A shrill ringing pierces through the first peaceful nights sleep I've had since Soda left for 'Nam and I immediately jerk awake. At first I think it's the alarm clock and grope around blindly for it, stubbornly refusing to open my eyes and face the day. Then I remember that Darry doesn't set his alarm clock anymore and the events of yesterday slowly trickle back to me. Groaning, I roll over onto my back and stretch, turning my head in search of Darry. He had shifted away from me in the night and was sprawled out on his back in the centre of the bed, his mouth hanging open comically.
I'm about to laugh when he starts to move, screwing his face up and turning his head towards the pillows as if trying to block out the noise. I leap up and rush into the kitchen, grabbing the telephone off the hook before it wakes Darry up completely. I want him to stay asleep for as long as possible while I try and figure out how to handle things.
"Hello?" A man's voice comes from the receiver while I hold my breath for a moment, listening for any sounds of Darry stirring. "Hello? Is anyone there?"
I consider hanging up on him, but then he might ring back and Darry probably wouldn't sleep through a second time. I put the phone to my ear. "Hello?"
"Jesus Christ, it's about time! Didn't anyone ever teach you how to answer the phone?! You're supposed to say something ya idiot, not just stand there breathin'!" The man sounds irritated, but the tone fits his voice well. I imagine he sounds irritated a lot of the time.
"Sorry mister, I got distracted by something outside, but it's ok, it's gone now. This is the Curtis residence, how can I help you?" I put on my politest tone of voice to pacify him, just in case he's someone official or something.
"Yeah, well ok, just don't let it happen again ya'hear. Gets real confusing for the person on the other end of the line."
"Yes Sir, it won't happen again." I feel like I'm talking to my school principal. I try to imagine what my principal's voice sounds like, just to be sure that I'm not, but I can't seem to remember. It doesn't really matter anyway, everyone knows it's the principal's secretary that holds the real power in our school. I realise the guy has been talking to me while I've been thinking all this and I tune back just in time to catch the end of his sentence.
". . .now is Darry Curtis there?" Damn.
"Uh. . .yes sir, but he's sleeping right now. Can I take a message?" Yeah he's sleeping alright, sleeping off one hellova hangover I'll bet.
"Are you his kid brother?"
"Yes Sir."
"Ah. . .well kid, I really regret havin' to have this conversation with you and I'm really sorry for your loss, but I need you to tell your brother - you listening kid? 'Coz I'm only gonna say this once - you tell your brother that if he don't get his ass to work in the next fifteen minutes then he's fired." To his credit, the guy does sound sincerely apologetic, but his voice has an edge to it that lets me know he's completely serious. I don't even try and work out how he found out about Soda, I knew Darry hadn't told anyone except our closest friends and I certainly hadn't gone around running my mouth off.
"Fired?" I stammer, hardly able to get my head around this new and potentially crippling development. "What do you mean fired? You can't fire him. . .please mister, he just needs a little time to recover. If you could just…"
"I know kid, ok, I know. And like I said, I'm sorry for your family's loss and I'm sorry that you're the one who has deal with all this, but you gotta understand, I'm running a business here and your brother hasn't shown up in over a week. I just can't afford to keep him on. Ya understand that?"
"Yeah I understand, it's just. . ." I turn my body away from the doorway and hunch over the phone, lowering my voice just in case Darry's awake and listening. "He needs this job mister, I mean really needs it. If you fire him…if you fire him I don't know what we're gonna do." The truth behind that statement hits me hard and I clutch the phone tightly in panic, holding it so tightly against my ear that it starts to hurt.
The man clears his throat awkwardly and I can tell he feels bad. "I'm sorry kid, but there's nothing I can do. It's not my decision…I'll send you his last cheque in the mail ok? Make sure to pass on the message." Then he's gone and the dial tone is ringing in my ear.
"Shit." I whisper, bringing my head forward to rest against the wall. I stand like that for a minute, desperately clutching the phone and fighting the urge to cry. Eventually my ear starts to burn and I hang up. Glancing up at the kitchen clock I see Darry has exactly eleven minutes to get to work. It takes at least twenty minutes to drive there so I figure Darry's already lost his job. I don't have the strength to deal with the implications of this, so instead I grab a bottle of aspirin out the cupboard. I tip the tablets straight into my mouth, feeling five on my tongue before I crunch them between my teeth. The sharp chemical taste makes me wince but also wakes me up slightly. I fill up a glass with water and take the aspirin bottle into Darry's room, hoping medication can solve at least one of our problems.
"Darry? Darry? You awake?" I ask, even though it's obvious he's not. Darry groans and slowly begins opens his eyes.
"Fuck me have I got a headache." He moans, raising a hand to rub at his face. Opening his eyes properly, he catches sight of me kneeling beside his bed and looks startled. "Er. . .I mean. . ." He clears his throat awkwardly. "Don't you go repeatin' that word Ponyboy, it's not a. . .uh. . .nice thing to say."
I stare at him, not sure what to say. Normally, I wouldn't even think about it. I would've laughed at him, told him that Steve had taught me that word when I was six and that I'd figured out what it meant by the time I was eight and teased him about sounding like old Mrs Cruft from next door. But now, with everything so completely abnormal, I have to think carefully about how to react. He sounds so much like the old Darry, the one who cooked me dinner every night, packed my lunch, nagged me about my homework and who I miss more than I ever thought possible, that I don't want to ruin it.
"It's ok Darry, I ain't gonna go round saying it all the time just 'coz you said it once!" I blurt out eventually, making some lame attempt at humour. Luckily Darry smiles.
"No I guess your not." He says thoughtfully, reaching out a hand and touching the side of my face, like he's seeing me properly for the first time in a while. I wonder if I look as tired as I feel. I lean into his hand, ignoring the roughness of his fingertips. I don't even care, I'm prepared to take any type of comfort I can get at the moment. "I remember when you were real little, no more than two or three years old, and you heard Dally say shit. You went round saying it every chance you could for weeks afterwards. It was the only time I ever saw mom get mad a Dallas." Darry smiles as he tells the story but his eyes turn sad when it ends and he drops his hand from my face. I miss it's presence already.
I try to think of something to say to keep Darry talking, to keep remembering the good times, even if it's about dumb stuff I did as a baby. But the moment's gone and Old Darry has morphed back into New Darry, who doesn't want to remember anything at all. I reach for the bottle of aspirin.
"I think you might be sick Darry." I tell him as I tip out two tablets. "What with your headache and all."
"Yeah," Darry agrees, throwing the tablets into his mouth and taking the glass of water I hand him. He drinks it down thirstily. "Yeah, I do feel a bit sick." I reach over and grab hold of the trashcan, just in case Darry means proper sick, not just headachy sick. I've only been drunk once in my whole life (and never to the extent Darry was last night) so I can't really imagine how he's feeling, although I have distinct memories of Soda throwing up in the bathroom after a party once.
While I'm trying to subtly position the trashcan, Darry turns to place the empty glass on his bedside table. He freezes suddenly and I look up to see what's wrong, following his gaze to the bottle of vodka. His eyes widen slightly as he stares at it and I realise he must be staring to remember everything that happened yesterday. He reaches out and carefully turns the bottle around so the label is facing the wall and hidden from sight.
He catches my eye and a look passes between us, a look that tells Darry I know the truth and that tells me Darry realises I know the truth. Then I look away and busy myself with screwing the lid back on the aspirin to show him that I'm happy to play along and pretend everything's normal. I hear him lean back against his pillows and he looks relieved when I finally look back up. Guess playing pretend is easier than facing reality.
"Think you could call work for me and tell them I won't be in today?" He asks, smoothing down his covers. I don't think he's realised he's still wearing his best suit.
"I already did." I tell him, ignoring the cruel irony of his question and getting up from my position on the floor.
"Thanks kiddo." His eyes are starting to close and he sounds drowsy. "Don't know what I'd do without you."
I remain by Darry's bed for a moment, watching him drift off to sleep. I rehearse his words over and over until I've got them memorised, ready to bring out when times get tough. Once I'm sure I won't forget them any time soon I go to my room and get dressed.
The magnitude of what I'm about to do doesn't hit me until the driver hands me my ticket. I'm going to get Darry his job back. I catch the bus and ride across town, enjoying looking at the window at people going about their everyday lives. For a while a wonder why everyone on the sidewalk is either under five or over sixty but then I realise that today's a school day. I feel slightly guilty that I'm not there, me and Nick had arranged to work on our science project together at lunch. Hopefully he'll think I'm sick.
It takes me a while to find the construction sight once I get off the bus, Darry had only pointed it out to me once as we drove past. Eventually I find it, "Smith and Steven's Construction" the sign proudly proclaims, and walk up to a big white trailer stationed near the entrance. I wonder faintly if the guy I spoke to on the phone this morning is Smith or Stephen.
I stand in front of the trailer feeling lost. The decision to come here had been a spur of the moment type thing and I hadn't actually thought about what I was gonna do once I found the place. Then I hear his voice, the same irritated voice I head on the phone this morning. I follow the sound until I find him. He's smaller than I expected, but strong looking, like a bull. I wait until he's finished his (extremely one-sided) conversation with a bricklayer before clearing my throat.
"Excuse me Sir?"
"Who the hell are you?" He demands, looking around me as if he expects someone else to answer the question.
"I'm Ponyboy Curtis Sir."
His face clouds over when he hears my name. "Curtis huh? Well ain't that a coincidence. . ."
I decide to get straight to the point. "I'm here to ask you to give my brother his job back." I say, sounding much braver than I feel. The guy smirks.
"Oh you are, are ya? Well I can tell ya now, your wasting your time kid. We already replaced him. Got a new guy starting first thing tomorrow."
"But. . .you can't just replace him. He's worked for you for months. That's not fair!"
"Life's not fair kid, gotta learn to suck it up. And there was a whole line of people just waitin' to take your brother's job, ain't nothing special about being a roofer son, I can tell you that now."
"But Darry's a good worker! You gotta give him a chance!" My voice is rising along with my blood pressure. The man looks around self-consciously and grabs hold if my arm, pulling me closer to the trailer and away from prying eyes.
"Give him a chance! I gave him ten goddamn chances! He hasn't shown up for work in eight days now and I didn't even get a phone call or nothing! Had to find out about your other brother through the grapevine like some mug. Now I liked your brother just fine, and your right, he was a good worker. But I'm living in the here and now kid and right now your brother ain't here. Ya understand what I'm saying?"
"But I'm here!" I cry desperately, really grasping at straws now. "And I'm asking. . .I'm begging you mister, just give him his job back. I'll make sure his here tomorrow, I promise." The man laughs then and I don't know whether to cry or hit him.
"Yeah well we ain't in the sandbox anymore kid, your scout's honour don't mean much around here. Look, I appreciate you coming down here like this and I'm sure your brother does too, but there's nothing you can do. The decision's been made, that's it, it's over. Ain't nothing no one can do for your brother now." I open my mouth to try pleading some more but the guy shakes his head, and I give up.
"Fuck." I mutter, slumping back against trailer. "Fuck, fuck, fuck!" That reminds me of the conversation I had with Darry this morning and I feel even worse, like I've let him down twice.
The guy watches me carefully, not sure if I'm having a breakdown or not. "You need anything kid?" He asks suspiciously. I stare at him and try and make myself hate him, or at least feel a little bit angry. I mean, this is my whole life he's just helped screw up. But deep down I know it's not his fault. My dad worked as a contractor for a little while so I understand about the pressures of the job. The guy's probably gotta family of his own, two little girls and a wife who rely on him to take care of them. I sigh and ask him for the only thing I can think of.
"You got a cigarette mister?"
He smirks and shakes his head in disbelief but fishes one out of his pocket anyway. I take it eagerly and break it half, deciding to smoke half now and save the rest. He strikes a match and I lean forward so he can light it for me. I suck smoke into my lungs and hold it for as long as possible before breathing out. "Feel better?" The man asks and I nod my head. "Good. Now get the hell off my building site!"
Once I'm back out on the street I realise I've got no where to go. It's too late for me to turn up at school without a note and I can't face going home. I finish my cigarette and start to walk aimlessly. A few minutes later it starts to drizzle, that horrible light rain that manages to soak you right through. I hunch my shoulders and jam my hands into my pockets, hating the whole world.
I end up at the Drive In. I sneak under the fence and make my way to the concessions stand, fingering the two dollars change left over from yesterday's shopping. The whole place is practically deserted so for once there's no queue. I stand there for a minute, trying to decide between a Pepsi or a box of popcorn. The Pepsi wins out (a kid's gotta feed his addiction y'know) and I give my order to the girl at the counter. She pours out the Pepsi and rings it up, then goes and stands by the popcorn machine.
"Salted or sweet?" She calls over her shoulder. I look around to make sure she's not talking to someone else but I'm the only person at the counter.
"Uh. . .I didn't order popcorn." I tell her, even though the smell of it is making my stomach rumble.
"I know," She says simply then turns to look at me. "Salted or sweet?"
I hesitate for a moment longer before deciding to just go with it. "Sweet." She nods and fills up the box.
"You know I can't pay for it right?" I ask as she carries it back to the counter.
"Yeah, but you look like you need it." She replies, taking the money I held out. That's when I realise just how desperate I must look.
"Thanks." I say quietly as she hands me my change. I smile at her before turning away and wonder if she realises that her tiny act of kindness has just made my day. Probably not.
I've seen the movie three times before but I feel better by the end of it. My stomach's stopped growling and I've dried off considerably. It's stopped raining by the time I step outside and I start to think that maybe things are starting to look up. I allow my mind to wonder on the way home, thinking about a science project me and my friend Nick are gonna work on for the science fair and the way this girl in my Spanish class sometimes smiles at me when no one else is looking.
I check my watch before I walk in the door and realise it's only three-thirty, still a little early for me to be back from school. Then I remember that Darry will most likely be sleeping off his hangover or working on giving himself another one so just walk right in. My eyes immediately fall on Darry sitting on the couch.
"Hey Darry. How're you feeling?" I ask as I kick my shoes off, making sure to keep my voice neutral until I figure out what kinda mood he's in. When he doesn't answer I look up and start to make my way over to him. "Darry? You feeling ok?"
He turns to look at me and our eyes meet. Except Darry's eyes don't look like they usually do, they're bloodshot and slightly swollen. "Darry?" I whisper, suddenly feeling scared. "What wrong?"
He gets slowly to his feet, his gaze still locked on mine. He looks livid, eyes wild and nostrils flaring. I begin to subconsciously back away. He lunges for me, grabbing me by the front of my t-shirt before I even realise he's moved. I let out a shout of surprise. He twists my t-shirt up in his fists and lifts me up so only the tips of my toes are touching the floor. "Where the fuck is my money?!" He screams in my face.
Wow, that was a long chapter (for me anyway!) Hope you guys enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Has anybody got any requests of charcters they'd like me to include (meaning canon characters) or situations they'd like to see? There's some Two-Bit coming up in the next couple of chapters and I'm thinking of adding Tim Shepard into the mix soon but anything/anyone else? Let me know in a review.