Steve was feeling a little disappointed in himself. The adrenaline to help Darry was wearing off, and he needed a drink. Well it was a mix of adrenaline and fear that had driven Steve to go in the first place. The adrenaline was sinking and the fear was growing. Darry had pulled off to a gas station to fill up, and Steve was calculating if he could swipe alcohol from somewhere and get back in time. That's when Steve realized how bad his drinking had really got. Still, he hopped out of the truck and walked into the gas station to take a look.
Two-Bit couldn't believe what he was doing. He was actually doing it. He was driving through Tulsa, which he didn't know the last time he had done that. He barely knew where he was going. All he knew was Darry didn't deserve this, Soda didn't deserve this, and Pony didn't deserve this. Now, he was going to help fix it. He wanted to fix it all, so the gang could get back to normal. The Curtis brothers could be back together, Steve could stop drinking and be happy again, and Johnny could feel better. Two-Bit was done with the bullshit and wasn't turning around until he helped everyone.
Soda eventually found a cave-like hole to hide in. He sat down and didn't dare move. He couldn't tell how hidden he really was, but he felt like he had gotten inside of something. He took long, slow breaths to even out his breathing. There were moments where it sounded like the voices were getting closer, and then further away. It was a long time before they seemed to disappear. Even when Soda thought they were gone for good, he waited. Fear kept him from moving to check around him. The idea of being taken back to the boy's home kept him still.
Ponyboy continued running. He was fast, and he took advantage of that. There sticks being stepped on and bushes being brushed, but Pony hoped the constant noises would throw the authorities off. When Pony suspected he had a good lead, he took advantage of something Two-Bit and Steve had taught him. That was how to climb trees, fast. Just jump and climb, no second thoughts. He found a decent tree, took a good leap, and began pulling himself upwards, grabbing each branch until he got high up.
Steve walked up and down the aisles aimlessly. He found snacks, candy, sodas, medicine. There was some beer, but it'd be too challenging to sneak out. He could feel the sweat beads form under his hairline as he desperately wanted to feel the liquid go down his throat and drown out all the worries and anxieties. Shaking his head, Steve quickly left the gas station and walked back to the truck.
"Alright, let's go," Darry said as he climbed inside the truck, "You still coming?"
Steve slowly looked over at Darry and walked around to get inside, "Of course."
"You just seem a little out of it."
"I'm fine. Just tired. Let's go."
Soda felt like he was in the hole forever. Even when it got completely silent, he waited a long time to make sure the police were definitely gone. He slowly crawled out and looked around. He couldn't see a hint of flashlights or hear any dogs on alert. Now the challenge was to find his little brother.
"Ponyboy?" Soda said in a whisper, hoping he was close. He listened closely, but didn't hear anything. He decided to raise his voice to a regular level. "Ponyboy?" Still nothing. He could kick himself for not paying attention to how far Pony had ran from him. Not wanting to give away his position, Soda got to his feet and slowly began to walk.
Pony didn't dare climb down from the tree. He had no idea where the police could be or where Soda could be. He didn't want to take any chances though. If he could manage to sit in the tree for the rest of the night, he would.
Darry continued driving on. Even though he was only a half-hour into the drive, he was keeping his eyes peeled for his brothers. At one point he found a heavily wooded area and pulled over.
"What are you doing?" Steve asked, "You don't really think they could be this far out do you?"
"I have no idea. By the time I found out they were gone, who knows how long they had been gone already. I can't rule it out."
As Darry got his flashlight and got ready to step out, Steve said, "Darry, Darry."
"What? What is it?"
"Someone's coming."
Darry glanced out the back window and saw a pair of headlights approaching. "It's probably just a passing car." Darry hopped out of the truck and walked around to approach the woods. Steve kept his eye on the headlights. He watched as they got closer, but slowly approached the back of the truck. He turned quickly and opened his door.
"Darry! It's slowing down!"
The car came to a stop behind the truck, and a figure got out.
"Darry? You're actually out here?"
Darry looked at Steve, "It's Two-Bit."
"What?" Steve asked as he got out of the truck.
"What are you doing here?" Darry asked.
"I didn't think you'd come out looking. You could get in some serious trouble if you did," Two-Bit responded.
"So you decided to come out yourself?" Darry asked.
Two-Bit shrugged, "It seemed the right thing to do. I'm sick of everything, so I wanted to fix it."
"There's no need to risk getting yourself in trouble," Darry shook his head, "You don't have to be out here."
"That's bull Darry," Two-Bit said, "If I'm out here, I'm just a greaser getting into some dumb trouble. If you're out here, they know why."
"Darry," Steve said, "It will probably help to have another set of eyes and ears out here."
Darry sighed, "Fine."
"Good," Two-Bit said, "So we're starting here?"
"Well, we have a lot of options to go through, and I don't want to assume they haven't made it out here yet."
"Good enough for me, let's start looking," Two-Bit said.
Steve stayed close to Two-Bit as Darry went another direction.
"What made you come with Darry?" Two-Bit asked.
"I was at the house, and he was just talking about leaving like crazy. I don't know, it was all happening so fast. I just had to go with him. I didn't want to be alone," Steve admitted, "What made you come out here by yourself?"
"Like I said, I want things fixed. I'm sick of all this shit going on," Two-Bit said with frustration.
"So what would you do if you found them?"
Two-Bit looked at Steve as if the question was ridiculous, "Bring them home."
As it stayed quiet for a long time, Pony finally decided it'd be okay to come down. He decided he couldn't wait until the morning to come down. Especially without knowing where Soda was or if he was alright. He began lowering himself onto branches, freezing anytime he heard a crack. Then suddenly, a branch broke right under his foot and his hand grip let loose.
"Well, I'm not hearing anything. No one's answering us," Darry said as him, Steve, and Two-Bit met up near the vehicles.
"So where to next?" Two-Bit asked.
"Just keep driving," Darry said, "Do you want to follow us?"
"Yeah that's fine. If you ever think we need to split different ways, just pull over and let me know the plan."
"Thanks Two-Bit," Darry said, "Steve, you coming with me?"
"I think I'll actually hop in Two-Bit's car for some entertainment," Steve shrugged, "Will you be okay?"
"Yeah I'll be just fine," Darry nodded, ready to keep moving.