𝑀𝑦 𝐻𝑒𝑎𝑟𝑡 𝑆𝑘𝑖𝑝𝑝𝑒𝑑 𝑎 𝐵𝑒𝑎𝑡 🌻 Johnnyboy One Shots

Hospital

eyy The Neighbourbood

word count: 1086

status: edited

Johnny's POV
It was too bittersweet to think about, yet the images of Ponyboy raced through my head. I spent a lot of time contemplating what would happen if Ponyboy met the end of his life saving me from that church, if I was the culprit of his brothers' sadness... what would happen?

I admitted feelings to Pony. It was probably a big mistake. But something pushed me, and it came out and let to the most unpleasant of events. I knew there was love, with all the risks... but part of me wanted something better for Ponyboy.

Whenever I thought of his face, I wanted the tables to turn. I wanted to be the one that saved him. I wanted to be the one that kept him from the fire, that told him to run and to remember what he saw there. The things I needed him to see, the things I felt for him.

Sodapop rustled through the grass. "Hey, Johnny." his restless voice greeted.

"Hiya, Sodapop. How's it going?" I stood up from the bark of the tree.

"I was on my way to see Pony." he shared, laying a hand on my shoulder. "I figured he'd want to see you, so I'm bringing you along."

"Ah, yeah, of course." I strolled down the concrete with Soda.

"You're welcome over anytime, y'know." Soda peered at me, grinning generously. "We love having you over, Johnnycake."

I felt a small smile grow on my face, and suddenly I was unaware of how remarkably kind the Curtis family truly was. "Oh, I couldn't, but if you insist on having me over that would be a pleasure."

Sodapop chuckled, "It's our pleasure too."

-

Soda and I went up to Pony's floor, and when the elevator dinged, the doors opened to reveal Darry's troubled eyes.

We congregated in Ponyboy's room, where monitors were beeping and keeping him stabilized. My nerves were uneasy, and my head was not in the best of places, but I was still breathing.

"Come on." Soda murmured, bending a hand down to Ponyboy's head and stroking his hair. "I miss you, kiddo."

I sat at Pony's bedside, my hand tracing over the edges of the table.

Deep down, I was still wondering what part of me would be left if the boy in front of me could no longer be alive. I wondered for his brothers, for the gang, for everything outside of my understanding of the real world. I wondered if nature would allow him to die, if nature would take him from me, and if his books, memories and all the wonders in his head left me.

Nothing came up when I wondered for myself, when I thought about what I was to become of this. The monitor then beeped a peaking noise, and I blinked.

Soda and Darry moved from the doorway for the doctor to make his way around. I was asked to leave, and probably in the most gentlest of ways.

My final thought; in one small motion, I took Pony's pale hand and brought it close to my lips, breathing in and placing a tender kiss, all of my worries placed aside for this one moment.

-

Sodapop offered me the bed as soon as we reached the porch. I thanked him, but insisted I would like the couch.

Darry asked about my future with Ponyboy. I sat with no ill feeling, and Soda just used a small laugh to buy his way out of the conversation.

I couldn't say much about that. I was so delighted to hear the question, but I knew Ponyboy was younger and less... mature for certain things. I wasn't going to bring that up though. It was kind of sensitive talk.

"He loves nature. Books, too. A lot of people would say I need that kind of passion in my life. They're right." I smiled softly. "He's my best friend, and after Dallas, the closest thing I have to a loving relationship is with Ponyboy. In the end, I want nothing but happiness for him. I think that's where I found myself in love."

After we ate dinner, Darry was kind enough to take us out for errands. I wasn't really familiar with errands as much as I knew places around the town, but this was excitingly new and comfortable. Some of the tasks bored Sodapop -- like groceries -- so he tried to distract himself with asking about his brother. Mostly personal questions.

"Where did he take you out on your first date?"

"We tried to sneak around."

Soda grinned. "What?"

I gave him a weird look, soon my cheeks burning. "O-oh. No. Not like that. I swear."

He snickered. "Okay then."

"Dally took the two of us to a drive-in one night, but he got into a fight with Tim, so we stayed in the car. Then we saw this sensual scene on the screen and we laughed at it, but it somehow made us genuinely interested in each other. He told me he felt weird. I said the same, and we brushed it off, but after a few days, the feelings just never seemed to leave. Ponyboy was out of school one day, and he met me in the lot to come clean. Everything he felt was everything I felt."

"Wow, good for you two." Soda smiled playfully. "I'm having a long talk with him when he gets home someday."

-

Everything went by so fast, like a shower of events just washed over me, and suddenly I woke up on the couch.

There was a knock on the door, a stiff knock. I rushed to my feet and opened the door.

"Ponyboy?" I gasped, my spirits elevating as my chest pounded in joy.

"We're home." he cheered, bringing me into a long embrace. "We're here, Johnny."

"Alright, you two." Soda laughed, squeezing out of our small commotion.

"Is this some dream?" I chuckled, brushing Pony's autumn brown locks out of his face. "Are you real?"

"You sound like Dallas." he grinned. "I'm real. Are you real?"

I shook my head, keeping my palms around his cheeks as he murmured a small "sorry I sound like Dallas." I sighed. "I'm probably not even alive to see this."

"Oh, you shouldn't say that." Ponyboy teased, placing a kiss on my cheek. "You are more alive than I've ever seen. I'd take risks just to see you this alive any day."

How'd ya like this one?