Disclaimer: I don't own the Outsiders.
A/N: Thanks for the reviews! You guys are the best! I already have a plan for my next story right after I finish this one. I'm trying to get to the epilogue, so this chapter should be longer than usual.Darry's POV
I came home from work at noon to have lunch and found Pony asleep on the couch. He looked
better than he had this morning, but I guess he was still tired. I would be too if I spent the whole
night in the bathroom. I went to the kitchen and made myself a sandwich, then I got Pony some
water and took it to him.
"Pony, wake up." I said.
He opened his eyes and sat up.
"Hey, Darry. What time is it?" He asked.
"About noon. You need to drink something. Have you eaten anything?"
I handed him the glass of water.
"No, I don't feel like eating." Pony said as he drank the water.
I kept telling myself not to worry. It was just part of chemo. I couldn't help it though. Worrying
was part of being a big brother.
"Please eat something, little buddy." I said.
"I'm okay, Darry. I'm just not hungry. I will be later. Stop worrying, and go back to work."
Pony said.
"All right. I guess I've worried enough for now."
I finished eating and started to leave.
"I'll be back later. Soda should get back before I do. Rest up and feel better." I said.
"I will. I promise." Pony said.
Twobit's POV
I was tired of school. I normally liked it, but today I just wanted out. I decided to skip my last
two classes and go see how Pony was doing. I walked out the door without anyone noticing and
walked the short distance to the Curtis house.
"Anybody home?" I yelled as the door slammed shut.
"I'm in my room." I heard Pony yell.
I went down the hall and into Pony's room. He was sitting on his bed reading a book.
"Feeling better?" I asked.
"Yeah, much better." He said.
"I decided to skip the rest of the day and come see you. School was boring."
"It's not exciting here either. I'd rather be at school." We sat in silence for a few minutes. Pony
was completely absorbed in his book, but suddenly he looked up from it as if he had just
remembered something.
"Hey, Twobit?" Pony said.
"Yeah." I said.
"Can I ask you something?" "Sure. I guess so."
I didn't know what he was about to ask, but I was getting very curious.
"I forgot about this until just now because of everything that happened yesterday, but I just
found out that I have to write an essay for English." Pony said.
I nodded, which told him to continue. What could that have to do with me?
"The topic has to be something that changed my life and the lives of my family and friends. I've
already written about my parents and Dally and Johnny, so this time I decided to write about my
cancer."
"So what did you want to ask me?" I asked even though I already had a good idea of where this
was going.
"Well, I know my cancer affected all of you guys, so I want to know how exactly. I'm going to
write down what everyone says, so you all have a part in it." Pony said.
This was going to be difficult. Not just for me, but for all of us. We couldn't only talk about the
good things that had come out of Pony having cancer. The bad things had to be mentioned too.
"Okay. What all do you want to know?" I said.
Pony got out a sheet of paper and a pen and wrote my name down on it.
"First, tell me good things that happened because of the cancer." He said.
"I quit drinking." I said.
"Why?" "I realized I didn't need it anymore. It couldn't make you well or make things any easier.
It just made me sick."
Pony wrote all this down. Then, came the hard part. "What about the bad things?" He asked.
I took a deep breath before speaking. I wished I could joke my way through this.
"Obviously, it's hard to see you go through chemo and everything. I guess the worst part is
knowing you could've died, and the cancer could still come back any time." I said.
As Pony wrote everything down, I thought I could see tears forming in his eyes. I shouldn't have
mentioned dying to him.
"I'm sorry, Pony..." I started.
"No, it's okay. It's the truth. Besides, I think I just realized the best thing that came out of having
cancer."
Steve's POV
When Soda and I got to the Curtis house, we found Pony and Twobit talking. We had no idea
what the conversation was about until Pony told us his essay topic. It turned out I was the next
one to answer questions. He was saving Darry and Soda for last.
"Okay, Steve. Tell me a good thing that came out of my having cancer." Pony said.
"That's an easy answer. We get along now. We're really friends." I said.
Pony smiled as he wrote this down.
"What about a bad thing?" He asked.
I thought about this a for a few minutes before I answered. I was sure we would all have a
similar answer to that question.
"It's hard seeing you so sick and worrying that we could lose another friend because of this
disease." I said.
Pony didn't say anything as he wrote. He was deep in thought, but he looked up when I spoke.
"What did Twobit say?" I asked.
"I'm not telling you guys what anyone else says. Don't tell each other either. You'll just have to
wait and find out." He said grinning.
Darry's POV
Soda and Twobit told me what was going on with the essay questions when I came home. Pony
had a really good idea. This was a great way to bring some closure to the situation since the
worst seemed to be over, and we were only dealing with the aftermath. However, I wasn't quite
ready for the emotions that this topic would stir up.
"So you want to know something good that came out of the cancer?" I asked.
"Right." Pony said.
"Pony, I didn't realize how important you are to me until all this happened. We're a lot closer. In
fact, seeing you go through cancer has made me realize that you're the most amazing person I
know. You didn't give up even when it looked really bad, and we were all scared. I'm proud of
you for that." I said.
Pony was smiling, but he was crying too. He wrote what I had said down, then went on to the
next question.
"What about the bad things?" He asked.
"There's nothing like watching your little brother go through something like cancer. Everyday I
wondered if you would feel better or if you could go home. The worst part was thinking we
were going to lose another member of our family." I said.
As soon as Pony finished writing, he broke down sobbing. I hugged him until he calmed down,
then he pulled away from me.
"I love you, Darry." He said.
"I love you too, Pony." I said.
"This is coming along better than I expected. It's becoming more than an essay." Pony said.
I left the room, and Soda went in. He was the last one, and I had a feeling he was going to have
the hardest time.
Soda's POV
Pony's eyes were red when I came in, so I knew he had been crying. I would probably be
crying soon too.
"Soda, I think you already know what the first question is. So, what's your answer?" Pony
asked grinning.
"Well, I realized that you are more special to me than anyone else could ever be, and I learned
that we can get through anything as long as we stick together as friends and as a family." I said.
When Pony was writing my answer down, I realized that I was trembling. I didn't want to think
about the terrible things that this cancer had caused. "What about something bad?" Pony asked.
"There are more than I could ever name, but I'll give you the worst of them. You almost died,
Pony. We almost lost you. For a while, I really believed you were going to die. As if that's not
bad enough, you still have to deal with chemo and feeling guilty and the possibility of the cancer
coming back." I said.
There were tears sliding down my cheeks, and Pony looked alarmed like he hadn't expected
that.
"Soda, it's okay. I made it." Pony said as he started to cry again too.
My baby brother comforted me this time when he pulled me into a hug.
Pony's POV
Later that night, I was reading over everything I had written down. Of course, what my friends
and my brothers had said all had a common theme. This essay was going to be a powerful one.
It wasn't due for three weeks, but I was going to start on it right now. It began like this:
One of the things that has affected my life the most just recently happened. It is a continuing
battle for me, my family, and my friends. It is one of the worst things that has ever happened to
me, but in some ways, it is also one of the best. My name is Ponyboy Curtis, and I have
cancer...
A/N: Yes! The epilogue is next.