He Was Mine, I Was His

& Found

    "Look at these two love birds," I heard when I woke up. 

    I shot up which woke Soda up, "Shit, the brownies!" 

    I got up and raced to the stove, not even checking to see who was in my house. Thankfully, the timer still had about a minute to go. Soda and I weren't asleep long. I looked up to see Two-Bit, Johnny, and Donna standing in the living room. I ran over and hugged Two-Bit. 

    "You're a lifesaver," I said. If he wouldn't have woken me up, those brownies would be toast. 

    "I don't know what I did but you're welcome," Two-Bit replied. 

    I looked over to Sodapop who was sitting up, holding his chest. I went and sat by him. I'm sure me jolting him awake didn't feel very good. 

    "I'm so sorry," I apologized.

    "I'm okay," Soda replied. 

    "The old man will be just fine Marilyn," Two-Bit joked. 

    "Oh shut up," Soda groaned. "What are you guys doing here anyway?"

    "We just got done sledding. You guys missed out on a good time," Johnny piped up. The timer went off. I got up and went to the kitchen and Two-Bit followed me. 

    "You didn't miss much," Two-Bit said. "But Soda, you did miss Cherry Valance drooling all over your brother."

    I giggled a little as I pulled the brownies out of the oven. Two-Bit reached over and tried to steal some but I slapped his hand away. 

    "You're kidding," Soda said, standing up. 

    "Nope. They even went down the hill together."

    "My brother with a Soc," Soda huffed. "I knew it."

    "She's real nice," Donna defended. 

    "She'll take good care of him Soda. You know that," I added. 

    "I know, I know."

    "How you feeling man?" Johnny asked Sodapop. 

    They all struck up conversation while I made sure the brownies were completely cooked. Then the phone rang. I looked up, scared to answer it. I walked over, took a deep breath, and answered. 

    "Hi, this is Marilyn," I greeted, trying to not sound so nervous since Soda was the only one that knew what was going on. 

    "Hello, this is First Sergeant Daniel Cuda. Is Elizabeth Berch there?" A man asked on the other end. My heart stopped. 

    "No," I replied, a lump forming in my throat. I made eye contact with Soda. "If this is about Charlie, I am his sister. I can pass the information along to Elizabeth."

    "It is about Charlie Rouse. I want to inform you that we have found him. He is in critical condition and is being flown back to Tulsa as we speak." 

    He continued to speak but my mind couldn't focus on that. I fell back against the wall. I was so relieved that he had been found but what if he didn't even make it to Tulsa.

    The sergeant continued, "I ask that you please relay this information to Ms. Berch immediately."

    "Um, okay," I replied, swallowing hard. I tried to remember everything he had said. "Do you know if he is expected to be okay?"

    "At this time, I do not know."

    "Okay, thank you."

    "You're welcome. Goodbye now."