The winter had seemed endless, and it had taken all of us some time to adjust to our new routine. Not long after Darry told me about taking the semester off, Soda informed us that he was also taking time off from school, permanently. He was dropping out. This did not go over particularly well with Darry – or Pony, either, for some reason. I, on the other hand, saw Soda's point. He hated school, he wasn't doing well enough to pass the eleventh grade, and he could work full-time at the DX, doing what he liked to do and helping us out with money at the same time. Darry resisted but eventually gave in, and I think he warmed up to the idea when he saw how much happier Soda was at work instead of school. At first he was worried that Social Services would take issue with it, but they didn't seem to care. Soda was sixteen, he could do what he wanted. I guess they had bigger problems to worry about. Plus I know Darry didn't mind the extra income.
Finally, spring had come and we were all itching to get out of the house as much as possible. It was a Friday night in April and I had spent the evening outside shooting baskets with Ben, who had been improving quite a bit since I made him play with me all the time. It was a little chilly out but spring was clearly in the air, and the biting chill of winter had long since passed. The Drive-In had just opened for the season and Pony had gone with Dallas and Johnny to check out whatever was playing. I was sort of surprised Darry let Pony go with Dallas; he doesn't usually like us hanging around with him too much, but I guess he knew that Pony needed to get out of the house, and Dally probably wouldn't do anything too dangerous with Johnny around, so he allowed it. Pony had still been really touchy whenever Darry got on his case about anything he wasn't doing right; I didn't think he was picking on Pony any more than me or Soda, but that's not how Ponyboy saw it.
I lay in bed and stared at the ceiling. I had been lying there for a while. I was tired but couldn't fall asleep. I could hear Darry and Soda in the living room, having a discussion, sensing more and more anger in Darry's tone as time went on. It was really late and Ponyboy still was not home.
"He's probably fine, Darry," Soda was saying. "You know Pony, he's always losing track of time. It's just how he is."
"Well then he needs to change how he is, Soda. He has a curfew, just like you and I always did when we were fourteen. There was hell to pay when we broke it and there'll be hell to pay for him, too. We still have rules around here."
"I'm just sayin', Darry, he ain't like us. He ain't breakin' the rules on purpose."
"It doesn't matter, Soda, can't you see that? If Mom and Dad let me break the rules, you would have thought it was OK. We got Scout to think about too. What kind of example are we setting for her if Pony gets to stay out at all hours of the night?" Darry argued. "He's fourteen, Soda. You and I both were in bed by eleven on weekends at that age."
"Well, things are different now, Darry." I could feel Soda getting angry now too. I didn't want to listen anymore. I didn't want Ponyboy getting in trouble because they thought he was a bad example for me. Didn't they think I could make my own choices? Hell, Pony smoked like a chimney and I had no desire whatsoever to light up. I don't know why they both thought we were so much alike. I covered my head with my pillow and tried to sleep.
I must have finally fallen asleep at some point. I felt like I had been awake all along but I was clearly tuning into the middle of a heated conversation of which I had missed the beginning. Pony was home now; I heard him and Darry screaming at each other. I slid out of bed and tiptoed to the door, which was already slightly open. Pony was going into the bathroom, Darry still barking at him from behind. Soda, looking like he too had just woken up, stepped in to defend Pony, and Darry snapped at him.
"You shut up! I'm sick and tired of you stickin' up for him!" I was shocked. Darry never yelled at Soda. And, besides, Soda always stuck up for everyone. I, for one, expected that out of him.
Pony must have been as shocked as I was. "Don't you yell at him!" As the words left his mouth, I saw Darry spin around and hit Pony hard, a right hook against the jaw. He was propelled backward by the force and came to rest on the floor against the wall. I couldn't see Darry's face but all I could read in Pony's was pure disbelief and terror. In a single movement, Pony had pulled himself up off the floor and run out the door. Neither Darry nor Soda moved.
"Go get him!" I was thinking. "Someone go get him!" I didn't talk out loud because I had no idea how Darry might react to me having seen him hit Pony.
"Pony, I… I didn't mean to…" Darry called as Pony fled.
Suddenly I remembered what I had heard between Soda and Darry earlier. Darry was mad at Pony for being a bad example for me. Now he had hit him because of it. If they weren't going to go after him, I would. Pony must be thinking Darry hated him when in fact all he was doing was trying to get him to set a good example to protect me.
Without a thought I ran to my window, threw it open, and leaped out onto the ground. I took off like a shot toward the shadowy form of Pony, heading toward the lot.
He had a good lead on me, however, and while our paces might be similar, the length of his stride gave him a huge advantage. I was just barely reaching the corner of the lot when this time I saw not one but two shadowy figures emerge from the other side. Johnny, I thought. I had to rest for a second. I watched them head down the street and turn at the next corner and figured they must be headed for the park. Suddenly, leaning over to catch my breath, I realized that I wasn't wearing any shoes. I had been sleeping in my socks. As soon as I could I took off again after Pony and Johnny.
Running out of steam, and feeling even the tiniest pebble through my stocking feet, I limped up to the side of the park and saw Pony and Johnny sitting on the jungle gym. I crouched in the bushes to rest for a moment, trying to decide what to say before I let Pony know that I had followed him. Suddenly it occurred to me that maybe me having followed him would get him into even more trouble with Darry. I hoped Darry would never have to know I had left. I would talk to Pony, go back home and sneak back into my room, and Darry would never be the wiser. It felt like a pretty solid plan. I saw Johnny toss Pony a cigarette and had just about gathered my breath and thoughts enough to go out and convince Pony to come home when I saw a strange car drive up. It was blue, one of those fancy cars the Socs drove, that Soda and Steve always knew the exact make and model of, but just seemed loud and impractical to me…. I preferred Darry's truck any day.
The car slowly circled around and stopped, and a bunch of guys got out and headed toward Pony and Johnny. I could tell from how they were walking that they were drunk. All experience I had with drunks was acquired from observing my brothers' friends, usually Two-Bit or Steve but sometimes Dally or Tim as well. Two-Bit was a silly drunk, while Steve and Dally were obnoxious, but they had never looked like these guys did. They looked dangerous. I was scared for Pony and Johnny, and I crouched lower and didn't move.
I was too far away to hear what was said, but there was some sort of exchange between the Socs and Pony, and suddenly the Socs were chasing him and Johnny. There was some sort of fight on the far side of the fountain, and I was tempted to go see what was going on but I could hear both Pony and Johnny so I knew they were OK. It sounded like there was some splashing in the fountain too. I hoped Pony wasn't the one getting wet, because that would only make Darry more upset with him. It was now well past just chilly. For a moment I considered going home to get Darry and Soda but part of me already expected them to show up, out looking for Pony, and the other half of me worried that I would only be getting Pony in trouble for getting in a fight. I decided to stick around and see how things panned out.
It didn't take long. I had no concept of time but it felt like less than a minute before I saw the Socs running back to their car and driving away.
I stood up from my spot behind the bush once I believed they were gone. I walked over toward the fountain and saw what looked like Johnny fumbling in the grass and Pony getting sick. I figured he'd gotten punched in the gut.
"Pony?" I called. "You OK?"
Without shoes, he obviously hadn't heard me coming.
He and Johnny both shot around.
"Scout," Pony yelled. "Get the hell out of here!"
"Pony, Darry's sorry. He didn't mean it. Come home. He's really sorry." I was pretty sure he really was. "We'll tell him how you and Johnny just drove out the Socs! He'll be so proud he'll forget he's even mad!"
"Scout, I mean it, get the hell out of here. Right now!" Pony didn't usually swear at me. And he didn't look at all happy about driving away the Socs.
"Scout, Go! Go home!" This was strange, Johnny was almost talking to me loud enough to be yelling. "Go home. Pony's fine with me."
I was a little hurt. And surprised. What was Pony mad at me about? And Johnny, yelling at me? That was just weird.
"GO! Go, Scout! Get out of here!" Pony was crazed. "GO HOME!"
"Alright, Pony. Just come home, OK?" I turned and started toward home.
A/N: I know this was supposed to happen the same week Pony got jumped but due to upcoming things I needed it to happen later. Stay tuned! Lots of chapters on deck. Thanks for reading (and reviewing! Please!)