BACK AND FORTH (𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘣𝘰𝘺)

ten

The two boys sat underneath a tree silently. Now that Ponyboy knew he could ask anything he wanted, his mind was drawing a blank. He didn't know what a good question was, or how to ask it. He sighed and glanced up at Steve, who was messing with a few blades of grass. "Why don't you just tell me something about you that I don't know? I can't think of anything to ask."

Steve looked up and nodded slightly. "Okay.." he thought for a second. "Um...Most of the time, when I don't sleep on the couch at your house, I just sleep in my car."

"What..?" Ponyboy said in confusion. "Why would you do that? You know we never mind if anyone sleeps on the couch."

"I know that, but I don't wanna take anymore from you guys. I basically live there during the day. I don't need to be taking up space at night when someone else might need it. And..I ain't gonna sleep in my dads house. He'd kill me or something."

"Kill you?"

"Probably. He hurts me enough during the day."

"Is he..is he as bad as Johnnycakes folks were?" Pony swallowed, hoping that the answer would be no.

Steve shrugged. "I don't know. About the same I guess. Johnny and I used to talk about that. Sometimes he'd visit me at night before I started sleeping in my car and we'd talk. We'd talk all night and fall asleep in the morning." He sighed lightly. "I ain't ever shown anyone this besides Johnny, but I guess I can show you." Slowly, he began lifting up his shirt, and he turned around. There were many, many scars that littered his back, and the sight almost made Pony want to cry.

"Oh my Gosh.." he whispered. "Your dad did this?"

"Yeah, but I'm used to it by now don't worry. I can take it."

  Ponyboy bit his lip and balled up his fists.  Thinking about any parent who ever hit their child always made him a wreck. It just wasn't right. "We can change the subject."

  "Okay. Can I ask you something?" Steve laid down with his hand behind his head. "Would you ever want to be famous?"

  Ponyboy raises an eyebrow, surprised from the sudden mood change in his question. "How come?"

"Just wondering. I wouldn't want to. I doubt I could handle all the people and stuff. I'd freak out and like, die."

Pony laughed. "I think I'd want to." He said. "Maybe a famous author or something. I could help Darry with bills and stuff, and maybe try to pay for him to go to college."

  Steve chuckled. "That's one thing I like about you, y'know? You're always thinking about your family."

"I want the best for them.." he said softly. In all honesty, he was surprised that Steve had admitted what he said. He didn't really expect him to share that, and he hadn't thought to ask about it either. He was surprised that Steve liked him, but he never wondered why, until now. "Why do you like me?" He blurted our after an awkward silence. "You only told me that you've liked me for a while, but you never told me why."

Steve concentrated on the few stars that he could see between the tree branches. "That's a whole lot to explain."

"We've got all night." Pony threw back.

"I guess you're right." He said and sat up slowly. "I guess I first started noticing you when you were around eleven or twelve, I was like thirteen. What happened was, you had drawn a picture for me. I still have it, it's hanging in my wall. The picture of my dream car, you remember drawing it?"

"I remember.." Ponyboy nodded.

"I had been looking over your shoulder while you were drawing something else, and I think I maybe complimented it? I can't remember. Anyways, you just looked up with your wide green eyes-"

"Greenish-gray."

"Quit interrupting while I'm pouring my heart out, idiot." Steve snapped, which only made Pony laugh. He didn't mind his temper so much now. It let him know that it was still Steve. Under all the feelings and mushiness, it was still 'ol hot headed and cocky Steve Randle. "You looked up with those big eyes and asked if I wanted you to draw me something. I was caught off guard I guess, because I started fumbling over my words. I don't even think I said yes, but you drew me a picture anyway. And not just any picture, it was my dream car, and I was so touched that you had taken the time to do something for me, I stopped hating you. I liked you like a little brother."

Now that Steve had said that, Ponyboy could vaguely remember a time when they got along pretty well. It only lasted for maybe a month, but he could remember it. "What changed?"

"You did." Steve answered. "You got older and smarter and more sensitive, but in a good way. You weren't like the rest of us; everyone could see that even back when you were thirteen. I remember that one day there was this poem you'd written for school. You read it to Darry while Soda and I were in the room, and that was when I really understood the complexity of your brain and how emotional you were, and I guess I just sorta, began liking you?. I hated myself for liking you in that way though, so I hated you because I liked you. And then when you were fourteen, a little bit before the whole church incident..I realized that I could never get you out of my head, and that I didn't really hate you. But I was so scared that I'd do something about my feelings, that I just pretended to hate everything about you, when in reality I secretly longed to be something, even if it was just friends." Steve finally finished his story.

"I don't think you've ever said that much to me at one time." Was all Pony said. He felt bad, after seeing the disappointment in his eyes. He was sure that Steve was expecting a bigger reaction, but Ponyboy couldn't think of anything to say. He was even more shocked, but at the same time extremely flattered. Steve had a lot more emotions than he had thought.

Pony glanced over at Steve before scooting towards him a little bit. He bit his lip and scooted all the way over until his arms was up against Steve's. The older teen smiled down at him and wrapped his arm around Pony's shoulder.

Ponyboy sighed happily and rested his head in the crook of Steve's, feeling over the moon. His stomach had butterflies, and he couldn't believe that he had felt like this after just one story.

"Stars sure are pretty tonight." Steve said quietly, while looking up through the branches again.

"Yeah," but for once in his life, Pony wasn't looking at the stars.

He was looking at Steve.

Hi I am very proud of this chapter thank you..