This chapter was originally the second half of the last chapter, but they got split for convenience sake.
Disclaimer: The usual
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/Pepsi's POV/
I don't think I was ever happier to be home. I immediately went to the medicine cabinet and popped a couple of aspirins and noticed the bottle was awful light from what it had been last week. I wondered if Darry was pulling muscles that he wasn't telling us about. It wasn't like Darry, but who else could eat half a bottle of Aspirin in less than a week without overdosing?
"Darry?" I called as loud as I dared
"What?" he asked coming over to the bathroom looking worried
"You been pulling more muscles than usual?" I asked
"No. Why?" he asked confused
"Just wondering why we were going through Aspirin so fast." I shrugged
"With the people who are coming and going all the time, I'm surprised we don't run out of it faster than we do," Darry sighed
"Yeah, but they don't go through our medicine cabinet," I commented putting the lid back on the bottle "Where'd the tape get to?"
"You'd better not tape those ribs," Darry said meaning it
"You know as well as I do it helps," I argued. The tape was more like a medical bandaging, but tape it was called and tape it would go by
"Yeah, but there's a new study that says it could increase chances of getting pneumonia and that's the last thing we need," Darry explained
"I ain't gonna get it again," I sighed, "Especially in this heat."
"It's getting so water freezes at night," Darry pointed out letting me know it was far from warm all the time
"I don't plan on being out," I replied knowing that was partly true depending on my mood
Darry seemed to be on the same thought as I was because he gave me a knowing look.
"Please, Darry?" I asked never using that word, but pain was pain and if I could breathe easier I was going to use it.
"This is against my better judgment," he sighed knowing I was going to tare the house apart for it if pleading didn't work "But, if I do, you have to promise me you'll take it easy."
"Yeah, sure," I answered, willing to agree with him no matter what he asked
He disappeared and came back with a roll of medical tape a minute later. He had stuff hidden all over the place, but damned if I could find what I wanted when I wanted it. I'll bet he has a map of it all hidden somewhere.
"You want help or do you want to do it yourself?" Darry asked
"You mean do I want it done right the first time or am I gonna make you do it later after my attempt fails?" I corrected
"Yeah," Darry sighed not wanting to argue with me but I don't think he liked my way of thinking much. It was too blunt
"Ok. Let's do it your way," I replied knowing this was going to hurt but I was going to be much happier for it
I was really surprised. I had expected Darry to find my tattoo, but he just stayed to the front of me and let me squeeze his shoulder while he pulled the tape tight around my ribs. I can tell you that killed, but I was able to walk straight after wards.
I went into the living room where the TV was actually off for once and Dally and Two-Bit were sitting quietly over a pad of paper.
"What are you two up to?" I asked lying down on the couch
"Two-Bit has this theory he can narrow my death date down to an exact day," Dally explained as if he didn't believe a word of it
"It's true," Two-Bit said defensively "This chick did it for me a couple nights ago. It's freaky."
"I'll believe it if I see it," Dally said impatiently
I smiled. Two-Bit was probably drunk at the time and it would be funny if he was even close. I watched as he added things and looked thoroughly interested. Dally looked bored. He figured this would be a laugh and I agreed with him.
"Ok!" Two-Bit was beaming "Dally will die on Tuesday May 31 2067."
Two-Bit's face fell as he read the last part and Dally burst out laughing. I started to as well, but I stopped when my ribs told me to.
"I'd be 119." Dally actually did the math
"Longevity?" Two-Bit suggested
"Not that long," Dally said laughing even harder
"Oh wait, I know what I did wrong." Two-Bit got all excited again "Dally will die--"
"You know, that thing is a piece of crap," Dally laughed "But it sure does give you something to laugh about. You should let Two-Bit do yours, Peps."
"I should, but I think I'd like to live without ever considering one day my death day," I answered
"You think I'm actually going to live to be 119?" Dally was just grinning now "So, I ain't going to listen and worry about it."
"Fine." I gave in "When will I die?"
Two-Bit seemed to light up again, like some death happy kid and began scribbling things on the pad of paper.
"Ok. Pepsi will Die June 24, 2026," Two-Bit said proudly
"You honestly think I'll live to be..." I trailed of trying to figure out how old I was gonna be
"76," Darry yelled from the kitchen
"Thanks, Darry," I muttered "You honestly think I will live to be 76?"
"Stranger things have happened," Darry commented joining us
"I think Dally's right." Two-Bit shrugged and tossed the pad into the garbage can "I ain't never gonna die, so I plan to live every day!"
"You do that," Dally smiled leaning against the couch
"I am going to the store and since the truck is at the DX I may be longer than I usually am," Darry told us shoving his wallet in his pants pocket
"Have fun." I waved
"While I am gone, I don't want you to leave this house," he ordered looking me in the eye
"Yeah. I'll be here." I meant it. This couch was my best friend right now
"Well, in that case," Two-Bit grinned turning on the TV
I shook my head and heard the door close. Darry must have really thought highly of me not to ask Dally or Two-Bit to make sure I stayed. Either that or he didn't think I was under enough Aspirin to go anywhere. I think he was right if he picked the second one. I settled back to watch some TV. This definitely beat school.
The phone rang about 15 minutes later. Two-Bit and Dally made no move to answer it and I wasn't about to get up either.
"Two-Bit," I snapped
"What?" he asked innocently
"Get the phone," I ordered
"Why doesn't Dally?" Two-Bit asked being lazy
"Because I'd rather watch you get it." Dally glared
"Fine." He gave in, crawling over to where the phone was "It's for you, Peps," he informed us, crawling back to his original spot
"Who the hell would be calling me?" I groaned at the thought of getting up
"I don't know." Two- Bit shrugged
"Well, you answered it," I pointed out, struggling up to my feet. I was definitely going to pop a couple more Aspirins
"Hello?" I snapped not amused with getting up
"Pepsi!" It was Soda
"Why didn't you tell me it was Soda?" I asked glaring at Two-Bit
"Hi Sodapop!" he called loud enough for someone on the other end to hear
"Doofus," I muttered "What do you want, Soda?"
"I need you to bring me some good clothes down to the DX--" he started
"No can do. I told Darry I wouldn't leave the house and I don't intend to." I shook my head at the phone
"Please, Peps?" Soda pleaded, "Sandy needs to talk to me and I need some good clothes and--"
"Fine," I said thinking I had sounded like that to Darry before he left
"You have no idea--" Soda started
"Yeah, yeah," I replied about to hang up
"Peps--" Soda started again
"I'll be there already," I snapped hanging up
"Where you off to, man?" Dally asked hearing the conversation
"The DX," I answered, "Soda needs clothes."
"Knew those girls were going to get their hands on him one of these days." Two-Bit shook his head
I just rolled my eyes. Two-Bit made the weirdest connections between things.
"I will be gone for half an hour, at the most. If Darry's home before me, tell him I went to bed," I directed grabbing good clothes from the pile of laundry
"Only if you grab me a pack of cigarettes while you're down there," Dally bargained
"Yeah, sure."
I don't know why, but I felt no fear of being followed by the Socs again. I guess it had already happened and I didn't care if it happened again. With the shape I was in, it would be a one sided fight. I made it to the DX without incident and took a look around for Soda. I figured he had to be inside and went in there. He was sitting at the counter looking bored. He grinned when I came in and motioned me into the back room.
"I brought your clothes." I tossed him the bag with the clothes
"Good, thanks," Soda said putting on the shirt
"So, why are we back here?" I asked
"So, that you can change, too," Soda explained
"What do you mean 'so I can change'?" I asked suspiciously
"If you had have listened to me--" he started
"I did listen to you. You said bring me good clothes, so I can go see Sandy, I did that." I pointed out
"You kept cutting me off--" Soda started again
"I do not cut you off!" I snapped. I'd never cut him off once
"Listen...I need you to cover the last couple hours of my shift so I can meet Sandy."
"Why can't you meet her after your shift?" I asked thinking it was logical
"Because she says she won't be here after my shift," he answered and I waited for him to go on "I have no idea what's going on, but I need to meet her and I can't leave early because I'm the only one here until Steve gets here."
I just starred at him. I wasn't quite sure how to let him down. He had that puppy dog look he gets when he needs something and I don't know anyone who could go against that pathetic look.
"You owe me one." I glared at him
"Yeah, I know." He grinned "I'll really owe you one. I plan to ask Sandy to marry me. You can be my best man"
"Old news," I answered peeling off my own shirt
"What happened to you?" Soda asked concerned
"Got followed home by some Soc's. Lucky for you they laid off the face."
"No, I mean that," Soda corrected pointing to my shoulder
Getting beat up was nothing new. I'd been fighting since I could walk, but Soda knew I wasn't stupid enough to get something like a tattoo when Darry would kill me. I was drinking that night and my thinking wasn't as clear as it could have been...Ok! Dally called me chicken, so I got it and I like having something Darry don't know about. Makes life just a little bit more dangerous.
"That is a tattoo and it's not something we have time to go on about," I answered and he nodded
"I'm sorry about you getting beat up," he said as if he wanted to hurt someone for that. Ever since Johnny got beat up he'd been touchy about any of us getting jumped
"I'm not." I got a puzzled look from him "There. Do I look like you?"
"Yeah, but you should grease you hair and smudge some car grease on your cheek, over that bruise and get some on your hands. Make it look like you did some work," Soda suggested
"You should wash all that car grease off of you hands before you go hugging a girl in a dress," I suggested knowing how girlie girls were
"Yeah. Good idea." Soda smiled, throwing my clothes in his bag. Boy, was I glad that muscle shirt already had grease on it.
He grabbed some paper towel and got all of the grease off his hands in a minute. He grinned at me and we left the back room. Nothing had changed, but that wasn't a bad thing. I sat where Soda had been when I walked in and waited for instructions.
"Easiest part of this job is pumping gas. Steve likes to work on the cars and Darry's truck needs to be worked on. Then a guy will be here in half an hour to man the till. Now, all you have to do is be nice and pump people's gas, get money into the till and check the oil. Smile and answer stupid questions. School will be letting out about now so you'll have hordes of girls thinking you're me, so play along."
"I get it. Act like you. Now, get going or you'll have missed that girl and I'll have gotten off the couch for nothing," I directed hurrying him up
"Thanks, Pepsi. I really do owe you," he said coming over to hug me but I put a hand out to stop him.
"Ribs are a little too sore for hugs right now." I winced and he nodded
"Wish me luck."
"Luck," I muttered settling into the counter
Boy, this job was boring. You just sit here. No one comes and no one goes. Ok, it had only been ten minutes, but damn was ten minutes long! Finally Two-Bit's car, which he had lent to Steve, came to a rolling stop in where the employees parked. Steve cussed out the car and slammed the door before coming into the office. He signed in and gave me a bit of a smile.
"Slow today?" he asked
"Yeah, but it will pick up. School just ended." I smiled "So, what were you cursing at the car for?"
"The damn breaks are out! I nearly got myself killed!" He was being very dramatic
"I'm sure he would have told you if he thought anything was wrong," I assured him, acting like Soda
"He might have, if he wasn't so busy chasing after Pepsi-cola," Steve snapped "How he keeps getting into trouble is beyond me, but I'm sick of it! I mean, no one can make that many enemies and, yet, he has! What is he? A fight magnet or is he the one who starts them?"
"Listen, Darry's truck is here and I thought you could take a look at it," I said getting the topic off me before I hurt Steve
"Say what was wrong with it?" he asked
"Nope, just that it wasn't running right." I shrugged
"Ok. I'll go look at it. Darry going to pay me for this?" he asked
"Dinner." I shrugged
"Works for me." He shrugged too "You'd better get out there. There are already cars pulling in."
"Yeah." I grinned and followed Steve out of the office
I must have filled fifty gas tanks with in an hour. I'd smiled at everyone and done just what Soda told me to. I don't know how he does it. This job would drive me mad. I couldn't imagine working a full shift. Steve was only working until the end of Soda's shift, too, apparently, but he seemed happy about it. There were just too many girls hanging around. I don't know how Soda could move let alone work.
I was nearly done when the one thing I wasn't prepared for showed up in a beat up truck and looked like she had a long day.
"Fill it up, please," she said not even looking at me
"Yes, Ma'am," I answered doing as she asked
"What are you doing pumping gas?" she asked me, lookingconfused
"What do you mean?" I asked trying to pull off the Soda bit "I work here."
"Pepsi. You can lie to them, but you can't lie to me." She looked at me sternly
"Ok. I'm filling in for Sodapop, but you can't tell anyone," I sighed
"Why not?" she asked
"'Cause I'm not supposed to be, Lil," I sighed "If I had my way I would be asleep on the couch at home."
"I heard about your brother," Lily stated getting out of the truck, looking sorry
"Yeah. He'll be ok. Pony's a fighter." I shrugged
"I still feel bad," she sighed hugging me around the neck and I was grateful that she missed the ribs
"Thanks Lil. You're about the one person I can always count on."
"Don't you be getting mushy on me." She smiled
"Never dream of it." I really smiled for the first time in an hour
"So, where'd Soda's fan club get to?" she asked
"Well, they all cleared out a little while ago. It's getting close to dinner and their parents will be wondering where they got to," I explained capping off the gas tank
"Yeah. My Dad gets like that, but only when I'm out with you," she teased
"Smart man." I smiled and she laughed
"Soda!" I looked over where Steve was waving at me. I waved back and he ducked into the garage
"Well, looks like my, I mean, Soda's shift is over," I sighed
"You're still picking me up Friday?" she asked
"Yeah." I nodded and opened the door for her
"If you want to do anything before then call me," she ordered leaning out of the truck and kissing me
"See ya, Lil," I spoke and she smiled before driving off
I went into the garage where Steve closed the hood on the truck.
"Just needed a couple things tightened and he was short on oil," Steve said handing me the keys
"Good," I answered heading into the office with him to sign out
"Wasn't that Pepsi's girlfriend?" Steve asked
"Yep."
"I wonder how he landed her."
I had a few comments on how I 'landed' Lily, but I merely shrugged, like Soda would. I was really getting close to punching Steve and I wondered how Soda resisted the temptation. I went to the back counter and grabbed the pack of cigarettes I promised Dally. Steve looked at me like I was being strange, but there was no way he could associate Pepsi-cola and smoking so I was good.
"So, what's going on tonight?" he asked
"I plan on relaxing with my family," I answered and he looked at me even more suspicious
"What about us going out tonight?" Steve was very confused
"Pony's gone and Pepsi will be home for once." I shrugged. Better believe I was going to be home...
"You know, Two-Bit and I tried to figure out how many times Pepsi had been hauled in. It comes out to a mighty big number. You'd think he'd make repeats on how to get in trouble, but it's different every time..."
I just gritted my teeth. Soda really owed me if he thought I was going to put up with this crap. How the hell does he stand being friends with such an asshole? He glares at Pony, rags me out behind my back and makes fun of Two-Bit. I'm the one who makes fun of Two-Bit!
Ten minutes later I was cleaned up and ready to go home. Steve was still going on and on about how irresponsible and just plain stupid I was. I was close to the end of my rope.
"...And you'd think he'd have the sense to bring money in to pay his own bail!"
"Darry won't accept that money," I sighed
Well, he wouldn't. I'd tried several times, but he doesn't seem to want it or he's too proud. I think Soda forces his pay on him.
"He could still work to be less of a drain on your family..." Steve was going on again
"Steve?" I said not turning around
"What?" he asked
I turned and punched him right in the nose. He took a step back and ended up on the ground
"Lay off Pepsi-cola. Ok, buddy?" I asked smiling
Steve just looked at me like I'd lost whatever sense I had left. I nodded to myself and started up Darry's truck. Punching Steve is really therapeutic. I should do it more often. Next time, I'd aim for the jaw. The nose left blood on your knuckles.
I got home and closed the door softly behind me. Dally looked up to see I was home and I tossed him the cigarettes. I knew I was safe if he had what he wanted. Two-Bit stayed glued to the TV, which was blasting, as usual. I walked right past the kitchen where Darry was cooking and down to my room. I just flopped down on the bed and closed my eyes. I had wanted to do that all day.
"Did Soda come home?" Darry asked Dally "I could have sworn I heard the truck."
"Nope," he answered watching the TV "You're the only one to come or leave."
"Don't smoke that in here," Darry ordered
From the sounds of it Dally had blown him off, but that was typical
"Pepsi," Darry yelled
"What?" I yelled back
"Come eat dinner," he yelled
"I'm not hungry," I yelled back
"I don't believe that. Now, get out here." Darry used in his 'This is final' tone
I sighed and joined them for dinner. Dally and Two-Bit had stuck around so, we wouldn't be so alone, I guess. I really was starting to hate fried chicken. I figure Darry was thinking Pony could come home at any time, so we were going to eat fried chicken every night because it was his favorite. Why couldn't his favorite have been every food?
Steve didn't show for dinner and I was glad he didn't. I think I might just be tempted to punch him again. It really makes you feel good. Soda didn't show for dinner, either. It was around 10 that Darry started to worry. He knew Soda was the good one, but he still worried. It was around 11 Dally and I were going stir crazy and offered to go look for him.
"I thought I made it clear you weren't going anywhere today," Darry said at my suggestion
"Well, you can't go anywhere, Two-Bit's gone to get drunk and the pair of us are going to start tearing this place apart, for lack of something to do," I stated
"Yeah, man. He ain't going to die," Dally said "He's got 50 good years ahead of him, according to Two-Bit."
"Come on, Darry! I'm going crazy!" I pointed out, "We'll stay in the neighborhood, if it makes you feel any better, we'll bring the truck."
Darry looked like he was ready to give in and I was walking on eggshells. Dally merely looked bored. Darry finally sighed and we left. I was surprised he didn't bring up the fact I said truck. Soda officially had it, until he came home. We drove around for a while just wasting time, until we came to the park. Someone was sitting on one of the benches with his back to us. I sighed and pulled over.
"You coming, Dal?" I asked him
"Nope. You can go do the brother-bonding bit," he answered sitting on the hood of the truck
"Never done any brother-bonding in my life," I sighed and Dallas shrugged
I shrugged and went over to where Soda had his eyes trained on the ground. We both sat there for a minute, until I finally got impatient enough to say something.
"You missed dinner."
"Yeah," he sighed and we were quiet for a couple more minutes before he spoke again "Sandy's pregnant."
I didn't know what to say to that. Darry was going to kill him. I sat there waiting for him to go on. I never wanted to push anyone into anything.
"She's moving to Florida, to live with her Grandma," he said slowly, like he was still trying to get his head around it "Even after I asked her to marry me. Her parents would hit the roof about marrying me, just like they did over her being pregnant."
"Screw 'em," I said and he looked at me "You love her, she loves you, hell, she's even having your kid."
"It's not mine," he sighed "I asked her to marry me, even though I knew that."
"You don't need her, man," I said wanting to hurt her for putting Soda in so much pain
"Yes, I do," he whimpered tears welling up in his eyes
"You know the old saying there's thousands of fish in the sea?" I asked and he nodded "Well, Sandy's one of those ones that looks good to attract the other fish, but she obviously isn't, 'cause she betrays them and eats them. You'll forget about her and find yourself a golden fish in time. One that stays loyal and don't eat the other fish."
He gave me a puzzled look and just started laughing. My attempt obviously sounded as stupid as I thought it did. It didn't help that I stumbled over all the words.
"What?" I asked confused
"You have a way of making the stupidest things make sense," he laughed
"It's a talent."
Any comments at all are welcome, flames are accepted, but only if the are nasty and well written!
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