Thanks again for all the reviews. I really appreciate it. I hope you guys are ready for more scandals and betrayals, 'cuz this thing aint over yet.

Logan Parker

Chapter 7 Visiting Hours (Soda's Point of View)

Today is the forth day I've been in prison for killing my friend that was already dead. The first time I thought that, it sounded weird and impossible, but now it just seems normal. What's so strange about killing a dead person? Even if they are your friend? Even if you didn't do it? I know that things are bad when that starts to make sense.

Pony, Darry, and Two-bit have been visiting Steve and I regularly. When they're here things don't seems as bad as they do now. Listen to me. I've been here for four days and I'm already going insane. No wonder my parents attempts at grounding me always failed. Great, just bring up my parents. Make myself feel worse. But man this is a whole heck of a lot worse. The only thing worse than being punished for something you did do, is being punished for something you didn't do. Especially when it involves murdering a best friend. A best friend you thought was already dead. Jeez.

"Sodapop Curtis, you have a visitor." The jailor says, opening my cell. I can't believe it's visiting hours already. I walk down to the visiting room, and sit at my chair behind a thick glass panel, surprised to see it's only Ponyboy today.

"Hey kiddo. Where's the other guys?" I ask, glad to finally be able to talk to somebody. You wouldn't believe how lonely it gets in prison.

"Talking to Steve. I wanted to talk to you alone. How have you been?" He asks. I look down at myself subconsciously and shrug. I don't like looking this way, in a prisoner's uniform, in front of my little brother. I feel guilty, like I did something wrong that I should be ashamed of. I have to keep telling myself I'm innocent, or I might forget.

"I'm alright I guess. What do you need to talk about?" I ask. He stares intently at his hands, like he doesn't know how to go about answering the question, and then looks up at me.

"I went to Buck's the other day." He states. I know my eyes have grown wide when Pony goes on. "Just for a little, there was something I needed to pick up."

"Which was?" I ask slowly, not knowing if I really want to know what my little brother was doing at Buck's place. Darry would kill him if he figured out.

"A gun." He states, and the words shock me to silence.

"A….a gun?! What the hell for?" I ask. He stares back at his hands.

"Soda, you can't tell Darry anything I'm about to tell you. It's important that you don't." He tells me. Oh no. This can't be good.

"Dally wasn't the only one still alive. Johnny is too." Pony states like he's talking about the weather. I feel my body shake with the news.

"I have to find him Soda. It's the only way to get you out of here. The problem is…I don't know where to look for him." My little brother tells me. I wonder if he's losing it too. Going insane. Johnny's alive? It's just not possible. The whole thing just isn't possible.

"Look Soda, I know this is a lot, and I don't have time to explain it right now, but I need your help. Where could Johnny be?" He asks me desperately. I rack my brain for possible answers.

"There was a place in Oklahoma City. A car garage that Dally used to go to when he would sell parts of stolen cars. Said it was the safest place in the 'whole damned state'. I only know this because sometimes when we'd drag race, we'd take the cars we won over there and sell them. If Dally came back to Tulsa, and wanted Johnny to come to Oklahoma, he would have wanted him to be somewhere safe. That's where I'd have to guess he'd be." I tell him. His eyes light up at the information, and the prison guard tells me that times up. There's a gnawing feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"Be careful Pony. Please." I tell him.

"You too Soda." He answers, turning to leave.

"I love you kid." I whisper as he walks back down the hallway. "So goddamned much."

Darry's Point of View

I meet up with Pony after visiting hours, and ask him how Soda was. He shrugs and says he is the same as always, but somehow I don't believe that. Pony has been acting strange lately, and I'm not sure why. Yesterday he went on a walk around six and didn't come home till after nine. I didn't hound him about it, since I know he likes to think and stuff, but it's starting to worry me. I'm not sure if I'm just worrying too much though.

"Steve was mad as hell." Two-bit tells him, throwing his arm around his shoulders.

"You shouldda seen em' kid. He was cussin' up a blue moon about bad food and mean wardens and his lunatic cellmate. Shit he was a madder n' I'd ever seen em' before." Two-bit says.

"Two-bit." I say harshly, trying to warn him against cussing around Pony. He pays me no attention though, and keeps on telling Pony about Steve's tirades. I follow behind them and think through their situations. Steve and Soda's I mean. It's killing all of us not having them home. Social services have called a few times, and that bothers me a lot. Stefan, Soda's lawyer, keeps telling me not to worry because they don't have a motive or proof against Steve and Soda. All they have are witnesses. But I'm afraid that, that might be all they need.

Pony's Point of View

I visited Buck again. It was my only choice if I wanted a ride to the car garage in Oklahoma City. Plus, I knew that he would be the only one that knew exactly where it was. Soda said he'd only been there once, so I doubted he the knew the address. Plus there had to be a reason it was so safe. I doubted they had a huge sign announcing it's presence. Of course Buck gladly volunteered to take me to this place in the morning, so I told him I would skip school and meet up with him around eight a.m. I just hope I can do all this without being caught by Darry. The last thing I need is for him to be worrying about me skipping school. He has enough to worry about already. Plus, we've been doing an okay job of not fighting.

I keep thinking of Darry, to take my mind of Johnny. Is he really alive? Could he really be less than hour away? And if so, would he have the answers I'm looking for? Could he tell me why Dally came home? Would he come back to Tulsa with me to testify? Would it do any good if he did? Would Tim get arrested? Would Soda and Steve be set free?

What would I say to my best friend, who was dead just five days ago?