All the Pieces of You
When I woke up the next morning, I was alone in my bed. I almost thought I must have dreamed the whole thing, until I heard Soda whistling from the kitchen.
"Hey, I would've done that," I walked into the kitchen to see Sodapop standing at the stove, cooking eggs and bacon. He wore only his underwear and an undershirt. This made me giggle, but I had for force my eyes not to get stuck on his left leg.
"Surely I earned the right to make my pretty wife breakfast while I was in Vietnam." Soda turned from the pan to wrap his arm around my waist and kiss me.
"Well, I won't argue that. I just thought you might wanna rest."
"There's plenty of time for that. Pony's coming today, huh?" I nodded and glanced into the pan on the stove. I was a little relieved to see that everything was the color it was supposed to be.
Soda must have caught on to what I was doing. I still had my arms wrapped around his waist, so I could feel his laugh in his chest.
"This kitchen is sorely missin' food coloring, Brookie."
I let Soda finish the eggs and bacon while I sat at the kitchen table and watched him. All I wanted to do was look at him and hug him because I was still having a hard time believing he was really here. For good.
As much as that missing leg changed him, I was thankful for it in a way. Never again could the army take him from me.
"Oh, I have something to show you," I told Soda once we had finished breakfast. I went to my closet and got the safe out, putting in the combination as I walked back to the kitchen. The safe was full to the brim with all the money I had been saving.
"Look at this," I told Soda, moving our marriage certificate out of the way as he pulled me onto his lap. I think he felt the same way I did. Neither of us wanted to be very far away from each other.
"What, you tryin' to be a Soc now?" Soda teased. I shook my head.
"This is all yours," I told him. "All your military pay. Well, half of it, anyway, since I gave half to Darry."
Soda picked up a stack of the money and flipped it like the pages of a book. I don't think he knew just how much he was making for fighting a foreign war.
"This is a lot," Soda whispered, a smile growing across his face.
"I wanted you to have it," I told him. "I haven't used any of it. I have a job, and I've been using that money.
"Well, look at my independent little lady," Soda smiled, dipping me back a little to kiss me.
We waited until Ponyboy got into town and had seen Sodapop before calling Two-Bit.
I think Ponyboy might have cried more than I did, even though he was smiling at the same time. He had changed, too. Darry was still the tallest, but Soda was only an inch shorter than him, and Pony only an inch shorter than Soda.
Pony still greased his hair, though he wore it just a little shorter and neater than he used to.
"Should've got a peg-leg, man," was Pony's only comment when he learned the news of Soda's leg. I swear, Ponyboy and Two-Bit were nearly the same person sometimes.
Ponyboy couldn't keep the secret, he was so excited, so he told Two-Bit over the phone. Two-Bit showed up with beer and Karen, Curly, and Evie in tow.
"It ain't a homecoming if there's no party!" Two-Bit yelled as he walked through the door.
Once Two-Bit learned about Soda's leg, he actually talked him into taking it off.
"Man, I wanna see! Lemme see, take it off. Or I'll lift it off of ya when you're not lookin', your choice, Soda!"
Soda only laughed and agreed, pulling the plastic and metal leg off and passing it to Two-Bit. He stuck his hand inside and waved his arm around wildly.
"This would beat a switch in a fight any day! Can you imagine a guy comin' at you with a leg and foot for an arm, Dare?" Two-Bit laughed wildly at himself, waving Soda's leg in front of Darry.
Ponyboy rolled his eyes at Two-Bit and hit him upside your head. "You're not even drunk yet and you're already acting a fool, you hood."
"Guess we gotta loosen this college boy up!" Two-Bit shouted, tackling Ponyboy to the floor in the middle of the living room. I grabbed Soda's leg before Two-Bit could use it against Pony in their wrestling match.
While they wrestled, Evie leaned over Karen and Curly to ask Soda questions about Steve.
"Was he okay, last time you saw him?" Evie asked nervously.
"More than okay! They had just given him a medal for his shootin' when I left."
"I haven't gotten a letter in a while," Evie said, her eyes sad. But Soda waved away her words with his hand.
"The mail's late. Brookie hasn't even get the letter from the army about me comin' home yet."
Ponyboy was pinned underneath Two-Bit, but he didn't seem to mind much. He propped his head on his hand while Two-Bit sat on his back.
"But why would Brooklyn get the letter?" Ponyboy asked. "Wouldn't Darry get it?"
Then Ponyboy's eyes widened as he looked between me and Soda both sitting in the same armchair. I looked at Soda and shrugged. We hadn't told anyone and neither of us had a wedding ring, but after two years I think we both kind of forgot no one else knew.
"Surprise!" I said.
Soda laughed and followed it up with, "We got married before I left."
"You've been married this whole time and never told us?!" Karen nearly yelled, stepping over her brother and Ponyboy on the floor. "You didn't even get a wedding."
Karen was standing over us with her arms crossed. She looked like her and Two-Bit's mother, with the scolding look on her face.
"It was a secret so I could finish school," I said with another shrug.
"Swindlin' the man," Curly said, pulling Karen away from us and back onto the couch beside him. "I like it."
"Leave the not-so-newly-weds alone, Karen," Two-Bit said. He still hadn't bothered to get off of Ponyboy. "The groom's only got one leg to stand on, he doesn't need you tryin' to knock him down."
