Chapter 7: Summary

M&M does not return home the next week. Bryon and Cathy drive along the Ribbon throughout the week, trying to locate him, but they fail. Bryon is hired to work at a grocery store and he is determined to be diligent at his job. Mark also starts bringing home money but Bryon and his mother have little idea about its source and they choose not to ask.

One day when Mark and Bryon are driving along the Ribbon, they meet a drunk Angela. She confesses that she is unhappy in her marriage. The two boys invite her in the car, and they drive around, drinking rum. Eventually Angela passes out. Mike pulls out a pair of scissors and cuts off her hair. He has never really forgiven her for the debacle at the school dance where she planned an attack against Ponyboy Curtis which had ended up in Mark being injured and hospitalized. They eventually drop Angela off at her home without waking her up.

As Bryon and Mark are driving away, Bryon breaks down. To console him, Mark reveals that he is aware of where M&M might be and tells Bryon that he will take him to the place the next day. Bryon then asks Mark if he knows why his parents had shot each other. Mark says that he was at the center of the conflict. He had heard his mother telling his father that Mark was not his son. Then he remembers hearing gunshots. Mark does confess that he hardly feels bad about what transpired because he had a miserable time with his parents who beat him regularly. Subsequently, Bryon again brings up Charlie and wonders if Charlie would have stepped in to help them had he known he was about to be fatally shot. Mark tells Bryon that he cannot lead his life asking himself “What if?” at every stage. Bryon soon falls asleep.

Chapter 8: Summary

Bryon suffers from a terrible hangover the following day. He is a bit annoyed when Mark comes to pick him up to venture out in search of M&M. During the conversation Mark says something hurtful about Cathy. Bryon is angry and asks Mark if he wants to fight it out, but in the end, Mark apologizes, and a fight is averted.

Mark takes Bryon to a part of the town that has large houses. He stops in front of a house that has ‘Love’ written on a signboard. A girl who is on drugs greets them. Mark is familiar with the place. On being asked if she knows where M&M is, she tells them that M&M has not been around. The house itself seems to be inhabited by kids smoking pot and taking hallucinogenic substances. Bryon asks the girl if M & M was allowed to take marijuana. The girl replies that in that house people are free to do as they please.

Later, Bryon goes out on a date with Cathy but does not really tell her about his visit to the house. After meeting her, he goes to meet Terry who is not at home. While he is waiting for his friends to turn up, he is accosted by four people, among whom are Angela’s brothers, Curly and Tim. It is clear to him that they have come to take revenge for Angela’s hair being chopped off.

When Bryon wakes up, he finds himself bruised all over. He was beaten until he lost consciousness. Mark arrives and, seeing Bryon in his current state, resolves to take revenge. Bryon tells him that he wants no such thing. The cycle of violence for petty concerns continues without reason and now he can see things clearly. Mark does not pursue the Shepard brothers and stays beside his injured friend.

Chapter 9: Summary

Bryon goes to the hospital the next morning and receives stitches. It turns out that he has also broken his ribs. Bryon tries telling Mark that he does not feel resentful towards the Shepard boys and is not thirsting for revenge. He understands why they felt the need to attack him, but he wants this cycle of violence to end. His feelings echo that of Mike’s who harbored no anger towards the men who beat him up. Mark feels frustrated because he holds himself responsible for the attack on Bryon, after all he was the one who had cut Angela’s hair. Bryon, too, realizes that Mark is unable to understand things from his perspective and still yearns for revenge.

That night Cathy visits Bryon. He tells her that he loves her and mentions that he knows where they can find her brother. He promises to take Cathy there once he recovers. A few days later Cathy and Bryon go to that house and find M&M who is having a bad trip after taking LSD. They find out that M&M has been talking about jumping out of the window. M&M screams when Bryon and Cathy take him to the car. They finally drive to the hospital where Cathy’s father is waiting.

Chapters 7-9: Analysis

M&M’s disappearance evokes different reactions in Cathy and her father, Mr Carlson. While she is genuinely worried about her brother, Mr Carlson thinks this is just a phase, denying validating M&M’s emotions. Cathy has been sensitive to her brother’s troubles. Hinton deftly depicts how negating the emotional life of teenagers can have devastating consequences.

We also witness Bryon’s personal growth in the way in which he reacts to the attack he endures. While Mark cut off Angela’s hair as an act of revenge, Bryon is the one who is attacked for it. However, he does not seek vengeance after being beaten up by Angela’s brothers. Mark, for the first time, feels responsible for his actions and is not okay with his best friend being beaten up for something that he had done. All the same, he does not really understand Bryon’s point of view which argues against mindless violence. For Mark it is still the way of life. We see how apart the two friends have grown in their outlook and approach to life.

Bryon, who has changed his ways, now has a steady job and is in a mature relationship with Cathy. His feelings towards Cathy and the eagerness with which he helped her find M&M reveal Bryon’s sensitive side and that he has come far in life. He is no longer a boy who rejoices in petty fights but a person who can shoulder responsibility like an adult.