AN: Wow! You guys are amazing. I mean truly amazing! I can't believe the feedback I am getting on this fic. And I'm so amazed, that I'm going to personally review to all those who reviewed the last chapter. :)

itsasledgehammer - Oh no! Don't fall off of your seat! That would be bad . . . and I would feel horrible for having been the cause of injury . . . Here's the next chapter to put you back!

edwards other bella - I'm so sorry this update isn't sooner! And I'm so sorry for leaving that cliffie in the last chapter. I know, I is a horrrrrrible person. Please accept my apologies.

free2hate - I'm so sorry I made you want to bawl. And I think that even I wanted to kill that social worker . . . What a bee-yotch!

RatsRule - I couldn't decide whether I wanted it to be Darry or Soda who cried at the dinner table, but in the end I thought I'd go with Darry, 'cause he's the big, macho type, and he doesn't show enough emotion. He kind of bottles it up, so I thought it was time the dams burst, you know? Poor Darry, though. :(

Hi - Thanks so much for your review! I'm so glad you could take time out of a busy college schedule to read and comment. :) I know how it is. Crazy, crazy, crazy. This chapter is a little shorter than the last one, so I'm really sorry for that. But I've had an insane amount of papers and tests and whatnot going on this month. Jeesh! You'd think they'd cut us a break once in a while, huh?

info62 - Steve was arrested! Poor Steve! But he's in this chapter, so no worries. :) And hopefully he'll be in upcoming chapters. /crosses fingers/

WolfieDRW - I'm so sorry I didn't get to update as soon as you wanted me to. But here it is! The next chapter! My goodness, this thing just keeps moving right along, doesn't it? I don't even think I see a clear ending in sight yet . . . Hope you enjoy this next one!

Thanks so much for all your support, peeps! I love you all very, very much. :) Now, on with the show . . . chapter . . . fic . . . Yea! Just read it!

Chapter Nine:

I can barely believe my eyes as we near the courtroom doors. My heart leaps into my throat, and I want to scream with joy and horror both at the same time. The gang is all there. Miss Spenster is there, too, and beside her is someone I hadn't been expecting.

"Steve!" I cry and break away from Soda's hold around my shoulders. Steve forces a smile, rubbing his hands on his jeans nervously before I ram into him, nearly knocking us both over. His long arms hold me tightly to his chest, and he rests his cheek against my hair. I can't help the tears that fall from my eyes, soaking his thin shirt.

"Hey, Pony," he sighs softly, and I feel his breath rustle through my grease-free locks. "You hangin' in there?"

I swallow hard and reluctantly let him pull me away so he can better look at me. He looks exhausted. There are dark circles under his eyes, and his smile is strained. I don't think I've ever seen him this way. Steve is strong. He doesn't let anything get to him . . . but he looks so sad.

I can see Miss Spenster behind him, and she's got a frown on her face, making her double chin stand out even more than usual. Her frizzy hair is pulled back today, but stray strands fizzle from her scalp here and there. She's wearing too much makeup again. It's packed on like the world's running out of it.

"What're you doing here? I thought . . . Didn't they arrest you?" I ask in a rush, and Steve's smile widens, but his eyes only shine with unshed tears.

"Miss Spenster dropped the charges," he replies, and I can't understand why he looks so defeated . . . so heartbroken. Isn't that good news? That means that if everything goes okay in court, things will go back to normal. Right? I glance behind him again, and the social worker has a satisfied, smug look on her face. "But . . ."

Oh no. My stomach sinks, and I clench my jaw. Beginning to shake my head. I don't want to hear what he has to say. I don't want to hear it. I don't want to hear it. I don't want to hear it. I don't want to-

"I can't see you anymore, Ponyboy," Steve whispers, his eyebrows rising and a look of sympathy taking his face.

I shake my head. "I don't . . . What do you . . ."

"I mean, I told her . . . about us," he says shakily, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. "She's agreed to drop the charges if . . . if I agree to stay away from you."

"Stay away?" I don't understand. I glare at her ugly, triumphant face. How can she do that? Steve and I . . . We've seen each other everyday for practically our whole lives. How can she just take that away? She can't . . . Can she? That isn't fair. That isn't right. That-

"She's going to file a restraining order," Steve continues, but I can barely hear him. Everything seems so far away. "I . . . I won't be able to see you anymore. And you won't be able to come see me. That's part of the deal."

"But . . ."

"And she said she'll even get this trial cancelled. You won't need to go to court. You can stay with your brothers," he explains, and I cringe at the forced cheerfulness in his tone. "Everything will go back to normal, Pony . . . Things will be better this way. You'll see."

"No," I say, shaking my head and tightening my grip on him. I look over his shoulder at the devil-woman pleadingly. She doesn't waver in the least. Bitch! "No, I don't want you to leave. I don't want to never see you again."

"Ponyboy, everything will be just fine," Miss Spenster says matter-of-factly, like she knows everything.

She doesn't. She doesn't realize what she's doing. I won't live without Steve. I won't! She can't take him away. I'll . . . I'll run away. We'll run away. Me and Steve. Soda and Darry can come too, if they want. We don't need anyone else. We don't . . .

Her fat, pink fingers curl around Steve's shoulder, and she tugs harshly. He winces and offers me one more small smile.

"Pony, you need your brothers more than you need me. This is the way it's got to be, okay? Just . . . Just let it be."

He's slipping from my fingers. He's walking away. Why can't I move? Why aren't I going after him? Why aren't I calling out to him to stay, please stay, and never leave?

Why did it get so cold all of a sudden?

0 o Two Weeks Later o 0

"Ponyboy?"

"Uh-huh?"

"You all right?"

"Yea."

"You sure? You've been sittin' there for a while."

"I'm fine, Darry."

"Is that your homework?"

"Yea."

The paper beneath my pencil is carefully slid away, and I hear my older brother sigh.

"Pony, you've been sittin' at this table for near an hour, and you've barely got a sentence on this paper."

"Sorry, Darry." I don't even recognize my own voice anymore. I don't recognizeanything about myself anymore.

I haven't been getting sleep lately. Sometimes I'll drop off in the middle of class and wake up to an empty classroom and a concerned-looking teacher. I can't eat anything either. It all tastes funny. Plain. And I just don't get hungry.

Last week Steve and his dad packed up and moved across the state. The social services explained that it would be better for me and Steve if we weren't in such a close vicinity of one another. I don't get to meet him at school anymore for lunch or see him at the gas station on the way home from the library or have him drop by unexpectedly for chocolate cake and beer.

I don't get to see him anymore.

"Pony?"

"Uh-huh?"

"Honey, maybe you should go lay down for a while, okay?" Darry's hand is cold against my forehead, and I shiver, nodding and standing on shaking legs. I pass Soda in the living room, and he rubs my arm as I walk by, sharing a look with Darry that they think I can't see.

Our room is dark. I don't bother changing or even turning down the blanket. I just plop down on the bed and lay on my back, staring at the ceiling. I can hear my brothers' muffled voices echoing behind the door. I think they might be arguing. Probably about my diminishing grades. Or my lack of appetite. Or my nearly nonexistent sleeping habits. I don't really care. I drift off to the noise, feeling like I am sinking deeper and deeper into an ocean of waves that I can't break the surface of.

0 o 0 o 0

In my dreams, Steve and I are sitting on a beach. We talk and laugh and have a beer together. Soda and Darry play football against Two-Bit and Dally, and Johnny tries his best to build a sandcastle, but it keeps getting knocked over by the waves. Steve leans in to kiss me, and I close my eyes, wrapping my arms around his neck as our lips meet. Everything is perfect.

And then Steve is, suddenly, yanked from my grasp. My eyes open to find dark storm clouds hanging overhead and the ocean weaving and crashing violently. Steve is on the ground, clawing at the sand as a big, pink tentacle drags him towards the water. A squid appears in the waves -- a squid with ugly, fat lips and red frizzy hair. Steve calls my name, and I try to run towards him, but my feet sink into the sand, and soon I'm covered up to my knees.

I look up desperately, watching as Steve disappears beneath the waves, the squid pulling him deep beneath the ocean where I can't get to him. I call for help, but everyone has disappeared. I'm all alone. I'm trapped, and I can't get to Steve.

0 o 0 o 0

When I wake, I'm screaming and crying and shaking in Soda's arms. He's trying to calm me down, rub my back and make soothing noises, but I can't stop. I can't because the dream is real. Steve isn't coming back.

I am alone, trapped here forever.

AN: Questions? Comments? Vague disregard for any or all words written and established in the mind of one who has no sanity?

Oh noes! Poor Pony! I almost want to write another chapter right away just so I can see what happens! Oh dears, how will things play out after this?