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I watched Dallas. I watched the way his fingers swivelled between each other, and way his eyes squinted with a tinge of uneasiness behind them. I watched the way he stared the boys down, as he ushered them over the threshold of his door. As if he were sorry, regretful even.
Ponyboy was a wreck. His dishevelled hair curled behind his ear and stuck to the diminutive drop of blood on his throat. His hands trembled as he shrunk into himself, his arms wrapped around his body to keep himself warm. I couldn't imagine what was going through his mind at that moment. His best friend had killed a man, and he was there when it happened. I wanted to say something, give him just a glimpse of hope, but I was useless compared to Dallas. He knew what to do from the moment they walked in the door. Dallas could get rid of a bad situation just as easily as he could bring one in.
Johnny shuddered, almost in the same way as Ponyboy, but had a helplessness behind his eyes. Hell, we had all been in bad situations, but not even Dallas had killed a person before, let alone a Soc. I wanted to reassure them. Tell them it would go away. But I knew with a situation so dire they would not be able to get out unscathed. Not a greaser.
Johnny and Ponyboy walked in front of Dallas and I, down the stairs, and out the front door. We stood on the step for a few moments, Pony leaned against the railing and Johnny with his eyes closed. Dallas sighed and reached into his pocket, pulling out a packet of cigarettes. He offered each of them one, then myself, and lit them all with the lighter around his neck.
I took a puff of smoke into my lungs, then exhaled. I moved in toward Dallas and leaned my head against his arm, closing my eyes. I silently thanked the universe for Dallas, knowing that if this had happened without him, none of us would have known what to do. Not Soda, not Darry. Dallas may not have done too well academically, but he was one of the smartest guys I knew.
There was a few minutes of silence, each of us with our eyes glued to the ground brooding over the situation we were in. My eyes darted around a few times, before straightening my posture and clearing my throat.
"Just know that none of this is your guys's fault," I said, "It was self defence. That's all. It shouldn't have to go like this, but things around here just aren't fair for us."
Pony lightly nodded his head, but he didn't seem to take in what I was Johnny. Johnny gave me a smile, but the pain behind his eyes remained. I sighed and looked at the ground. "Dallas and I are here for you."
Dallas flicked his cigarette onto the porch and crushed it. He jerked his head toward the road. "You guys should go. It's dark. I'll come in a few days to check up on you, bring you food. Don't leave the church until then."
Without another word, Dallas opened up the screen door to Buck's and disappeared through it. I turned to Johnny and offered him a half-smile. I cupped his shoulder with my hand. If I couldn't offer them a solution, like Dallas, then I could at the very least give some comfort.
