I shot up out of the chair. I didn't even see him until now. Soda was standing there with his note book in hand.

"We're going to ruin everything for you." Soda looked like he was about to cry. "You're entire life."

"No, no little buddy, we aren't thinking about it like that." I said.

"But that's what it is. You were made to go to college and play football. That's not fair on your part! I'm stupid..."

"Soda stop!" I took his chin and forced him to look at me. "I could send you two to boys home. You guys could get nice family. Separated or together you guys would have someone and the brothers I had for sixteen and thirteen years would be gone. I'd have no one, not family at least. I don't think Mom or Dad would want us separated, family always comes first if we ever got separated who would be happy. Huh?" I pulled him into a hug.

"I hate this." I felt Soda's tears. "I wish it got better for you. I'll get an after school job. If you have to look after me and send me to school when all I am is stupid then"

I smacked his mouth not that hard but hard enough so it wasn't playful anymore. "Sodapop you listen to me and listen to me good. If I ever hear you call yourself stupid again, I swear by all means kid I'll smack you from here to California. You are not stupid! Do you understand me?"

Soda looked up at me rubbing his mouth. "Yeah"

"Did I hit you that hard?" I asked suddenly feeling bad we've never really hit each other.

Soda shook his head no. "It didn't hurt at all!" He grinned up at me.

I smirked. "Finish the problems?"

He held his notebook in my face.

"Alright, go to bed kid."

I thought that would be the end of the night but it wasn't. The night was never going to end. I woke up to hear Pony screaming. I nearly fell out of my bed. I took off running. No groaning or rolling over trying to ignore it. I swung myself into his room. Pony had barricaded himself underneath the covers. I grabbed the covers off his face. Soda had followed me in.

"Ponyboy, what happened?" My voice was shaky.

"I-I" He managed to get out between sobs. His breathing was all over the place. Soda rubbed his back. Pony clung to Soda with a death grip sobbing.

"Ponyboy what happened." I asked again. It took him a few minutes but he finally pulled his head out of Soda's neck.

"Dream."

Dreams, he must have had a bad dream. It was two in the morning. "What happened?"

"I don't remember." He cried. Once again hiding his face in Soda's neck crying; Soda continued to rub his back.

"Come here Pony." I pried him away from Soda. "Go back to bed Soda."

Soda nodded; he crawled over and kissed Pony on top of the head. Once he left I looked down at Pony. I could feel him trembling in my arms.

"I don't want to go back to bed!" He cried.

"Pony, you need to breathe take a big breath."

He did, but he was still shook up.

"You sure you don't remember?" I asked.

He shook his head fiercely. I began to rock with him. "It's alright just close your eyes. Nothing is going to hurt you or scare you. I'm right here. Soda is here. He forced his eyes open as long as he could before finally closing them. Even then he fought sleep but finally his body gave up. I set my brother back on the bed carefully and covered him up.

"Come on guys you are going to be late!" I screamed the next morning. "Let's go."

Soda came running out of the hall. "I call shower first!" He came running out of the shower fifteen minutes later in just pants. "Pony you up?" I watched the evil grin spread across his face. Now I wasn't going to miss this part of the morning. I turned down the stove and followed Soda into Pony's room.

"Good morning!" Soda jumped on Pony's bed and started tickling him.

"I'm up!" Pony groaned. He sat up a little. I rubbed his hair before leaving. We got to the door before we heard the sound of Pony dropping back to the mattress. I grabbed him picking him up upside down. Soda went to work tickling him once more.

"CUT IT OUT! The blood is rushing to me head!" He laughed.

Soda stopped and ran out saying something about chocolate for breakfast. I dropped Pony on the bed. "You got five minutes."

I went back into the kitchen and finished making the eggs but when I turned around I got another surprise. Soda was serving chocolate cake.

"What are you doing? That's not breakfast food."

"Who cares, it can be if we want it to be. Please!" Soda begged. "You like it just as much as we do!"

"Yeah, please." Pony chimed in.

"Why not." I said.

I dropped Pony off at school. I went to work roofing houses it would be the first time doing full days worth of work. I carried up to bundles each time. I thought maybe if foreman saw me there might be a chance for a raise. You would think also that football training and playing would help out but by the end of the day I was so sore I could hardly drive. I was tired as hell too. I got home and eased myself up on the couch. Soda came bounding into the room.

"Dinner is in the oven!" He told me.

"It's normal right?" You just never new with Soda.

"Yeah it's chicken. You really can't do much to that."

Soda studied me for a second. "Are you okay?"

"Yup just sore." I replied. He climbed up on the couch and sat on me.

"Here. I can help." He began to message my back. I felt all the knots loosen and the tense muscles relax. Thank God for this kid. I was nearly asleep when something caught my eye an envelope with me name on. It was hand written and didn't have a stamp on it so it wasn't from the mail.

"Hey Soda, what's that?" I asked.

Soda stopped massaging my back so he could grab the envelope and handed it to me. "I don't know Pony brought it home."

I read it. Pony refused to do his vocabulary homework for some book they were reading. Now this is something I didn't want to deal with. He was s smart kid and knew better. There was another thing about language he was using as well.

"Ponyboy get out here now!" I screamed.

"Explain to me why you won't do you vocabulary."

Pony rolled his eyes. I sat up. "I don't want attitude."

"It's stupid Darry. I've read the book and I know what all those words mean. I moron would know. If I understand what's the point in doing them."

"If you understand them then it shouldn't take you long to do them. I expect an A in Literature then."

"Well you'll get one I've had an A all year."

"What is this about language? What did you say?" I felt bad I was losing my temper. I really didn't mean to but I was tired and sore and this is something I needed or wanted to deal with.

Pony looked down at his shoes.

"I can't hear you!" I said. Pony still didn't say anything. I was starting to really lose my patients. "Ponyboy your teacher thought it would be better if I heard the story from you but if I have to call her to get it's going to be ten times worse on your part. You have until the count of three to start explaining.

"Some girl wouldn't leave me alone. I got mad. I told her to leave me alone."

I raised my eyebrows. "I see and so your teacher sent me a note home just because you said leave me alone?"

Pony shook his head. "Not exactly. I sort of told her, the way Dallas says. To fuck off and leave me the fuck alone. She wouldn't get away when I asked her nicely. I didn't think the teacher would hear me."

I saw Soda smirk a bit. I leaned forward and grabbed Pony by the wrists pulling him toward me. I looked him square in the eye. "Pony the state makes it very clear you guys can't get into trouble at school, with the cops or anywhere else. This isn't staying out of trouble. You had to of known the teacher would hear you kid. You need to get your act together! This is something you know better that to do and to say. You never say that word in front of people especially in front of girls!"

"You say it!" Pony shot back.

"I'm older than you." I replied.

"That's hypocritical you can't tell me not to do something and then turn around and do it!"

Wow, I guess he did know his vocabulary words. "Ponyboy when you are an adult you can say anything you want but right now you are a kid. And as long as I'm in charge you aren't acting or saying anything in that manner!" I shouted.

"Fine!"

I pointed to the bathroom. "You had to know it was coming. You brought it on yourself."

I placed a hand in the center in his back and guided him in there. Great I was dishing out my first punishment. I wasn't sure how I felt. I mean it was one thing babysitting them but this was real. I felt like I was taking my parents place and I shouldn't be doing that. If this were a couple of days ago, Dad would be dealing with this or Mom. I probably would have been out doing something with the guys or at training. I opened a new soap and handed to Pony. He swiped some on his tongue and closed his mouth making a sour face. I counted out loud to thirteen.

"Spit." I said.

He started spitting the soap out.

"Keep your mouth out of the gutter. Just because Dally or anyone else says something doesn't mean you repeat it." I told him firmly.

"Alright."

"Here this might be of some help." Soda walked in and handed Pony a glass of water. He messed up Pony's hair. "Now's as good as a time to tell him than any."

I looked down at Pony. "What is there more to the story? What else did you say or do." I sat back on the bathtub.

"Well, nothing but there was a reason I was mean to that girl, Leslie." Pony said.

"And why was that?"

"She was saying things about Mom and Dad about why they died."

My stomach gave a violent jolt. I closed my eyes for a second. "What did she say?"

"Well we just wanted your opinion on it." Pony started digging his shoe in the floor. Soda to was looking down but from my angle I got a good glimpse of their faces and knew something had to be up.

"Boys, what's going on?"

Soda tapped Pony on the shoulder as to tell him to go on.

"See Leslie kept going on and on about how God takes people away because it's punishment for the people who left behind. Our parents got taken away because we were bad. It makes sense because Two-Bit drinks and steals and his sisters a real brat and there Dad left them. Steve." Pony paused and looked up at Soda. "Steve does all those crazy things. Dally's Mom dies and well he does lots of bad things. Shepherds they do too. We were wondering if you think it was our fault if Mama and Dad died because we do a lot of bad things." Pony was trying hard not to cry.

Suddenly I was happy he told the girl off. I took a breath "Come here."

Soda sat down next to me. I turned toward him and extended an arm to Pony. I wrapped my arm around him and placed him on my knee. They were both looking at me for the reason why our parents died and I had no clue, what to tell them.

"Look guys. Sometimes things happen. That girl had no right to say that to you maybe that's what she believes. You went to church with Mom. Pony what did you learn about death?" I hoped he had the answer.

"Things happen to people for a reason not to be punished, in the end everything is okay." He replied.

"Well there you go. Unless you two are sneaking out at night fighting, drinking and stealing hub caps." I tickled Pony. "You doing any of that stuff? Hold up any gas stations lately?"

Pony laughed. "No"

"Good, you better not plan on it either I'll murder you."

"She had no right to say that to him." Soda said.

"I know. Little buddy but we got a conference with his teacher tomorrow so we'll bring it up then."

You meet in the parking lot. Got that." I told Pony

"Yup." He replied.