A/n: Whew... it's about time I updated! Sorry for the lack of updates over the last couple of weeks. Let's say that they were jam packed with a lot of out of town things and I was home for about four days inbetween, and at that point in time I was scrambling around to finish and put together the end of the season at my awards site ). The first season is over now, but you can check out the winners and info on the next season with starts on September 1!

Okay, now that I'm done with that shameless plug, what to say...? Enjoy? The rumble will be in the next chapter, but this is a pretty crucial chapter, so don't skip over it. I really do hope you all like this. It was hard to write, but once I got going, I couldn't stop and it is now at a ripe nine and a half pages. I think it is the longest chapter for this story, to date :D

Dedication: This can go to a few people... One, it goes to Alli who has found me enough work over the last few days that I am saved from my back-to-school clothes shopping woes. Secondly it goes to Becky, who will never read this but has finally talked to me after weeks of pure ignorance. Third off, it goes to another person who won't ever read this, but to my cousin Brian who has sadly enough found himself in a very similar situation as Pony, except the child IS his and they are getting married Aug 7. ::Shakes head::...Waaaaaay to young....

Review Responses at the bottom.

Enjoy!

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Chapter Eleven

"Pony... Ponnnnnyyyy... Pony...!" Soda's voice trailed in and out of my dream like liquid thoughts that I couldn't quite grasp. I had no clue why he was there or how he had gotten in. He just showed up and had nothing more of interest to do than repeat my name over and over again. "Pony..."

"Wha?" I asked groggily, pushing at his hand that was jostling my shoulder, hoping he would go away. It was really unfair to be bothering me so early, especially on the weekend. Besides that, I was half drugged up on medication that the doctor had prescribed for my sore ribs. He said they weren't broken, but there was some possibility of bruised bones.

"There's someone at the door for you."

When he saw that I wasn't going to move, because, frankly I was too tired and whacked out to care, he pulled the blankets off of me, sending a rush of cold air on my bare chest and legs. My eyes shot open at the surprise and I grabbed for them but found them wadded up in his arms. "My turn to do the laundry," he explained with a little grin. "Hurry." He took a hold of the sheets and started to tug at them also.

I jumped to my feet before he had the chance to send me flying. He was grinning playfully but he would've done it without hesitation. I glared at him before looking through the closet for some jeans and a tee shirt, got dressed, and hurried out to the front room, only to confront the last person I wanted to see. I knew I had good reasons for wanting to stay in bed.

"What are you doing here?" I asked as I backed up slightly from Libby Crystal who was very clearly pregnant, now. I wasn't the best at indicating months, but I think it would be fair to say that she was five months, or so, along. That didn't even match up to the accusations she had on me.

It was a real surprise to see her here. I thought she had given up on me a while ago. Shoot, I would've! But no, there she was in my living room, possibly the last place on earth where she was welcomed. She seriously must really either be desperate or brave.

She was standing in the doorway looking timid and kind of scared. She was wearing pants too big for her, held up by a belt and wearing one of her brother's shirts that actually fit her, but was still tightly stretched over her bulging stomach. Probably one of Mutt's by the looks of it. She looked like shit in it all – not because it looked bad, but because she looked bad – not to mention she looked as though she had gained a significant amount of weight in a short period of time – which I had to remind myself that she sort of had. Her eyes were bloodshot and she was paler than usual.

"You don't have to do this." She stepped forward out of the door frame, closing the door behind her. "Don't fight James."

I painfully crossed my arms now, throwing on my old, bored expression. "Is that what you came here for?" I was puzzled to say the least, but she wasn't to know that.

"Don't do it," she repeated.

"I ain't scared of the bastard," I spat, lying as carefully as I could. "I'll take him on."

"Ponyboy! Look at yourself!" she sighed, pointing to my bruises. "That was effortless. A rumble could kill you." She was trying to talk me out of this; that was apparent. But why? Where was the sense in that? I thought she would've been the one to cheer him on since she thought I was a jerk at the moment.

"I'm not weak," I bit each word bitterly, figuring she thought I was because Jimmy had probably boasted about how easy of a target I was. "That was just a bad day. When this rumble's over, he won't know what hit him."

I don't know what the point was in trying to intimidate her with that, but it certainly made me feel a bit more at ease. Whatever I could do to make her back off was enough for me. I just hoped it worked at some point.

Honestly, I wasn't as confident as I made myself come off. I was scared of what more he'd do to me, but I really was ready to take this as it was coming. I had a long talk with Rob yesterday and I came to my senses about how much I literally had the upper hand in all of this and I was going to keep that in mind and use it to my advantage.

She shook her head. "No... just don't."

"Why do you care?"

She glared at me with pity and anger and frustration. "I don't get this, Pony. I just... I don't understand! It doesn't make ANY sense to me. What problem do you have with taking responsibility for things? What is the matter with you?"

"What the matter with me?!" I nearly shrieked and she jumped. "Are you kidding me?" I shook my head and looked around to see if anyone was watching who found this as funny as I did. But there was no one there. "You are fuckin' crazy. You know that? I don't know where you come off being such a bitch and trying to cover up your sluttiness with me." I was exploding. It was long overdue. "Does it make you feel more ready to take on the responsibility for a baby? Does the prospect that I might give in one of these days, to get you to leave me alone, offer you hope or something? Damn it, why are you doing this? Do you think it'll make things easier?...No, what I want to know is when this fuckin' retarded 'plan' formulated. Do you honestly think it's working? 'Cause if you do, I really feel sorry for you."

She stared coldly with pure hatred of what I just said. She reached into her pocket, pulled out a folded up piece of paper and chucked it at me.

"That's for you, Curtis," she spat. "I hope you still feel like 'the man' after you read it." And with that she spun on her heals and opened the door and ran out, slamming the door with enough force to knock out one of the little windows. It landed on the floor where she had been standing, but it hadn't broken. Darry could fix it.

Shaking my head, confused and angry, I picked up the scrap of paper off the floor and unfolded it.

"What was that all about?" Soda asked, coming into the living room. I turned around quickly and shoved the paper into my pocket.

"No clue." I brushed past him. "Bitch is trying to psyche me out is all." I huffed furiously. I was ready to hit something. My arms were shaking.

"And?" He followed, knowing all too well that I didn't mind. He just provide me with someone to vent to. And that's ALL that mattered right then.

"Didn't work." I slightly snorted. "Damn it, I'm ready now."

"Oh yeah?" he was quizzical.

"Hell yeah." I laid back down to rest my aching chest. "Jimmy Crystal, no matter how big or ugly, won't ever forget me."

"You thinkin' you'll need help taking him on?" Soda picked up some of my clothes and threw them in my laundry basket so he could wash them later.

"Hell no!" I was shaking all over now. "I want to cream him with my own hands. Not yours, not Darry's, not even Two-Bit's or Steve's. I want him to know that it doesn't matter that he's older than me, and even if he is the leader of Rave, I can still take him on and beat him."

Soda looked sympathetic and kind of sorry. "Ponyboy... I know you want to, but do you think that you can? You're not taking into consideration that he's a lot bigger and stronger than you are. Track might make you fast, but it don't make you big or strong. Jimmy's worked to make himself how he is, for a real long time too. He's made sure that he can physically beat anyone that crosses him. That's what makes him who he is." He smiled sadly. "I didn't start this whole rumble thing so that only you would take him on. It was meant to be a group effort thing."

"Group effort?" I asked aghast. "Why didn't you just arrange for us to jump him than? That would been a hell of a lot easier, Soda."

"Maybe so, but...that's what we had in mind. You can take it or leave it, but it's stayin' that way. Things ain't changing." He picked up the laundry basket to take it so he'd have an excuse to leave.

"You don't think I can do it, do you?" I don't know if that hurt more than it made me mad, but either way I was still fuming. Soda didn't have to try and make me feel weaker than I already did. He was supposed to boost my confidence, not shrink it.

"Oh come on," he groaned frustrated. "You know that ain't true, Pony."

"Then what are you trying to say?"

He shook his head. "Why don't you try and figure that out." It wasn't harsh or mean or anything in that respect, but he wanted it to be food-for- thought. "Think long and hard about it, Kid."

Like hell that was going to happen. All I wanted to think about was how I was going to hurt Jimmy like he could've never imagined. I was really pissed. Way to start off a morning, huh?

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It was just Darry and me, alone at the house tonight. Soda was out with Karli and Steve and Two-Bit were who knows where. I had fixed dinner since it was Soda's turn but he wasn't around and Darry didn't get off of work until seven thirty. It wasn't anything fancy, just beef stew and biscuits, but I couldn't make Darry do it. He had an extra long shift today and I knew he'd be tired when he got home. He usually was, but longer shifts were harder on him. I wondered off and on if he heard any news about being promoted, but he didn't say a word nearly all night.

I sat near him at the dinner table, keeping my trap shut for lack of nothing better to do and watching him while I ate. He studied a bill, holding it up in one had while he rubbed at his temples with the other, propped up on the table. The only problem was that his eyes weren't moving. He looked more deep in thought about something than paying the bill half a mind's attention.

Finally he set the paper down and stared straight ahead at me. Shifty-eyed I sat up straighter. "What?"

"I really wished you wouldn't fight tomorrow." He stopped massaging his temples and reached for a biscuit on the plate in the middle.

"Why not?" I crossed my eyebrows and stopped eating.

"Because, I don't think it's a good idea," he stated as if I were rather unintelligent. "You could get killed."

"I won't."

"You don't know that." He paused and thought for another second. "I'm not going to stop you, but I wished you'd reconsider it."

"Reconsider it? Darry, this rumble is about me. I can't not show up. The whole reason we're fighting is to get the prick off my back. If I don't show up, that'll only give him and everyone else the license to taunt me to no end." He couldn't possibly be serious.

"I know! I understand that, which is why I'm not stopping you. This is one of those battles that you feel you have to fight whether you want to or not. I get that. I've been there and I've done that, but in retrospect I KNOW that some of the fights I was involved in were useless and wouldn't have changed anything in the least. I just want you to think on this good and hard before you do something you'll regret."

"Oh God..." Not him too. Soda already gave them the third degree about thinking about the rumble. Now Darry? Watch, soon Two-Bit will walk in, wanting out of the scene and Steve will surprise us by turning the sky purple with thoughts of forgiveness.

"Will you at least let some of the guys help you out, if you decide to go ahead and fight?"

I narrowed my eyes and looked at my bowl. Group effort. Why did that ring sweet to everyone else's ears but mine? Have they ever heard of proving to yourself that you can do something? Maybe even support the fact that I want to give it a go on my own? "I don't want to."

"What?" He was temporarily puzzled. "You don't want help?"

"No! I'm sick of all the damn help and babying that gets dished out around here." I looked back up at him. "Is it really hard to imagine that I might be able to actually do this without someone coming to my rescue? When is anyone going to give me the chance to prove that I can take care of this myself?"

He held up his hands in surrender. "Look, Kid, I never said that you couldn't. I just said to think about maybe letting the other guys have a go at it too. They're holding back a lot of pent up hatred and anger too. I'd be surprised if any of them voiced that they didn't intend to at least take a swing at him. They might not want this as much as you do, little buddy, but they want it pretty damn bad."

"Then how come you aren't coming?"

He looked stony faced. "Ponyboy, you know full well that I can't. If I got caught, you'd be thrown in some home and I'd go to jail. It ain't worth it to risk that, all right? If they catch Soda, he can get jailed and we can bail him out. If the catch YOU you'll get the same thing, maybe juvenile detention and some court issue or even the reformatory, but is that not better than the alternative?"

He had a point there. I admit that I had taken it a bit personally when he said he wasn't going to have a part in this rumble, that he was completely done with any and all rumbles that came our way. The last fight he had been in was Johnny's rumble. He vowed it would be his last, and he aimed to keep it that way. Darry was stubborn and he meant every word that he said. But the more we talked about it, the less hurt I was. He wasn't staying out of it for his sake, but for mine. But it still DID hurt that he didn't think it was worth it. I would think it was worth it, even if I didn't go ahead with it.

"Yeah, I guess." I pushed back my chair and went to go put my dishes in the sink now that I was finished with them. "But you'll be around afterwards?"

He turned around and watched me. "Kid, even if the cops showed up, I would still be there the second it was over. I aim to watch this and bring you two home as soon as I can. Who knows what state you'll be in?"

I laughed a little. "Yeah, that makes me feel good. I better be in a good enough state to walk home. It's Jimmy they're going to have to worry about."

"I hope so, buddy." He turned back around and picked up his bill again. "I hope those boys keep an eye out for you too. And I hope you'll watch them as much as you can. They may need your help. You never know." Now that was a new thought

"Hmmm," I responded and made my way to my bedroom. This medicine really made me drowsy, but I wasn't ready to go to sleep. My bed sounded really good, though, right now, and lying down would be a dream.

As I sat down on the edge of my mattress I heard something crinkle in my pocket and I remembered the note that Libby had given me earlier. I completely forgot about it after my talk with Soda. Now I was ready to rip it open and see what it said. It had to take her a lot of nerve to write anything to me. I was just curious to see what she had to say.

I carefully unfolded her intricate pattern that only girls can ever figure out and straightened it out on my knee before reading the short, quickly scrawled letter.

It read:

'Ponyboy,

'I know most of these last few months have been totally hard on you and I know you are just as scared as I am about facing the facts, but I know you'll come around. I'm willing to wait for it to come too. Even if you aren't going to get a job anytime soon, I can take care of this baby until you come into the picture. I'll find a way. I just want it to have a father. You know that, right? It's got to be done. No one should grow up without their father around.

'I dropped out of school yesterday. I wouldn't be able to finish the semester anyway, the way things are going. James don't know it, but I'm leaving the house too. He's getting to be too much, going off on me, all the time, about how dumb I am to get mixed up with you and how he ain't looking forward to a crying baby around all the time, but I know that he'll come around one of these days. I've already lost my mom to this, I won't lose my brother too. He won't stay that way for long. He'll learn to like you once we get his all figured out, you know?

'I'm living at the hippie house on Riverdale and Canary Street. People understand me there. Jimmy doesn't know I'm there, but I don't intend to tell him anytime soon. Just you and Samantha and Jill.' (She listed off some friends.) 'James won't care neither, so don't worry about it any.'

See you soon. You know where I'll be,

Libby C.

What? I tossed the paper aside. Does she think that it matters to me where she is? Do I care that she dropped out? It was going to happen. That was apparent. And she shouldn't have been surprised by Jimmy's reactions. He wasn't the nicest of guys, and I don't know what she thought made her an exception. Whatever I had in me to help her was long gone now. She got herself into this mess, she could get herself out without the help of me or my gang. Especially after putting us through what she is.

That note was seriously a joke. That girl belonged in a mental institution. I'm not meaning that to be rude or anything, but she really, truly belongs in one. That baby shouldn't have to have a mother who is crazy. She shouldn't be allowed to take care of an infant in her state of mind. She needs major help.

I was broke out of my thoughts when I heard Darry yell.

"Oh my GOD! Soda!" He called out in the living room. I hadn't even heard Soda come in. But by the sound of it, he wasn't looking too well. "Are you okay?!"

Hearing that I got off my bed and practically ran out there. Darry was standing in front of Soda with this hands on his shoulders, hunched and staring into his eyes, checking for something. When I walked around to get a better view, I saw that Soda had a dark shiner on his eye and he was bleeding from somewhere above, but I couldn't quite tell from where. He was covered in dirt and his hands were covered in blood and he was holding his mouth with one. Probably a chipped tooth or something. But how?

"I'm fine," he muttered and didn't push Darry away when he looked for signs of a concussion, but he did protest. "I ain't got a concussion, Dar." He jerked his head back slightly. "I didn't hit my head or nothing."

"What happened?" Darry let him lead him to the bathroom to check out the damage. I followed.

Soda shook his head. "I'm an idiot."

"What?"

He chuckled darkly. "I should've known better." He bared his teeth to the mirror and revealed a chipped side tooth. Good thing it wouldn't be easily seen. Shoot, I wouldn't have known it was there if I wasn't looking for it. "Damn it," he griped and reached for a rag to wet down, while brushing some blood away from his eye. "That's the last I'll ever see of her."

My eyes went wide and Darry backed off a little. "What? She didn't..."

Soda grinned menacingly. "Hell no. But Chuck sure did."

"Who's Chuck?" I asked.

He turned, acknowledging my presence and went back to wiping himself down and looking in the mirror. "Karli's other boyfriend."

"What?" Darry and I asked at the exact same time. "She had another boyfriend?"

"Oh, she still has him," he crooned. "And she can have him. He can have her. Hell, I don't want nothing to do with the two of them." He didn't sound very convincing.

"Did she say she wanted to be with him?" I was brave enough to ask the question that I knew both Darry and I wanted an answer to.

He smirked. "No. But she ain't got me anymore. I wouldn't be surprised if she lost him too. She's not deserving of either of us, if you want the truth. I won't ever have to doubt my girl's company. I just got rid of her. I can't trust her anymore."

"How did you find out about him?" Darry asked softly, feeling the pain of his younger brother. I'm sure Darry had been through something similar or whatever at some point in his own time, not that I would've ever heard about it...but you could tell he had experience by the tone of his voice.

Soda looked sheepish. "Uh, you know... he walked in on us making out in the car. Said he was just walking past – we were just down on The Ribbon – and he recognized the car, having seen it at her house in passing and he recognized the shirt she was wearing. I guess he bought it for her a long time ago. I guess they're serious or something; they've been together for a long time by the sound of it."

"Oh... Buddy..." Darry draped an arm around his neck and Soda hung his head, but still felt around his tooth. "She DEFINITELY doesn't deserve you then. Any girl that finds it all right to two time anyone ain't worth your time or love."

"I know," Soda sighed quietly. "But I really thought she was the one."

"I know you did..."

"I even bought her this ring that I was going to give to her," he sighed again. "I guess it was a waste wasn't it?"

Darry's eyes went wide and I was reminded that he didn't know that Soda was engaged, or had been at that. But he probably assumed Soda had just thought of it and was going to ask her. "Nah. You can give it to the right girl when she comes along. Put it away until then. You put money and affection into that ring. It's still there. It'll still mean the same thing when you find the one who you'll eventually give it to."

I couldn't believe it. Soda's fiancée was two timing? Man, and I thought I was being hounded by a bitch. Karli was leading a double life! And she hurt my brother. She led him on. What would've happened if they had gotten married? Would she have just cut off the other guy or would she have still kept him around? I could tell that Soda really liked her, still did, even if I never agreed with it. His eyes sparkled when he talked about her and he was purely, genuinely happy with the idea of marriage coming up. Damn, that girl always rubbed me the wrong way. I should've known she'd go and pull something like this.

"Can I get you something, Soda?" I asked, wanting to make him feel better in anyway that I could.

He smiled and shook his head. "No, it's okay. I think I just want to be alone for a while. You dig?" He was talking to both me and Darry.

"Sure, little buddy." Darry nodded. "C'mon, Pony." He took a hold of my shoulder and led me out of the bathroom and kind of guided me to my bedroom. He followed me in.

"Ohh... I hate her too," I growled, completely lost in my anger. I needed a way to release some of it, somehow. I was pent up with an unhealthy amount and it would get the best of me if I wasn't careful. I hoped the rumble would do the trick. The last thing I needed to do was crack.

Darry just stood there. "Give him what he asks for. 'Kay? Leave him a lone for a while, no matter what happens or whatever you hear out him--" I knew what he was talking about. Soda was a sensitive guy, "—or you whatever just plain feel like doing. When he wants to talk about it more, he'll come to us. Just, be supportive. Try and lay aside your own problems for a while for this, okay? For Soda. He's really hurting right now. That's a major blow to the heart there." And it wasn't the first major blow he had experienced either.

"I know."

"Man..." he sighed. "Be smart, Ponyboy."

I looked up at him.

"Girls are something you don't want to get involved with unless you're sure you know them like you know yourself. Only then are they worth your full time, in this respect at least. Otherwise you could end up like Soda. Poor kid..."

That was for sure.

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A/n: Well, thanks for baring with me and this chapter. I hope y'all liked it as much as I liked writing it.

Review Responses:

Jessie13: Thanks for reading! The rumble will be in the next chapter, so I hope you can wait as long.

Tensleep: I know the feeling. I hate it when it crunches the reviews like that. It happens to the best of us, yeah? I love that you liked how I wrote Tim. I was SO worried about that. You have no idea. It's hard to write the Shepards! At least for me it is. I'm getting better at it though. Yeah, Rob is my little buddy in writing. That sounds odd, but you know what I mean, right? I love that I can mold him and make him as cool and weird as I want. I agree with Darry too. Pony couldn't have run, but you know, he'll get over it, lol. One of my best buddies, Josh, is a runner and he fully backs me up on this one (of course I didn't tell him why I was asking... I just casually asked about his meet that day, and it happened to be a strenuous one.) Thanks for the review. I really hope you like this chapter. You're opinion means the world to me.

kaz456: Awww! Thank you for reading it! I know a few people who just won't start in on a story if it has a lot of chapters already, but I love it when people do and they stick with it. It makes me feel like what I'm doing is good enough and worthwhile enough. I'm glad that you like the characters too. I work hard on writing them. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

CiCi (HotSpot1988): Thanks, babe! I'm glad you liked it. I hope you like this one as well too.

Fyre: You got what Pony was thinking right on the head of the nail. Good job! It's been going on four years since he's had a mom and there is a huge difference between how teens think of their parents, and parents in general, from 13 to 17ish. Oh, I know who the father is, but everyone else will just have to wait and find out, hehe.

DaNNi BaBezZz: I'm glad you enjoyed the last chapter. It always makes me happy to know that people do, and all the individual people especially. I always look forward to your reviews. I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Rock: Rule #1: Dont ask any questions: Someone's been watching Fight Club, hehe. Good movie, huh? "Selling rich women their fat right back to them!" 'Kay, sorry, just had to say that. Anyway, I hope you like this chapter and junk. I mean, you know how long it took me to actually write it... okay, lemme rephrase that. You know how long it took me to start and then continue. But I wrote eight pages in just a matter of hours. Nice, huh? Lol, see ya later.

Oblivious Misconception: Eeep! I'm so glad that you liked the last chapter! Honestly, you are one of them top three reviewers I look forward too the most. I always want to know what you personally have to say. And when you say all the things that I love to hear, like with this one, it just makes me sooo happy! Thanks so much for reading and liking. I hope you liked this chapter as well.

steves-girl: Haha, Steve will be in the next chapter (the ruuuuuuuuuuuuumble, hehe) for SURE. I know you're okay with him not being in as much, but I also know how much you love him and I try to balance everything out. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

shyXshortieXbabe: Oh trust me, I know what you're thinking ;) Guys in spandex...it can be a good thing, a GREAT thing, and it can be really nasty at the same time. As long as they can keep things tucked, I'm all good. Yup, rumble next chapter. I hope you liked this one!

Pens4Life: Yes, I am DEFINITELY going to show the rumble :D I'm very excited to write the next chapter. Yeah, Libby doesn't show up as much because Pony avoids her like the plague...but O ye of little patients, she was bound to show up soon ;) Here she is for you. And concerning Darry taking on Rob... he COULD do that, but we most certainly wouldn't not want him to. I think you mean Jimmy, right? lol. It's okay, honest mistake. Rob is Pony's best friend, Jimmy is Libby's bastardy older brother. I hope you liked this chapter as well!

A/n: Well, thanks to everyone who read and reviewed. Please review again. I'd like to hear from you.