The Outsiders: Before My Time Part III

Pre-Slap

September 1965

Goldie's POV

The days went on, and as each day passed I got more and more anxious about the possibility that we may never get back home. The fact that we've been here for more than a day and we haven't blown our cover is absolutely mind blowing to me. I guess we are just a couple of afternoonied kids.

We have lasted all summer here. School even started back up, which meant Darry forced us all to enroll for all classes, which was not something I thought was going to happen. I thought Darry was selling me a dog, but I ain't boating.

Honestly, school isn't that bad. I even like the lunches the school provides so I don't have to worry about what I'm going to eat for lunch anymore. I usually get pizza, a simple green salad, chocolate pudding, and fruit juice. I could eat this all day.

Dad is still dating Sandy, even after their fights. I can't help but feel like their relationship is our fault. He must have been dating Mom by now, right? It's a really frustrating situation. Whenever Dad talks about Sandy, I try to pivot the conversation so we talk about Mom instead. Every single time.

It got really difficult to talk about Mom though. A few months ago Dad hooked her up with a job at the DX too so she's there all the time now. It is not that bad, because I feel like it's doing my job for me. They get along together really well, especially when they're in the garage together.

I got my siblings together and decided to treat them to an ice cream. I wanted to thank them for their hard work on maintaining our secret, and doing a great job with avoiding discussing any future events that must happen. It is really hard to keep things on track when you do not know what is supposed to happen.

At the ice cream shop, we all picked the flavors that we wanted. I got chocolate, Red picked coconut pineapple, and Candy chose cherry. I handed the cashier a $4 bill in exchange for the cones. He glanced at the bill, started to put it away but decided to take a second look.

"Very funny," he said sarcastically and tried to hand it back. "Where's the real bill?"

I cocked my head to the side and stared at him in confusion. "That bill is real."

"Oh yeah?" He scoffed and waved the bill in my face. "There's no such thing as a $4 bill, the year 2035 should not be on any bills, and Martin Luther King Jr. ain't a president."

"Uh-oh," Candy mumbled under her breath.

"Fabricating currency is an offense I'll have to report," he said as he reached for the phone to call the police.

I turned to my siblings and stuttered for a moment. They looked back at me with bewildered eyes, jumpy with anticipation. All I could say was, "run."

All three of us bolted out the shop with the ice cream man shouting at us. In between gasps, I told my siblings to head straight for home. We could hear sirens approaching from the distance, more than likely looking for us. I looked back and could see them a few hundred yards behind us.

"Go, go, go!" I motivated to get them to run faster. I refused to let us all get arrested for accidentally stealing ice cream.

We all turned the sharp corner to the street where the Curtis house is and we nearly bust down the front door to get inside. All three of us scrambled in, and Red nearly dropped the ice cream cone he just about went to jail for.

"Woah, woah, woah!" Darry said, standing up from his recliner when he heard the ruckus. "What's going on? Where's the fire?"

I slammed the door closed and we all peered out the window to see the cop approaching the road. He didn't see us get into the house, so he slowly drove down the street trying to spot us running through lawns or between houses.