Sorry! School is killing me! Until the second week of June, my updates will, unfortunately, be infrequent.

Soda's POV

I woke up the next morning with a groan. Thank god it was Saturday; I could sleep in! Suddenly, I felt Pony shift next to me, and last night's events hit me like a train.

The Socs had jumped Pony and Johnny. Johnny almost got another beating. PONY ALMOST DROWNED.

Pony woke up and stretched. "Morning, Pony", I said softly, tousling his hair as he rubbed sleep from his eyes.

"Hey, Soda", he croaked. He smirked at me as he asked, "I don't know if I apologized for scaring the shit out of you." I rolled my eyes, "You DID. Before you went to sleep, remember?"

Pony shook his head, "No not from the jumping. The other thing…" He hesitated and I realized what he was talking about.

The reason Pony hadn't been safely home last night was because Darry had hit him. Damn it.

I took a deep breath to steady my anger. "Again, not your fault, Pon. I'm going to the bathroom, okay?" He nodded as I slipped out of bed and strode down the hallway into the living room.

Johnny was sitting up on the couch watching Mickey Mouse when I came in, saying, "Hey, Johnnycakes!" Johnny jumped slightly, but smiled when he saw me, "Hi, Soda. Is Pony okay?"

I smirked, "He's awake in his room if you wanna talk to him." Johnny nodded and walked in the direction I had just come from.

"Soda", Darry called, and I dashed into the kitchen. He was making breakfast, looking stressed and worn out. "Morning", I replied coolly. I decided to just forgive Darry; he was my brother, and had been just as angry and upset as me when we found those Socs hurting Pony.

"How is Pony doing?" Dar asked carefully as he scrambled my eggs. "He's just a little shook up", I assured him, "Like anyone else who was nearly murdered would be."

Darry shivered and sighed, "I'm worried about him and Johnny. Maybe I oughta take off today..." I shook my head, "I won't let them outta my sight, Dar. We can't afford for you to stay home, and Steve, Dally, Two-Bit, and I should be plenty to protect those two."

"Protect who from what?" I swung around and grimaced when I saw Steve and Two-Bit walk in the back door. Johnny and Pony came in from the living room and both smiled at the new arrivals.

"Hey, Pony, Johnnycakes" Two-Bit fist-pumped them both as they both mumbled good morning. Johnny and Pony still looked pale and shaken, so Darry came up and wrapped an arm around Pony, who smiled gratefully at our big brother. I wrapped an arm around Johnny and sighed, turning to a very confused Steve and Two-Bit, saying, "We got problems, guys…"

SORRY! REVIEWS= FASTER UPDATE! I PROMISE! STAY GOLD!