Chapter 3

The ride home was equally quiet as the Cade household the previous night. Johnny surveyed the three individuals in the vehicle as they were heading towards his current household.

Ponyboy seemed to be cutting his eyes every once in a while. Knowing that staring at Johnny would not only be awkward but rude. Sodapop was a little slicker as he would glance at the rear view mirror to get a look at him. But Darry was the usual as he would just keep his eyes on the road. Johnny didn't mind it too much. They were just checking to see how he was. Of course, he couldn't even explain it how he felt. He couldn't put a finger on his mood.

To Johnny's surprise, they pulled up next to his parent's house. Then he quickly remembered that he would have to get some clothing since he was moving.

"Do you need any of us to come in with you?" asked Darry as he put the clutch in park.

Johnny shook his head and said quietly,

"I'll be fine."

Just as the cop looked at him as he walked out, Johnny could sense the Curtis brothers doing the same. When he got out the car, he had just noticed the changes to the household. The police had made their mark on the property as it was filled with police lines and they were walking around accompanied by detectives.

Johnny walked slowly towards the entrance, trying his best to ignore the looks from some of the others. He noticed that one of them started to head his way and his stomach churned. It did ease a bit when he saw that the man was stopped and heard someone say,

"That's the people's kid."

No one else attempted to stop him as he walked into the house and towards his room. The room was small but it just seemed different now. Usually after his parents abused him, he would come here to rest. But if it were any worse then he wouldn't stay in the house. But he this was a place that he pretty had to his own. Now it didn't seem like that type of place, just another room in the house.

He picked up a few of his t-shirts off of his dirty bed, which only had a mattress, a sheet that had been cleaner in it's time, and some old blanket he'd found in the lot one night while he was sleeping there. He decided he would take that with him, even though it made him feel like a four year old.

Johnny packed the rest of his clothing and started to head to the door. He felt like he was forgetting something, but he had no valuables in that house….

He instantly forgot that feeling when he walked into the living room. Something about it gave him an unusual feeling. Was it because this was the last place he had seen his parents? He wasn't even sure. He didn't want to think about it either. His head started aching as well. He walked back outside and towards Darry's truck. He threw the suitcase in the tailgate and Soda let him in the back beside Ponyboy. Darry then started to head off for home.

Later on that night, Johnny was lying face up on the couch, staring at the ceiling. He was actually waiting for a moment where he would grow tired, because sleeping was an uneasy task right now.

He tried to remember the details of that night. He wanted to see if he could put the pieces of the puzzle together. Let's see…He walked into the house and it was surprisingly quiet…His mother came around the corner…and….and…

Johnny struggled to figure out what happened next, but he just couldn't remember. This wasn't making too much sense. Why was the house so quiet? What did his mother do after she appeared in his face? And where did Dally get thrown into all this? As far Johnny recalled, he had left with Two-Bit and Pony.

Johnny rolled onto his side and stared out of the window. It was a perfect sight of the street. He hoped that Dally didn't kill his parents. Johnny would believe Dally if he said he didn't. If he knew Dally, he wouldn't lie about something like this. Maybe to a broad or two, or the fuzz if they were questioning him, but never to Johnny. He just wouldn't. And with his Dallas' rap sheet, they wouldn't ever believe a word he said.

He wanted to talk to somebody about it. He wanted to figure out this mystery. Maybe he should talk to Ponyboy. He's read a few mystery stories before, maybe he would know what to do…or better yet Darry. Every book that Pony had read, Darry had read. Plus he was a lot smarter and responsible. To Johnny, it always seemed like Darry would know what to do in a bad situation.

He decided that he would talk to Darry in the morning. Plus it will give everyone the chance to sleep on what just happened…including himself. That is, if he ever went back to sleep.