Ponyboy felt the lukewarm water flow down his bare back. The whole time he could hear Darry .and Bexley help Soda on his condition. Soda sounded miserable. Pony couldn't feel any worse for making his older brother sick. He felt even worse when he thought that Bexley could be next.
He didn't want to get kicked out because of this; he felt as though he were a burden on Darry's shoulders. Soda was the only reason why he and Bexley never got taken away, he wouldn't let him.
Tears silently ran down his cheeks, mixing in with the water. He believed Darry would side with Soda because of how sick he made him.
Darry comes back into the bathroom. He brought fresh clothes and a towel for Ponyboy. "You ready tó get out, kiddo?" He asked. "Yeah," Ponyboy replied, shutting the water off. Darry threw the towel over the railing and Ponyboy grabbed it, wrapping it around his waist.
He stepped out of the tub. "You feeling any better?" Darry asked. "A little. I'm sore though," he replied. Darry smiled and rubbed his wet hair. "That's your fever. It broke so you're gonna feel like that for a little bit. You hungry?" He asked.
"A little bit." Ponyboy answered. After Ponyboy got dressed, they went into the kitchen. Bexley got up from the couch and went to hug her twin brother gently.
"How're you feeling?" Bexley asked, pulling back from the hug. "I'm still a little sore, but I'll be okay. How's Soda?" Ponyboy asked. Bexley swallowed hard and replied, "He's not doing so good. Darry gave him some medicine to help him. He's sleeping right now," she replied.
Ponyboy glanced down at his feet in guilt. "What's wrong?" Bexley asked, sitting down at the table. Ponyboy sat down on her right and sighed. "Nothing… I'm fine," he lied, not wanting to worry her. He didn't want to admit his guilt to her; he didn't want her to hate him for it.
"You hungry, Bex?" Darry asked. "Yeah," she nodded, feeling her stomach rumble. Ponyboy's stomach sounded much louder than hers, meaning he was starving.
As Darry was cooking, he had told Ponyboy that he needed to stay put at the table and not do any work because his body was still recovering from his fever. Ponyboy tried begging but Darry wouldn't change his mind.
"Here, drink this," Darry said, setting a glass of water in front of Ponyboy. Bexley had gotten herself some juice. He sets two plates on the table and puts an even amount of eggs on each plate.
"Eat up, kiddos. Ponyboy, after you eat, I want you to go back to bed. Bexley, do you have any homework?" Darry asked sternly. "Nope. Got it finished," Bexley replied, swallowing her second bite.
"Thatta girl," he praised, "Remember, I don't want you sleeping in the same room as Soda." Ponyboy knew Darry didn't want his help nor Bexley's help; he didn't even ask her to help. He would be better off just finishing up his plate and head back to bed.
Bexley knew not to do that, but she partly didn't want to because of her array of nightmares. She obviously wouldn't be able to go to Soda. Her only option would be with Darry. .
Ponyboy was scared to go back to Soda, more so than Darry. He didn't want his sickly brother to be mad at him. He blamed himself for this. "You two are all set?" Darry asked.
"Yeah, Darry. Thanks," Bexley said. "Yeah," Ponyboy said, his voice cracking. Darry was suspicious when he heard it. It wasn't because Ponyboy was feeling sick, it was because he was scared.
After they finished eating, Darry helped his youngest brother back to bed. Bexley followed behind to make sure everything was going okay.
Ponyboy laid on the bed as carefully as he could so he wouldn't wake Soda up. Bexley stood at the foot of the bed while Darry sat at the desk, making sure Ponyboy was going to sleep.
However, he couldn't because he felt so hot. "Carry, is the heat up high?" Ponyboy asked. Darry shook his head, " No, it ain't,"
"Can we open a window at least?" Ponyboy asked. "Pony, it's snowing outside. And it's freezing. So we can't," Bexley said. It'd been snowing for the last week and the temperatures had dropped drastically since then.
Darry feels Ponyboy's forehead. "You're not as warm as before," he said. Ponyboy kicked the blankets off and was relieved to feel the cool air. He didn't want to be underneath all those blankets.
Bexley's eyes scan over to Soda, something alarmed her. "What's wrong, Bexley?" Darry asked. "Something's not right with Soda. His skin looks dry," Bexley answered. Darry caught the tone in her voice and reached over the bed to feel Soda's forehead. He quickly retracted his hand.
"What is it?" Ponyboy asked, realizing that his question was dumb. "His skin is very dry. We gotta wake him up," Darry said worriedly. Ponyboy turned over and gently shook him awake. "Soda, you gotta wake up," he said.
Soda moaned tiredly and shifted in the bed. When his eyes did open, he saw the three of them at his bedside. "Darry, am I late for work? Oh, my boss is going to kill me!" He said, shooting up to a sitting position, his voice was much louder to Ponyboy.
"Easy, little buddy. You don't have to go to work. But we do have to get you cooled down in the shower." Darry said, taking control of the situation. He knew how to get Soda to listen.
Soda calmed down from his shock and he nodded at Darry. They both get up to head to the bathroom. Ponyboy was about to come but Darry stopped him. "Stay here and rest, Ponyboy. Bexley, stay here with him," Darry said. Ponyboy sighed and laid back down.
"Pony, he's not doing it to make you mad," Bexley interjected. "I know, but… I don't want him running my life or your life." Ponyboy said. "He just wants you to get better. I would've done the same," Bexley replied, sitting down at the desk.
(In the bathroom)
Darry had Soda sit on the toilet seat again since dinner a couple of hours ago. Darry grew worried for his younger brother because Soda has never been this sick before in his life.
Soda's skin was pasty white and not a slightly tannish color. His eyes were bloodshot and hazy like he was unfocused. But he was coherent enough to answer Darry whenever he asked him something.
Darry retook his temperature and it went up a bit. This was a cause for concern. He had given him some medicine but it seems his fever burned right through it. Darry would gladly let a fever run on its own but it could get more dangerous. He needed to cool down Soda if anyone was getting any sleep tonight.
Darry waited for the water to be lukewarm while Soda was getting undressed. Usually, he didn't like it when people watched him undress, but he didn't care this time. He clung to Darry as his life depended on it, which spiked Darry's anxiety. This wasn't like Soda at all.
"It's alright, little buddy. You ready to get in?" Darry soothed. Soda nodded and let Darry go long enough to step under the shower stream. The water to him was ice cold and he let out a cry. "It's freezing…" he whimpered, shaking terribly.
"I know, little buddy. But it's to help your fever." Darry said, feeling his heart break. Tears were falling from Soda's eyes. The water must've felt like needles to him… He was feeling bad enough to be crying in the shower.
Soda was shivering, hugging himself. After a minute, Darry reached passed the curtains and shut the water off. Soda was still shivering madly.
Darry handed him a towel and helped him out of the tub. "There you go. Dry off and I'll get some warm clothes for you," Darry said. He went into Soda's old bedroom and got a white t-shirt and some red-checkered sweatpants. He grabbed a glass of water for Soda to drink before he let Soda go back to bed.
Bexley was sent back to the other bedroom by Darry's order. He told her if she had a nightmare to come to him. She nodded and headed to Soda's room. It was more cold in there than she thought.
It'd been a long time since she stayed in a bedroom by herself and she didn't feel comfortable sleeping in there. Darry surely wouldn't mind if see stayed with him for the night.
She walked into Darry's bedroom, slightly shaking. The eldest Curtis saw her standing at the doorway just as he was getting into bed.
"What's wrong, Bex?" He asked. "I… I don't wanna stay there by myself. Can I stay here with you?" She asked, hugging her arms.
Darry's heart hurt at the tone of her voice. She was afraid of being alone and he couldn't get mad at her for feeling that way.
"Sure thing, kiddo." He said, scooting over to make room for her. She hopped into bed with her brother, snuggling close to him. He wrapped his muscular arms around her protectively.
"Gnight, Darry," she said, already dozing off. "Good night, kiddo," Darry replied, falling asleep as well.