"I got your message on my desk this morning." Grace had told me to meet her in The Plaza Hotel, in room 616. It was my last day at work before Vietnam. Grace was sitting on a hotel bed in a towel.

"Hi," she blushed slightly.

I smirked in amusement. "What's going on? Why did you ask me to meet you here?"

"I wanted to do something special for you. I couldn't take you back to the first place where I ever met you; I couldn't take you to Seattle where it all started between me you."

"I see." I said not understanding anything.

"Sunny if anything happens to you"

"Nothing is going to happen." I said sternly.

Grace smiled. "But if it does. I want to know that I gave you everything. I want you to know it too." She stood up and dropped her towel.

"Grace," I took her face in my hands. "Are you absolutely sure you want to do this."

She didn't say anything she only kissed me. The next thing I knew my clothes were next to her towel and we were under the covers.

Darry's P.O.V

"Okay guys, we have tonight and that's it. Do you guys want to do anything special?" I asked joining my two little brothers at the poker table.

"Let's have a party." Soda suggested. His heart really wasn't into it though.

"He doesn't want a big party, little brother. He's already had one."

"Then just us, Steve and Two-Bit if they want." Pony said. He was laying his head in his folded arms that were in the table.

"Sounds good to me." Soda said.

I stood up. "Come on guys try to smile, for Sunny's sake."

"Why the only thing that's made Sunny smile is Grace."

I ignored the comment from Soda. He couldn't even find a bright side to this because the truth is there isn't a bright side. Our brother was going to jungle, to fight in a war he didn't believe in to begin with. We didn't know if he was going to come back or not. Once again one simple detail was going to change our lives, forever.

The gang came over along with Grace and there was no talk of the war, leaving or anything like that. It was just an average night. That had to come to an end.

I wasn't sleeping. I tried but it just wasn't going to happen. I couldn't tobacco coming from Sunny's room. I rolled off my bed. He had fallen asleep smoking before. I walked right into his room. He was sitting on his bed; fully awake. He turned to look at me.

"I thought you feel asleep smoking. Shouldn't you be sleeping?"

"I have to get up in a half hour to leave anyway. Come over here." He patted the space next to him.

I sat down slowly next to him. "I was thinking about Soda." He began. "This war, it's not going to stop anytime soon. They'll take Soda the second he turns eighteen if he's not in school."

"I know." I said coldly. The last think I wanted tot think about was Soda in Vietnam.

Sunny slipped a card into my hand. "This is a school for the performing arts. A woman gave me this card a little while back when she heard him play piano in the music shop. He's enrolled starting next semester; it's a month into it. He'll have to go for summer school to catch up."

"Sunny, we both know we can't pay for this. The price for this school is insane."

"I know that's why our Grandparents are paying for this. It's to keep him safe; we can only pray that this was will be over when he gets out."

I hated the thought of our grandparents helping us out like this, but if it meant keeping soda out of the war, then I would deal with it.

Sunny's P.O.V

"I love you guys." I kissed and hugged both of my baby brothers. "Don't give Darry a heart attack. I'll still be able to whoop your asses when I get home."

"Why can't we go to the bus stop?" Soda asked. He was beginning to cry.

"It's going to be ever more hell for the both of us if you two come." I didn't want to let go. I didn't want to ever let go.

"Bye Sunny." Pony said He was the next Darry; he hid his emotions as best he could.

"I'll see you later, baby. Go back to sleep guys."

I could fell tears running down my face as I turned away. I couldn't bring myself to look back. I stepped into the darkness of the living room to see Darry standing there with an icy expression. He moved to walk out the front door. Then it hit me like a load of bricks.

I leaned back on the railing of the porch. I wasn't sure how I was going to do this; take sides in a dueling family when I couldn't stay neutral. Pony walked out with his head hung.

"I'm in a lot of trouble aren't I?" He asked not looking up from his feet.

"We gotta' talk pal. Come over here."

Pony slowly walked over not looking at me. I sat back on the railing hoping that I could maybe get down to his eye level a little better. "Look at me Ponyboy." I ordered. His eyes slowly dragged up but I could tell he wasn't looking straight at me.

"What do I always tell you?" I asked.

Pony shrugged. I shook my head. "I know you know I want you to state in for me."

"That's you'll never walk out that door and not come back." I could just barely hear him.

"Do you think I'm a liar?" I asked

"Darry," I called. He turned around and looked at me. "We have to go out that back door. I promised Pony, that I would never walk out the front door and not come back. I don't want to break a promise to him."

Darry opened the door wider and nodded for me to walk. "Then don't break it."