#johnny cake

My class is busting my butt but I decided to take a break and write some fanfic. 

Warnings: Technically Two-Bit x Reader too so keep in mind. Reader is implied to be closer in age to Two-Bit. Angst. Mild language (one word). Reader and Two-Bit looking after Johnny and reader being out of their element. 

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Side note, I wanted to include my other Two-Bit short fic links here: 

“I want Cakes” - technically not a Two-Bit fic, but where the nickname came from 

Fried Lions - Ms. Mathews introduces you to the magic of fried lions 

Special Kind of Sick - Two-Bit helps you when you’re feeling down 

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Johnny was quite small when you met him for the first time. You had come over to Two-bit’s to play and spend the night as you had done many a time before. Yes, it required helping look after his baby sister (“Sissy” he called her) but it was a little less rowdy than going over to Darry’s and dealing with his two brothers. At least it was for now, now that Sissy just kind of played or slept and Two-bit took care of diapers. 

Tonight you got dropped off and to your immense relief your parents accepted Two-Bit opening the door and letting you in instead of looking around for his mother. Ms. Mathews was probably working again and you knew they’d object if they realized you were being left alone virtually unsupervised. The home was all set up for the sleepover with snacks laid out and Sissy in her playpen in the living room. 

You did, however, freeze when you saw another kid there. He was curled up on the floor making himself look small, as if he already didn’t look a lot younger than he was. You thought maybe Two-Bit picked up a really little kid or was put in charge of him for some reason but he sure didn’t look familiar and he avoided looking at you. “Hi,” you said since you weren’t sure what else to say and the kid didn’t say anything back. 

“Oh, that’s Johnny,” Two-Bit said. “Don’t worry, he’s a real chatty Cathy.” he teased and laughed his usual laugh. You eased up figuring this was just some kid Two-Bit or his mom picked up and so he had a reason to be here. Your kid brain really hadn’t figured out what was going on just yet. 

That first sleepover Johnny didn’t say a word really but you made an effort to make sure he had his share of the snacks and you tried to include him even if he mostly kind of sat there. When Ms. Mathews came home she greeted him so you just thought maybe he was one of Two-Bit’s friends you just hadn’t met yet. He just seemed awfully shy.

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Turns out there was a lot more to Johnny although you could’ve guessed as much. More and more, he kinda just became another kid that you would spend time with when you were with your other friends. It took time before you found out information like how he was around Sodapop and Steve’s age, just a tad younger, how he lived near the Curtis’ but no one ever really went over there (Two-Bit just called them a curse word you didn’t know yet when you asked). 

And there were the other things. He sometimes flinched when Sissy opened her mouth and shrieked. Ponyboy liked to make a game of jumping on people, especially Darry, and trying to wrestle them, until he figured out very quickly Johnny did not like that. Johnny was really good at finding things you’d set down and couldn’t find for the life of ya. 

Johnny liked having the television on even when it got late and the only thing on was static, but, just like many things, he wouldn’t say anything if you turned it off, if you did something he didn’t like. It took a bit of trial and error for you to pick up on the smallest tells, the slightest twitch or how he just seemed a little lighter when there was a little, but not too much, of anything, controlled. 

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“We should tell someone,” you said in your innocence, in your obliviousness to the situation. 

Johnny was staying over at the Mathews house and so were you, except Two-Bit was calmly helping Johnny with a big black eye. 

Two-Bit paused and looked at you with such a withering look you found yourself shrinking. Suddenly you didn’t feel so hot, cut off as you were from your rant by Two-Bit of all people looking at you like you’re an idiot. 

“And what’ll that do?” He challenged, and you found yourself unable to respond. 

There was a divide here, something you didn’t fully understand, and you were only just now made aware of it. Two-bit was drawing a line with you on one side and him and Johnny on the other. And why wouldn’t they? They were dealing with something familiar, something both of them had dealt with to some degree, something you couldn’t even imagine. You stood there, helpless, and Two-bit acting uncharacteristically harsh was particularly disarming. 

“Exactly.” Two-Bit said. “Who are you going to tell? They won’t do shit.” 

Johnny looked down and you felt that divide even more poignantly. They were speaking from experience here, and you had no idea how to comfort them and make it right. You couldn’t. 

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You hadn’t said a word to Two-bit since that remark. Instead you found yourself sulking near where Sissy was playing with her toys. You kept Two-Bit and Johnny in your peripheral view though. On some level, you wanted to know what to do next time. If. When. 

Even when Two-Bit finished best he could he sat on the couch with Johnny and the two ‘watched’ the television in silence. None of you seemed to know what to do and the thought hit your young and perhaps a tad dramatic brain that things were broken forever now. You were curled up trying to comfort yourself through the prospect and really, really trying not to cry. 

Of course that was when Ms. Mathews came home. She took one look and said, “Come on now, whatever you three are fighting about isn’t worth this. Why are you over there moping, hm, Cakes?” 

You didn’t mind so much when Ms. Mathews used the nickname, probably because she had no way of knowing the embarrassing story behind it (unless Two-Bit was suddenly saying something other than what he promised he would say). 

“I was mean to ‘em.” Two-Bit said in too genuine a voice to be teasing and you blinked in surprise. 

“Keith.” Ms. Mathews shook her head. “Whatever you did you better apologize and make it up to them.” 

“I will and I am sorry, Cakes.” Two-Bit said and got up from the couch to come over to you. You two awkwardly hugged it out enough to satisfy his mother and she went to go get ready for bed. 

“You didn’t have to just say that,” you said once you were sure she wouldn’t hear. 

* He was scared whenever he gave Dally a friendship bracelet. He was surprised whenever Dallas actually squealed.

* One time, he found a stray cat on the. He wanted to keep it, but since he couldn’t, he would feed it everyday until he ran away one day.

* He almost went the whole day without eating, but Darry forced him to eat something.

* Pony once gave him a book. He read the only thing and left little sticky notes on the pages that he liked. Afterwards, he let Pony yap to him about those pages/the book in general.

* He accidentally stole an alcoholic beverage from Dally and drank the whole thing. He had the worst hangover after that.

* He once left his jacket at the Curtis household and freaked out about it. Pony gave it back to him the next day. He was very thankful to say the least.