Hey, guys, keep an eye on my writing. The other chapter I found myself writing "I pulled Pony to his feet." Oops. Luckily, I caught it. Let me know if I do any of that. Ha. Sorry it's taken a while!

Pony's POV

I was still shaken from yesterday's events, but I knew I had to go to school. Soda gave me the option of not going but I declined. At school, I could bury myself in work to the point that I forgot about all my other problems.

Two-Bit picked me up again so Soda could get to work. I knew he wouldn't be early tonight because he didn't go back to work yesterday. If I hadn't been so upset and tired, yesterday would have been a better day since I had both my brothers home.

I was pleased to find that Darry still had the calming effect on me. Just being hugged by him made me feel stronger than I really am. Maybe it's some of his strength passed on to me. I'm not sure. Whatever it was, I was happy that it made me feel better.

I always felt protected by Soda and I could talk to him easier than I could Darry. But he just didn't have the presence that Darry does.

Two-Bit and I went silently to the principal's office as we had been directed. I hoped that this would be one situation where the Socs wouldn't get all the breaks.

The three Socs from yesterday were already inside, waiting on us.

"Sit down, boys," Principal Granger said.

Considering I was already sitting, I moved closer and aligned my wheelchair with Two-Bit's.

"What I saw yesterday was a disgrace. Considering what I saw, I would assume that Pony was the victim here."

Wow! You're a genius! There's no way that the handicapped kid would be the victim!

"I know Keith is a friend of Pony's and since his brother was there, also, I have assumed that Curt, Larry, and Greg are the ones to blame."

It's a miracle! We weren't to blame!

"You boys know fighting is not allowed on school grounds. You're hereby suspended for one week. I expect you to be back in my office when your suspension is over. That's all."

We headed to the door to leave. When we were out, one of the Socs shoved my wheelchair from the back, catching me off guard.

"What's the matter? You can't beat up people your own size, Greg?" Two-Bit said, an angry glare shining in his eyes.

The Socs backed off and left the school.

"You okay?" Two-Bit asked as he looked down at me.

"Yeah."

"Okay. I'll see you at lunch."

"Sure."

I wheeled to my locker. I was glad it didn't take too long with the principal. Somedays it took me longer than others to get ready. I figured today would be a slow day.

When I got home that afternoon, after Two-Bit dropped off, I found that I had another letter from Johnny.

I opened on my way up the sidewalk. Darry and Soda had put an old board they had found in the garage for me to use as a ramp. Though unsteady, it worked.

When I was safe inside with the door closed I settled in the living room and read the letter.

Dear Pony,

You should be grateful that you should be able to walk again. I'm happy for you. I knew something good would have to come from this.

Pony, I thought of something scary. Where am I going to go when I get out of here? They told me they wouldn't place me back in my parents' care, so who then? I don't want to be put with some strangers! They wouldn't do that, would they? I can't imagine being away from you guys. What if they don't place me back in Tulsa? What will I do?

I'm sorry, but these thoughts have been haunting me for days. Tom, my roommate, doesn't have much to say about it. I asked him if he knew what they'd do, but he said he wasn't sure. It was the most I had heard out of him. Sometimes he reminds me of you because he likes to write and draw.

I hope Dallas is okay. Let me know if you see him, okay? And if you do, tell him I'm okay for the most part. I don't want him to worry. Tell the gang I said hi.

Your buddy,

Johnny

Steve's POV

I watched Soda carefully as he worked behind the counter. He hadn't been himself for too long. We hadn't done much together because of his other job. He was always so worried about Pony that even when he wasn't working he wanted to just stay home with Pony.

I needed to talk to Soda, but I didn't want to add to his worries. My father had kicked me out, and for good this time. I had gone back home the day after he told me to get out, expecting a few dollars as an apology. But when I got home, he screamed for me to get out. I went back again the next day, and he still wouldn't let me in. I assumed this was it finally. I should have seen it coming, but I never expected him to kick me out permanently. I had spent the past few nights at Two-Bit's so Soda wouldn't suspect anything was wrong.

I wanted to talk to Soda. He was a good listener and he was able to give me advice when needed. Right now, I just needed an ear to listen to me while I ranted about my idiot father.

Not letting it get to me, I shook my head to ward off the thoughts of what had happened and buried myself in my work.

Dallas' POV

I shook hands with Brady, the guy who was getting me drugs as cheap as possible. I had gotten a job with Buck. I had worked for him in the past, but it was more permanent now. I had to have some money to get my weed.

Before I got completely stoned, I decided to check on the gang. It had been weeks since I had seen them last and I worried about Pony. I wondered if they even noticed I'd been gone.

I drove Buck's truck he used to haul his horses around and drove to the Darry, Soda, and Pony's house. That's where the gang usually was.

When I pulled up, I noticed that there were no cars in the driveway. That was unusual, but I went in anyway.

"Anybody home?" I called when I stepped through the doorway.

"Coming!" I heard Pony call.

A few minutes later, Pony wheeled down the hall and into the living room.

"Hey, Dally. I haven't seen you in a while. How are you?"

"Not too bad, kid. How about you? How's the, uh, therapy going?"

Something flashed in his eyes before he spoke. I assumed it wasn't going that well.

"It's okay, I guess. I just got a letter from Johnny."

At the sound of Johnny's name, I cringed. He'd be ashamed of me, knowing what I'd been doing. Johnny was too pure compared to me. What the hell did I care, anyway?

"Yeah? How's he doing?" I forced my voice to sound natural, though it didn't seem that way when I spoke.

"He told me to tell you that he's doing okay for the most part. He's worried about what he'll do when he gets out. Other than that, I think he's okay."

I took in Pony's haggard look.

"What about you? How are you holding up?"

Pony looked down to his hands in his lap.

"I'm...I'm okay."

"Bravo! Bravo! You actually convinced me. Come on, Pone, even I didn't fall for that."

"It's nothing."

"Nothing, huh? Well, okay. Where's everyone else?"

"Soda and Steve are working at the DX. Two-Bit's out getting drunk some where. And Darry is working as always."

"They leave you alone that often?"

"Yeah. They have to to keep up with the bills." I heard the bitterness in Pony's voice and I knew he wasn't happy with the changes.

"Well, I better get going. Tell everyone I said hey."

"Dallas?"

"Yeah, kid?"

"What are you doing?" I could tell by the way he asked it, he wasn't asking about what I was doing after I left here.

"It's nothing, kid. Stop worrying. I know what I'm doing."

Sadness filled his eyes. I cursed myself for being a burden on Pony. He had enough to worry about. I had to get out of there. I hated seeing Pony like that.

"See you around," I said as I went out the door.

I quickly got in the truck and sped away. I didn't want to stick around here any longer than necessary.

I'd have to get pretty stoned tonight.

Soda's POV

I got home a little early that night. Pony was laying on the couch studying when I came in.

"Hey, Pony. How was your day?" I hated that I hadn't gotten to see him in so long. I wished I could have brought him to school and pick him up, but I needed to make up for lost time from yesterday.

"Fine."

I sat in the arm chair and closed my eyes. It was always good to get home at a reasonable hour. I just wished Darry could get home at the same time. It wasn't the same, having all of us at different places at different times. The only times we were actually together was when we slept.

"You want to wait up for Darry tonight?" I asked Pony, hoping he'd say yes so we could be together for a while.

"Sure."

I smiled. I missed Darry. I didn't see him half as much as I should.

I got up to change into a t-shirt and out of my uniform DX shirt.

When I returned, Pony was sitting up and watching me.

"I saw Dallas today." A wave of relief washed through me. It was never good when we didn't see one of the gang for a while. I assumed he'd been jailed again.

"Oh, yeah? How was he?"

"Fine, I guess." Something was bothering Pony about it. I waited, hoping he'd tell me.

"Soda?" He said a few minutes later.

"Yeah, Pony?"

"He's still using."

I sighed. Drugs was one thing I never wanted to get mixed in. I thought Dallas knew better, too, but I guess not.

"It's okay, Pony. I'm sure he knows w hat he's doing."

Pony nodded, though I could tell it still upset him.

We waited for Darry to get home. We ate supper a little later than usual. I made something normal for once-pork chops and mashed potatoes. I couldn't think of something to do to the potatoes to make them more interesting. I had already used food coloring on them once before. I could repeat myself. That wouldn't be very creative.

When Darry got home, he looked exhausted. But when he saw Pony and I were awake, he smiled.

"Hey, guys. What are you doing up still?" He asked, sitting in his arm chair.

"Waiting for you." I answered, smiling at him. I stood, moving to the kitchen to get him something to eat.

"Hey, Pony. How are you?" He asked.

"I'm fine. How was work?"

"Exhausting. I'm glad to be home."

"I bet," I said as I set a plate of food in front of him.

He took it with a thanks and began to eat.

When he was finished, I saw him suddenly wince in pain. His hand went to his stomach and he rubbed gently.

"You okay?" I asked.

"I'm fine. I must have pulled something today."

I didn't believe him, because he only pulled his back muscles. Something was bothering him, and I was determined to get to the bottom of it.

In the mean time, the three of us sat up for several hours, just enjoying each others' company.