Here it is you guys. The very last chapter to Fire and Gasoline. I started to cry when I wrote the last sentance. I love this story it has taught me so much about writting and who I am as a writter. I kinda left the ending open a little bit just incase in the future I want to add more to the story or maybe even make a sequal, but for now i would like to say thank you so much for reading my story. For the last time, this is Karley, This is Fire and Gasoline and Mrs. Hinton owns these boys :'(. Love always ~Karley

My mind raced, just one more street and we'd be home.

We arrived back in Oklahoma City around mid-night so we stayed at a place in town for the night. We'd hitched our way back to Tulsa and so here we were. It was close to twelve so we had decided to walk past the Curtis residence and see if any one was home but it didn't seem like it, we walked for a good hour back to my house. It was a Saturday so Steve and Sodapop shouldn't be working. Neither should my dad, and who knew about Darry.

My head felt funny and my sight foggy, I stopped on the dirt road leading to my house, Dallas stopped to look at me.
"What are you doing?" He asked.

"I…. I just… cant." I stood looking past him to the open field. "What am I supposed to say? 'sorry I was too much a baby to deal with my own problems?"

"Karley, they are just going to be happy to have you back." I looked at him. He was right, or at least I hopped he was.

I threw myself into his arms, our lips locking. I tangled both my hands in his dark fluffy hair. His hands made their way under my shirt resting on my hips.

"I have to go." I breathed out. He kissed my ear. "I'm coming with." I smiled.

He wrapped his arm over my shoulder, as we walked I could faintly hear a horse's neigh.

"I think your pony knows you're home." A grin spread like wild fire across my face. Storm came galloping towards us full speed. I broke free from Dally's grasp and jumped over the fence, stormed slowed down.

He snorted at me shaking his mane, he slowly walked towards me. I walked into his muscular neck wrapping my arms around him. Oh how I missed him. After storm and I's reunion Dallas, Storm, and I, all walked down the fence towards my home. No one said anything, but the quite was almost relaxing. Almost.

To my surprise everyone's cars were parked in front of the house even my father's truck and Darry's.

"I wonder what's going on." Dallas threw the butt of his smoke on the ground. "Let's go find out."

I reached out to grab his arm. I leaned on my tippy toes and kissed him, just for good luck.

For the first time in almost a month and a half I turned the door knob to my front door and pulled.

Eight pairs of eyes landed on one single person. Me. everyone stopped what there were doing. Only a sigh from labored breathing was heard. My eyes drifted from person to person, there was looks of joy, relief and just plain anger. I felt Dal give me a nudge from behind pushing me further inside. I couldn't seem to shake the eyes, but my dad's seemed to be the most urgent.

I didn't know what to say but I had to come up with something.

"Hi." 'Hi?! That's the best I could do?!' I angrily thought to myself.

"Well hi yourself." A voice I was glad to hear. Two-bit cracked a grin he seemed to be the only one genuinely happy to see me. "Long time no see." He sounded happy. He got up from the place he had been sitting on the ground and walked over to engulf me in a very strong hug. After releasing me he gave Dally a pat on the back.

"Glad to see you two back in one piece." "me too." I admitted shyly.

Johnny was next he just stayed where he was at but gave me a smile that told me he was glad we were home too. My eyes ran right over Paige I hardly recognized her. Her hair was down and she was wearing a brown tank top. But her lip was puffy and her right eye seemed to be a bit blackened. I smiled at her but she didn't return it. Instead she looked at my dad he was debating what do. It was Darrys voice who broke the silence.

"Ponyboy why don't you take everyone outside, while the grownups talk." Sure." Pony mumbled back. Most everyone left except Darry, My father, Dallas, and I. Dally had tried to make a run for it but instead ran into Darry.

"Now would you to please like to explain to me where in god's name have you too have been!?" I wasn't used to seeing my dad mad but he was pissed!

We all sat around the kitchen table. "We went to Illinois." I said as gently as I could. "What the hell made you think that was a good idea?!" He huffed. "You know the night after you left all of us were sitting in the living room, Darrel here," He jabbed his thumb at Darry. "Comes in and tells us Dallas hasn't been seen all day either!" I hated his voice angry.

"We called the police, and you know what they told us?" I stayed quite knowing I wasn't supposed to answer. "They tell me, kids run away." My father's eyes were beat red.

"Dad, I" "No! Don't you dare apologize. You stole money from me, you worried everyone sick." He let out the breath he was holding.

"You know, the least you could have done was leave a note saying you were safe." He slammed his hands on the table shoving himself out of the chair knocking it over. He threw the front door open.

I felt a tear make its way down my cheek.

"You know kiddo I thought you were smarter than that." Darry confessed. "Your ma'ma left, day or two after you did. Stoll some money from your dad too." He paused "guess that must run in the blood."

Ouch that one hurt.

A few more tears trickled down. "This is all my fault." I whispered to myself.

"Good to see you can use your head." We stayed quite for a moment. I had started to regain my composer.

"Ponyboy broke up a fight yesterday; it was between an older soc's and a little girl protecting her sister's rep."

"Paige." I whispered. "Right, the older girl was tellin' everyone you got knocked up and ran away with Dal." Darry saw the look on my face and smiled. "Trust me the other girl looks a lot worse than Paige." I smiled I was proud of my baby sister. Darry smiled back.

"Hey I think you might want to go check on your dad." I nodded Darry stood up and extended his arms. I walked straight into them, his hug was tuff and kind of reminded me of hugging a wall, but the steady beat of his heart let me know he was real. His muscular arms released me.

"Good to have you back kiddo." He ruffled my hair so I smiled back.

I walked off the front porch in search of my dad. I could hear Darry's voice behind me, he must have been chewing Dallas out.

I found my father stroking Thunder who was still in his stall.

"Daddy." "I could handle your ma'ma leavin' again, but not you." I let my head fall.

"I thought I lost you darling." He walked out of the stall "And your old dad just can't handle that." I wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged tight. We were both crying.

"I aint ever gonna' leave you again. I promise." He whipped a tear from under my eye.

"Go talk to you sister, princess. She really needs you." I kissed his cheek.

"I love you daddy."

"Love you too baby." I turned and jogged out. I still heard shouting from the house, it was lauder then it was before. I entered cautiously, not overly surprised to find both guys on their feet shoulders back, chests puffed, both were breathing hard. I pushed myself in between them.

"Hey knock it off you too." I turned my back to Darry and looked at Dallas. I had learned better then to mess with him when he was in a dangers mood. I turned around.

"Come on Darry." I pushed Darry towards the back door deciding he was the safer one to mess with.

He reluctantly made it outside where the rest of the group was sitting on the back patio, probably gossiping.

"What happened in there?" Asked Steve. I didn't answer not knowing myself.

"Paige can I talk to you?" She released Ponyboy's hand and stood up. "Yeah." She answered gently.

We walked over to the fence surrounding our property.

We stood there awkwardly not saying anything.

"I heard about your fight, kid." Knowing good and well she wasn't anything of the sort.

She gave a soft smile. "I guess."
"Looks like you got some off my fighting skills huh?" I asked pretending to blow off my figure nails and whip them on my shirt. She laughed.

"Yeah I guess so." She responded still smiling a little. She had grown up since I left. Physically I could see it but I could also see it in her attitude the old Paige would be freaking out on me, and so would I. It only hit me then just how much we both had changed.

We sat there smiling and talking she told me everything about when I was gone and how she'd won in a barrel race and how all the boys wouldn't stop worrying and how daddy had cried.

"Paige I really am sorry." she sat beside me and looked up. "I know. "

We sat on the stairs looking out into the pasture. "How?"

"You came back." I smiled at her and hung my arm around her shoulders. After a few moments she looked at me. "You have a lot of apologizing left to do." And I knew right where to start.

"Sodapop, can I talk to you?" He and Steve were sitting on the fence railings. Soda gave Steve a look telling him to leave, so he did.

I sat up on the fence right were Steve had been.

"Soda, I'm sorry about everything. I don't," I let out a breath. "I don't know how I can ever make it up to you."

He gave a breathless laugh. He sat there moment thinking, his eyes foggy. "What makes you think I would forgive you?" He starred at me dead serious.

"Because you're you." His jaw clenched. "Maybe I don't want to be me."

"Sodapop," I was unsure of how to answer. I looked over at him, he returned it.

"Why'd you choose him?" That was the question that was bothering him. "I mean why him over me?"

I stared down at my worn out boots. I thought long and hard about what I was going to say. "Because you deserve better."

He grabbed my hand and squeezed it. "You deserve better."

I paused for a long time before replying. "With him it's different. I like you soda, I don't like Dallas, its, it's a thousand times stronger and in a million different ways. Me and him make up a sick punch line. But somewhere I just know it's right." He nodded his head trying to understand.

"Well I'm going to go talk to everyone else. Thank you Sodapop."

"For what?" We both slid off the fence.

"For not hating me." I wrapped my arms around his neck and squeezed. He squeezed back. "Never."

Many of the boys hugged me and told me how they were glad I was back, Steve was a bit tougher but I got him to smile which I figured was a good step for us. Both Dallas, Darry and my dad had come back, so we all sat outside talking. I told everyone what Dallas and I had done and where we'd been, even about Mrs. Boggle. I left out the pregnancy scare though.

Everyone told me about things that had happened while we were gone. Tim Shepherd and his crew got there ass's whopped by the Tigers, so there would probably be an upcoming fight. Storm had been cranky the whole time I was gone and I learned why Paige seemed so grown up.

"He kissed her, right on the kisser!" cracked Two-bit. Pony and Paige were Fire engine red and now sat awkwardly next to each other. I winked at them but decided to save them from further embarrassment.

"Can't say I didn't see it coming." I would bother Paige about it when we were alone later.

The sun had slipped past the horizon and the stars were starting to shine.

"That's one thing that didn't change." I laid back, resting my head on the grass. "What?" asked soda.

"The sky." They smiled at my simpleness. School started soon and the fair was ending, I knew it was going to be hard to get back into the swing of things.

"Alright kidos. 'Bout ready to head?" asked Darry yawning. "Darry tomorrows Sunday you don't work do you?" "Nope I don't work most Sundays." He replied.

"Soda, Steve you?"

"Not till later in the evening why?"

"We'll go camping down at the lake!" my voice excided. "Come on! We can have a camp fire and sleep in tents and sleeping bags!"

Everyone's eyes grew big with excitement.

"Come on Dar please!" Pleaded Sodapop." "Yeah Darry please!" whined Two-bit.

Darry chuckled. "Sounds good to me, but we have to make sure its ok with Mark." Are eyes all shoot to my dad who cocked an eyebrow.

"Am I invited?" "No duh dad." I smiled at him and he returned it. "Alright then let's get packing!"

Almost everyone, Dallas and Two-bit excluded, did their jobs packing. Johnny was in charge of pillows, Paige food, and so on. We had everything packed into our truck, but with all the stuff we were a few seats short. Paige, Sodapop, and myself rode Dalton, Storm and Mickey mouse over to the lake.

Everyone found there place to sleep. We were equipped with two tents one fitting 2 and the other 6. My dad and darry offered to sleep in the bed of the truck seeing as how they didn't want to deal with Two-bit and the multiple helpings of beans he had.

"Don't worry bout us kids, we can watch the stars." My dad rubbed my head messing up my hair; I combed my fingers through it trying to fix what I could.

Not too long after people began drifting off. First my dad, then Darry, then Johnny, Steve, and Sodapop. All four of us sat next to the dying fire.

"Kar we're going to go on a quick walk." Paige told me as she dusted the rocky sand off her shorts.

"Will do, be back soon though k?" I asked.

"Oh and ponyboy." He loked back at me. "Don't you be getting to frisky with my baby sister ya hear?" His face and ears went red. Paige also turned a dark shade of pink, Pony nodded and they walked hand in hand down the shore. I sat there for a bit twisting little piece of Dally's hair in-between my two figures. His head rested against my shoulder.

"What are you thinking about?" My fingers intertwining through his hair.

"Why do you talk so much?" He rumbled a low laugh. I leaned in and kissed his lips gently.

"I don't always talk." I smiled. "mmmhhh" He slumped down on the ground. I laughed

"Prove it." I started kissing him keeping my hands locked onto his hair. I pulled a little asking him to kiss deeper. Are lips together, know knowing the other moves. It was funny really how every time I kissed him it seemed like the first, but I would always worried it would be the last.

"I love you Dallas Winston."

Our eyes locked together. And for the first time I didn't a see foggy mess. I saw a kid scared out of his mind. After what seemed like an eternity he smiled and brought our lips back together.

I didn't matter how many times I kissed him, it would never be enough….

:') Thank you for reading as always, read and review. Thank you. ~Karley