If the Heart is Always Searching... An Outsiders Fanfiction

Heartbreak

The ice cold sunscreen sends chills down my body as it hits against my warm skin. "Cold!" I shriek, trying to escape from Dallas.

"Get back here Jess. You’re the one that made me put it on you." He wraps his arms around my waist, and pulls me towards him. His head nuzzles into my neck, and places a sweet, innocent kiss on my cheek.

"You’re getting sun block all over my bathing suit." I remind him and pull away teasingly. Dallas rolls his eyes and continues rubbing the lotion on my back. He takes his good old time, adding a massage in the process.

"Are you guys gonna come into the water?" Ponyboy asks, breaking the moment between Dally and I. That’s when we notice Soda, Steve, and Two Bit already splashing around in the ocean. Darry is laying out a few beach towels, and Johnny and Ponyboy were sitting at a picnic table waiting for us.

I sigh and break away from Dally. "Yeah, we’re coming. Did you boys put on sunscreen? This heat is crazy!" Ponyboy rolls his eyes at my take on authority, but Sodapop had once revealed to me that he finds my motherly care comforting. I’m the closest female figure he has had in his life since his parents died. Ponyboy is just too embarrassed to admit it.

"Yeah, I made sure they put it on!" Darry shouts from our beach towels a few feet away. "And I thought the sun was bad in Tulsa..."

　

　

The sun was in fact much, much worse than anything I’ve experienced in Tulsa. Throughout the day I had only reapplied sunscreen twice, but considering my pale complexion and 100 degree heat, that was my mistake. By about three o’clock Sodapop had insisted on me wearing a white T-shirt of his overtop my bathing suit. My shoulder’s were apparently "redder than a tomato". After some time arguing, I gave into Sodapop’s puppy dog face. My sunburn did not get in the way of having a great day at the beach. We swam in the water, played volleyball in the sand, and Darry pulled out his guitar and played music.

The sun was setting when Dally and I decided to go for a walk on the beach. We walk for a while, playing around with eachother along the way. I mess up his hair, he throws a potato chip at me, and occasionally I give him a quick kiss. We reach a boardwalk and hide out underneath where the ocean is splashing against the rocks. Dallas leads me near the top of the rocks and we sit down.

"I’m thinking about getting a job." Dally says suddenly, staring out into the ocean. "At Bob’s Autoshop down the street form the DX station."

His news sends me into complete shock. "Really?" I ask in disbelief. He nods his head and grins. "That’s great Dally, I’m so proud of you!" I throw my arms around his neck, and pull him into a hug.

"I decided to try to make something of myself. Instead of stealing and being a bum all the time you know?" I laugh and nod my head. "I was also thinking that maybe I could move into your apartment and help pay rent. I’m getting sick of crashing on everyone’s couches and we are getting pretty serious now..." He trails off, waiting for an answer.

"I think that would be great Dal." I say quietly, leaning in to kiss his lips. I let my lips hover above his softly, but then roughly pull him into me seconds later. His hands graze my arms, then leads to my spine. I reach a hand to the back of his head, and try to pull him closer, even though there is no more distance between us. Although the sun is nearly set, the summer heat is still in the air, making our make out that much steamier.

　

***

The next Saturday hadn’t been as promising as the previous one; all the guys, including Dally were busy with either work. Steve was out of town, Two Bit was grounded, and Johnny was sick so Ponyboy is with him at his house. Deciding not to stay inside my apartment all day, I take a walk to the park at about six o’clock. The doctor had advised me not to be too exposed to the sun because of my severe sunburn.

At the fountain in the center of the park I see Sodapop sitting, with his hands covering his face. "Sodapop." I say, hoping he’d look up. Instead, he ignores me, not even acknowledging that anybody said his name. I walk up, and sit beside him. "Sodapop, it’s me, Jessica." Finally, he looks at me. His eyes are red and puffy, and tears are streaming down his face. "Soda, what’s wrong?" Without waiting for a response, I wrap my arms around him, and he rests his head on my shoulder.

"It- it’s Sandy." He whispers shakily.

"What about Sandy?" I ask worriedly "Is she sick?"

He hesitates before telling me. "She’s pregnant."

I break away from our embrace, in shock. "Pregnant?"

"Yes, pregnant." He says miserably. "And that’s not even the worst of it."

"What do you mean?"

He looks into my eyes, full of embarrassment. "It’s not mine. She cheated on me, that night I went home early from that party. How could she do that? I loved her, and I thought she loved me back... What did I do wrong?" He is now sobbing uncontrollably and unable to speak any longer.

I pull him back into a hug, in attempt to comfort him. "Soda, you didn’t do anything wrong. She did. Don’t blame yourself, please Soda it will be alright. I promise."

He shakes his head and pulls away from me. "No it won’t. She’s being sent to Florida to live with her grandmother. I’m never going to see her again-"

"And why would you want to?" I interrupt in disbelief.

"Because, I love her." He says innocently. "I was planning on asking her to marry me." Unable to think of anything else to say, we stare into each other’s eyes, silent.

"Did she leave yet?"

He nods his head and stands up. "Yeah, she met me here right before she left."

In my mind, I am cursing out Sandy. How could anybody hurt Sodapop like that? He did nothing but love her, and she broke his heart. Oh, if only she was still in Tulsa. I’d love to give her a piece of my mind...