We all slept in the next morning. I awoke curled into a ball, with my back and Darry's against each other. I lay there for a while reevaluating what had happened the night before. I felt pretty proud of myself for not having fallen apart. I knew I had Tim and Darry to thank for my new confidence. I was still scared, but only when I was alone. As long as I had some backup, I was doing okay. Better, anyway, and that felt good.
I felt Darry start to stir and I sat up.
"Morning, bodyguard," I said. "Time to get up. Gonna get some stitches today."
He turned to look at me, his head still on the pillow. "What if I don't want any?" he asked sleepily.
"I'm your personal nurse," I said. "You get no say."
"I see," he said.
"You stay here," I said, slipping out of the bed. "I'll get the boys and we'll make breakfast. Stay off the foot."
He grabbed my arm and stopped me from leaving.
"Scout, Why are you so calm about all this all of a sudden? You were a mess when nothing was happening - now somebody tried to scare you again last night, and you're okay?"
"I don't know. I guess I just… I don't feel so alone anymore." I meant it. Between Tim and my brothers' help, and me finally admitting that the fear had been controlling me, and letting people help, I felt supported. I didn't feel as alone.
"You were never alone before, either."
"I guess I just felt like it."
"Well, don't. You got all of us on your side."
Well, almost all, I thought.
"I know, now. Do you want anything? Coffee?"
"That would be great."
"Two sugars?"
"How'd you know that?"
"I listen, Darry. I pay attention. I remember things."
"You're funny," he grinned.
"Yeah, well, I could say the same about you."
I closed the door behind me and left. I started the coffee in the kitchen, having seen Darry do it a million times, then went into my room and changed into my clothes, eyeing the shattered window and wondering what on Earth Steve had been thinking. I went to wake up Pony and Soda, knocking on their door only to find them already awake and lying in bed.
"Guys, can you handle breakfast? I'm gonna get Ben's Mom for Darry's foot."
They both looked at me.
"Are you okay, Scout? I mean, after what happened last night?" Pony asked.
"I'm fine."
"Really?" he asked, and I could tell he meant it. He wanted to know. Honestly, I was surprised, myself, at how calm I was about the whole thing.
"Yeah, I am. I'm kinda… a little better, actually."
"We're not gonna let anything happen to you again. You know that, right?"
"I know," I lied. Though I was starting, a little bit, to believe them. Now that they knew how scared I was I think they were all going out of their way to make me feel safer. And it was working.
"You guys got breakfast?"
"We got it," Soda answered.
"Don't let Darry get up," I said, and headed out the door. "Bring him a coffee. Two sugars."
"What does he think this is, a hotel?" I heard Soda say as I headed out the front door.
I knocked on the door at Ben's house to find him and Kevin at the table, his Mom cooking at the stove.
Ben came to get me at the door. "'Morning," I said. He kissed me on the cheek, out of sight of Kevin and his mom.
"What's up?" he asked. "Want some breakfast?" Kevin nodded to acknowledge me. Kevin sometimes reminded me a little bit of Tim. He didn't say much, but if you needed him, he was there for you in a second.
"No, thanks - Soda's cooking for us." I paused. "Actually, I wanted to ask you a favor, Mrs. Cummings."
She seemed surprised. "Well, okay. What's that, Scout?" she asked.
"Well, Darry got cut last night, on some glass. I think he needs stitches. Do you think…"
"Of course," she interrupted.
"What happened?" Ben asked. "Why does he need stitches?" I hesitated to say. It probably sounded worse than it was.
"Someone threw a rock through my window. Darry stepped on the glass."
"Someone threw a rock at your window?" Ben was upset. Even Kevin looked concerned.
"It was nothing," I said. "Someone was just trying to scare me, or us. Darry was right there. He just got cut. He's okay, but it just is right on his arch and if it doesn't get stitches it will probably just keep opening up. I don't know, maybe he doesn't need them… you'd know better than me. So, I mean, whenever you get a chance, Mrs. Cummings, if you could come look at it…"
"I'll be over as soon as I get this finished up, honey," she said.
"It doesn't sound like nothing to me," Ben said as I was leaving.
"She's coming over," I told Darry, as I sat down to breakfast. He had totally ignored my orders and was walking around on his foot.
"Great," Darry said. He hated being fawned over.
Just as we finished up, Ben and Mrs. Cummings showed up at the back door.
"I hear you need some stitches, Darrel?"
"I guess so," he said.
I went into his room and sat with him on the bed. I watched everything she did. I was determined, without anyone knowing, that I could stitch the next one of us up who needed it. It didn't scare, or bother me at all. I knew I would be able to do it next time. I just needed to see how it was done. I was always pretty interested in medical stuff, and was thinking of going into nursing, though I hadn't told anyone that.
"Anything else you all need?" she asked, tying off the last stitch.
"I don't think so," Darry said. "Thanks, Karla." Ben's mom insisted that he call her by her first name, now that they were, as she said, "both adults". Usually he forgot, though.
"Thanks, really, Mrs. Cummings."
"Scout, you know I'd do anything for your family." I did. But still I hated to ask.
"Alright, then. Bye, guys." She left out the front door. "Let's go Benjamin, you got dishes to wash!" she called as she crossed the yard. Ben rolled his eyes and made a quick exit.
Soda and Pony were still at the table. I joined them and, in a second, Darry hobbled out from his room.
"How many?" Soda asked.
"Twelve," Darry said. Pony and Soda both looked at me, and I nodded.
"Nice!" Pony said. The boys had a running competition about who had had the most stitches, starting at age thirteen, since they couldn't prove how many they had before then. Not surprisingly, before he died, Dallas had been in the lead, but Darry, with all of his football and roofing injuries, had not been far behind. Kevin and Ben were in the running, too, though a few years ago the gang had suspected Kevin of having his mom stitch him up when it wasn't truly necessary, just to pad his numbers. I was not allowed to play (the rationale being that they did not want to encourage a girl to injure herself) which was fine with me, since the whole thing seemed idiotic anyway. Who in their right mind wants stitches?
"So what are we doing today?" Soda wanted to be entertained.
I had a thought but wasn't sure how it would be received.
"I'd kinda like to get out of here," I said. "Anyone besides me feel like taking a road trip?" I suggested.
"What are you thinking?" Soda seemed up for it.
"Keystone?" We used to go there for day trips with our parents. It was a state park, with a big lake, about a half an hour away.
"Yeah, that sounds good," Darry said. I was surprised, I had thought he would be the hard sell. We hadn't been there since they died.
"I'm in." Soda was usually up for anything, really.
Pony was the last to agree. "I'll go," he said. I knew he was only hesitating because of all the memories there.
"Do you guys mind if Ben comes?" I asked. They didn't. I guess while I went to ask him, Two-Bit had arrived and invited himself along, because when we got back he was helping Darry pack lunches.
"Two-Bit, you comin' with us?" I asked.
"You invitin' me?"
"Yes. You accepting?"
"I am."
"Great. Darry, what do you want me to do?"
"Go pack the truck." I knew what he meant. When we went out to the lake with our parents we brought chairs, a football, a radio, all that stuff.
Kevin wandered over while I was outside, and helped me lift a lawn chair into the back of the truck.
"Where's Ben?" I asked.
"He's coming," Kevin said. "My mom is making him pick up his room before he goes anywhere."
Ben's mom was kind of a neat freak.
"Is Darry inside?" he asked.
"Yeah, you can go in," I said. "He's in the kitchen."
"Actually, could you get him for me? I need to talk to him about something, in private."
"Is it about me and Ben?" I asked. What, were they coordinating their non-stop surveillance of the two of us, now, I wondered.
"What is it with you two," he joked. "It's not always about you, you know… it's about something else."
"Okay," I said, eyeing him skeptically.
I went into the house to get Darry, sending him walking gingerly on his stitches out into the yard where Kevin waited. They moved over toward Kevin's porch, and I watched out the window as they talked.
Two-Bit stood next to me, also watching.
"What do you suppose that's all about?" he asked.
"I don't know," I said, watching Darry's expression change into a frown. Kevin looked almost apologetic, shaking his head and looking down at the ground while he talked. Darry reached out and grabbed Kevin's shoulder, looking him in the eyes and patting him on the back before making his way back. Two-Bit and I both moved out of the window as he turned back toward the house, not wanting him to know that we had been spying, but it wasn't so quickly that I couldn't see the look on his face.
He didn't look happy.
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A/N: I promise- this week, all (or most, anyway) will be revealed. Thank you for reviewing.