Chapter Six

Soda POV

I was sitting on my back porch with Steve, Two-bit, and Ponyboy. Me and Pony'd just got back from June's "funeral". The kids went out to eat, which was good because I needed a drink.

"How was it?"

I took a swig of my beer.

"You know, man, it sucks that I had to go to her's when she's the reason I didn't go to my brother's..."

I'd never forgive June for that. Me and Pony were worried sick when neither of us could get a hold of him for almost two weeks. June finally answered to tell us to stop calling because Darry was dead. When I asked her when the funeral was, she said, "last week," like it was no big deal.

But, I couldn't not go to her's. Scar needed to be there, no matter how bad her mom had been.

"I know, buddy. Hang in there."

"How's the kid doing? You know, being here and all."

Ponyboy answered.

"You can tell she's been living on her own."

Two-bit arched an eyebrow.

"How?"

I chuckled.

"Well, we have to pry our kids out of bed with the jaws of life in the mornings, tell them to clean up after themselves, make sure they do their homework. She does all of that without being asked, she even wakes up early and she's been out of school."

I sighed. Steve looked pissed.

"Because of June, the kid had to grow up. How old is she, anyway?"

"16, a sophomore. I'm hoping I'll have to pry her out of bed one day. She needs to enjoy being a kid."

"Yeah, we're gonna make her quit her job. Scar doesn't need to work right now."

Both Steve and Two-bit choked on their drinks.

"Did you say Scar?!"

I eyed Steve.

"Yeah...?"

Two-bit spoke up.

"I've met her! She hangs out with Danny!"

"Mikey, too."

"What?"

"Yeah, Mikey's talked about her."

"If she hangs out with Mikey, then that means..."

"Sodapop..."

"She hang out with Jason?"

That was the only disagreement me and Steve ever had. He rolled his eyes.

"Soda, it's not like that anymore. Tim's straight, so's his boy. He's a good kid..."

"I don't want her around him. He's been in the cooler a lot."

"So were we. The only one of us who's never been in the cooler is Pony."

Pony scowls. Two-bit speaks up.

"He's really not a bad kid."

I groan and take another swig.

Scar POV

"You ready to go back to school tomorrow?"

I shrugged. We're sitting in a little booth in my favorite restaurant.

"I guess. Better than sitting at y'all's house all day."

Keegan shifted uncomfortably.

"You know, it's your house, too."

"Oh, yeah... Sorry... Better than sitting at the house all day..."

I gave him a smile, but my heart wasn't in it.

"How's your nausea been?"

"Pretty bad..."

It sounds bad, but being around Sodapop and Ponyboy made me feel sick. They reminded me too much of my dad...

"They're... Exactly like he described them. It's weird."

"Um... So..."

He looked nervous. I rolled my eyes.

"Spit it out, James."

"Jason wants to meet tomorrow..."

"What, to chew me out?"

"Scar..."

I crossed my arms and slumped back against the booth.

"You told him?"

"I told all of them..."

"I'm surprised they weren't at the door ready to chew me out."

"Jason can't. You know that."

"Yeah, why do Uncle Pony and Soda hate Jason?"

"They don't... Hate him. They just think he's bad news."

"Then they better stop letting Mikey over."

They both laughed.

"They won't do that. He's like part of the family."

"Part of your family. Mikey hates me."

James looked shocked. Keegan and Cam were the only ones that I'd told how I felt about Jason and Mikey.

"Mikey doesn't hate you."

"Yes he does. So does Jason."

"No, they don't. They just... Have a funny way of..."

I stared at Keegan.

"Really? I've seen both of them laugh and stuff with you guys. They don't do it with me."

"You're intimidating."

I scowled.

Soda POV

"Hey, did you guys eat?"

Scar looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

"Um, yeah. We did."

"This is Steve and Two-bit."

Steve shook her hand, but Two-bit hugged her. She excused herself and I looked at Two-bit confused. So did Steve.

"She comes to the house to hang out with Danny a lot."

They left after that. I decided now was as good a time as any.

"Scar, can you come down here a minute?"

I heard a faint sure and got Lydia and Pony. She walked in and sat at the table.

"We wanna talk to you about your job."

Lydia spoke up next.

"We think it'd be best of you quit."

Her eyes got wide.

"What? Why?"

"Sweetie, you've been working since you were 13. Keegan and James told us how much you worked."

"But, a lot of 16 year olds have jobs."

Pony spoke next.

"Yeah, that they just got. You've been working for three years. Take a break until your Senior year, that's all we're asking."

I nodded.

"You're only a sophomore. You can do chores around the house like the boys. Or just ask us for money if you guys are going out. We got it."

"Scar, Scar!"

Pony's 7 year old, Nicky, walked in and jumped on Scar's lap. She'd only been here three days, but he had gotten close to her.

"Hey, bud. What's going on?"

"Can you play with me?"

She looked at us, but looked sad.

"I'll quit and see what I think about it, but if I don't like it, I would like to go back..."

Lydia nodded.

"Sounds like a good deal. Let's just see how it goes."

She left the room with Nicky on her hip.

"Nick, you can walk!"

"Can't hear you, daddy!"

Pony rolled his eyes. I chuckled.

"He's a handful."

He popped a grin.

"Hope he didn't give you too much trouble while I was away... Speaking of that..."

I sighed and walked to the sink to do the dishes.

"What is it, Pone?"

"My publisher wants me to go on another tour..."

"For how long?"

"Six months... In Europe..."

I dropped a plate and it smashed into pieces.

"Sodapop!"

"Sorry, sorry... Six months? In Europe?"

"I can take the kids with me, Soda. I know it's a lot..."

I shook my head.

"No. They need to be in school, not homeschooled. They need to be with their friends. It's just... Gosh, Ponyboy. I thought two in a half months across the U.S. was a long time and far away..."

He looked guilty.

"I won't go..."

"What?!"

"I won't go. It's not your responsibility to raise my kids."

Lydia stepped up.

"Ponyboy, we've got it. It was just a shock, that's all."

I had the perfect wife, no one could argue with that. He sat down at the table and ran his hands through his hair and rested them on his neck.

"With Sydney gone, I don't know how to handle things... Writing is all I ever wanted to do. Now, I don't know..."

I sat next to him.

"We've got them."

"Are you sure, Sodapop?"

"I'm sure. When do you leave?"

"January 3rd..."

"So, we have a month. It's fine."

Scar POV

My first day back at school was a relief. A good distraction. I was hoping it would drag. I wasn't ready to face the rest of the boys. I could avoid them at school, I knew their schedules.

The day did drag by. By the time the last bell rung, I was dreading it. We were going to Jason's after I quit my job.

"Scarlett, a word..."

I had almost made it out of the class when Mrs. Bridges stopped me. I went back to her desk, shoulders hunched over.

"Yes, ma'am?"

"I was made aware of the situation. Why your mother was never able to come."

She looked mad. I wasn't in the mood.

"So, what do you want? An apology?"

She looked taken aback by that.

"I'm making straight A's. I always have. So what, my mom wasn't here. It didn't really matter."

"I want a conference with your guardian. Tomorrow, after school."

"Fine."

I went to my truck and waited for Keegan and James.

"James is riding with Cam."

I jumped. I had zoned out.

Walking into Bonnie's knowing I was quitting was hard. Working was a part of my life. I needed to do it to earn my keep.

"Hey, Stacey. Is Bonnie here?"

"Yeah, and you're late."

"Doesn't matter."

I walked into the office. Bonnie was a nice woman who'd been more of a mom to me than anyone.

"There you are! I heard about what happened. How are you?"

She had me in a tight hug.

"I'm okay, but... My Uncles want me to quit."

She frowned.

"Why?"

"Something about me being a kid."

She nodded.

"Well, if you ever wanna come back, the door's always open."

When we pulled up to Jason's, I felt the nausea coming on. Keegan turned to me.

"Ready?"

"Not really."

We climbed out of the truck and walked up the driveway. Keegan pushed open the door, and it took a lot in me not to puke right there.

Author's note: Hey, guys! I know this is different and I hope you like it! Any suggestions or comments are appreciated! Please review!