(Darry's POV)
I turned the truck off in the driveway, and I let out a breath of air, hoping it would relief some of my stress and the tension I could feel in my shoulders. It was yet another Saturday I worked a full day from sunrise to sunset, and during the summer too, so it was an especially long day. Sure, I missed the days when summer weekends were spent hanging out with friends or playing football with my brothers, but I was working in order to keep my family together, so I couldn't find it in me to complain much. I would work every day if it meant my brothers would stay with me.
I got out of the truck, grabbed my tool belt from the back, and headed towards the house. It was getting dark outside, but with the light coming from the house, I managed to navigate the porch steps with ease. Even before I opened the door, I knew that Steve and Two-Bit were there. With the amount of yelling and the curses being shouted, I knew they must've been playing cards or something, and by the sounds of it, at least one of them was cheating. I grinned a little and shook my head as I opened the door. Bunch of greasers can't play a fair game against each other, I guess.
I set my tool belt down and shut the door quietly behind me, which must've been how Soda knew it was me walking in the door. "Food's in the oven!" Soda shouted from the kitchen table. As I walked to the oven, I passed by the game of poker that was being played. By the amount of chips in front of Two-Bit, I figured he was the one cheating.
When I opened the oven door, I was confused. There were two plates of food. I turned to look at Soda, who was glaring at Two-Bit. "How much food do you think I need?" I joked.
Soda turned to look at me, confused. "Isn't Pony with you?"
I gave him a look. "No, I came straight from work… he's not here?"
Soda shook his head, his eyes starting to get a little wider. It was like he was trying to keep himself from worrying, but it was difficult. "No. He mentioned going to see a movie today, so I thought maybe he asked you to pick him up after or somethin'."
As the seconds went by, I felt my mind start spinning, and by the looks on the guys' faces, theirs were too.
"Maybe he went to the library. You know the kid likes to read," Steve offered, although his expression told me that he wasn't confident with his idea.
"It would be closed by now," I said as I walked towards Ponyboy's bedroom. I glanced at his desk, and the same pile of books were stacked on it as the day before. By the time I walked back into the kitchen, all three of the guys were on their feet, their poker game long forgotten. "He didn't bring any books with him, so I don't think he went to the library at all," I said.
"It ain't past his curfew, is it?" Two-Bit asked. He was met with glances and glares, and he put his hands up in surrender. "I don't mean nothin' by it, I'm just sayin' maybe he ran into some running buddies and is with them. He's not technically late yet."
"Maybe…" I said, hoping to God that Two-Bit was right and that my brother was just with some friends and he'd be home safe by midnight.
Soda shook his head. "I don't know, Pony's been real good about telling us where he is."
He was right; ever since last fall when I hit him and he got wrapped up in Bob's death, if Pony wasn't with one of the guys, he's told either me or Soda where he would be without fail. Pony knew we'd worry about him if he didn't show up at a reasonable time, and I trusted that he didn't just forget to tell us where he'd be.
Suddenly, Soda walked up to me and extended an open hand for me, apparently wanting me to give him something. "Stay here, Darry. I'll go," Soda said. I guess he wants the truck keys.
His words made me flinch. Why doesn't Soda want me to go look for our brother? Then it hit me. Does he think I'll be mad at him for being late and hit him again? I promised myself and my brothers that I'd never do something like that again, but it was still a traumatizing experience that I could never take back, and I knew my brothers would never forget it either. That must be it; he must not want me to help find Ponyboy in case I scare or hurt him.
Soda must've noticed that my heart felt like it got stabbed, because his facial expression softened and he put a hand on my shoulder. "I didn't mean it like that, Dar," Soda said gently. "I meant that if Ponyboy comes home, I think one of us should be here." I guess he's right. Maybe if one of us are here when he comes home, we can make sure he's alright and figure out where he was. "Plus, you just got off work. Don't you wanna eat somethin'?"
I shook my head, determined to help my brothers and ignore my own needs– they always came first, and I was more than okay with that. "No, I'm-"
"Darry," Soda said calmly, cutting me off. "Eat something. I'll check out the lot and the park, then I'll come right back. If Pony's not at either of those, we can figure something out when I get back."
I wasn't keen on staying home rather than looking for Ponyboy, but before I could argue, Two-Bit chimed in. "He's right, Superman. You'll need some food in ya to keep up your super strength. And who knows, maybe Soda will find the kid drawing the moon or something and bring him home safe and sound."
"I don't need-" I started, but this time Steve cut me off.
"Look, we're wasting time arguing. Soda and I will look for the kid, you two stay here," Steve said with a hint of irritation in his voice. "We'll be back soon anyway."
Reluctantly, I handed my keys over to Soda. "The lot, then the park. After that, come straight back, you hear?"
Without a single word, Soda nodded and took the keys from me. Then he and Steve walked out the door, not bothering to stop it from slamming. Even though I was stressed out and wanted to go with Soda, I felt a little better since Steve was with him. It's not like Soda can't handle himself, but if he found some kind of trouble, it's nice to know he had a buddy with him to back him up.
"Come on, Darry. You've been workin' all day," Two-Bit said calmly, and it might've been the only time he's sounded normal in his life. "Sit down and try to eat something."
I nodded, allowing Two-Bit to boss me around a little bit. I sat down at the table and stared at the chicken and green mashed potatoes on the plate, but I felt too nauseous to eat more than a few bites. What if Pony's hurt? What if someone took him? Maybe he's lost.Glory, where could Pony be, and why didn't he tell us he'd be gone late?
I felt a hand drop onto my shoulder and squeeze. "Take a breath, Darry." Two-Bit instructed carefully. Until then, I didn't realize I was hyperventilating or even that I had my head resting in my hands. "C'mon Muscles, relax."
"I can't relax, Two-Bit," I said as I tried to slow my breathing. "I have a bad feeling… I don't want something like what happened last year to happen again." In a flash, I relived that awful week that Ponyboy was gone and I was overwhelmed with guilt, worry, and sadness. Then, even after we had Pony back, he got sick and I was scared we were going to lose him from that. I shuddered. "I can't deal with that again. I just can't."
"I know man, I get it," Two-Bit said solemnly. Out of the whole gang, he was the only other one that was the oldest sibling in their family, so I believed that he truly did understand. "If Soda can't find him, we'll search all night if we need to."
I nodded and tried to stay calm while we waited. Soda will find Ponyboy, and he'll be okay. Why am I even worried? He's probably fine and just forgot what time it was, but I won't yell at him this time. This time, I'll hug him and tell him how worried I was.
It wasn't much longer before I heard the familiar sound of our truck pull up to the house, and Two-Bit and I both jumped to our feet. By the time we walked into the living room, Soda and Steve stormed into the house, both of them looking worried.
"Where could he be?" Soda asked me with wide eyes, not even bothering to tell me the obvious, that he hadn't found our brother.
I shook my head. "I don't know. Maybe we should check the movie house in case he stayed to watch another movie." Even though I was sure Pony would've called or left a note for us if that was his plan, it was the only explanation I was willing to verbalize because it was the only one that I wanted to be true.
Moments later, I heard another car drive up and turn off outside our house, and it seemed like all of us held collectively our breath. Please, no… don't let it be the cops. We all waited, none of us wanting to be the one to open the door to horrible news. I tried to mentally prepare myself for the worst, knowing that it would be me that would need to deal with the cops and anything that happened afterwards, but an intense feeling of dread and sorrow was almost enough to make my knees buckle.
Suddenly, Tim Shepard barged through our door, looking more distressed than I'd ever seen him. "We got a problem."
Thank you for all the favorites, follows, and reviews- I really appreciate it! I'm hoping to keep updating this story fairly regularly, so stayed tuned!
