The Outsiders - Three Brothers

53

That Friday, Johnny and Ponyboy were eating lunch outside. Ponyboy was helping Johnny with his English assignment and Working on his extra work for math. He was doing a lot better already, but his teacher wanted him doing the extra practice equations in the book now for every lesson to help him further understand the concepts.

"Look at these losers," it was Two-Bit's voice.

"Aren't you supposed to be at the high school?" Ponyboy asked seeing his friend, "what happen? They throw you back here?"

Two-Bit sat on top of the table the younger boys were eating at and stole Pony's fruit cup. "Ol' Dal and I are playing hookey. Wanna join? We were just about to go to the arcade."

Johnny looked over to Ponyboy and gave him a look and shrug that said 'it's just a few hours.'

"I don't know -"

"Come on kid, don't be lame. There's only what, three hours left of school? No one is gonna miss you." Very untrue, but Ponyboy had a hard time saying no to Two-Bit. Not to mention Dally was sitting in Buck's old T-Bird waiting on them. He couldn't let Dally think he was lame too.

"Okay."

"That's the spirit."

"Let us clean up first." Ponyboy said and then he and Johnny made fast work of cleaning the table and grabbing their belongings.

"I knew you were a cool kid," Dally complimented Ponyboy when they all crammed into the car.

"Turn on the radio." Johnny requested from the backseat and Dally obliged.

"First the arcade, then we'll head over to the store and get some smokes and cokes." Two-Bit was giving them the agenda.

"Speaking of. You guys want a smoke?" Dally handed his pack behind him for Johnny and Ponyboy.

"Thanks Dal," Johnny took the pack and got himself a cigarette out, and then handing it to Ponyboy who also took one.

"Got a light?" Ponyboy asked.

"Here," Dally handed him a pack of matches. They lit up the smokes and then leaned back, this was pretty nice.

~~~~~~

Ponyboy shoulda known it was a bad idea to skip school, he never got away with anything. Darry always caught him somehow. Either he slipped up or his bad luck just chased after him.

They'd finished playing at the arcade, well they got asked to leave. Dally was being really loud so the owner told them to leave and come back another day when they all could behave. So they went to the store so Two-Bit could swipe a few packs of Kools and Dally could buy them all some drinks.

And because Ponyboy just had to be the unluckiest kid in the world, the crew Darry worked with had stopped at the exact same store to get smokes, drinks, or whatever it is they had wanted while driving to their last house of the day. "Shit, hide." Johnny whispered to Ponyboy when he saw Darry.

Ponyboy ran behind a rack of chips just as Darry spotted Johnny, dally, and Two-Bit whistling to themselves. "What are you three doing?" Darry asked in a signature parental tone.

"Just hanging out," Two-Bit grinned at the man.

"It's one o'clock. Why ain't y'all in school?"

"Just having fun. Don't you remember what that's like?" Dally asked.

"And you Johnny?" He couldn't exactly yell at them for skipping school, they weren't his kids. But he still could sound disappointed. "They come and pick you up for this little rendezvous?"