Chapter 6 summary

Dally relates to the two boys how worried the gang is about them. Driving back from Dairy Queen, they spot the church on fire. A group of school children stand around the church, Ponyboy and Johnny jump out of the car. As they arrive on the scene, one of the women shouts that some of the children are missing. They start to look for the kids,an older man, later identified as Jerry Wood, follows them. The boys quickly find the kids and hand them out through the window to safety. Dally is now on the scene and he warns the boys to get out because the roof is starting to cave in. After dropping the last kid out the window, Johnny shoves Pony out the window, and the roof collapses. Pony blacks out, but Dally goes back inside for Johnny. When Ponyboy regains consciousness, he hears sirens. He assumes that he is in a police car until Jerry Wood tells him that they are in an ambulance, Dally had a badly burned arm, but Johnny is in far worse condition, with a possible broken back and bad burns. At the hospital, doctors examine Ponyboy, and except for a few burns and a big bruise across his back. He is in the waiting room, worried about Johnny and Dally, when Darry and Soda arrive. When Pony looks at Darry he sees that he is crying. In that split second, Ponyboy realizes that Darry does care for him, that he was just trying too hard. After losing his parents, Darry fears losing another loved one.