Okay, I'm back...again. Sorry about that long delay...I was stuck on this chapter for a month and last night it all hit me. SO sorry about that...but I hope it was worth your wait. Some have told me it always is, so I hope that's true.

Just a quick note to you all...while reading this...keep in mind the circumstances, the awkwardness, the overall pain Steve is in. If you do that, I think you will understand all that happens. I have spent a lot of time contemplating if this was all right, and I feel that it is, but I am one person. Sorry if you feel differently.

On to other things now...Reviews at end!

Dedication: This goes to Tensleep, because she was gracious enough to help me out soo much in my time of need. Don't doubt that she's a great friend, writer, and person.

On to the story! Hope you all enjoy!

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Darry's POV

The morning had been long so far, but it was nowhere near over. Just a few minutes after I had called my boss, and Soda's, I managed to wake a very grumpy Dally. Basically, I had just wanted him to know where we were all going to be off to. He didn't seem to care much through his hang over, and went back to sleep as soon as he grunted.

Then came the hard part, getting two hung-over, hurt greases to a clinic neither of them wanted to go to. I knew it was going to be a chore before I even attempted it, but actually doing it was harder than I had counted on.

Soda had complained up to wazoo about it. He hated doctors and rarely went to one, but I told him he didn't have a choice; not with him having been in an accident like that. He knew he wasn't going to get his way after I told him that one, so he basically gave in to me. The problem was that the fact he gave in didn't do much to help me out really. It still took a lot of time, energy, and pain on both our parts to get Soda out to the truck. Not only was he unable to move the entirety of his upper body, he was dizzy and felt bad anyway. The hardest part was getting him into the truck, but it happened and with surprisingly little noise on his part.

It was Steve I was really worried about. He couldn't move without a grimace, how was I going to get him out to the car? He didn't want to go to the doctor, I knew that much. But I also knew he needed one bad. At the same time I was almost afraid to move him, afraid it might hurt him more. Unfortunately, the way I saw it, there was no choice in the matter. He was going, and I was taking him.

Before I went to wake up Steve yet again, I grabbed a warm old shirt of mine out of my dresser drawer. Steve was going to be cold without that blanket, and he needed a thick shirt as to not show the blood anyhow. I didn't mind, and it was going ot be better tat way.

I walked over to the sofa Steve was on, sitting on the coffee table in front of it for the fiftieth time in the last twelve hours. I was in a hurry, but this wasn't something to rush.

"Steve?" He was pretty out of it, had been all morning. He didn't even open his eyes when Soda tried to talk to him as we passed through the living room. Soda was mighty worried about him after seeing that, but I told him not to worry too much. I was sure glad that Soda hadn't seen Steve's back though.

He opened his eyes, which was more than I had expected out of him right then. His eyes were pain filled, miserable, and only nearly half open.

"Buddy..." I leaned over him some so he could see me. Boy was he messed up. I could see him shivering under the blanket and he was more palor than I had seen anyone in a long time, since the death of my parents.

He directed his vision at me instead of the back of the brown couch, but didn't do much else. He seemed to ask what in his expression, so I went on.

"Im taking you to a doctor. Let me help you up and get you tot the truck."

He groaned, a short, but unhappy groan. I knew he didn't want to move from that place, but what else was there to do?

"It will be good in the long run, man." I glanced at the shirt in my hand, and then back at Steve, "Here, I have a shirt for you. Lets get it on so you aren't so cold."

I pulled the blanket off him slowly, seeing his bandaged back again and wondering how in the world his dad had done that to him. Blood was seeping through the bandages still, some fresh, some clotted and dry. Steve's body was trembling from pain and cold, and the trembling worsened without a blanket for protection.

I looked over his bruised and battered body. His arms purple, his back bleeding, his neck the only normal looking part of his screaming body. Steve didn't seem to care about the cold right then, his face showed no reaction at all. He seemed lost, drowned in pain or a worse head injury than I had originally thought. Either was bad, and either sent him to a doctor, so I felt in the right at that point.

"Steve...you wanna sit up?"

His eyes flickered, I didn't know if that was uncertainty, anger, pain, or just a reaction to waking up from the seeming dream going on in his head. But after the glint in his eyes was gone, he just sat, like the dream had taken him in again and welcomed him with a pain free existence.

"Steve?" I touched his shoulder, trying to not hurt him or be to startling for him.

He jerked his head up suddenly, the jerking motion seemingly convulsory in fasion. His eyes started darting to all corners of the room, looking for something I wasn't sure had ever been there in the first place.

"Hey..its'alright." I tried to calm him, bringing the blanket back up on top of him and leaning over him so he would see me and hopefully calm down. His breathing was jagged, like sharp glaciers of ice splitting apart every second. It seemed that Steve was shaking under the blanket, more than before, like he was scared or just out of control.

Pony walked into the room right about then, a weird look plastered on his face, "Something wrong?" He asked.

"Pon...go get a cold rag, will ya?" I was aiming to get Steve to wake up from whatever world he was in right then, before he did something real bad and hurt himself more. I didn't know what was going on behind those eyes of his, but it wasn't good. It scared the living hell out of me right then.

"Sure..." Pony left the room, still confused, but not asking questions; which I was grateful for.

Before Pony could get back, Steve freaked out even more. I couldn't tell you over what, but I had a feeling he was in his own little world, a dream of sorts. He suddenly shot his eyes open wide, gasping, and then rolling from his side to his back. Yelping, he arched his back to try and get away from the pain, a normal reflex at least, but that hurt him even more. Not a second later, Steve was on the floor as I was unable to catch him. He was lying flat on his stomach, heaving and whimpering, gripping at the carpet for some sort of stability or pain management or something. His screaming was only louder, and I sat wondering what I was supposed to do for him.

Pony came running into the room about then, a surprised and confused wave flashing over his face. He handed me the rag pretty quick though, which I was glad for. "Darry? What the hell?" He blurted at the same time.

I shook my head, trying to tell him now wasn't the time to be telling him things, later.

Deciding that distracting Steve from his pain in some way might help, I stuck the rag to the back of his neck. He took a sharp intake of breath, and started taking some deep breaths then.

"Steve?" I asked, hoping to god he would answer me and be all there.

He gripped the carpet in his fists, and looked up at me out of the corner of his eye, still crying out in pain.

I could tell by Steve's look that he was fully awake and vividly aware of the protesting his body was doing at that point. Sadly enough, I couldn't help but feel relief over that, just the fact he was in this world again, was a good sign if you asked me.

"Steve...just try to relax some, huh?"

He started staring down at the brown floor again.

"Don't zone out on me, alright?" I asked him. I knew he was in pain, and wanted nothing more, but it obviously wasn't doing much for him at that point. Not if I was going to get him taken care of the way he needed.

I looked up again, seeing Pony still posed in the same position, still gazing as confused as ever.

"Pony..." I looked back at Steve, then him again... "Go tell Soda that I will be a few minutes. Tell him Steve's fine, but it might take a little longer than I thought. Just so he won't worry. Okay?"

Pony jumped up and left the room, happy to be out of there I guessed.

"Steve...I know you are in a lot of pain. I know you don't want to move. But I really think we should get you to a doctor now."

A ragged long breath made his chest shake, and he pushed himself up a little, making an effort to sit up, only making it about six inches off the floor. He groaned loudly, trying t not to scream thorough gritted teeth, "Darry..." He growled after a minute.

"Well, if you weren't so damn stubborn, I could help you out, and this might actually work." I pointed out.

"Go to hell." He grunted, barely able to get the spite in his voice right.

"You need a doctor." I pointed out sternly. I know I'm not his family or nothing, but I highly doubted his family would do much for him at that point. I was really worried about him, and if I had to be stern, so be it.

"The fuck I do." He bitterly spat. Okay, so I could understand him not wanting to go, but it didn't change my mind much.

I rubbed my forehead, got off my haunches, and plopped down on the couch above Steve. "Alright. Say you don't...what now? You going to sleep on this couch, in pain for the next week? You want me to stick around night and day to make sure you don't die? I don't know what that bastard did to you...but..." I shook my head. "Steve...if you could only see yourself right now."

I didn't look at him at first; I was waiting for him to get even angrier at me. I would admit that wasn't the best thing to say to him, but I was at a loss as to what to do and my mouth got the best of it.

I was expecting another snide biting retort from Steve, what I got was anything but. I was surprised when he didn't say anything; I was worried when I heard the small, almost inaudible...thing that sounded almost like a sob.

Looking down curiously at him, I saw his chest back shaking, his face contorted and tears streaming down his cheeks. He was trying to hold it in, and failing miserably.

"Steve? God...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

"Dar..." he gasped out, his lip trembling from fear, pain, or something else, "It was bad...I've never seen him that mad. I mean..."

"You can tell me, Steve. I'm just trying to help you the best I can. You know you can trust me. This stays here." I said my elbows on my knees so I could see Steve but not be in his way. I knew that after all he had been through in the last night, he trusted me. I had helped him, no questions asked, always had, and always would. I think he finally had figured that out.

"Oh god..." He drifted off and was about to say something else when Pony came in, the screen door slamming behind him.

I didn't look up...but I knew the look Pony had to have on his face, "Pon...go to your room."

"Uh...alright." He seemed to know that something was up and he wasn't supposed to be in on it. He knew that tone.

Once he was gone, Steve started up again, "He...he was so drunk, Dar. My mom wouldn't do anything, she was too...scared. I was scared. I...I don't know if I can even go back there...he'll do it again. It was...oh god..." He was sobbing harder then, trying to keep it semi together.

"Calm down. You can stay here a while, alright? I'm all good with that. I just want to make sure everything is okay with you." I tried my best to be the comforter, something I wasn't good at, but Steve needed. He was letting go of all the feelings he had, all the things he never thought he would have to deal with, and to me of all people. I had to try and be gentle about that. Steve didn't break down, for anything. But the condition he was in wasn't helping, I was sure.

Steve didn't say anything to that, just let it out, still trying to calm himself, and not quite making it. I sat silently, just waiting. This was in no way, a matter to be rushed.

"It was the usual at first...yelling, a few punches...just like normal." Steve got out finally. It was like he needed to tell me what happened, just to get it off his chest, so I could deal with it too, so he wasn't alone.

"If I hadn't stood up to him...like normal, if I jut sat there...he was drunk, more than drunk. My mom was yelling. I thought the fuzz might show..."

He was skipping around more then, seemingly confused or something. But I let him take some time, try to get it together more, let him decide what he wanted and was willing to tell me. I hoped he would tell me what actually happened. How in the world his back had gotten to look like that.

It was a good few minutes of sitting and waiting, Steve still letting tears drip from his eyes and onto the carpet beneath him. After a few minutes I got a little worried that he might not go on, that he was done. That would be fine, but I figured if he told me what happened, then maybe there was a chance that I would agree he didn't need to see a doctor. It was slim, but nothing made sense at that point, and I really wanted it to all fit together in my head.

"Steve..." I sighed. I didn't know how to do this, to not be blunt about this, to be nice and get my point across, "Will you tell me...what happened next? When did it get worse?"

Steve pounded a fist on the carpet a few times in seeming anger. I had never seen him like that, he had a way of just hating the world and that seemed to do enough for him. Obviously, this was a lot worse than ever before though, and he was shook up.

"You ever been hit with a 2X4?..." Steve sobbed hard that time, not able to go on, even as he tried hard to say something else.

My eyes went slightly wide. I didn't want to over-react to that, not with how Steve was feeling then and trusting me not to. But it was hard. A 2 by 4? My god...

"My god...Steve..." I let out; I had to give him something.

"Darry...he...he...it was one after another...he never stopped...just kept at it...I couldn't fight...no one did anything..."

By that time, I was worried Steve was hurting himself, he was sobbing so hard. I had enough information, and I wasn't going to push him anymore. I just wanted to get him to calm down some. And I really felt he had to get to a doctor soon after hearing that.

"Calm down, buddy. It's done now, okay?" I hoped he knew that by calling him buddy, I was telling him I was letting it go, I knew what I needed to know, and it was time to relax. I hoped he didn't mind, I only called Soda buddy. It was meant to help.

Steve started to calm down then, reacting to my words well. I was so relieved by that, knowing I had no other tactic to use on him. He was taking deeper breaths, gripping the carpet still. The veins in his neck and arms were sticking out, but it was all in the process to calm down.

"God...it hurts..." He grunted a minute later.

I got back down on my haunches next to him, holding the shirt out so he could see it, "It'll get worse before it gets better. I still wanna take you to a doctor."

Slowly he turned his head towards me, letting his muscles relax some; his veins retire back into his skin "It still hurts like a bitch." He commented, almost grinning.

"C'mon...Soda's been in the truck this whole time." A second after I said that, a car horn was sounded, drifting into the house. I laughed, "He's sick of waiting, apparently." I commented.

Steve pushed himself up a few inches, and I helped him sit up as best I could, so he was leaning against the couch behind him. By the time we was in that position he was gritting his teeth, his muscles firm, and grunts escaping through his teeth.

Once he had calmed down, he, without looking at me, grunted, "You sure this is a good idea?"

"Nope." I answered, "But I don't know what else to do. Got any ideas, genius?"

He tried to shrug, but realized that wasn't a great idea, "Shut it" He said shortly, "Give me that shirt. I'm cold." He commented after a pause.

I looked at him oddly. "Let me help you so you don't kill yourself."

Slowly, through a lot of pain, grunting and slight awkwardness, we got the shirt on him. It was about two sizes too big for him, and it looked pretty funny, but it was comfortable as could get with injuries like that, and warm, so Steve didn't care.

It took a few minute to get Steve standing, and longer to get him to the truck. The poor guy was hardly able to stand out of the extreme pain of movement. I felt so bad to be causing him that much pain, but I was worried about him all the same.

I was happy when we finally we all in the truck, and on our way to the clinic. Steve was even talking to Soda, coherent or not, it was good.

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!!!On to business...reviews!!!

CinderBrat: I think this chapter is a bit more exciting than that last...shifty eyed...I THINK. Anyway, I'm sure glad you liked the last chapter, there was need for it in the plot so yeah. Hope you enjoyed this one!

Stephanie: I really loved that too, and I truthfully see Darry feeling that Steve is part of the family. All of the gang is. Well, I hope you enjoy this one even more. It took long enough to write, huh? But it is another needed element. Thanks for the support! You never fail to review, and I appreciate that.

Grease Girl: Well, I guess there is still a wait for you, sorry. Im mean, don't doubt it. And as for Dally and Two-Bit, they will come in next chapter, I will make a point of it. Thanks for the review! Hope you enjoyed!

Keira : Well, I guess you can read this before tomorrow now. YAY! Im sure glad you liked the last chapter, hope you like this one as much. Now Im going to get back to you and see what you are gaging over. See ya!

Oblivious Misconception: Thanks! Yeah, I don't know that this is any more drama than the last, but there is a very specific reason for this chapter. I hope you enjoyed. Thanks for your continuing support!

DaNNi BaBezZz: Wow, its amazing to me how much youcna pack into a review! Lol. That's a good thing, by the way. Yeah, I don't blame you for wanting to kick Steves' Dad's butt. He deserves it, but there are plans in place for that, don't you worry. Steve has been sent flowers, and you will see where Two-Bit is in the next chapter. Hope you enjoyed! Thanks again!

Erunyauve: Wow, the way you put that was great. Thanks! That's exactly what was meant to come out of that paragraph. Thanks so much! I hope that you continue t o read and pick up things like that. Thanks again.

soda-staygold16: Thanks for reading. I am sure glad you did also. Yeah, sorry about the whole not updating thing. I have been stuck...and I think you could understand that with this chapter's content. Well, thanks again. Hope you enjoyed!

Tensleep: You know, I never get your reviews, even though I trust you did one. Thanks for your support and no you don't have to sing me a song even though you think it's funny! I did dedicate the chapter to you so feel special! I know you enjoyed.