𝐇𝐔𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐑. ( 𝘫𝘰𝘩𝘯𝘯𝘺𝘣𝘰𝘺 )

TWENTY-TWO.

JANUARY 19TH, 2019. (SATURDAY)

Johnny was laying on the couch comfortably. humming softly as Ponyboy ran his fingers through his hair gently. Ever since he had gotten out of the hospital, both boys had been relaxing like they both seemed to need (Johnny more so than Ponyboy). It seemed that neither teenager could get a break until now.

The auburn-headed teen laying next to his lover and hums softly before sighing softly in content. He just loved seeing his lover so relaxed and comfortable seeming. It was nice to see a smile on his face and no bruises rather than his beaten-down expression and blood-caked face. Johnny was definitely safer in the Curtis house than in his own home.

"Johnny?" Ponyboy murmurs gently, his voice seeming to barely graze over a whisper.

His lover only seemed to hum in response. obviously tired from the beating he took a few days prior and then his stay in the hospital. It was understandable for Johnny to be so exhausted. Ponyboy would be tired himself, not wanting to get up to do anything besides maybe eat and go to the bathroom.

"I know we're supposed to be resting, well, you anyway but I was wondering if you wanted to go to the DX," Ponyboy says gently. "We can get you something to drink and see how Soda and Steve are doing. But, we don't have to go anywhere if you really don't want to. I'll understand it. I would be super tired and all too, you know? You took quite the beating and need to rest for a long ti-."

"We can go," Johnny says, quickly cutting off his lover. He didn't want to seem rude in doing so but he was starting to ramble and it was quite obvious that he was getting nervous. "Let's just get our shoes on and we can head out, honest. I might just need sunglasses or something. The doctor said light might bother my eyes."

Ponyboy quickly nods his head a little and gets up, being mindful of Johnny's injuries. The last thing he wanted to do was get him hurt when he was already healing from previous situations. The auburn-haired teen hums softly and walks to the door, slipping on his Converse before going to his bedroom.

He finds an old pair of sunglasses and hums, cleaning the dust from the lenses before walking back downstairs. Johnny was already up and putting on his shoes carefully. His lover seemed to be moving okay. That was a good sign.

Johnny turns to face Ponyboy after slipping on his shoes. smiling gently at him. The younger teen smiles softly in return before humming softly. He playfully puts the sunglasses onto his face, gently pushing them up the bridge of his nose before leaning in to kiss him softly.

The sixteen-year-old kisses him back softly and hums against his lips before pulling away. He feels butterflies swarm in his tummy, laughing softly as he looked back into his lover's eyes. They were so in love, at least that's what they felt like. Whether it was meant to be or not, only time could tell. But for now, they were okay with what they had.

"You ready to go?" Johnny murmurs gently.

"Yeah, I'm ready."

The teens make their way out of the front door, hands slowly clasping together while fingers intertwine. The shorter yet older of the two leans his head against his lover's shoulder. humming gently. Walking to the DX would only take maybe ten minutes if they kept a constant pace. Which, they were pretty good at.

After walking for a little bit, both teens spot the DX in the distance. Johnny playfully pulls his lover to the front door, pushing it open and holding it for him. His lover kisses his cheeks and walks inside, smiling so wide that Johnny thought the sun was put to shame.

As they walk inside, they see Soda behind the counter, Dallas standing next to him with a firm grip around his waist. Johnny laughs gently and walks to the front counter with Ponyboy, playfully leaning over the counter.

Soda grins at them and laughs softly. He leans into Dallas who only smiled in response, pressing a loving kiss to the side of his head. The blonde loved his boyfriend very much. It was honestly surprising how they even got together in the first place. The two of them didn't seem very compatible.

Johnny and Ponyboy were happy for them nonetheless.

"How's your shift going?" Ponyboy asks, wrapping an arm around Johnny to keep him close and happy. Johnny melts into his touch and hums softly. "It seems to be good."

"It's going good," Soda replies happily. "Dally came to visit me cause it's been slow today. No cars to fix and no one seems to need gas today. No drinks or snacks either. I only had a group here this morning and that was it. I swear we're going to go out of business soon. No one wants to hire a high school dropout."

"Soda, don't worry your pretty little head about it," Dallas says. "This place isn't going to go out of business and if it does, someone will hire you. I just know it."

Soda leans into his blonde boyfriend and takes a deep breath. It was really nice to have someone comforting him so often. He enjoyed having the reassurance that he would be okay and nothing would really happen. At least nothing bad anyway. Soda tended to be a worrywart.

"Yeah, nothing bad is going to happen to this place," Ponyboy reassures. "I promise. The gang comes in here all the time and buys things. Johnny and I actually came to check on you guys and get a drink. We'll pay and everything."

Soda smiles gently.

"Alright, you two," Soda starts. "I'll ring up two drinks and you guys can just pay before you leave today. I know you guys are gonna be sticking around for a little bit anyway."

Johnny nods his head.

"So, where's Steve?" Johnny asks. "He usually would have come out by now to say something."

"Oh, he's in the garage," Soda says. "You guys can go say hi if you want to."

Ponyboy nods his head and takes Johnny to the garage. Before either of them could say anything, their eyes widened at the sight. There Steve was, sucking faces with what seemed was a blonde boy. It was surprising, to say the least.

"Uh, Steve?" Johnny questions.

At hearing Johnny's voice, Steve pulls away from the blonde who was now bright red in the face. The blonde seems to hide himself behind Steve's taller and more muscular frame. Even Steve seemed to be blushing up a storm. It was odd to see him so red-faced.

"Geez, you guys scared me," Steve says. "What... What are you guys doing here?"

"Well, we came to visit," Ponyboy says. "But now we're here to listen to a story because I'm very curious about who this boy is and why you've never introduced us to him before."

"Technically Soda knows who he is," Steve mutters before raising his voice a little. "I guess now is a better time than any to tell at least most of you."

Everyone made their way out of the garage and to the front where Soda was already laughing. He knew Steve had finally gotten caught kissing the blonde.

And after Steve, explained, everyone seemed happy.

Steve had a boyfriend just like most of the gang. His name was Elijah who actually went to school with them all (minus Soda).

It was a good day.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

Word Count; 1,286

How was this?

Im so very sorry for the lack of updates. School has been a lot and my home situations have been quite stressful on me. But, I got a laptop for Christmas ( which is what I typed this entire chapter on ) so hopefully more updates will come faster. Im used to writing on a laptop now which is weird but Im so excited.

I hope you've enjoyed this update and I hope you guys can stick along for a little longer. Im on Christmas break and I hope you guys still enjoy this story. It's been a long time for updates but hopefully, this is worth it.

Merry Christmas and I love you guys so much ♥