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He was dead before he hit the ground. I stood there in shock, even knowing this was bound to happen eventually. I felt dizzy like I was gonna puke. I slowly started realizin' that my vision was becoming all hazy and then my ears became clogged. I tried to itch the itch on the back of my head trying to pretend I don't feel anything but then I realize I can't move my arms, or my legs, I was feelin' numb. My eyes became fuzzier and fuzzier by the second and I felt like I needed to cough but couldn't. I could hardly see or feel anythin' after a few moments then I hear someone yell, "Glory, look at the kid!" It felt like everything was going slowly or somethin' because the ground felt like it was hitting more painfully than it would've. I couldn't feel nothin' everything was just black, am I dyin'? No, I can't be dying no not yet! I couldn't think anymore, it was like my mind was being muffled by the sound of sirens and noisy noises that sounded like people yellin'. I fell asleep knowing I wasn't wakin' up anytime soon.
I woke up and shot up just to be settled back down into bed. "Sodapop is that you?" I ask not recognizing my own voice. It hurt to talk, it hurt to make any noise with my mouth made with air. I tried to sit back up just to be forced back down into the bed. "Ay, what gives?" I force out. Glory it hurt to talk, I just waited for an answer rather than continue asking. "No, it's not Sodapop, stay still or it'll make it hurt worse," The voice answered in an aggravated tone. I was confused, what was hurtin' cause I don't feel nothin'. My vision was becoming clearer, I moved my eyes around looking at my surroundings. I look at the person seeing that they're a nurse. I then realized I wasn't in bed, I wasn't at home, I was at the hospital. Why am I at the hospital, I mean I feel fine other than an itch on the back of my head that's beginning to annoy me. "Why am I in the hospital?" I manage to choke out. "Quit talkin' too it ain't gonna do nothin' but hurt your throat." The person replied. "If you must know you collapsed, you were transported to the hospital in an ambulance." That explains the siren noises in my head, must have been a lot of worried people too. I had a lot more questions to ask but didn't want to strain my throat any longer so I laid off. I watched the nurse scramble back and forth between different things in the room.
Table, IV, doorway and it just repeated for a good few minutes until we heard a knock at the door. I tried to look up to see who was coming in. As soon as the nurse opened the door two very familiar faces came barging through. "Sodapop! Darry!" I sort of shouted making my throat sorer. "Ponyboy you're awake!" Soda screeched. They ran over to the side of the bed and tried to hug me. I lifted my arms trying to hug them back only for the nurse to tell them no. I frowned. "Glory Ponyboy what happened to ya' we were all worried half to death!" Darry asked in his worried tone. "How long was I out?
I asked hoping id get an immediate response. "You've been out for around a week and a half, we were worried you weren't gonna wake up!" Soda laughed trying to make a joke which got a frown from Darry. "How ya feelin' Ponyboy?" Darry asked. "I feel fine rather than my throat hurtin' a bit," I reply. "Shhh! You're not supposed to be talking that much," the nurse interrupted. "Lay off I haven't seen these two in almost two weeks!" I barked back. The nurse rolled her eyes and exited the room. "Pone she right, if your throats itchin' you shouldn't be talking so much," Darry said agreeing with the nurse. I shrugged and tried to speak again but couldn't, it was just hot air coming out making my throat dry. "What's wrong? Spit it out Ponyboy," Soda said. I rolled my eyes and pointed at a water bottle across the room. It took Soda a minute before realizing. "Oh, you wanted the water! Okay," Sodapop got the water and brought it back to me. I opened the cap and started gulpin' that sucker like it was the last thing I was gonna drink. I was nearing the end of the bottle until I needed to cough, water probably went down the wrong pipe or somethin'. I quit drinking and brought my arm up to cough. I began coughing, 1 or 2 times at first until I started coughing more. "Ponyboy you alright?" Darry asked. I couldn't stop coughing. Cough after cough brought up mucus and blood staining the white blankets covering my legs. "Ponyboy! What's goin' on?!" Soda shouted with a hesitant tone. I look up, still coughing, and everything looked fuzzy. I was becoming lightheaded because I couldn't breathe. I watch Darry and Soda get wrestled out of the room as I feel something cover my mouth making me feel groggy, at least I ain't coughin' no more.
I woke up again, thankfully. I slowly opened my eyes to unveil a different room. I blinked a few times and looked around to see a whole bunch of new machines around me. I looked at my arms, both had needles in them. There was a thing on my mouth helping me breathe easier but the air smelled so clean it hurt my throat. I looked up at the door and see a nurse talking to a doctor. They look at me through the door and see I'm awake. They come in with clipboards and stand at the foot of the bed. "Hello Ponyboy, we're here to ask you a few questions. Blink once for yes, twice for no." I blink once so they understand. "Does anywhere on your body hurt or feel uncomfortable?" The doctor asked. I didn't even think about anything hurting so I thought if anything was, oh boy there was. My lungs felt like they'd been pierced through and my head was pounding. I blinked once and the doctor and nurse scribbled something down on their clipboards. "Does your chest hurt?" The doctor asked, I blinked once, once again. They both wrote something down again. "Does anything else hurt?" He asked again I blink once and look up trying to signal my head. The doctor caught on easily and asked, "Your head hurts?" I blink and try to nod. They scribbled stuff down and headed outside to talk. They went outside the room and started talkin'. I watched their mouths move trying to make out what they were saying but couldn't. I waited a few minutes before they came back into the room with a rather worried look on their faces. "Do you think you can breathe without the mask on hun?" The nurse asked. I blinked once so she came up to me and began taking the air mask off. When the mask finally came off it felt better to breathe air that wasn't through a machine.
"Ponyboy we have," the doctor gulped before continuing, "terrible news..." I sat there for a moment tryin' to think of what would cause the news to be so bad. "What is it Doc?" I ask, it felt worse to talk than before. The doctor hesitated for a moment, I knew this was going to be bad. "Ponyboy, you're...You're dying," the doctor said in great sadness. I sat there, trying to realize what the doc just said.
"No, I can't die... No no that can't be right I can't be dying... Johnny and Dally are already gone I can't die too..." I went on feeling the hot tears run down my face, "Ponyboy take a deep breath." The nurse tried to calm me down but she couldn't. "No I can't die, what about Darry and Sodapop, they need me right? Yeah, they need me so I won't die right? Right?! Two-Bit and Steve, they'll need me too sometimes, right? Yeah, I'm not dying too many people need me! My brothers need me, my buddies need me, and my coach needs me. A lot of people need me so I'm not dying yet!" I rambled. The doctor and nurse sat there listening to me go on about not dying with sad looks on their face. The Doctor nodded at the nurse, she signed and got up
and grabbed the mask again. "No, no, no! Not that thing again!" I practically screamed. It was too late, I was out like a light.
I woke up, again, feelin' weaker. I sat up a bit from the bed and saw nobody in the room, luckily that stupid mask was no longer on my face. Not as many machines were in the room anymore, but I guess that made sense since I was...dyin'. I fixed my pillows and sat up to be more comfortable.
I watched nurses and doctors and some people walk past my door. I waited for I'm guessing 10 minutes before someone came into my room, it was the doctor. "I see that you're awake now, how are you feeling?" He asked knowing the question anyways. "I feel terrible," I mumbled. The doctor nodded, "I'm afraid you only have around 2 weeks left." I nodded and sighed. "Do you think you can have my brothers come in?" I asked hoping he would say yes. "They have to come in anyway so they know..." he answered. I nodded and sunk into my pillows. The doctor exited the room, I guess he was going to call Darry.
Around an hour later I watched the door open, Darry and Sodapop come barging in with worried looks on their faces. "Ponyboy are you alright? You started coughin' a lot the last time you saw us!" Sodapop asked in a quick, worried tone. "No, I'm afraid he's not," the doctor said coming into the room. Darry and Sodapop's faces shot toward the doctors. "Well, what's wrong with him he seems fine to me," Darry asked. The doctor's face went pale and he looked towards me which Darry and Sodapop followed. I gulped and my throat went dry. I felt the tears form in my eyes and then run down my face. Darry and Soda rushed over to me. "Ponyboy what's the matter?!" Sodapop snapped. I opened my mouth to talk but no words come out, I didn't want to hurt them even more. "I...I," Was all I could manage to make out. "It's alright Pony take your time," Darry said. I looked up at the doctor with tears beginning to flow and he nodded. "Darrel, Sodapop please come out into the hall for a brief moment." They nodded and went into the hall with the doctor following behind them.
I watched the silhouettes of my brothers in the hallway and then heard some mumbling. Moments later I hear a loud bang against the door making the glass rumble a bit. I watch Darry storm into the room with a crying Sodapop following behind him. "You can't be dyin' Ponyboy, you just can't!" Darry shouted which echoed through the open doorway to the hall. "Ponyboy..." Is all that Soda said before he broke down. I could feel the tears gushing. I looked at Darry, I could see the tears in his eyes but he refused to let them fall. I reached my arms out for them. They came out and I used what strength I had to pull them into a hug. I was cryin', full-on crying. I didn't want to let go of them and it seems like they didn't want to let go of me. Darry broke us apart a few moments later, I could see the tears beginnin' to fall. "I love ya both," I said wearily. "We love you too Ponyboy," Darry said back and Sodapop nodded.
The doctor looked over and then at the clock. Soda and Darry nodded. "We'll be back tomorrow so you best be awake by then!..," Soda tried to say in his Sodapop way, but it just didn't sound like him. I nodded at him and they went out and my tears began dryin', I ain't makin' two weeks.
As the days went on the gang came and visited me. Soda and Darry were there every day. Two-bit and Steve came didn't come every day but they were there whenever they could. Cherry came here or there, I don't blame 'er though she probably has a life as a soc. Every day it was getting harder to wake up, I felt weak even blinkin'...
As I woke up, I can feel that this is my final day here in Tusla. I felt dizzy and my entire body felt heavy to shift around. I looked around for the clock, 5 am, I won't be going back to sleep. I hit a buzzer thing to alert the nurse who came scrambling in a few seconds after pushing it. "What's wrong sugar, you need something?" She asked, "I could use a pencil and some paper." I say then she nods and reaches into something and takes what I needed out. I thanked her and she said no problem and left, I didn't tell her how I felt because there's no use in fretting if I'm gonna die anyway. I flip through the paper pad she gave me and started writing stuff down, I'ma leave a note. I scribble something down before ripping the paper and throwing it on the floor.
I looked at the clock every few minutes; 6, 6:30, 7. Visiting hours start at 10 so I have time. A few more hours pass by and I've finally finished, it wasn't anythin' special just to let them know. I buzzed for the nurse again and she came in. "Give this to my oldest brother whenever my time comes to an end," I say and her face goes pale and sad looking but she nods and takes the note. I rested into my bed knowing I was gonna die here soon anyway.
Tick, tick, tick, the clock was getting annoying until I heard the door open. "Hey Pony..." Sodapop said with Darry following behind him. "Hey.." I choked out. Soda sat on one side of the bed while Darry sat on the other. I smiled, at least they were the last thing I was going to see. We all sat in silence until "how's the food here?" Soda asked trying to lighten a million-pound mood. "Kind of disgustin'. like school food ya' know?" I say. Soda chuckles a little but then frowns. "Hey whys that thing startin' to beep slower?" Soda asked. I hadn't even noticed that my heart had been beginning to slow. "Hey, I love you both, I'm glad you were my brothers..." I said before I closed my eyes to welcome my death.
I heard someone shout my name and then I felt warmth. Then finally...Complete silence...