Ponyboy's Journey
    At the punch  table , Pony boy looks across the table and sees a familiar face. Cherry. Cherry looks up, then spots him. Ponyboy  waves and  walks over.
    "I haven't seen you for a while."
   Cherry is still surprised .
    "Oh, hi Pony Boy. I think we need to talk. Right now. Follow me." She walks outside, and Ponyboy follows."I still can't believe that Bob is dead. he was a good person, but he's dead still. And he always will be."
    "Johnny was a good person, too. It wasn't his fault. he was scared at first, like I was. I was scared when I first jumped and scared when Bob died. But I'm not anymore i'm going to stay golden."
    "What?" asks Cherry, puzzled.
    "Stay golden. It's what Johnny said before he died. he wasn't afraid to die then, in the end. I'm going to be brave, like Johnny. Before Johnny had the gang, he was afraid and when he was alone on the street he was afraid. But, when he was with the gang felt safe. He knew that they would protect him, adn anyone else in the gang."
    "The Socs stand up for each other too, you know, Ponyboy. They would die for each other, if they knew each other for long enough. They had feelings, they just hid them very well. The only feelings they did reveal were anger, and respect, because that was considered cool amongst them. They cared about more than themselves, even if it didn't seem like it."

“Our friendship was like a magnetic bond, it kept us together, even if it meant being arrested or sacrificing something important. The gang was always the most important. What kept us together helped us to get by the daily problems, like safety in numbers. It still keeps the remaining members together today. After Johnny and Dally died, my whole world was a dream, until I graduated from high school. I wasn’t scared, and the urgency to do well disappeared. ”

“That happened to me too, after Bob died. I drifted in and out of reality, until my report card woke me up. I realized that life was still going on, even if wasn’t a part of it anymore. I thought about everything that happened, how I was an oblivious teenager, one of many. Then, I stopped and looked at both side’s cases, I remembered how I ceased to be a Soc, and was just in the middle of an endless battle between the two social classes.”

“I also felt like that. Before, I thought the Socs were just evil, and we were fighting because of that. There was good and bad on both sides, us stealing and the Socs instigating fights. But we responded, and took it personally, while the Socs thought it was just a fun thing to do. But, I saw that both of us were in the middle and wanted all the fighting to stop, because it was so pointless. The fighting did stop, but it cost the lives of three people that were good at heart. It was a high price, but now, hopefully, there will be no further fights, and killing.”

“It was nice to talk to you, Pony Boy. I wanted to get that out for a long time, but it hurt and embarrassed me too much to talk to my other friends about it. They wouldn’t understand, they didn’t have to go through it like you and I did. ”

“Thanks, Cherry, I feel netter now that I got it out.”

“I do too. Good-bye, Pony Boy. You’re a real friend.”

“You are too, Cherry. Bye. ”