For the couple days this is how Soda went about seeing Samantha but he knew they couldn't keep saying the same thing so he started going out in the middle of the night when Darry was sleeping. He usually didn't even tell Pony.

He'd just walk right out the front door after getting Darry's keys and drive the truck down the street quietly. It worked a couple of times. He'd sneak back in around four or five o'clock in the morning and nobody knew.

He felt bad but he couldn't stand not seeing her and the more he heard Darry saying he didn't want him to see her the more Soda wanted to!

Soda drove home Monday night. It was about three. He was glad that Samantha was a night person because if she wasn't it would've been very hard to ever see her and this arrangement was already hard enough to get away with.

He'd picked her up the night before and the previous night before that and he was feeling confident In himself now and sure that he could pull this off. So far sneaking out and dating in the middle of the night had been a success.

Soda got home a few minutes later and pulled the car up to the curb as quietly as you can and he parked. The front door was always unlocked so he never had any trouble getting in. Darry always left it open in case one of the gang needed a place to sleep or stay at for the night.

Soda cracked open the screen door and then the door itself and slipped in quietly. The first thing he noticed was that the light in the kitchen was on. That meant somebody was up! How would he get to the bedroom without them seeing him? He just hoped it was Ponyboy.

He crept through the living room and towards the hall. He was just about to turn the corner to enter his room when…

"Sodapop Curtis! Were in the world have you been? You've had me worried sick. Soda turned around to find Darry standing in the living room. He apparently had been the one in the kitchen.

Soda just stood there. He didn't know what to tell him. "Think Soda." He told himself. "Think fast!"

"I went on a walk." Soda said quickly.

"A walk?" Darry asked. Soda nodded. "You went on a walk for two hours at four in the morning?!"

"Two hours?" Soda asked.

"Yes!" Darry yelled. "I got up two hours ago to get a glass of water and when I walked by your bedroom door I noticed that you were not in your bed! Were have you been?"

"I… I told you." Soda stammered out. "I went on a walk."

"Bull shit!" Darry screamed. "You were with that girl weren't you?" Soda didn't answer. "Weren't you?" Darry asked again.

"Maybe." Soda said.

"Do you know that I have been pacing around here waiting for you to come back? You are aware of what time it is, are you not?" Darry said. "I was gonna go out and look for you Soda, but you know what I realized when I got outside? My truck was gone!" Soda winced at Darry's fierce tone of voice. He seemed to be beyond upset.

"You deliberately disobeyed me! After I told you not to see her you snuck out and went to see her anyways and at four o'clock in the morning!"

"It aint fair, Darry!" Soda yelled back. "I wanna be with her. Why can't I be with her? Why can't you just accept it?

"She's over 10 years older than you Sodapop Curtis!" He yelled.

"So what!" Soda yelled back. "I love her!"

"No you just think you love her!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Soda said.

"You're only seventeen years old and you don't know what you're talking about." Darry insisted. "A beautiful twenty-eight year old women is going to easily have you all over her. She just wants to use you Soda."

"She does not!" Soda yelled. "What would you know? You've never even met her. You don't know anything about her or what she's like so how can you say what her intentions are? How can you judge her if you've never even met her. That doesn't make sense!"

"Because I can imagine what she's like and I know about women like her. Any women that's dating a seventeen year old kid most likely does not have good intentions. And don't disobey me again! There are reasons that I tell you to do things, Sodapop. I don't just set rules to annoy you. I set them to protect you and until you've got your own place and you aint living under this roof you will follow my rules!

Soda leaned his head against the wall. So much for his nightly visits plan. That had just been destroyed. Darry was furious. He kept ranting and raging for several more minutes and Soda's head hurt and he felt close to tears. He wanted to tell Darry to be quiet. He wanted to tell him to leave him alone because he got the point.

"Sodapop, are you listening to me?" Darry said several minutes later as he watched Soda stare at the ceiling.

"No, I aint listening!" Soda yelled. "I could care less what you think! I love her and you can't do anything about it!" Soda ran out his front door and started down the street. The last thing he wanted to do was stay there and hear Darry go off about the whole thing.

"Soda, stop!" Sodapop looked behind him and saw Darry running several yards behind trying to catch up with him and he was getting close.