Disclaimer: I don't own the Outsiders.

Steve pov.

Darry finished cleaning Pony up and went to lay him in his and Soda's room. Pony isn't my favorite person but he's Soda's kid brother and he looked bad. He had bruises on his face and his stomach was cut. Darry had cleaned them and wrapped them with bandages. Then he noticed that his hands were closed and there was blood coming from them. He had made him open them and there were deep cuts. After they were clean Pony started to fall asleep so Darry put him to bed.

"So what are we going to do this about?" Two-Bit hadn't been smiling or joking around since he and Dally found Pony at the lot. Why don't we just rumble this thing out?

"I say we go call a rumble."

"I agree with Steve." We all knew Dally wanted to get even with the Socs for what they had done to Johnny and now what they did to Pony. Darry walked into the room. What took him so long to lay Pony down.

"Hey Darry what took so long?" Dally and the rest of us looked at Darry.

"When I laid him on the bed he woke up."

"Is he still awake, because I can go lay down with him?" We all knew that Pony has had bad dreams since his parents died. When Soda started to sleep with him they stopped happening as much. Most of the gang probably thinks that it just helps Pony but Soda like having him there.

"No I laid down with him and he fell to sleep." Sometimes I wish my dad cared for me as much as Darry and Soda care for Pony.

"So what we're you guys talking about."

"We thinkin' on challenging those no good Socs to a rumble."

"Okay when?" We let Dally answer all Darry questions. I was surprised when Darry didn't say anything negative about the rumble but it was his little brother that had go jumped.

"I was thinking this coming Saturday. That way Pony's hands will be okay and he'll be better."

"Alright well have to see if Tim and his company can come."

"Soda you know Tim with come." Two-Bit hadn't said anything funny or laughed since he found Pony. Then the someone opened the door.

"Hey you guys I think that we should go to sleep and figure the rest of this out tomorrow. I got work in the morning."

"Okay Darry. I'll see ya'll tomorrow."

"See ya' tomorrow Soda." He headed off toward the bed room.

"You guys can stay here if you want." My dad had already kicked me out so I might as well stay. I looked at the others and we nodded.

"Thanks Dar. We'll see you in the morin'"

"Night guys and thanks for being there for Pony."

"No problem Darry." Dally told him. Darry when to his room and shut the door.

"I get the arm chair. You guys can sleep how you want." Dally went took off his shoes and laid out in the chair. We put the table in front of the couch and each took a seat on the sofa and turned off the light. I fell asleep at the end of couch with my feet on the table and Johnny in the middle and Two-Bit on the other side of him.

Pony's pov.

They circled around me all smiling in a not so friendly way.

"I hope you had a good time tonight because this is going to hurt." One of them said. They were one top of we hitting and kicking me.

I woke up shaking but Soda didn't wake up. Then the door to the bedroom opened and Darry's head popped in.

"Hey Pony how are you feeling?" Darry whispered. I nodded.

"You can go watch TV in the living room while I take a shower." I nodded.

"I'll go turn it on but don't turn it up to much because the gang is asleep." I slowly got up to make sure I didn't wake up Soda. I was sore allover and my hands burned. I could barely walk but somehow I walked into the living room. Dally was sleeping in the armchair and the rest of the gang was asleep on the sofa. Darry walked into his bedroom and came back with a pillow and a blanket.

"Hey Pony why don't you lay down or at least sit down. You don't look too good."

"Okay." I sat down in front of Darry's chair where Dally was sitting. I watched Mickey Mouse and I was chilly in the living room. Darry threw a blanket over me. I tried to keep my eyes open but they kept closing.

Johnny pov.

I woke up after sleep in the middle of the couch with Steve on one side of me and Two-Bit on the other. Dally had called the armchair so we got the couch. I heard the shower on and I looked over to see if Dally was still asleep in the armchair with his feet on the ground. Lying between his feet was Pony wrapped in a blanket using the side of one of Dally's legs as a pillow. The shower cut off and Darry came out of the bathroom fully dressed and shaved. He waved to me and then went into the kitchen. Steve rolled over and woke up and then Two-Bit stretched and he woke up.

"Hey Johnnycakes." Two-Bit practically yelled. Darry came running through the door and stepped over Pony's still sleeping body to put his hand over Two-Bit's mouth. By Two-bit yelling it had woke up Dally but Darry pointed down to Pony.

"Sorry I didn't know the kid was asleep in here." I don't think I ever heard him whisper.

"Hey Dal just hold on an I'll move him." I knew that would wake up Pony.

"No Darry he's fine let him sleep." I knew Dally cared even before he told me and Pony in the back of the truck.

"Okay Dally I'll bring you some breakfast." Darry brought back two plates he handed one to Dally. "Here you go Johnny."

"Thanks Darry."

"No problem Johnny. The rest of you can get your own."

"But you got there's." Two-Bit of course would be the one to say something.

"Well then Two-Bit I guess you'll have to starve because I'm not getting yours and I don't think Darry is."

"Thanks Steve I now know how much you care." They all went into the kitchen and Darry came back with two glasses of chocolate milk. He handed one to each of us. Dally sat up trying not to move his legs. Darry put one of the side tables beside him and he put his drink on it. Pony barley moved.

"Thanks Darry."

No problem Dar." Darry went into Soda and Pony's room, Soda had to be at work in an twenty minutes. I looked at Pony somehow he looked really comfy.

Soda came out of the bedroom and went in the kitchen where Steve, Two-Bit and Darry decided to eat. But he came back out with a piece of cake in his hand.

"Oh that is where Pony is."

"Yea I woke up and the kid was here."

"Well I got to get to work." He went back into the room and a few minutes later he had his DX shirt on and another one in his hand. Steve walked out of the kitchen and Soda threw it to him.

"See you guys later. Tell Pony I said bye." Soda looked at Pony again.

"Okay bye Soda." I would tell him.

"Bye" Steve waved and he and Soda left.

"Dally are you sure you don't want me to move him before I head to work."

"Darry I told you that he is fine. It's not like he is hurting me."

"Okay. Are you guys staying here?"

"Well I need to go home and tell my mom that I'm still kickin' and not laying in a street drunk."

"You want a ride Two-Bit?"

"Yea thanks Darry." So that would leave me, Dally and Pony.

"If it's okay I'll stay." Darry nodded.

"So Dally what about you?" Darry asked picking up his keys and Two-Bit walked over to the door.

"Yea all stay here with the kids." The gang always called me and Pony 'kid' but we didn't really care.

Dally's pov.

I told them that I would stay here with Pony and Johnny. I would like to see any Socs try to mess with them while I was here.

"Okay Dally do you think you can get Pony to change those bandages?"

"Yea I'll do it myself."

"Okay well I got to go. Come on Two-Bit."

"Well have fun babysitting." Two-Bit left after he spoke and Darry waved and left. I looked down at Pony who was still asleep.

"He looks comfy."

"Yea he does, Johnny." I heard someone come up the steps outside. The handle started to turn as I put my hand to my back pocket where my blade was waiting. Johnny looked at me but he had his hand on his switchblade too. Then Tim walked in first he looked at Johnny and then me.

"Hey."

"Hey Tim. What are you doing here." He took a seat on the couch.

"Well Dally I heard that some Socs got hold of the kid. So what all happened?" He looked at me and then he just realized that Pony was there. Tim of course would know he knew about everything that happened in town. He didn't like the idea of the Socs coming over to our side of town.

"Yea me and Two-Bit were coming over here and we noticed something at the lot. So we ran over to see who it was and I told Two-Bit to get the gang. Was pretty knocked out but he came around and told me that they said that they were coming back. They did before the gang came, there was five of them and I had three. But the other two decided to go and cut Pony's stomach and hands." Pony stirred but he didn't wake up. Gosh this kid could sleep.

"So what are we going to do about this."

"Well Tim we decided last night that we were going to challenge them to a rumble. We were wondering if you were in."

"You know that me and the guys are here for you guys."

"I thought you would."

"Well it's one thing we they take us on but goin' after they younger ones that's a different game. You guys need anything?" Tim hated Socs messing with the younger members of the gangs as much as I hated it. Tim cared a lot for his younger brother and the two youngest in our gang. Pony and Johnny may not be in his gang but Tim's guys would do just about anything for them.

"We were still have to tell them that we're going to beat their heads in. We figure on having it Saturday."

"Well I have the boy get on it." Pony stirred even more.

"Hey Johnny can you go get me the peroxide and the stuff to change his bandages."

"Yea sure Dal." Johnny got up and went into the bathroom. Pony moved some more me and Tim were watching him. His eyes opened as and looked around.

"Hey sleeping beauty." He looked at my leg that he used for a pillow.

"Sorry Dally. You should have woke me up." He mumbled.

"It's fine kid. Well we you ready to change those bandages?"

"I guess." I stood up surprisingly not stepping on him.

"Hey Pony."

"Hi Tim." Tim stood up and I knew what he was thinking.

"Pony go lay on the couch."

"Dally I can do it myself." Well after seeing how he looked last night, if I didn't do it would most likely get infected.

"Yea but I told Superman I would do it." Johnny got up and went over to Pony.

"Yea Dally told Darry he would and you don't want Darry to get mad at Dally. Oh and by the way Soda said for us to tell you bye"

" Oka, no I don't Darry mad." I think I could take Darry but I never seen Darry so mad as I did last night. Pony started to get up but he bite his lip as he almost let out a whimper. Man if I was in his place I would be cursing up a storm. Tim went over to them while I got the gauze and cotton balls out.

"Listen Pony this is going to hurt, so don't worry about being tough. Me and Johnny are going to help you up by your under arms and help you to the couch. Okay?" Man I knew what Tim meant when he told Pony not to worry about tough. Tim hadn't even seen how the kid looked.

"You ready Johnny."

"Yea Tim."

"Okay on three. One..Two…Three." I turned as they helped him up and moved him to the couch. Pony winced when they laid him on the couch. I walked over to him and kneeled beside him for the second time in less than twenty-four hours. I lifted up his shirt and cut away the gauze that Darry had put on there last night. It had red patches all over it.

"Gosh they really did get kid did get you." Tim spoke after I removed it all.

"Yea but if Dally wasn't there I would have got it worse." I took the peroxide put it on the cotton balls and cleaned his cuts. He only winced when I first did it and when I did a few of the deep ones. I bandaged it up and I took one of his hands. The gauze on his hands was reddened with blood I unwrapped one of them and I looked up a Tim. His eyes were blazing with anger. Pony had several deep cuts I dumped peroxide on it and Pony jumped but Tim held down his shoulders. After I finished I threw the bloody bandages away and went back in there with Tim, Johnny and Pony.

"Well I got to be going guys I'll see ya soon. Get better Pony."

"Bye Tim." Johnny spoke

"Thanks Tim."

"No problem kid."

"See ya soon Tim."

"Alright take care of them Dal. I don't like how the Socs keep coming over to our side and what there doing."

"It'll stop after the rumble."

"When's the rumble?" Pony's quite voiced asked. Gosh I forgot about telling him.

"We want to have it Saturday." Johnny asked his question.

"Darry better let me go."

"If not I think that me, you and Soda can talk him into it."

"Hey Johnny you're forgetting about me."

"Yea Pony see we got Dally to but I think he'll let you go."

"Tim if your boys tell the Socs make sure to tell them it's no weapons."

"I was planning on do it Dal. I'll see ya'll later." Tim walked out the door. Johnny helped Pony sit up at one end of the couch and he sat at the other. Two-Bit came through the door, slamming it behind him.

"Hey Pony how ya' doin'."

"I'm fine." Two-Bit cracked a grin.

"That's good now let's have a talk about that date." Man Pony should have stayed asleep.

Pony pov.

I was sore all over and could barley move and Two-Bit wanted to talk about my date. Well at least the whole gang wasn't here because that would be worse. He isn't going to stop bugging me until he knows every little detail.

Please tell me what you think. I want to know where you guys think Pony and Alexis should go for a second date or if they should break up, so I posted a poll on my profile. If you have any ideas and it's not on the poll let me know and I will add it. Please vote and review. Don't worry I will be getting back to football soon. Thanks for reading.