Most scenes together: Johnny Cade & Ponyboy (4)
Nature's first green is gold / Her hardest hue to hold / Her early leaf's a flower / But only so an hour / Then leaf subsides to leaf / So Eden sank to grief / So dawn goes down to day / Nothing gold can stay.
Robert Frost wrote it. I always remembered it because I never quite knew what he meant by it.
I-I...I killed him...I killed that boy... [turns to Ponyboy] I killed him...
Go ahead, man. I ain't - I ain't gonna look at you. I ain't gonna look at you. [Ponyboy pukes off the side of the merry-go-round and sits on it to recover; walks by Bob's body and over to Ponyboy to aid him] Pony, you alright?
You really did kill him, huh, Johnny?
Yeah. I had to. They-They were drowning you. They-They might've killed you. They were gonna beat me up. [buries his switchblade into the ground]
What happened to the other guys?
Huh? They-They all ran. They all ran off when I stabbed him. They all ran.
Some cute redhead, huh? [leans forward and into Cherry's ear] Are you a reeaal red? [she giggles slightly, but keeps her eyes on the movie] Are you real? How can I find out if this is your real red hair? If this is the same red hair that you have on your...your... [motioning to her skirt, then quickly to her face] ...these eyebrows. [sits back and laughs]
Cherry Get your feet off my chair and shut your trap.
Who's gonna make me, huh? [rolls his eyes] Who, your boyfriend?
Cherry You'd better leave us alone, or I'll call the cops.
Oh, my, my! You've got me scared to death. What am I gonna do now, Pony? This girl's making me shake.
Cherry Can't you just leave us alone? Be nice and leave us alone?
I'm never nice. [sitting up next to her again] Can I interest you in a Coca-Cola, or a...
Cherry Get lost, hood!
Wow, I'm sorry, I didn't know you had this problem with...yelling in my face. [stands up] Alright, I'll go. I know when I'm not wanted. Here, I thought this might cool you off. [hands Cherry a coke and sits right next to her]
Cherry Maybe that'll cool YOU off, Greaser...when you learn to talk and act decent, then maybe I'll cool off too.
Firey, huh? Just the way I like them!
Cherry GET OFF OF ME!
Come on...
What'd you say? What'd you say, you little shit? What'd you say to me?
Come on...
Wiseass! [seconds later, he gets up and leaves]
Cherry Thank you...he had me scared to death!
You sure didn't show it. Ain't nobody ever talk to Dal like that!
Cherry From what I saw, you do.
Act like you got hurt.
Where's the fire?
Is he hurt bad?
How should I know? I ain't no doc. [the cop walks away] Sucker. [the cop rides on his motorcycle while leading them to the hospital; to Ponyboy] I was crazy, you know that, kid? I was crazy for wanting Johnny to stay out of trouble, man. If he was smart like me, he wouldn't be in this mess. If he was smart like me, he wouldn't have ran into that church, man. You better wise up, Pony, man. You just better wise up. You get tough like me and you don't get hurt! You watch out for yourself, and nothing - nothing can touch you, man!
When I stepped out into the bright sunlight, from the darkness of the movie house, I had only two things on my mind: Paul Newman, and a ride home.
Bob You guys know what Greasers are? White trash with long, greasy hair.
You know what a Soc is?
Bob What?
White trash with mustangs and madras. [spits at Bob]
Bob Get him!
Darrel Where the hell have you been?! Do you know what time it is?! It's 2:00 in the morning, kiddo.
Sodapop Hey, Pony, where've ya been?
I fell asleep in the lot.
Darrel You what?!
I was talkin' to Johnny and I fell asleep in the lot. I didn't mean to.
Darrel Yeah? Hey. And I can't even call the cops, because you two would be thrown in a boys' home so fast, it would make your head spin.
Sodapop C'mon, Pony, let's go to bed now.
Look, I said I didn't mean to!
Darrel "I didn't mean to. I forgot." That's all I ever HEAR from you!
Sodapop Come on, Darry--
Darrel You shut up! I'm sick and tired of you sticking up for him! You hear me?!
Don't you yell at him!
Darrel Ponyboy, I-I didn't mean to!
Darrel Listen, with your brains and grades, you could get a scholarship, and we could put you through college, ain't that right, Soda? But you're livin' in a vacuum, Pony, and you're gonna have to cut it out. You just don't stop living because you lose somebody. I thought you knew that. And anytime you don't like the way I'm running things around here, you can just get out, ALL RIGHT?
You'd like that, wouldn't you?! You'd like me to just get the hell out! Well it's not that easy, is it, Soda?
Sodapop Goddamn, you guys! Leave me out of it!
It's like the mist is what's pretty, ya know? All gold and silver.
Hmm
Too bad it can't stay like that all the time.
Nothing gold can stay.
Ponyboy, I asked the nurse to give you this book so you could finish it. The doctor came in a while ago but I already knew it anyway. I keep getting tireder and tireder. Listen,I don't mind dying now. It was worth it. It was worth saving those kids.Their lives are worth more than mine; they have more to live for. Some of the parents came by to thank me and I know it was worth it. Tell Dally it was worth it. I'm just gonna miss you guys. I've been thinking about it, and that poem, that guy that wrote it, he meant you are gold when you're a kid, like green. When you're a kid everything is new, dawn. It's just...just when you get used to everything it's day. Like the way you dig sunsets, Pony. That's Gold. Keep it that way, it's a good way to be. I want you to tell Dally to look at one. He'll probably think you're crazy, but ask for me. I don't think he's ever really seen a sunset. And don't be bugged over being a greaser. You still have a lot of time to make yourself be what you want. There's still a lot of good in the world. Tell Dally. I don't think he knows. Your Buddy, Johnny.
I used to talk about killing myself all the time, man. But I don't wanna die now. It ain't long enough. Sixteen years ain't gonna be long enough. Hell, I wouldn't care so much if there hadn't been so many things I haven't done yet. So many, so many damn things I ain't seen or done. That time when we were up in Windrixville was the only time I've ever been away from my neighborhood.
I was crazy, you know that, Pony? I was crazy for wanting Johnny to stay out of trouble. If he was smart, like me, he wouldn't be in this mess. If he was smart like me, he wouldn't have ran into that church man. You better wise up Pony. You better wise up man. You get tough like me and you don't get hurt! You watch out for yourself, and nothing can touch you man!
Let's do it for Johnny man. We'll do it for Johnny.
