You guys are truly amazing. 175 flippin' reviews! I never thought that this story would ever get 100 let alone 175! This chapter is dedicated to all the anonymous reviews out there. Just because they are anonymous, doesn't mean that they don't get left out.

I wake up, it's a bad dream

No one on my side

I was fighting

But I just fell to tired to be fighting

Guess I'm not the fighting kind

Wouldn't mind it if you were by my side

But you're long gone

Yeah you're long gone now

-Keane A Bad Dream

Chapter 24

Darry's POV

"Guys we have something to tell you." I say. Both Two-Bit and Steve look up at me.

"What's wrong, Darry?" Two-Bit asks.

"Nothing... Well when we went to New York…" I get interrupted by my youngest brother.

"Hey, can I get some Aspirin?" Ponyboy comes down the hallway holding his head. He looks up at our buddies and stares at them for a few seconds. After about ten seconds he weakly mutters.

"Hey guys." Two-Bit nearly tackles him giving him a hug. Steve joins him hugging him over Two-Bit. Two-Bit says something in Pony's ear and Ponyboy smiles. I smile and silently thank God for letting this go smoothly. After a few minutes of hugging and smiles they break apart. We all go to sit on the couch. Ponyboy rubs his temples; I jump up to get him some Aspirin. I give him the pills and some water. He nods gratefully. One thing I have noticed about Ponyboy, now that he's back, is that he is more soft spoken.

"You've been in New York this entire time?" Steve asks. Ponyboy nods. He has that cool tuff personality that Dallas had, except Pony is calmer.

"What have you been up to?" Two-Bit asks. "Meet any broads?" he jokes. Ponyboy winces, thinking of Alex probably.

"Yeah, yeah I meet one. She was amazing. Her name was Alex." He says quietly looking at the ground.

"We'll do we ever get to meet her?" Two-Bit asks.

"Two-Bit, no." Soda says looking serious. Pony ignores him.

"No, you can't. She was killed a few days ago. You would have liked her though." He says still looking at the floor. I swear I saw I tear fall to the ground.

"Golly, I'm sorry Ponyboy." Two-Bit says.

"Sorry man." Steve mutters.

"It's alright. My fault anyways." Ponyboy says. I go over to him and put my arm over his shoulders. I can feel the heat radiating off his skin. I feel his forehead and sigh. The medicine I gave him didn't do jack. Ponyboy sighs and puts his head in his hands.

"Go lay back down Ponyboy." I tell him softly. He nods and stands up shakily. He drags himself down the hallway down to his and Soda's bedroom. I look at everyone else and they look at me.

"Is he okay, you know emotionally?" Two-Bit asks. I shake my head.

"Alex was his girlfriend, and she might have been pregnant. Another one of his buddies was killed short after. He's been blaming himself like he did with Johnny and Dallas. Steve sighs and Two-Bit cruses. I look at Soda; he has tears in his eyes. I go over to him and pat him on the back.

"He'll be okay little buddy."

Pony's POV

As I lay on my and Soda's bed I started to cry. I felt awful, my stomach hurt like there was no tomorrow, my head was pounding, and I kept getting these cold and hot flashes. But it wasn't the physical pain that I couldn't bear, it was the emotional pain that was killing me inside. The guilt of the deaths of those who I loved, was overbearing. It's like this is some terrible nightmare that I have yet to wake up from. I wanted Alex, my mother, my father, Johnny, Dallas even to be here with me. I wanted to hear my mother's sweet voice cooing me to sleep, my father's comforting embrace around me making me feel safe, Alex's beautiful face calming me so much that I could die, Johnny's presence making me feel at ease, or Dallas's smirking face always letting me know that things could work out. I finally cried myself to sleep.

"Come on, Ponyboy, it's alright." My mother coos in my ear. I had woken up from a nightmare. Soda had carried me into Mommy and Daddy's room so I could sleep there. I keep crying, I was still scared from the nightmare. Daddy took me from Mommy holding me in his big strong arms.

"Do you remember what the dream was about, honey?" Daddy asks me. I shake my head. He rocks me until I fall asleep.

Me and Johnny were smoking on the porch outside. Darry Soda, and Steve were at work, Two-Bit was at Buck's, and Dally was in the cooler. Mom and Dad died about a month ago, Darry got custody of me and Soda, Soda dropped out of school, and I was still sad. I just sat there with Johnny smoking and thinking about them. It was getting late. Around 8, Darry had gotten home about an hour ago and Soda around 5. The sun was starting to set.

"That was pretty." Johnny says.

"Yeah, it was."

The gang was at the Dingo for my birthday. I didn't want to make a huge production of it, so we just went out to eat. Darry and Soda got me a new pair of running shoes, Two-Bit lifted a six-pack of Pepsi and a switchblade for me, Steve and Johnny put some money together and got me a copy of Oliver Twist, and what really surprised me is when Dally handed me a Playboy magazine when Darry and Soda weren't looking. Two-Bit and Steve thought it was hilarious when my ears went red, while Johnny shot me a sympathetic smile. Soda came over and saw what Dally had given me. He snatched it up and burst out laughing. Darry didn't think it was too funny. Dally was smirking at me the entire time.

Alex and me were taking a walk in central park. It was almost time for the sunset. I took Alex to the middle of the park so we could see it best. We layed down under a tree holding hands. The mist surrounding the sun was all pretty and golden, with pink highlights streaking through it. Alex never really looked at sunsets. I wanted to show her one.

"That was beautiful." She whispers as the sun goes down. I kiss her on the side of her head.

"Yeah it was." Alex turns to me and kisses me. I hold her, running my hands up and down her sides. She smiles through the kiss. I smile back. Then I swing her over my shoulder.

"What are you doing?" she laughs at me. I carry her back to Blade's place. Alex was laughing the entire way there. When I go into the apartment, Blade looks at me funny.

"Uh… Ponyboy. What are you doing?" he says.

"Nothing." I take Alex back to our bedroom. I throw her on the bed and lock the door. I pounce on her, pinning her on the bed. I kiss her, and she kisses me back. She holds me to her. I stroke her hair gently. We only stop the kiss to come up for air. After about an hour we stop. She lays next to me curling up to my side. I smile at her. That night I couldn't sleep, Alex stayed up with me, muttering sweet things in my ear till I fell asleep curled into her.

Soda's POV

After the guys left, knowing that we needed space, I went back to check on Ponyboy. He was sweating something fierce, and curled up in a ball, like he was trying to make the pain in his stomach lessen. I sat next to him. His face was a little strained, and then would relax. I rubbed his forehead, feeling the heat coming from it. I saw that he was still in his jeans and long-sleeved tee-shirt from last night. I gently pulled off the shirt and his jeans, leaving him in his boxers. I covered him in a thin sheet and left the room to get Darry.

"Hey Darry, I think Ponyboy needs some more of that medicine. He's still burning up."

Darry nods and goes into the bathroom to get the medication. I go into our room and sit by Ponyboy. He was tossing and turning in his sleep. I rubbed his back and shook him gently. He groans and looks up at me.

"Hey, kiddo, how ya feeling?" I ask him.

"Like I got hit by a truck." He mutters. I rub his head and Darry comes in.

"Hey, little buddy. I need you to take some more Motrin for me, alright. Sit up." Ponyboy weakly sits up, his arms shaky. I go behind him and hold him up. Whatever he had, it was really taking a toll on him. Darry holds up the medicine to his lips as Ponyboy gulps it down. I lay him back down and put his head in my lap.

"Where's it hurt Pone?" I ask nicely.

"My head and stomach." Ponyboy never really admits to pain unless it was nearly unbearable.

"I'll get you some pain meds." Darry says. I can hear him rummaging through the medicine cabinet.

"Have you eaten anything funny lately?" I ask him.

"No, not that I know of." He says weakly burying his head in my waist. I rub his temples in a slow but steady motion, like I did the day he broke down over Alex. Darry comes back in with a pill and another pill, but cut in half. He sits next to us. Darry puts a hand on the small of Pony's back.

"Here you go, Ponyboy. These will knock you right out." Darry says. Ponyboy swallows them dry. I gently move him so that he's laying on his back in-between me and Darry. We all fell asleep after awhile.

Please Review.

Also, should I make Ponyboy Flu sick, or hospital sick. I leave this on your hands.