"Heard you got a single last night." Soda grinned tenaciously as I was finishing making breakfast.
"WHAT?!" I nearly choked on my coffee as I turned to stare at him.
"Hey...don't worry, Dar. Been there, done that..." and he cocked an eyebrow.
How this kid brother of mine could have so much energy first thing in the morning was beyond me. Maybe I should switch to chocolate milk for breakfast...or try some grape jelly on my tomato and egg sandwich, I actually found myself thinking. Soda continued to rattle on, not even realizing I wasn't paying any attention to what he was saying.
"...a home run. Anyways, I'm gonna go wake Pony up." and he bounced down the hall toward their bedroom.
As I was putting breakfast on the table, Pony came moping into the kitchen, followed closely by Sodapop, who, in his socks, decided to attempt ice-skating down the hall.
I knew it was gonna happen before it happened, but there was nothing I could do to stop it. Soda lost his balance, went barrelling, his arms flailing, into poor Pony who never saw it coming, and they both landed in a pile at my feet.
I just shook my head and smiled. I couldn't even begin to imagine my life without my brothers.
"Morning, Pone." I offered.
"Yeah." he managed, holding his head and glaring at Sodapop. Pony sure does hate mornings.
"Thanks for breaking my fall, Ponyboy." Soda said, a lopsided grin on his face as he attempted to help Pony to his feet.
"Whatever." And they both came crashing down again as Soda's foot slipped from under him. I helped them both up by their arms, and we finally sat down for breakfast.
As if on cue, the front door slammed.
"Morning Curtis'!" I swear, Two-Bit can smell food a mile away!
"Hey Two-Bit!" came Soda's cheerful reply. "Hungry?"
"I'm always hungry." he answered as he pulled up a chair and helped himself to pancakes and eggs.
"Darry..." Pony began slowly, "I don't think I can go to school today..."
"You feelin' ok, Pone?" I asked, suddenly worried.
"Just tired is all." He yawned, to prove his point, I suppose, and rested his hand on his head. "No surprise, seein' as I was up til 4:00am waitin' on you..." he grumbled.
Two-Bit looked at me and I knew he'd eventually hound my brothers for all the info about why I came home so late. I decide to forget Two-Bit and concentrate on Ponyboy.
"Maybe we should ground Darry...huh, Pone? Whadda ya think?" Soda winked at me, bouncing up and down in his chair. "How's two weeks?"
I'm thinkin' I should ground you for two weeks , little buddy, for comin' in at 2:30 Saturday morning..."
Soda's face flushed as Steve walked into the kitchen. "Aw, c'mon, Dar. I already toldja that Stevie and I lost track of time." He pouted as he stole back the bacon that his best buddy had just stolen off his plate.
"Well, you best be aware of what time it is the next time you and 'Stevie' are out playin'...or you will be grounded for two weeks."
"So...does that mean I can stay home from school...?" Pony tried again.
"No, little man...you're goin to school today. It's your last day before Thanksgiving break...and besides, you gotta hand in your essay. Doesn't it count for 1/3 of your semester grade?"
His eyes went wide.
"PONYBOY MICHAEL CURTIS!"
The poor kid nearly jumped when I hollered his full name. I guess he knew he was in trouble.
"Dar, listen...I just got busy last night...you know how it is...Two-Bit jokin' around, Steve and Soda wrestlin...and...and...by the time things calmed down, I started worryin' about you..."
I couldn't believe he was tryin' to get out of this.
"And you've known about this theme for how long now?" When he didn't answer, I continued. "At least a month, huh, Ponyboy? Go to your room."
"So I ain't goin' to school?"
"PONYBOY. ROOM. NOW."
He trudged off, his head hanging, probably wondering how long I'd ground him for.
I let him sit in his room, hopefully thinking about why he was there, for a good ten minutes, while Soda, Two-Bit, Steve and I finished our breakfast. Nobody said much after I sent Pony to his room. They all hated when he was in trouble, but Ponyboy certainly had a knack for finding himself in these predicaments more often than not.
I went into his room to try to get the kid to understand.
"Pone..." I began, "you've had over a month to work on this theme...it shoulda been finished three weeks ago, at the very least." I was trying to control my anger. Pony's grades had faltered considerably since the deaths of not only our parents, but also Johnny and Dally. Pony was smart, but he just diin't seem to care much about school lately.
"I know." He barely whispered, looking defeated. I suddenly noticed how tired he did look and guiltily thought about coming in at 4:00am. "OK...then get back into bed and get some sleep...you were up real late worryin' about me. I'll call you out sick and you can hand that theme in on Monday."
He looked up at me through his long bangs. "Thanks, Dar.", he smiled.
"Thanks nothing, little man. You're grounded for two weeks - school and home- and no tv either. And that paper had better be finished by the time I get home form work tonight."
"It will be. I promise."
"Good. Now...get on into bed."
"Darry?" he asked, as he was crawling under the covers.
"Yeah?"
"You like Cherry, Dar?"
"She goes by Sherri now, kiddo. And to answer your question... I think I could."
He smiled. The first real smile I've seen on his face in a long time.
"Well, don't be that late again", he yawned, as his head hit the pillow and his greenish grey eyes closed.
"Sleep tight, little brother."