A/N: And Chapter 2 is already up! It's a bit longer than Chapter 1 - a whole page, actually - and it's in Pony's POV this time! :) Bare with me, because the first few chapters will probably be a little off, as I'm warming back up into Pony and Scout's characters. And, keep in mind, they are both older and more mature now, so their story-telling is definitely going to have improved, and their personalities will have changed a bit since It Happens That way. :) ANYWHO

ENJOY and REVIEW! :P

Ponyboy

I avoided Scout for three days after she blew up at me on the yard. I didn't do it because I was angry with her, or too hurt to face her, but because I was embarrassed. She was right. For the last nine years we had been doing the same thing, and it just wasn't cutting it anymore. There was a reason I had opted to hang out with my friends instead of her the week before, there was a reason I worked late most nights and why some days we didn't even speak to one another. It was because we just weren't going anywhere. We were so comfortable with our relationship the way it was, that it was boring.

There was one thing Scout was wrong about, though, and that was the statement that we were just together out of obligation. That was wrong in every way possible. I loved Scout with everything, and I felt even more embarrassed that I had been showing her that very little lately. I'd thought a lot about moving in with Scout, but with no indication from her whether she wanted to do that or not, I hadn't ever spoken to her about it. However, I had been saving up half of each paycheck for the last two years saving up for my own place. Living with Darry and his family made me feel like an absolute burden, but still I was too scared to leave, so I just saved up and promised myself someday...

But with the way Scout had acted, I knew the time to go was now, I wasn't going to tell Scout this, though. I had thought about it long and hard for the three days I avoided her and came to the decision that I'd surprise her. It'd be a huge, romantic gesture of sorts, to show her that I really cared. The problem would be keeping her happy until I found the right place for the right price. I had saved up a little over seven thousand dollars, so I definitely didn't have nearly enough to buy a place yet, but I sure had enough money to put a down payment to start the rent-to-own process and then furnish it.

After finally figuring this out in my head and making all the plans I needed to make, I went to see Scout. She worked at the bookstore in town, with the old man that was always very nice to me when I walked in. I knew what time she worked, and so I went to the bookstore around that time. When I walked in, she had her back to the door and was shelving some books. I smiled a little, because she looked very content with just stuffing books onto a shelf. I guess I had rubbed off on her somehow, made her a book lover like me.

"Scout," I called hesitantly. She jumped at the sound of her name, and turned sharply. Her shoulders drooped when she saw it was me, not out of disappointment, but of relief and before I knew what was happening, she had run up to me and thrown her arms around my neck.

"I'm so sorry for what I said, Pony!" she cried into my shoulder. "Of course I don't think this relationship is just obligation. I love you so much."

I rubbed her back gently, smiling into her hair.

"Don't be sorry. I deserved that," I told her, pulling out of the embrace and looking her straight in the eye. "I'm sorry for not being a very good boyfriend."

"Oh, please, you've been a great boyfriend! Best I ever had," she teased, wiping her tears away. I laughed.

"I thought a lot about what you said, and I agree. We should discuss moving in with one another." I told her, making sure to emphasize the word 'discuss' so she had no way of figuring out what I was up to. "Why don't you come over in a couple of days and we can talk."

"Can I come over tonight?" she sniffed.

"Sorry, but I have to work tonight and tomorrow night, late too. We have a big job that needs to be done by Wednesday, so the team's trying to get it done quick." I lied. We had finished that job two days ago.

"Well, alright. I'll stop by in a couple of days." she agreed reluctantly. "Guess you have to go now?"

"Yeah, I do." I pulled her into another hug and then kissed her - a long, hopefully passionate kiss - before heading for the door.

"Love you, Pony!"

"Love you, Scout." I called back before the door closed behind me.

There was one more person I had to talk to before making any final decisions - Darry. When I got home after visiting Scout, Darry was home - as usual - feeding Hal his lunch. Frankie was at work today. The neat thing about Frankie and Darry's jobs was the fact that the schedules worked out so perfectly. One of them was usually home with Hal all the time. If they worked at the same time, I was home, or Sodapop came over. Since his accident, Darry's leg had healed, but he could never do physical labor like what he did before again. He was permanently hindered from that kind of work. Now, he was a desk man - in the same company - and called me and the others to assign us new jobs. It wasn't what he was used to, but he didn't seem to mind it.

"Hey, Pony, how'd it go?" Darry asked when I walked into the kitchen.

"Good, good. She's coming over in a couple days to talk."

"Good." Darry replied. "Come on, Hal, why don't you eat the hotdog, huh?" he sighed, pushing the plate towards the two-year-old. Hal just giggled and shook his head no.

"Don't want!" Hal squealed, slapping his hands onto the table playfully. I laughed lightly, sitting across from Darry.

"Hey, Dar, could I talk to you?"

"'Side? 'Side?" Hal chanted, pointing towards the back door and wiggling in his booster seat. Darry let out a defeated huff and stood up, taking Hal with him and heading for the back door.

"Yeah, alright," he said. "Come on outside with us, Pony."

I stood up and followed them out into the back yard. After Hal was old enough to play outside, we'd put a fence around the backyard, that way we could all relax on the porch and not have to worry about the little kid getting away from us. There was a slide and a battery-powered baby motorcycle as well, which Hal went straight to and started zooming his way around the yard while Darry and I sat down in the porch chairs.

"So, what's up?" Darry asked after a moment.

"Well," I hesitated, not sure how to put it. "I'm gonna ask Scout to move in with me."

Darry looked at me with raised eyebrows, shaking his head slowly as he thought of what to say. After a while, he finally responded.

"Listen, it's fine if she stays here a few nights, but moving in-?"

"No! Not here!" I corrected, waving my hand to dismiss his statement. "I'm going to get us our own house."

Once again, Darry was silent, but this time a smile had broken across his face. It was the good kind of silence, the silence that meant the person was speechless with joy. A good kind of silence. It took him a long time to say anything, and was interrupted from speaking when Hal called for us to watch him as he drove his bike into a tree repeatedly and laughed uncontrollably. After Darry had gone out to the yard and explained to his son that was pretty stupid to do - not his words - and not to do it anymore, he came back ready to speak.

"That's real great, Pony!" he grinned. "You found a place yet? Is that what you told her? How much is the house?"

"I found a place a couple blocks over, and no I didn't tell her. I want to get a place in the next couple of days before she comes over and get it all fixed up nice, so I can surprise her. I looked at the house today and really loved it, but I wanted you to look too, so you could tell me what you think. And, I kinda need help getting it fixed up nice." I explained.

"I'm glad to help, Pony, but you might want to get Two-bit and Soda to help you move things in and stuff." Darry told me.

"They already agreed to help, Steve too. They're actually meeting me at some furniture store tomorrow. Steve's gonna bring his old man's truck."

"Well, I'm glad to help." Darry grinned.

"Thanks, Dar. It's real good of you to say that, because I'm worried out of my mind."

"Don't be. You and Scout are meant for each other."

I grinned at him and leaned back in my chair, looking out and watching as Hal played in the backyard, amusing himself with every single thing he found. Watching as he played, I wondered if Scout and I would ever have a little boy who picked up bugs and giggled when they squirmed in his hand.