What Love Is For: To Help Us Through It -- Chapter One
A/N- Hello everybody! This story is an ongoing prequel to the book, in Darry's POV. It's going to be a real story, unlike my last one. It takes place right after Mr. and Mrs. Curtis' funeral, and continues from there; I always wondered what it was like for Darry back then, when he was first learning how to run a family and deal with all his new responsibilities.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE don't forget to review, especially if you want me to continue this story! I love getting reviews! Also, suggestions are more than welcome!
Like my previous story, this is dedicated to my friend and beta-reader, Wizard-Of-The-Pen Phoebe. I couldn't have written this without her support. Thanks girl!
Disclaimer- I don't own, I don't earn, please don't sue me. I get a measly fifteen bucks a week for allowance, so there's no point anyway. Now, onto the story!
*
It wasn't until a week and a half after Mom and Dad's funeral that things started settling down. My parents' friends stopped dropping by with food all the time, and I had talked to Social Services, who agreed to let me keep Soda and Ponyboy so long as we behaved. Between Soda's massive energy and Ponyboy's absent-mindness, I knew that that was not going to be easy. The gang was still over all the time of course, but that was normal anyway. Before I knew it, it was Sunday night, two weeks since my parents had died. I was going back to work the next day, and Pony and Sodapop were going back to school. {A/N- IÕm not sure if Soda had dropped out before his parents died. I'm assuming he didn't.} It was eleven-thirty at night, and finally it was just my brothers and me in the house. Sodapop was in the kitchen, and Ponyboy was in the armchair reading a book.
"Um, Ponyboy?" I asked, slightly hesitant. He looked up from his book.
"Yeah, Darry?" he said in a neutral tone.
"You should be in bed," I told him, a bit more firmly. I still felt kind of awkward, telling him and Soda what to do. It made me feel like their— but I couldn't think of that without my chest being one massive hurt. "It's late, and you have school tomorrow."
Ponyboy sighed and laid down his book. "Do I really hafta go back tomorrow?" He looked at me, eyes pleading. I was surprised; he'd always liked school, like I had. God knew I'd have loved to be in college, instead of going back to work roofing the next day.
I sighed and said, "Yeah, you hafta. You've missed enough school. Come on, stop reading and get ready for bed."
Pony groaned, got up, and slouched into the bedroom. "Soda!" I yelled into the other room.
"Yeah?" he yelled back. "What are you doing? It's late, and you have school tomorrow. Get ready for bed!" I braced myself for a battle. Unlike Pony and me, Soda had always hated school.
Soda poked his head around the kitchen door and said, "I'm makin' a chocolate cake."
I raised my eyebrows and tried to fight off the memories of Mom and her cakes. I swallowed the lump in my throat and said, "At eleven at night? What on earth for?" Soda looked at me hopefully. "Breakfast? Chocolate cake? For breakfast?" I repeated. "Forget it. Mom would never-" Soda's face fell, and I tried to repress the memories. "I mean, with ham and eggs? It'd be horrible."
"Naw, that'd be tuff," said a voice from the doorway. I swirled; I hadn't seen Ponyboy standing there. He was smiling, for the first time in two weeks. Soda saw it and grinned at me. I couldn't resist.
"Well, I guess that'd be okay. It might get the two of you out of bed sooner anyhow. Speaking of which, I want lights-out in ten minutes. Got that, you two?" Inwardly I was shocked at how parental I sounded already. It was taking time getting used to. Ponyboy nodded and went back into his and Soda's room.
Soda, on the other hand, gave me a mock salute and said, "Yes, sir." I messed up his hair and went into my own room, suddenly exhausted. Lying there, in my bed in the dark, I thought, this isn't bad. I can do this parenting stuff; I just need to take it one day at a time. As long as I didn't think about my parents, I'd be fine. I rolled over and fell into a deep sleep.
*
A/N- Well, that sucked. But please review anyway! Should I continue this or not?? Thanks!
A/N- Hello everybody! This story is an ongoing prequel to the book, in Darry's POV. It's going to be a real story, unlike my last one. It takes place right after Mr. and Mrs. Curtis' funeral, and continues from there; I always wondered what it was like for Darry back then, when he was first learning how to run a family and deal with all his new responsibilities.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE don't forget to review, especially if you want me to continue this story! I love getting reviews! Also, suggestions are more than welcome!
Like my previous story, this is dedicated to my friend and beta-reader, Wizard-Of-The-Pen Phoebe. I couldn't have written this without her support. Thanks girl!
Disclaimer- I don't own, I don't earn, please don't sue me. I get a measly fifteen bucks a week for allowance, so there's no point anyway. Now, onto the story!
*
It wasn't until a week and a half after Mom and Dad's funeral that things started settling down. My parents' friends stopped dropping by with food all the time, and I had talked to Social Services, who agreed to let me keep Soda and Ponyboy so long as we behaved. Between Soda's massive energy and Ponyboy's absent-mindness, I knew that that was not going to be easy. The gang was still over all the time of course, but that was normal anyway. Before I knew it, it was Sunday night, two weeks since my parents had died. I was going back to work the next day, and Pony and Sodapop were going back to school. {A/N- IÕm not sure if Soda had dropped out before his parents died. I'm assuming he didn't.} It was eleven-thirty at night, and finally it was just my brothers and me in the house. Sodapop was in the kitchen, and Ponyboy was in the armchair reading a book.
"Um, Ponyboy?" I asked, slightly hesitant. He looked up from his book.
"Yeah, Darry?" he said in a neutral tone.
"You should be in bed," I told him, a bit more firmly. I still felt kind of awkward, telling him and Soda what to do. It made me feel like their— but I couldn't think of that without my chest being one massive hurt. "It's late, and you have school tomorrow."
Ponyboy sighed and laid down his book. "Do I really hafta go back tomorrow?" He looked at me, eyes pleading. I was surprised; he'd always liked school, like I had. God knew I'd have loved to be in college, instead of going back to work roofing the next day.
I sighed and said, "Yeah, you hafta. You've missed enough school. Come on, stop reading and get ready for bed."
Pony groaned, got up, and slouched into the bedroom. "Soda!" I yelled into the other room.
"Yeah?" he yelled back. "What are you doing? It's late, and you have school tomorrow. Get ready for bed!" I braced myself for a battle. Unlike Pony and me, Soda had always hated school.
Soda poked his head around the kitchen door and said, "I'm makin' a chocolate cake."
I raised my eyebrows and tried to fight off the memories of Mom and her cakes. I swallowed the lump in my throat and said, "At eleven at night? What on earth for?" Soda looked at me hopefully. "Breakfast? Chocolate cake? For breakfast?" I repeated. "Forget it. Mom would never-" Soda's face fell, and I tried to repress the memories. "I mean, with ham and eggs? It'd be horrible."
"Naw, that'd be tuff," said a voice from the doorway. I swirled; I hadn't seen Ponyboy standing there. He was smiling, for the first time in two weeks. Soda saw it and grinned at me. I couldn't resist.
"Well, I guess that'd be okay. It might get the two of you out of bed sooner anyhow. Speaking of which, I want lights-out in ten minutes. Got that, you two?" Inwardly I was shocked at how parental I sounded already. It was taking time getting used to. Ponyboy nodded and went back into his and Soda's room.
Soda, on the other hand, gave me a mock salute and said, "Yes, sir." I messed up his hair and went into my own room, suddenly exhausted. Lying there, in my bed in the dark, I thought, this isn't bad. I can do this parenting stuff; I just need to take it one day at a time. As long as I didn't think about my parents, I'd be fine. I rolled over and fell into a deep sleep.
*
A/N- Well, that sucked. But please review anyway! Should I continue this or not?? Thanks!