Austin watched the blood run down the drain as he tried to quell his raging guilt. Steve's blood and his blood ran together down his body and into the water before disappearing down the drain. He knew he shouldn't have chosen that alley. He should have just gone home, instead of rushing the job but he hadn't and now another friend was hurt. Steve would be okay, but it could have been a lot worse. Austin finished his shower before gingerly getting out.
He looked in the mirror and winced at the vivid display of colors on his body. He decided that a couple beers would be the best medicine before sleep. He pulled a towel on and headed into the Curtis' kitchen and shot gunned a beer. Soda had insisted that he stay the night before going to the hospital the next morning to pick up Dallas. He stayed in their spare bedroom that had once been Mr. and Mrs. Curtis' room. Austin had never felt comfortable staying in their room but tonight he was too sore and too tired to think about it. He fell asleep the minute he fell onto the bed.
He opened his eyes suddenly and tried to get up but found that he couldn't. He knew he had to get up and run but he couldn't. His muscles refused to cooperate. He saw the flames in front of him come closer and closer, but he still remained transfixed to the bed. With a jolt of panic he realized he could see Dallas burning in the fire and he heard a man laughing behind him. Suddenly the sound of his father's voice was in his ear.
"I always knew you were too weak to do anything worth a damn. You couldn't even save your brother," Austin tried to move, to scream, to do anything but he was completely helpless as he watched his brother burn in front of his eyes, his father's laugh echoing inside his head.
Austin's eyes flew open and he sat up with a start. He gasped deep gulps of oxygen into his lungs and looked around the room frantically. He was still in the Curtis' house, no burns of bodies around him. He could hear Soda and Darry laughing in the kitchen and he flopped back onto the bed, rolling over onto his stomach.
He had been so tired the night before he hadn't even gone under the blankets. He had fallen asleep in his towel on top of the made bed. He lay in bed not moving for a long time. Every time he closed his eyes he saw the image of Dallas burning on his closed eyelids, so he stared at the wall in front of the bed. Just as he was gathering the strength to get up, Soda stepped into the room with an orange juice in his hand.
"Morning sunshine, it's midday and the world is already up" Sodapop started to say jovially but cut off suddenly and exclaimed, "Holy crap, your body!"
"I know I'm an attractive male Soda but you really should control yourself," Austin mumbled into the bed sheet, turning his face to look at Soda.
"No man, your friggen black, orange, green, purple and blue! You look like an ugly discolored rainbow you have so many colored bruises. Is this all from yesterday?" Soda asks skimming his fingers lightly on the bruises.
"Don't touch, they're sore man. Yeah, most of them are from the first fight in the shop," Austin said rolling over onto his back with a grunt. He shifted and stood slowly. Soda threw him his shirt and boxers and after watching Austin very painfully struggle into his boxers, keep his towel on, and do it with as much of his dignity as possible, Soda helped him into his t-shirt. What worried Soda was that Austin didn't wave him away. He accepted his help graciously.
"Dude, maybe you should stay here and let just Pony and I pick Dallas up. We'd bring him straight here," Soda said and Austin thought about it for a minute.
"No man, Pony has his big date today. I don't want to make him late for it, not with all of the big helpful hints Dally and I have given him," Austin said with a lewd grin. Soda almost smacked him but remembered his mosaic of bruises and just scowled at him instead.
"Alright well, will you be ready in five minutes?" Soda asked.
"Yeah dude, pull the car out front and I'll be out," Austin shoed Soda towards the front door and walked into the kitchen to grab a sandwich from the fridge, before pulling on his jeans and limping towards the front door. Pony was in the washroom greasing up his hair meticulously. Austin smiled like a demon, snuck up behind him and ruffled the kid's perfected hair before wishing him luck with Angel.
"Austin! I spent ten minutes on getting that cowlick to stay down and now its straight back up," Pony yelled at Austin's quickly retreating form.
"Don't worry, as soon as you see Angel it won't be the only thing sticking straight… oh hey Mrs. Anderson," Austin stopped mid sentence on seeing the Curtis' middle aged neighbor at the door. "Darry you have company!" He yelled inside before he briskly stepped around her and jumped into the car with Soda.