(Soda's POV)
Once Pony was taken out of the room, I collapsed onto the floor in a blubbering mess. I was bawling like a baby, not able to control myself. My baby brother's going into emergency surgery. What if he doesn't make it?
I felt a strong hand on my shoulder, and the second I looked up into Darry's teary eyes, he wrapped his arms around me in a tight embrace. "I got you, Sodapop," he said as I sobbed into his chest, both of us on the floor of Pony's hospital room.
Darry was always the strong one, the one that didn't even cry at Mom and Dad's funeral, but his poker face had disappeared. I remembered Darry's composure snapping twice; once when he got the phone call and assumed Pony was dead, and then again just moments before. "Hold on, Pone. Keep fighting, kiddo. I love you, Ponyboy." If Darry's emotions finally leaked out, I knew he was scared. Still, he was trying to comfort me.
"Shhhhh, just breathe Soda," Darry said softly. I didn't realize I was hyperventilating until he said that. After I focused on steadying my breaths, he spoke again. "There you go. Just keep breathing."
We probably sat on the floor for ten minutes before I managed to stop crying. Once my eyes dried up, I pulled away from Darry and wiped my cheeks. "Sorry."
"Don't be sorry, Soda," he said. When I looked up at him, I noticed that tears flowed freely from his red eyes down to his cheeks. To think that Pony ever thought Darry didn't care about him… I wish he could see our big brother now; crying on the hospital floor because he's so scared.
I sniffled and looked around the room, noticing that there was a greaser missing. "Where's Two-Bit?"
"He went to call the DX," Darry said. I nodded silently and kept trying to wipe the tears off my face. A few seconds passed, and Darry slightly changed the topic. "Do you want to get off of the floor?" He said it in a way that I knew he was suggesting we should get up, but he also would've been fine if I stayed where I was, and if that was the case, I was sure that he'd stay on the floor with me.
I nodded again. "Yeah, okay."
Together, we stood up and sat in our usual chairs, next to the empty space in the middle of the room. Darry put an arm across my shoulders and pulled me closer to him. He didn't say anything, but I guess there wasn't much to say.
At some point, Two-Bit returned to the room and handed Darry and me some burgers and fries from somewhere. I didn't feel much like eating, but Darry was watchful and somehow got me to eat most of my food. Still being the responsible guardian even though he's broken inside too.
Steve rushed into the room a while later, his eyes looking wild and him saying something about how Two-Bit called and the boss gave both of them the rest of the day off. I was glad that he came. Even though it wasn't like Steve was the surgeon trying to save Pony's life, it was good to know that he was there in case the worst happened; I didn't think I'd ever be able to say those words out loud if it came down to it and that happened, and I knew he'd be there to support me so Darry could focus on his own grief instead of trying to take care of me and mine.
All we could do was sit and wait for any news on my brother.
After a while, there was a knock on the door. "Hello gentlemen. May I come in?" The new voice drew my attention towards the doorway where officer Stanton stood. "I came by to see if I could ask Ponyboy a few questions about the accident."
I was suddenly filled with rage. Ponyboy almost died before, and he's in another surgery, and this guy thinks he can just walk in here to ask a few stupid questions?!
Darry stood up. "He's in surgery right now. You'll have to come back later," he said with the smallest hint of bitterness in his voice.
To the cop's credit, he looked genuinely worried. "What? I thought since he's been here-"
"Maybe we should talk in the hall," Darry said. Then he looked at me. "I'll be right back, little buddy." With that, Darry went into the hallway with the police officer.
Steve sat next to me and Two-Bit stayed by the doorway. Despite the three most rowdy members of our gang being in a room together, the room suddenly became real quiet.
"You okay, Soda?" Steve asked.
"Yeah, I'm okay." Even though I knew Steve could tell I was lying, he didn't say anything else.
I heard Darry's voice get louder in the hallway, and I was worried that the cop actually might end up arresting my big brother, but after a few minutes, Darry came back into the room by himself and without handcuffs.
"Everything alright?" Two-Bit asked, shutting the door behind Darry and walking closer to the rest of us.
"Yeah man, everything good out there?" Steve asked as he stood up to let Darry take the chair again.
Darry sighed and rubbed a hand down his face. "He wanted to know what happened before the crash. I told him everything Pony told us, but he still wants to talk to Pony when he wakes up."
"Can't he wait until Pony's better?" I questioned, angry at the cop for the hundredth time. When he's out of surgery and healthy.
"Take a breath, Soda," Darry instructed. "He said he talked with the train conductor, engineer, and anyone else he could find that could've been a witness. He's investigating the crash, and between what everyone else said and what Pony told us, it wasn't Pony's fault."
"Of course it wasn't his fault," I said loudly, but in such a quiet room, it sounded like I was yelling.
Darry put a hand on my shoulder. "I know, Soda. You and I both know he didn't leave the truck there on purpose. Hell, he tried so hard to get it off the tracks that he…" he trailed off, not wanting to say the rest of his thought out loud. He was trying to get the truck to move for so long, that he almost didn't make it out in time. He took a breath, then he suddenly addressed Steve directly. "When did you teach Pony how to hotwire a car?"
Three hours. We waited for three hours before we heard anything.
Three hours of not knowing if Ponyboy would live or not.
Three hours of worst case scenarios running through my head.
Three hours of imagining what life without my kid brother would be like.
Finally, a nurse walked in with a smile on her face. "Family of Ponyboy Curtis?"
"Yes," all of us said in unison.
"He's out of surgery. Dr. Ferguson expects that he'll make a full recovery."
Two-Bit cheered and Steve visibly relaxed at the news, while Darry was quick to ask the nurse a few quick questions.
The wave of relief I felt was so overpowering, I thought I was about to faint. That is, until Darry gripped my shoulders and looked at me with the most relieved, tear-filled, happy face I've ever seen from him. This is real. He's really okay. I don't know who pulled who into the hug, but Darry and I gripped each other so tight, I didn't think we'd ever let go.
When Pony was wheeled back into his room later that night, he was sound asleep, and this time, he didn't look so horrible. He was pale, and seeing him with his eyes closed still put me on edge, but it was obvious he wasn't as bad off as he was before.
Darry and I took our spots next to Ponyboy, and while Dr. Ferguson spoke, I kept my eyes on my baby brother, watching his chest rise and fall.
"His kidney ruptured, causing the internal bleeding," the doctor said. "We were able to repair it, and Ponyboy should be able to fully recover."
"What caused it?" Darry asked.
"During the surgery, we recovered more debris from the crash," Dr. Ferguson said. "One of the pieces could have done it, or he could have aggravated one of his previous injuries. For example, if one of his fracture ribs shifted, it could have caused the rupture."
"Jesus," Steve muttered under his breath.
"Given the numerous injuries he has and the nature of how he sustained them, I don't know if I can pinpoint the exact cause other than from the accident. However, I believe we have done everything we can to give Ponyboy the best chance of a full recovery," the doctor said.
"Is there anything we can do?" I asked, still not taking my eyes off of Ponyboy. I'll do anything to help my baby brother. "Anything to help him get better?"
"Just be there for him," Dr. Ferguson said. I could picture him giving me a small smile as he spoke, but I still didn't look up at him. "With everything that he's been through, he's going to have a long road to complete recovery, and he'll need all the support he can get."
"That won't be a problem," I said with a grin. Ponyboy was tough, and he had four brothers to help him; two blood-related, and two adoptive brothers. He was going to have plenty of help, whether he liked it or not.