I do not own The Outsiders.
Sodapop considered if he should just walk into the house without knocking but, like Two-bit said, he didn't' exactly wanna give Darry a heart attack. The house looked the same. For some reason Soda had expected it to have changed, but why would it have changed? After all, it had only been less than a year since he had left. He slowly opened the gate and walked up the small steps, stopping at the door. He felt nervous for some reason. He looked down at his cloths again making sure everything looked okay and finally rang the door bell. He couldn't remember if he'd ever actually used that bell…he'd never had to before.
Darry seemed to take forever to open the door. Soda was beginning to think that he might not be home yet but then he heard footsteps from inside and the door opened.
The expression on Darry's face was absolutely priceless. Soda would have laughed out loud if he wasn't so overwhelmed himself. He looked like he was in a state of shock, not trusting what he was seeing.
"Hey Darr" Soda said, grinning. After Darry didn't answer, Soda added, "you gonna let me in or am I gonna have to stay out here all day?" Darry quickly came out of his trance and pulled Soda into a hug without saying a word. It hurt like hell but Soda didn't even care. He could tell Darry was crying because he was shaking. You don't see Darry crying very often, Soda himself had only witnessed it few times.
Truth is, he was starting to bawl himself. It was weird, he was crying before he even knew it was happening. It was like he just let his guard down after months and months of holding it in. There was no need to pretend now, not with Darry, so he cried his eyes out and so did Darry. Then Darry finally let go and pulled him inside.
The house looked the same too. It felt so warm and comfortable that Soda almost felt like it was temporary, like it was just another place he was stopping by and would soon go back to the rain. Yet here he was, at home, surrounded by the same old furniture and the pictures of his parents on the piano.
"Ponyboy not home yet?" Soda asked wiping at his tears.
"No but he will be, soon." Darry paused, still looking at him like he couldn't believe his eyes. "You wanna tell me what the hell you're doin here lil buddy?" he asked with a laugh, wiping away his own tears.
"Oh you know, thought I should drop by and see how you goofs are survivin here without me" Soda said, taking off his cap. They sat down on the couch and Soda reassured Darry that this wasn't just a visit and that he'd been let off early. Darry seemed happy beyond words. As soon as Soda told him about him getting hurt though, his parenting/older brother instincts kicked in and he stated convincing Soda to go lie down. Soda was tired but there was no way he was getting into bed unless it was pitch black. Darry reluctantly let it go, not wanting to push Soda too much, although Soda was sure that he would bring it up again sooner or later.
"You hungry?" Darry asked.
"Starving," Soda said with a smile. "I'm gonna go change first, though."
As he headed for the bedroom, Darry said, "Hey, you need some help?"
"Nah I'll manage."
The bedroom looked the same too, well at least his side did. It looked like Pony had left everything exactly the way Soda had left it. Pony's side was pretty much the same too, except there were different books scattered all over and a bunch of paperwork on his desk. There was also a radio that wasn't there before. Soda stood by the doorway, just looking at the room for a while. Had it really been less than a year?
He walked over to Pony's desk. There were a bunch of papers that looked like schoolwork on it and also a few of the letters that Soda had sent. He also noticed numerous sighs and posters with dates of protests. Two-bit wasn't kidding. Seemed like he was dedicated. Soda wondered what he would have done if Pony was the one who'd gotten drafted. He didn't even wanna consider it. That was one good side to him going, they didn't take two from the same family. He put the papers down, feeling even more anticipation to see Ponyboy. He missed him like crazy and he knew Pony missed him too. He moved to the other side of the bed and opened the drawer where he kept some of his clothes. He took out a pair of jeans, a plain white t-shirt and one of his plaid shirts. Changing his top took a while. His wounds were starting to hurt a lot, especially now, without any painkillers. He even considered calling Darry for a minute but he decided not to. Darry would defiantly make him go to bed after that. After getting that over with, he took off his boots and changed his pants. Dressing like a civilian had never felt better. He'd especially missed wearing jeans. As he put on his plaid shirt, he wondered if he should wear the collars up like he always used to before. He used to do it because it made him look tuff…it felt kinda silly now though. Looking tuff or tough weren't exactly on top of his priorities these days. He put his collars down and lifted the sleeves up to make it more comfortable for his arm.
He could smell all types of foods as soon as he walked out of the bedroom. Darry had practically put the contents of the entire fridge on the table and was looking for something in one of the kitchen cabinets.
"Dar, we're not havin a banquet man," Soda said with a laugh, "I'll be fine with a sandwich or somethin"
"I'd have stopped by the grocery and made somethin good, had I known you was coming." Darry said, setting plates on the table. Soda realized just how hungry he was as soon as he started eating. He was suddenly glad that Darry had put a lot of food on the table. It wasn't anything fancy, just some sausages and eggs and a bunch of veggies. There was also pasta with some type of souse in it. "D'you make this?" Soda asked.
"Yeah…we kinda had to manage without your cookin." Darry said.
"Not bad for a rookie" Soda said with a grin. It actually tasted pretty good.
Darry refused to let him help with cleaning after they were finished. So, Soda just stood idly while Darry cleaned the table.
"So what's with these protest Pony's been goin to?" Soda asked.
Darry stopped short and looked at Soda surprised. "How'd you know bout that?"
"Two-bit told me" Soda said, "I stopped by the pub until you'd come home," Soda added when Darry looked at him questioningly.
"Well, he's been worryin sick, was the only thing he could do to cool off…you know him, he's becoming more stubborn the older he gets," Darry said with a smile. "He stopped goin lately though, probably figured it wasn't doin no good." Darry paused for a second and then said, "or maybe he got tired of Two-bit callin him a hippie all of the time."
Soda laughed and said, "yeah he told me bout that too." He walked into the living room, feeling more and more tired by the minute. He took a deep breath and sat down on the couch, running his fingers through his hair. "He said he'd stop by later on by the way," he said.
"When's he not here anyway?" Darry said laughing.
"Yeah, you got that right." Soda said, leaning his head against the couch and closing his eyes.
"You feelin alright?" Darry said, coming into the living room and sitting on the recliner with a worried expression.
"Yeah I'm alright, just tired."
"Soda you should-"
"I'm not goin to bed Dar, it's 7:30." Soda cut him off before he could finish. Darry looked like he wanted to argue but he let it go again. They sat there for a while, just talking. Soda asked a lot of questions, but he avoided talking about himself or Vietnam. Darry didn't mention it either. Soda was glad to know that Darry and Pony had been getting along well. Darry told him how much more responsible Pony had gotten. He didn't mention anything about the arrests. He wasn't lying though, aside from the protests, Pony had been more supportive than ever. After a while, Soda lit a cigarette and started smoking. He was craving it like crazy, especially after having eaten dinner. Darry looked a bit surprised but hid it immediately, like Two-bit had.
They were in the kitchen doing the dishes when they heard Pony walk in. Well, Darry was doing the dishes and Soda was just standing there talking to him.
"Darr, I'm home." Pony called closing the door. "Listen I forgot to buy milk, I'll get it tomorrow mornin alright?" Darry was about to say something but Soda motioned him to stay quiet. Pony went on straight to his room and Soda followed behind.
He turned on the radio and lay down on the bed, lighting a cigarette. The station was reporting news from Vietnam, talking about how many soldiers had been lost this week and what the future plans were and such. Then Pony quickly turned the radio off, looking annoyed, and continued smoking in silence with his eyes closed. Soda stood at the doorway, looking at him. Boy had he gotten taller, and he looked much older too.
"Thought you were gonna quit smoking, Ponyboy" Soda said.
Pony jumped up, looking even more surprised than Darry had. He froze for a second and then quickly got up and hugged Soda. He was sobbing immediately and so was Soda. They stayed like that for what seemed like a long time. Pony wasn't willing to let go and just wouldn't stop crying. "Alright kid, you're gonna choke me to death." Soda said with a laugh, although he wasn't letting go either. Then Pony let go and asked, "what are you doin here?"
"They let me off early...shoot you're about to burn the place down" Soda said, picking up the cigarette that Pony had dropped on the bed.
He couldn't believe he was actually seeing Ponyboy, it was unreal. "Shoot kid, you been on steroids or something?" Soda said rubbing Pony's hair with his fingers.
"You alright?" Pony asked looking worriedly at Soda's arm.
"Yeah, it's just a scratch, don't worry." Soda said.
"Darry seen you yet?" Pony asked, wiping away his tears.
"Yeah, he's seen me."
Ponyboy looked like he was about to cry all over again, as soon as Soda told him that he wasn't going back. In fact, he had to reassure him of it more than once. He kept asking just to make sure though and Soda kept telling him over and over again. It felt nice saying it anyway. Soda had a hard time believing it himself sometimes.
Darry had stayed in the living room, giving them privacy.
"Come on, let's go to the living room," Soda said after they'd talked for a while. "Okay," Pony said. Soda put his arm around him, smiling, and they walked into the living room.