Author's Note: Okay, well I haven't updated a LONG TIME on this one. The other one too, but this one I feel bad about. So here it is. And because its really late right now and my heads kinda hurting and I go writers block for the first time ever im no thanking each and every reviewer. Im sorry, im just so tired. But you guys no I love you. Anyways

Thanks goes out to: windyday6, FlipWise, Ale Curtis-Carter, Not-That-Kinda-gurl, Outsider08, mischief maker, Jacky Higgins, myhubbyisob, Mrs. Benji Madden, Banana4422, JustPlayin, Dreamerforlyf, Aishiteru Sasuke ----Hope I got everyone---- again thanks to my beloved reviewers who I no I must piss off when I don't update. If you want ill send you my address and when I don't update you can come throw timbits at me, hows that? Sounds fair enough I think.

Enjoy the Chappie, People, lmao keep ragging me out for something here ya go.

Chapter 9:

Two-bit stood still too startled to move. The unconscious body was sprawled in front of him, lying in an awkward position while blood fell freely from open cuts. Dallas wasn't far away, watching curiously while Two-bit nudge the bruised pile of flesh with the front of his foot.

"Stop that!" he snapped. "Shepard! Shepard get your ass in here right now!"

Dallas circled around the unconscious boy, moving some stray bits of hair out of the pale face. There was blood everywhere, engulfing the pasty skin in a crimson red. The back rose off the ground in a struggled attempt to take in some air and then with a small moan collapsed once again. Two-bit was still eyeing Dally, wondering what he should do. He half thought Dallas had planned for this, that it was just a slight distraction and then the tough greaser would jump up and tackle him. It wasn't too far fetched because he knew Dally could sure fight dirty, but no, what was happening now wasn't a plan. Two-bit was just getting a little too paranoid.

"Shepard! Are you deaf? Get your…"

Tim Shepard sauntered through the kitchen, eyes barely open and head hanging tiredly over his chest. Crimson lines zig zagged across the white parts of his eyes, while the lids covered half dilated pupils.

"What is it…" Tim caught sight of the still body by Dally's feet. The chest rose and a ragged moan broke the stillness. "Curly?"

For a moment Tim's strong barrier that he'd always kept up, the one that scared people into not wanting to push him too far, the one that his entire reputation was built upon. It just all came apart in that instant that he realized his younger brother was laying, barely alive on the linoleum floor in Buck Merrils'. Knees hitting the ground with a hard painful sound, Tim shoved a wandering Two-bit aside and gently rolled his brother over with as much care as possible.

"Curly? Come on, wake up." Shepard roughly hit the sides of Curly's swollen face until his eyes started to flutter and sounds started to escape his mouth.

After a few seconds, Curly's eyes were fully open and he was slowly trying to take in the scene around him. Two-bit hovered over Tim, wandering what to, while Dallas leaned up against a nearby wall, cigarette dangling from his lips as he watched. Curly's face was a twisted mess of agony but he was doing a good job trying to keep the pain from showing. Jaw clenched, he whispered something to Tim that sounded like

"I think I'm going to be sick." Tim nodded and hauled the hood to his feet.

"Dallas help me get him in a room, would ya?" Dallas shrugged and stepped up beside Curly whose first reaction was to flinch. Dally smirked, recalling the many times he'd kicked the kids head in for pissing him off or doing something stupid. Taking Curly's arm in hand, the three greasers managed to make their way up Buck's staircase and into one of the empty rooms without falling over and breaking their necks.

Curly stumbled into the bed, gasping when his bruised limbs made contact with the soft box springs. The sheets immediately began to change color, turning from a pale sickening yellow to a dark red almost brownish shade. Tim ignored it and lifted the corner of the blanket up and started wetting the end and wiping the blood from Curly's face. Their was a deep cut across his eye that would surely scar and blood was free flowing from it, slowly staining his cheek a crimson red.

"What the hell happened to you?" Two-bit asked as he watched Dallas hand over the last sip of his beer. Curly nodded gratefully and took a drink. His head was spinning when he gave the bottle back over to Dally and his stomach was starting to churn once again, this time more violently before. The last thing he wanted to do was get sick though, because his ribs were burning and when you had cracked ribs and you wretched it set off a whole other kind of torture.

"Socs" he coughed. "I was coming back from the Dingo and a whole bunch of em outta nowhere came at me. Must have been at least five."

Tim swore, while Two-bit remained silent, but a strange look was washing over his face. Realization Dally figured. Not doubt it was the same socs he'd kicked the shit out of only a few days earlier, the ones who'd jumped him. Jeez, the way things were going they were heading straight for a rumble.

"They say anything?" Two-bit almost whispered. He kept his gaze on the floor, red greasy curls shading his tired eyes from the rest of the hoods in the room. Curly moaned, struggled to turn on his side and then gave up.

"Yeah," he said breathlessly. "They mentioned you."

"Shit Keith" Dallas snapped. He hated referring to Two-bit in that name, but it seemed almost second nature now. Dally didn't bother to same anymore, he figured the guy was already going over everything in his head, besides a rumble would be fun. He didn't really feel like going at it, but it was something to do in a town that had nothing to offer him.

Curly tossed once more. The sheets were becoming tangled in his legs and he bit back the pain when his ribs seemed to move in the wrong direction. Tim watched, that awkward tension filling around him. He'd help his brother, but Curly might not want that and besides he had to act tough still with Matthews and Winston in the room.

"You stay here Curly."

"Where else would I go?" Curly snapped, voice high pitched and whiny. Tim threw him a warning glance, and turned to leave the room, grabbing hold of Two-bit's arm in process. He knew not to take hold of Dallas, but even Two-bit was starting to become hard to push around.

Stepping out into the dimly lit hall, Tim shut the door behind himself and the other two greasers. For a few minutes they remained silent, Dally flicking his cigarette ashes in Two-bit's direction, just wanting to push a bit further. The brawl they'd had only a little while ago had been exciting, dangerous, it was something he hadn't had in a long time.

"We gotta stop this shit" Two-bit finally broke the silence. Tim nodded.

"And how should we do that, huh?"

"Rumble" Tim replied. Dally rolled his eyes. Taking a long contemplating drag on his cigarette, he leaned himself casually on the wall. Darry wouldn't be happy when he found out about a rumble, course he'd probably seen it coming a mile away, just like everyone else had. The soc's were getting too cocky, walking right into their territory and jumping unsuspecting greaser. Two-bit was one of the unfortunate ones and what he'd done, attacking those soc's was stupid on his part. But it was the right thing to do; stupid, but right, if that even made sense.

"A rumble" Two-bit echoed. "Think they'll go for it?'

"Who the hell cares if they do or not" Tim snapped. "If they don't want to rumble, we'll just jump em anyhow."

"They'll go for it" Dallas began with confidence. Putting out his cigarette on the wall, he stood upright and shrugged his coat onto his shoulders. "I'll make arrangements for it tomorrow."

"Where are you going?" Two-bit called out after him.

Barely awake, Dally dragged his feet down the hall and looked back over his shoulder.

"Someplace other than here."


Half an hour later Dallas was driving Buck's old pickup. The gas tank was barely full and it coughed noisily in the late night silence, crawling along the torn asphalt. His foot dug deep into the pedal, Dally watched as the scenery blurred, tress meshing with the grass and the star blanketed sky. After leaving Tim and Two-bit he wasn't sure where he was heading, just that he was heading somewhere. Turning down another street, he realized that he was closing in on the Curtis house. Funny how everyone always seemed to be drawn to that one place. Things were always changing but the Curtis house was always the same. He liked it like that, it was something he understood, unlike all the other stuff.

At quarter to two, Dallas was just passing the lot when he recognized the outline of a shadow, swaying form side to side as they nearly collapsed in the lot. With a quick jerk, Dally parked the truck halfway on the curb of the sidewalk. Shutting the engine off, he struggled for a minute to open the door and went out to the person. He walked cautiously with his hands in his pockets, fiddling with a switchblade that he always kept at the ready. Breathing, heavy and ragged sounded in his ears. Drawing closer, Dally realized that whatever was curled in a misshapen ball on the cement wasn't any danger to him.

"Hey!" He nearly spat the name and the figure shook. Raising their head slowly, Dallas caught the kid's swollen eyes in his sights and cringed. Dropping the blade in his pockets, he ventured forward and kneeled next to the dark hared greaser.

"Hey, it's me."

He tried his best to let his voice come out in a soothing tone, but it was useless. That rougher than gravel voice and tough attitude had overcome him long ago and he could never hide it, not even for poor Johnny Cade.

"Dallas?" Johnny shamefully wiped at his eyes, pushing the fallen tears off his face. A new bruise was forming on his left cheek and a couple of scratches marked up his bare arms, but besides that he was fine. Dally decided the kid was just more shaken up than scared.

"Your ol man again?" Dallas lit two cigarettes and handed one to Johnny. It would calm him down soon enough and then he'd take him on over to Darry's.

"Yeah" Johnny took a refreshing drag. "The ol lady had some say too but…"

His voice trailed off and his eyes wandered. Playing his hands across the small hole in the toe of his tennis shoes, he sighed. Dally smiled, ignoring the uncomfortable feeling he sometimes got when he was with Johnny, and pushed it back down inside him. At least the kid didn't whine all the time like Curly, he admired Johnny for that. He could take a beating and not even cry about it. Johnny Cade was tuff even if he didn't realize it, Dallas knew enough hoods in his time to know that Johnny was tuff.

"Where'd you come from?" Johnny asked curiously. The glow from the moon hit Dally's face, revealing the dried blood from where Two-bit had attacked him. Dallas smiled proudly and showed of his battle wounds.

"You like. I suggested Two-bit give me a makeover" Dallas sucked in a deep breath and exhaled the smoke. "I don't think he did that good of a job. But don't tell em. You know how emotional he is."

Johnny forced a smile but his prodding mind wouldn't rest. "You guys went at it?"

"Yeah, over a beer" Dally laughed. "Curly got jumped tonight. Must have been only an hour ago by some soc's."

Johnny's face went pale. Since that time only a few months ago when he'd been jumped, Johnny had never been the same. Scared of his own shadow half the time, the kid cringed when he heard something bad had happened involving a soc and a greaser. Not for the soc but for the greaser. Dallas' guess was because the kid knew that at anytime that greaser could have been him, or Ponyboy. Shoot, it could be anybody and happen at anytime.

"Same ones Two-bit went after?"

"Yeah, that's what were guessin. How'd you know?"

"There's been talk at school the last few days. Nothin much, just talk. I reckon it's not anymore?"

"Nawe, might be a rumble. Least that's what Shepard thinks. I've got to talk it over with Darry tomorrow and see Shepard and set it up. Might only be a few days t'ill it all goes down. Things get worse, it might be a lot sooner."

Johnny nodded and threw away his cigarette. Again he touched the hole in his shoe, waiting out the awkward silence that had fallen on them.

"Come on, it's colder than a witches tit out ere."

Getting roughly to his feet, Dallas pulled Johnny back towards Buck Merrill's truck and helped him inside. A nice four hour sleep, that was all he needed to prepare for the long day he had planned. It wasn't going to be a fun day, but it sure as hell would be long. Especially trying to explain to Darry that a rumble was coming and it would only be a day or so before all hell broke loose, that alone would take an hour. The guy was smart but he was as stubborn as they come. Just a four sleep and things would be looking better when he woke up.

Author's Note: Okay, its 2:03 a.m. im exhausted and my head hurts (jeez I complain a lot) so bare with me. I no its not the longest but I put it up cus ppl are bugging me. And I felt bad not updating. Really bad writers block, so hope this chappie wasn't too bad. I'll be adding the chappie for No Fears No Tears Die Numb tomorrow, hopefully lol. The next chappie for this story will be more action because well the rumbles coming. :D Also I'm moving houses this month so it may take a while for updates or maybe im being lazy but I'll try my best. Promise. Okay hope you enojoyed. Don't mind any grammar and spelling I usually double check before I put stuff up but im tired. You can probably tell form the chappie. Love ya's kiddies!