The Outcasts

Chapter Ten

"What's a rumble?" I asked.

"Big fight," Steve said.

"Oh."

"No worries," Two-Bit grinned, seeing my troubled look. "You're good in a fight. You've already proved that."

I decided to keep the fact that I hated fighting to myself. It wouldn't help me if they found out I was mostly a chicken when it came to pain. Sure, I liked watching fights in movies and such. Who didn't? I just didn't like being part of that action. I've seen firsthand what the after math of these occasions were.

I just shrugged and grabbed my Coke that I had left on the coffee table. "Hey, Darry. Got any aspirins?" I asked him, my head pounding. I didn't know what it was about this place, but I always had a horrific headache.

Darry disappeared and came back with two in his hand. I smiled a weak thanks and popped them into my mouth, chugging my soda to help them go down. I remembered how Star had always been able to swallow pills, ever since she was real little. I was always kind of upset about that, since I hadn't started swallowing pills until I was about eight or nine. It wasn't that I wasn't allowed to, I just never could get the pill all the way down.

"You look tired," Soda commented.

I yawned in spite of myself and shook my head. "Nah, not tired."

"Sure," Soda dropped it, but he didn't stop glancing at me every few minutes.

We spent the rest of the day just hanging out. Some of Pony's friends came by and Pony left with them. Steve and Soda got in an arm wresting contest, with Two-Bit the referee. Darry went into his room to take a nap. I didn't know how he managed it, what with the TV blasting and the radio on full volume. It wasn't exactly helping my head.

I smiled as Soda jumped up, winner. Steve scowled and tackled him. Two-Bit hurried out of the way as the two wrestled, rolling all over the floor. I had to jump onto the couch to avoid getting hit.

Steve's elbow hit the leg of a side table, and the blue lamp sitting on top wobbled and fell. It clashed to the ground, breaking into a few thousand pieces. Everybody got silent as we stared at the lamp.

"What's going on in here?" Darry demanded, walking in the living room. He was clad in only blue jeans. He looked at the lamp and turned his attention to Steve and Soda. "Which one of you did this?"

"Aw, calm down, Superman," Steve joked, standing up. "It was an accident."

"Accident nothing," Darry scoffed, glaring at him. "Pick up the pieces and throw them out. We don't need anyone cutting themselves."

Steve opened his mouth to reply when Pony came running in the front door. A boy came crashing in after him. They were both laughing.

"Hey!" Darry shouted. Both boys froze. Darry looked at the boy. "Curly? What are you doing here?"

Curly smirked. "Got off for good behavior."

Pony tugged Curly's shirt, and the both of them walked into the kitchen, more calmly than when they had came in. Soda turned off the TV and Steve turned down the radio. It got real quiet real fast. For some reason, I didn't like it one bit.

I didn't bother asking who this Curly fellow was. He looked about mine and Pony's age. He was a friend of his, never to be one of mine. He just had the look of a hoodlum. I didn't trust him.

I motioned to Two-Bit that I was going outside, and he nodded. I think we were all afraid of saying anything, with Darry looking seriously ticked off. I tiptoed outside and stood on the porch. I took in the setting sun, the air a little warmer than the past few days. I didn't get that, since the cooler seasons were just a few weeks away. This state sure did mess with my mind a lot.