My Knight in Shining Armor

Chapter VII

"Steve, have you written to my parents about all this? I feel bad for not havin' done it myself."

I was lounging in the DX, watching Steve and Soda work. I had nothing better to do, anyway. At least if I was there, I could help out when they needed an extra hand at the register.

"No, I haven't yet. Your parents are probably pretty worried—it's been over a month since your last letter."

I rested my chin on my hand. "Yeah, I know." I was silent for a moment. "I think I'm gonna leave."

"You know I don't like it when you go out by yourself."

"You don't get off for another few hours, and I ain't itchin' to be stuck here that long. Besides, the guy that caused all these problems in the first place is in jail. I'll be fine."

Steve sighed. "Alright. Just be careful, okay?"

"Okay, Steve."

I wheeled myself out through the main doors and pushed myself onto the sidewalk. The streets were surprisingly quiet for such a nice day. I got home with no troubles. I grabbed the mail from the mailbox before I went inside and started shuffling through the envelopes. I found one from Kansas, probably from my mother, so I went to my room to read it.

Penelope,

Your mother told me to write to you. She couldn't bear to do it herself at the moment. Your brothers joined the military and left to fight in the war. They broke your poor mother's heart. Anyway, we plan on coming down at some point now that we're all alone. Let your uncle know we'll be joining you sometime next week.

Sincerely,

Dad

My blood ran cold. I had four older brothers—Eugene, Kenneth, Gregory, and Rodney—and apparently, all of them joined the military. They didn't even get drafted or anything! What if they didn't come back? What if they got hurt in the war? What if the war changed them?

I started tapping my fingers on my thigh, just like I did every time. I threw a glance at the clock, and suddenly remembered my date with Dallas. I rolled myself to the bathroom and started to do my hair, giving it a slight curl. I only put on a little bit of makeup, but that was already more than normal—I usually only wore mascara.

I figured it didn't matter what I wore—I couldn't walk, anyway. So, I threw on a light pink blouse, and a matching white skirt. The skirt was kinda hard to get on, though, but I have to do it every morning. Once I was satisfied with my look, I wheeled myself out onto the front porch. I didn't want to have to maneuver through the door later.

I smiled to myself when I saw a familiar figure saunter over in his brown leather jacket. "You ready?" he asked.

"Yeah, I am," I replied with confidence.

Dally decided to be somewhat gentleman-like and pushed my wheelchair all the way to the Dingo. We both ordered the classic burger and fry combo, and a couple of Cokes. I laughed at all his jokes, and responded to his questions, but I remained pretty quiet.

"Cat's got your tongue?"

I pushed a blob of ketchup around with a French Fry. "It's just... well... my brothers all went to war."

"Like, with each other?"

I shook my head. "No, they went to Vietnam. They didn't even get drafted. I don't get it."

"How many brothers do you have?"

"Four older brothers. But my parents are supposedly coming next week 'cause they're all alone now. I haven't written to them in a while—they have no idea I'm paralyzed. What are they gonna think? Are they gonna make me go home?"

Dally was silent for a moment. "I'm sure it'll be fine. You're a tough gal... I'll bet your parents are, too."

I rested my chin on my hand. "I'm just worried."

"Does Steve know?"

I shook my head. "I only found out today."

"Alright. Just tell Steve tonight."

The pace of conversation picked up a little more after that. It was nice to get it off my chest. Dally pushed me home after a while. "You're a tuff gal."

"You ain't so bad yourself," I grinned.

Dally leaned over and gently kissed my cheek. "Goodnight, Penny."

"Goodnight, Dally."

I wheeled myself inside. Steve was picking up beer bottles that his father had left in the middle of the floor. "Hey Penny. How'd it go?"

I shrugged and bit my lip to conceal a smile. "I guess it went pretty well. Dally's pretty cool."

"Good to hear he's treating you right."

"Um, Steve... I've got to talk to you about something important."

Steve stopped what he was doing and turned to face me. "Yeah?"

I took a deep breath. "So... Eugene, Rodney, Kenneth, and Gregory all went to war."

"All four of them were drafted?"

I shook my head. "They all decided to join the military. They just got up and left one day. But now my parents are alone and want to come next week."

"We can accommodate them. Is that what you're worried about?"

"No," I said hesitantly.

"Penny, what is it?"

I took a deep breath. "I haven't written to them in a while. They don't know about... the injury. I'm worried they'll send me home when they find out."

Steve frowned. "That's a very real possibility. And you don't want to leave?"

"I've made better friends here than I have back home. If I leave Tulsa, I'll be leaving you, and Darry, and Sodapop, and Ponyboy, and Two-Bit, and Johnny—"

"And Dally?"

I sighed. "Yeah."

"Don't worry, Penny. We'll make it all work out. Just go get some rest."

"Alright. Goodnight, Steve."

"Goodnight, Penelope."

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Author's note
*me sitting in my room, contemplating why on earth this chapter exists*
I honestly didn't plan this... I have some things planned, like the main driving point for the sequel I'll eventually write, even though this story isn't anywhere close to done, but I mean... I'm making this up as I go, so that's fun. If any of y'all have any fantabulous ideas you want me to incorporate...

Your friendly neighborhood greaser, signing off...
Stay gold y'all ⭐️