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Chapter 32

+ 32

"Soda," I said to him a couple days later at lunch in the hospital cafeteria, "have you talked to Steve?"

"Yes. We made up. I said I was sorry," Soda said, stabbing his salad.

"Then what's the matter?" I asked.

"One of my patients died today," he said.

"Oh I'm sorry," I said.

"That's what I told the family," he said.

"Who was it?" I asked.

"This five year old girl that had tuberculosis..." He said.

"I'm really sorry, So."

"It's fine. All I knew was that her name was Donna and her favorite color was yellow," he said.

"And that her favorite I Love Lucy episode was the freezer episode. And that her favorite book is the tick tock book. And she loved The movie Cleopatra," he said. He slammed his fork down and bit his knuckles.

"I don't get it how people die all the time and you take it," I said.

"I can't take it, Ponyboy. She didn't deserve to die."

"And neither does Steve."

"Steve has cancer... I want to save Steve."

"You will."

"I didn't save him last time!"

"Soda, you need to calm down," I said.

"I need my friend back," he said, wiping his eyes with the palm of his hands.

"Maybe you need a vacation."

"Maybe I need a vacation," he said, backing up in his chair.

"I need to go back to work."

*****

I told Darry what happened later that night and he decided that he had enough. He called the hospital to see if Soda has any vacation hours. Soda had weeks worth, and Darry decided to look through some maps.

"Where do you want to send him?" I said.

"Not anywhere near Asia. The war's over there. Maybe he should go to California."

"Or New York."

"Or Atlanta."

"Or Seattle."

"Or Chicago."

"Or Orlando," I said.

"We can afford it and he could use a break."

"I got it!" I said.

"What?"

"Mexico! He goes down there and he'll have a great time!"

"And he won't come back."

"Then I'll go with him, Dar."

"Look, we'll talk it over tonight."

We told Soda at dinner and he decided that he had indeed earned a vacation to Mexico but would only go under one circumstance: if I went. So that night, so much excitement overwhelmed me that I packed everything and shoved my bag in the corner of our bedroom. We were to leave next week.