one of them

twelve

DJ's POV

I ran inside and knocked on Sodapop's door until I heard him wake up. Then I ran to Darry's.

"Get up! Get up! Get up!" I screamed.

"What's goin' on? It's only 7:30. We're not late to work or anything."

I handed Sodapop the paper and Darry glanced over.

Teen boy, Robert Sheldon, stabbed in Tulsa Park

Underneath the title was a picture of the fountain with Ponyboy and Johnny's faces right in the center of the paper.

Both were at a loss for words.

"H-how did you know Ponyboy was in trouble last night?" Sodapop asked shakily.

"Gut feeling..." I muttered.

Sodapop and Darry both were unsure of what to do. There honestly wasn't much we could do. The door slammed open and we all looked over. "Have y'all seen the paper?" Two-Bit asked.

"We saw it." Darry said sternly.

"Dallas got hauled in this morning. Think he might know something, I guess." Steve continued.

"Holy shit..." I muttered.

"Apparently they're headin' down to Texas." Two-Bit followed. "I think I'm gonna go look for 'em."

I sat on the couch in disbelief. My brother was caught up in a murder case?

A couple days passed and nothing new has come. We learned about the case, but it seems as if Johnny killed him out of self-defense and Ponyboy was just an accessory.

I was still unable to comprehend all of it.

It was a Wednesday morning and I was unable to go to school. Apparently the Soc, Cherry I think, is tryna help us. Met Ponyboy at the drive in and wants to help.

The door slammed opened with all of us sitting there. "Jesus Christ, those cops are relentless."

Dallas.

"Dally, what's goin' on?" Steve asked.

"They found Ponyboy and Johnny?" Sodapop asked.

"Nah, I don't know anything. I dunno why everything that happens in this town is connected to me."

That fucking liar.

Sodapop went up to him. "Can you give this to Ponyboy?"

"I dunno where he is."

"Come on, Dal. I know you do. Please."

I thought Sodapop was just writing a letter to Sandy. He found out Monday morning that she moved to Florida. She's pregnant. With another guys kid. He's been dealing with life this week a little more than he should be. He looked stressed. I felt terrible.

Dallas hesitantly took the letter, but still denied that he knew where they were.

"I gotta head back to Bucks. Tryna get some food and I know he's got some stuff there."

He walked out the door just as quickly as he came.

I got ready and walked into the living room. Darry, Sodapop, and Steve had just left for work.

"Where you headin'?" Two-Bit asked.

"I have someone I need to talk to. Don't tell Darry I left. I'll be back soon. Okay?"

"Alright." He said silently.

I quickly made my way to Bucks and Dallas was behind the counter.

"Where is Ponyboy?" I asked aggressively.

"I don't know where they are, okay? I keep saying that."

"And I don't believe you." I said sternly. "They were here that night. I saw them. I let you lie about it, because I didn't know the danger they were in. Where are they?" I asked again.

He stared at me blankly. "I'm heading to see them in a few."

"I knew it! How could you lie about it to my family? To the cops? How dare you!" I screamed.

"I thought you said you knew?"

"I was pretty confident. I'm going with you."

"No, you aren't."

"Yes. I am."

He rolled his eyes and within a couple minutes, we were on the way to wherever they were.

"I've never been outta the state before." I muttered.

"We're not leaving the state."

"We're not? Where are we going?"

"Windrixville."

"Windrixville? Where's that?"

"About an hour out of Tulsa."

"Oh."

I still hadn't really left Tulsa, so it was a change, I guess.

The rest of the ride was silent. It was long and boring as well.

We eventually drove up this mountain and he stopped at an old church.

"What are we doing here?" I asked.

"They should be inside."

"Aw, poor kids." I muttered.

Dallas peaked through and saw them. He ran around the corner and I followed inside.

He went up to this blonde boy on the bench. "Hey, blondie. Wake up."

"Ponyboy!" I said in shock.

"Hey, Dal. Hey, DJ." Johnny said.

"DJ?" Ponyboy asked in shock.

I hugged Ponyboy tightly, knowing he was okay.

"Oh, my goodness! You're okay!" I exclaimed. "What in the world." I muttered.

"Are the cops lookin' for us?" Johnny asked.

"You guys hungry? I'm starving."

"You're starving? Try eating bologna for four days straight."

Dallas laughed. He focused his attention on Ponyboy. "I can't get over the- the blonde."

"Yeah, I know I look lousy."

I looked at Ponyboy's hair in shock. Sodapop and I had lighter hair. Like a honey blonde. Darry and Ponyboy had dad's darker hair. But Ponyboy's blonde wasn't like mine or Sodas. It was poorly bleached.

"Here, I got this for you." Dallas said.

"A letter? Who's it from?"

"The president." He said with a laugh. I rolled my eyes. "It's from your brother. Sodapop. Told him I didn't know where you were, but he didn't believe me."

He read the letter and I wondered what was in it, but I didn't ask.

He put it in his pocket and simply moved on.

We finally got in the car for some food and I sat in the back with Ponyboy.

Dallas ordered us some food, but I wasn't too hungry.

I finally spoke up. "Alright, guys. We gotta be real for a second. What's the long term plan? And if someone doesn't say something smart within the next five seconds, I'm turning y'all in."

"Turning them in? What the hell is the matter with you."

"That's alright, DJ." Johnny said. "We're gonna turn ourselves in."