Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Darry finally pulled into the driveway just as the sun was beginning to rise. He certainly hadn't meant to stay out so late but once he had started winning and the beer had started flowing he had lost track of time. Before he knew it he had been out all night and finding himself thankful that he had the next day off work to catch up on sleep.

It was as he was making his way out of the truck that he heard the tell-tale rumble of Steve's car coming down the street. Making his way up to the porch Darry turned to watch his brother make his way out of the vehicle. Waving at Steve as he pulled off, Soda sent him a grin as he came up to join him on the front steps.

"Looks like I wasn't the only one out late huh little buddy?" Darry couldn't help but tease.

"Yeah well," Soda spoke, ducking his head with another grin, "what about you huh? Win anything at your big poker game?"

"I'd hardly call playing with a few work buddies a big game," Darry protested, though he couldn't help his own grin when he continued, "but I did manage to win ten bucks."

"Darry!" Soda cheered, shoving his shoulder in excitement, "that's great! Man you should go out more often if you keep bringing home winnings like that."

"Shh, Pony and Dally are probably still asleep," Darry urged as he opened the door. Only to glance at the couch and find it empty, "or not."

"Well you know Dal, probably split early to try and find some action," Soda spoke, glancing at the couch with a shrug.

"Or he went back to Buck's," Darry spoke, frowning now. He thought Dallas was going to stick around, he supposed he could've just gotten up early and left but knowing Dally unless he had something to do he slept in, "either way it means Pony's been alone."

"I'm sure he's fine Dar. I didn't hear screaming driving up did you?" Soda pointed out, though he couldn't help his own worry, glancing at the hallway that led to the bedrooms.

"No but that doesn't mean he wasn't screaming earlier, or that he's even asleep now if he was. You've told me how you'll wake up to him staring at the ceiling because he can't fall back asleep," Darry argued, moving forward, "I'm gonna check on him."

"We'll check on him," Soda corrected, following after him. Not like he wasn't heading that way anyways considering it was his room too. The happiness from earlier subdued now as it was replaced with the worry that while they'd been off having fun their little brother had been suffering alone.

It wasn't until Darry was peering through the open bedroom door that he felt his worry subside at seeing their little brother asleep. Watching the rise and fall of his chest before Darry's brain caught up with him and realized the figure next to him wasn't Soda but someone with a familiar mop of blonde hair. "I must've had more to drink than I thought," Darry spoke, rubbing his eyes as Soda looked around him to get a clear view of the bed.

"Well I didn't drink anything and I'm seeing the same thing," Soda spoke, stepping forward to try and get a closer look until Darry put out a hand to stop him. Gently moving him back as he reached forward to grab the door, shutting it with a soft click.

"Let's let them sleep alright?" he explained, he wasn't sure what had led to Dally sleeping in the same bed as Pony but with how little sleep his youngest brother got nowadays he didn't want to accidentally wake him up by trying to get a closer look, "I'm sure we can get answers in the morning."

"You think Dally is gonna admit to what we just saw?" Soda asked, still picturing the way Dally's arm had been across Ponyboy and the way his little brother had been curled up against Dally's chest. It was a sight that went against everything he knew about Dallas as the tough, hard-as-nails hood, who wouldn't be caught dead showing that much compassion to another person.

"No but Pony might, either way I can guess," Darry spoke, forcing himself to move towards his own bedroom and ignoring the urge to go back into Pony's room to find out what had happened.

"What that he had a nightmare and Dally can't handle hearing him scream anymore than we can?" Soda commented. He supposed he wasn't being completely fair to Dally. He could be kind at times, in his own way at least. Even if his kindness usually meant beating people up on behalf of one of the gang, or a gruff question about one's wellbeing. While going from that to this was a bit of a jump, if Pony had been screaming Dally wasn't the kind of person to let that stand.

"Sounds about right, I'm just glad he was okay with us being gone," Darry said, grabbing his sleep clothes, "I don't think I would've gone out tonight if Dal hadn't been here. I at least would've kept a better eye on the time."

"Dal's a good buddy, he's not the type of person to leave when someone needs him," Soda spoke, "and you deserve to have a night out Darry. I wanted to be here for Pony too but he can handle being alone every once and awhile."

"Needs him for a fight or a rumble sure. But comfort after a nightmare isn't exactly something I thought Dally would be up to. Most I thought he'd do is wake Pony up," Darry admitted, "I know that Soda but I also know that even if you had a good time with Sandy tonight you were also thinking of how Pony was doing back here. I'm just saying you two come first, and I can go out other times when you aren't. I'm sure that's not the last poker game I'll be invited to."

"It might be considering how much money you got out of them," Soda teased with a grin. But internally he couldn't help but feel a bit sad for his older brother. While it was true his mind had also been on Pony tonight he had the luxury of still going out with Steve or Sandy. Could at least focus on having some fun for a night or two, but with Darry. Darry hadn't been able to go out in a long time, he rarely got time off of work and even on his days off he did little more than catch up on sleep or take care of things around the house. His days off from work weren't days off from being a guardian or a homeowner and it seemed like he hadn't been able to so much as take a breath without worrying about something.

"Maybe little buddy. But unlike you I don't need to cheat to win at poker. You get less sore losers when the guys know you're playing square," Darry joked, tossing Soda an extra sleep shirt that the boy gladly changed into.

"Yeah but if you don't cheat how will you make sure you win?" Soda teased back, it was clear the night out was good for Darry. He liked being able to see the side of his brother that was still a kid. Darry may be an adult but that didn't mean he had to act like one all the time, any time Soda got him to tease or banter counted as a win in his book. And seeing him smile, seeing the way his face would look younger whenever he let himself stop worrying, always made Soda smile too.

"Fair enough," Darry spoke, letting out a yawn, "you gonna sleep in your old room tonight?"

"I guess, not like I can squeeze into bed without waking them up," Soda spoke with a shrug though he made no move to leave. Sure he moved into Pony's room to help him with his nightmares, but Soda would be lying if he said having his brother next to him didn't help him sleep better too. Having the physical reminder that his brother was okay and breathing helped him sleep better than he ever did sleeping alone.

Darry stood still for a second, tilting his head as he came to a conclusion. "Why don't you stay with me tonight? You're room's closer to the kitchen, knowing those two they'll wake you up with their racket or Two-Bit will slam the door coming in," Darry offered. He was getting better at figuring out what his brothers needed, an intuition that came with being responsible for their well-being. It helped him figure out that while Sodapop craved physical comfort he often didn't outright ask for it from anyone other than Pony. Sure he'd give hugs here and there or start a wrestle match to get it but outright asking was something he avoided. So Darry knew if he had just asked Soda if he wanted to stay with him his brother would say no out of some sense of pride, not wanting to be treated like a kid despite only being 17. But if he phrased it like him helping Soda not get woken up too early, then he was just being a worried big brother and Soda would accept.

"You sure you don't mind?" Soda asked even as he moved closer to the bed.

"I'm sure," Darry insisted, getting under the covers while his brother did the same, "now get some sleep. We gotta be well-rested if we wanna get answers out of Ponyboy later."

"Two against one? Kid won't stand a chance," Sodapop spoke with a grin, falling asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow. Darry waited a moment, making sure his brother was really out before he reached over, slinging an arm around him as he pulled him close. Using the soft sound of Soda's breathing to help lure him to sleep as, even while asleep, Soda snuggled closer into his side. Having his brother with him helped soothe some of the worry that never really went away ever since he became their guardian, because he knew that Soda was safe with him, and knowing that Dally was in the next room keeping Pony safe in the same way, well that helped him fall asleep easier then he had in weeks.

Chapter Text

"Hey Ponyboy," Soda greeted, walking into the house after his shift at the DX. Giving his little brother a smile, seeing him camped out on the couch surrounded by textbooks, Soda making his way into the kitchen to grab a glass of chocolate milk to unwind. It was only after he had grabbed his drink that he realized his little brother had never responded so he dutifully made his way back into the living room instead of going to lay down in bed like he planned. "Ponyboy," he spoke, stepping closer when he got no response again. A worried look crossing his face as he looked his little brother over. Looking at the way he had a notebook on his lap and was furiously writing something in between flipping pages of his textbook.

Realizing that his little brother was lost in his own head again Soda made his way behind the couch. Setting his drink down to free his hands before he reached over to grab his brother. "What- Soda!" Pony cried out, nearly throwing his notebook across the room as he startled, turning to look at his brother before Soda was attacking his sides and he devolved into giggles. "Soda!" he managed to cry out again, accidently knocking one of his textbook piles over with his flailing as he tried to escape his brother. Soda gave it a moment despite his brother's cries for mercy, he couldn't help it. He loved hearing Ponyboy's laugh and for all the boy complained about it being unfair he knew by his smile that he never really minded.

Soda let him go right before his laughter would've started turning into gasps for breath, able to tell the limit after many a morning waking his brother up the same way when he refused to get out of bed. Walking around the couch now that his brother's focus was on him in order to look at him better, picking up the knocked over textbooks as he went. "What'cha working on?" he asked conversationally.

"Math," Pony spoke with a grimace, Soda understood the sentiment, the only Curtis brother who didn't have a problem with the subject was Darry, "must've gotten too sucked in, I didn't even know you were home."

"I called your name when I walked in," Soda spoke helpfully, reaching over to knock his knuckles gently against his brother's temple, "you gotta stay outta your head little brother. At least enough you know when the door opens."

"I know," Pony spoke with a sigh, "I just really wanna get all this done."

"All this?" Soda prodded, gesturing to the textbooks.

"Yeah, I'm working on math right now but I still have two science worksheets and an essay to finish. I did the draft of the essay during study hall today so it shouldn't take too long but it was only a first draft and I have to make sure I get an A," Ponyboy explained.

"All of that? Jeez Pony you've been working since you got home and you still have all this left?" Soda asked, taking another glance at the textbooks as though it was their fault his brother had to work so hard.

"Since I got home from track practice yeah," Pony admitted with a nod, "it's all due this week too but I gotta get it done now so Darry has time to look it over and I have time to edit the mistakes he finds."

Taking another look at his brother Soda noticed the resigned look in his eyes, the way he was slumped into the couch instead of holding himself upright, and the way he had already gone back to writing in his notebook while they were talking. He never understood why his brothers cared so much about school, sure it was important and he knew the better grades Ponyboy got the more colleges would look at him. But Ponyboy always pushed himself so hard to get A's and maintain them even if it meant days like this, days where he came home after a long day of school and track practice, where anyone else would want to just relax or take a nap and yet his little brother would just immediately throw himself into more work. And he knew part of it was him not wanting to disappoint Darry, or get lectured by him for a less then stellar report card, but it was clear his kid brother needed a break once in a while and Soda would be damned if he didn't get one.

"You finish everything that was due tomorrow?" he asked to make sure.

"Yeah, Darry's gonna look it over tonight and I can fix anything in home room," Ponyboy answered, his gaze back on his work and if Soda didn't move fast he knew he'd lose his brother to his own head again.

"Good," Soda spoke, reaching forward to snatch Ponyboy's notebook from him with one hand, placing it on the coffee table while his free hand swiftly pulled at Ponyboy's arm to get the boy standing, "then I think it's time you took a break."

"I don't have time for a break," Pony spoke, exasperated as he tried to break out of his brother's grasp, "I still have-"

"Nothing else that's due tomorrow, besides we haven't done anything together in a while. Don't you want to take a break to spend time with me? You can't really pick school over your brother can you?" Soda spoke, a pleading look in his eyes. Maybe it was a bit underhanded to insinuate that the break would be for Soda's benefit but he knew that would be what got his brother to agree. Ponyboy would insist he didn't need a break until his overworked body forced him to take one, but Soda knew both his brothers had an issue denying him when he wanted to hang out. Something he intended to use to his advantage as he watched Ponyboy shake his head.

"No of course not, you know I love spending time with you," Ponyboy admitted, letting Soda pull him towards the door, "but it's a school night and Darry-"

"Let me worry about Darry kiddo," Soda spoke easily, giving Pony a moment to put his shoes on before the two of them headed out the door, "he's working a double shift today so I doubt he'll beat us back home even if we stay out all night."

"Where are we even going?" Pony asked, brightening a bit when Soda slung an arm across his shoulder to pull him in close. Just holding his brother next to him as he walked to disguise the fact that he hadn't thought that far ahead. Had been too focused on getting his brother out of the house and away from his textbooks to settle on a destination for the two of them.

Soda hummed to himself as he worked out something his brother would enjoy. Movies were always a safe bet but he couldn't sit still long enough for one, a drag race would get both their blood pumping but those usually weren't until late, then he had it. "We're going to the rodeo!" he cheered brightly, satisfied that he had come up with something they could both enjoy.

"On a school night?" Pony felt the need to point out, "you know all the good events are on the weekends."

"Well yeah but they still do small events during the weekdays, they might be more practices then anything but since there won't be a crowd I bet I can convince the stable hands to let us back to see the horses," Soda spoke, he still had some pull since his rodeo days. It might have been a while but if he flashed one of his classic Sodapop smile and added on some bit about missing the rodeo life usually he could get by. He might have to add a remark about considering coming back to get Ponyboy back with him but it'd be worth it. All the Curtis boys had soft spots for horses, and it had been too long since they'd been around them.

"You think they'll let us see the new thoroughbred they just got?" Pony asked sheepishly, and Soda could see he was getting excited about the idea. Not that he could blame them, Buck's been talking about the new horse for weeks, a real black beauty.

"Maybe, I think Buck said something about getting Dally to ride it. But Dally won't mind if we take a crack at it first," Soda spoke. Maybe a ride was being generous, but with his skills he could at least get Pony close.

Pony grinned then, and Soda found himself glad to see the exhaustion from earlier replaced with excitement. And seeing his brother so happy chased away any of his own exhaustion from his shift, forget taking a nap. There was nothing more rejuvenating than spending time with his brother, and somehow, he just knew that Pony felt the same.

Chapter Text

Everyone knew it didn't take much to make Dallas Winston angry. That the hood had one of the shortest fuses in Tulsa and that so much as looking in his general direction could set him off. But for as fast as the emotion entered his body it often left at the same pace. A quick shove or punch connecting with the source of his anger was usually enough to calm him down. As soon as he found an outlet his anger would leave, and outside of rumbles it was rare that he held onto his anger for long periods of time. Usually, outside of the time Johnny got jumped, the only anger that stayed was the general anger that all greasers held towards the socs.

But this-this was enough to keep him angry for a long time. He had come over to the Curtis house to get something to eat, maybe steal Pony and Johnny away if the two were around but instead, sitting on the Curtis' couch, in full view when Dallas walked in the door was Ponyboy, Ponyboy who was currently sporting a black eye. And unless the kid had gotten a whole lot more clumsy, there was no way he had done it to himself. Before he knew it Dally was in front of the kid, reaching forward to grab his chin as he tilted the boy's face to get a look at the shiner, he knew he was being too rough when Pony winced but this was more important.

"Who," he managed to ask, though his voice came out closer to a growl. His free hand already curling into a fist as he fought not to do the same with the one holding Ponyboy's face. He didn't need to hurt the kid in his attempt to help him as he stared him down.

"No one," Pony spoke instinctually, trying to twist his head out of Dally grip to no avail. His eyes only looking up at Dally for a second before they darted away, not that he could blame the kid. It wasn't often he focused his glare on the gang but he would when stupid kids wouldn't give him the information he wanted.

"You wanna try again without the bullshit this time? Or should I call you brothers and get them to interrogate you?" Dally spoke without mercy, man and he thought the socs had learned their lesson the last time they went after they gang. Johnny may not have told them who had jumped him, but that hadn't stopped Dally from going on a war path for any soc in the following week. He had thought the message he had left the west side about touching the gang would last a little longer, but while Ponyboy wasn't as bad off as Johnny had been there was still a mark, and Dally couldn't stand for that.

Pony looked back up at him at the threat to get his brothers involved, opening his mouth as though to protest before shutting it with a soft click. And if that didn't set Dally off, he hated not knowing things, not having a target for his anger. Not wanting to risk loosing his cool on Ponyboy he forced himself to release his grip on the boys chin. Stomping off to the fridge in search of an outlet as he tore open the freezer hard enough the whole fridge rattled. Reaching in a hand as he grabbed the first frozen bag of vegetables he laid eyes on, pulling in free as he stomped back into the living room. Throwing it against the free space on the couch without warning, he just wanted to get some of his anger out with the show of force, but he felt a little bad when Pony jumped at the action. Not trusting himself to speak Dally just pointed at the bag with a harsh look so Ponyboy would get the idea to use it for his eye before he moved towards the bathroom. Not caring about the bottles that fell to the floor as he dug around the medicine cabinet for the aspirin. Pulling the bottle free as he moved back to the living room. Feeling some of his anger ebb upon seeing Ponyboy curling in on himself with the bag held up to his eye, the younger boy looking up at him in worry.

"Here," he spoke, handing over the bottle, once Pony had it in his grasp Dally walked back out the door. He knew himself well enough to know he needed to at least try and calm down a little before trying again to get answers out of the kid. Letting the door slam shut as he paced the small length of the porch, lighting a cigarette to help his nerves as his eyes darted along the street as though he could spot the soc that had given the kid his shiner just by looking hard enough. But greasers weren't nearly that lucky so the streets surrounding the Curtis home remained empty, and Dallas remained angry. He was going to wait for a minute, take drags of his cigarette until he could trust himself to speak without growling before heading back inside. But that plan was quickly thrown out the window when he heard the soft click of the door opening, subtly turning his head to see Ponyboy peeking through the open doorway.

"You just gonna stand there or you gonna come out here?" he asked, and at the sight of Ponyboy shuffling out onto the porch, the bag Dally had tossed him held onto his eye, and with a meek look that reminded him too much of Johnny, Dally felt the majority of his anger flow out of him like a deflated balloon. Feeling slightly bad about scaring the kid earlier Dally held out his cancer stick as a peace offering, knowing he hadn't scared the kid too bad when he took it.

"You're angry," Ponyboy remarked, as he relaxed against the railing.

"No shit kid," Dally spoke with a scoff, knocking his shoulder with Pony's as he stood next to him, "I walked in to see you with a shiner and you won't let me go return the favor. Of course I'm pissed."

"I thought you were mad at me," Pony admitted after a moment, he didn't talk to Dally alone all that often. Usually had Johnny acting as a buffer between them, but Johnny wasn't here. And Dally had gotten him something for his eye and for the pain, the least Pony could do was talk to the guy, "thought you left when you walked back out the door."

"Unless you gave the black eye to yourself I'm not mad at you, not fully anyway. I'd be happier with you if you gave me a name," Dally managed to say, "and you really think I'd leave you alone when you're hurt? If your brothers found out I ditched you they'd skin me. Nah, I'll stick around till one of them comes home, maybe until you finally give me a name."

"Why do you care?" Pony asked, jumping back with a yelp as Dally reached forward to flick his forehead, "hey!"

"You're lucky you're hurt, otherwise I would've done worse, don't ask me stupid questions kid. I know you're smarter than that," Dally spoke, he shouldn't have to explain it. If he was still in New York he would understand, back there you looked out for yourself and maybe someone else if you owed a guy. But Tulsa wasn't New York, this gang wasn't like any one he had found over there. And surely Ponyboy, a kid whose closest proximity to a 'real' gang was Shepard and Co, was smart enough to see the differences between their groups without needing it spelled out.

"It really is nothing," Ponyboy spoke even as Dally bristled at the nonchalant way he waved off his own injuries, "I got away before they could do anything else. Compared to Johnny this is nothing."

"Kid if I ever see you looking anywhere close to what Johnny looked like I'm gonna kill every last soc on the west side," Dally spoke, and they both knew he meant it. "But that's not the point. The point is some soc got the drop on you enough to leave a mark, they go after us greasers all the time I know that, you know that. But that doesn't mean any of us have to like it, it doesn't mean we can't give as good as we get. Yeah you got away, this time, but if I don't go teach them a lesson for daring to lay a hand on you they're gonna try again. And do you really want to take your chances that you can get away a second time?"

"Johnny didn't tell you who beat him up either," Pony pointed out. He wasn't sure why he was arguing with Dallas Winston, he knew better most of the time, but most of the time his eye wasn't aching and he hadn't had to run home at a dead sprint in case he was being chased. Most of the time he didn't have to talk to him after getting jumped, and despite knowing now that he was home and safe his nerves were still a little shot.

"Stop comparing yourself to Johnny!" Dallas roared, his patience was already thin, but with each word that came out of Pony's mouth that wasn't a name it only got thinner and thinner until it was nonexistent, "we aren't talking about Johnny! He isn't hurt right now, you are and I don't get what's so hard about giving me a goddamn name so I can beat up the son of a bitch that did this to you! Jesus Christ kid you really make it so hard for people to care about you!"

Ponyboy blinked as Dally let out a sigh, god this was just his luck. He had blown up and now the kid was going to start crying because he couldn't stay calm and his brothers would come home to him in shambles and Darry would try and fight him for scaring his brother when all he had wanted was a name. "You care about me?" Ponyboy asked, getting Dally's attention at the way his voice cracked in the middle.

"No I ask every 14 year old who beat them up," Dally spoke, rolling his eyes even as he continued, "yes I care about you idiot, I thought you were supposed to be the smart one."

"But why?" Pony asked, looking up at Dally. The improvised ice pack had fallen to his side as he looked at the older hood for answers. And maybe it was the black eye, but seeing him look up at him and ask something like that. Ask something that by all means he should know the answer to, had his anger solidly on the backburner as concern won out.

"Because," Dally began, reaching for the kid's hand as he guided the ice pack back in place, "you're part of the gang. You're one of us kid that means I care about you like I care about Johnny or Darry, or even Two-Bit. Even if you can be annoying and hardheaded."

Pony looked thoughtful at that before speaking. "Gregg Parker, he's a junior," he admitted.

"Good," Dally spoke, steering Ponyboy back inside as he committed the name to memory, "you ever make me work that hard for a name again and I'll skin you."

"Nah, you said it yourself, you care about me," Ponyboy spoke with a teasing grin.

"You little shit," Dallas griped without heat as he had Ponyboy sit back on the couch, "as soon as that eye heals up you're in for it."

"Sure Dal," Ponyboy said with a disbelieving hum. And if Dally wasn't saving his anger for this Gregg kid he might've punched Pony just to prove a point, would’ve had to if it wasn’t just them around. But as it was he threw his arm across the kid's shoulder because he did care about the kid, as much as someone like him could care for another person. He didn't like to admit it, would rather show his care through actions of hatred and violence because that was always easier than admitting to himself that he had that vulnerability of having people he cared about. But they all knew Pony was different than them, more sensitive and kind than greasers had a right to be, so for him he would admit it, even if to anyone else he'd deny it until his dying breath. Because according to Tulsa, Dallas Winston did not love, didn't have the capacity for it as a tough-as-nails hood. But he could hate, could let his hatred linger and fester until it exploded out of him in a show of violence strong enough to get him thrown right back in the cooler, and right now he hated Gregg Parker most of all.

Chapter Text

"Whose that?" Dallas asked, his voice coming out in a harsh tone even as he aimed for nonchalant. Johnny glanced over at where Dally was looking. Seeing Ponyboy walking down the street, he hadn't noticed them, too busy talking to the other person he was with. A person who was not a member of their gang which meant Dally was on edge. He wasn't the kid's keeper, far from it, that was what Darry and Soda were for, but for better or worse the kid was all of their responsibility to an extent. And knowing the kind of people he hung out with was important when half the people in Tulsa had rap sheets a mile long and the other half would sooner jump Pony than give him the time of day.

Johnny looked over at the pair, taking a second before he was able to put a face to the name. "That's Mark Jennings, Ponyboy's mentioned him a few times. They have a history class together, but he didn't mention he was friends with him." Johnny explained, brow furrowed slightly at the lack of info.

Dally wasn't sure if it was a good thing or not that he hadn't heard of this Mark kid before. On the one hand it meant he didn't run with the kind of people Dally ran with if his name had never been passed around, but that could just mean he ran with a crowd that was worse. Either way there was only one way to find out more, and the best information often came from the source. "Let's go say hi," Dally spoke, lighting a cigarette as he prowled over to the pair before Johnny could try and stop him.

'Let's not,' Johnny wanted to mumble, but considering the dangerous edge to Dally's voice he thought better of it. And besides he couldn't deny that he wasn't also a little curious about Mark, so he followed after Dally.

"Hey kid," Dally greeted sharply, slinging an arm around Pony's shoulder in a familiar way as he used the leverage to lean into Mark's space with one of his sharp grins, "whose your friend?"

"Hey Dal, Johnny" Pony greeted, giving him a confused look at the contact but knowing better than to question the hood as he looked between him and Mark, "this is Mark, he's a friend."

"Can't be too good a friend if I've never heard of him before," Dally pointed out, a little off-put at the unimpressed look from Mark at his glare.

"What you Ponyboy's dad or something? Need to meet his friends before they can come over for a playdate?" Mark questioned, sarcasm dripping from every word as he moved himself against Pony's other side. Glancing at Dally like he was a particularly interesting speck on the side of his shoe, undeterred by the cigarette smoke Dally was taking care to blow directly into his face.

"Come on Mark," Ponyboy spoke, and Dally almost preened as he reprimanded his friend. That'll show em, their gang stuck together and Pony wasn't gonna let his so-called friend be rude to Dallas Winston. Though his smugness was short-lived as Ponyboy turned on him next, "come on Dallas you don't know all of my friends."

"Yeah Dallas," Mark spoke, rolling his eyes when Pony turned his gaze back to him. Offering a shrug before he grinned at Dally, an expression that meant he knew something the older hood didn't as he clapped a hand on Ponyboy's free shoulder. "but we gotta get going don't we? Bryon's waiting for us."

"Oh right," Pony spoke, and even Johnny wanted to say something about how easily Ponyboy's attention was diverted by this guy, watching as Pony ducked out of Dallas' hold to keep up with Mark.

"I'll catch you guys later!" Pony told them as he followed after his friend.

And that would've been it. Except that a few steps away Mark turned back to them, jogging back to Dallas. "Hey man you don't mind if I borrow a weed right?" he asked, and before Dallas could say anything Mark plucked the cigarette right out of Dallas' mouth. Smiling all the while as he turned back to head off with Pony to wherever they were going. It was such a ballsy move Dallas wasn't even sure it had really happened, and by the time he did Johnny had grabbed onto the back of his jacket. Keeping a grip on the material in a feeble attempt to try and keep Dallas from doing something stupid like jump Ponyboy's friend right in front of him. But that didn't stop him from glaring at the boy, anyone who didn't have the right mind to stay on Dally's good side was clearly a bad influence, he just needed more information before he could do anything about it.

"I don't like him," Dally said eventually once the pair was out of sight, grumbling to himself as he pulled out another cigarette.

"You don't like anyone," Johnny pointed out, getting a snort from Dally as he lit up.

"True enough Johnnycakes, but still that guy. He just seems like bad news," Dally added, not that he was one to talk. But still he couldn't just let it go, a kid like that, who looked Dallas in the face without fear, likely did the same to a lot of other people. And if Pony was with him when he did, well, it wouldn't end well.

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"What do you all know about a Mark Jennings?" Dallas asked the gang as he and Johnny wandered into the Curtis house, the entire gang present except for Ponyboy. Steve, Soda, and Two-Bit were in the middle of a poker game and they could hear Darry in the kitchen no doubt trying to put something together for dinner that would feed seven people.

"Who?" Two-Bit asked, distracted by Dallas' question as Steve tried to take the opportunity to grab an ace out of his shoe only to be stopped by Soda who moved to try and snatch it.

Knowing from experience they were about to lose their attention to a wrestling match Johnny spoke up. "Pony's new friend," he said suddenly, gaining everyone's attention as even Darry glanced over from the kitchen.

"The kid has friends?" Steve quipped before he could stop himself, looking over at Soda who reached over to smack his arm at the comment.

"I don't know a Mark," Soda admitted, frowning at the idea of not knowing one of his little brother's friends. He could've sworn Pony told him everything and yet Mark Jennings was not a familiar name to him, "is he on his track team?"

"Or a soc or something? Why do you care who Ponyboy hangs with?" Two-Bit spoke up.

"I don't, but I figured you guys might. Especially considering Mark's brother is dating Angela Shepard, found that out from Tim," Dally admitted. He and Johnny had run into the older hood, more like Dally had hunted him down but he wasn't going to admit that, and asked him what he knew.

"Considering you're talking about it in the first place I take it that's not all you found out?" Two-Bit prodded. And Dally supposed that was fair, he'd be the last person to rat someone out on a normal day. If it was anyone else in the gang he still would've asked around, but he would've trusted them to take care of themselves. Except for Johnny, Johnny was his the way Pony was Soda and Darry's which meant anything he did Dally had to know or find out about. The instinct to protect flaring up more for him than anyone else, which is why he was telling the older Curtis brothers now so they could take this instinct from him to protect. So they could focus on making sure Ponyboy was making friends with the right kind of people and Dally could go back to not giving a shit.

"We met him today, and he wasn't scared of Dally," Johnny piped up. And Dally felt himself relax slightly as Johnny took the lead. He didn't want to tell them about what else they had found out from Tim. That Mark's family was a little short on cash at the moment and yet Mark was somehow paying off some of the bills. And while he could just as easily be betting or riding in rodeos on the side based on what Shepard had said it was more likely he was dealing. But until Dally knew for sure he didn't want to cause a panic. Pony was smart enough not to go along with this Mark kid to do a drop, but if his friend was carrying while they were hanging out together and got caught, it wouldn't matter whether Pony knew about it or not.

"That's it?" Steve spoke up once neither Johnny or Dally offered more, "some kid wasn't afraid of you?"

"You know how rare it is that someone isn't afraid of me?" Dallas pointed out, "I get it greasers think they're hot shit so they act tough. But are you really telling me the kind of person who isn't a little worried about being alone with me is the kind of person who hangs around a greaser like Ponyboy? The kid grabbed my cig, a move that a Brumly boy tried once and I broke his jaw just for the attempt. This kid was lucky Ponyboy was watching, but not every hood in Tulsa will play nice just because he's with Ponyboy. The kid is bad news."

"Okay, so we tell Ponyboy to be careful," Darrel spoke, coming out into the living room as he gave a look to the rest of the gang when it looked like they wanted to tease Dally some more about some kid getting the drop on him. And with the backing of Darry, Dally moved further into the house, Johnny at his side as the pair settled into the couch. Darry at least trusted his judgment on the kind of people to avoid, just because he interacted with the rougher gangs on the east side didn't mean the youngest of their group needed to pick up the habit. And while Mark wasn't quite as bad as the Brumly boys or the Tiber Street Tigers, Dally could recognize the route he was set to go on.

It was only a bit later that the door opened, gaining everyone's attention as Ponyboy wandered in, a smile on his face as he offered a wave behind him before he stepped inside. Coming to a stop when he noticed everyone's eyes on him. "Hey," he greeted, glancing around.

"Hey Pony," Soda greeted softly, unsure how to broach the subject without causing his brother to put his guard up.

"Whose Mark?" Darry asked, having no such hesitation.

Pony glanced between him and Dally, putting the dots together as he stepped further into the living room. Crossing his arms as he answered, "a friend."

"A friend we haven't heard of before?" Darry continued to prod.

"I have to tell you about every friend I make?" Pony spoke.

"When that friend is a greaser yes," Darry insisted.

Without missing a beat Ponyboy gestured to the room at large. Greasers were the only kind of people they hung out with enough to consider friends and he found it slightly ridiculous that Darry was holding him to a different standard when the entirety of their gang was made up of greasers.

"A greaser I don't know," Darry amended.

"We just want to know what's going on with you Pony that's all," Soda interjected, "who you hang out with and what your friends are like are a part of it. We don't need to know every person you talk to but when you hang out with someone often giving us a heads up would be nice," Soda interjected before Pony could start complaining about them treating him like a kid.

Instantly Pony seemed to soften, letting his shoulders drop down from where they had started to hike up as the glare disappeared off of his face as he gave Soda a soft expression. Showcasing just how different he treated Soda and Darry had to bite back the instinct to interject because it shouldn't take Soda's soft words to get an answer when Darry was his brother too.

"Mark's a friend," Pony repeated, "and yes he's a greaser but he's a good guy. I met him in school, he's in my history class and we hit it off."

"An actually good guy or greaser good?" Two-Bit asked, they all knew there was a difference.

"He's nice," Ponyboy insisted with a shrug, it was a non answer but probably the closest any of them were gonna get to one considering they had all but ganged up on him as soon as he got home. But Johnny was able to catch his gaze and something in his eyes got Pony to say more as he amended, "okay he's not nice nice, but he's greaser nice. He's nice to me."

And none of them could really refute that, outside of Ponyboy himself there really weren't any greasers who were truly nice, the way good people were nice. Soda would maybe fit that category but he still participated in drag races and swiped money from the socs if he thought he wouldn't get caught doing it. And Dally himself sure wasn't kind in any sense of the word, stealing from and beating up strangers just for the sake of it, but he could be decent to people he cared about. Could sometimes soften his edges just slightly for the gang, could make sure that neither Johnny or Pony would get cut on those edges when they leaned into him. So if the gang could be friends with someone like Dally then Pony having a friend who was similar was hardly anything they could complain about without sounding like hypocrites.

"I still think you should be careful around him Pony," Darry began, and the whole gang could see the way Ponyboy bristled at the implication he needed to be reminded to be careful, that he didn't know what was on the line if he ran with the wrong kind of people and the state caught wind of it, so he quickly tacked on, "you're a smart kid I just want to make sure you're using that head of yours."

"I can take care of myself," Ponyboy insisted, "Mark's a good guy, he's no worse than Curly is and I see them about the same amount. It ain't like I'm spending every day with him."

"We know, what Darry means to say is that he can't help but worry about you. And while we trust you know better than us the kind of people you're friends with, we just wanna make sure you're being cautious," Soda amended, and it had the desired effect as Pony' relaxed slightly now that Soda was playing mediator.

"I am cautious Soda," Ponyboy continued, "and I mean it when I say he's not that bad a guy once you get to know him. And he's even better when we're with Bryon, his brother's a good influence on him."

"Okay, then that's all we needed to know. Right Darrel?" Soda prodded, giving his older brother a meaningful look.

"Right," Darry says, though it's clear it was only Soda's prodding that has him dropping the subject as they let Ponyboy move further into the house now that the interrogation was over. Though he did ruffle the kid's hair as he passed and the action had Pony giving him a soft smile so surely that was it right? They gave him the message of being careful, Ponyboy promised he would be and with nothing to back up the idea that Mark was more dangerous than Dally was, or even close to it, there really was no reason to dwell on the subject any longer.