Hello friends I am here with the nest installment of The Survivors! Hope y'all enjoy it as much as I did. Thank you for all who have reviewed! I send out my deepest thanks and give you many internet pastries. Okay now on to the boring stuff.

Disclaimer: I do not own the Outsiders or anything recognizable in this story, nor does E. I'm gonna go die in a hole now bye.

NOW ON TO THE PART YOU'VE BEEN WAITING FOR:

CHAPTER 4.1 OF THE SURVIVORS!

Ch. 4 part 1

Dancing with the Devil

When we reach home, we get out of the Darry's truck and say goodnight and thanks and all that good stuff. Ryan unlocked the door and let Dally and me in. After I hit the light switch, Dally lets out a low whistle.

"Fancy house," he says.

"Well, we are Socials," I remind him.

"You sure don't act like it from what I can see." I smile a little at that. My biggest worry about joining the gang is Dally. I don't trust him a hundred percent. He's a hood from head to toe. Despite Ryan's promises, I can't see him as her brother. Stories go around the town about Dallas Winston. He got himself arrested at the age of ten. I can't comprehend how Ryan could be related to him. Okay, Ryan did get herself in trouble from time to time, but never with the law. And I heard the way the two were yelling their heads off when they went outside. The whole gang heard it. We couldn't make out the words, but it seemed pretty awful. From what I understand, Dally had hurt Ryan emotionally. I remember the stories The Parental Unit had told me about Ryan when she first came here. She was an emotional wreck and delirious. It's odd to now have the man who did that to her under the same roof as her. I promise to myself that if Dally ever hurts Ryan again, then I'd make sure he could never see her again.

But there is a part of me that just doesn't want Dally to hate me. Maybe it's because I'm afraid of him. Or maybe I think that Dally can actually be a good guy and I don't want to get off on bad terms with him. Who knows?

"If you get hungry, help yourself to whatever is in the kitchen. You can sleep on the couch," Ryan tells Dally as we walk into the living room. "I would let you sleep in The Parental Units' room, but seeing as that's where they sleep together…"

"Parental Units?" questions Dally with a smirk.

"It's what we call my adoptive parents," says Ryan with a faint smile. "Can you go get some blankets, and a pillow, Kory?" I do as told and throw them to Dally. He catches them out of the air with quick reflexes. He puts them on the couch and does a visual sweep of the room.

"Why are there steaks on the ground?"

"Oh. We holding them to our black eyes and then we just left them there." Ryan picks them up and goes to the kitchen to throw them away. I mutter a goodnight to Dally and walk up stairs to go to bed.

After a while, I hear Ryan walk up the stairs. I'm about to drift off when I hear a strange thump from her bedroom. I walk into her room and turn on the light. I find her with her face on the floor and half of her body still in the bed.

"Did you just fall out of bed?"

"No. I'm giving the floor a hug."

"Then why are you crying?"

"It's an emotional moment…and I might have hit my nose really hard against the floor." I help her up and she wipes the tear away. "Besides, I'm not crying. I just got something in my eye."

"Both of them?"

"Yes."

"Okay." I go down stairs to get an ice pack. And as I pass through the living room, I see Dally looking at the pictures in an alcove in the wall, even though the lights are off. The pictures are mainly of Ryan and me being extremely weird, but The Parental Units think they're cute so they put them in little frames and everything. I walk past him to get the ice pack and when I start walking back he asks me what's wrong. "Ryan fell out of bed," I say with a smile.

"I GAVE THE FLOOR A HUG!" she yells down from upstairs. I chuckle to myself.

"Again?" says Dally.

"She used to do this before?" I ask.

"All the time."

"Well, she still does it." I'm pretty sure he smiles, but I don't know for certain in the dark. I walk back up stairs and throw her the ice pack. She puts it on her nose and purses her lips in a childish way.

"He told you that I used to fall out of bed a lot, didn't he?" I smile and say nothing. "I'm so gonna get him for that." I go and get my mattress and blankets from my room and drag them into Ryan's. She brings down hers and lays them on the floor next to mine. We do this a lot. It's like a little sleep over between two friends. I get a flashlight so we can see each other better. "Hey, Kory?"

"Yeah?"

"Remember before, when we driving to the vacant lot and I told you that I wanted to apologize in advance?"

I frown. "Yeah. What was that about?"

"For throwing you into this. I just made you join a gang without asking you about it."

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure I would have done the same if our situations were reversed." I really don't mind what she did. Being Ryan, she probably had some practical reason for it. She probably wanted to do something that would 'protect' me while she's off in boarding school. The gang could protect me. But from what? Would they even protect me if there was something to from? Maybe it's a long process. Maybe has Ryan and I hang with the gang more, we'll all trust each other more. Maybe, eventually, Ryan and I will actually become part of the gang and the gang would care about us. Tonight, when everyone was being nice to us, I knew they were just being polite. No one entirely trusts us. Probably, Dally doesn't even trust us all the way. Well, at least, not me. But, soon, maybe we'd be accepted. Now, I'm just starting to realize how overly obsessed I am with Greasers.

"But, Kory, you don't understand. Not yet. Soon enough, we'll have turned into Greasers. In my opinion, it's not about what you wear and how much money you have. Those aren't the main things that classify you. They don't decide if you're Greaser or Social. It's your personality and actions. I know I'm sounding like some bloody motivational speaker or wise ass, but pretty soon, we're gonna be tough like Greasers. That's why I wanted you to be in the gang. You need to be toughened up."

"Am I really that weak?" We share a nervous laugh.

"No. I still don't know if what I did was just ridiculous."

"I don't think it was. Besides, all of the guys are pretty chill. When you left to take care of the car business, they were super nice and funny. Don't regret joining the gang. At least, don't regret it yet. Give it a chance. I think this will be better for us."

"Yeah," she says with a smile. "You're right. There isn't anything to worry about. We need change. This will be better for us." It sounds more like she trying to convince herself than me.

"And not because I'll get tougher. But because you'll be happier. I saw how happy you were today. I may be able to make you laugh from time to time, but when eight people make you laugh – that's a sort of happiness I haven't seen from you in a long time." I think back to what happened about a year ago. Ryan had fallen into a depression and no one in my family – not even I – knew why. "Last year, when you threw all those fits and became really sad," I begin slowly, "that was because Dally died, wasn't it?" She nods. Things had gotten really bad. She had to skip about a month of school because of it. The Parental Unit even tried taking her to a shrink, but of course, that just made her throw more fits. "And when you first came here, you were talking about a place in Texas. But it wasn't a place. It was a person – Dallas." Now that I had started to figure it out, I could put the puzzle pieces together more quickly. "And you were talking about New York. Because you just came from there." She nods again and tells me how Dally had left her in the street. How The Parental Units had found her and got leases signed to adopt. And the whole time Ryan had no idea about what was going on so she freaked out. She started screaming for Dallas to come and get her and take her back to New York. It had taken a while, but she finally realized Dally wasn't coming back and she had better not mention him anymore unless she wanted everyone to think she was crazy.

She then tells me about Johnny and Dally. How they're still alive. She tells me that I can't ever tell anyone. No matter what I do. Dally and Johnny can't be risk being seen in public. They can relax a bit while in the West Side, but they still have to be careful. I really can't believe what had happened to the two boys, but whatever happened, I'm glad it did.

"Okay, enough sad talk," I say rearranging myself on the mattress. "It's seriously making my think too much. People should not have to think this much at one thirty in the morning. Let's talk about boys!"

She laughs. "Really? We're having this talk? Isn't this a conversation you should have with your parents?"

"Not that talk!" She knows what I mean. She's just being difficult.

"You can completely honest with me, Korean." She tries to act serious, but she can't keep the smile off of her face. "If you wanna have 'The Talk', we can have 'The Talk'." We both laugh. I don't really know what it is, but Ryan and I have a really special connection where we could just say whatever we want. We are best friends and sisters. We aren't the girliest people, yet here we are talking about girly things. "Alright. Let's talk boys. So, you like Ponyboy. And there is no denying it! Don't even try!"

I feel the heat rise to my cheeks and I can't stop smiling. "Oh, Ryan. He's perfect. He's just what I thought he was like! He's even better! He's sweet, funny, and caring. A little shy which makes him mysterious! And he's so breathtakingly sexy!" I gush. Ryan lets out a squeal of high-pitched laughter. For a second, we're silent. Then we erupt with laughter at the sound that emitted from Ryan. I had no idea she was even capable of making that noise.

When we settle down some she says, "It kind of looked like he was into you, a little. He smiled when you talked. That's a good sign. Maybe you should ask him on a date."

"Yeah. Maybe. But, from what I hear, he's been through a lot lately. I wouldn't want to cause any pressure or stress for him. So, maybe, in a year or two, if I still have feelings for him – believe me, I will – then I'll consider asking him out."

She looks at me with her brown eyes full of wisdom and lips and a crooked smile. "You're so mature, Kory," she says softly. That makes me feel really good inside. Her voice is full of approval. "Restraint is good. You don't wanna get too clingy. But how do you resist it?"

"That's thing. I can't restrain myself. I'm gonna think of him every minute until I see him again." I turn over onto my back and look up at the ceiling. "Do you think he likes me, Ryan?"

"Uhh…I dunno. I mean, I think so. It's a possibility. But it's hard to tell with boys. I don't want you to get your hopes up."

I turn back onto my stomach. And move my body so I'm facing Ryan better and cross my legs in the air. "So what about you?"

"What about me?"

"I saw you looking at Soda at the vacant lot. And at the Curtis's. You like him."

"I guess," she shrugs. "I've only met him a few times at the DX. He's awfully handsome…and charming. But he's probably not interested in me. I'm probably some bizarre girl to him. To him, I'm some Soc who's trying to be a Greaser. And not to mention, I claim to be Dally's little sis, which he probably doesn't believe."

"Well, it was sweet of him to lend you his shirt." I hadn't realized that she was wearing his shirt as a pajama top until now. "And he cleaned your injuries…at least, he tried to. That's gotta count for something."

"That was just southern hospitality, Kory. That's all." The way she says it makes me believe she wishes it was more than that. "He was just being kind to a new guest. There's nothing special about that."

"If you could date him, would you?"

"Oh, God yes! I mean, a guy like that doesn't come around that often. He exceeds in every aspect that a fantastic boyfriend should succeed in." She smiles at the thought of it.

"Aren't you worried that if you get too close to him, he might abandon you and it'll hurt like it did when Dally? I'm only asking this because I don't want that to happen to you." Her head turns to look at me.

"I haven't really thought of it like that, but I guess you're right. I wouldn't be able to handle another abandonment like that." Way to go, Kory, I reprimand myself. You just ruined the only possible happy relationship that your sister could ever have with a man. Ever.

I start to grow lazy with fatigue and I curl up under my covers more. Ryan does the same. "Ryan?" I yawn.

"Hmm?"

"What's Dally like?"

I takes her a minute respond. "He's a reckless fool. He's always trying to wrap another girl around his finger. Whether it's a Soc or Greaser. He hunts for danger a lot. My mom used to call him her little trouble magnet." I can hear the smile in her voice as she recalls the memories.

"What happened to your mom?"

"She died. She got sick when I was five. One day, she went to sleep and never woke up. The worst part is, I was with her when she stopped breathing. I was sitting at her bedside table. I didn't realize she was dead at the time. Dally had been trying to get our Dad to go get her medicine and he found me sitting beside my dead mother. Later, he had to explain to me what had happened."

"What was your dad doing all of this?"

"My dad – he isn't a good man. When my mom fell ill, he just stopped doing anything productive. He beat Dal and me a few times," she admits. "Dally told me that he wasn't all that great before my mom was sick either."

"How old was Dally?"

"Seven."

"I'm sorry. No one should have to go through that, especially someone so young."

"It's okay. I don't really remember it that much. Just fragments. Bits and pieces." She started telling me happy memories with Dally. When he helped her out of a tree that she climbed up and couldn't get down from. When they threw waded up newspapers at their annoying neighbor. The times when Dally taught her basic fighting skills. Ryan finally falls asleep in the middle of one of her stories. It was the first time in a year that she fell asleep before me.

I stay awake a little longer thinking about the whole day. The whole fiasco with school. And the car wreck. Learning that Dally and Johnny are alive – not to mention that Dally is Ryan's brother. And having fun at the Curtis's. I relive the moments of when I was walking to their home.

I watched as Ryan walked away with Soda and Steve. The gang trudged on and I hurried to keep up, still at the back of the group. I stared at the last beautiful ribbons of the sunset.

At first, I didn't notice Ponyboy standing next to me, but then he tried to start a conversation by saying, "You're – I mean, the sunset is pretty." He blushed slightly and I was sure I did too.

I looked up at him shyly and said the first thing that came to my mind – besides, "You're the sexiest thing that has ever walked the Earth." Instead, I said, "It's beautiful how all the colors blend together and fade into oblivion." I mentally scolded myself for saying something so stupid. I expected him to look at me as if I were a spider that needed to be squashed, but, to my happy surprise, he smiled in what appeared to be admiration.

"I sometimes believe that sunsets are meant to tell us that there is something good in this world – something to look forward to. We just have to be patient and wait long enough for it to come." The look on his face lead me to believe that he thought a lot about this.

I smiled, despite my shyness. Something then came over me – I blame the hormones. I said, "You're my favorite person right now." And I hugged him out of pure happiness – curse the hormones. Pony, taken aback, stumbled backward and fell to the ground, taking me with him.

I blushed furiously, scrambled to get up, and offered Pony a hand, repeatedly saying sorry. He blushed and took my offered hand. We shared an awkward laugh and smiled at each other, still blushing.

Two-Bitt looked over at us and said, "Hey! No canoodling or any of that gross stuff." We both blushed – again – and inconspicuously hid behind Johnny.

~ O ~

Ryan's alarm clock goes off at seven thirty a.m. the next morning. At first, I think someone has triggered the bloody fire alarm and I struggle to get up with the fear that I'm on fire. Then, I look down at myself, see that I'm not, and realize it must be the alarm clock. Too many alarms for too many things.

Ryan's still asleep on the mattress beside mine, and I move with a sigh to go get changed. In my room, I throw on some random clothes, not bothering to check if they're matching. (Don't judge. I'm still half asleep. You try sleeping for only five and a half hours.)

I don't exactly know when I fell asleep last night. All I know is that I fell asleep thinking about Pony and me walking to his house. I don't know how much of the dream was reality and how much of it my mind just made up. Everything seemed so real and it still does. I don't remember if we actually fell to the ground. I'm not sure if he actually almost called me pretty. And I don't even know if any of it was real.

I sigh, buttoning up my yellow shirt. I walk out into the hall to find a limp body on the floor. I give a startled little scream. I relax when it's just Ryan sleeping.

She jumps awake at the sound of my scream. "What? Where? Who's dying?" Her eyes search frantically for the emergency. Her lids grow heavy again when they don't see one.

"Ryan, what are you doing?"

"Wha d'you mean?" she slurs, on the verge of falling back asleep.

"Um…well, you're just sleeping…in the hall…without any blankets. And a second ago, you were in your room."

Her eyes widen as she remembers where she is. "Oh! Yes. You see, I heard you get up, so I crawled after you, and I seem to have fallen asleep."

"Okay," I sigh. "Go back to sleep. But this time, sleep in your room."

"Why are you awake?"

"Some of us have to go to school, Ryan."

"Oh, yeah," she says with a sheepish smile. "I screwed up yesterday, didn't I?"

"Mmm hmm. Now, sleep."

"No! I must make breakfast. I'm hungry."

"I bet you are. You didn't eat lunch or dinner yesterday." She gets up, practically falls down the stairs, and trips into the kitchen. I walk after her, shaking my head with a smile on my face. I pass Dally in the living room, who's asleep on the couch.

In the kitchen, Ryan whips together the batter for pancakes and I watch at the kitchen table. See, Ryan doesn't like when I interfere with her cooking. I don't know why. That's just how she is. She always pours in a lot more sugar than necessary, but they still taste great.

After a while, Dally comes in, stretching with his shirt off. "What's for breakfast?"

"Sugar with a side of pancakes," I tell him. Ryan narrows her eyes at me and threateningly flips one of the pancakes with a spatula. Dally digs in the refrigerator and pulls out of the milk. He drinks straight from the carton and drains it. He throws in the trash and then burps. "Excuse you," I mutter a little too loudly.

He smiles at me and says, "I like you." Ryan stiffens and he looks at her. "What? Oh, Ryan I didn't mean it like that," he complains. "It was meant in a general term." I blush, just following what Ryan was thinking.

"It better be," she warns. She flips another pancake. Dally looks at what she's wearing. Sodapop's shirt and snug pajama bottoms.

"Why are you still wearing Soda's shirt?" Blush rises to her cheeks and I giggle a bit.

"Because."

"Because?" he prompts her with a smirk.

"Because, Dallas, I was half asleep! Do you honestly think someone is gonna bother with changing clothes if they're on the brink of collapse?"

"And so that's why you changed your bottoms and took off the under shirt? And that's why you gals were talking for a half an hour?"

"Exactly. Glad you see my point," she says stubbornly.

"Well, you were half asleep," I chime in. "And then there's the fact that you just wanted to breathe in Soda's scent." Dally erupts in a roar of laughter and Ryan gives me the evil eye while flipping another pancake.

"So, you like Curtis, huh?" Dal says in a brotherly way. (That way were brothers act like they don't approve of the guy but they really do.)

"I never said that!" she whines.

"No, but you were thinking about him and you in your dreams last night, right?" I tease cheerfully. "You so like him."

"I don't know! Give a girl time to figure these things out for herself!" Dally and I share a laugh. He walks over and we make small chat about Ryan. She keeps eyeing us like she's gonna squash us with a fly swatter.

"What's taking so long? I'm hungry," Dally demands. I notice that Dally tends to be a very whiney guy.

"Don't rush perfection!" She wields her spatula at him like it's a weapon. He smiles tiredly and then goes to sit at the table. When Ryan's finished, she puts the pancakes on plates and hands them to us. When I'm done, I put my plate in the sink and to leave for school. I have to leave early because I didn't have Ryan's Impala to take me.

School is a disaster. All day, people make rude comments and stop me in the hall to give me their unwanted attention. They just keep blabbing and blabbing and blabbing about all the gossip they've heard. Even a few of the Socials that were 'friends' of mine repeatedly interrogate me.

"Oh my god, Korean! Is it true?"

"Yes."

"Did Ryan really get suspended?"

"Yes."

"It's true that she's really an animal?"

"Yes, Jill. It's true that Ryan went to follow the rainbow and she found a leprechaun that turned her into a chipmunk." I probably will have said eight different versions of the same story by the end of the day.

I don't pay attention to any of my classes. Instead, I bite on my pencil and wonder if it could be possible to drown a fish. Or if it's possible to go pull open a door that specifically says "push". I would do it if it is possible. Just to prove the world I can.

In Physical Education, the coach asks me some question. The problem is, I have no freaking idea what he just said. Normal people would ask him to repeat the question, but no. Not me. Okay we're learning about cardiovascular stuff. What's related to that?

"Antarctica," I answer. Smooth. The worst part is, I say it confidently. The class bursts out laughing, everyone thinking it's a joke. I shrink into the bleachers foolishly hoping no one can see me. I look over at Ponyboy – who happens to be in this class – and to my relief, it looks like he hasn't heard a thing. He's staring off into space.

At lunch, I sit alone at my table. I could probably get a few people to sit next to me, but I'm anti-social when Ryan's not with me. I don't really mind being alone. It's kinda nice and relaxing. I'm get to drift away with my thoughts, which I've been doing all day, anyway. It's peaceful…all until Valerie and her girls decide to sit at the table next to me again. But wait! It gets better. This time, they've brought their boyfriends too! Great, now I get to sit here while the lot of them make fun of me. For a while, that's all they do. They make rude comments and giggle and whatnot.

Then, all of the boys walk over and sit down at my table. "Oh, please," I say sarcastically. "Why don't y'all join me?"

"Enough games, Korean," says one of them.

"I wasn't under the impression that we were playing a game. But if you'd like, I think I got a pack of cards in my bag?" I use the same smart-mouth style that Ryan does. Hopping that will make them go away. No such luck.

"I said, enough games!" The guy pushes my half eaten sandwich to the ground.

"Ooh. Someone's a bit angry."

"Listen, smart ass," says Eric, "I remember that you attacked my girlfriend yesterday. Now, I know you ain't a girl. You're an animal. So, I won't feel bad doing what I'm about to do." He gets up. One of the guys grabs my arm and forces me to stand on my feet. Eric slowly walks around the table. My heart thumps with fear and I figure that I only have a few seconds to talk me out of this.

"Look, fellas, I'm not looking for a fight, but if you really wanna, try the wrestling team. I bet they're always in the mood for it." My voice comes out in a high pitched tremor.

"You're little Ryan isn't here to protect you anymore," Eric says.

"No," says a different and familiar voice. "But I am." A figure walks in between Eric and me.

"Ponyboy," I gasp with relief. I work my way out of the grasp of the guy hanging onto my arm.

Eric laughs but backs up a few steps. "What are you gonna do, Curtis? Write a story where I die?" He laughs again.

Through gritted teeth, Pony says, "That story's true and you know it. You can't deny it; your own friend died."

"Yeah. And so did yours." Pony's eyes have a little hurt in them, but you'd have to be looking really hard to see it.

"Stop, Eric. Nothing happened to your girl yesterday. She's not hurt. There's no reason for this."

"I can do what I want to. How are you gonna stop me?"

"Oh, probably the old fashioned way: getting the principal. Yeah, that's right. You don't want any more detention, do you? And I'm sure your buddies don't want some either. So just go away. No one wants your ugly face around." He clenches and unclenches his fist. For a second, I think he might actually hit Pony, but then one of his friend whispers something about Pony being right. Eric punches the guy in the stomach and he falls to the floor. Then Eric started walking away with his friends following in his wake.

Pony turns to me. "You know, for a second there, I didn't think that would work," I admit.

"I didn't either," he smiles sheepishly. "You're alright, though?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. Can't say the same about this guy though," I say, bending over to pick up my destroyed sandwich.

"Sorry 'bout that."

"Wasn't your fault." He's so kind, I think.

"If you want, I can buy you a burger at the Dingo. There's still enough time before sixth period." Ninety-nine point ninety-nine percent of my mind is screaming, Yes, YES! Go with him. But that little part of me knows that Ryan, my parents, and the principal would kill me.

"Uhh…I don't think I should. Sorry Pony. Maybe next time?"

"Yeah. Sure. Next time. See ya later then?" This time, I can't tell if he's hurt or not.

"Definitely." He walks away and I'm forced to sit at my table with nothing to do or eat. Awh, whines the ninety-nine point ninety-nine percent of me. You should have gone with him. Now you're just sitting here wishing you had gone with him.

Shut up, says the tiny one hundredth of me.

No! Never! You'll never take me alive!

I'm so weird, says one hundred percent of me.

~ O ~

After the last period of school, I grab my bag and start to walk out of the class room. I feel and twinge of annoyance toward Ryan for getting her car wrecked, because now I have to walk all the way home, no doubt getting shot with some more rude comments the whole way.

To my pleasant surprise, I see Ponyboy standing outside, leaning against the wall opposite of the class. With my curiosity, I gain the courage to walk up to him. He smiles a little when he sees me. He peals himself from the wall and meets me halfway.

"Hey," he says.

"Hi. Whatcha doin here?" I inquire.

"I thought I'd walk you home." He blushes. "I just thought that you wouldn't want to walk alone and that maybe I could make sure no one bothers you like what happened at lunch."

My mouth stretches into a smile. "That's nice of you." My walk home won't be so bad now. I have company. Good company. "Though, I think I think my place is a little far from your place. Wouldn't you prefer if someone from the gang could drive you somewhere?"

"Oh, I don't mind. Besides, I'm meeting Steve and Two-Bitt at Stop n' Steal. That ain't too far from your place."

"You know where I live?" I ask, astonished.

"Darry told me," he say, blushing further. "Last night, I was wondering what took him so long to get home from dropping y'all off."

"Oh. That makes sense." I nod a little. "Shall we go?"

"We shall."

Pony and I talk about school as we walk. Teachers we think are okay and teachers we think are just downright stupid – like questioning-if-they-even-got-a-degree-stupid. We talked about the essays and projects we're receiving in class. Then we get talking about books and we don't stop till we reach the house.

At first we talk about Gone with the Wind, but that seems to bring back too many emotions for Pony. Turning the subject around, I bring up The Odyssey. He admits that he hasn't read the book yet and I beg him to. I tell him how wonderful and adventuress it is. We start talking about how they should teach more about the Ancient Greek times at our school.

"What's your favorite book ever written?" he asks me.

I think about that for a bit. "I can't choose. There are too many!"

"C'mon. Name the one ya like the most."

"Don't make me! I can't. I simply can't! Choosing between books is like a parent choosing between children! There are too many books in the world that are so great. And you just can't compare them to each other," I gush. I smile so hard that my cheeks stop to hurt, but I can't stop.

He chuckles. "So, is there a book that is your least favorite?"

"The Great Gatsby."

"What? How can you not like The Great Gatsby?"

"I never said I didn't like it. It was really great and I loved it; it just wasn't my favorite. Daisy was so careless and I hated her. She didn't care at all at the end. She just went off with Tom and Pam like nothing happened… and the whole book wasn't that interesting."

"I thought that you said you can't choose between your children," he reminds me with a smirk.

" The Great Gatsby is no child of mine," I laugh out. I talk easily with Pony. We compare people we know to characters in books. We talk about our favorite attributes to our favorite characters. The independence in Elizabeth from Pride and Prejudice – though, Pony has not read the book. The shyness of Boo Radley. The psychotic side to Jay Gatsby.

I love watching Pony talk about something he loves. It's like watching the sunrise. First, he's timid, but then he gets absorbed with his own thoughts. And there's a light behind his green-gray eyes that grows brighter and brighter. And at noon, the sun is at its highest, shining its brightest. Pony's as vibrant as the sun on a cloudless day. He unconsciously grins as he talks and he uses his hands.

Too soon, we've reached my house. I smile timidly at Pony. "Thanks for walking me home."

"No problem." I open the door to see Ryan, to the left of the foyer, in the living room. I walk inside and Pony stands in the doorway.

"Are you vacuuming," I ask Ryan. She looks down at the vacuum that she's dragging across the carpet.

"Yeah, obviously," she retorts.

"You've never done a day of cleaning in your life!"

"And that means that I can't start now?"

"Why would you?"

"I love cleaning! It's my hobby! I think cleaning will become my occupation when I grow up!" she says thoughtfully. I hear Pony try to stifle a laugh from behind me.

"Ryan, what are you doing?"

"Vacuuming, my dear Watson."

"Stop referencing Sherlock Holmes and tell me what's really going on."

"I got so bored," she complains. "Believe me, I didn't want to clean. But you were taking forever."

"I was at school."

"My point exactly. So, anyway, I did everything. I changed clothes, I went shopping, I tried watching the T.V., I tried reading, but everything got so boring and I ran out of things to do. I started dusting, sweeping, and dishwashing. And, at the moment, I am currently trying vacuuming." She's still dragging the vacuum on the same patch of carpet.

"You've only been left alone here for one day."

"It's been a pretty long day."

I roll my eyes at her and she sticks her tongue out. Then I notice something wrong about the scene. "You do know that you have to turn the vacuum on, right?" Her face falls.

"What?" I nod at her. "No wonder. I've been doing this for about an hour and nothing has changed. I just thought our floor was extremely dirty." I sigh, walk over, and plug the cord into the outlet.

"And then you just flick this little red button to where it says 'ON'," I inform her. The vacuum cleaner roars to life. And Ryan nearly jumps into my arms at the suddenness of it. She then proceeds to vacuum.

She looks over to the open door and, for the first time, sees Pony standing there. "Oh, hey, Pony," she yells over the noise of the vacuum.

"Howdy, Ryan."

"Look at you. Being sweet and all, taking Kory home." He just stands there awkwardly and for a second, I have this strange vibe that Ryan's my mom. Horrific day dreams.

All of stand there in an awkward silence until I smell something burnt. "What's the smell?" Ryan takes a whiff of the air and eyes widen.

"That would be the quiche." And she runs into the kitchen leaving the vacuum still on. Pony and I exchange weird-out faces.

"Gee, your sister is a pretty strange gal."

"She's adopted?" He chuckles. "Look, whatever she says, decline her invitation for dinner."

"What?"

"If she's serving burnt food, trust me, you'd rather eat coal. I can't get out of the situation. I'll just have to endure it." He laughs again. "I'm serious, Pony." Ryan's cooking is outstanding, except for when she forgets about it and it overcooks. She skips back to us and continues vacuuming.

"So, Ponyboy, it might not be the best meal ever, but you're welcome to stay for dinner." The sound of the vacuum is too loud and he can't hear her.

"What?" he yells.

"You should stay-''

"Wha?"

"Come-''

"Sorry, I can't hear ya."

She gives an annoyed sigh and viciously yanks the cord from the wall. "I said, would ya like to stay for dinner." Pony looks at me. My eyes try to warn him.

"Um, I'd like to, but I have to go meet Steve and Two-Bit at the Stop 'n Steal."

"Okay, well tell everybody I say hi."

"Sure. I hope you both get better with the cuts and bruises." Thanks for reminding me. I almost forgot, I think with a bit of annoyance.

"Thanks," Ryan and I say in unison.

"Bye, Pony," I call.

"Bye, Kory. I'll see you." I nod and he turns to leave the house. I close the door behind him and lean my back against it. I quietly laugh – for some weird reason – to myself.

"Oooh, Kory, you've got it bad," says Ryan, coming towards me with a smug look.

"Stop," I smile, walking away from the door.

"Not until you admit it."

"Admit what?"

"That you have a big old crush on Ponyboy Curtis."

"No."

"Do it."

"Why?"

"Do it. Or I'll go chase him down and tell him."

"You wouldn't."

"Wanna bet?" Her eyes brighten at the idea.

"Fine." I sigh. "I have a crush on Ponyboy Curtis," I say in a small voice.

"What? I'm sorry. I can't hear you."

"I have a crush on Ponyboy Curtis," I say in a normal voice.

"Louder."

"I have a crush on Ponyboy Curtis!"

"Louder!

"I HAVE A CRUSH ON PONYBOY CURTIS!" Just then, the front door opens and in comes Dallas Winston with a black hood covering his face.

"What now?" he asks, pulling back his hood. He's smiling and Ryan laughs. "What's this about someone having a crush on Pony?" He looks at me, and I blush furiously, partly hiding myself behind Ryan. She isn't any help. She pulls me out from behind her then wraps her arms around me, squeezing me to death.

"My baby sister is in love! We should celebrate!"

"Celebrate how?" asks Dally suspiciously. I am on his side with his cautiousness. As you might be able to tell, Ryan does irrational things sometimes.

"Let's go out for dinner!" I slip from her grasp and turn to her.

"You just wanna go because you failed at cooking dinner." She points a finger at me with a really strict face and opens her mouth to say something but nothing comes out. She closes it, thinks for a minute then tells me to shut up.
"Too bad. We can't go to dinner," says Dally.

"Why not?" I ask.

He gives me a judging look. "I'm supposed to be dead. What do you think everybody will think if they see me in a diner eating in a burger?"

"Oh," I say stupidly. I can't help but pity Dally with his situation. I look at Ryan who's wearing her thinking expression.

"Dally, what if we went out of town to eat. They probably won't recognize you and they won't know that you're supposed to be dead anyways," she suggests. The idea seemed good enough to me, but Dally didn't think so.

"Ryan, they'll still find me. There's bound to be someone who recognizes me. There could be someone from this town who decides to go to the same place as us. It's too risky."

"You? Dallas Winston? Who's known for being riskier than anyone known on this planet? You're afraid to go to dinner?" she teases with her crooked smile.

He crosses his arms over his chest with a pout that I knew all too well from Ryan. "I said no and that means no." His deep and rusty voice makes me want to stand down even though I am not even the one standing up to him.

"You said the same thing last night. You said that you wouldn't tell me about what happened; you still did." I can't fathom how she has the courage to keep pushing Dally. Perhaps, it's cuz they have the same genes. When Ryan realizes that Dallas doesn't seem like he's gonna give in anytime soon, she steps toward him and loops her arms around one his, hanging there with neither her feet nor butt touching the floor. Dally's muscles flex under her weight. "Please, Dally. I haven't seen you in so long. I wanna spend time with you. Please?" She lays the sweet-talk voice on thick.

With a sigh, he pulls Ryan up and says, "Alright. But I ain't payin'."

"Yay!" she cheers. "Thanks, Dal. Just lemme get ready and we can go."

"Ain't what ya got on good enough?"

"No. Don't complain. It's your fault for going to dinner with a girl." She starts running up the staircase.

"What a Soc," Dally mutters under his breath.

"I heard that," she calls down. Dally and I are left to awkwardly just stand there. For some reason, I get the feeling that Ryan left just so that we could 'bond'. He leans against the wall and I just stand there.

"Hey, uh, Dally," I say shyly. "Do ya mind not saying anything to Ponyboy?"

"'Bout what? Oh, you mean that you have the hots for him." A snide smile creeps onto his face.

"Please don't."

"Don't worry, girl. You're secret's safe with me." I don't really believe him, but it's the best I can do. "Besides, if I did anything to upset you, Ryan would have me roasting over a fire in a heartbeat." I offer him a wary smile. We wait in silence until Ryan comes down with her hair pinned in a twist to her head in a navy blue pantsuit. We then walked out the door to see a faded blue pickup truck. Dally gets into its driver's seat.

"What's this?" I ask.

"A truck," Dally retorts.

"Well, yea. But where did you get it?" Ryan questions.

"This guy named Buck. I picked it up earlier. Don't worry he won't notice it's gone. And I know he won't so quit worryin' your ass and get in." She slides in and I go after her.

"Is dad alive?" she asks out of the blue.

"Well, he ain't dead, yet; I'll tell you that." She wears her thinking look during the whole ride to a diner three towns over. The lights whizz by as Dally speeds through the streets. I have to say, he is not a good driver. He turns corners abruptly, jerking the car along with such force that my cheek collides with the window a few times. He honks at nearby drivers for mistakes that he makes.

Classic Dally driving. It's okay Korean, I hate people (except Ponyboy) too! Hey, guys! I've got an idea! How bout we all review this story and tell the author (and her publisher hinthintnudgenudge) any questions, comments, concerns, things you absolutely love about this story, characters you want to be killed off (well, maybe not that last one...). Hope y'all liked it as much as I loved it!

Look at their pants and stay gold!

-Tardissoul