Why A Key Character Leaves Town (SPOILERS)

The classical structure of American Graffiti uses this premise:

The movie begins at dusk with two graduated teenage boys -- Ron Howard's Steve and Richard Dreyfuss' Curt -- set to fly away together the next day from their California hometown to an East Coast college. But Curt doesn't want to leave, after all. And Steve angrily pressures him not to stay.

By dawn and the end of the movie , the roles are switched: Steve will stay in his "turkey town"(evidently for the rest of his life)and Curt DOES fly away(all the way to Canada to avoid the draft, eventually.)

It makes for a nice dramatic arc for the two characters, and a reminder that you can either stay in high school for your whole life...or leave it behind, never to return.

But I've always felt there's a "catch" to this outcome.

Steve stays because in the end, he can't leave his girlfriend behind (the sequel shows that they do marry and have kids.)

But Curt GOES for a reason maybe even he doesn't realize:

On his last night he was accosted by three dangerous hoods called "The Pharoahs," bonded with them(for survival) in petty crimes -- and is expected by them to return the next night to become one of their gang.

Uh oh.

Yep, I'd say Curt is given a great big "non-profound" reason for getting on that plane and leaving town.