Explain the significance of Ponyboy's words at the end of chapter 6: "That was his silent fear then--- of losing another person he loved. I remembered how close he and Dad had been, and I wondered how I could ever have thought him hard and unfeeling. I listened to his heart pounding through his T-shirt and knew everything was going to be okay now."

whatever is after like is what is being compared they are comparing bumping into you like they are scared to catch germs you have and to you being contagious

the father plays a very vital role in the life of the narrator in the story. the father is that person who may be physically absent but is also the one who just existed in the mind or the memory of the narrator. in the mind of the storyteller, his father during the time he was with their family was dutiful, orderly and straightforward. but when the narrator was asked who has always the final say, it would always be the mother. it is because of the father’s departure that made the authority of the mother waive and became questionable. the father’s leaving really made a big impact in his family’s lives. the father never set foot on land and he was more towards the lonely nature because as the story said he never acknowledged the existence of his family after his departure but it is implied to the reader that the reason why the father stayed and rowed nearby to maintain togetherness.