Soda's POV
It was around one in the afternoon when Darry and I arrived at the funeral home. The funeral was scheduled to start at three. So until then people could pay their last respects to Pony.
"I'm going to see Pony." Darry announced as if we were visiting him at summer camp instead of attending his funeral.
I followed. I really didn't want to see Ponyboy in the casket. But I didn't want to be left alone either, and neither Two-Bit or Steve were there yet.
"He looks good." Darry commented once we reached the casket.
I grabbed Darry's arm and forced myself to look at Ponyboy. He had on a white t-shirt and his favorite flannel shirt, which was blue. I knew he also had on a pair of jeans and a pair of Converse sneakers on. After all, I had watched Darry pick out the clothes. His hair was even greased and bleached blonde. Blonde!
"Darry," I choked. "Look at Pony's hair. Look at his tuff hair!"
"I know." Darry sighed. "I think he had it bleached up in Windrixville to disguise himself. It was already that way when I saw him at the hospital."
"Excuse me." A female voice behind us said. Darry and I turned to find the red haired girl who had helped us the previous week standing there. She looked slightly uncomfortable.
"Oh, hi." Darry mumbled.
I waved like a shy two year old.
"I'm sorry about your brother." The girl went on. "He was a nice boy. I'm sorry I couldn't get to know him better."
"Thank you." Darry said.
At that point, Steve and Two-Bit walked in. I just stood there not sure of what I was supposed to do. Fortunately, Steve joined me, putting his hand on my shoulder. That was when I broke down and sobbed. I was not ready to say good-bye to Pony. I wanted him to be alive.
The night before I had had a dream that was so real, I tried to get Darry to go to the hospital to pick up Ponyboy. In the dream, Pony was okay. Shaken up, but okay. I had hugged him in the dream. I wanted the dream to be as real as it seemed. I didn't want Pony to be gone. I didn't want to say good-bye.
"It'll be okay Soda." Steve told me.
"No, it won't." I insisted. "Pony shouldn't be in that casket. He should be walking home from school or to the movie house. But he should not be laying in a casket."
Darry joined us for a minute. "Steve, why don't you and Soda go outside and get some fresh air? I think it would be good for him."
Steve nodded. "Sure, Darry. Come on Soda, lets sit outside for a minute."
As Steve and I went outside, I noticed that people were arriving. Mostly other greasers like, Tim Shepherd and his gang, but I also recognized a few teachers from the high school. A few of them said they were sorry about Pony's passing. I tried to be polite but I just wanted to be with Steve. If Steve hadn't been there, I don't think I would have made it even though I was still messed up.
Two-Bit's POV
I watched as Soda and Steve went outside. I knew Soda was having a hard time with this. But I didn't know how hard. I decided to join Darry and see how things were going.
"Hey, Darry. How are you and Soda holding up?" I asked.
"I'm doing okay. It's hard not having Pony around. But I'll make it. Soda on hte other hand isn't dealing with it so well. Had some dream last night and when he woke up, he insisted that we had to go to the hospital and pick up Ponyboy. He was so sure that Pony was okay. It took me a while to get him to remember that Pony isn't with us anymore. Then, when he did remember, he cried and told me he wished the dream had been real." Darry answered.
I grinned sadly. "I wish his dream were real, too." I told Darry.
"Yeah." Darry sighed. "So do I. Unfortunately, it isn't. We still have to go through this."
"Well, I guess I'll go talk to some people." I said stepping away. Not that Darry noticed. Someone else was already talking to him. And I didn't have to go far to find someone to talk to either.
"Hey, Two-Bit!" It was Cherry. "I'm glad there's someone else here that I know. I was starting to feel a little silly standing there by myself."
"Well, I'm sure Darry and Soda are glad you came." I told her.
She grinned and shook her head. "They hardly know me. But I would have felt bad if I didn't come to say good-bye to Pony, you dig?"
I nodded. "Yeah, I dig."
Cherry and I stood and talked for a while. Saying hi to some people as they passed by. I even cracked a few jokes to lighten the mood a little. But for the most part, I felt as sad as everyone else who was there.
Darry's POV
I had intended to go outside to check on Soda after a few minutes, but after Two-Bit spoke with me, other people started lining up after seeing Pony to speak with me too. They all said how sorry they were about Pony. Some even commented that Soda didn't seem to be holding up so well. A few of my former teachers even said that they had been looking forward to having Pony in their class. It was a bit overwhelming.
As the time for the funeral got closer, I noticed that the place was packed. I honestly didn't think many people would show up. But, it turns out that Pony had touched a lot of lives in his fourteen years. I swallowed back some tears as I thought about how proud I was of him. He had been a good kid. Didn't use his head, but he was still good. It was still hard to believe that I was really saying good-bye to him. It just didn't seem real. If only Soda's dream had been real, then, we wouldn't have to go through this.