Miss Marley |The Outsiders|

13. Big Plans

"C'mon Johnnycake, there's gotta be something you want for your birthday," Sodapop teased while he slathered his scrambled eggs in jelly. "Yeah," Two-Bit agreed, "you only turn seventeen once."

It was a quiet Monday morning, the kind that caused you to lose a sense of time as you stared out the window and watched the morning sun and its colours bleed out into the sky. Darry stood in front of the sink, scrubbing the dishes while Johnny continued to assure his friends he needed nothing for his birthday. Unbeknownst to him, Marley was leaning against the doorframe, listening with her eyes closed. "I gotta agree with Two-Bit," she said softly. "Turnin' seventeen ain't no joke."

Darry turned to face her slowly and Johnny's ears turned as red at Two-Bit's hair. Before either could say anything, the man himself spoke up. He pulled his arm from around Johnny's thin shoulders and stood beside Marley before reaching into his pocket. "Well well well, if it ain't little miss Marley-"

"I said if you ever called me that again, I'd cut off your sideburns-"

"-Welcome back to the land of the living! How're ya feelin'? Any aches, pains, shakes and or shivers?" Still trying to shake weariness from her mind, Marley had no chance to bat the boy's hand away before he held it against her cheek. "Hm," he hummed proudly, "no fever, either. You're lookin' fit as a fiddle to me."

Ever since Saturday night, the gang had been keeping an extra close eye on the girl in front of them. Unfortunately, Two-Bit seemed the most motherly of them all. Having helped raise his little sister, the greaser seemed to think he was the perfect teacher for all things related, even if both Darry and Marley remembered the days Momma was on bed rest. 

"I'm feelin' fine, Two, honest," she mumbled. Marley tucked wisps of hair behind her ears as she made her way over to the sink and her brother. To the side, thin tendrils of silver steam were rising from the kettle, carrying the scent of coffee through the kitchen. Before she even had a chance to find a mug, Darry's voice froze her in her tracks, "don't even think about it."

Sodapop nodded as he shovelled the last of his eggs in his mouth. "Yeah Marle, coffee ain't supposed to be good for the baby."

She had enough sense to turn away before her face contorted. Sodapop, Johnny, Ponyboy and occasionally Two-Bit were the only ones to refer to it as a baby. Dally commonly pointed at her stomach as he lit a cigarette, "must suck, not being able to smoke because of it." Darry and Steve tried to avoid the subject altogether.

 For Marley, the slow-growing cells inside her were just a reminder of her mistake. Ever since Saturday, she spent most nights lying awake until the early hours of the morning racking her brains. Usually, when she couldn't sleep, she'd tiptoe out into the kitchen and watch the twinkling stars from the front porch. Over the past few months, it was a habit she'd grown out of. On nights like those, she could still feel Jamie's arm tossed over her body and his heart beating against her back.

The last few nights also came with a few nightmares, but she had always been a fairly quiet crier. They usually consisted of Jamie, his car driving up the road and tearing her from her bed. Sometimes the gang was there, watching and letting it happen. Other times she saw their disgusted faces when she admitted she had no intention of becoming a mother.

"The baby," she snarled, "is the same size as a grain of rice. One cup of coffee ain't gonna give it three eyes and six hands!" That's when the floorboards creaked and Ponyboy joined the gang in the kitchen, textbooks tucked under his arm. Seizing his opportunity, Darry's large hand rested on his sister's lightly. "How've been sleepin'?"

Marley twisted under his grip. An old, unconscious habit from the days they fought amongst themselves. His eyes she once thought were cold and distant swam with concern as he risked the slightest smile. "Pony's had some nightmares before, too. There's nothin' you gotta be ashamed of-"