The school year ended a few weeks after Two-Bit's graduation, which I was thankful for. I was happiest to be rid of Mrs. Pope and I could tell Pony was too.

Ashlynn and I had our dance recital not long before school ended and Pony and Soda came to see us again, once again prompting a full-on photoshoot from our moms.

One day, about a week into Summer Break, I walked into the DX to have lunch with Pony during our breaks. When I came in, I was greeted by one of the best things I had ever seen: Ponyboy Michael Curtis was dancing to Elvis.

The door connecting the garage to the store was open and Steve and Soda were blasting the radio while presumably working on cars (though you never know with those two).

Pony was standing in front of the counter as Hound Dog played and was dancing along while cleaning the countertop.

"You ain't nothing but a hound dog, cryin' all the time.

You ain't nothing but a hound dog, cryin' all the time.

Well, you ain't never caught a rabbit and you ain't no friend of mine…", he sang along with the radio and when the drums kicked in after the chorus, he pulled off the signature leg movements perfectly.

I stood there amusedly as I watched him sing and dance, subconsciously tapping my hand one my leg to the beat. One, two, one. One, two, one… Soon, I decided to sing along with him, "Well you said you was high-class.

But, that was just a lie.

Well, you said you was high-class.

But that was just a lie.

Well, you ain't never caught a rabbit and you ain't no friend of mine…"

It took until the chorus for him to realize that someone else was there and when he did, he whipped around and screamed when he saw me.

I started hysterically laughing, doubled over and leaning against the wall.

Sodapop and Steve came running in when they heard the scream, only to find me with tears streaming down my face since I was laughing so hard and Pony with a red blush across his face and a hand over his heart as he breathed heavily.

"What the hell happened in here?" Steve asked.

Fighting to catch my breath, I wheezed out an answer. "Pony… was dancing to Elvis… and I watched him… and then I started singing along… and scared the crap out of him…"

The older boys both started laughing just as mine started to calm down. I walked over to Pony and smiled at him.

"So how's your day been goin'?"

He just rolled his eyes and tugged me over to him, engulfing me in a hug. My arms went around his middle and my face was in his chest. His DX shirt smelled of gasoline and cigarettes, but his wife beater underneath smelled of his cologne.

I leaned up and gave him a quick kiss on the lips.

"Get a room, you hormonal teenagers!" Soda yelled as he grabbed a Coke out of the freezer.

"Might I remind you that A- you have a girlfriend who you kiss in public as well and B- you are a quote, unquote 'hormonal teenager' too?" I said.

"You have a point, my friend", he called back to me while he followed Steve back into the garage.

"So", I started again, "how's your day been goin'?"

"It's been alright, but it would have been better if you were there."

"You're so cheesy", I laughed.

"You know you love it", he smiled.

"Oh, don't I ever."

XxXxXxXxXx

"Oh, say can you see

By the dawn's early light?

What so proudly we hailed

At the twilight's last gleaming.

Whose broad stars and white stripes…

Wait, whose stars and stripes were they again?"

It was the Fourth of July and our very own Two-Bit Mathews was putting on a disgraceful, off-key performance of the Star-Spangled Banner.

"Keith, would you please shut up?" I begged. "Francis Scott Key would be ashamed at your singing. It's 'broad stripes and white stars', not 'broad stars and white stripes'."

Two-Bit being Two-Bit, was decked out in the tackiest patriotic regalia possible with a huge Uncle Sam hat, red, white, and blue beads, and a costume-esque American flag tie that (of course) wasn't tied and just limply hung around his neck. The fact that he was wearing a plain T-shirt and jeans didn't help the look much. Especially the tie portion.

"But how else will I show my love for our country?" he exclaimed.

"By shutting up and not subjecting anyone else in our lovely country to your awful singing", Rachel answered, rolling her eyes.

"Rachel! I thought you were on my side!" Two-Bit clutched his chest and staggered backwards.

"I am most of the time, doll, but this time, I have to agree with Lily."

"I'm gonna get you for that!" he yelled and chased his girlfriend out of the house and into the Curtis' backyard.

I laughed at their antics and sat on the couch next to Ashlynn.

"Two-Bit Mathews, I swear to God, if you knock something over out here, I will make you feel a new world of pain!" Darry could be heard yelling at his friend. Since he was the oldest, he was being trusted with the grill and there would be hell to pay if anyone ruined the food.

"You think he'll actually beat him up if he knocks anything over?" Ashlynn asked.

I shrugged. "I wouldn't doubt it, though I don't think he'll do it right now since Ruth's over."

Everyone had come over, even my family and Two-Bit's mom and Lizzie. My mom was talking to Mrs. Mathews, Dad was talking to Darry outside, and the twins were probably playing around with some of the boys. Everyone else was outside.

When Ashlynn and I went outside a few minutes later, everyone was in a group while Darry and Ruth were standing in front of them.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"We're startin' up a game of football", Rachel told us before getting an excited look on her face. "Ruth, if Ash and Lily are playin', we can play girls against boys."

"Y'all playin'?" Ruth questioned.

Ashlynn and I looked at each other and shrugged before looking back at Ruth and giving her a simultaneous "Sure".

"I'll be ref", Lizzie volunteered.

The teams broke apart to discuss our game-plans. I got a little lost on what Ruth meant when she was explaining said game-plan to us, but I just nodded along and afterwards asked Rachel to fill in the blanks for me in the simplest terms possible, which she did, thankfully.

We all lined up on our sides of the backyard in our positions and the game started. Since competitive sports had never been my strong suit, I kind of just played off of watching other people and tidbits of instructions that I remembered from when I had played with the gang a year before.

At one point, the ball was passed to me and I froze or a second, my mind suddenly drawing a blank on what I was supposed to do. That was until I heard my team and my dad screaming, "Run!"

That was exactly what I did. I ran towards the boys' goal as fast as I could, the ball tucked under my arm. Then, I heard someone running behind me. Darry, Two-Bit, Steve, Henry or Soda were all in front of me, so I knew that it had to be Ponyboy. I sped up as much as I could, sprinting as fast as possible and dodging the boys in front of me when they tried to tackle me. Pony was only a few feet behind me soon enough, but I crossed the boys' goal mark just before he caught me.

I stopped to catch my breath, my hands on my knees, when suddenly, I was tackled by my entire team, causing me to both laugh at their enthusiasm and grunt at the weight of the pile.

"Atta girl, Lily!" my dad shouted.

I blushed at the praise before trying to shove the girls off of me.

Ashlynn helped me up and I bushed the grass off my shirt and knees. I was covered in grass stains.

Before I knew what was happening, I was being picked up and thrown over my boyfriend's shoulder. I let out a squeak in surprise.

"Honey, what are you doing?"

"Picking you up", he said simply.

"Well, I kinda figured that out", I laughed. "But can you put me down?"

"Nope."

I sighed, but a grin was creeping its way onto my face.

That was when Pony started to run around the yard and whoop like a maniac about my scoring touchdown while I was over his shoulder. I gripped my arms upside-down around his middle. Everyone was laughing at us and it took all I had not to laugh myself.

"You should probably put 'er down, Pone," Darry said. "I don't think her folks would appreciate it very much if you dropped her."

Pony complied, but only after running one more victory lap around the yard. When I was up straight again, I had to hold onto him because of the blood rushing to my head and making me dizzy.

"You alright, Princess?" he smiled.

"Just peachy", I smirked.

"I love you", he chuckled.

"Mm-Hmm", I hummed, pretending that I didn't totally believe him just to tease him.

Pony wrapped an arm around my shoulders and kissed my temple. "I love you", he repeated.

"I love you too, honey", I told him, leaning up and kissing him on the cheek.

"You missed", he pouted.

I rolled my eyes at him, trying to hide my smile as I pecked him on the lips.

"Happy?" I laughed.

"Very."

"Food's done!" Darry called out.

Everyone stormed the house and attacked the food before finding somewhere to sit, whether that was in the kitchen or the living room. Pony and I sat on the living room floor, our backs against the wall, plates on our laps, and cans of Pepsi by our sides.

"Are you excited for Two-Bit's show tonight?" Pony asked.

"Show?"

"He has somehow managed to obtain some fireworks."

"How the hell did he get those? Who in their right mind would give Two-Bit Mathews explosives?"

He shrugged. "In his own words, Two-Bit 'has his ways'."

"I think I'm excited, though that excitement is shadowed by crippling fear", I told him.

Pony started laughing and choked on his Pepsi. I patted his back as he coughed.

"I'm pretty concerned too", he said after he stopped coughing and clearing his throat.

"My family's gonna be in for one hell of a surprise if they don't already know."

"If there's one true thing that's ever been said about Two-Bit, it's that he's full of surprises."

I nodded in agreement before taking a bite of my burger.

When it finally started to get dark outside, Two-Bit went out to set up the fireworks. Darry followed him, claiming that Two-Bit needed adult supervision and since his mom wasn't into the whole fireworks thing, he would go and make sure he didn't get himself blown up.

The rest of us grabbed some blankets to sit on and brought them outside, spreading them out on the grass. All the couples sat together, as did Mrs. Mathews and Lizzie, my parents, and the twins.

It was only dusk, but fireworks had been lined up in the Curtis' backyard, just waiting to be lit. We hadn't had fireworks last year, so I wasn't terribly sure how the whole thing was going to go. Though, so long as nothing caught fire, I think we would be alright.

Two-Bit bent down next to one of the explosives and lit the fuse before running to his and Rachel's blanket.

My head lay on Pony's shoulder at we sat together and his arm was wrapped around my back, his hand on my upper arm.

The fire burned up the fuse and reached the firework, sending it flying into the air before exploding with a loud boom. I felt Pony's hand tightly squeeze my arm, so I looked up at his face, only to find his eyes wide with terror.

I gave him a confused look and just as he opened his mouth to answer, another firework went off deafeningly loud. Instead of speech coming out of his mouth, the only thing that came out was a yelp. More fireworks flew into the air and thundered into the night. And as more fireworks went off, the more Ponyboy reacted. He started to scream when they went off and was squeezing my arm so hard, I thought my circulation would be cut off. That was when he stared hyperventilating.

He's having an anxiety attack, I thought to myself. Nobody had noticed his screams or fast breaths yet because of the noise of the fireworks.

I grabbed Pony's hand and helped him up, rushing him into the house and bringing him into his and Soda's room. He was shaking profusely and his breathing pattern was only getting more uneven. He sunk down onto the floor and hugged his knees as the fireworks blasted outside.

"Ponyboy", I practically yelled so he could hear me over the noise. "Ponyboy, honey, look at me." I lifted up his face to look at him. He was in hysterics, sobs wracking his body as he hyperventilated. Tears poured out of his green eyes and trailed down his face.

"Baby, what's wrong?" I asked, now extremely concerned. "What's wrong?"

"Gunshots…", he managed to get out between breaths.

Gunshots? I thought. Why is he thinking about gunshots? Where has he heard gun- I stopped in my tracks. Gunshots. That's what the fireworks reminded him of. The puzzle pieces started to fit together in my mind. The only time he's ever really heard gunshots was the night Dally was shot down by the police.

"Gunshots…", I muttered, almost in shock. "Are…are you thinking about that night with Dally and the police?"

Pony nodded his head a little.

"Oh, baby", I murmured, pulling him into a hug. His arms clutched so tightly around my waist that it seemed like he thought I would disappear any second. I could feel the quick, shallow breaths coming from his shaking body that was wrapped in my arms and the tears soaking through my shirt as he cried into my chest.

"Shh", I cooed as I rubbed his back in an attempt to calm him down. "It's okay, baby. I'm right here. You have me right here and I'm not going anywhere."

He continued to sob.

"I love you, I love you, I love you…", I told him, repeating it over and over again. I felt like I wasn't helping him enough and wished that I knew what to say. He always knew exactly what to say when he comforted me. I just held him, and hoped that that would say what I couldn't.

I started to sing, hoping that those words could comfort him better than mine could.

"Love me tender, love me sweet.

Never let me go.

You have made my life complete and I love you so.

Love me tender, love me true

All my dreams fulfilled.

For, my darling, I love you, and I always will.

Love me tender, love me long

Take me to your heart.

For it's there that I belong and we'll never part.

Love me tender, love me true

All my dreams fulfilled.

For, my darling, I love you, and I always will.

Love me tender, love me, dear.

Tell me you are mine.

I'll be yours through all the years, 'til the end of time.

Love me tender, love me true.

All my dreams fulfilled.

For, my darling, I love you, and I always will."

Pony's breaths had evened out more and had slowed down considerably. He was still clutching to me like I was his lifeline, but I didn't mind it. Any way I could help him, I would and if this was what was helping him, then I would embrace it and let him do it as much as he needed to.

I ran my fingers through his hair and buried my head into his neck.

"I love you so much, Ponyboy", I whispered. "So, so much. I'm right here and I'm not leaving. Ever."

"I love you too, Lily", he said softly into my ear. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"Being here."

"You never have to thank me for that", I told him and kissed his cheek.

The fireworks had stopped, meaning that everyone was probably wondering where we were.

Pony shakily started to stand, bringing me up with him before pulling me onto his bed and lying us down. We lay facing each other, his arms tightly secured around my waist and mine around his middle. His chin rested on top of my head and I brought one of my legs up so it rested on top of his. My head was in his chest and I listened to his heartbeat. It was slow and rhythmic.

"I love you, honey", I said. "So much."

"I love you too, darlin' ", he responded. "And I always will."

And a few moments later, we were asleep.

(Ponyboy's POV)

When Two-Bit started to light off the fireworks, I was excited. I had always liked fireworks, the colors, the noise. It was the first time we had ever lit them off by ourselves in our own yard.

That all changed when the first one went off.

Boom. The policemen's guns fired into the night.

My eyes became as large as saucers and I gripped Lily's arm tightly. She looked up at me in confusion. I opened my mouth to assure her that everything was fine, even though it wasn't just as another firework sounded off.

Boom. Dally's body flails at the impact of the bullets.

I shrieked, but the explosions didn't stop.

Boom. The gunshots don't stop. Boom. Dally's dead body falls to the ground.

Screams came out of me and I couldn't stop them.

Boom. The men keep firing. Boom. "I'm just usin' it as a bluff."

My breaths were coming out short and fast. This had happened to Lily before. It was an anxiety attack. I had comforted her during one of these before.

Boom. The gunshots wouldn't stop. Boom. Bullets made impact with Dally's body, even though he was clearly dead.

The realization that I was squeezing my girlfriend's arm much harder than I probably should have been came when she pried my hand off of her arm and took it in hers. She helped me up and hurried me into the house and into Soda and I's room.

Boom. The gang was screaming at the cops, telling them to stop.

I was shaking and taking quick breaths. My head was becoming lighter by the second as my legs gave out and I practically collapsed onto the floor, hugging my knees.

Lily yelled my name over the noise. I couldn't let her see me like this, so I didn't answer to her.

"Ponyboy, honey, look at me", she said frantically and raised my head to look at her.

Boom. Their cries were nothing against the blasts of the guns.

When had I started crying? My body was convulsing with sobs as she held my chin up, making sure my head wouldn't sink down again. My face was wet and her face was blurry.

She was concerned. Very concerned. I could see that, even through my blurry vision. Her eyebrows were furrowed together with worry and her brown eyes searched my green-grey ones.

"Baby, what's wrong? What's wrong?"

Boom. Steve crumpled onto the ground, in hysterics. Boom. Soda was next to him, trying to calm his best friend down.

"Gunshots", I sobbed between wheezes.

It was obvious she was confused. She looked at me and I could see her thinking hard. When she figured it out, I was surprised a physical lightbulb didn't appear above her head.

Boom. Dally's blood stained the ground around him.

"Gunshots…", she repeated quietly. I almost couldn't hear it over the noise. "Are… are you thinking about that night with Dally and the police?"

I nodded weakly. She shouldn't have to see me like this.

"Oh, baby", Lily cooed and pulled me to her. My head was buried into her chest and I held tightly to her waist, scared that if my grip slackened, she would be gone too,

Boom. It could have been any of the gang. Boom. It could have been her.

"Shh", she tried to calm me down. "It's okay, baby. I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere."

I calmed down slightly, not very noticeably. God, she didn't know how much she helped.

"I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you…", she repeated again and again.

I love you too, I wanted to say. I love you so much.

Then she started to sing. I focused on her. Her voice. Her warmth. The light smell of her vanilla perfume. The way her small hand rubbed circles onto my back. How she sang our song.

My sobs had turned to hiccups and my breaths had started to become less spastic. My thoughts cleared a little, the memories of that night fading. I could hear intervals of what she was singing.

"…Love me tender, love me long

Take me to your heart.

For it's there that I belong and we'll never part…"

In and out, I directed myself. In and out. In and out. Deep breaths.

"…I'll be yours through all the years, 'til the end of time.

Love me tender, love me true.

All my dreams fulfilled.

For, my darling, I love you, and I always will…", she finished, taking a few breaths before nuzzling her head into my neck and running her fingers through my hair.

I continued to grasp her tightly, never wanting to let go.

"I love you, Ponyboy", she said quietly into my ear. "So, so much. I'm right here and I'm never leaving you. Ever."

My voice finally figured out how to work again. "I love you too, Lily. Thank you."

"For what?" she questioned.

"Being here."

"You never have to thank me for that", she told me reassuringly.

We both stood up, me weaker than her, and lay down on my bed. Her arms were around my middle and mine had never left her waist. One of her legs was thrown over mine and her head had dug into my chest.

"I love you, honey", she whispered into my chest. "So much." I could feel her warm breath through my shirt.

"I love you too, darlin' ", I said back. "And I always will."

XxXxXxXxXx

When I woke up, the other side of the bed was cold. I immediately perked up, concerned. Where was Lily? She was here when I fell asleep, wasn't she?

As I reached over to where she had been sleeping, I heard a crumpling noise. It was a piece of paper. Looking closer, the bright moon provided enough light for me to see what was on it. It was a note written in Lily's elegant cursive.

Dear Ponyboy,

I wish I could have stayed asleep with you, but my parents said we had to go home. Everyone was wondering where we were. I hope you're feeling better whenever you're reading this. Don't worry, I gave you a kiss before I left. I'll see you tomorrow during our lunch break. I love you, honey. - Lily

I couldn't help but smile as I read it. The clock on my bedside table said that it was 1 in the morning.

The gang was in the living room talking and laughing, but I was too tired to want to join them, so I just changed into a pair of sweatpants and flopped back into bed.

I fell asleep with a smile on my face, breathing in the remnants of her perfume.

XxXxXxXxXx

(Back to Lily's POV)

On the twins' 12th birthday, it was a normal birthday in our house. Mom made their favorite breakfast that morning, then we went wherever they wanted (they chose to go to the fair that was in town), and when we came back, Dad got home from work and we all had dinner and cake before they opened their presents.

It only became abnormal when Anna came into my room later that night. I was reading a book in my pajamas when she came in.

"Lily?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I come in?"

I looked up from my book. "Sure."

She walked in, closing the door behind her before coming over and sitting down at the foot of my bed.

"I need to talk to you", she said.

"About what? Should I be concerned? Did you break something again? Because if you did, I'm not being your scapegoat."

"No, it's nothing like that. It's just…Lily?"

"Yeah?"

"How did you know that you liked Ponyboy?"

I thought about it for a moment. "Well, I had been friends with him for a week or two and one day I just realized that he was everything that I had ever wanted in a boyfriend. I loved spending time with him. Why do you ask?"

"I think I like someone."

My eyebrows raised in surprise before scrunching together in confusion. "What do you mean, 'you think'?"

She flopped on her back. "I just don't know. Like, I've known him for a while and he's nice and cute and when I'm around him I get kinda nervous. I don't know what to do."

"Well, it sounds to me like you've got a grade A crush, my dear sister", I smirked.

"Damnit", she grumbled.

"What's wrong with having a crush?"

"I dunno, it's just so cliché. I don't even really want to have a crush on him, but I just can't help it. Tons of girls in my grade have boyfriends and they break up and then they get back together and then they break up and they get back together again and then they break up and they date other people and then they get back together again. It's just so stupid!"

"You are very pessimistic towards love, aren't you?" I laughed.

"I'm realistic."

"Jesus", I laughed, "that's exactly what a pessimist would say. So, let me get this straight, you're put off by the whole idea of love…because of you witnessing the toxicity of fifth grade relationships?"

"And because I'm scared of what Mom and Dad'll say since I'm young."

"Oh… I get it now", I sighed.

I smiled sympathetically at her and waved her closer. She scooted up the bed until she was leaning against my side. I put an arm around her shoulders.

"Do you remember when I first got together with Pony?"

She nodded.

"Do you remember what happened when Mom and Dad found out?"

She shook her head.

"Well, that day, he had taken me to go meet his family and have dinner at his house before going to see a movie. When he came to pick me up, Dad opened the door and threatened to hurt him if he did anything to me. He looked like he was about to crap his pants."

Anna laughed and I couldn't help but do the same.

"At his house that night after dinner, we went out and sat on his back steps to watch the sun set. He gave me that necklace as a birthday present and then asked me if I would be his girlfriend. Obviously, I said yes and we kissed.

"Long story short, after he brought me home that night, Dad and I got into a fight. He was saying that boys only want 'one thing'. You know what that 'one thing' is, don't you?" I used finger quotations around "one thing".

She nodded, pink flushing her cheeks.

"I defended him because I knew that he would never do something like that. Dad and I were both yelling at each other and I stormed into my room. After the fight, Mom came up and asked me about Pony and agreed to try and convince Dad that I could date him. Luckily, she did and he agreed. And you know what?"

"What?"

"I couldn't be happier. We went through all that awful stuff in the first month and made it through. He's never been after that 'one thing'. He's never touched me when or where I didn't want to be touched, he's never made me do anything that I didn't want to do. The only time he's possibly seen my chest was when he had to give me all those stitches and the only reason why was because my bra was cut and in the way, so he had to take it off. He even put a towel over my chest so I would feel comfortable. You wanna know a secret?"

She nodded.

"We've never gone past making out. Back in the winter was the farthest we've ever gone and he accidentally gave me a hickey. I don't think I've ever seen his face get redder than it did that next morning", I laughed.

Anna laughed, her face flushing pink again.

"You can never tell Mom and Dad about that, though. Capeesh?"

"Got it."

"Good. So, moral of the story; obviously you have to listen to Mom and Dad. I know it's annoying and sucks sometimes, but you have to. But if you really like him, just ask him out yourself. The worst he can say is no. I probably would have asked out Pony if he didn't ask me out first. If you're not sure if you have a crush on him, just wait a while and see if the feelings pass. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah", she nodded. "It does. Thanks."

"No problem", I said before thinking of something. "Anna?"

She looked up at me so I knew she was listening.

"Who is this boy, anyway?"

A red blush washed over her face as she answered. "Tommy Rivers."

"What's he look like?"

"He's got brown eyes and black hair that he keeps greased back. He's real nice."

I tucked some of her hair behind her ear. "Happy birthday, Annie."

"Thanks", she smiled a little at her nickname and got out of my bed. "I don't want Mom and Dad gettin' on my case, so I'm gonna go to bed now. Love you."

"Love you too."

When she left, I fell against the headboard and sighed.

"My baby sister's growin' up", I laughed to myself.

Why am I the one who everyone asks for dating advise? I thought to myself. First Darry, now Anna. I pondered this until I fell asleep.

TODAY IS PONYBOY'S BIRTHDAY! (At least it was when I wrote this chapter) YAY! I would get a cake if I could. The Fourth of July thing was sad, I know, but I've had that idea in my head for a while and needed to write it. I think it went fairly well, how about y'all? I love y'all and stay gold!- AthenaRavenclaw13