Chapter 2
"You must spend your time here until you learn your lesson," my teacher tells me.
"What do you mean? I just want to go home!" I complain.
"No. You have to stay here. I'll come back soon to tell you of your progress."
"What do I have to do to come home?" I ask.
"You are in the 1960's, the time set for the book I gave you. You already talk and know about most of the things they do. Never mention me or the future. It'll be easy. But the struggle to figure out your lesson will not be. Like before, I'll visit soon. But for now, you need to wake up and meet the people you'll be with."
"Wait! Don't leave me!"
She begins to fade as I call out for her. I don't want her to leave. I'm too scared!
The vision goes to black, leaving me alone.
•••
"Are you alright?" a voice asks beside me. I open my eyes and see a familiar face. Then I remember I saw him last night. He was one who came along later.
I look around the room as the sunlight streams through the blinds on the windows. I furrow my eyebrows and squint my eyes as I try to recall where I am. I glance at him as he stares at me, waiting for an answer.
"Yeah. I'm fine..." I answer. I feel beads of sweat on the nape of my neck. He takes a damp cloth and gently wipes the dried blood from my jaw.
"I guess they got you good, didn't they? They ain't gonna hurt you around us anymore."
"But where am I?" I ask.
"You're at my house," he states. "Me and my brothers have been taking care of you."
"Wh- Who are you?"
"My name's Ponyboy. What's yours?"
"JT..." I answer, still puzzled. So this isn't a dream. I'm here with a fictional character from a book. I guess he's not so fictional anymore. But if he's real, they're all real...
"Is there anything I can do?" he asks politely. I shake my head and remove the sheets from my body. I sit on the edge of the bed, gripping on to nothing in particular as I try to steady myself.
"You should rest," he suggests. I shake my head again. He grabs my arms to help me stand up straight. My stomach feels empty, making me sick. My head burns like I have a fever. No doubt I probably do.
"I've got to... go home..." I tell him. I know he doesn't understand what I mean. I probably looked like an idiot last night. I was all by myself getting jumped by a bunch of no good losers. Why would I look like I wanted to go home then?
"We'll talk to my brother about it," he says. I struggle to make my way out of the room. I finally feel less dizzy as I walk more independently. As soon as we pass the corner, all eyes fall on me. There are several guys there just hanging out around the couch and chair. They all stare at me like I'm some wild animal. I'm sure I look bewildered.
"Is she alright?" one asks. Ponyboy simply shrugs. They all look to me as if expecting an answer.
"I'm fine..." I state shyly.
"She ain't looking too hot," a second states.
"The Socs jumped her. You wouldn't look too good yourself," the first replies. He shrugs.
"Pony," an older one says as he walks in- he doesn't even look surprised that I'm standing there- "are you alright here by yourself?"
"Yeah. I'll be okay."
"Okay. We're gonna be late if you don't hurry," he tells one. Him and another jump up and run out the door, playfully chasing and fighting. The third waves and leaves.
"Well don't just sit there," Ponyboy says.
"What?" another asks. It seems to be never ending! I just need to know their names and I'll be good. I can't keep up with seven of them.
Ponyboy rolls his eyes and mumbles something. The timid looking one looks at me curiously.
"What's your name?" he asks.
"JT."
"Johnny," he responds. This is him. The character I favored the most because of his final act of bravery. Thank goodness he's still here.
"And the lazy bum over there is Two-Bit," Ponyboy says, nodding at the second.
"Guilty as charged!" he says, holding his hands in the air. I smile to myself. They're just like what I imagined.
Eventually I find myself eating everything I'm offered. I'm starving. I feel like I haven't eaten in days. They all look at me incredulously. I guess being boys, they have a large appetite. And I guess they've never seen a girl top that.
"So how did you end up by yourself? Rule number one- never walk alone," Two-Bit says.
"I don't know. I just ended up that way," I answer honestly. I don't see what's so interesting about my problems. I guess they've never had this happen before. You just have to adjust accordingly.
"What happened last night? I don't remember much," I say.
"We saw that you were in trouble. Those Socs are never up to nothin' good," Ponyboy says.
"And it looks like you got your first meeting with 'em," Two-Bit says. He tilts my chin up. The cut stings. But it is a reminder to never walk alone again.
"What do y'all want to do? Can't just sit around here all day," Johnny asks.
"Let's give JT here a view of the East side of town," Two-Bit suggests.
"Alright. Still got your blade?" Ponyboy asks. He nods proudly. "Good. But don't get busted by the cops."
"Since when do I, Pony?"
We begin walking down he street. It looks safer in the daytime rather than night. But I still feel in a daze.
They begin to question where I'm from. I explain how I'm from out of town since I got kicked out by my parents. I tell them I was lost since I was walking aimlessly.
"What about clothes and stuff? Don't you bring that with you?" Johnny asks.
"What's the point in bringing what you don't have much of?" I ask in return. He shrugs. But he knows.
"So you're saying you ain't got nothing?" Two-Bit asks. I shake my head. "Shoot, I have an older sister who moved out a while back. You can have hers," he offers.
"I can't do that," I tell him.
"Well, why not?"
"I just can't..."
"Too bad. You're taking 'em anyways."
We end up at a house. I assume it's Two-Bit's by the way he barges in. He's probably going to make me take them regardless. I just couldn't do that. It'd feel weird.
"My folks aren't home," he says, leading all of us through the house. He puts me in a room that looks untouched. "Pick out what you want. Don't want blood on your shirt, do you?" he asks, pulling the collar of my t-shirt. I shrug. He leaves and I change. I find a ribbon and tie my hair up. I come back out.
"You clean up nicely," he says. I laugh.
"Oh sure," I reply.
We begin walking again. We pass the place I first woke up. They refer to it as the lot. And that's just what it is, abandoned land.
I kick at rocks on the sidewalk. It's all cracked anyway. I try to avoid any looks or even questions. I know they're curious about me, but it feels weird to open up to... strangers. They don't know me like I know their personalities. They're characters for crying out loud! And now they're not. I'm actually having a conversation with them and walking with them. It's hard to believe that just last night I was reading the book and then getting jumped by Socs.
"What about y'all?" I ask. "Who were the others?"
"There's Darry and Soda. They're my older brothers. Steve is Soda's best buddy. They work at the gas station together. And Dally wasn't there," Ponyboy explains. "He's in and out of jail all the time. No one really knows where he's at."
"And Soda's his real name?" I ask.
"Sodapop Curtis. Mine's real too. My dad was an original guy."
"Is your real name JT?" Johnny asks.
"No. It's short for something," I answer.
"Well, tell us then," Two-Bit insists.
"You're never gonna find out."
"Is that a bet?" he asks.
"Sure enough." We shake hands to make it official. I laugh.
"I'll catch up with you later," Two-Bit says. He waves and runs off the opposite direction.
Johnny, Ponyboy, and I walk in silence until I begin talking again. I've still got so many questions to ask. I don't even know if I have enough time.
"Is it kinda weird having a girl around? I can tell you aren't used to it," I say aloud.
"It's alright," Ponyboy says.
"It's weird, alright," Johnny adds.
"What's so weird about it?" I ask.
"We don't hang around girls. You dig?" I nod. Ponyboy continues. "We could get used to it. I mean, it wouldn't be hard."
"Yeah. You fit in a little better than lots of others," Johnny says.
"And besides, you needed some help. Might as well take you in."
"You think they'll come looking for me?" I ask, referring to the Socs.
"They go for any kind of greaser," Ponyboy answers. "Went for Johnny once..." I feel the tension of the conversation. Little do they know that I knew about all of that. It's a terrible thing if you ask me.
"There ain't much more to see if you really wanted to look around," he says after a while.
"We could go to the movies or somethin'," Johnny says.
"Maybe some other time. Darry says not to go without him or Soda to come get me. They think I'm still a little kid," Ponyboy answers, kicking at nothing.
"We could... go to the drugstore and hang out," he says.
"Alright."
We make our way to the tiny little corner shop filled with all of your basic needs. We buy three Cokes and sit at a small table in the farthest corner of the place. I sip on the sweet liquid. I was never allowed to have this kind of freedom or drink. I could get used to this.
"So JT, how old are you?" Johnny asks. His dark brown eyes stare at me with interest. But those eyes seem to have a fear in them. I wouldn't blame him in this neighborhood. But most of the others have a tough look to them. Maybe it's the personality.
"Fifteen. And you?"
"Seventeen. Pony's same as you," he answers. I look over his shoulder to see a couple Socs walking towards us.
"Don't look now," I mumble. "Trouble's walking this way."
"Hey," one says with fake enthusiasm. "How are you greasers today?" he asks. He sits beside me. The second pulls another chair to the other side of me and sits. I'm trapped between them yet again in less than a day.
"C'mon. We just want to talk like anyone else would," he prompts.
"You better leave us alone," Ponyboy says cooly.
"Or what?" the soc asks in a menacing tone.
"Just go." He stretches out and puts his arm around me. I shrug him off.
"Don't touch me," I mumble. He does it again to irritate me. After I push him off, he tries to do it a third time.
"Leave her alone," Ponyboy says.
"You know what? I think you could use something to cool you down." He lifts the cup and dumps all of the Coke on him. He sits there motionless and takes it without fighting back.
The soc looks at me and winks. He tries to come at me again. I take my chance and slap his face for self defense. He scoffs.
"Fine. I know when I'm not wanted. Later, grease." They walk out the door, leaving us with a mess to clean up. After we attempt to mop up the floors, we leave too. We try to get out of there quick since we didn't want to get jumped or have any encounter with them at all. It's already kind of late in the afternoon. Ponyboy explains that it's about time for Soda and Darry to come home. So we head that way too. I say my goodbyes to Johnny and he wanders off to keep himself busy.
Sitting in the middle of the floor as we walk in is a stack of folded clothes. Two-Bit left a note too: Now you can play dress-up, JT.
As Ponyboy cleans his face and arms of the sticky liquid dumped on him earlier, I wander around. I walk around to get more familiar with my surroundings.
He walks back in the room and sits on the couch. I sit beside him. We begin to talk about other things besides socs and being jumped.
"When Soda comes home, he'll call for the mail, and then go drink chocolate milk because he does this every day of his life," he says. He throws this little rubber ball against the wall, catching it, and repeating the process. I guess it's something to cope with boredom.
"What's he like?" I ask.
"He can get drunk on just plain living."
"That ought to say something. What about Darry?"
"He's strict. But that's only because he cares. After mom and dad died, he took their places."
"I'm sorry," I say.
"It's alright. We've got each other still, I guess."
As soon as he says this, both of them come through the door. Soda asks for the mail then goes to read it as he drinks chocolate milk. I look at Ponyboy with an impressed look.
"I told you so," he remarks.
We sit down to dinner. I feel so out of place. I'm the only girl in a house full of boys. But to he honest, I fit in well. I eat just as much as they do, and I'm a little like each one in a strange way.
"So what do you think we should do, Darry? She can't just be abandoned," Soda says.
"I know, I know. I'm not sure what to do," he replies.
"She can stay here. What could go wrong?" Pony asks.
"Yeah, Darry. You can't just let her sleep out in the lot," Soda adds.
"Alright. She can stay here."
"A- Are you sure?" I ask. He nods.
"We have an extra room anyway," he says.
"Okay. Thanks," I answer. It'll feel weird, but then again it won't.
After dinner, we choose who does dishes. They all told me not to do it since I was a guest in their house. But I told them to shut up and get over because I was going to pull my weight around just as much as they do. So Soda and I found ourselves working as a team to wash and dry everything. He begins questioning me like everyone else has.
"How did you get knocked out last night?" he asks.
"The soc hit my head against the tree a couple good times. And who carried me out of there? Or was I dreaming?" He chuckles.
"I did. Darry had a sore arm from carrying bundles of roofing all day and then fighting. Or was that a dream?"
"Don't you try to mix me up, Soda. I'm confused enough." We smile at the comments made.
"How come you ran away?" he asks. I was taken back by the question, considering I hadn't run away. But I guess I technically did...
"How did you know?"
"I just do. No one gets lost by accident," he says. I think about what he means. I guess I didn't do it on accident. There are no accidents, right?
"And to go ahead and tell you, sometimes we fight around here. It's not too bad. But it can get loud," he says.
"I know how that feels," I mumble. He nods in agreement and understanding. He's the middle-man- stuck in the whole situation without really any say. They play tug-of-war with him. I can't even imagine being asked to choose sides like that.
As everyone settles down, I lie down in the bed they let me use for now. The sheets feel soft as I grow more tired. The darkness allows sleep to come faster. As my eyelids grow heavy, I think about my life here so far. I think I'm getting it. But I know it'll get worse, maybe better, and that it's just beginning.
I begin to feel grateful for people kind enough to defend me and stand up for me. I'm thankful they took me in. I roll over on my side and smile. Maybe this won't be so bad after all.