Two-Bit was leaning against the railing of the Curtis's porch, staring out at the street, working up the courage to head back home. It had started to drizzle again, and Two-Bit found himself wishing he'd driven instead of walked. Steve had left long ago and Johnny was staying the night, so Two-Bit said goodbye, thinking he was over-staying his welcome. He wished he'd had more to drink. He'd only had four beers and that clearly wasn't enough liquid courage to get him back home.
What was he afraid of? He kept telling himself he was afraid of Dally – of how mad he'd been. But deep down, Two-Bit knew that wasn't true. If he was being honest, he didn't care how mad Dally was at him. The only thing he cared about was if he would be okay. And what scared Two-Bit the most was not knowing if he ever would be okay again.
"Two-Bit?" Darry's voice broke into his thoughts.
He turned around to face him.
"You're still here," Darry stated.
"Yeah, I…" Two-Bit hesitated as he tried to come up with a believable reason for hanging around. "It's raining…" he said lamely.
Darry nodded, his mouth twitching up into a slight smile. "Right." He stepped onto the porch and pulled a six-pack out from behind his back. He nodded to the stoop. "Want to stick around and throw back a couple of beers with me?"
"Who do you think you're talkin' to?" Two-Bit asked, grinning. He plopped down on the stoop and Darry joined him.
Darry handed him a beer and took one for himself. They were quiet for a moment, listening to the pitter-patter of the rain.
The rain had picked back up to a pour by the time Darry finally broke the silence. "Two-Bit, can I ask you somethin'?"
"Sure, but it'll cost you."
Darry let out a deep breath, ignoring Two-Bit's droll comment. "Do you think I did the right thing? Takin' Pony and Sodapop in?"
Two-Bit didn't even need to think twice about his answer. "Yeah, of course I do," he said. "What's got you thinkin' you didn't?"
Darry looked down at his beer bottle and started turning it slowly in his hands. "I dunno," he answered. "It's just… we're barely making ends meet and social services are always gonna be breathin' down our necks." He sighed. "I just wonder if they'd be better off in a boys' home or in foster care."
"No, they wouldn't," Two-Bit said firmly. "The best thing is for you guys to stay together. I don't know much, but I know that."
Darry nodded and continued to look down at his beer bottle. He seemed really troubled by all of this.
"Darry, I've gained a ton of respect for you over these past couple of months," Two-Bit told him. "I mean it, man. Everything you've done and everything you've given up, just to do what's right for Pony and Soda… It ain't a mistake that we call you 'Superman,' you know."
"Thanks," Darry said softly. "Except I don't feel like Superman. To tell you the truth, I feel completely lost." He lifted his head and bit down on his lip as he stared off into the distance. "I really miss them," he whispered, and tears started to roll down his cheeks.
Two-Bit set his beer down on the step in front of him. "I know, Darry," he said gently and carefully rested his hand on Darry's shoulder. "I know you do." Two-Bit was almost relieved. That was the first time he had seen Darry cry since the death of his parents. He hadn't even cried at the funeral.
Darry shook his head and let out a forced chuckle. "God, Two-Bit, I'm sorry," he said. He shrugged Two-Bit's hand off his shoulder and wiped his eyes on his sleeve. "I didn't mean to bring you down. That's not why I asked you to stay."
"Hey, it's okay," Two-Bit assured him. "It's good for you to open up, man. I was startin' to think you were made of stone."
Darry gave him a slight smile. "Sometimes I think it'd be easier if I was," he said. He let out a deep breath. "Thanks, Two-Bit, really. You're a good friend to talk to." He cleared his throat gruffly and took a sip of his beer. "Hey, I've been meaning to ask you, how's Dal doing?"
Two-Bit felt his body go rigid. He'd been hoping that the subject of Dally wouldn't come up. But now that it had, so quickly and unexpectedly, Two-Bit was thrown completely off-guard.
He let out a deep breath. "I ain't so sure you want to know the answer to that, Dar," he said, and his voice was shaky. He didn't want to tell Darry the truth, especially not when he was already down in the dumps. But he knew the truth would come out if Darry pressed on. For some reason he just couldn't lie to Darry.
Darry turned to face him. "What're you talkin' about?" he asked, his expression etched with concern. "You mean he's not okay?"
And maybe it was the alcohol, or maybe it was because Two-Bit wanted to talk to someone who knew Dally as well as he did, but he went against his better judgment and told Darry everything. Despite knowing that Dally would kill him if he found out and despite knowing that Darry already had enough on his mind. The worst part was that Two-Bit knew he was being selfish.
But he couldn't stop himself. He told Darry how everything had unfolded: how it was Shepard that brought it to Two-Bit's attention, how Two-Bit confronted him, how sick Dally had been the past couple of nights. Everything.
Darry sat stunned beside him. "I can't believe it," he said with a strained voice. "Jesus Christ." He was still for a while, but then, out of nowhere, he chucked his half-empty beer bottle into the street. It shattered into a dozen pieces. "Goddammit, why is everything falling apart?" he snarled. He ran his hands through his hair and looked at Two-Bit desperately.
Two-Bit's heart sank. "I shouldn't have told you," he said and looked down at his hands. "God, Darry, I'm sorry. You shouldn't have to know about this."
"No, I'm glad that you told me," Darry said firmly. He sniffed and wiped his eyes. "I can help. I'd do anything for Dally, you know that."
Two-Bit shook his head sadly. "He doesn't want anybody to know. Especially the gang. I wasn't supposed to tell you – or anyone. Hell, I ain't even supposed to know. You should've seen how angry he got when he found out my mom and Rick knew."
Darry sighed. "I guess I can understand that," he said, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "He's got too much pride."
"Yeah, well, he ain't the only one, Superman," Two-Bit said softly, resting his hand back on Darry's shoulder. "But you understand this has to stay between you and me, right?"
Darry hesitated. "Yeah, I know that," he confirmed wearily. "I don't want Ponyboy or Johnny hearin' about this anyway. Don't worry, Two-Bit, I won't tell a soul."
"Not even Soda," Two-Bit warned.
"Not even Soda."
The pair fell silent again, staring out into the rain. But when Two-Bit got bored with watching the rain, he turned his head to look at Darry. He looked old and tired. His forehead was already starting to get wrinkles from worrying too much.
"I wish there was some way I could help," Darry said suddenly. He tilted his head at Two-Bit. "You said Dal's been havin' nightmares?"
Two-Bit nodded.
"He should see that doctor Pony's been seein'," Darry said decidedly. "He's helped him a lot."
Two-Bit sighed. "I mentioned that idea to Dal, but he didn't seem too thrilled about it. But if you want to give me his number, I can pass it along to Rick and see if he can set somethin' up."
Darry shrugged. "It couldn't hurt," he said. "I think he left us his contact card. Let me go grab it and then I'll drive you home."
"Darry, you don't have to—"
"Two-Bit, that wasn't an offer. It was a statement," Darry said firmly. He stood up. "Wait here."
As Two-Bit waited on the stoop, he couldn't help but feel guilty about dragging Darry into this mess. But at the same time, it was a relief to talk to someone about it, someone who could truly relate to the emotions he was feeling.
Thank God for Darrel Curtis, Two-Bit thought to himself as the rain continued to pour down. Thank God for Superman.
A/N: Two-Bit is just blabbing to everybody! I hope you guys like reading Two-Bit/Darry interactions as much as I like writing them! I love those two characters to death, so don't be surprised if you see more of Darry in the coming chapters. I also wanted to let you all know that the pace of this story will start to pick up some. So far it's been very day-to-day but pretty soon chapters will be covering up to weeks at a time. I think that's all you need to know for now! Thanks for the continued support!