Thank you to everyone for the reviews and support. Every new review or person following this story means a lot to me. I'm glad that people seem to be enjoying it, I'm having lots of fun writing it.

I wanted to tell copperfox that I tried to apply your feedback in this new chapter. Thanks for your advice.

-Jem

Ponyboy was up to something.

I looked at him shoveling Soda's latest culinary creation into his mouth, his shoulders tense. His eyes were fixed on his plate or Soda, but he was trying to avoid making locking eyes with me.

I bit back a groan. Yup, my youngest brother was up to something.

Three days. It was the third day in a row that he's asked to go to the library and had spent the whole day there. I knew he loved reading but this seems a little excessive even for Ponyboy.

This morning, I asked Two-Bit if he knew what Pony was up to, since he was the one who had been dropping him off and picking him up.

"No clue, Muscles," Two-Bit had said around a bite of chocolate cake. "I hung around a while yesterday to see if I could spy him sneaking off somewhere but he didn't leave. I bet he's got a thing going on with the librarian. I guess the kid likes 'em gray haired ladies." He wiggled his eyebrows and chuckled.

I knew that wasn't it but I cuffed him upside the head out of principle.

It made my skin crawl not knowing exactly what he was doing. I was pretty sure that the driver of that corvette wasn't finished with him, and Pony had a bad habit of brushing off things until they became a problem.

Soda was chattering around mouthfuls of food about a poker game that he and Steve were planning on crashing tonight. Pony seemed to be listening but his eyes kept flitting towards me before he could stop himself.

When he was home in the evenings, he'd been going from trying to stay clear of me and hovering to see how he could help. Any small thing I needed, a glass of water or the channel changed, he was right there, but the moment I tried to talk to him he disappeared into his room so fast my head spun. That could have been from this stupid concussion though.

The door banged open and Steve strolled into the house bringing the smell of a fresh cigarette in with him.

Soda grinned. "Hey Steve!"

He nodded his head and made his way over to the casserole dish on the stove. "Ah, what the hell is this supposed to be?"

"It's shepherd's pie, man." Soda called over his shoulder, still eating.

"It's purple." Steve's curled his lip, poking it with a fork. "And what's the orange stuff?"

"Carrots. It ain't half bad." Pony answered.

"As long as you keep your eyes closed." I added and was rewarded by Pony meeting my eyes with a small smile for a second.

Steve peered into the casserole dish. "You didn't use grape jelly to dye it purple, did yah?"

"Nope, but I like how you think." Soda laughed. Pony shot me a horrified look and I fought back a chuckle.

Steve shrugged and scooped some onto a plate. "You ready to win us some money, Soda?" He said as he leaned back against the counter. He paused to sniff his forkful before taking a bite.

"Sure am." Soda's eyes twinkled and he bounced in his seat.

"You be careful little buddy. I don't want you hustling nobody tonight, you hear?" I eyed him. One of us out of commission was bad enough. Plus, I didn't need to worry about Soda seeking out trouble when I could barely get out of bed.

Soda shot a look over his shoulder at a smirking Steve. "We'll be fine Darry, don't worry." I noticed that he didn't agree with me and I shook my head at them. Pain shot through my temple, blinding me for a moment.

"You okay, Darry?" Pony was watching me with large eyes. I had a flash of what he looked like when he was little and it was quickly followed by a wave of warmth in my chest.

"Just a headache buddy. It's getting better but it just catches me by surprise sometimes." I reached out and touched his shoulder. He ducked his head again, still unable to met my eyes. I met Soda's gaze and his brow was furrowed. He must think something was going on too. No one knew Ponyboy better than Sodapop.

"So you'll probably need at least another few weeks off, huh?" Pony asked quietly.

It dawned on me that he was concerned about our bills and I inwardly winced. I didn't want him to worry or to wonder if I could provide for my brothers. "Yeah, I think so..." I started, searching for the right words.

"I can help," he interrupted, sitting up in his chair for the first time since dinner started. He pulled out some bills from his pocket which he placed in front of me.

I looked at the money in front of me, it wasn't much but it was more than I knew he had on him. "Where'd you get this?"

"I got a job," Pony was watching me carefully. "It's summer and I don't have nothin' else to do. It's at the library. Mrs. Haywood hired me to shelve books and clean up. That sort of thing." He fixed his pleading eyes on me. "Come on Darry, I can't get in any trouble there and I just want to help."

Pony gaze was hopeful though his foot was tapping a quick rhythm against the table leg.

So that was it, he'd gotten a job and was worried how I'd react. I rubbed a hand over my face and winced as it pulled on my aching ribs.

I was in no shape to go back to work. I had barely been able to do anything but sit in my armchair for the past three days. Today had been the first day I could read the paper without my head aching somethin' fierce. Still it wasn't his job to take care of me.

I couldn't stand feeling so drained and weak while my brothers worked to keep us afloat. They were my responsibility, not the other way around. What would the state say if they saw how I wasn't able to support them right now?

There was also the problem of those socs. They'd already tried to hit him with a car and I wasn't going to bet Pony's safety on the off chance that they might have gotten over it. How was I supposed to protect Pony from when it took me five minutes to make it from my bed to the bathroom?

I pulled my head out of my hand. Steve was cocking his eyebrow and Soda was watching Pony with a soft smile on his lips. He met my eyes and I knew what he thought I should do.

"Pony I don't want you to feel like you need to work. Soda and I can take care of the bills." Pony started to pull away, his eyes turning down to his plate. I reached out to place my good hand on his arm. I took a deep breath and continued. "But if this is something you want to do, I won't say no."

Pony looked up and met my gaze, a huge smile growing on his face. "Gee thanks Darry! I like working there a lot. I've found a few books that I want to read and I figure it might look good on a college application one day."

"No need to sell it kiddo, he already said yes." Soda chuckled as he brushed back Pony's hair. Soda sent me a not so subtle nod of approval and I rolled my eyes back at him. Which one of us was the older brothers here?

"Sounds like you're finally going to pull your weight around here kid, instead of just being a mouth to feed." Steve sneered.

"Says the guy who's here eating our food." Pony shot back and Soda reached out to hit Steve in the stomach before he could start in on Pony. Steve doubled forward, spitting his food out and almost dropping his plate all over the floor.

"Soda…" Steve's voice was a warning and Soda took off into the living room with Steve on his tail.

These guys would be the death of my sanity. I thought as I tried to stretch my back, jumping as my side pulled again.

"Alright Pone, we need some ground rules though." I drew his attention back to me from Steve who was still trying to grab Soda as he danced around the couch. "You need to have someone give you a ride to and from the library. I don't want you walking on your lonesome with those socs still out there."

Pony nodded.

Soda popped his head back into the kitchen, his mouth in a firm line and his eyes glinting dangerously. "You really think they're going to try something again?" Steve came up behind Soda, his shoulders tensing.

I met their eyes, all of us in agreement. "I don't want to risk it."

"Two-Bit, Soda and I will keep an eye out for that red Corvette. It must have some front end damage from hitting you and with that busted windshield it should be pretty noticeable." Steve offered. Soda looked over at Steve and nodded.

"I don't know how socs get away with it. You'd have a cow Darry if one of us brought the truck home like that, let alone if we'd hit somebody." Pony pouted, crossing his arms over his chest.

Steve jerked his head up and his eyes widened for a moment, but before I could ask him anything, Soda draped his arm over Pony's shoulders.

"That's cause Darry figures himself the most responsible guardian in all of Tulsa. We're just the lucky ones who have to put up with him." Soda bumped his head against Pony's, who laughed in return.

"You're just lucky that I can't move fast enough to catch you right now, little buddy." I drawled.

Soda's laugh followed him as Steve and him charged out the door ready to seek out their night's action. I smiled after him and tried to pile the dishes on the table with my one hand. As the cutlery clattered off the plate, I cursed my cast for the twentieth time that day.

I didn't regret pushing Pony out of the way, not for even one breath, but damn I hated being unable to move around like I wanted. It made me feel weak.

"Here, I got the dishes Darry." Pony moved to take the pile from me.

I used the crutches to pull myself to my feet, my whole body groaned in objection. Careful to stay off my injured ankle I tried to get my balance before hobbling over to my chair for the evening.

"Thanks Ponyboy." I said softly, hoping that he'd understand that I meant for more than just the dishes.

I was hoofing it over to the Curtis house Saturday morning. My little sis had some friends over and the amount of giggling in my house made it necessary to get out of Dodge. There was only so much a man could take.

Darry didn't need me to give Pony a ride today as far as I knew but I could still go over there and see how it was hanging. I was pretty sure I'd be able to scrounge up some chocolate cake and one of Darry's beers once I got there too.

The thought of that beer brought a hop into my step when Steve's car rumbled up.

"Get in," Steve barked, leaning over the seat to look out the window, cigarette hanging out the side of his mouth.

"Why good morning Steven. How are you on this oh so fine day?" I peered in, resting my arm on the door.

Steve rolled his eyes. "Just get in."

I shrugged, figuring that the beer would have to wait. I slid into the passenger's seat.

Steve didn't say anything for a moment. I drummed my fingers against the dash. "Thinkin' about taking up kidnapping are we?"

Steve looked at me confused. "What?"

"Seems to me that I'm being kidnapped since you won't tell me where you're taking me. Please sir, I want to live!"

Steve just stayed quiet as he tried his best to ignore me, his eyes fixed on the road. He took one final drag and flicked the butt out the window before his hands returned to being wrapped tightly around the wheel.

Hmm..so that's how it is. Well, if there's one thing I'm good at it's annoying one, Steve Randle.

"There was a little slimy grease and Stevo was his name-o. S...T...E...V...ow!" Steve's slap to the back of my head broke off my song, just when I was about to get to the best part. He bristled and I could hear him mumbling something about why did he put up with me.

"Well…?" I asked sweetly.

Steve grunted and he shoved his hand through his hair. "I took a drive this morning and I think I found the car that hit Darry."

"Where?" I cracked my knuckles in anticipation. They'd gone too far when those socs decided to hurt Ponyboy and I was ready to send them a clear message.

"Parked outside some soc's house." Steve replied in a voice that was too casual.

I quirked one eyebrow at him. "You just happened to be driving around soc neighbourhoods? This some new hobby of yours?"

Steve gave me a sideways glance but didn't answer. His silence spoke volumes.

I threw my head back and laughed. "Ha! Pony's gonna get a kick out of this. I'd almost say that you cared about him, Steve."

Steve shot me a glare. "The kid's a pain in my ass most of the time but he's family."

I brought my hands up to my chest. "Alert the press, Steve Randle does have a heart."

"Jesus, you're exhausting!" Steve snapped and reached out and punched me in the arm. "Yeah, I went looking for those bastards so we can do somethin' before they try to hurt the kid again, yah happy now?"

I grinned at him, knowing how hard it was for him to admit that Ponyboy wasn't as bad as he always pretended.

"So, what's the plan, captain?" I could feel the usual excitement of a rumble building. "Are we gonna get Superman or just Sodapop?"

"Nah, it's just you and me. I'm not planning on fightin'" Steve answered as he pulled onto a quiet street. The homes were bigger and more well-kept than our side of town. The lawns were perfectly manicured and there was no peeling paint in sight.

Sure enough there, parked in the driveway of a large brick house was a red corvette, it's cracked windshield and the scrapes on the hood standing out in it's pristine surroundings.

Steve parked the car in front of the house and started to open his door. I grabbed his arm as fast as I could to stop him.

"Whoa! Slow down there road runner. You've got to give me something if you want my help."

Steve nodded his head. "The kid said something the other day that gave me an idea." He shrugged but didn't look too sure. "I don't know, I figure it's worth a shot if it gets those dirty socs off his back."

"Just one thing," I said and Steve looked over at me. "Are we gonna steal the car because these are not my car swiping pants."

If looks could kill, I'd be dead. "Just get out of the car you idiot." He slammed the door behind him. Snickering to myself, I got out of the car and followed him up the driveway towards the front door.

I still wasn't sure what he had in mind but I bet it was going to be fun.