Disclaimer: Haha, I keep forgetting this :D So I'll just say it one last time, I do not own the outsiders or any of its characters. I'm just the person with no life who spends their time writing fanfiction.
Any-whoo... I lied. I said I was going to update quicker, but then I realized I wouldn't be able to procrastinate. Enjoy the chapter :D (Its a short one, but I'll make the next one longer. Possibly).
A familiar hand came down across my head, gently smoothing down my hair, a pair of rougher feeling hands cradled my own right hand gently in their palms. Slowly I'm brought out of my slumber, groggily opening my eyes into tiny slits. Soda sat on one side of me stroking my hair, Darry on the other side cradling my hand in his own.
"Soda? Darry?" I inquired, they were actually here, sitting right beside me. I was actually home, where I wouldn't be expected to fire bullets at people, fly planes, and watch as man after man died before my very eyes.
"Hey little man, how're ya feeling? The nurse said they had to sedate you for a while." Darry's voice was calm and gentle, shaking his head slightly he let out a deep sigh. "God Pony, what in the world were you thinking? You scared me so bad, you don't ever use your head do you? I agree with you, I wouldn't want Soda to have to fight, but in no way does that mean that I'd ever want you to go off to war in his place! No matter how much you don't want to admit it, your still a little kid compared to Soda and I. You haven't learned to drive yet, not quite ready to shave, your body's still going through the changes of puberty for heavens sake and you figured you could just take the place of a grown man, what the hell were you thinking?" Despite the lecture, his voice stayed soothingly gentle, Darry sounded more relieved than he did upset.
"Yeah, and how do you think I feel Pony, you took my spot as a soldier and now your lying some medical centre. Every day that you were gone, I was so scared for you. Every day when I checked the mailbox, when ever there wasn't a letter, I always panicked, thinking the worst had happened." Soda looked close to tears and it wan't until Soda was brushing the tears off my cheeks and Darry was telling me not to cry that I realized that I was in fact crying.
"I-I just want to go h-home." I choked out, it was getting harder to breath while lying down on my back and my brothers took notice.
"Pony, you up for sitting up a little?" Darry asked and as soon as I nodded my head he was slipping his arms behind my back and Soda grabbing my arms, carefully as possible they slid me into a sitting position. I gasped, grasping my side as an intense pain shot up my side. My brothers moved to help me lay back down, but I spoke up. "I'm alright. Just give me a minute." Slowly the pain stated to fade as my body got used to the position I was in.
", I'm here to remove your IVs!" The same bouncy brunette nurse as before lightly strode around my bedside taking hold of my arm, sliding the needles out and placing them on a shiny silver cart. "We're going to be starting you up on some antibiotics for the pain, three pills a day, one after each meal. Make sure its after the meal you take it because its most effective on a full stomach."
"When do I get to go home?"
"I talked to your doctor about it. As long as you come back for your weekly check ups, watch how much salt you consume and stay on bed rest, meaning getting up for nothing except to use the washroom, then you can go home today." I eagerly nodded at her, which was probably a bad idea because that hurt quite a bit too. "Alright then I'll go get a wheelchair," and within moments I was being painfully helped into the portable chair and wheeled away from the bed and machines where I had been camped out for last little while. "Now before you leave this is your pain medication, you should begin after supper, and may I remind you that these pills aren't as strong as the medication hooked up to your IV, do not, under any circumstances, take more than one pill. If they're not enough for the pain you can get a stronger prescription." I nodded solemnly, and Soda pushed the doors of the medical center open. A cold blast of air whooshed into my unsuspecting face, a delicate snow flake landing on my nose and melting. Vietnam was warm and the sudden change of weather made my teeth chatter, until I was painfully hauled into the truck, which was a little warmer.
Okay, I lied. Again. I write the A/Ns while re-reading and after re-reading this section I've decided to write more, so this will be longer than I earlier expected.
"Hey Pony, you want to relocate to the couch?" Soda's head popped into the door frame of our room. "Jenny and Cathy are cooking a Christmas dinner over at Bob's place because the kitchen is bigger, but everyone's meeting here. It'll be such a surprise for everyone to see you. Well, everyone except Bob, Cathy and Jenny. We had to tell Cathy and Jenny so they could make sure to cook enough for everyone and I suspect that Jenny told Bob." I sat up, the pain in my side had gradually became worse as the day went on and my medication wore off, so I was really looking froward to Christmas dinner, and the pill I got afterward.
"Sure" I grunted, grabbing onto Soda's shoulder for support and swinging my legs over the side of the bed.
"Not so fast, Ponyboy, you're actually required to wear something more than an old t-shirt and boxers to Christmas dinner." Darry told me, digging through dresser drawers. He strode over to my side hold a pair of dark jeans and a old plaid button up shirt of Soda's. Putting the shirt on was no problem, it was the jeans that hugged at my sides a little too high up that were. I grunted some more as I tugged at the jeans downwards a little bit until they hugged my hips instead, it was far more comfortable and the shirt I was wearing covered how low down I was wearing my jeans. Grabbing Darry by the arm, I hoisted myself into a sitting position. How long is this pain going to last? I wondered, it felt as though someone had repeatedly stabbed me in my side and my body hunched over to one side more than the other as I took small steps to the living room. It was nice to sprawl out on the couch and look around the room at the familiar scene, Darry left the room to clean some more just as I spotted an old deck of card piled up on the coffee table.
"Hey Soda, wanna play some poker?" Now in my years of experience I know that I rarely ever win a poker game, but I've had a lot of practice with the game and had got to a point in Vietnam where nobody could beat me. "I bet you I'll win."
"Ha, you wish! I'm going to taking you down," and in one fluent motion Soda had hopped over the table, grabbed the deck and began shuffling.
"What! How the hell did I lose to you, again!" That's what the gang was greeted to when they walked into the door, Soda then dramatically throws up his cards into the air with frustration. "I declare a rematch!" I smirk.
"Curtis, buddy, you finally got yourself out of that bloody war! How'd ya do it?" Bob pushed through everyone else, he was walking now, on a prosthetic limb. "Was it a bullet wound to the shoulder, a concussion, or were you deemed mentally unfit?"
"How've ya been Sheldon?"
"Good, good, now answer my question."
"Bullet wounds to the side, lost kidney and crap. I'm on goddamn bed rest for it too!" I told him leaning over I lifted up the side of my shirt and showed him the heavily bandaged side. "I'd take off the bandages to show ya, but it hurts like hell to have redo 'em." Bob nodded.
"Are you going to be okay?" Johnny spoke quietly, eyes wide.
"Well other than the fact that my entire Christmas holiday is going to be spent laying around, and I'm extremely sore, I'll be fine. Oh, and if I'm still stuck on bed rest passed Christmas holidays, then I'm counting on you and Steve to pick up my homework from school." Johnny nodded. "Want to get your ass kicked in poker by yours truly?"
"No figgin' way would you be able to beat anyone here baby Curtis, especially not Johnny! I'll be the one kicking your ass in poker." Dally informed me, and that's how I spent Christmas, beating unsuspecting friends at poker, eating the best meal I've had in months and catching up with my buddies.
Okay, so that actually wasn't all that much longer, but oh well. Hope you enjoyed the story, I'm thinking about ending the story here and writing a sequel, or just continuing on with this story. Please go to my profile, I've got a poll up on what should happen with this story and I'd love to hear everyone's oppion! Please review!