Chapter 47
Sara couldn't believe her eyes. She was so uncertain with what she was seeing that she slowly and carefully reached her hand forward and caressed her soft hand against his face. His face was as smooth as a newborn's bottom, not even a trace of one stubble. As Sara caressed her hand against his face the smile that he was wearing grew by the stroke of her hand. Sara left her hand on his cheek and he turned and placed a soft gentle kiss on it. After their minute of exchange he finally spoke to the little girl. "I've missed you so much!" He spoke with sincerity.
"I missed you too! More than you'll ever know." Once Sara knew he was for real she withdrew her hand from his face and placed them back in her lap.
"Why are ya sitting here looking like you just lost your best friend?" He flicked his finger under her chin to try and draw a smile from her.
Sara couldn't take her eyes off of him and just softly spoke, "Because Darry won't dance with me."
"Oh, I see." He said looking up. When he brought his gaze up he noticed that Darry was talking with Billy McGee, a former football player that was a senior when Darry was a freshman. He took his gaze back off of Darry and back onto Sara. "Well it looks like he's catching up with an old teammate from high school, that's all."
"I would think that they're all caught up by now, they've been talking for two whole songs."
"Now, now, Sara." He said inching closer to the little girl. "You're not gonna be a sour puss now are you? Because you know, I didn't show up here tonight to dance with no sour puss." Sara didn't want to start anything on such a special night so she forced a smile to her face. As she contemplated what to do or say next "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?" by The Shirelles came on. "Come, dance with me." He held out his hand for Sara to take. She turned to tell Darry where she was going but when she found him still talking with that Billy guy, Sara grabbed a hold of the hand and he led her to the middle of the dance floor. He didn't care who they might see on the way, she was his main focus right now. He got some stares from people on the way out there, but he wasn't sure if they were looking at him or her. The song was nice and slow and he swayed and twirled her some, after a minute or so of silence between them he tried to break the ice. "I can't believe Darry bought you this dress. I knew that boy had it in him. It's just perfect on you. Nothing else would of done."
"Thanks." She said softly looking down at their feet.
"And the pearls were a great touch." He said running his index finger over them remembering who used to wear these on such an occasion.
"You don't think Momma would mind, do you?" Sara asked reaching up to touch them too.
"Not at all. She would of wanted you to have worn them tonight. I'm sure of it!" He said swiping at a loose piece of hair that had fallen out of from behind the ribbon.
"That's what Darry said too." Sara allowed a weak smile to escape.
"That brother of yours sure does know what he's talking about. I know that sometimes you second guess his decisions, but ya know he's doing his best." Sara listened to what he was saying but her eyes left him and wandered over to where Darry was standing still with that Billy guy. "You've got to learn to trust him more. And remember he's a bit out of his element here tonight. You know this isn't Darry's thing. But it should show you how much he really cares for you. I mean to be here with you an all. He could of easily of stayed home." Sara nodded her head and then asked what she had been thinking this whole time.
"How did ya know we were here?"
"I just know you Saragirl." He said with a wide grin then twirled her around and sung to her, "I'd like to know that your love is love I can be sure of, So tell me now, and I won't ask again, Will you still love me tomorrow?"
Sara let out a loud laugh, which caught eyes of people around her, but she didn't care. "Of course I will." She paused and looked up into the deep, dark, brown eyes and she smiled her deepest dimple grin. "I will also love you Sodapop! Yesterday, today, tomorrow and forever." Sara flung her arms around his waist and Soda lifted her up and gave her a big squeeze. "Thank you for my corsage. It's beautiful and it smells so good."
"Mmmmm, it does, but you smell better!" He paused and nuzzled into her neck taking in the so familiar aroma. He then looked into her sapphire eyes. "Just like Momma." He said planting a soft kiss on her cheek.
"Darry said that because it was a special occasion that I could wear some." Sara said grinning.
"Like I said before, that Darry's a wise man." The two shared a smile and Sodapop set her down and they walked hand and hand back over to the table.
"Hey when did you get here?" Darry asked taking a sip of punch.
"About ten minutes ago. I didn't wanta interrupt you and Billy McGee. It sounded like you were talking business." He said pulling Sara into his side. "But then I noticed this pretty little lady sitting here all by her lonesome so I decided to swish her away."
Darry looked down over at Sara and placed his hand on her shoulder. "Sorry about that Sara. We got talking and he wants me to give him a quote on his roof. It might be my first solo job." Darry said a bit giddy at the thought.
"That's great Dar!" Soda said slapping him on the back. Just as Darry was gonna say something else to Sara, they spotted Maggie waltzing on in between the two boys. She placed a hand on Darry's arm.
"I can really see that time does fly by. Look what we have here. It can't possibly be Sodapop can it? Look at you! You've surely have grown into that lanky body of yours. You must be swatting all the girls off." Maggie couldn't believe how handsome Sodapop had become. "You better watch it Darry, this kiddo is gonna be breaking some hearts." Soda let out one of his fake laughs and just smiled in order to be polite.
"You best be stopping with all that, or his heads gonna swell bigger than it already is." Darry warned but shared the laugh with Maggie.
"It's good to see you Maggie." Soda noticed the look that Darry was giving to him and then back at Sara. Soda got the picture. "Hey, Sara, why don't we go grab some goodies from the refreshment table."
"But, what about? I mean what if I miss my chance?" Soda yanked at Sara's arm and started to pull her away so that Darry and Maggie could have a private conversation. As they got closer to the table Sara was about ready to do some pouting when one of her favorite songs came on, "My Boy Lollipop", by Millie Small. "Oh, Soda, they're playing my song. Will you dance with me? Please?" Soda couldn't resist her pleads and he did come here tonight to dance with her so what the heck. He shoved the chocolate chip cookie in his mouth that he had just grabbed from the table and let Sara lead him out on the dance floor this time. Sara actually pulled Soda right over beside Sandy. "Hey, Sandy! Look who I found!" Sara tried to push Soda towards her and the two laughed.
"Hello there, Sodapop Curtis. It's a fancy meeting you here." Sandy said in between giggles.
"Well, you know, my best girl was here, and I just knew that she might need a dance partner, seeing our older brother is indisposed right now. So here I am." Soda gave Sandy a wink and she just returned a genuine smile, knowing that this moment was about Sara, not her. Sodapop spent the rest of the song dancing with his two girls, but trying to give more attention to Sara than Sandy. Once the song finished up Sandy spoke to Soda.
"I guess I'll see ya later tonight then, right?"
"Yeah, maybe even before." Sara watched the way the two were looking at each other so she reached over and grabbed Sandy's hand and then grabbed Soda's and she led them over to where Darry was still talking with Maggie.
"Look who we found out on the dance floor?" Sara asked smiling up at Darry to show him that she was trying. He returned the approval with a genuine smile.
"Is this the lucky girl who has stolen your heart Sodapop?" Maggie asked still hanging onto Darry.
"Yup, this is Sandy. Sandy this is an ex girl, umm old friend of Darry's, Maggie Spencer."
"Nice to meet you Maggie." Sandy said giving a small wave, slightly embarrassed by being called a lucky girl.
"Same here." There was an awkward silence amongst the group until the DJ put on "Baby It's You" by The Shirelles. "Oh Darry, do you remember this used to be our song. Come dance with me." Maggie begged while pulling on his arm. He stood his ground and looked over at Sara knowing that he shouldn't dance with Maggie before he had a chance to at least dance with Sara first.
"Umm, I'm sorry Maggie, I promised Sara a dance." Sara looked back and forth between Maggie and Darry. She felt Sodapop from behind her give her shoulder a small squeeze. As if he was trying to tell her something, but Sara knew what she should do.
"It's alright Darry. I'll get the next one." A huge look of shock spread across Darry's face. Did he really hear what he just thought that he heard?
"Are you sure?" He hesitated while Maggie still pulled on him to get him to the dance floor. Sara gave a quick nod of her head and Darry reluctantly followed Maggie. Sara turned to watch as Darry took Maggie into his big strong arms and even though she knew she did the right thing, she earned for it to be her and not Maggie. Sodapop could tell how hard that was for Sara but he was so proud of her at that moment. He bent down and whispered in her ear.
"Sara, that was so good of you. I know how badly you want to be the one out there with him." Soda gave Sara a little massage of the shoulders and then added. "Will seconds do?" Sara gave him a puzzle look. "You know, will you settle for second best?" He repeated.
As much as Sara wanted to be held by someone she shook her head no and then stated, "Why don't you ask Sandy to dance? I'm sure she would love it, I'll just sit and watch from here."
"What happened to Sara Marie Curtis?" Soda pretended to look around. "Because I don't know this girl standing here in front of me right now." Soda teased.
"That's because I'm Cinderella and Cinderella has a heart of gold, and always does the right thing, no matter what." Soda and Sandy let out a chuckle and Soda grabbed Sandy's hand and was about to lead her away before he retraced his steps back to his sister. He planted a big wet kiss on Sara's cheek.
"Hate to tell ya this Kiddo, but you too have a heart of gold!" Sara tried not to blush as she watched Sodapop and Sandy gallop on out to the dance floor. She sat down and placed her head low on her right arm, resting her head and watching both brothers stand real close to their partners. Sara sigh because they both looked genuinely happy, which brought a small grin to Sara's face. As she watched her brothers she barely noticed the figure that stepped up behind her. It wasn't until he spoke that Sara knew someone was present.
"So, you have two brothers here and neither one can even bother to dance with you?" Sara spun around when she heard the deep voice speak.
"What are you doing here?" She asked a bit snotty.
"The last time I checked Kid, it was a free country." He dished right back at the little girl.
"Yeah, I know, but what's your purpose. I mean Sodapop's here because of me, but who are you here for?"
"Evie, I'm taking her to the bowling alley after this thing is over. There's my purpose for you, good enough?" Steve spat out.
"Oh." Was all Sara could comeback with. Steve watched as Sara swayed back and forth in her seat. Even though she could be a pain in the ass he felt kind of bad for her. Sitting there on a night that was supposed to be about her, and yet she was all by herself.
"Do you want to dance?" He couldn't believe what just came out of his mouth. Did he really just ask the kid to dance? Sara was just surprised as Steve was, but she eagerly jumped out of her seat and shook her head.
He took her hands and told her, "We're gonna stay right here seeing I'm not really dress for this thing." Sara didn't really care and the two kept at least three feet distance between each other and Steve just moved her around in a circle. She loved how his strong spinning was making her dress flare and blow out, just like Marilyn Monroe she thought. The song was almost over and Steve was relieved when he caught a sight of Soda and Sandy coming over. He quickly let go of Sara's hand and gave her a little shove back towards the table. Sara was about to say something about the unnecessary roughness, but Steve started shouting to Soda. "Hey Buddy, how about you say we grab the girls and get out of this joint?"
"Just give me a few more minutes. I promised another dance to this little one." Soda swooped in and took a hold of Sara from her seat and planted himself down in it with her now in his lap. Sara was squealing with delight that she was getting so much attention.
"Sorry Little Buddy, but her dance card is full for the rest of the night." Darry snatched a hold of Soda's head and gave him a noogie.
"Hey, hey, watch the hair Dar." Soda struggled but laughed trying to get loose.
"What do we have here a Greaser's convention here?" Two-Bit sauntered up sipping something strong from a metallic flask.
"Two-Bit you can't be drinking that in here. Give me that." Darry swiped for the flask but Two-Bit was quicker and slipped it back into the inside pocket of his sports coat. Once he had it slipped back out of sight Darry made sure to give him a slap upside the head for even coming around with that.
"I'm getting ready to jet and I've come to claim my last dance with Miss Cinderella Curtis." Two-Bit bowed like a prince and held out one hand just like Prince Charming would of. Sara flashed Darry a lopsided grin.
"Sorry, Darry, I did promise." Sara started to get up when Darry went to grab at this heart like he was dying. Sara couldn't help but laugh along with the rest of the group that was standing around.
"Darry, you're not going let him steal your girl away, are you?" Maggie watched Darry as she could tell that he really was a little hurt that his friend was hauling Sara off towards the dance floor. Darry took his eyes off of his sister and onto those of Maggie's. He slightly shrugged his shoulders.
"I'll get the next one." Darry spoke softly and watched as his giggling sister was being towed off by Two-Bit. As Darry and Maggie stood and watch Two-Bit sway back and forth with the music of "In The Still of The Night" by The Five Satins Darry overheard Steve harassing his brother to get him to bail this thing and to head over to the Bowling Alley.
"C'mon Soda. Grab Sandy and let's go hit up the action at the Bowling Alley. A bunch of people are hanging out in the parking lot. Dally and some of Shepard's gang are there now." Steve was sometimes unmerciful with peer pressure. Darry listened closely and made sure to toss his little brother a glance of you better not, but as pure usually Sodapop caved into Steve's pressure.
"Alright, alright Man. Just let me get one more dance in with Sara."
"Good! Good! I'll go see if Evie's old man will let her leave and I'll meet you at the car."
"It might be about 10 minutes or so. I've gotta wait for a slow one for her."
Steve let out a loud grunt. "Why the hell does it gotta be a slow one? Just grab her from Two-Bit and whatever it is, it is." Soda looked like he was gonna give in when Darry spoke up.
"Ummm, Soda, don't you think you at least owe her a slow one?" Soda fiddled with his tie trying to loosen it some without having to make eye contact with Darry.
"Well, I already did, when you were talking with Billy." Soda could sense the irritation in Darry's voice but he could also see Steve was losing patience with him as well. Because of the pressure from Darry and Steve at that moment, Soda ended up going in defensive mode. "I would think that you should be worrying about getting in a slow one versus me there, Dar."
"Hey!" Darry started to speak up when both boys heard Elvis Presley's voice ringing through the gym. "Love me tender, love me sweet, never let me go. You have made my life complete, and I love you so…" Sodapop eyed Darry and when Darry didn't make a move towards the dance floor, Sodapop stepped towards it instead. He moved swiftly through the crowds of fathers and daughters and found Two-Bit swaying back and forth with both his little sister Tracy and Sara. When Soda approached the three he could hear Two-Bit singing in his best Elvis impression, "Love me tender, love me true, all my dreams fulfilled. For my darlin' I love you, and I always will." Soda tapped Two-Bit on the shoulder.
"Excuse me, my dear Sir, but I do believe that this dance has been reserved for me." Sodapop swooped in and grabbed Sara around the waist and spun her around to an empty spot on the dance floor where the two could have some privacy. "Are ya having a good time?" Sara gave a quick nod of the head. "Good. Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?" Sara gave another quick nod. "I'm heading out here soon with Steve, Evie and Sandy, but we couldn't of had a better song to dance to, what do you think?" Sara had been swaying with Sodapop but once she heard that he was leaving she threw herself into his legs and wrapped her little arms around his waist.
"Thanks for coming, Soda. You made it so much better!" She said looking up into his face. Soda scooped her up in his arms and was now holding her.
"You betcha munckin! I wouldn't of missed this for the world. I love you, you know?"
"I love you to Soda!" Soda placed a gentle kiss on her temple and then set her down and the two swayed very closely until the end of the song. It turned to "Be My Baby"by The Ronettes, Sodapop bounced around a bit with Sara but when Sara started to lose her energy and pep in her step Soda nodded his head back towards the table and Sara shook her head in agreement. It was eight thirty, passed Sara's bed time and Sodapop could tell that she was starting to get tired. The two moved back towards the table when he noticed that Steve was nowhere to be found.
"Soda, Steve's waiting for you out at the car. Sandy went with him too. Where are ya heading?"
"We're gonna swing by the bowling alley. Just gonna hang out there for a while. I'll be home by midnight." Darry didn't really like the idea that they were just gonna hang out in the parking lot, but as long as there wasn't any trouble then he couldn't make of a big deal about it.
"Can I come too? Please Soda?" Sara begged. But before Sodapop could answer, Darry was making the decision for her.
"Not tonight there Kiddo."
"Ahh, please?" Sodapop bend down to Sara's level and ruffled her hair.
"Another time Kiddo." Sara lips turned into a frown and her eyes became misty. This isn't what he wanting to be seeing from his sister on her magical night. He engulfed her and whispered in her ear. "Try not to cry Sara. I'll see if I can't talk Darry into it, seeing he has to come pick up Pony."
"Really?" Sara choked out.
"I can't make any promises, but I'll try. Why don't you go get so goodies from the table before they start clearing it away and I'll talk with Darry." Sara smiled and started to rush off.
"Sara, don't run off to far." Darry warned and then turned back to his brother. "What did you say to her?"
Soda displayed a fruity look on his face and slapped Darry on the arm. "Well, you do have to come and pick Ponyboy up right?"
"Oh, no, Soda!" Darry said shaking his head no.
"Ask Maggie to meet you there. It'll be like old times Dar. You have to admit it's nice being out in public and being social again, isn't it?" Darry was standing stiff as a board and was just shaking his head from side to side.
"She's getting tired Soda. It's already past her bedtime." Darry insisted.
"Darry, she's having such a good time, and she's always complaining that she never gets to do anything. Now she can complete her magical night." Sodapop was gonna try to fight tooth and nail for his sister to be able to come hang out for just a bit. Darry shifted on his feet to make sure he could still see Sara and just as he did she was walking back towards him with Maggie.
"Look Darry, look what Maggie got me? A whoopie pie. Just like Momma used to make. Wanta bite?" Darry smiled remember the mini chocolate cake filled with vanilla frosting that their Mother used to make and was actually dying for a bite. It had been so long now since he had one. He watched Sara skipped closer holding the half eaten cake up for him. Darry scouted down lower so that Sara could plop it into his open mouth.
"Mmmmm, that tastes just like Momma's." He said licking his lips.
"That's because I made them." Maggie admitted and sent a sweet smile to Darry. "Your Mom had given me the recipe. Don't you remember? Your 18th birthday? I made them for you?" Darry slowly allowed a small smile spread across his face and then the blushing of his cheeks started, for he did remember it. Once Maggie noticed the smile she knew that Darry was remembering that birthday, and it wasn't just the whoopie pies that she gave him, she also gave him something that was very special between the two of them, but this wasn't the place to bring up those old memories, and definitely not the company to be sharing it in either. But Soda wasn't stupid he could see that Darry was blushing even in the dim lights of the gym which made him burst with laughter. Darry quickly gave his younger brother a slap upside the head.
"Aren't you supposed to be meeting up with your friends?" Darry hissed in annoyance.
"I'm going, I'm going." He rubbed at his hair to make sure that Darry hadn't knocked a piece out of place and gave Sara one more hug. "Have a great rest of the night Kiddo. If I don't see you at the bowling alley, I'll make sure I come in and kiss you goodnight, deal?"
"I hope to see you though." She said giving her brother one more hug, but this time she was delayed at letting going. She wanted to make sure that she was locking this memory away in the volt for many years to come. Soda tried pulling away when he felt his sister's grip tighten around him.
"I love you Kiddo. I'll see ya later." Soda had to literally help Sara unglue her hands to him so that he could leave. Once he had her hands back to herself he lifted her up and placed her in the chair at the table. He placed another gentle kiss on her head and started to move towards the door, he had only taken a few steps before he reached Darry and Maggie. "You best get a dance in with her Dar. She's crashing and crashing hard. I thought that nap that she took this afternoon would of helped some, but I don't know."
"And you just tried convincing me to let her come hang out at the bowling alley? You knuckle head. Get outta here. And tell Pony I'll be by in about twenty minutes. If I'm running late he can hang with you guys until I get there. Got it?" Sodapop just grinned and waved at Darry. He and Maggie shared a chuckle over Sodapop's antics and Darry started to move back towards Sara who was now resting her head in arms on the table.
"I don't mean to be rude or anything Maggie, but I have a little girl that needs some of my attention right now. I mean it's been nice talking with you tonight, but I really should go spend some one on one time with her." Maggie didn't miss a beat and reached out to touch Darry on the arm.
"I understand, this night should be about her, and I apologize if I have monopolized your time away from her. It's just I saw you standing there, in that suit and it just brought back so many good memories." Maggie paused and she looked over towards the table and gazed at Sara. "Darry, I know that things are complicated right now, and I don't know if it just might be the night, but when we were dancing I just felt a connection again. I don't know what happened between us, but maybe we can try it again?" Darry flinched a little bit at the mention of trying again. He couldn't resist but to spit out.
"Paul's what happened to us."
Maggie let out a big heavy sigh, "Darry how many times have we been over this? We were both drunk. It meant nothing." She tried to convince him.
"It meant something to me!" Darry snapped. "It was nice seeing you again Maggie, but if you'd excuse me, I think my sister would love to dance."
"Darry." Maggie tried to pull on his arm to stop and get his attention again. Darry jerked her arm off of him and waltzed over to Sara who was looking plum tuckered out. He placed his hand gently of her shoulder, even though he was trying to be subtle about it, Sara still jumped with a startle.
"Didn't mean to scare you." He offered up. "I was just wondering if I could have this dance?" Sara's eyes grew wide with surprise. When she didn't move or say anything Darry asked again, "I hope I'm not too late."
"No." Sara stuttered.
Now it was Darry who had the look of surprise. "No?" He asked.
Sara shook her head. "I meant no, I'm not to tired to dance with you."
"Good, so can I have this dance?"
"Yes." She answered with a smile. As Sara was pulling her tired body up from the chair she couldn't help but tell Darry what was on her mind. "I was starting to think that you weren't ever gonna ask me." She admitted.
"Sorry Kiddo. It just seemed like the timing was never right tonight, but it is now." He led Sara to the dance floor but not before looking over his shoulder where he could see Maggie watching him just as closely as he was watching her. But he knew he needed to let it go, for he should only have eyes for Sara right now. She needed his attention. Darry found a nice empty spot on the floor and they started swaying around "To Know Him Is To Love Him" by The Teddy Bears. Sara wore the biggest smile on her face as her brother's strong arms led her around in circles, but after a few turns he could tell that he was almost dragging her for she was just so tired. Sara soon realized it too and she tried to cover it up by putting her feet on top of those of her brother's size 10's. Darry gave her a sincere smile and they both wrapped their arms around each other. The song ended and Sara had definitely felt the exhaustion set in. The DJ came over the microphone which caught Sara's attention. He thanked everyone for coming and supporting the Father/ Daughter dance and informed the crowd that they raised almost one hundred dollars for the PTA. "Please join us for the last dance of the night." He announced. Darry and Sara stood still for a second waiting to see what the last song was going to be. To no surprise to most of the older girls there it was "Save the Last Dance For Me" by The Drifters. The music started playing and Darry could see that Sara's eyes were becoming droopy.He was just about to suggest that they head out for the night when he noticed another father was holding his little girl and was just rocking her back and forth. What the hell he thought. He still had enough energy to do that.
"What do you say?" He asked looking down at his sister. His favorite smile came to her face, the one that shows her cute deep dimples. He couldn't resist so he scooped down and surprised Sara by picking her up. She wrapped her tiny legs around his waist and he held her around her back. He rocked her back and forth. After the second chorus of the song Sara laid her head down on his shoulder. "Did you have a good time?" He spoke into her ear.
"Darry, it was the absolute best! It was almost everything I imagined it might be. The dance was the best, the dress was the best, Sodapop showing up was the best, eating at The Village Café…" Then she paused and she gave a tighter squeeze to Darry's neck and then added, "You're the best for doing this all for me Darry! How am I ever gonna thank you for it all?" Darry felt so warm inside hearing his little sister saying this about him but the parent piece in him also knew that come a week or possible even days from now he would be doing something that would upset her and then she probably wouldn't be saying he was the best anymore. But for now he was going to take it.
Darry caressed Sara's arm that was wrapped up over his chest and his neck. "Why is it only almost?" He asked.
"Because we're not all together to finish it off." She said through a muffled yawn. Darry chuckled at the fact that she was trying to hide the yawn, right when he was about to say more he heard her ask him about going to the bowling alley. "Darry, can't we just go for a few minutes? Please? Just so we're all together. We haven't been all together for a few days now."
"That's not true. We were all together just this morning." He reminded her.
"That doesn't count. Because everyone was in a hurry, and I was…" She stopped herself thinking about how poorly she had acted that morning.
"Because you were mad at Sodapop?" Sara shook her head yes. "Babygirl, see, the great thing about our brother Sodapop is that he forgives and forgets and moves on from things like the snap of the finger, unlike someone else I know." He couldn't resist the tease and he moved in to tickle his sister in the side to show her that he was teasing. But it worked because it brought that smile back to her face that she was wearing at the beginning of the dance which made this whole night worthwhile. Darry rocked her back and forth and just enjoyed the moment of her in his arms. She became very quiet and when the music was coming to an end Darry glanced over and noticed that he had rocked his little Cinderella to sleep. He smirked at the child and carefully moved his way through the crowd that was getting ready to leave for the night. As he was moving his way through and out the double doors he heard his name being called.
"Darry. Darry." Darry stopped and turned around to see Billy waving at him. He paused shifting Sara a bit in his arms. "Darry I'll give you a call tomorrow about setting up that time to come by the house. Bring the little one and she and my Colleen can play together. After you're done looking it over why don't you stay for a beer?" Billy gently caressed the top of Sara's sleeping head and smile. "You've got yourself a sweet little girl here Dar. When you come over we can swap parenting skills and stories."
"Sounds great. Just give me a ring." Billy waved and went off to gather his daughter Colleen from a group of kids that she was playing with, why Darry shifted Sara again. He tried to maneuver around the crowd without pumping into anyone. He managed to get down the hall and was just about at the entrance doors to the school when he was about to hit the bar with his hip when it popped open from the outside. He looked up to thank whoever it was that opened it for him when he noticed it was Maggie.
"Darry, this isn't how I want this night to end. Please can we talk somewhere?" Darry was having a hard time resist Maggie's beautiful brown eyes. "Please Darry?" She begged, and like always he was just about to give in when Sara moaned a bit and rolled her head to the other side of his shoulder.
"Maggie, does it look like I can talk right now?" Darry didn't mean to sound so rough but it was true. He wasn't eighteen anymore, though how he wished he could be. "Can't you see that I'm not who I used to be? I have responsibilities now that I never had before." Darry started to feel Sara moving a bit more in his arms so he started down the stairs of the front of the school, but to his surprise Maggie was still there following behind him.
"Please Darry, I know you felt it while we were dancing." Maggie went to stop Darry by grabbing his sleeve. He paused for just a second, but when Maggie added her next line, Darry knew it was no use. "Can't you just drop her off with one of your brothers so we can go talk? Over a drink? Beer? Coffee? Something?"
Darry huffed and shook his head, almost laughing at her comment. "No, Maggie, I can't just drop her off with one of my brothers. Don't you get it? I don't get to just drop them off any more like I used to. There is no one else. I'm that parent now, I'm the Dad. " And there it was… Darry finally said it, said it to Maggie, said it to himself, and said it for the whole world to hear. When Maggie didn't have a comeback for that, Darry just shook his head in amazement at her and walked towards his truck. Maggie just stood frozen on the sidewalk letting what he said sink in. Darry shifted Sara to one arm while he opened her door. He slid her in and lightly closed her door. As he rounded the front of the truck he caught Maggie's slender silhouette still standing on the sidewalk. Darry sighed and quickly hopped on in and started the truck. As he revved it, and threw it into 1st gear the noise aroused Sara's sleepy body and she slowly watched her brother as he drove out of the parking lot. The muscles in his face were tightened and he had a death grip on the steering wheel. He had unrolled his window and had his left elbow on the sill and the wind was blowing his hair around. She watched as Darry drove towards the bowling alley. Sara couldn't stand it anymore, for this isn't how she wanted the night to end. She didn't want Darry to be mad.
"Darry?" Sara asked in a tired voice. When Darry didn't move a muscle or even respond she tried again. "Darry?" Sara tried to strain her voice so that Darry would hear her this time. It seemed to startle him and he turned quickly.
"Yeah?"
"Are you mad at Maggie?" Sara asked very sweetly. Darry let a frown take over his face.
"No, no, why would you ask that?"
"Because you sounded mad before when talking with her and." She stopped and chewed on the inside of her cheek for a second before adding, "and you look mad right now." She confessed. Darry let his shoulders slump and let a smirk come to his lips.
"Nah, Sara, I'm not mad at anyone. Sorry if we woke you up when we were talking." Sara returned his smirk and just gave him a sneaky look. He caught sight of it in the dim cab. "What's that look for?" Sara's smirk grew even bigger. "Sara? What are you up to over there?" Darry knew his sister well enough to know that she was thinking about some crazy nonsense.
"Well, I did have a little power nap."
"No, Sara. We're going to pick up Ponyboy and that's it. its way past your bed time little girl." Sara locked her hands together like she was gonna beg, and she put her puppy dog eyes on. "Just for a few minutes? Please Darry?"
"You do know that just maybe the boys will be doing something else and we won't be all together like you want."
"I'll take my chances." Sara remarked wisely. Darry just smiled and shook his head, as if he couldn't believe what his six year old sister just said to him.
"What am I gonna do with you? You're getting just as bad as your brothers, you know that?" But Sara could tell by the smile playing on his face that he wasn't being serious.
"I heard it runs in the family." She sassed. Darry reached across the seat and pulled his sister in towards his side. Once she was there he took one hand off the steering wheel and gave his sister a small noogie.
"Hey, watch the hair Darry." Sara shouted trying to fix her ribbon that was miraculously still in her hair.
"See, just like your brothers I say." Darry said with a belly laugh as he pulled into the bowling alley's parking lot.