I posted a new chapter just yesterday, but surprise- I have yet another update ready! There will be two chapters after this one.

(Darry's POV)

Two days after the rumble, the medical staff encouraged Pony to try moving around a little bit since his stab wound and everything else was healing properly. It was just me and Soda with him, which was probably for the best; the guys would probably make him nervous or give him a hard time.

At first, Ponyboy was really optimistic, but he quickly realized how much his body had gone through. He needed help to get his legs to hang off the edge of the bed, and as soon as he put weight on his feet, his legs collapsed beneath him. Luckily, Soda and I were both quick enough to catch him before he fell to the ground. He yelped in pain from us grabbing him, but I figured a little pain in his upper body was better than his head meeting the floor.

"I'm never gonna get out of here," Pony muttered with a sigh as Soda and I got him to straighten up. We both had an arm around Pony's back and one of his arms across our shoulders so he stayed upright. "Can't even stand up on my own."

"This is completely normal," Dr. Olson said as he scribbled something down on a clipboard. "You have been bedridden for a while with very serious injuries. It will take a while before you have your strength and coordination back."

"How long?" Ponyboy asked.

"It could days, or weeks, maybe even longer," Dr. Olson said simply.

Pony groaned. "Ain't running track soon." Then his head snapped towards me. "School… have to make up-"

"Don't worry about it, Pone. We got it all taken care of," I said before he could keep too worked up. Even though he was healing fine, we were careful about keeping him calm. "I've talked with your school. Once you're ready, you can do some homework and take a couple tests to see where you're at."

I had called his school when it was obvious that Ponyboy would miss a few days, but after he had woken up the first time after being in the hospital for two weeks, I talked to Ponyboy's principal and teachers to try and figure something out with his schoolwork. Luckily, his teachers all loved him, and they said he could do his homework and exams once he was feeling better. Since it was the end of the year, I was nervous that he'd be held back, but his teachers reassured me that his grades were good enough that even if he couldn't take his finals when everyone else did, they'd work something out so he could continue with his class. I hoped for Pony's sake that he could get back to school before summer, but if he had to do schoolwork during the summer from needing more time to recover, then that's what he'd do.

Ponyboy nodded his head, then he closed his eyes. "Need to sit." Soda and I gently lowered him down so he could sit on the edge of his bed. Once sitting, he opened his eyes again and stared angrily at the floor.

"I think that's enough for today," Dr. Olson said.

Pony's head snapped up. "But I didn't even stand."

Dr. Olson nodded knowingly. "You managed to get up for a short period of time. That is an improvement; you're making progress."

Ponyboy let out an irritated breath. "Doesn't seem like it," he mumbled.

Soda and I shared a glance before he maneuvered his arm so it rested across Pony's shoulders. "You're gettin' better every day, honey. You're talkin' better, and your memory's gettin' better."

It was true; as the days went by, Ponyboy seemed to be able to remember more and it didn't seem to take so much concentration to think or speak as it did when he first woke up. He could even use longer sentences when he was talking, which gave me some relief. I was proud of my kid brother, and I hoped that he continued to make progress.

"Guess you're right," Pony said. "Just wanna go home."

Dr. Olson perked up a little at that. "Tell you what, Ponyboy… as soon as I think you can stand and walk a little, we'll discuss you being discharged from the hospital."

Ponyboy and Soda seemed excited by that, but I was a little more skeptical. "We're not moving too fast, are we?" I asked.

"Oh come on Darry," Soda said, half irritated and half joking. "He's a doctor, let's listen to him."

Dr. Olson grinned and looked at me. "I understand your concern, but Ponyboy's making great progress, and if we have a goal set, I believe it might help us speed up the healing process." Then he smiled at Pony. "I believe that once you are home, you'll make huge strides in your recovery. You just have to convince me that you can walk around your house. Deal?"

Ponyboy gave Dr. Olson a small smile. "Deal."

Over the next several days, the guys and Cassie continued to make sure someone was with Ponyboy while Soda and I had to work. During that time, Pony worked on sitting and standing with whoever was there with him, and once he mastered those, he worked on walking, but only when Soda or I were with him. It took him two days before he could stand without Soda or me supporting him, and the following day, he took two steps on his own before he started tilting to the side and I had to catch him before he fell.

"Excellent, Ponyboy. You're doing great," Dr. Olson said as I eased Ponyboy into a sitting position on the bed. "I think that's it for today."

"I wanna try again," Pony said, about to push himself up with his arms.

"Give yourself a minute, kiddo," I said as I pushed down on his shoulders, nonverbally telling him to stay put.

Soda sat next to him and gently ruffled his hair. "You did a good job, honey. Take a break."

Ponyboy ignored us and looked up at Dr. Olson. "I can do better. I wanna try again."

"We can try again tomorrow," Dr. Olson said calmly but sternly. He wrote on his clipboard and wished us a good night before leaving the room.

Once the doctor was gone, Pony allowed his body to relax a bit. He shifted a little, which caused him to wince, then he put an arm around his abdomen. Although I was sure he didn't do it on purpose or think about it, Soda and I both noticed the obvious sign of our brother being in pain.

"You okay, Pony?" Soda asked immediately.

"I'm fine," Ponyboy muttered. "This is takin' forever. I wanna go home."

Soda wrapped his arm around Pony and gave him a squeeze. "You're doin' great, honey. Just a little more rest and you'll be outta here in no time!"

Ponyboy nodded, but he didn't seem convinced. "Yeah, alright."

A few days later, I was stuck working on a roof while I knew Soda and the guys were all at the hospital to visit Ponyboy since it was a Saturday and everyone else had the day off. I was exhausted, and the three weeks of going between work and the hospital with very limited sleep was taking a toll on me. During my lunch break, I sat down in the shade and leaned against the trunk of a tree.

"Curtis?" I heard my coworker Josh ask. When I opened my eyes, I saw him staring down at me with a look of concern on his face. "You alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said lazily.

"How's your brother?" Josh asked carefully.

Besides Josh, only my boss knew about what happened to Ponyboy. I tried not to let everyone know my business, especially not my financial struggles. My boss, Mr. Johnson, knew about everything, including why I always picked up extra jobs. Josh knew I had custody of my brothers, but nothing about my finances. When I returned to work after Ponyboy was admitted to the hospital, he asked where I was, and I told him the truth. Since then, he had been asking for updates.

I took a breath. Even though my brothers were always on my mind, I had been attempting to focus on work rather than continue to think about what happened to Ponyboy and how close we came to losing him. "He's getting better. Doc said he can come home when he can walk on his own. He took a couple steps on Wednesday, so hopefully he'll be home soon."

"That's good to hear," Josh said with a small smile.

After lunch, we went back to work on the roof. Mr. Johnson was on the jobsite, which only added to my ever-increasing stress. I tried to focus on the task at hand, but between Ponyboy, the hospital bills, and my boss being nearby, it proved to be difficult. Unfortunately, trying to focus didn't work, because the hammer I was using slammed down onto my other hand. I must've made a sound or something, because as I was holding my injured hand and gritting my teeth, Josh looked over at me.

"You alright, Darry?"

I nodded, but didn't say anything.

"Curtis? You okay up there?" I heard Mr. Johnson yell from the ground nearby.

"Yes sir," I said automatically. I didn't bother to look for him, instead, I looked down at the roof I was on.

There was a pause, then I heard Mr. Johnson's voice again. "Come down here, Curtis."

I followed my boss's instruction and made my way to the grass in front of the house we were working on. I tried to act like nothing happened, but the throbbing in my hand was hard to ignore.

"Are you okay, Darry?" Mr. Johnson asked, motioning towards my aching hand.

"I'll be fine sir," I replied.

He didn't seem to believe me. "Get some ice on that, and take the rest of the day off."

"But sir-"

"You'll still get a full day's worth of pay," Mr. Johnson assured me. He softened a bit and spoke a little quieter. "Take care of yourself, Darry. I know you have a lot on your plate right now, so take the rest of the day off. I don't want to see you again until Monday."

Part of me wanted to tell Mr. Johnson that I was fine and that I could go back to work, but the other part of me knew I shoulder deal with my injured hand and use the rest of my Saturday to be with my brothers. After a short internal debate, I accepted Mr. Johnson's offer to leave early. I went home, put some ice on my hand before wrapping a bandage around it, and left to go to the hospital.

When I got to Pony's room, the gang was playing one big game of poker, using Pony's bed as a table. They all looked like they were enjoying themselves, and it was good to see Pony sitting up and smiling instead of being frustrated or in pain.

"Hey Dar, done with work already?" Soda asked, spotting me moments after I arrived.

"Yeah, my boss let us go home early," I said, not wanting to explain what really happened. Unfortunately, Ponyboy must've noticed the bandage on my hand.

"You okay, Darry?" Pony asked worriedly. "What happened to your hand?"

"I knew you didn't leave that rumble without a scratch!" Two-Bit exclaimed. "You're a good fighter and all Darry, but nobody leaves a rumble without something smartin'."

"Actually, this isn't from the rumble," I said, lifting my hand up to show all of them. There was no reason to try and hide it since Pony already pointed out my injury.

"Not sure I believe you," Two-Bit said with a wild look on his face.

"I don't think he cares," Steve muttered, earning laughter from the rest of the gang.

Luckily, the attention was taken off my hand and back on the poker game, which I joined for a few hands. After a while, the doctor arrived to see Pony's progress, so I told the guys to go get food since the room was getting crowded. Truthfully, I figured Ponyboy didn't want the others to be there in case he got frustrated or struggled.

With only Soda, Dr. Olson, and myself in the room, Ponyboy got out of bed and stood up on his own.

"Okay Ponyboy, let's see how you're doing today," Dr. Olson said. "There's a painting on the wall across this room. If you can make it to that painting and back, you can go home.

Pony was astounded. "Really?" Dr. Olson nodded. After glancing at Soda, then at me, Pony looked down at his feet as he took a step.

Soda and I walked with Ponyboy as he slowly kept taking steps. With every step, my heart rate got faster and faster. Is he going to make it? Will he finally be able to come home?

Slowly but surely, Pony put one foot in front of the other. As soon as he stepped through the doorway and into the hall, I heard several voices start talking loudly.

"Ponyboy?"

"Hey Ponyboy!"

When Soda and I walked into the hallway, I turned to see the guys hanging out in front of the neighboring room. So much for getting food.

"Finally decided to get out of bed, kid?" Dally asked. His tone was harsh, but the grin on his face gave his true feelings away.

Pony turned his head a little to face the guys. "Just tryin' to remember how to walk."

"It's like riding a bike," Two-Bit said. He approached Ponyboy like he wanted to slap him on the shoulder, but he thought better of it, so he just stood there a couple feet away from my brother. "You'll remember just fine."

Steve took a step towards Pony, but he kept his distance. "Nice seeing you up and walkin' around kid."

Pony grinned, then he went back to focusing on what he was doing. He made it to the painting and he slowly turned around. Soda and I remained standing at his sides. "This mean I can go home?" Ponyboy asked nobody in particular.

"You have to make it back to your bed," Dr. Olson said. He was standing just inside the hospital room, and while he wrote notes on his clipboard, he was smiling. "You're halfway there."

Ponyboy took a deep breath and started walking back to the room.

"You got this Pony," I heard Johnny say as we walked through the doorway.

It took longer than I anticipated, but Ponyboy eventually made it to back to his bed. By the time he reached it, he looked exhausted; he practically collapsed onto the bed.

Soda and I immediately sat down next to him and supported his back to help him sit up. Meanwhile, the guys all reappeared in the doorway.

"What do ya say, doc? Can he go home?" Dally asked.

Please let him come home.

Dr. Olson looked at his clipboard, then he smiled at Ponyboy. "You can go home."

The guys must've been thrilled by the news, by they all started speaking loudly again.

"You did it," Soda said with a wide smile on his face as he carefully hugged our brother.

I ruffled Pony's hair. "We're so proud of you, kiddo."

Thank you to those who are still reading this story! Again, there will be two more chapters, then this story will finally be wrapped up!

Once again, thank you for the reviews, favorites, and follows!