Barely Breathing
Chapter One

Author's Note: Well - it's been quite some time. I'm back though. I hope you guys missed me. :) I hope you guys like my one shot, and when you finish reading, it'd be wonderful if you reviewed. I'd appreciate it. :)

Disclaimer: I don't own The Outsiders.

Soda tucks the dark brown football under his arm securely as the group of six greasers excitedly head to the nearest park. Almost everyone is running wild due to the amount of time spent inside due to the past several days of constant downpour. The only one calm, cool and collected is none other than Dally.

As soon as the group steps onto the green grass, Steve and Two-Bit let loose. The two of them run crazily towards the open field, pushing and hitting each other on the way. Out of the corner of his eye, Soda sees his younger brother nudge Johnny with a big smile, and like Steve and Two-Bit, the two take off. Soda joins them in running, and Dallas even picks up the pace.

"I call being one of the team captains!" Dallas shouts to the overly energetic boys. Two-Bit gives Steve one final punch before throwing his hand in the air.

"Ooh, I call being the other captain!" He exclaims excitedly. "I want first pick too!" Dally merely shakes his head and flicks his cigarette butt onto the ground.

"Nah," Dally mutters. "I want Soda." The blonde male jogs to Dally's side and stares at his friends happily. Two-Bit crosses his arms over his chest and observes the other boys, picking out the best one. Steve rolls his eyes in annoyance and groans loudly.

"For the love of God, pick someone," Steve gripes. "Some of us would like to begin the game."

"Alright, I choose Steve," he mumbles. Steve moseys over to Two-Bit's side while Dally makes his pick. In the end, Dallas ends up with Soda and Johnny while Two-Bit is forced to claim Steve and Ponyboy.

XxXxXxX

The football lands hard in Steve's hands. He grasps it firmly before taking off towards his team's end of the field. While everyone else is oblivious to Steve's possession, Soda isn't. He turns on his heel and books it towards his best friend. Steve turns around briefly; the appearance of Soda only pushes him to run faster. "You ain't gettin' away from me!" Soda exclaims, reaching out for Steve's shirt. He continues running, but Soda moves faster, and before they know it, Steve is flailing his arms in order to gain balance. Soda hears a snap as his friend lands on the ground, and he lands on top. "Ouch, did I break one of your ribs, Buddy?" He asks, carefully pushing himself up. Soda's eyebrow raises in confusion, and when several seconds go by without Steve's answer, Soda begins to panic. He grabs ahold of his shoulder and gently shakes his best friend. "Steve, are you okay?" Soda stares at him patiently, but Steve still doesn't answer. Two-Bit comes to Soda's aid and kneels next to the two best buddies.

"Hey, what's the matter with Randle?" He asks, planting his elbow in the top of his knee. Soda gentle shakes his best friend again, and when he doesn't respond, Soda's eyes widen. His breathing quickens to short and choppy breath. Two-Bit looks at Soda nervously before turning to look at the other boys. "Hey, uh, Guys. I think you need to come here. I think somethin' is wrong with Steve." Ponyboy and Johnny run towards the three, and like Two-Bit, they kneel down. Pony looks up at his brother nervously; Two-Bit places his hand on Soda's shoulder. "Buddy, you need to calm down before you pass out too. It'll be alright. Ain't nothin' gonna happen to him." Two-Bit says as calmly as he can; not only does he try to reassure Soda, Pony and Johnny, but he tries to reassure himself too.

"P-Pony, go get D-Darry," tears well up in Soda's eyes, and slowly, they drip down his cheeks. Pony scrambles to his feet, and with Johnny close behind, the two run as fast as they can back to the Curtis house. Dally stands behind Soda and stares down at Steve. He pulls a cancer stick out of his back pocket and lights it up.

"What's the matter with 'im?" Dallas asks, sticking the cigarette in his mouth. Two-Bit, with his hand still on Soda's shoulder, twists around to look up at Dallas. Sadly, he shakes his head. Dally's eyes narrow in confusion.

"Dal, help me roll him onto his back," Dallas drops down on his knees, and the two of them - with barely any help from Soda - carefully roll Steve onto his back.

Soda cries even harder when he catches a glimpse of Steve's face. His usual cold, hard features aren't there. Instead, Steve's eyes are wide, and he's staring into oblivion with such a blank expression that even Dallas begins to feel nervous.

Much to Two-Bit's relief, Darry comes racing up to the group. "What the hell happened?" He demands, looking among the four boys. Once his gaze falls upon Steve, Darry's jaw drops, and he nearly freezes.

"Dare, we were playin' football, and Soda tackled him," Two-Bit explains calmly. "Something happened, and Steve hasn't moved or said a word since then." Darry claps his hands together startling the group of six.

"I'm gonna go get the truck. He's probably in shock, so carefully help him sit up," Darry instructs. He turns around and runs back to the house. Ponyboy pulls Soda away, and surprisingly, he doesn't fight Pony. Johnny takes a seat next to them, and they watch Dally and Two-Bit help Steve up.

"S-Steve, can you h-hear me?" Soda cries, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. Steve's face doesn't change, and it causes Soda to cry even harder. "S-Steve, please hear me." He begs. Pony gingerly wraps an arm around his older brother and gently tries to quiet him.

"Calm down, Soda. He'll be fine," Ponyboy whispers. "After all, he is Steve Randle."

XxXxXxX

Darry, Dallas and Two-Bit hoist Steve up and carefully carry him towards Darry's truck. "Careful, Guys," Darry grunts, picking up the pace. Dally and Two-Bit don't speak; instead they try and keep up with Superman.

Back at the park, Pony and Johnny do their best to calm Soda down to prevent a panic attack from rising. "C'mon, Soda. Let's go to the other guys," Ponyboy says. Both Pony and Johnny rise to their feet, and they each offer a hand to Soda. He wipes his eyes one last time before grabbing their helping hands. Both boys struggle, but they manage to pull him to his feet.

"Come on, Guys. Hurry up," Darry calls. With the help of Ponyboy, Soda quickly and safely makes it to Darry's rust bucket.

XxXxXxX

Soda stares at the floor in a daze; every now and then, Darry's shoes come into view referring to the oldest brother's constant pacing. Several annoying beeps and the clicks of heels are the only sounds heard among the group. For the last hour and a half, their party has been silent. The only noise from them was an occasional cough or sniffle. "Excuse me," someone says. Darry stops pacing, and the whole group looks up.

A gentlemen in his mid to late forties approaches them. Several wrinkles are visible on his face, and it looks like the poor guy hasn't slept in days. Darry offers the man a hand, and the male place his firmly in Darry's, and the two share a quick shake.

"I'm guessing you're the doctor," Darry comments, pulling away. He nods his head as Darry stuff his hands in his back pockets. Soda stands up abruptly and nearly knocks the doctor over.

"How is he, Doctor? Will he be okay? Is he badly hurt? Steve is gonna be okay, ain't he?" The rest of the guys - including Dally and Pony - stare at the doctor hopefully. Instead, the doctor sighs sadly and looks down at his clipboard, flipping through each page slowly.

"Well, Boys, we did a couple different X-rays on your friend, and it turns out he has a broken neck," Pony emits a slight squeak in his throat, and Soda starts to get teary-eyes once again.

Suddenly, it becomes clear to Pony. Steve's neck is broken, and they didn't exactly rush him to the hospital. This means there is a slight chance Steve could die. In this moment, Ponyboy regrets everything he's ever done to piss off Steve. He even regrets going as far as to say that he hates Steve. Pony looks over at Soda, and suddenly, the bond those two share becomes obvious to Pony. Those two truly were brothers.

The doctor's voice brings Ponyboy back to Earth. "If you want, you boys are free to go visit your friend. He's in room 219. Please don't be alarmed. Steven is hooked up to a heart monitor, and he's clad in a neck and back brace," Darry mutters a quick 'Thank you' to the doctor before he walks off in another direction. The oldest brother turns and looks down at his brothers' friends.

"Are you guys ready to go visit Steve?" Darry inquires. A couple of them nod their heads weakly, but they all rise up. Darry leads the way down the hall with the boys following behind like little ducklings. The trip is numbing for Soda and Pony. Soda even stumbles a couple times only for Two-Bit to catch him, but at last, the boys make it to their destination.

Dallas pulls a cigarette out of his back pocket, and almost immediately, Darry shoots him a stern look. Dally rolls his eyes and crumbles it up in his hand before tossing it in his hand. Darry sighs loudly. "Okay, I dunno if Steve is awake or not, so we're going to go in one at a time," he announces. "I'll go in first."

Darry shuts the door behind him quietly. He stuffs his hands in his pockets and takes his time making his way over to Steve. Like the doctor said, a heart monitor clamp is stuck on his index finger, and an off white neck brace decorates Steve's neck. As for the back brace, only one strap is visible due to the blankets being pulled up so high.

The oldest Curtis sits down on the window seat and takes a deep breath. He slowly releases it, trying to think of the right thing to say to his kid brother's asshole of a best friend. "Well, Steve, I'll be completely honest. I was never too fond of ya," Darry chuckles quietly and avoids looking at him. "It was always a pleasure to have ya in the rumbles. Hell, everyone knew you were a good fighter." Darry continues to stare at the floor, and he sucks in another deep breath. Slowly, he looks towards the broken boy. Darry releases the breath and stands up. He saunters towards the door. "Get well soon, Buddy." Darry whispers, exiting the room.

Two-Bit enters the room next. "Golly, Darry told us what you looked like, but I didn't prepare for them," Two-Bit adds a humorless chuckle in attempt to ease a bit of tension. "Glory, Steve, I hope you get well soon. These bones of mine are tellin' me a rumble is sure to pop up soon, and we'll need ya. Even though he claims he is, we all know Tim Shepard ain't a better fighter than you." Two-Bit fades out slowly and stares at Steve. He focuses hard on the unconscious teen, desperately searching for a sign of breath. His eyes flicker all around the room, and he feels himself starting to panic. "Steve, oh no, please be alive. Please don't die." Two-Bit says. His eyes land on the heart monitor. The tiny mountains bring relief to him, and instantly, Two-Bit stands up. "I better get going. That's too much excitement for me. Get well soon, Stevie." He exits the room and sends in Dallas.

"Thanks a lot, Steve. Darry won't let me smoke because of you," Dally says, entering the room. "Listen, when you get better, I'm gonna best your ass, so you better heal fast." As quickly as he came, Dallas turns and exits the room.

Johnny steps forward and traces his fingers on the edge of Steve's hospital bed. "Hi, Steve," he says shyly. Johnny avoids any eye contact with his broken body. "I'm sorry this happened to you. I wish it would've happened to me instead." Ponyboy nudges his friend lightly, but Johnny ignores him. "I think you have a lot more going for you than I do. I hope you feel better fast." Johnny pulls away and heads for the door. Pony watches him leave, and when the door latches shut, he steps forward.

He takes a deep breath, stands up straight and stares at Steve the whole time. "I'm sorry for everything," Pony says quite loudly. "I'm not even going to go into everything, but please know I truly am sorry." Pony's shoulder slump forward, and he sighs. "Steve, please get better soon. Soda is a complete mess without you, and I can't stand to see my brother suffer. Please do it for Soda." The last sentence comes out as a mere squeak, and Pony scrambles to the door.

Pony exits, leaving Soda as the last one to say what he wants before the group heads home for the night. He stares at the door, and Soda finally enters after a good push from Darry.

He turns the door knob slowly and takes baby steps into the room. The door latches shut shortly after Soda gets a glance at his best friend. 'I did that' continues racing through his mind, and he bites his tongue to prevent him from crying. Unfortunately, the tears gather, and the hard knot forms in his throat. Soda takes a needy breath and rushes to Steve's bedside. "I'm sorry, Steve!" Soda cries. "I'm sorry for breaking you! I hope you don't hate me." He wipes his eyes and continues when all the tears are gone. "I really missed you." Soda whispers. He struggles to find the right words, but it proves to be too late. The heart monitor on the side of Steve's bed interrupts the moment with its long, drawn out beep. Soda stares blankly at his friend.

No. No, this can't be happening.

The lump emerges once more, and the dams in Soda's eyes break. He leans forward and buries his face in Steve's stomach and cries his heart out. "No," he cries into his stomach. "No, no, no. This can't be happening. Steve, don't leave me. I'm begging you. Please come back." Soda continues to cry with the heart monitor ringing in his ear, but at this moment, he doesn't care.

Once Soda calms down enough, he pulls back. With one hand, he wipes his eyes, and with the other, he wipes his runny nose. Slowly and reluctantly, Soda stands up. He walks to the door in no hurry at all, and his eyes never leave his best friend. Soda sniffs loudly, and slowly picks up the pace. His foot hits the door, so he turns to face it. Soda reaches for the knob. He begins to open it when he remembers one last thing he wants to say. With red rimmed, watery eyes and a slight smile, Soda turns around to face his friend.

"Take real good care of my folks, Steve-O."

Author's Note: I hope you liked it. Please review. :)