hello! This is more of a filler chapter, so it is shorter than usual but next chapter will be the conversation and it'll be exciting to see how that plays out!

Disclaimer: I own nothing

Cherry froze in her tracks and she reached out send stopped her biyfriend, Dally, from walking any further. She gestured to the dark alleyway with her head and tapped her ear as a sign that they should listen.

"Enough about this!" Marcia's voice snapped from the dark. "Stay away from my sister or else!"

"Or else what?" Soda's falsely sweet voice said.

"Because I have leverage. You don't attend Will Rogers School anymore, and even if you did, you can't be with that little brother of your's all the time," they could hear the sneer in Marcia's voice.

Cherry felt Dally's hand tighten on her arm, and she knew he was ready to come out swinging on Marcia Brown. The redhead put an arm out in front of her boyfriend as a way to tell him to wait.

"You wouldn't dare," Soda growled out.

"Oh, but I would," Marcia smirked. "Ponyboy has only told you a fraction of the bullying he endures. And we'll make it much worse. Can you imagine how poor, little Pony will feel when he finds out his big brother is the cause of it?"

Dally took a step forward and Cherry could barely stop him from going in there and pounding Marcia into the ground for threatening the 'kid brother' of their gang.

"Leave Ponyboy out of this!" Soda shouted. "He didn't do nothing to you!"

"He killed Bob!" Marcia snapped. "Randy broke up with me because he was grieving and didn't want to drag me down with him! If Ponyboy and that Johnny kid hadn't killed Bob, Randy wouldn't have broken up with me!"

At the mention of Johnny, Dally almost broke out of Cherry's restraining hands, but she managed to hold him back with a kiss on the cheek that stunned him into freezing in place.

"Do you hear yourself, Brown?" Soda gasped. "That sounds beyond stupid!"

'Agreed!' Cherry thought. 'But Marcia wasn't always the brightest crayon in the box.'

"It's true! Now, you heard me! Stay away from Aimee or Ponyboy will wish he'd died in that fire!"

Dally growled so loudly and in such a feral like fashion that Cherry was worried Marcia and Soda would hear him.

Marcia stormed out of the alleyway and Cherry yanked her boyfriend behind some trashcans near them. Marcia, the hem of her skirt dripping with scarlet, was followed by John Cabot, who was covered in blood and had split knuckles.

"Who-" Dally began.

"John Cabot."

"Isn't he an explorer?"

"No- well, yes, but he's also a violent teenager with a jealousy problem that goes to my school. "

"Gotcha."

Cherry peeked around the corner and looked at Soda, who looked even worse than she'd thought.

He was soaked with his own blood and bruised up pretty badly. A cut dragged from one of his temples across his forehead before it disappeared into his hairline. Ripped and torn, his clothes could barley be considered clothes anymore because they were little more than straps of fabric. Clumps of his hair were missing, most likely torn out by John Cabot, and his face was contorted in pain.

"Damn," he whispered before stumbling to his feet and staggering in he direction of the Curtis home.

"Dally?"

"I know."

"How do we stop it?"

"Well, we start by talking to them. Soda needs to know that I'll make sure Ponyboy is watched out for and that he shouldn't break up with Aimee because that would break both of their hearts. Marcia needs to wake up and stop being such a jerk," Dally answered.

"What about Ponyboy?" Cherry asked. There was no way she was letting her friend- the reason she wasn't a jerk towards Greasers anymore- get hurt.

"Well, I'll talk with Steve, Johnny, and Two Bit. I'm sure they'll watch out for him because when it comes to the Curtis', all of of us step in. They're the glue that keeps this gang together."

Cherry stared at her boyfriend in shock. "That is the wisest thing I've ever heard you say."

"Don't tell anyone. It would ruin my entire reputation," Dally said with a smile that was somehow both sheepish and mischievous.

"Well, we can't have that now can we?" She smirked and they began to kiss passionately.

This went on for about two minutes before they pulled away, both realizing what they were forgetting.

"Soda," Dally said.

"Marcia," Cherry agreed and with one last peck on the lips, they parted ways.

Soda must have been really beat up because Dally somehow managed to beat the blonde to the Curtis house.

He sat on the couch, fiddling with the first aid kit in his lap until after what seemed like forever, the door opened to reveal Sodapop Curtis.

At first, the injured Greaser didn't notice his friend on the sofa as he tip toed towards his bedroom door.

"Where have you been?" Dally asked in his best Darry impression.

Soda whirled around. "Darry, I am so sorry. I didn't mean-" He stopped.

"Dally-"

"No questions," Dally said, sternly. "Sit sown and explain to me what happened with Aimee, her twin, and the kid named after the explorer."

"How did you know?"

"I saw it, Sodapop."

Judging from the look on his face, Soda knew he was screwed.

Meanwhile, Cherry knocked on the door of the Brown household.

The door opened to reveal Aimee Brown.

"Hey, Cherry," she greeted. "What brings you here?"

"Oh, hi, Aimee, could I speak to Marcia?"

"Of course, she's in her room."

"Thanks." Cherry strolled into Marcia's room with purpose and rising rage.

"Marcia, we need to talk," she said.

Shocked brown met rageful green.

until next time, my friends, and by the way, I'm kind of at a loss of where to take the story after next chapter, so feel free to give me ideas. Thanks!