A/N: Sorry it took FOREVER to update!! I was getting stuck, but then I had a GREAT idea, so I got writing!

Songs for this chapter: can't think of anything… sorry!
Wait a sec! I just thought of something! (I'm about to post my third chapter so that's why I'm fixing this right now. I also just found something!)
"Bring Me To Life" by Evanescence

It was the usual day… you know, except for the fact that my brother ran away the night before and everything. It was really busy at the DX that day since I couldn't concentrate on my work. All I could think about was Is Ponyboy safe? and Where is he? With all these questions buzzing around in my mind, I couldn't do my work properly. I nearly killed an engine when I was trying to fix it. I got oil all over my hands and a little on my face, too, and I was just feeling… crappy. I was so glad when Darry came to pick me up. He had the car, so I had to be picked up, unfortunately.

"Soda, come on!" Darry called impatiently when I was cleaning off the oil on my hands.

"I'm coming! I don't want to look crappy when those reporters come!" I called out to him, forgetting that he didn't know about the reporters.

"What reporters?" he questioned from the car.

"I'll tell you later!" I replied as I was walking to him.

"You'd better!" he told me as I walked in. Then, he started driving. It was 5:30 by the time we got home. I plopped onto the couch until Darry started asking me questions. "What about these reporters you told me about? Why are they coming? How do you know they're coming?"

"Darry, whoa!" I said, trying to get him to stop. "Slow down! I met these stupid reporters and policemen and they're coming over here to pile us with some questions," I explained. I got ready for the shouting.

"What?" he asked softly.

"You heard me, I met…"

"I know, I heard you. I just don't know why you would do this to me without telling me first…" he said, disappointment in his voice and on his face.

"I didn't know what to do, Darry, they were crowding all over me…" I said, upset that he was disappointed in me. I felt so upset and stupid when I dropped out of school and Mom and Dad were so disappointed. I started to cry a little from the memory of Mom and Dad…

"Soda, stop cryin', alright? I get it now, you didn't know what to do," Darry explained in a smooth, calming voice.

"Yeah, okay," I said, choking on my tears again. Darry started to make dinner, which was noodles and, of course, meat. He made less that night, though, since Ponyboy wasn't there. Ponyboy… I thought to myself as I looked at the smaller-than-usual dinner. As we were eating, there was a loud knock on the door. I glanced at the clock, which said 6:00. "It's the reporters," I explained to Darry.

"Okay, stay right here," he said as he got up. I stayed seated as I watched the door. He opened it and a crowd of reporters and policemen were there, burying him with too many questions that I couldn't make them out. He got tired of this. "GET OUTTA HERE!" he yelled to them. "MY BROTHER WAS SCARED WHEN HE INVITED YOU OVER, AND NOW I KNOW WHY!" his breathing was heavy and his muscles bulged. He stepped over to them and they jumped back like scared animals. They ran right outta there and Darry slammed the door. "Done," he said as he sat down. My mouth was dropped open and I felt like an idiot. "Close your mouth, Soda," he chuckled. I closed it and smiled and we continued to eat dinner.

We goofed around a bit after dinner, and even some of the guys came over. We wrestled and at 11:00 we sent all but Steve home because it was time to go and Steve's Dad had yelled at him again. As I was in bed, I turned to put my arm around Pony again but then remembered for the second night in a row that he wasn't there. I lied there in silence, staring at the ceiling. I didn't want to wake Steve.

*****

I spent all night doing nothing, and I only got a few minutes of sleep. Darry was yelling at me to come get breakfast, but I didn't want to move. Darry rushed into my bedroom to wake me up.

"Soda!" he'd managed to yell until he saw I was awake already. "Oh, you're awake," he said in a quieter voice. "Now you'd better get up before I skin you," he added with a grin. I couldn't see how he could smile saying something like that, but I shrugged and got up anyway. We had eggs for breakfast, and I added extra jelly. Steve stayed for breakfast, too, just 'cause he wanted to. He made some sucky eggs for himself, but he ate them anyway. I left for work at about 9:00. It was the usual day, except those stupid reporters came back.

"Incoming!" Steve whispered into my ear as some reporters came. Oh great, I thought. Not again. They had flashing cameras that pretty much blinded me. I started getting a little dizzy from all the confusion and cameras.

"Why didn't you talk to us yesterday?" one of them asked

"You promised!" another commented. I was too tired for this. I guess Steve was, too.

"SHUT UP!" Steve yelled. "HE DOESN'T WANT TO BE HOLLERED AT RIGHT NOW!" the reporters, being weak and scared, ran off.

"That's the fifth crowd today!" I told Steve as I sighed of relief that they were gone. I turned back to my work. There were a few other incidents that day with the reporters and the fuzz, but Steve scared them off. Other than that, it was just girls and cars, the usual. By 5:30 it was time for me to go home, so I got in the car and drove off. Steve started going to his place as I left. When I got home, Darry was there reading the paper from the day before. He has a paranoid look on his face. "Darry, what's wrong?"

"Nothin' really, I'm just reading the story about Ponyboy and Johnny again," he said, not turning his eyes from the paper. He'd been reading that story non stop. "Dinner's gonna be whatever you make tonight," he added.

"I'm making dinner tonight?" I asked, slightly panicked.

"For yourself, yeah!" Darry answered. I smacked my forehead. I should've known!

Anyway, so I made my dinner, which was cereal. It's the only thing I can't mess up on, just put cereal and milk together. After dinner, the guys came over and we did our usual. Wrestle, watch T.V., etc. The same old stuff that happened the night before. I wasn't all too excited about that stuff because I was still getting over Pony, and Steve made a little comment about that.

"Hey, Soda, why are you so down?" he asked as he was wrestling Darry. Darry was winning.

"What?" I asked. I wasn't really paying any attention.

"I asked why you're so down!" he asked again as he tried to avoid being trampled by Darry.

"Oh, I'm just still getting over Pony running away and all," I told him.

"That, okay," he replied in an 'I should've known' voice. I was pretty sure he would say something else, but he didn't have the chance to because Darry was getting the best of him. I stayed quiet after that. I was too upset to join in on the laughs with the guys. I wasn't having any fun for once in my life. I decided to go to bed early and fell asleep wondering more about Ponyboy and missing him.

*****

The next morning was the third or fourth day without Ponyboy… I wasn't quite sure; I had lost track of the days. I was at my breaking point. That morning I skipped breakfast. I wasn't hungry. When Darry wasn't looking, I dumped some of my breakfast into the garbage and kept doing that whenever he wasn't looking until I was 'done' my breakfast.

I drove to work and I could hardly concentrate on anything. At work all I did was stare at the Socs jumping greasers. It made me so angry. I didn't know what was going on inside me. By the time some Soc's came to the DX to bother me, let's just say that their job was real easy.

"Hey, grease!" one of the three said. He had a red madras shirt on. Are you wearing red in case some grease bleeds on you? I thought.

"What do ya want?" I asked, rather annoyed. I nearly spat on him and called the guy white trash. I kept my mouth shut, though.

"What we want is you to be cryin' like little baby white trash," another said, who was also wearing a madras shirt, this one green. Together, they look like Christmas or the Mario Brothers! I thought. Don't blame me, blame their lame colour choices!

"That's the lamest insult that I've ever heard," I told him cooly. I had an expressionless look on my face, unlike him. He started getting real mad.

"Shut up!" the third said, who had a wine-coloured sweater on.

"Shut up what? The truth that you guys are bums and that you're lame or… wait, that's it," I said. I really should've kept my mouth shut, but I didn't know what was comin' off.

"Look, if you're looking for a fight, you've come to the right place," the one wearing green said through clenched teeth.

"Maybe I am," I threw back. I reached for my back pocket just to find out that I'd forgotten my blade; I was in such a hurry that morning. I gulped, knowing they would beat the tar out of me. I glanced around for something. I found a busted bottle on the ground. I leapt for it and got ready to cut those guys up. My hand was shaking as I held it out to them in warning.

"Ooh, what are ya gonna do? Cut up three of us with one bottle while us three cut you up?" the one wearing the wine-coloured sweater said, pretending to be scared. That really pissed me off. There was only one thing I could do.

"Steve, get out here! I've got a couple of customers lookin' for you!" I called out to Steve.

"Who is it?" he called back.

"You'll see! Now get out here!" I answered. Those dumb Socs, they didn't know what was goin' on! Steve came running and when he saw the Soc's that probably had blades or somethin' like that, he ran back to his tool box and got a wrench, a screw driver, and a socket wrench. Perfect! Now I had two weapons! Steve could take on two at a time and I would take on one. I wondered why he took a third weapon though…

"Soda!" he called out to me as he was running.

"What?" I questioned.

"Catch," he answered, tossing me a wrench at least a five feet away from me. I caught it, luckily, and got ready to fight with a bottle and a wrench. I pointed them both away from me and waited for Steve to start fighting. He got there after a few seconds. He started fighting the ones wearing green and a wine-coloured sweater. That left blood-shirt-boy to me. He stared at me and got his pocket knife and we started.

I started by busting that bottle on his back and he turned around and cut my bare arm. I started using the wrench and gave him some bruises and right before the fight was over, he cut a deep one on my torso that also ruined my shirt. I clenched the new scar with pain and crouched down.

"Steve," I croaked. He turned to me and saw me there on the ground, blood getting all over my white shirt and my hands.

"Alright, that's enough," he began to say.

"I don't think so," the one that had just cut me said as he walked over to Steve. Steve's face turned to stone, but I could see the fear in his eyes. Right before those Socs started beating him to death, the fuzz came. The Socs started running off at the sight of them.

As all of this was happening, I started feeling dizzy and weak. The pain in my torso grew. I got dizzier and weaker.

"Soda, what's wrong?" I heard Steve ask me in the same voice Darry used when I was explaining about the reporters. I couldn't answer. I saw the pavement meet my face, and that was it.

A/N: Thx for reading this chapter! I'll try to update soon! ;D

Remember to R&R!!