Windrix Hall - 45

Fandom: The Outsiders
Pairing: Johnny/Sodapop
Genre: Romance, Drama
Rating: NC-17 (overall)
Disclaimer: Characters belong to S.E. Hinton
Authors: Zayhad & M3535


Chapter 45 – “We Were just Cuddling a bit”

It was a little difficult concentrating on the science report. Ponyboy's eyes kept straying from his book to Cathy. She smiled at him every time she caught him looking. 

"So…" she asked and put her pen down. “How many times have you read the same page now?" 

She laughed as Pony quickly turned the page and his face turned red. 

"You do realize we have to cover twenty pages, right?” She pushed a lock of hair behind her ear and sighed. “Mr. Mills really is working us hard on this project."

"Yeah... But we can take a break now and then, can't we?"

"Of course," she smiled. "It's not due till Wednesday, anyways." She put her book down and looked around. "It sure is quiet around here today…"

"Yeah..." said Pony and got up from the chair to stretch his legs. “Soda's out riding. Johnny... Well, Johnny's as quiet as Soda is loud. Funny couple actually. He's in Soda's room. I dunno what Darry's doing. Probably something important."

He sat down on the edge of the bed and patted the spot next to him, hoping that Cathy would join him. 

She got up and walked over to sit beside him. "Pony?" she said and smiled. "I'm really glad you invited me out yesterday... It was really nice."

"Yeah?" said Ponyboy and felt a goofy smile spread on his face. "I... I'm real glad too. I had a great time. Soda's the one who talked Darry into it. You probably already guessed that. He's so over-protective. Darry, I mean."

Damn it. Why did he have to talk about Soda and Darry now? He wanted to focus on Cathy and their relationship. He decided to take her hand and lean a bit forward and see if she picked up on the subtle invitation to kiss him.

"Yeah, he is. But that's because he loves you..." she said and looked up as Pony took her hand.

She tilted her head a little and her eyes were drifting shut as Pony leaned in closer. She also leaned a bit forward, letting him know that she really wanted him to kiss her. Feeling his heart do a flip, Pony closed the distance between them and kissed her. First lightly, but then it turned a bit more enthusiastic. He inched a bit closer and put a hand on her knee. Cathy smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling herself close against him.

Ponyboy could feel his pulse picking up speed as if he was out running. He let a hand slip from Cathy's knee up her thigh. When he reached her hip he moved his hand a bit further up and settled on her waist. She took a firmer hold of his neck and tipped them over to the side.

Still kissing, Cathy took a gentle hold of Ponyboy’s hand and moved it to her lower ribs. Then she let go of it, wanting him to take the last step himself.

Ponyboy took a deep breath through his nose and moved his hand to cup her left breast. They had made out several times before and felt her breasts against his chest when they had been standing close, but he hadn't touched them with his hand.

Pony took a little firmer hold and tried to squeeze and massage the breast gently. Oh, God, was this exciting! He had wanted to touch her forever but had been too shy and a bit afraid that she wouldn't like it. She had had a least one other boyfriend before him. Pony didn't know how far they had gone, but he guessed at least this far, and what if he was better at the touching stuff than he was? Maybe Cathy would find out he wasn't any good and decide that he was too young and inexperienced after all.

The way she was responding now, though, seemed that she liked what he was doing, so he got a little bolder. He lowered his hand and let it creep a few inches up her blouse. He really, really wanted to get a better feel, but he stopped his hand for a second to test if she was okay with it. 

"O-okay?" he asked, breaking the kiss for a moment.

"Yes," she smiled.

Ponyboy tried to control his breathing and let his slightly shaking hand slide further up until his fingertips reached her bra. 

Then there was the sound of the door opening...

"PONYBOY CURTIS!” Darry's voice boomed thought the room, making them both jump and Pony withdraw his hand as if he had burned it on something hot.

"If this is your way of studying I suggest you do it separately!"

"I… I... we..." was all Pony could think of saying. He looked at Cathy as if she could just fix it all. 

"We were just... taking a little break, Mr. Curtis," tried Cathy, looking very embarrassed.

o0o0o0o0o0o

Johnny sat in Sodapop's room and could hear Darry start up a fight with Ponyboy for some reason. What had that poor kid done now? He tiptoed over to the door, opened it slightly to peak out, and spotted Darry stand in the doorway to Ponyboy’s room. He did not need to ask what was going on, he could put two and two together from what Darry’s was yelling.

"I have told you about this so many times now!" Darry shouted. "It’s my responsibility that you don't go ruin your future and get stuck in a dead end job with no education because you got a girl pregnant at the age of 15!"

"I'm not getting her pregnant!" Ponyboy yelled. He could feel his cheeks burn in shame but he was also angry now. "We were just cuddling a bit - you don't get pregnant from that!"

"That leads to sex and that can get her pregnant!" Darry yelled back.

Pony turned to look at Cathy. "You better go," he said in a low voice. "I'll deal with this." 

That was the most embarrassing part. That Darry made a scene in front of Cathy. What wouldn't she think? And what if Darry scared her away?

Cathy looked like she was going to protest but Pony said, "Please. I'll call you later."

"Okay," she said in a low voice and picked up her books. Darry slid to the side, letting her pass, not taking his eyes of Ponyboy.

o0o0o0o0o0o

Johnny followed Cathy outside. "He gets like that sometimes," he tried to explain. 

"I know. Tell Pony I'll see him tomorrow, okay?"

Johnny could hear Darry going at it again inside. Something about Ponyboy being irresponsible. Johnny decided to stay outside on the front steps. He would rather freeze than be inside when hell was loose.

o0o0o0o0o0o

"We ain't planning on having sex!" yelled Ponyboy. "I know it’s too early! We were just touching a bit. You’re acting like you just caught us with our pants down!"

A vein started throbbing threateningly in Darry's fuming red face. 

"Don't you start that shit with me, Ponyboy! You think I asked for this job? You think I woke up one morning and just thought, - ‘I think I wanna be a substitute dad for two teenagers’? No, I didn't, but damn hell I ain't letting the state take you! But when you live here, you live by my rules!"

o0o0o0o0o0o

Sodapop approached the apartment building, whistling happily. He had had a great training ride. Both he and Misty were getting in great shape after the winter. When he turned the corner, he found Johnny sitting on the front steps. 

"What are you doing out here?" he asked, stopping in front of the dark-haired boy. Then he heard the loud voices from inside. He sighed. "What're they fighting about now?"

Johnny looked up, happy to see Soda.

"Pony and Cathy had... a moment. And, well, Darry walked in on ‘em..." Johnny sighed and rubbed his arm.

"Christ," said Soda, rolling his eyes. "Well, I better go prevent Armageddon.”

o0o0o0o0o0o

Inside Darry and Ponyboy were both very worked up, screaming at each other - Darry the loudest. 

"If you can't keep your fingers to yourself you can't have a girlfriend!" Darry yelled. 

"Hey, come on, Darry - lay off him," said Sodapop and stepped up beside his little brother. 

"What?" Darry yelled, now at Soda. "He is NOT gonna get some girl pregnant and drop out of school and end up at some gas station!"

"Don't you yell at him!" shouted Ponyboy. He hated it when Darry was mad at Soda. 

"I’ll yell at whoever I damn well please!" Darry hollered, turning his gaze back to Ponyboy. "You two will do as I say ‘cause this is my house and my rules!"

"Let me deal with this," said Sodapop to Ponyboy. "Go talk to Johnny or something. Or take a walk."

Pony was going to protest, but Soda gave him a stern look, telling him he was serious. Pony wasn't happy leaving Soda with an angry Darry, but on the other hand he was grateful for being saved. And besides - if anyone could calm Darry down and talk sense to him it was Soda. So he left and went outside to join Johnny on the front steps. 

o0o0o0o0o0o

"Hey," Johnny said. "A-are you okay? I'm sorry I didn’t try to help…"

"Don't be. It would only have made things worse," said Ponyboy.

He was quiet for a moment, straining to hear if there was any more yelling, but he couldn't hear anything.

"It's crazy, ain't it? How Soda can just calm him down like that. It's like with wild horses - he barely does anything and they calm down and become putty in his hands."

Johnny nodded and pushed back his hair as he looked straight ahead. "Yeah... He’s good with people. And animals."

o0o0o0o0o0o

"So," said Sodapop in a normal tone, as if they just having a casual conversation. "You caught them having unprotected sex, or what? I can see why you're mad, then..."

Darry sighed and slumped onto the couch, letting his hands fall onto his lap. "No. He was feeling her up. You know... under her blouse."

Sodapop laughed. Of course he already knew that, because Johnny had told him, but it worked doing it this way.

"Feeling her up? Really? Well, you know, Darry: teenagers grope their girlfriends' boobs. If I recall correctly, I once walked in on you with your hands up some chick’s shirt - you can't have been more than fourteen or fifteen - and I asked what you were looking for under there. Remember?"

Darry tried not to laugh but he couldn't hold back a smile. "Yeah. I remember that. I told you she had lost her necklace and I was just helping her look for it."

Darry started to feel a little bad for having reacted so violently and maybe having scared Cathy off.

Soda sat down next to Darry on the couch.

"You know, Darry... Feeling each other up is just a natural step of growing up. It doesn't mean they're gonna start having sex. I know Pony. He ain't the type to go fast with these kinds of things. He ain't like me. He's patient. Likes to take his time. And what do you think you're gonna accomplish by freaking out like this? They'll just go do it somewhere else. Somewhere you can't keep an eye on them. You should be glad they’re doing it here where you can keep an eye on them."

"I know... I know," sighed Darry, rubbing his temples. He took a deep breath. "Jesus, I’m really bad at this parenting thing, ain’t I? How am I supposed to raise my own kid properly?"

"You’re doing a great job with us, Darry. You're just a bit hard on Pony sometimes. You'll do fine. Your kid won't be born a teenager. You'll have plenty of time to get it right. And when it does become a teenager, you already have experience from raising us! And you'll have Lauren to help, too. And uncle Soda. I'm gonna teach that kid all sorts of useful things!"

"Just don't teach my kid about sex. Got that?" Darry said, pointing a finger threateningly. Then he looked serious. "So what do you suggest I do now? With Pony. He’s got to hate me more than ever…"

"Tell him you overreacted and that Cathy can still come over as long as they don’t go further than making out. That you just won’t allow him to have sex before he's older."

o0o0o0o0o0o

Ponyboy and Johnny both looked up when the door opened and Soda stuck his head out. 

"C'mon in. Coast is clear."

They warily followed him inside. 

"Well," said Soda. "Johnny, can you give me a hand in the kitchen? Dinner don't make itself."

"Sure," Johnny said, a little nervous on Pony's behalf. He gave him a gentle pat on the shoulder and then went with Soda.

Darry looked up at Pony and then patted the seat beside him, hoping that Pony would sit down. He was glad when he did.

"Listen, Pony," he started, scratching the back of his neck nervously. "I know that I overreacted. And I'm sorry."

Ponyboy gaped at his older brother in disbelief. Had he really just said what he thought he had? And apologized? Darry rarely apologized to Ponyboy. 

Darry continued. "You can still have Cathy over and all that. Just… no sex, okay? The other stuff... that’s' okay. But no sex, you got that? You’re too young.”

"Ok. It wasn’t like we were planning to go that far anyway," said Ponyboy, still not quite sure what to make of it. Then he got up and mumbled something about going helping with dinner. 

o0o0o0o0o0o

Johnny was putting some rice into a pot and trying to guide Soda into not making a total mess of the rest of dinner as Pony came into the kitchen. 

"What did you do to him, Soda?” asked Ponyboy. “He's all strange..."

"Just worked my magic," said Sodapop. "Listen, Pony. He didn't act like that because he wants to make your life miserable. He's just scared you won't make something of yourself. He really cares about you. Cut him some slack, will ya? It took a lot for him to back down on this one."

"Yeah, all right," mumbled Ponyboy. He wasn't sure he believed everything Soda said, about Darry caring so much about him, but he didn't want to discuss it anymore. There had been plenty of that today. And he was grateful things had turned out okay.

o0o0o0o0o0o

There wasn't much said at the dinner table. It was a little awkward as no one, not even Soda, said anything. Johnny guessed that Soda wanted the two others to start a sort of conversation but it was like they were both afraid to say something that would stir things up again. 

After dinner, Darry went to the living room to work on some training plans, leaving the three others do deal with the dishes.

Johnny did the washing since he had already learned the hard way that Soda wasn't to be let near water too often. Last time Soda had washed the dishes, Johnny's clothes had been soaked and the dishes still not clean.

When they had finished, they sat down at the table. 

"So... are you gonna call her?" Johnny finally asked Ponyboy.  

"Yeah. I guess," Ponyboy sighed.

He wasn't too excited about talking to Cathy right now - even with the good news. It had been so embarrassing the way Darry had acted in front of her. 

"Well..." Johnny said and adjusted his glasses. "She told me to tell you she would see you tomorrow. So Darry didn't scare her off it seems."

"Did you hear any more from Steve?” Johnny asked Soda when Ponyboy had left the room to go call Cathy.

"Yeah," said Soda. "We talked a bit on the phone. I don’t think he has left the bed today. And I met Two-Bit on my way down to the stables."

"Really?" Johnny asked, just realizing that they hadn't heard from Two-Bit since last night. 

“Turns out he got in too far this time. They mugged him. They had a drink at the motel room and they must’ve put something in Two-Bit’s ‘cause the next thing he remembers is waking up alone, his wallet missing.”

Johnny stared at Sodapop in shock.

“Well, he’s not too bummed out about it. Says there wasn’t that much money in his wallet and he got his credit card cancelled.”

“Oh,” said Johnny, still trying to digest the information. “You reckon he’s learned something from it?”

“I doubt it,” said Sodapop, shaking his head.

Darry came into the kitchen. "So…” he said and looked over at Sodapop. “How was the horse ride? You ready for the upcoming tournament?"

"Yup!" grinned Soda. "We're gonna beat 'em all. Man, I can't wait to get started. I haven't been to Jay Mountain before. I hear they have a great obstacle course with a really difficult and dangerous Normandy bank.

Johnny sent Soda a nervous look. "Y-you are gonna be careful, right?"

"I'll be fine, Johnnycake," said Soda and gave his boyfriend a peck on the lips. 

"You look forward to something just because it's dangerous?" asked Darry with a mixture of annoyance and worry. 

"No - because it's fun. Challenging. Makes me feel alive."

"I can grab you by the arms and spin you around. That’ll give you a rush and make you feel alive as well and I'm pretty sure you won't get hurt that way," Darry said and went over to grab a cup of coffee. "By the way, Johnny," Darry said and turned around. "They say the new dorms should be done in a month."

Johnny looked up. This day just kept getting better and better. One month? Couldn't it just take the rest of the year to finish like every other construction? Why did this one have to be on time? 

Sodapop sighed. He didn't like thinking about Johnny going back to the dorms. Especially if he had to live with Harry and Victor again. He had gotten so used to having Johnny here, being together most of the time, and it felt so natural now. He pushed the image of his empty bed out of his head and suggested they play cards or something. 

Darry and Soda played poker for about an hour. Johnny didn't know how so he just watched as Soda kept beating Darry. Johnny suspected him of cheating, though.

"Okay, I'm out of luck it seems, "Darry finally said after losing his fifth game in a row. “Good thing we didn't play for money. Then I wouldn't have been able to buy food for you guys..." He then got up. "I am off to my room. I need to finish some work for tomorrow. Don't stay up to late, Soda. Got it?"

"Why would I? I can't wait to get to bed," grinned Sodapop and sent Johnny a smouldering look.

oOooOo

To be continued...