xxx

But if life stayed it was

And lovers never fell out of love

If memories didn't last so long

If nobody did nobody wrong

If we knew what we had before it was gone

If every road led back home

This would be

The very last country song

Finally about two hours later the door opened and we all jumped up from our seats.

"And where have you been little man?" Darry practically snarled.

"I feel asleep in the lot."

"You had us worried sick! And I couldn't even call the cops cause they'd throw you and Soda in the boys home so fast your heads would spin!"

"I'm sorry Darry, I didn't mean..."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, I didn't think! That's all I ever hear from you! Do you have any common sense in that head of yours!?"

"Aw, come on Darry, he's home, let's just all go to bed." Soda said starting to move towards Pony to get his younger brother around his older one.

"Stop defending him!" Darry yelled.

"Don't you yell at him!" Pony yelled back.

Suddenly something inside Darry must have just snapped. The death of his parents, the long hours at work and all the worry about his brothers must have just built up when he reached out and shoved Pony into the door.

Pony stood up looking shocked for a moment before he took off out the door and back out into the night. "Pony! I'm sorry!" Darry yelled, but it was to late, he was gone. Darry started out the door after him but Soda stopped him.

"You stay here Darry, I'll go after him."

"I'll go with you." Soda nodded at me. He went into his room and came back with sweatshirts for the both of us before we headed out into the dark night.

We went to the park by the fountain first, figuring that was the furthest place he would go. Then doubled back, going to everyones house, Bucks, and even the Dingo before checking the lot and heading back to the house. Showing back up there without him was hard but we did our best to assure Darry that Pony would be back in the morning and we would work together to make everything right again.

I woke up the next morning stiff and just as exhausted as I had been the night before. I was curled up with my head in Soda's lap, a blanket thrown over me. Soda had his head back on the coach and was snoring quietly while Darry did the same in his chair.

I got up quietly trying not to wake anyone. I went and looked in the bathroom as well as all the bedrooms, no Ponyboy. Figuring it was gonna be a long day I went into the kitchen to make us all some breakfast, full stomachs would help us think through this better.

The doorbell rang, and when I stuck my head out of the kitchen I saw Soda getting up to answer it so I headed back into the kitchen to continue cooking. After 5 minutes or so I was sitting at the table while the pancakes cooked, my hands wrapped around a black cup of coffee. Finally Soda came in, eyes red, "Who was that hunny?"

"The cops..."

I stood up, leaving my coffee on the table, and touched his arm. "Soda, hunny, what did the cops have to say?"

"They...um...they said that there was a fight last night between Randy, Bob, Paul, Johnny and Pony. Bob was holding Pony's head under the water at the fountain and Johnny stabbed Bob...killed him. Him and Pony ran...they have no idea where they are..."

"Oh my god...Johnny killed Bob...the poor kid..."

"Ya...did you know?"

"Know what?"

"Know that those socs were going to go after my brother last night? I mean you were at a party with them, drinking, having a good time and who knows what else! Plus, from the description the cops gave of the blade it wasn't Johnny's, it had my initials and yours carved into the handle" Soda was starting to yell looking more afraid then I had ever seen him.

"Of course I had no idea! I gave Johnny my blade when I left them at the movies last night, I didn't want to go to that party with it on me…"

"You sure about that? We went to the park where it all happened first, gave them plenty of time to get there after we left. Maybe you told them where he likes to hang out, socs gotta stick together."

"Soda, your upset and your not thinking straight, why would I have given Johnny that blade if I was helping the socs to find them?" I said trying to move past him and out of the kitchen, for the first time in my life he was making me nervous and I didn't want to be alone with him.

"Hey! We're not done here!" Soda stepped in my path, grabbing my upper arm tightly. "Tell me the truth Alice, you went out with them last night, drank with them, told them how to find my brother, did you sleep with one of them to? Did you act like a trashy socy whore?" He snarled at me.

I wrenched my arm away and slapped Soda across the face with all the strength that I had, "Don't you dare talk to me like that you asshole, I went to the party, hung out and had a few drinks that's it. How dare you accuse me of doing anything to hurt that boy, I love him like my own brother." I pushed past a now stunned Soda and hurried from the house.

On the porch I felt Soda grab my wrist. "Alice..." I quickly wrenched it away turning to face him, seeing the red hand print that I had left on his face, knowing I'd have a matching hand print on my upper arm.

"Do. not. touch. me." I told him quietly before leaving and going straight home, having never been so upset in my life.

A/N – The song is Very Last Country Song by Sugarland. This is a long weekend so 10 reviews will get you a chapter tomorrow, I generally get 6 so if 4 people that read and never review do…

Still don't own the outsiders, however you only get 40 seniors if you sue…apparently some of us have a hard time passing English 11…

Also, just to vent I had a almost finished song fic that one of my students accidently closed on me that now I'm to last to rewrite…