DISCLAIMER:I don't own The Outsiders, but am exploiting S E Hinton's characters to my own evil ends (evil laugh, har har.. ) Hmmm
Darry pinched the bridge of his nose, took a deep breath, and exhaled deeply. He felt tense all over – and tired.
It would help if Two-Bit didn't act like I was some kind of freaking monster, he thought angrily. Frowning, he pushed open the kitchen door.
Pony was leaning on his crutches by the counter inside the doorway. Darry felt a tight feeling of anger building up in his stomach as he watched his little brother trace a crack in the laminate counter with his middle fingernail. When did it get so that feeling was so much more familiar?
He watched him for a moment. Sometimes silence was the best way to break Pony.
He'd managed to control himself on the way home from the hospital by keeping his hands on the steering wheel, mouth firmly shut. And even now he figured the only way to at least try to keep his no fighting promise to Soda was to count to ten. Again.
He closed the door with his foot, took a step back, reaching behind to catch the cooker in his hands before leaning back, his eyes not leaving his brother's face. Pony refused to look back.
He waited a moment, and then heard his voice, loud in the small kitchen. "What the hell happened?
Pony scowled, a strand of long hair falling across his eyes.
He looks tired, and young, Darry thought. A tight band of pain had started to throb across his forehead. Actually scrub that. I'm tired - and young too. How did this become my responsibility again?
Darry looked at his brother intently for about a minute and was about to open his mouth again, when Pony began to speak, in a low voice, his eyes not moving from the counter top.
"I didn't know what Curly was doing."
"Really." Darry replied, his voice laced with heavy sarcasm.
"He just – we were just – you know, hanging around, and sort of thought we'd try to get onto the roof."
Darry clenched and unclenched his fists behind his back, and felt his jaw tighten. "The roof of the grocery store. In the middle of the afternoon. In broad daylight."
Pony shifted uneasily. "It was just for a laugh, you know, to see if we could make it."
"Uh huh? And when Curly jumped into the yard – you didn't figure maybe this was a bit more serious than normal, huh?"
Pony leaned on his crutches and looked at his feet. Darry's voice was dangerously low, butgetting louder.
"Or maybe you knew there was beer down there huh?"
Pony squirmed. Darry makes me sound like some half wit hood.
"No- "
"But you just figured out you'd act as look-out anyway?"
The younger boy frowned, concentrating on his feet. Well I was there by then anyway, wasn't I? I wasn't just about to run off like some scared kid. But you couldn't say that to cool-headed Darry, he'd never get it.
Darry took a step across the kitchen and placed his hands, heavily, on his brother's shoulders. "What the hell were you thinking Ponyboy?" He resisted the urge to shake him. "I oughta skin you. You want to end up in some boys' home with Soda? Huh?" Pony tried to shrug his brother's hands off. "Not to mention you could have killed yourself jumping off that roof."
Great set of priorities there Dar, Pony thought, scowling at the counter.
"Well?" Darry stood back, his eyes boring into his brother.
He shrugged, and looked up. Darry put a hand slowly through his hair, turned, and walked slowly and deliberately back to the other end of the kitchen.
Ponywatched curiously as his brother frowned at the floor. He wasn't used to this cold, deadly Darry, battling to keep his temper.
Darry looked up. "Okay. Go to bed. You're grounded. You don't leave this house until I say so, you hear? That's no movies, no TV, no nothing." he said firmly, pausing on the last word. "And especially no hanging around with Curly."
Pony grunted in protest. "But Darry – "
"Pony I swear you're this close – don't test me."
Pony aimed the ball at a worn patch on the ceiling near the door and watched as it hit its target perfectly, knocking off a little plaster along the way, bouncing the short distance to the patch of wall above the door and back to his waiting hand. It had taken ages to work out all the angles – no mean feat when you had to drag a half dead, throbbing leg behind you, while you dug through the dubious contents of under-the-bed to retrieve your ball. Soda was evenmessier than he was.
He'll sure be glad I found that other DX shirt though, Pony reasoned, glancing at the garment, thick with dust, on the floor by his desk.
He tossed the ball in the air in preparation for another round, caught it, and threw it even harder against the ceiling.
Maybe I can make it so it bounces against the dresser first and then -
"Ponyboy Curtis, whatever you're doing - quit it!" He jumped as his eldest brother's voice bellowed from across the hallway.
He scowled. It was only half past ten. What was he meant to do? He'd read all his books and Darry wouldn't even let him sit in the living room to watch TV. He drew back his arm and threw the ball hardat the ceiling in defiance.
"Ponyboy! Don't make me come in there! You hear?"
He caught the ball and stuck out his tongue at the door.
He was just considering whether to make an all or nothing play across the hallway, with an attempt to swing an angle into the living room to really wind his eldest brother up, when he heard the screen door swing open.
"Where you been?" The walls of their house were paper thin.
"Out – jeeze Darry, don't have a cow. We met some girls at the DX. How's Pony?"
"Better than he should be – how'd you hear?"
"They were talking about it at the Dingo – so I came home."
"At the Dingo – and you didn't think to ring? Come on Soda you know the rules."
"Yeah, yeah. But he's okay?"
"Yes – he okay. " Darry lowered his tone. "They're not all talking about it are they? That's just what we need, for this to get back to social services –"
"They aren't, it hasn't." Soda interrupted quickly. "Relax – it's fine."
"I wish I could relax, little buddy. And, hey, enough of this yeah yeah business – you should phone, you know that."
"I know – sorry Darry. Look, I'm whacked – I'm going to bed, all right?"
Soda appeared in the doorway a second later, his blond hair flicked up messily at the front. He grinned at his younger brother, pulling the door shut behind him with his bare foot.
"Hey there, bootlegger. That's quite a cast you got there." He dropped onto the bed next to Pony and absent-mindedly rubbed his hand against the rough cast. "Darry give you a hard time?"
Pony shrugged. Soda's eyes were full of concern. "It was a stupid thing to do, you know?" he said quietly.
Pony shifted uncomfortably. Soda moved his face so his eyes could seek out his brother's. "But I'm guessing you know that, huh?"
The younger boy shrugged again.
Soda sighed. Sometimes he gives about as much away as a brick wall. Can't say I didn't try.
He leaned over onto his side, his eyes roaming appraisingly over Pony's leg, and grinned. "It's looking a bit on the clean side though. "
Pony looked up and smiled back at him. "Darry wasn't exactly itching to be the first to sign it. You wanna be the first?"
Soda grinned even wider and pulled his shirt and t-shirt over his head. "Jeeze it's hot tonight."
He stepped, bare chested, over to the desk, and rummaged around, mumbling to himself. He moved over to the closet and bent down among the detritus in the bottom while Pony strained to lean over to try to see what he was doing.
He turned back to Pony, three pots of blue, red and yellow paint in his hands. "This oughta do it."
His little brother grinned. "I 'spect so."
Soda opened the first pot and leaned over his brother's leg, dipping a finger into the red paint. He narrowed his eyes experimentally and examined the cast, before forming a large S by his left knee cap.
Pony glanced down and groaned. "Soda, not so big. I've got to wear this thing you know?"
His brother leaned back on his heels, examining his work. "Everyone needs a bit of colour in their lives." Soda dipped his finger in the yellow paint, ready to fashion a large O beside the first letter.
Pony groaned again. "You're not the one who's got to wear it- Soda - go easy."
Soda grinned wickedly at him. "You want people to know I'm your brother don't you?"
Thanks for the reviews - lots of really helpful comments. More reviews always appreciated. Muchos Gracias.
