Wendy stopped crying and looked blankly at him. "Find him?" She asked, truly puzzled. "Find who? You mean Johnny?"

Dally looked at her like she was nuts.

The look of confusion on Wendy's face slowly turned to realization. "We never lost him, Dally! Tom pulled him out of the water very shortly after he went in. He's upstairs!"

Dally closed his eyes, letting Wendy's words sink in. Don't start crying don't start crying don't start... "Is he all right?" Dally's voice was just a whisper.

Wendy's gentle eyes were full of concern. "Well, Tom had a bit of a scare for a few moments at first. He wasn't breathing when he first pulled him out," Wendy's voice caught and she struggled to keep the tears back. Dally knew she was remembering Christopher.

"He's very sick right now and he needs a lot of rest, but he's going to be fine," Grandma Cade reassured.

Dally clenched his jaw and steadied himself. He was so close to tears right now, but there was no way he was going to start crying in front of a bunch of people. Johnny was ok... he couldn't believe it. He didn't believe it. They were just telling him that because he was such a mess right now.

"I want to see him!" Dally demanded.

Will, having heard his sister calling him appeared at the door.

"Dally?" Will came bursting out the screen door, much less carefully than the ladies had done. He dropped to his knees and hugged Dally, just like Wendy had. And Dally realized that he'd been crying too.

What was with these people? "Knock it off!" Dally pushed him away.

Will was laughing with relief and wiping his eyes.

"I want to see Johnny!" Dally said again, still not fully believing that Johnny was upstairs.

"Right now, you need to see a doctor. Johnny is sleeping, the doctor had him sedated-"

"The doctor? How long have I been gone?"

"Hours." Will filled in.

"Sedated? Why is he sedated?" Dally asked, all the while struggling to get up.

"Well," Will began hesitantly, helping Dally stand. "He... was actin' all funny when he finally came to. Wouldn't talk to anybody, wouldn't look at any of us-"

"He was in shock," Grandma Cade took over. "Dr. Flynn felt he needed rest and rest is what he's getting."

Will shook his head. "There's more to it than that, Ma. That look in his eyes-"

He's probably still really ticked off at everyone, Dally thought as they all made their way back into the house.

"I am sure there is a lot more to it than that, but right now he needs his rest, and you need a doctor," she said insistantly looking at Dally.

"I ain't going to the hospital,"

"You don't have to," Wendy said. "Doctor Flynn will come to the house. He's an old family friend."

"I want to see Johnny."

Grandma Cade looked at him sternly. "You need to see the doctor first!"

Wendy nodded in agreement.

"Well go call him then!" Will broke in. "It ain't gonna hurt him any to wait upstairs with Johnny. And call the police too. Tell them to call off the search."

Wendy shook her head, obviously not liking the idea of Dally climbing the stairs. But she went off to the kitchen and did as Will asked.

Grandma Cade shook her head and masked a smile, recognizing a stubborness that she couldn't win against.

Will helped Dally up the stairs and at the top, Dally shook him off. "I can make it from here."

"Ok," Will said, letting him go. "He's in your room, Dally. We thought it would be warmer for him with the fireplace..."

Dally started down the hall. "Your" room they called it. Like he lived there. He found that amusing.

"And Dally, he... he's got a fever and a few cuts and bruises... just so you know. And... he probably won't wake up for you, at least not for a while." Will looked drained. Drained and really shanken up.

"Ok," Dally nodded and turned back agian.

"Dally-"

Dally looked annoyed.

"Wait a minute," Will said opening up the hall closet. He pulled out a small towel. "Here..." he pressed the towel up against Dally's wounded shoulder.

"Ow!"

"Sorry, here- hold it like this. No, press down. It'll help keep it from bleeding so much. You'll pass out before you ever make it down the hall."

"Well, if you'd quit stopping me..." Dally took a few steps back. "Thanks," he mumbled and then proceded down the hall to what was refered to now as "his" room.

There was still doubt hovering in the back of his mind. Will seemed to want to tell him something else, but Dally was only interested in seeing that Johnny was ok. He still truly expected to walk into an empty room.

He opened the door and looked over to the bed and all his doubt was washed away. There, lying in a tangled mess of sheets and blankets, hair standing in six different directions, was Johnny Cade... sound asleep.

Dally entered the room without a sound. He quietly went over to the bed just stood there, staring at the sleeping form on the mattress, willing himself to believe his own eyes. After a moment, he reached down and gently pulled at the sheets, attempting to straighten the confusing mess Johnny's bed had become. It took some doing, but eventually he was able to pull some blankets up over Johnny's shoulders.

Just as Will had predicted, Johnny didn't stir.

Dally looked at the sleeping boy in front of him. A tightness formed in his throat and the simple act of breathing was no longer so simple...He gently touched the side of Johnny's face. It burned with fever, just like they had all said. But he was alive. Suddenly, Dally could barely feel his legs. He began to shake. And then he sank to the floor, put his head on Johnny's pillow and broke down.

The day Johnny had left, he'd shed a few tears and that had seemed foreign to him. But crying the way he was now was something he had never done in his life. He had really thought Johnny was gone. He had thought Johnny was dead. And that thought had nearly killed him. He had hit rock bottom. The only shred of hope he had to cling to was that he hadn't seen a body. Dally realized then that he didn't care about anything else in the world but that kid. Johnny had been what was keeping him alive all that time in Tulsa where he lived a life of bitter hopelesness.

He was so over come with relief at seeing Johnny lying there, sleeping, that he almost forgot that maybe he had someone to thank for this.

He choked back a sob and got hold of himself. He lifted his head off the pillow slightly and looked out the window at the stars. Then he laid his head back down, still staring out the window. At that moment, his eyes softened and lost their coldness, and his voice was not that of a tough hood from the city streets. It was the sincere voice of a scared, 17 year old kid.

"Thanks," he said quiety. His eyes closed and he gave in to the exhaustion.

He didn't know how much later it was when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Dally? The doctor is here. He wants to take a look at your arm." Wendy said, smoothing his hair.

He had given up trying to avoid her touch. Some people were born athletes, some artists, Wendy was a mom. It was in her blood and she could not be detered from her mothering. So Dally accepted it. And quietly enjoyed it in some distant corner of his mind that he would not admit existed.

He looked up at her tiredly.

"Come on," She smiled warmly at him, guiding him to stand.

He watched as she leaned over and kissed Johnny's forehead and touched his face with a look of concern.

Dally suddenly realized that it hadn't been long that he'd been sleeping. His face was still wet and while Wendy's back was turned, he hurriedly wiped his eyes and went to the door. He was starting to feel dizzy. He had no desire to to see a doctor, but things were bad enough for him right now that he was ready to admit that he didn't really have a choice.

He glanced back at Johnny one more time before he opened the door, just to make sure he hadn't been seeing things.

Once in the hallway, Dally swayed slightly and leaned his hand against the wall.

Wendy took note of this and lead him to Johnny's room. "C'mon. You are not going down the stairs. Dr, Flynn? Could you come here?"

Dally sat down at the desk in Johnny's room. There were pictures of horses and animals and drawings of Corvettes. Dally smiled a little, shaking his head. That kid had quite a hidden talent.

Dr. Flynn came in carrying a large black bag, just like the doctors on TV, Dally noted.

The bullet had ripped across the skin of Dally's upper arm leaving a very deep gash that Dally felt was not horribly serious, other than the fact that it hurt like all get out and wouldn't stop bleeding. And it was for those two reasons alone that he was allowing the doctor anywhere near him.

He looked Dally over, put some horrible stuff on the gaping wound on his arm and gave him the option of stitches at the hospital or right there.

Dally got the impression that everyone, including the doctor was very opposed to him not going to the hospital, but he made it very clear that he was not leaving the house. So he gritted his teeth and let the doctor stitch the gash.

"All right," said Dr. Flynn shaking his head when he was through. "It is very much against my better judgement to leave you here. You need a lot of rest and you need to keep clean bandages on your arm. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, yeah..."

Dr. Flynn closed up his bag and headed for the door.

Dally's expression softend. "Hey, Doc?"

Dr. Flynn turned around.

"How... how's the kid?"

"Johnny?" he adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat. "Johnny will be fine in a few days or so... physically."

Dally looked expectantly at him, knowing there was more.

"Not knowing him all that well, and not having spoken much with him yet, I can't make a prediction as to how he will deal with this emotionally. He's been through some very traumatic events."

Dally couldn't help but note the fact that Dr. Flynn's expression was somewhat scolding.

Dally started to glare, but then suddenly realized, he's right. I did this. I could have stopped this, but I let this happen. Johnny's lucky to be alive right now. Dally just looked down.

But Dr. Flynn's look of disdain was in no way directed at Dally.

Dally looked up in surprise when Dr. Flynn put a gentle hand on his shoulder and said, "When he wakes up, I think he'll be awfully glad to see you."

Yeah, Dally thought, remembering how angry Johnny had been with him at the beginning of this whole nightmare. He'll be glad to see me all right. Probably so he can tell me where to go.

"You take good care of him... and yourself too, you hear me? Give me a call if you're not feeling at least a little better after a good night's sleep, all right?"

Dally nodded and Dr. Flynn showed himself out.

Dally sat there a moment, thinking things over. Thinking over everything that had happened. Remembering... and then he thought of something. The last thing he remembered before waking up on the banks of the river was hearing a gun shot. As he mulled over that thought, something terrible occured to him. He looked up just as Will was poking his head in the door.

"Everything all right?" he asked.

Dally just looked at him for a moment. "Where... where's Coal?"

"Huh? Oh, he wouldn't leave Johnny alone, so he's over at Matt's. I don't think Johnny was too happy about that, but the kid needs to get some sleep," Will said tiredly.

And so do you, Dally thought as his stomach finally began to relax after the scare. That would have just put Johnny over the edge, Dally thought. But if not Coal, then who?

"I heard a gun shot," Dally said to Will. Will seemed to know exactly what he was talking about, even though Dally didn't elaborate any further.

Will looked at the floor. "Yeah," he said, his voice barely a whisper.

"What happened?"

There was a long silence during which Dally became very doubtful that Will would answer him. And then finally he looked up, but not directly at Dally.

"I killed him." he said finally.

"Who!"Dally asked.

"Robert. I shot him." Will looked completely devastated.

But Dally remembered that Will had disappeared. "What are you talking about, you weren't even there!"

"I went back to the truck for the rifle. I was there." Will was leaning weakly against the door frame. "I was there just in time to see him pointng that gun at Johnny. I didn't mean to kill him... I had to." His voice was strained.

Dally couldn't believe what he was hearing. Robert Cade was dead. So was Maria. It was a day he'd actually hoped for, but couldn't imagine actually happening. But this wasn't exactly how he had pictured it.

Will looked positively sick. He was rambling on, "I had to, he would have killed Johnny. I couldn't let him-"

"Will!" Dally grabbed his arm, demanding his attention. "You did what you had to do, man. You did the right thing." You did us all a favor! Dally wanted to yell that out loud.

Will just stared, a lost, hopeless look in his eyes. So much like Johnny. He looked at the floor again, finally and rubbed his forhead. "Go sit with him, will ya? He's gonna want to see you when he wakes up, not me."

Dally watched him walk down the hall and down the stairs. He didn't know what to say, so he just let him go. And then he crossed the hall to his room to stand watch over Johnny.

Ok, all you faithfull reviewers... here is your reward for taking the time out of your busy schedules to write me comments about what you're thinking. NO CLIFFHANGER! And there were SO many spots that I thought about leaving you hanging... As a double reward, the following chapter will be full of angst and Dally and Johnny "bonding moments" as "Booklover" calls it. It's almost all written, so keep an eye out, it might be posted fairly soon!