Every month Steve and me get one Saturday off early and surprisingly today wasn't very busy so we closed up at around 1:45. "Soda what's wrong?" Steve asks behind me locking the main door. "It's Pony, I know something else is wrong with him, I just don't know what." Steve lets out a frustrated sigh and I try to ignore it. "He's probably just worked up over getting jumped." He mumbles walk past me to his waiting car. "I don't know man. The look in his eyes yesterday said something else. Something big." I follow behind Steve and jump into the passenger side and he gets behind the wheel.

"It's nothing Soda, maybe he's just scared." I know him a Pony don't get along very well but he is my little brother and something is very wrong with. Steve could at least act like he cared. "You could at least act like you care Steve." I nearly yell at him. I don't get mad at him or anyone very often but I'm worried about my kid brother. "Sorry Sodapop, I just don't think it's a big deal." He says. That's because you don't know him like I do. I bitterly think

Before I know it we're pulling up in front of my house. "You stayin' or going somewhere else?" Steve turns off the engine so I have my answer. We get out the car and walk into an empty living room. I wonder where Pony and Johnny are they were both asleep when we left this morning. I wander to the kitchen but turn to go to the bedroom I share with my little brother. I quietly open the door and walk around the bed. Sitting on the floor Johnny is hugging Pony and whispering into his ear. I can see tear stains on his pale cheeks. I knew something was wrong with him!

I kneel down and place my hand on Johnny's shoulder, like expected he flinches and pulls back from Pony still looking at me. I sit Indian style in front of both boys resting the back of my hand on my baby brother's face. He leans into for a second but pulls away and I drop my hand to my lap. "What's goin' on? Ponyboy what's wrong?" I look between him and Johnny I know Johnny knows what's going on. If Pony doesn't talk to me he talks to Johnny. "You can tell me baby, what happened?" He keeps quiet and bows his head. I know if you push him for information too much he'll clam up so I move to Johnny, even though the same is true for him too.

"Johnny what happened?" Now I was starting to get nervous, the only person who could really get info out of Johnny was Dally. And I'm no Dallas Winston. "Please tell me." The quick look Pony gives him isn't lost on me. "Johnny no." He whispers. "Ponyboy if something happened to you I want to know." I begged lifting his chin with my hand. "I wanna wait." He tells me now I'm confused. "I wanna wait for Darry to come home." He clarifies. It must be big if he wants to wait until four o'clock to tell me what happened. I don't want to but I agree. "We'll wait." He nods. "Do you want to come to the living room?" he shakes his auburn head no. "Want something to eat?" I ask hoping he'll show some sign of being okay. Yet he shakes his head no again. "Want to be alone with Johnny?" he nods his head.

So I get up to leave but I look at Johnny and He gives me those sad puppy-dog eyes. I give him a small smile and leave the room. God I hope and pray he'll be okay, I don't want to lose my baby bro.

Steve is still sitting on the couch but instead of watching the TV his brown eyes are on me. "What's up buddy?" I plop down next to him. Putting my feet up on the coffee table. He takes notice of my less than cheery mood. He may not be close to Pony but he'll do anything for me. Like I would for him. "The kid okay?" I nod my head then shrug my shoulders staring at a blank spot on the wall. "Well, what'd say?" Maybe I'm mistaken but I hear some concern in his voice. "He said he 'wanted to wait for Darry to get home until he said anything' I don't understand why."

"Johnny back there too?" I nod my head again. "Ya think he knows what the problem is?"

"I know he knows." Today Darry gets off at four and it takes about thirty minutes to get from the house he's working at our house. That's in good traffic but rush hour is around that time. So now I have to wait until maybe five o'clock to find out this mystery. "What time is it?" Steve checks his watch. "Two o'five" he answers. I get up and go to use the kitchen Phone and dial Dare's work number.

"Hello, Antonio's roofing. Gloria speaking how may I help you?" Her voice was so kind and sweet it made me want to cheer up but then I remembered why I was calling. "Um… yes I need to talk to Darrel Curtis please?"

"May I ask who is calling?" I would have guessed a woman with a voice like hers was a receptionist or a teacher. "This is his brother: Sodapop. I just need to talk to him right quick."

"Just a second." I hear shuffling and soon Darry picks up the phone.

"Hello" Darry's voice was so gruff but it fit him and his personality. "Darry" my voice sounds so weak. "Soda what's wrong?"

"You get off work at four right?" I feel nervous again I don't know why.

"Yeah, you know that. What's goin' on?"

I know better than to draw out this conversation especially since he's at work. "Y-yeah I know. Uh… Pony was kinda messed up, ya know crying and holdin' onto Johnny and stuff."

I take a pause and Darry starts askin' questions. "What was wrong with him? Did he say?"

I shook my head then realized he can't see me. "No, he said he wanted to wait until you got home and I figured it must be big because the way he was actin' and stuff. I have a feeling Johnny knows but Pony basically begged him not to tell." I say in one breath. "Okay Soda calm down." I barely hear him and start talking again. "You get off at four and since that's rush hour I figured you'd be home even later and I-we need to know what's wrong with him because I'm really worried." I finish saying. Damn, I'm close to tears.

"Okay soda calm down. I'll ask my boss to tell me off a bit early. I'm I have a bunch of sick days so I'm he won't mind. And I'll be home as quick as possible."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

"Bye Darry" I get ready to hang up. "Soda, Pony'll be okay. He's a tuff kid."

"Yeah he is." I agree

"Bye" Then we hang up. The clock in the kitchen reads two-thirty. He should be home in about three o'clock. I go sit back on the couch and Steve and me silently watch TV for the next thirty minutes.

At exactly 3:05 Darry, Dallas, and Two-bit walked through the front door. "Hey guys" Two-bit greeted wearing his favorite Mickey Mouse shirt and leather jacket. "Hey" We replied "Well aren't you two a happy pair." I smiled two-bit could make you do that.

"Johnny still with him?" Darry asked dropping his keys on the coffee table. I nodded and stood up.

Anybody's POV

The two brothers walked down the hall still trying to figure what could've upset Ponyboy so much. They found Johnny and Pony in the same spot. Except this time they just looking through the window. Johnny had his arm draped across his best friend's shoulders and Pony had his head on the older boy's shoulder. "Ponyboy" Darry's deep voice startled both boys. Without being asked Johnny got up and left the three brothers alone.

Once again the young boy brought his knees up to his chest. Darrel sat to his right and Sodapop to his left. "Honey what's going on?" Darry rarely called his baby brother this but now he needed all the love he could get.

'I already told Johnny and I new this was coming. I can't put it off any more, I accepted Johnny's help and he doesn't hate me. He's helped me so much. I owe this to Johnny, to my brothers, but most importantly, I owe it to myself."

He takes a deep breath and takes a look at both of his brothers and took another deep breath before continuing. "That's it Pony just take your time." Soda coaxed. "A-after p-practice …" 'I can do this. I know I can. I just thought I was all cried out.' I start again. "After practice some socs… r-raped me." I exhaled a breath I didn't know I was holding and felt like a weight had been lifted off my chest. "Oh god Pony." Soda gasped. The sixteen-year wrapped his arms around his baby brother. Pressing his face against his brother's. Ponyboy's hand found Darrel's and soon all three brothers were embraced in a hug. The two older Curtis' were speaking softly to the youngest greaser. 'Why did it have to hurt so much? Why did they do this to me? What did I do to deserve this? I'm the best runner at school yet outrunning six drunken socs was too much of a challenge. This doesn't make any sense whatsoever. I needed their help and I got it but what now? What happens now, do the nightmares go away, does the pain go away does the pain go away? Will everything be okay like they keep telling me? Now I need answers."

I want to thank everybody who took the time to read and review my story. I really do appreciate that and it makes me want to write so much more. So thank you all. This chapter is continued as chapter six but we are still with the brothers in the room.