Oddly I woke before my alarm went off. I took one long last look around the bedroom and got a lonely feeling in my stomach. I feared I wouldn't be back home for a long time. Next I slipped on my favorite jeans, a t-shirt, Sodapop's old red hooded sweatshirt and my tennis shoes. Silently I grabbed Sodapop's high school knapsack that he rarely every used and put the note explaining my disappearance on the dining room table.
Darry & Sodapop,
All this week I have been wandering around in a fog, scared of my own shadow and missing my brother terribly! I can't sleep without him, eat without him or think without him. I have fallen behind in school and don't know how I will ever catch up. So there is no better time than now to set off and go looking for Ponyboy. I refuse to believe he is gone for good and that he can't be found. This is something I must do. I am so sorry if I cause you any pain or grief from my decision. I love both of you more than you will ever know. I promise to be good, to be safe and to call home if I need anything.
Love forever, your Sissy Scout
I confidentially walked out the front door and didn't look back. My mind was made up. I was going to follow Dallas Winston for as long as it took him to lead me to my brother.
Following a long walk through my neighborhood I sat hidden across the street from Buck Merrill's place for most of the morning hours. I was positioned so I could see everyone who left the front door and the back. I realized there was a slim chance Dally wasn't there, but he hadn't slept at our house and he didn't have a car so he had to be somewhere in the neighborhood. After a few hours I began to worry I was too late. Perhaps Dally had left the day before to tell the boys the news of Cherry's testimony.
My stomach began to rumble so I pulled out a pack of graham crackers from my bag and stuffed one half into my mouth. Before I could eat the other half of the cracker I noticed Dally leave out the front door in his blue jean jacket. Quickly I buckled the flap on my sack and threw it onto my back. I was ready to follow him on foot to where ever he would roam, then he spoiled my plan by tossing a set of car keys into the air just before getting behind the wheel of Buck's red T-Bird convertible.
'Oh no' I thought because I had no idea where he was going or how I would be able to follow him.
Dally whipped the car backwards and threw rocks from under the tires as he sped up to the intersection near my hiding space. I had no choice but to join him in his travels so I took off in a full run and dove into the backseat as he passed through the intersection.
"What the…?" Dally turned around to see who or what I was with his hand still on the wheel. The Thunderbird jerked to the right and Dally had to swerve and pull it back to the left to avoid hitting a parked car. Dallas yelled with a hint of fear in his voice, "Scout! You scared the crap out of me! What the hell are you doing?"
I straightened myself up and leaned between the two seats, "I'm going with you."
"Going with me where?" Dally asked indignantly.
"To see Ponyboy and Johnny." I said as I caught my breath and pulled my knapsack off my back. "Don't tell me that aint where you're headed cause I doubt Buck would let you drive this car to the grocery store!"
"Well you're wrong!" Dally put up a tough front. "I aint got no idea where Ponyboy is so you can just jump out of this car the same way you jumped in!"
"Dally you lie!" I stated assured of myself and climbed into the front seat. "Even if you aren't going today you are going, and I plan to follow you every minute of your life till you lead me to my brother." I turned toward him, flashed my best evil smile and cocked an eyebrow for good measure. "Don't doubt that I will. Every minute of every day I'll be watching you, following you, hanging with you."
Dally looked quickly at me then away, then back to me again. He knew my stubbornness and there was no way he was going to get me off his tail. Frustrated, he issued his own demands. "Ok, I'll let you come with, but not a word of this to your brothers you hear me? Plus you keep your trapped shut around the boys too!"
My heart nearly jumped out of my chest when Dally spoke those words. I realized in a few minutes, or hours I would be able to see my brother. I clapped my hands and pounded my feet on the floor. "Thank you Dally! Thank you! I knew you were hiding him all along! I just knew it!"
"Yeah well you're wrong there, I aint hiding them… they're hiding themselves." Dally's statement rang true as we took the long ride out of the city and into the countryside. I had just about fallen asleep in the car when Dally pulled onto a red dirt rode that led up a tall hill.
"Are we here?" I sat up and asked.
"I think so… I aint ever been here." Dally sped up the road almost to the top. "By the way, this is just a visit to make sure they're ok. Hell, I don't even know for sure if they are here, so keep quiet about this place, savvy? I don't think it's safe for the boys to come out of hiding yet."
"What are you talking about?" I looked wide-eyed at the man. "It was self defense! You heard what Cherry said."
About one hundred feet from a large clearing in the woods Dally pulled the car to the side of the road and turned off the engine. "Listen up tag along…" Dally poked me hard in the chest with his finger. "I'll call the shots around here and if you don't like it I'll be happy to drive you out to the highway and toss you out onto the street."
"Fine Dallas." I was taken back from his sudden anger and intensity. "Whatever you say."
Dallas pulled the keys out of the ignition and opened his car door. "You wait here for me. I'm going up the road a bit." Dallas looked off into the trees as if someone was tailing him. "You hear anyone coming you hide off in those trees, ya hear me?" I shook my head yes and watched the young man saunter down the dirt road and disappear around the corner, shadowed by the big trees. The minutes he was gone seemed to drag on and on. With every long passing moment my heart filled with doubt that Ponyboy was anywhere nearby. Finally I slouched in the front seat and allowed tears of frustration to roll down my cheeks.
"Where'd ya get that car?" In the distance I heard a familiar voice. I sat up just high enough in the car to see over the dashboard. Coming down the road in my direction were Dally, Johnny and … Ponyboy?
Standing up on the car seat I saw the blond boy walking with the others and strained to see if it was really my brother. "Ponyboy?" I said just loud enough to hear the name myself. I looked at the blond kid's face and noticed those eyes, those were Ponyboy's eyes. My heart leapt with joy. "PONYBOY!" I yelled and jumped out of the car and sprinted toward my brother.
Pony stopped in the road to focus on who was running toward him then he realized the person he saw wasn't a dream. "Scout!" Ponyboy yelled and ran to meet me half way. We jumped into each other's arms and held each other tight. "Scout what are you doing here?" Ponyboy asked and let me loose.
"What am I doing here?" I looked up at him through teary eyes and hit him hard on the arm. "What are you doing here? Ponyboy, have you any idea how worried we've been? Huh? And what did you do to your hair?"
I let go of my brother before he answered any of my questions and turned to Johnny who had walked up to Ponyboy's side. It was good to see Johnny's smile and I hugged him in my arms. "Johnny, are you ok? Have you been up here this whole time? How in the world did you get you two get here?"
Dallas cracked a grin and leaned toward Johnny, "Crimeaneze! She asks just as many questions as her brother does!" Dallas slapped Johnny on the back to get him moving toward the car. "Come on, let's get going!" The four of us climbed into the car, I rode in the backseat with Ponyboy as Dallas sped his way into the small town nearby.
At the Dairy Queen Dally took the liberty of ordering for everyone then we pulled into the parking lot to eat. I sat in the backseat, ecstatic to be alongside my brother again. Quietly, Ponyboy and I listened to Dally and Johnny talking about the way things were at home. Dally told everyone about Cherry coming to the vacant lot and her decision to testify in Johnny's favor. Then Johnny made a decision that shocked us all.
"We're going back." Dally questioned what he had heard and Johnny repeated his decision. "We're going back and we're gonna turn ourselves in."
I was never so happy to hear Johnny make that decision. Dally had a different opinion. He ranted and raved and scolded Johnny for his feelings and decision all the way back to the place where Johnny and Ponyboy had been hiding out. As we headed up the red dirt hill Ponyboy and I exchanged a glance of agreement that everyone needed to go home. I could see the stress building in Ponyboy as he grabbed a cigarette and worried that Dally would refuse to let them leave.
Suddenly the car came to a sliding halt and Dally exasperated. "Oh Glory!" There in the clearing was an old church engulfed in flames. I began to put pieces of the puzzle together as I figured that was the hide out Dallas had supplied for the boys.
"Let's go see what the deal is." Ponyboy said and leapt out of the car against Dally's verbal demands not too. My brother jogged toward the crowd of children and adults gathered near the burning church, as always Johnny followed him. I took a long look at Dallas and realized he couldn't skin us all so I chose to jump out of the car and joined the boys.
Once I caught up to Pony and Johnny one of the ladies was yelling at a man claiming some of the children were missing. The over weight man denied the possibility that any of the children could have wandered off, but the lady was adamant that she was right. "No! They've been missing for at least a half an hour. I thought they were climbing the hill…"
Then we all froze as a chilling sound found it's way into our ears. Faintly you could hear a child's voice yelling for help from inside the church. The woman immediately began screaming for someone to save the children's lives.
Ponyboy's face filled with determination as he yelled. "I'll get them! Don't worry!"
The man tried to stop my brother by grabbing him, but Ponyboy pulled loose and ran toward the church with Johnny right behind him. After a week of missing my brother I decided that I wasn't going to let Ponyboy go into that flaming church alone. I sprinted to catch up but by the time I arrived to the blaze Ponyboy and Johnny had already entered the church through a side window.
I reached up to the window frame and prepared to pull myself into the flaming building when thick black smoke rolled outward at me. I inhaled the toxic smoke into my lungs and had to pause to cough the fumes away. Briefly I wondered how Johnny and Ponyboy managed to breathe inside the church then I remember the amount of cigarettes they smoked in a day. Their lungs were used to the toxins. I tried again to pull my body forward through the church window when a strong force grabbed the back of my sweatshirt and threw me backwards. Roughly my body struck the ground.
"Hey stupid, what the hell do you think you are doing?" Dally stood between the church window and me. His eyes burned with concern that I had never seen in him before.
I clambered to my feet and motioned to the burning building. "I gotta help them!"
"You aint going anywhere…" Dally's demand was interrupted by the sound of children screaming and a few wooden boards being knocked out of another side window. Dallas grabbed my arm to keep me from entering the church and pulled me toward the area where the children were being tossed free from the flames. The two of us pulled a few more boards free to make room for the children to exit. Then high above our heads Dally and I heard a heavy cracking of timbers. He looked into the burning church window. "Get out of there! The roof is going to cave in, forget the kids!"
My mouth fell open and I looked wide-eyed at Dallas in surprise. At first I was horrified that he would allow the small children trapped inside to perish. Then the reality of the situation came to me. All Dally wanted was to keep his own 'family' alive. He wasn't unconcerned about the children he was just more concerned about Ponyboy and Johnny. Turning back to the church I could see large fiery planks from the ceiling breaking free and smashing to the floor below. "Come on you two! Hurry up and get out of there." I screamed just as Ponyboy jumped out the window. I looked over to see him stumbling and gasping for breath. My attention was drawn back to the church when Johnny could be heard screaming in pain as more of the roof collapsed. Dallas cussed long and loud and I turned to see him knock Ponyboy down to the ground to extinguish the flames on my brother's back. Inside Johnny screamed again for Ponyboy to help him. His voice pierced with fear.
Instinctively Dallas and I ran to the church window to search for our friend. I crawled inside the blaze with Dally close behind. All around us were flaming boards and the heat was nearly unbearable. A dozen feet from the window Johnny's body laid trapped beneath a heavy burning beam. Through gagging coughs I tried to grab the flaming timber with my sweatshirt covered hands, but it was too hot and too heavy. Johnny's voice grew weak as he screamed and pleaded for help. Sweat poured down the side of my face as I used my foot to kick free the fire-engulfed timber Dally had lifted with his arms from it's resting place.
"Ok he's free! He's free, get out of here!" Dallas yelled at me and hoisted Johnny up underneath his armpits to drag him out.
I turned to exit the inferno and mistakenly exhaled a large amount of toxic smoke. Gagging for fresh air I stumbled through the burning wood and embers toward the exit before falling to the floor in a fit of coughs. I looked up through the smoke at Dally who leaned Johnny's limp body out the window to be caught by the teachers below. I struggled to stand as cinders singed my hair and burned small holes in my sweatshirt. Dally noticed my struggle and grabbed a hold of my sweatshirt as the wooden floor began to lurch beneath us.
"Get … out, Scout!" He coughed and yelled as the wind from outside blew through the tattered building causing the fire to swell and the temperature to rise. To shelter me from the raging flames Dallas Winston wrapped me in his arms. With the brightness of the firelight I could see Dally's jacket and arm were badly burned. I turned my head to him in fear and looked into his now protective eyes. Somehow I felt comfort in them. I trusted he was going to do whatever he could to get us out of the church before the last of the roof caved in on top of us.
When the strong wind passed the flames were reduced and Dally hoisted me off the floor and heaved me out the window. I landed with a thud on the hard ground below and gasped for fresh air. In seconds Dallas was beside me on his hands and knees searching for the same breath as I was and cursing the burnt skin on his arm. Suddenly the sound of gunfire went off and the two of us covered our heads for safety.
The sound triggered memories for me that I would have rather forgotten. I tried to stand up in a hurry to flee, but the motion and lack of fresh oxygen made my head swirl and soon the world disappeared into darkness.