Bruised and Broken

No Good Socs

~JULIE POV~

It had been eight months since Johnny and I met the gang. We all got along great. It had also been eight months since Mr and Mrs Curtis passed in an auto wreck. I was walking with the gang when  heard someone screaming.

"DARRY! SODA! HELP!" 

"That's Ponyboy." I said to Johnny.

We took off running and saw three Socs. One had a blade pulled out and cut Ponyboy good. The gang chased them away as Johnny and stood back.

"Are you okay, Ponyboy?" Darry asked shaking Pony.

"I'm okay. Quit shaking me, Darry. I'm okay." Ponyboy answered.

"I'm sorry." Darry said, letting go of him.

"You alright Ponyboy?" I asked.

He looked over and nodded the turned back facing the ground.

~PONYBOY POV~

I wiped my face as hot tears made there way down my cheeks. You don't just cry in front of Darry. Not unless your hurt like Johnny and Julie when we found then in the vacant lot. Compared to the Cade siblings I wasn't hurt at all.

Our gang had chased the Socs to their car and heaved rocks at them. They came running towards us now--four lean, hard guys. I had grown up with them, and they accepted my even though I was younger, because I was Darry and Soda's kid brother and I kept my mouth shut good.

Steve Randle was seventeen, tall and lean, with thick greasy hair he kept combed in complicated swirls. He was cocky, smart and Soda's best buddy since grade school.  I didn't like Steve much and he didn't like me. He though I was a tag along and a kid.

Two-Bit Mathews was the oldest of the gang and the wisecracker of the bunch. He was about six feet, stocky in build and very proud of his long rusty colored side burns. He had grey eyes and a wide grin. You couldn't shut the guy up; he always had to have his two-bit in. Hence his name. Even teachers forgot his real name was Keith.

If I had to pick real character for the gang it would be Dallas Winston--Dally. I used to like to draw his picture when he was in a dangerous mood, for then I could get his personality down. He had an elfish face, with high cheekbones and a pointed chin, small, sharp animal teeth, and ears like a lynx. His hair was dark brown almost black.

Johnny and Julie Cade were last and least. If you can imagine a little dark puppy that has been kicked too many times and lost in a crowd of strangers, you'll have Johnny. And if you can imagine another dark puppy that was even more kicked around then the first, shaking and lost, you'll have Julie. They were the youngest. Johnny was 16 and Julie 14, 7 days younger then me. They were smaller then the rest. They had big black eyes in dark tanned faces; there hair was jet-black and Johnny's was heavily greased. The had long bangs falling over there forehead. They were the gangs pets.

"What were you doin', walking' by your lonesome?" Steve asked.

"I was coming home from the movies, I didn't think....." I trailed off.

"You don't ever think." Darry snapped.

He went on about how I never used my head when Soda cut him off.

"Leave my kid brother alone."

"When I want my kid brother to tell me what to do with my other kid brother I'll ask--kid brother." Darry snapped.

I shook my head as we began walking back to the house. Julie trailed behind Dally as Johnny walked along beside her.