with people, cars and even buildings as obstacles, Steve would have rapped Sodapop on the back of his head.
“Smartass,” he said but couldn’t help but laugh a little. “Get my car there in one piece, will ya?”
“The car? What about us?” Evie said and held onto Steve, her voice indicating that she actually was a little scared.
o0o0o
There were lots of kids at the dance already; many of them standing outside smoking or drinking sodas - or beers they had brought, because alcohol wasn’t served at the dance, since so many minors attended. Steve emptied the beer he had been drinking in the car and tossed the empty bottle in a trash can they passed.
As usual, people turned to stare at Sodapop. He stopped and gave Sandy a quick kiss on the lips for all to see. Sandy held his hand as they made their way inside, playing the part of the doting girlfriend, lucky to be with one of the most attractive guys in town. Both greasers and Socs would gawk as they walked past, and it made her feel special, even though it was all a sham.
As always, they had a blast. They played some nice rock’n’roll tunes and Sandy enjoyed herself. The arrangement between her and Sodapop was a mutual one. Sandy’s parents were strict and old-fashioned and had made her swear to not have sex before marriage. Sandy was okay with that. She shared the same values and wanted to make her parents proud. They allowed her to go on dates, as long as she promised not to do anything sexual. She liked going on dates along with her girlfriends, not always being the third wheel, and like any teenage girl she wanted to get that experience of dating. Have a boy make her feel special. Soda did that, even though it was mostly an act. The good thing about dating a gay guy was that there was no pressure. She had gotten so tired of having to turn guys down all the time and often being dumped when they realized they weren’t going to get any further than a bit of kissing.
When a slow song came on, Sodapop held Sandy close, although not feeling her up, like Steve did with Evie. Sandy couldn’t help feeling proud with all the girls sending her envious looks, thinking she was the luckiest girl in the world.
o0o0o
It was past midnight when Sodapop arrived home. The lights were still on at the Curtis house, and Soda could guess that Darry was waiting up. He always did that whenever he or Ponyboy were out.
“Hey, Big Man,” grinned Sodapop when he came in and tossed his jacket in the direction of the couch - and missed - as usual. “Still up? Ain’t ya going to work tomorrow?”
A load of bricks fell off Darry’s shoulders when his little brother walked through the door. “Well, if you were home earlier, little buddy, I could’ve gone to bed earlier,” he sighed and got up from the armchair.
“You didn’t need to worry. I was out with Sandy and, trust me, nobody thought I wasn’t serious about her. They probably thought we were going home and getting it on.”
Darry rubbed his temples. “Could you at least try and not stay out so late next time? I’m getting gray hairs worrying. It ain’t safe for a… guy like you to be out at night.”
Sodapop sighed and dropped down on the couch. “Darry… you gotta relax. You can’t be scared every time I stick my nose out the door. “I’m being careful. What else can I do? And it ain’t like I run around hooking up with guys right and left. I don’t do it that often, really.”
Darry shook his head and walked into the bathroom to get ready for bed. He wasn’t comfortable talking about Soda and his situation. It had been their mother who took the reins on keeping Sodapop clearheaded with these kinds of things, but now there was only the three of them and Darry had to try and get into his brother’s head that it was in fact, dangerous.
Sodapop got ready for bed and went into Pony’s room quietly without turning on the lights and slipped under the covers. The boy wasn’t sleeping, though, Soda could tell.
“Why are you awake, Pony?”
“I was worried,” Ponyboy mumbled. “I know you tell me not to, but I can’t help it,” he added and turned to look at his older brother.
Sodapop sighed. “I was out with Sandy. Nobody suspects a thing. I’m lucky to have her, right? Not a lot of girls would be fine with doing what she does. But she enjoys my company, anyway, for some reason.”
“Yeah… you’re real lucky that you have that deal.” Ponyboy was quiet for a moment. “Soda? Ain’t you scared she’ll catch feelings for you? And when you turn her down, then what’ll happen?”
“Well… even if she did catch feelings for me, she knows I could never feel the same way. And that we could never get married.”
Ponyboy chewed on the corner of his lip as he thought about it. “Yeah. I guess.”
“You know, the first time I picked her up for a date, her dad pulled me aside and gave me a good talking to. Made sure I understood that he only allowed this if we kept it decent. That his daughter had to remain pure, and that if I didn’t keep it in my pants, he would castrate me.” Soda grinned to lighten the mood.
Ponyboy’s eyes widened. “Like they do with horses?”
“Yeah, like they do with horses. I had a hard time not laughing, and I tried to look scared while I swore I wouldn’t lay a finger on her.”
Ponyboy couldn’t help but chuckle. “Man, her dad sounds like a real good old Christian man with values,” he said, trying to do a Two-Bit impression.
"Sure is! He still don't trust me, but he does trust his daughter." Sodapop rolled onto his back. "What are you doing tomorrow? It's Saturday. Planned anything fun?"
“Mm,” hummed Ponyboy, lying on his side while watching his brother in the dim light from the lamppost that seeped through the small cracks in the blinds. “Me and Johnny talked about maybe playing some football if any of y’all wanted to join. But so far I’ve only asked you,” he added with a soft laugh.
"Sure thing, if you can wait till evening. Me and Steve are off at five. Maybe you and Johnny can try and get a hold of the others and see if they wanna join as well? Would be fun with the whole gang."
o0o0o
Sodapop woke sometime during the night to make a trip to the bathroom. On his way through the living room he noticed someone emerging from the bathroom and into the hallway. Soda stopped and flicked on the light to see who it was. No doubt one from the gang had come to spend the night on the couch.
"Oh, Johnny, it's you," he smiled.
The small greaser jumped about half his height when the light was suddenly flicked on and a voice broke the silence of the house. He took a deep shaking breath. “Gosh, Soda… you usually ain’t that quiet. You scared me.”
“I’m sorry,” said Sodapop. “Trouble at home?”
“Yeah… old man was drunk. And it started to rain.”
"You shoulda just come straight here instead of the lot first." Sodapop took Johnny’s jacket and hung it on a chair to dry. When he turned back around he found Johnny staring at him with huge eyes. "You're all wet. Let me go find you a dry shirt." He fetched one of Ponyboy’s t-shirts and handed it to Johnny. "Hey, get out of the wet one."
When Johnny just stood there, not moving, Soda thought that maybe he was too shy to change clothes in front of him. Usually none of the guys had any modesty around each other, but Soda suspected that Johnny had gotten some new bruises he didn't want him to see. So instead of waiting, he went to the bathroom to do what he actually had come out for.
Johnny stood there for a while, even after Soda had left, and he took a few deep breaths as he tried to collect himself.
God… why does he have to be shirtless? Get a grip on yourself, Johnny! It ain’t like it’s the first time you’ve seen him like that.
When Sodapop came back, Johnny had crawled under the blankets. Soda sat down on the edge of the couch. He gently pushed back the bangs to see Johnny's face properly, and sure enough – there was a fresh bruise on the forehead. "I'm sorry it has to be this way, Johnnycake.”
The gentle hand on his face sent a shiver through Johnny and got his heart racing. “It… it’s fine. I’ll survive,” he said, trying to act normally, simultaneously wishing that Soda would stop touching him and that he would never remove his hand.
Sodapop let his hand drop and sighed. "Just remember you're always welcome here. You're no trouble at all." He struck up a smile and continued, "Pony said you might be playing football tomorrow. I'll come after work, and we'll try to gather the rest of the gang. It'll be fun."
“Football? Oh, yeah. It’ll be fun,” Johnny mumbled and pulled the blanket up to his chin.
Sodapop smiled and ruffled Johnny’s hair before getting up. “Well, I gotta get some more sleep. See you tomorrow.”
TEASER for next week's chapter:
He was taken aback by the golden blur coming flying in from the side to tackle him to the ground. Getting the wind knocked out of him, the ball flew from his hands, rolling away, and was picked up by Steve, who headed in the other direction.
The golden blur was still pinning him to the ground, grinning down at him. “What you gonna do now, Johnnycake?”
Johnny looked up at the blonde, his eyes wide and shocked, his body going stiff as a board.
He… he’s on top of me!
Johnny gulped and felt how his cheeks started to burn and the heat spreading throughout the rest of his form. And to Johnny’s absolute horror, he felt himself growing hard. Oh, no! Soda would be able to feel it! So Johnny turned and tried to push him off. “S-Soda, I can’t breathe,” he gasped.
Sodapop quickly got off and eyed him worriedly. “Sorry, Johnny…”