I love this story! I wrote this the second I finished with the first chapter, but I have to wait for 5 reviews:(

BTW: someone PLEASE tell me what "oc" means. I don't know if its good or bad! ugh!

I do not own.

Dally POV(come to except it)

"Hey Pony?" Pony was staying with me tonight. One of my brothers always stayed over night to protect me. They treated me differently then they treated each other, like I was fragile or something. I didn't think I liked it.

"Uh. Yeah Dal?" Pony was shy around me. I had seen him with Soda and he sure could talk up a storm. I liked hearing him talk. He was fragile, treated kinda like me. But he had see tough times and I hadn't.

"Can you tell me about Johnny? I want to...I want to know him. Even if I can't remember him."

"Uh. Sure Dal. Let's see..Uh, Johnny was my best friend. You loved him more than anything else. You thought that no one else understood you except Johnny. I don't think you ever liked me. Or any of us. You wouldn't show...Anyway, I remember the time that Johnny got jumped. That's the only time I ever saw you show any emotion. You were practically hysterical. Darry punched you to knock you out. He was real sorry about it afterwards."

I laughed, and he gave me a strange look. "Why would I be sad that Johnny jumped? Unless he jumped off of something really high and had an accident." I felt my eyes go wide, and tears brimmed in the corners of my eyes. "Is that what happened? Did Johnny get hurt when he jumped? Is that how he died?"

Tears spilled out of my eyes and I began to sob, envisioning a kid screaming as he hit his head on the asphalt of a playground. I don't know where I got these images, but I seemed to remember all the little useless stuff.

Pony walked over to me. He sat next to me on the bed as I cried. He began speaking in an almost nonsensical voice. "When Johnny was here, we used to look at stars together. We started when I was nine and he was eleven. I asked him what he thought stars were, and he said stars were like our sun, only really really far away. And that got me thinkin'. How do we know that there isn't a star out there just like our sun? And an earth out there just like our earth. 'Cept maybe that earth doesn't suck. Maybe it's peaceful and everyone has a mom and a dad and two siblings like Darry and Soda."

I had stopped crying but I was still sniffling.

"But then I thought about all the books I've read where someone tries to make a perfect society. And then I'm grateful that I live on this earth where everyone is different and everyone has a different story to tell. Because maybe theres another person, just like me, on that planet that just wants to have what I have."

"The grass is always greener." I mumbled, wondering what the words meant. I fell asleep to Pony's soft words and images of the other planet, just like ours.

Darry POV

I'm surprised at how ok Pony is with the whole situation. Hell, I'm surprised how ok I am. I wonder if Johnny would be angry at us if he knew we weren't too sad.

Don't get me wrong, we all missed him. Everyone of us loved the kid. But I think we kinda have him. Dally acts more and more like Johnny everyday. Him and Pony are becoming close, and it doesn't bother me because I think Pony could honestly hurt Dally more than Dal could hurt him.

Everyday Dal learned something new. He was never frustrated or angry anymore. I felt bad for thinking it, but I liked Dal better this way. At least he didn't know about Johnny.

He was given a new chance. He could go to school, do well in it, live a normal life and not be know as "Dallas Winston- dirty hood."

I just wanted to keep him as innocent as possible. I loved this Dally. I looked forward to talking with him after my shift and I loved seeing the wonder on his face when he learned something so simple.

I could astound him with anything. I smiled broadly as I walked through the hospital doors for the last time, to bring Dally home.

He couldn't very well live at Buck's or in the lot anymore- he had the mental capacity of a two year old. He wasn't stupid, just ignorant. The doctor assured us that he would learn just as fast as a real kid would.

Dal was standing, grinning broadly when I entered the hospital room. He looked nervous and excited as he bounced up and down, comically tall for how he was acting.

I laughed and flung my arm around him. "Ready to go home?" I asked and he nodded eagerly.

"Ok. Let's go. My car is the blue pick-up truck." He nodded, then hesitated. I smiled reassuringly at him. I thinks sometimes he worries that he's being annoying when he asks questions. "Go ahead Dally." I said patiently.

"Darry," He always says my name slowly like he wants to savor it. He does the same with Soda. "What's a pick-up truck?"

Dally POV

As we drove in the pick-up truck, I looked out the window. I had only ever looked at the hospital parking lot, and I was amazed by the view.

This city-my city-was unorganized and laid out in a sprawling expanse that seemed to never end. Ever couple of minutes I would ask Darry to slow down as I looked in depth at something I had never looked at before.

I don't think Darry minded. He was a good brother. So were Soda and Pony. I hadn't really met Steve and Two-Bit, but I'm positive they'll be equally good.

Darry laughs around me. I've seen Pony and Soda give him strange looks when he does. I asked Soda about it once and he told me that since their mom and dad had died, Darry didn't laugh much. This made me sad. He looks much younger when he laughs.

I gasped out loud when I saw an arrow in the sky. "Darry, what's that arrow pointing at?"

He gave me a chuckle when he spotted what I was pointing at. "Those are geese Dal. They go down south when it's cold up north and they go north when it's warm over there."

"I think I'm gonna do that when I'm grown up. I don't like the cold." It was starting to chill in Tulsa, although they hadn't seen the worst of the winter yet.

Darry gave Dally a strange look. "Dally, you are grown up. Your almost 18. When you are, you'll become an adult."

I gasped. "Darry, how old are you then?"

"20."

"But your not grown-up yet!"

"What do ya mean Dal? Of course I am!"

"No. You laugh and you play games with me."

"Grown-ups can do those things to."

I shook my head, trying to be patient with Darry like he always was to me. "It's not the same." He cracked-up at my tone, which one would use if explaining 1+1=2.

Then something caught my eye. A kid, no older than I was with greased, shoulder length hair, was walking, hands in his pockets next to a car.

The car was full of kids who were yelling at the greaser. I passed it off for a minute, figuring it they were yelling they must be friends. Then I heard the greaser yell, "Shut up!" and I realized that he didn't like whatever they were saying to him.

"Darry! We have to help that poor kid!" Darry gave me a strange look, but he pulled up next to the Socs car anyway, which had slowed to the boys walking pace.

"Bob!" Darry shouted at the man driving the car. "Knock it off! What'd the kid do to you huh?"

"Darrel, if you want a fight, I'll give you one, but if you don't want your ass beat, I suggest you drive on."

"Hey!" I shouted in indignation. I had never shouted before, and I shrank away from my own voice, whimpering slightly.

"Thought you'd be dead by now Winston. Too bad you aren't. Would have got rid of some of our problem." I felt tears sting behind my eyes. I let them loose, not knowing that it wasn't a tough thing to do.

The Socs began pretending to cry and laughing. They called me "greaser." Somehow I didn't mid when Soda or Darry called me this, but when the Soc called me greaser, I began to cry harder.

Darry pulled away from the howls of laughter and mock crying. I couldn't stop the choking sounds that were emitting from my throat. I hardly noticed when we arrived at the Curtis' house.

Darry opened my door for me and help me out of the car. I was crying so hard I couldn't even see straight. "Why were they so mean?" I sobbed into Darry's shoulder as he hugged he a little too roughly.

"I'm sorry Dally. People can be really mean sometimes. You're never gonna get hurt as long as one of us is with you.

Darry's POV

"You promise?" Dally asked innocently, sniffling.

I looked down at his wide, innocent blue eyes. The ice had completely melted and the rare fire had been extinguished. Now I knew what power could fuel both fire and ice-memories.

I had a sick feeling in my stomach. How could I promise this kid anything? But I gritted my teeth and smiled at him widely. "Would I lie to you?" God I hoped I wouldn't have to lie to him.