No Permanent Death (The Outsiders)

Run.

6:46 am
12.16.41
New York City
Curtis's Secret Base

I awoke to my alarm blaring loudly, Darrel yelling at me to hurry and get ready. I climbed out of bed with a groan and made my way to the bathroom. Sodapop was already there, scrubbing his teeth hastily.

"What's wrong with you two?" I ask as I squirt some toothpaste onto my toothbrush. Soda chuckles, spitting out everything in his mouth before turning to me. "We start the new jobs today. Darry wants us to be on time, for once." He shrugs, washing out his mouth with the faucet.
My eyes go wide. Shit... that's today?! I peek my head out of the bathroom to check the calendar. Sure enough, it was monday. 'New Jobs' was also written in large red letters under the date.

"You didn't forget, did you?" Soda smiles, fixing his hair in the mirror. I envied him for a moment, and how easy it was for him to look put together. "Maybe a little." I muttered when I realized I was staring too long. Soda patted me on the back before heading back into the main room.

I was in the middle of rearranging my hair when Darry poked his head in. "Hurry up! You don't wanna be late on your first day!" He scolded, knocking my hands out of the way to do it himself. I sighed and let him, knowing he was a bit of a control freak.

When he was done I scurried to my room and threw on the first thing I saw. It was one of those nice bars that you had to be invited into, so I knew I had to look somewhat well-groomed. I pulled on a pair of black slacks and a light blue marlboro, grabbing a black tie and rushing out of the room.

"Darry- Can you do this for me?" I asked hopefully, handing it over to him. He rolled his eyes half-heartedly. "Yes, I can. C'mere." He sighed, pulling me closer by the shoulders. He tied it while Soda helped me pull on my shoes, grumbling about needing to learn myself. Which, I did know how... But anytime I did it he'd just tear it off and fix it anyway. I also knew that deep down he loved helping me. It reminded him of when we were young, I suppose.

"Okay, We oughta get-" He stepped back and frowned. "You messed up your hair." He scolded, brushing it to the side. "C'mon Dar, I'll fix it in the car. We need to get going." I said in response, lightly pushing him off. He sighed, following me and Soda out of the door.

Me and Soda could both drive just fine, but Darry liked to do it. Maybe because last time Soda tried to drive us he ran into the side of a building and almost killed us. But, most likely, it was just so that he had an excuse to come along.
"I want you both to know that this is gonna be tough." Darry began. I sighed, knowing a lecture was coming. He turned to glare at me in the backseat before quickly turning back to the road. "I'm being serious. This is the closest either of you will ever be to the mob, and you need to remember to stay vigilant."

"I know Darry, this isn't my first undercover mission." Soda chuckled, before turning back to me. "It is yours, I guess.. You know the basics though, don't you?" I nodded in response, fixing my hair in the reflection of Soda's cheaters. "Of course I do. What are our names?" I asked, directing it towards Darrel.

"Good question." He smiled, before glancing over to Soda. "You will be Joey Bianchi. And you," he pointed to me. "Will go by Antonio Ricci." He said. I frowned. "Those names are kinda generic." I muttered, leaning back in my seat. "So?" Darrel asked, sparing a glance at me in the rear-view mirror. "They sound fake." I reiterated.

"Yeah, Guess so. But that's what Dallas put you both as, and don't you dare try to say anything else." He paused, letting himself crack a smile. "And if anyone laughs- Both of your last names mean 'white'." He chuckled. Me and Soda both rolled our eyes. "Figures, Dally would say somethin' like that." Soda said with an easy smile. "Not that he can be talking. He's as pale as a ghost." I muttered, both of my brothers laughing in response.