Come Down From Your Fences

Chapter 39

Notes - The character of Cathy who is introduced in this chapter, is Cathy from That Was Then, This is Now

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"Trash takes the side entrance. You boys know that." The body blocking the ramp was joined by three more.

The arrogant, privileged voice was at odds with the jeans and tennis shoes they were all wearing. Of course their jeans and sneakers were in pristine condition, not a speck of dirt or a smudge of oil anywhere to be seen. Pony told him the Socs were starting to dress more like greasers every day. He wouldn't have believed him if he didn't have the evidence standing in front of him, blocking the only entrance the school had with wheelchair access.

His hands gripped the wheels of his chair, the rims digging into his palms. He tried to keep his face blank, not let his panic show. And boy did he feel panicked, it washed over him, stealing his breath. He hadn't felt like that in a long time. It was like the Martins had created some sort of bubble around him, a bubble where he could forget about things like Socs and getting jumped and worrying about what lurked behind every corner.

It would be so easy to just turn around, to escape. No one would say anything, no one would call him a coward. At least not to his face.

He wished he could say something. Make a witty reply to show those guys that what they said didn't matter to him, that he never gave them a second thought. But his voice was paralyzed, caught in his throat. If he tried to talk, he'd probably stutter and stumble over his words, making a fool out of himself.

"Well, don't let us keep you, then. The door's right over there. If ya hurry, you might make it before the garbage truck shows up." Two-Bit, Johnny thought as he tried to not let his relief show. Leave it to Two-Bit to know just what to say.

Ponyboy was also there, standing next to him, but so far he'd kept his mouth shut. Johnny wasn't sure, but it seemed like Pony had stopped breathing altogether and his back was ramrod straight. He was just as scared as he was. They'd expected a run-in, they just figured it wouldn't happen before they even made it through the front door.

"You think you're funny?" the one Soc asked Two-Bit as another made a show of cracking his knuckles.

"Nah, I know I'm funny. You guys, however, aren't - just in case we weren't clear on that," Two-Bit said as he took a step forward, coming out from behind Johnny's chair. Johnny watched as Two-Bit slowly dragged his hand around to his back, hovering above his pocket. The threat was wordless, but there was no doubting what the gesture meant. Not again, was all Johnny could think as he watched Two-Bit's hand inch closer to the switchblade he kept in his pocket.

It was a new one, meant to replace the one Dally lost to the cops the night of the shooting. Two-Bit had shown it to him and Pony just the other day, bragging about snatching it from right under old man Fry's nose while his back was turned at the corner store. Johnny pretended to be in awe, told him it was cool, but the sight of that blade caused his heart to pound in his chest. He just wanted all the fighting to be over, for them to live like normal kids with normal problems.

"Is something going on here?"

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Being rescued by Principal Clark was not exactly something Johnny would label as cool. Far from it, actually. But it got him into the building without a war breaking out, so he supposed he should be grateful for that. After the Socs walked off, snickering to one another, Clark turned to them and had the nerve to tell them that any other incidents and he would seriously consider pulling Johnny out of school. It was like the other guys didn't even exist.