At the end of the chapter, when Soda and Darry come to the hospital, Ponyboy has a revelation about his relationship with Darry. He sees his oldest brother cry for the first time in years. It occurs to him that "Darry did care about me, maybe as much as he cared about Soda, and because he cared he was trying too hard to make something of me." Darry is terrified of losing another person he loves, and Ponyboy wonders "how I could ever have thought him hard and unfeeling." You can find more out at the GradeSaver link below: