Okay! Another chapter! Four in one day! Sorry to say, we are almost done!

But don't be sad... it'll get better!

Well... maybe...

Thanks for all the reviews! Let's see if we can get up to 100!

-Jasmine

Ponyboy Curtis walked down the road with a frown on his face. She kick a lonely pebble down the side walk and fought back the urge to simply scream at the sky. Why? It was April 23rd. Pony quickly found his way to the lot. It was early in the morning. He had cut school. He knew Darry wouldn't yell at him though,Darry knew he wouldn't be able to think. Might as well save the tests for a day he can actually pass them.

Pony went to the usual place. It was an old car that had been left there, all the seats were missing. He had found it one day... with someone. He sat down on the green blanket that he always did. He didn't dare touch the pink one next to it. This was where he went when he wanted to be...

Alone.

He looked down at the pick blanket. There was still a jean jacket on it. Pony didn't dare touch it. He wanted to leave it exactly as she left it. It would be wrong to mess with it. Just... wrong. He leaned down and breathed in. Along with the heavy sent of smoke (Pony had quit when Meg told him how bad it was but the person who sometimes visited him smoked a lot.) there was still the heavenly smell of her perfume. He inhaled deeply. April 23rd...

"Hey, Pony." A soft voice greeted. Pony didn't even have to turn to see who it was. He already knew. No one else visited him, it reminded them too much of the girls.

"Hey, Johnny." He said softly. He waited and heard Johnny sit on the green blanket next to him.

"What's up, man?" Johnny asked. Pony looked at his friend. He had another small scar on his face, thistime closer to his eye. Other than that jail hadn't changed him all too much. Pony loved that. He wanted to thank Randy for saving his friend from turning into a cold monster in there.

"Not much." He muttered and closed his eyes. The smell was still in his mind. He could almost picture Meg sitting next to him.

"Pony!" Meg yelled and pushed him away with a friendly shove.
"Come on!" He cried and laughed along with her, "It's only a smoke!" Meg's face turned serious.
"That will kill you." Pony gave her a confused look.

"No way."

"Way." She confirmed and stomped the smoke out, "Those this will kill you before you get to be 30." Pony shuddered.
"Well you have to help me stop." He told her with a smirk.

"And how would I do that?" Meg asked, not catching on.

"Give me rewards everyday I go without a smoke." He told her.

"What kind of rewards." Pony smirked at her still.
"You know what I mean." He said and pulled her into a fierce kiss.

"Why are you so sad, man?" Johnny asked, pulling Pony out of the memory.

"It's April 23rd." Pony said simply. Johnny just nodded and became quiet. He hadn't been there that day but he knew what it meant, he was there last year when it came around. April 23rd was a bad day in the gang. It was the day all their girls just left. There was a huge fight. Johnny wished that he could ask about it but he was to shy to. He had been getting better. He was talking a lot more now. He had come back to the gang only a week or two after the girls left. Everyone was happy to see him, they needed their Johnnycake to give them something to fuss over. Johnny didn't mind playing the role. He knew it was just their way of dealing with it. (Even if it did get annoying at times.)

Johnny put a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"I'm sorry, man." He said. Pony just nodded. Johnny got up to leave but Pony grabbed his hand.
"Stay." He said quietly, "I don't want to be alone." Johnny nodded and sat back down. He was worried about his friend, he wasn't letting ANY girl have a chance with him. He was determined that Meg would come back.

Johnny could only hope.

…

Dallas looked around the empty stadium. April 23rd. It was a real mystery why everyone cared so much about it. So, they left. BIG DEAL. He was Dallas Winston he didn't care. Dallas turned the corner and looked at the abandoned concession stand. He sighed. Yes, he DID care. Memory's came flooding back to him. They went to rodeos a lot. Behind that shack was their make-out spot. Dallas sighed. It had been TWO YEARS! He needed to her out of his head.

"Oh you better watch it." Eve warned. Dallas gave her a look.

"And why is that?" He asked. Eve smirked and pointed at a tall dark haired guy behind them that was looking at her.
"That guy is checking me out. You better watch it, he's kind of cute." She teased. Dallas growled.
"That guy's a pussy. He ain't got NOTHING on me." He smirked. Eve raised an eye brow.

"Oh really?" She asked, "I think he's got nice arms..." Dallas glared and pinned her against the wall.
"You want to say that again?" He whispered as he pressed against her. Eve smirked.

"Sure." She said, "I think he's got-" Dallas didn't let her finished. He silence her with a rough kiss. After a long while, (and the need for air became a problem.) (Only a slight problem though, air isn't all that important when you're kissing Dallas Winston.) they both pulled away.

"What was that?" Dallas asked and Eve smiled.

"I still think he has nice arms." She said and Dallas kissed her again, just to prove that he was better, arms or not.

Dallas shook his head. He needed to stop thinking about this! Two years, man! Get over it! He sighed and started for Buck's. If he needed to get something off his mind he would find a good way to do it. Once he got there he looked around for a good, drunk, girl. Finding the one he smirked and confidently strode over. Yea, he wasn't going to think about Eve at all that night.

…

Sodapop Curtis look around the dusty room. He hadn't been in there for a long while. He didn't like to go in there, it still had a bunch of her stuff. It was April 23rd and the two year anniversary of they day they had left. Soda took a deep breath and ventured further into the room. He need to do this. He looked at the bed. Gigi's favorite blue top was laid out on it. She had been planning to wear it on their date the next day. He sighed and looked at the walls.

Pictures were everywhere. All of them had been painted by her. They all looked amazing and museumquality. He looked at the picture just above the head of the bed. He started to get choked up remembering it.

"Is here good?" Gigi asked and she held the picture up to a small place near the corner. Soda shook his head.
"No way! Too hidden. It needs a place of honor!" He yelled out. Gigi laughed and Soda picked her up by her waist and swung her around.

"Let me down!" She called out but Soda didn't stop.

"Never!" He called out like a five-year-old. Gigi laughed again and Soda smiled, he had always loved her laugh.

"Come on! I'm gonna hurt the picture!" This got Soda to get the girl down. She took a step and swayed. Soda quickly reached out to catch her or steady her but she waved him off.

"I'm fine," She told him, "Just a bit dizzy." Soda pretended to stroke his bead.
"Hm..." He said in a snotty British accent, "I wonder why that is...?" Gigi playfully slapped him.

"Oh hush!" She said.

"Fine fine... you're no fun at all." He complained and crossed his arms. Gigi laughed.
"This good?" She asked again through a fit of giggle. Soda picked up at once.

"Perfect!" He yelled out. Gigi smiled and quickly hung the messy picture in a place of honor just above the bed. Soda smile and put an arm around her.

"I like it." He announced and kissed her. She smiled into the kiss.

"Me too."

Soda carefully touched the picture, as if scared that it would fall apart at any moment.

"It really is horrible." He said to himself as he looked around at the other pictures. He smiled though, Gigi had loved it anyways and instead of just putting it on the table she had hung it there.

Just because it was from him.

…

Darry sat in his room, looking at the ceiling. Everyone else was probably doing the same. Almost no one went to work that day. None of them really could. Darry knew he was going to have to do extra to make up for it but he just couldn't that day. He looked at the picture of him and Sam hugging on his nightstand. He sighed. He missed her so much. He couldn't even look at a woman now with out thinking of her. It would be her 21st birthday soon. He sighed, if only he could be there with her. He messed up so bad. Why did he say that too her? He was an idiot. He looked at her coffee apron that was still hanging on the closet door knob.

"Darry!" Sam yelled, "I need two medium mint teas and a large hazelnut coffee!" Darry nodded and yelled back,

"Got it!" It was the last order of the day before they were free! They had been crazy busy. It was thetwins' birthday coming up and they were trying to get them both really good gifts. They really needed the extra money. Once the costumers were finally gone Sam sighed and cleaned off the counter as Darry whipped the tables.

"Finally." He told her, "We can breathe!" Sam laughed.

"You can! I still have to worry about dinner! I'm making it tonight." Darry gave her a hug.

"Maybe that's because you're the best cook." He reasoned. Sam shrugged.

"That might have something to do with it." Darry laughed and gave her a kiss. He pulled back but just enough so that he could talk.

"Wanna ditch tonight and maybe have a picnic? Pony's okay at making pasta." Sam kissed him back but shook her head.

"As much as I would love to, I can't. I promised Adam I would spend the night with her as an early birthday present." Darry laughed.
"Damn kids." He grumbled.

"Darry!" Sam yelled back laughed all the same.

"Come on." He defended, "You know it's true."

Darry brought a hand down his face. It was the stupidest thing he had ever done. He sighed and got quiet for a long moment, listening. The house was completely silent. Darry figured it would be okay, the door was locked and no one would hear him. Deciding it was safe Darry took a deep breath.

Then, Darrel Curtis started to cry.

…

"Hey... you're kind of cute." The blond said as she ran a finger up and down Steve's arm. He glared at nothing as he spoke in a cold voice.

"My girlfriend thinks so, too." He told her and the girl frowned, getting the not too subtle hint and stalked off. Steve sighed and put his head in his hands.

April 23rd. The day he fucked up big time.

How many times had he hoped upon hope that he could somehow go back into time a fix what had happened? Why couldn't he? He sighed and went back to working on the car. He picked up a monkey wrench and gave a small, bittersweet, smile. He then looked at the spot on the floor he would know would always be there. It was the stain he had made as proof that Adam had started to violently vomit and had to leave work early. That was the same day they started to go out... He missed her so much. He sighed and slowly started to walked home. Once he got there he entered through the garage, the front door was having some problems and he didn't feel like trying to fix it. He closed his eyes when he saw his car. He still hadn't gotten it fixed. Honestly, he didn't want to. As messed up as it was, it was one of those things that he used to remind himself that Adam had been real. That his love HAD existed.

"You're crazy!" Adam yelled and laughed. Steve just smiled at her.

"Come on, babe." He said and pulled her in for a sweet kiss, sliding over on the seat to be closer to her. It got more and more intense before Adam finally pulled back. Steve glared at her and growled.
"I'm not done with you." He told her. Adam just rolled her eyes.
"Well you better be. We're going to be late for work... again." She told him. Steve groaned, knowing that she was right. She smiled in victory as he started the car. She looked out the window as he speed down the road. Steve smirked and reached over, ripping her hat from her head.

"Hey!" She yelled. Steve just laughed though.

"You look better without hiding your hair." He told her. Adam smiled and shook her hair out.

"Fine... but just for you." She said and got out as they pulled up to the DX.

Steve sighed and got in the front seat. He looked over at Adam's seat. He could still see her looking out the window, talking about some tuff car or a fight. He looked down at the seat. Her blue DX cap was still sitting there, half crumpled from when he took it. He looked around at the car for a while longer. He then took out a piece of paper and started to write. It was his form of good bye. He had left her on two bad of a note. Once he was done he folded it up and placed it gently under her hat. He then took one last deep breath and got out. He looked around at the garage. Would he ever love again? He sighed. If only there was some way Adam could get that letter. Then she would know...