Inside the Outsiders

Chapter 6

Pain and Recovery

Disclaimer: The usual still applies

Thanks to all my reviewers!

Darry stared at Kaley. She had been crying. He could see it in her eyes. She looked scared too.

"What happened? Come in." He said, pulling her in from outside.

Kaley opened her mouth to answer, but she began to cry again.

Darry took her into the living room and sat her down on the couch. She took a couple deep breaths, and soon, she had calmed down enough to talk.

"I was at home…with my dad…and…I…he…he…he hit me Darry." She said.

Darry couldn't answer for a minute, he was so shocked. Kaley was holding her head in her hands, sobbing. Darry wasn't exactly sure what to do, but he awkwardly put his arm around her, and let her cry into his shoulder.

Finally, she sat up.

"Why did he hit you?" Darry asked.

Kaley shook her head.
"I don't know. He's never done it before. We were just talking. I think he may have been drunk. But, I told him about what had happened at school. He started yelling that if I ever became friends with a Greaser, that he'd kick me out of the house. "

"Did you tell him about me?" Darry asked.

"No…I couldn't. I could never tell him about you Darry. I told you, he'd hurt you. I don't want that to happen. You're my best friend."

They sat together on the couch for awhile, until Mrs. Curtis came back in.

"Oh, hello Kaley. What are you doing here?" She asked. "It's very late. Does your dad know you're here?"

Darry started to explain, but Kaley stopped him.

"My dad hit me tonight, Mrs. Curtis." She said, very softly.

Mrs. Curtis waited a long time before answering. Finally, she came down and sat on the couch beside Kaley.

"Darry. Go into the other room for a minute please." She said.

Darry nodded, and went into the kitchen.

Back in the living room, Mrs. Curtis was sitting talking to Kaley.

"Has your dad ever done this before, Kaley?" She asked.

"He's never hit me before. He's gotten mad, but that's only once in awhile. He was drunk tonight, Mrs. Curtis. I think that's why. I got really scared, and I didn't know what to do, so I decided to come to you and Darry. Sorry if I'm inconveniencing you in any way, but I just don't know what to do."

Mrs. Curtis shook her head. "No, no. It's no inconvenience at all. You were right to come to someone. Your dad could've seriously hurt you."

Kaley nodded. "I'm just so confused. He's never hit me before. He still loves me, right?" She asked, wiping her eyes.

Mrs. Curtis put her arm around Kaley.

"Oh sweetie, of course he still loves you. Sometimes, adults just get angry and take it out on the wrong people. I'm sure your dad didn't mean it. If he ever does it again, just tell me, and we'll get it settled out."

Darry came back into the room and sat down beside his mother and Kaley.

"So, what's up? Is she staying here, or going home?" He asked.

Mrs. Curtis looked at Kaley. "Would you like me to call your father and tell him your staying here?" She asked.

Kaley slowly nodded.

Mrs. Curtis got up and went to the phone. She dialed Kaley's home number, and when her dad picked up, she started talking.

"Hello, this is Mrs. Curtis. I'm Darry's mother. It's seems that Kaley…what? Whose Darry? Darry is your daughter's friend from school. What do you mean, Greaser? Now wait a minute, I never said…No, that's not what I meant. Your daughter came to my house in tears because you hit her. I'm pretty sure she wouldn't lie! Yeah, well maybe if you paid a little more attention to your daughter…excuse me? Well, you have a lot of nerve. Who do you think you are? No, I will not shut up! Well, your daughter's staying here! Yes, goodnight to you sir!" She said, and hung up the phone.

At this point, Mr. Curtis had come into the kitchen where his wife was, and had heard most of the conversation.

"Grace, what was that all about?" He asked, looking concerned.

"Kaley's father is clearly drunk, and I'm not sending her home tonight. She's staying here."

She dragged her husband farther out in the kitchen, so the children couldn't hear her.

"He called Darry a filthy Greaser, as well as the rest of our family. He insulted me and said his daughter wasn't worth enough for her to come home. I said that she came here because he hit her, and he denied it. Said she was lying, just to get attention. I couldn't stand it anymore. I hung up, and I refuse to talk to him anymore." She said, mostly in only one breath, which surprised her husband.

"Ok, calm down Grace. Kaley can stay here tonight, and I'll go over tomorrow when he's sober and talk to him, ok? It's Saturday, the kids can sleep in, so Kaley doesn't have to deal with it." Darrel said.

Darry and Kaley walked into the kitchen where Darrel and Grace were talking.

"So, is Kaley staying?" Darry asked.

Mrs. Curtis nodded. "She can sleep in Pony's room. I'll move him over with Soda." She said. "We have some extra blankets and such that you can use, and we'll get you and Darry all settled down for the night, so you're not tired tomorrow, ok?" She said, in her most motherly voice possible, without sounding slightly aggravated.

She left Darry and Kaley alone for a few minutes, while she went to make up the beds.

"So, are you ok?" Darry asked.

Kaley nodded. " I think I'll be fine. I'm just a little upset."

Darry smiled. "It's gonna be fun having you here tonight. I wonder if we can sneak down in the middle of the night and play without my mom knowing?" He suggested.

Kaley smiled, but shook her head. "No, that's ok. I think I'll just sleep." She said.

"Oh, ok, that's fine. I understand." Darry said.

Mrs. Curtis came back down. "Ok, all ready. Do you need anything Kaley? Like a drink, or pajamas?"

Kaley smiled. "No thanks, Mrs. Curtis, I think I'll be fine. Did Pony make much of a fuss?" She asked.

"No, not by a long shot. Soda neither. Both out like rocks. They could sleep through World War Three if you let them." She said, laughing, and leading the two of them up the stairs and to bed.

She showed Kaley to Pony's room where she had left a cot on the floor.

"I know it's not much, but I figure you didn't want to sleep in Pony's bed." She said.

"This is fine, Mrs. Curtis, thank you." Kaley said.

"You can call me Grace if you want." He answered.

Kaley smiled, and Ms. Curtis shut the door so she could get ready. She walked over to Darry's room and found him laying in bed waiting to be tucked in.

"Are you ready?" His mother asked, sitting down on the edge of his bed.

"Yes. I am. Mom?" He asked, softly.

"Yes dear." She answered.

"Why did Kaley's dad hit her tonight?" He asked. "I've been wondering ever since she got here."

Mrs. Curtis sighed. "Well, Darry. I'll try to explain it to you as best I can. Sometimes adults get angry, or upset, or even sad, just like you. They might become cold, or grumpy, or sometimes, they turn to alcohol thinking it's the answer. I don't know why Kaley's dad decided he had to drink, but whatever the reason was, he got drunk tonight, and came home in a bad mood. Kaley was in the wrong place at the wrong time, even though she had every right to be there. Darry, did Kaley tell you what she said that made her dad hit her?" Mrs. Curtis asked, in her best motherly tone.

Darry nodded in the darkness. "She said it was because of me."

There was a silence for a few minutes, and finally she spoke up.

"Why in the world would it be because of you?"

"Because…because I'm a Greaser. I'm her friend, and I'm a Greaser. Her dad hates me, and all Greasers. I don't know why, but he does. I'm afraid, mom. I'm afraid that if he ever tells her that she can't be my friend anymore that she'll listen to him, and she won't. What would I do then? The only other friend I have is Two Bit, and he's nice and all, but I like Kaley, a lot. I really do. Mom, I don't know what to do!" Darry said, trying desperately to hold back the stinging tears that were forming in his eyes.

Mrs. Curtis too, was on the verge of crying, because she felt bad for her son.

"Darry, we're going to clear all this up. I promise. You won't lose Kaley, ok? Her dad had a rough night. She did too. This will all work itself out in the end. Remember that I love you, and your father loves you. Soda loves you, and Pony loves you. You don't have to worry about not having any friends. You'll always have us, and your brothers. They'll always be there for you, no matter what happens. They're gonna stand by you, because believe it or not, they look up to you." She said, rubbing her son's head.

Darry was crying now, but only slightly. He didn't like showing his emotions. He was different than Pony, and even Soda in that respect. He didn't think that crying made him look tough.

"I'm still scared mom." He said, burying his face in her shoulder.

"Oh, I know sweetie. But, it's gonna be ok. You've had a long night, now it's time to go to sleep, ok? Things will look better in the morning."

She got up, closed the door and left the room.

Darry laid awake in the dark thinking about the night's events. He had stopped crying, but he was still sniffling. Several minutes later, he heard the door to his room creak open and saw a shadow standing outside. It wasn't big enough to be Kaley, but not small enough to be Pony.

"What do you want, Soda?" He called out into the darkness.

"Darry, are you awake?" A small voice called.

"Clearly, or else I wouldn't be talking to you. Come in if you have to, but close the door will ya? It's bright in here."

Soda came in, and closed the door behind him, then came and sat on Darry's bed.

"Darry, why is Pony in my room?" He asked.

Darry laughed to himself in the darkness. The whole question sounded kind of funny.

"Because his room's being occupied." Darry said.

"By who?" Soda asked, still clearly not awake.

"Kaley's here." Darry said, yawning.

"Why?" Soda asked.

"Oh Soda. It's too complicated to get into now. Come to think of it, it's too complicated to get into, ever. Especially with you. You wouldn't understand. Can you go back to bed now?" Darry asked.

Soda started to get off the bed.

"Darry?" He asked.

"Oh, what?" Darry asked, slightly groaning.

"Is Kaley ok?" He asked.

How did he know? He wasn't even awake when it happened, How does he always know? Darry thought all these things before deciding how to answer.

"She's fine now kid, ok? Now go back to sleep. I'd like to at least fall asleep before getting up tomorrow morning." Darry said, rolling over.

"One more question." Soda said.

Darry groaned again. "What is it?" He asked, agitated.

"Are you ok?" Came the small voice.

Darry had no idea how to answer this one. Was he ok? Was he going to lie to his little brother just to make him go away? Darry really didn't even know if he was ok. If he told Soda yes, would it be a lie?

"Darry?" The voice came again.

Darry sat up in bed and looked at the little figure, clad in superhero pajamas, staring at him in the darkness. He couldn't lie to Soda.

"I'm not great kid. But I'll be ok. Just go back to bed now, alright? Don't worry about me." He said.

Soda stood there for a few minutes, before leaving. The last thing Darry heard before Soda left was

"I love you Darry."

Darry smiled in the darkness, long after Soda left.

He knew, after that, that he would be ok.

I hope you like that chapter. It took me a long time to write it, because I've had a bit of writer's block. But, hopefully I'll get over it soon.

Please R&R

Jess