When I awoke, I was in a pitch-black, musty place. My whole body ached badly and I was leaning weakly against the cold wall, my legs bent in an ackward position on the ground; my hands laid across my body, shaking immensely, and my head resting against the wall as well, hanging at the same time. I could feel two other walls, one on either side of me, and a wooden door in front of me. There was so much pain running through my body, I wished I was dead already. No one, especially a young kid, should have to suffer through this kind of torture.

my breathing was ragged and heavy, and I could feel my fingers twitch every so often. I tried moving my head, but I stopped when a stinging sensation buzzed through my face. I let out a small whimper, and felt the tears burn as they climbed over the many gashes and wounds that were embedded all over my bruised cheeks. I gulped, and wished crazily for my brothers, for the gang, to be here with me.

"Darry..." I cried out softly. All that I could hear was an empty, hopeless silence. When I opened my eyes, I couldn't see anything; maybe that was because I didn't open them, or maybe it was because it was darker than anything in here. I gritted my teeth, and cried even more. I didn't know where the man was, nor what he was doing, but I felt more petrified than anything. I was real afraid that he'd come back and beat me up again, but this time, he'd kill me.

All of a sudden, I heard a huge thud and a lot of clicking noises.

"FREEZE! PUT YOUR HANDS WHERE WE CAN SEE EM!!!" I heard someone shout. There was a lot of voices after that, then I could hear a familiar voice; this voice sounded rough and had a hint of detirmination in it, but also worry and sorrow.

"Where is he?!" Darry said threateningly.

"Hopefully... gone." I heard the man who had kidnapped me answer drunkenly, chuckling underneath his breath. How long had I been in here? How many days have I been missing? my thoughts and questions were suddenly interrupted by a huge smack.

"TELL ME WHERE HE IS!!!" I heard Darry demand in a harsh tone. I felt my legs getting numb, and the numbness was creeping its way slowly up my body.

"I'm ... I'm here... Darry..." I whispered in a hushed tone. My mouth felt parched, and my tongue ached too much for me to continue.

"Wow... Darrel, I never knew you were this defensive over that itty-bitty thing. Don't worry about him... He's just fine- I mean, anyone would be if they were DEAD!" the man said in between chortles of disgust and amusement. He continued to laugh hysterically, and I could picture Darry's reaction to that. All of a sudden there were things being smashed and broken and it had finally stopped after a couple of minutes. The numb feeling had worsened and overpowered my body all the way up to my waist.

"You know... he is your brother... man! He wouldn't tell me where you were! Now aint that a sweet thing to do? Both of you have the most determination I have seen in all my years of living!!! I'm not lying!... Too bad I had to beat him to death for not doing the one thing he promised to do..." That remark was quickly followed by another slap; this one sounded harder than anything.

"Where... is... my... little... BROTHER!?!" I knew that the guy wouldn't tell Darry where I was, even if he was beaten brutally to death, so I raised my arm up weakly, putting all of my strength and energy into it, and banged as hard as I could against the door.

I tied to yell, though it didn't work, and just continued to bang my hand on the door some more. The numb feeling had almost engulfed me by now, and I felt my body sag against the wall, my eyes droop close, and my head hang drearily, my heart beating slower and slower within each second. At first, I thought that I had failed in trying to get Darry's attention, but all of that was soon eradicated when I heard the door being opened.

"PONY!" I heard Darry cry out shakily. I flinched as he brushed his fingers against my face gently, letting me know he was here. The numb feeling had gotten up to the base of my neck.

"Pone? Come on Ponyboy! Please don't give out on me... please... I'm here now babe..." Darry pleaded desperately, slipping his arm behind my back. I screamed out from the pain that was growing on the inside of my chest. Darry had pulled me up and leaned me against him.

"I... I'm so... sorry..." I managed to say. I felt my heart give its last beats of life through me, and before I felt the pain drown me completely in the ongoing darkness I had slipped in and out of, I was able to hear my brother's loving and caring voice for the very last time.

"No... Ponyboy, please... no please! NOT MY BABY BROTHER, PLEASE!!!" Darry begged in between gasps and sobs, holding me close to him and stroking my hair. His voice seemed to fade away, and I was taken beneath the surface of my life.

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THE REVIEWS!!! I will try and update soon for I need to figure out whether or not I want to kill Ponyboy

off for good or not... so if you have any questions or suggestions PLEASE feel free to PM me about it!!! I'm open for discussion and I will

try and answer back if I'm not online to actually see the message you sent!!! *giggle giggle*. Also, I am a BETAREADER if you are

looking for someone to check over your work!!! So ya!! :)