I'm sssssooooooooooo sorry that I haven't updated this story in forever. If anyone cares, my Fall Semester is over and I have straight A's (Including a 98 in Honors World Literature, sorry I just had to brag on myself). This has been my favorite chapter to write so far, and this story, along with my other stories, will be updated. Shoot, I may even write a few One-Shots, depending on my mood.

So without further ado, here is chapter 3. See you on the flip side! (And I don't own anything! Y'all should know that by now!"

Chapter 3: A Very Darry Day (Pony POV)

Somehow, I woke up with a coughing fit. I thought I gasped too quickly from a dream or something and that started it. Well, whatever. I looked on the clock and it told me that it was quarter to seven (that's A.M.). Obviously no one else was up yet, so I threw a t-shirt on and put the remainder of my clothes away. By the time I was finished with that, I heard the refrigerator door open, so someone had to be up. Either that or a thief was hungry. I threw on a pair of flip-flops and descended the staircase.

"Morning Pony," Soda called, his head completely covered by the door to the fridge.

"Hey Sodapop. I'll make breakfast, okay? What do you want?" I asked him back, trying through my tired brain to become acquainted with the kitchen.

"Oh, the usual, my fun little short-order cook!" Soda was obviously the same spunky person he always was.

"Soda, I know you're a shining star in a dreary world, but do you have to shine so bright in the mornings?" I asked him, feeling a little grumpy and wishing I had gotten more sleep.

"Bah Humbug, Pony. Oh and by the way, Steve likes just scrambled eggs and chocolate cake," Soda told me. He got the cake from out of the breadbox while I started making eggs in the skillet.

"Hey, Soda, what happened to Two-Bit?" Thoughts of my old friend had stumped me this morning.

"He and his sister went to live in an aunt's house in Chicago. He wanted his sister to grow up away from Tulsa gangs, but he soon found out there are gangs everywhere. Thankfully it's not in the heart of Chicago."

"Awesome," I replied lamely. Two-Bit and Evelyn deserved as much, but it made me kinda sad to think that I could have known that if I kept in touch. I put Soda's eggs on the plate and added some jelly while Steve busted in, grabbing the skillet and spatula from my hands and eating the scalding eggs straight from the pan.

"So when is Darry getting here?" I continued.

"Well, he was supposed to leave yesterday afternoon, so about an hour." Soda informed me. The three of us ate in silence while the minutes ticked away. Finally I decided to go take a shower.

Darry POV (I know, I'm changing point of view. Yay!!!)

I was pretty excited about this vacation. My rear-end was getting very sore, mind you, but it was worth it. Following their directions precisely, I showed up sooner than I expected at Steve and Soda's. Unexpectedly, there was another car out front of their house. Maybe a friend stopped by I thought. I parked on the street in front of their house. I grabbed my things then proceeded to knock on the door.

"It's open!" Someone said from inside. I walked in to see Steve and Soda chasing each other with the dish towels.

"Some things never change," I mumbled to myself. Soda and Steve chuckled. Knuckleheads.

"So, whose car is that outside?"

"Hold that thought!" Soda nearly yelled at me. There was a clanking of pipes coming from the next room followed by feet going up the stairs… (A/N: Sorry this POV was short, but this is a Ponyboy story)

Pony POV

I still had soap in my hair. Then the bathroom door opened just as the shower water turned off.

"What the…?" I started, but Sodapop interrupted me.

"Ha ha Ponyboy I turned the water off!" Soda yelled. I hopped out of the shower, wrapped myself in a towel, and proceeded to chase my brother down the stairs.

"Sodapop Patrick Curtis, I'm going to kill you!" I screamed, running down the stairs and hitting a wall. Wait a second, there wasn't a wall there. I looked up, and found the wall laughing at me. Darry had joined our little party.

"Hey Darry!" I said nonchalantly, like I didn't just run into my oldest brother wearing only a towel. Of course my strong brother reached down with one arm and picked me up off the ground. In the other arm he crushed me into a big hug.

"Hey Pone. How're you? Shouldn't you still be in New York?" Darry said, his eyes bearing straight into my forehead as if trying to read my mind (it wasn't anything unusual."

"I'm good. It's Summer Break, so I don't have to be at school right now. It was a complete accident that I showed up here. I'm sure Steve and Soda could tell you about it after they turn the water back on!" I yelled the last words in the direction that I had last heard snickering. There was another sound of clanking pipes, so I went to the kitchen sink, grabbed the rinsing hose, and washed the rest of the soap out of my hair. When I finished, I spotted Darry in the hallway, still staring at me with a half-amused smirk on his face.

"Hold your thoughts," I told him quickly as I dashed up the stairs to get dressed. I picked out a pair of jeans and a dark purple t-shirt. I combed back my hair, massaged some grease into it, and joined the rest of the household in the sitting room. Steve and Soda had deemed the living room a safe-zone again, so they were lounging in two different chairs while Darry was sitting on the couch.

"That is a really weird story," Darry agreed. I guessed that Soda and Steve had just finished telling him the tale of my arrival while I was getting dressed. I pulled out a cigarette, lit up, and found myself a spot on the wall to lean on.

"So you're still smoking, Pony?" Darry asked disapprovingly, a frown on his face. I grinned a reply to him.

"Long and strong, Dar. Have you found a girl yet?" I retorted.

"I've dated around some, but nothing's stuck yet." He shrugged his shoulders.

"How about you guys?" I asked, turning to Steve and Sodapop.

"I've got a nice girl, her name's Alice," Steve said. Soda remained silent, and I instantly felt guilty about asking. I decided to change the subject.

"So Darry, how's…" I was about to ask him how his work was going, but I was interrupted by a small, albeit familiar voice.

"Sandy called," Soda said quietly. My jaw dropped, and when I looked over, Darry's mouth was hanging open too. But unlike me and my uncontrollable facial muscles, Darry's mouth closed and a scowl replaced it.

"And what did that tramp want?" Darry growled slow and deliberately through his teeth.

Soda's eyebrows knitted together, and he slouched in his seat some, almost like he was protecting himself. "She called to say hello," Sodapop said, but under the hard look he was getting from Darry, he said more. "Her grandmother died, and she was left a house. She wanted me to move in."

If my jaw could have dropped any lower, then it did by about five minutes. I don't think I was capable of any speech. The silence that filled the cramped room was so thick that it was suffocating.

"And?" Darry said finally, "What did you say?"

Ooh, a cliff-hanger. Aren't I full of surprises? I love getting reviews, so please don't hesitate to. Hey I just found out that some people don't like OOC, but I kinda like it as long as it's believable. So I'll go ahead and warn you that my characters will be on the OOC side.

I love you all!!! See you next chapter!