After Dally witnesses Johnny die, he slams his fist against the wall and runs out of the hospital. As Ponyboy wanders home, a kind man offers him a ride, and he gets dropped off at his house. Pony then breaks the news of Johnny's death to the Greasers and tells them that Dally ran out of the hospital. Ponyboy says that Dally is "gonna blow up," and Two-Bit comments, "So he finally broke...So even Dally has a breaking point" (Hinton 130). Suddenly the phone rings and Darry answers. After Darry hangs up, he tells the gang that Dally has just robbed a grocery store and is running from the cops. The Greasers run down to meet Dally in the vacant lot in hopes of hiding him, but when they arrive, the police have Dally surrounded. Ponyboy witnesses Dally pull an empty handgun from his waistband, prompting the police to open fire. After Dally dies, Ponyboy says,
"I knew he would be dead, because Dally Winston wanted to be dead and he always got what he wanted" (Hinton 131).
The reason Dally wanted to die was because he lost the only person he truly loved. Seeing Johnny die was a traumatic and painful experience. Dally felt like there was nobody in the world who loved him anymore and didn't think life was worth living. Dally was notorious for his tough-guy persona and lack of compassion, but the only person he truly cared about was Johnny. He viewed Johnny as his innocent little brother, and when Johnny died, he couldn't cope with the loss. Without any family support system to help him, Dally felt that dying was his only option to escape the emotional pain.
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