The Outsiders Imagines, Preferences and One Shots

Ponyboy Imagine

A/N: Requested for @ponygirlcurtis722! Sorry this took so long, Emily! Hope you like it, though! Let me know.

Pony's POV:

"You ready, Emily?" I ask my girlfriend. We're just about to go into Johnny and Dally's funeral. My two best friends funeral... This is going to be tough.

"Yeah. Are you going to be ok?" She asks. I nod, but on the inside I'm scared to death. What if I break down? I have to be strong for Emily, she and Johnny were so close.

As soon as we walk in I'm hit with a memory of Johnny and I in the church. I'm crying about something and he's comforting me. He was just an amazing friend like that.

Then I have another flashback. This time it's us finding Johnny right after he was beat up real bad that one time. Immediately, tears spring into my eyes, but I try to blink them away. Emily notices, though and reaches down to squeeze my hand. I smile at her and she kisses my cheek.

"You sure you'll be ok?" She asks me. And suddenly I remember Dally driving Johnny and I to Dairy Queen like a maniac and smile. I nod at her.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. You?" I ask her. She gives me a sad smile.

"I... I don't know. I think so," She says. But that's when I have a flashback to the day I asked Emily out.

"Oh, come on Ponyboy! She's really cool. Why don't you try asking her? Just one date?" A 13 year old Johnny had asked. He and Emily had been close friends for years, and he had just introduced us for the first time a few days before. That was 3 years ago. I had told him the day before that I thought she was pretty, and he had been trying to get me to ask Emily out ever since then.

"Fine!" I had exclaimed, exasperated. That was when Emily walked in, though.

"Fine, what?" Emily asked. I felt my ears turning red, and she giggled when she noticed. Johnny nudged me and whispered for me to ask her. That's when I did it.

"Hey, Emily? I know we don't know each other too well, but do you wanna... go out some time?" I asked her. The smile she gave me brightened her entire face.

"Really, Pony?" She asked. I nodded at her.

"Well... Then yeah," She says. And we've been dating ever since then, from the time we were 11, until now, we're 14. All because of Johnny.

After that flashback, I don't really know how to react, but I know how thankful I am for Johnny. That's when I get sad again. Realizing that he's gone.... I take a deep breath before saying something.

"Emily, I don't think I can do this." I tug at the sleeve of my tux. Maybe I thought I could at first, but I can't. I'm scared. How am I going to react when I see my two best friends dead, lifeless bodies laying right in front of me? Emily gives me a sad smile before hugging me and burying her face in my chest.

"I know, Ponyboy. It's gonna be hard... But we can do this. Together, right?" I nod.

"Together." And then we go over to the casket, hand in hand. Emily bites her lip in effort not to start crying, but a few tears stream down her cheeks. I pull her into my arms, stroking her hair.

"Shh," I whisper, trying to calm my girlfriend down.

"They just look so... lifeless, Pony. I can't handle it," She says. And somehow I can. Maybe it's because I already saw Johnny like this, maybe it's because I watched Dally get shot... It just isn't that hard for me to see them now. I feel almost completely unfeeling about it. Yeah, I miss them both more than anything, but I'm more worried about Emily.

Finally she stops crying, and we're able to say our goodbyes. It was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. I take a deep breath as I walk away. That's the last time I'll ever be able to see either of them...

"So this is it for them, Pony. Forever," She says, her voice quivering once again.

"Yeah, I guess so..." I whisper, hugging her once again.

"I just don't know what I'm gonna do without him," She tells me as I wipe her tears.

"I know, Em. I don't know either." Then we both break down. We run away from the coffins and into the lobby of the funeral home, both crying our eyes out. Emily lays her head on my shoulder, and I try to comfort her the best I can.

"I love you, Emily," I whisper, leaning in to kiss her. Right then I realized: Johnny and Dally are gone for good, but Emily will always be there when I need someone to make me feel better. And I'll always be there for her.