PROLOGUE, from "The Rooftop":
Skittery shook his head. "We'se just lookin' for Anita. You seen her?"
All around the table were shaking heads and blank stares.
Sock took off her hat and rubbed her forehead. "I ain't seen her since this mornin'. Oh. No -- wait. I didn't see her this mornin'. The last time I saw her was yesterday, near 3 o'clock."
"You think she's OK?" Race asked.
"Sure. Sure, I mean, remember that one time she was missing for 4 days, then all a sudden she comes into the bunkroom, all like nothin' ever happened? This is prally jes' like last time..."
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Not Like Last Time.
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The Lodging House was hot, hotter than a stray dog on Fry Street in August. Kloppman had agreed to let the newsies leave all the doors open so that the air could circulate and hopefully cool down a little. Many of the newsies shifted uncomfortably in their sleep. The muggy air was heavy, and hard to breathe. Near the door that connected the girl's bunkroom to the boy's, on the bottom bunk, Martie frowned. She was dreaming, and her face seemed concerned. Her head whipped over to the other side, and her body followed. She began muttering, things like, "No, please no... don't.... no, don't... please, you can't..." She slammed onto her back, tears beginning to fall down her cheeks. "No, no, no!!" Her hands flew to her head as she jerked up. She sat there, sobbing silently, gasping for breath. Martie rocked back and forth, cradling her head. She calmed down some and lay on her bed, wide awake, still crying softly.
"Martie?"
She jumped at the voice. Itey kneeled beside her bed, a worried look on his face. Martie closed her eyes and exhaled. She was glad it was Itey. Since she had come to Manhattan 2 years ago, Itey had become as close as a brother. He knew more about her than anyone else did, including herself. They often slept together, side by side, drinking in the comfortableness that family provides. Luckily, Goosey and Oscar understood the strange relationship.
Itey lay down next to her on the bed, and asked, "What happened? I heard talkin', an' I thought it was Goosey... but den I realized that it was comin' from below her. I got down here, and that's when you woke up. Are you OK?"
"I... yeah. Ah, no... it... it was a nightmare..." Martie shut her eyes again and rubbed her face. "There was all dese people dere... jes shadows, or feelin's, like when you can't see a person, but you know dat they're dere, you can jes feel it. An' it was really pitch black, but every now an' there, a flash of red, like blood... an' then I could hear someone sobbin', and beggin' these...shadows...to stop hurtin' 'em. And then they screamed in pain, cuz they was bein' hurt so bad... An' I was beggin' 'em, too, cuz dis person, whoever dey was, was somebody I really loved, an' cared for... an' I couldn't do nothin' to help 'em... an' then there was jes' silence... an' I knew dey was comin' for me... an' I screamed an' tried to run, but I couldn't move, an' then I woke up... I was so terrified." Martie started to shake again.
Itey hugged her and tried to calm her down. "Whaddaya think it means?"
"Well, you know how, the pas' few days, Snoddy's been feelin' real sick, an' I ain' been sleepin' too good? Well, nobody remembers seein' Anita in the pas' few days... ah, I dunno. I'm just so scared, an' I don't even know why... I mean, it was just a dream, right?"
"Yeah, it was jes' a dream..." Itey reassured Martie, but in his heart, he wasn't as sure as he sounded.
}}i{{
Martie looked into the mirror. Her eyes were bloodshot, her skin was pasty, and her bottom lip was cracked and bloody.
"Jeez, you look terrible!" Tini giggled as she came up to the sink.
"Hey, shaddup, I had a rough night..." Martie knew that Tini was right, but didn't need anyone reminding her of it. She sighed and jammed her hat over her knotted hair.
She jumped out of the Lodging House with the other newsies. As usual, a few of them yelled greetings and jokes. Nothing seemed to be wrong, but her stomach felt uneasy, and it wasn't because she was hungry. Without meaning to, Martie fell behind the group. Snoddy came up next to her, walking with about the same attitude.
Martie turned to him and said, "Snoddy, las' night, I had a dream. I don' know what it means, but I t'ought dat maybe I should tell you..."
When she was done, Snoddy looked at her and said, "Well, I suppose that I know what you think it means, and I'm quite tempted to think the same... I just hope that we're both wrong..."
Skittery shook his head. "We'se just lookin' for Anita. You seen her?"
All around the table were shaking heads and blank stares.
Sock took off her hat and rubbed her forehead. "I ain't seen her since this mornin'. Oh. No -- wait. I didn't see her this mornin'. The last time I saw her was yesterday, near 3 o'clock."
"You think she's OK?" Race asked.
"Sure. Sure, I mean, remember that one time she was missing for 4 days, then all a sudden she comes into the bunkroom, all like nothin' ever happened? This is prally jes' like last time..."
}}i{{
Not Like Last Time.
}}i{{
The Lodging House was hot, hotter than a stray dog on Fry Street in August. Kloppman had agreed to let the newsies leave all the doors open so that the air could circulate and hopefully cool down a little. Many of the newsies shifted uncomfortably in their sleep. The muggy air was heavy, and hard to breathe. Near the door that connected the girl's bunkroom to the boy's, on the bottom bunk, Martie frowned. She was dreaming, and her face seemed concerned. Her head whipped over to the other side, and her body followed. She began muttering, things like, "No, please no... don't.... no, don't... please, you can't..." She slammed onto her back, tears beginning to fall down her cheeks. "No, no, no!!" Her hands flew to her head as she jerked up. She sat there, sobbing silently, gasping for breath. Martie rocked back and forth, cradling her head. She calmed down some and lay on her bed, wide awake, still crying softly.
"Martie?"
She jumped at the voice. Itey kneeled beside her bed, a worried look on his face. Martie closed her eyes and exhaled. She was glad it was Itey. Since she had come to Manhattan 2 years ago, Itey had become as close as a brother. He knew more about her than anyone else did, including herself. They often slept together, side by side, drinking in the comfortableness that family provides. Luckily, Goosey and Oscar understood the strange relationship.
Itey lay down next to her on the bed, and asked, "What happened? I heard talkin', an' I thought it was Goosey... but den I realized that it was comin' from below her. I got down here, and that's when you woke up. Are you OK?"
"I... yeah. Ah, no... it... it was a nightmare..." Martie shut her eyes again and rubbed her face. "There was all dese people dere... jes shadows, or feelin's, like when you can't see a person, but you know dat they're dere, you can jes feel it. An' it was really pitch black, but every now an' there, a flash of red, like blood... an' then I could hear someone sobbin', and beggin' these...shadows...to stop hurtin' 'em. And then they screamed in pain, cuz they was bein' hurt so bad... An' I was beggin' 'em, too, cuz dis person, whoever dey was, was somebody I really loved, an' cared for... an' I couldn't do nothin' to help 'em... an' then there was jes' silence... an' I knew dey was comin' for me... an' I screamed an' tried to run, but I couldn't move, an' then I woke up... I was so terrified." Martie started to shake again.
Itey hugged her and tried to calm her down. "Whaddaya think it means?"
"Well, you know how, the pas' few days, Snoddy's been feelin' real sick, an' I ain' been sleepin' too good? Well, nobody remembers seein' Anita in the pas' few days... ah, I dunno. I'm just so scared, an' I don't even know why... I mean, it was just a dream, right?"
"Yeah, it was jes' a dream..." Itey reassured Martie, but in his heart, he wasn't as sure as he sounded.
}}i{{
Martie looked into the mirror. Her eyes were bloodshot, her skin was pasty, and her bottom lip was cracked and bloody.
"Jeez, you look terrible!" Tini giggled as she came up to the sink.
"Hey, shaddup, I had a rough night..." Martie knew that Tini was right, but didn't need anyone reminding her of it. She sighed and jammed her hat over her knotted hair.
She jumped out of the Lodging House with the other newsies. As usual, a few of them yelled greetings and jokes. Nothing seemed to be wrong, but her stomach felt uneasy, and it wasn't because she was hungry. Without meaning to, Martie fell behind the group. Snoddy came up next to her, walking with about the same attitude.
Martie turned to him and said, "Snoddy, las' night, I had a dream. I don' know what it means, but I t'ought dat maybe I should tell you..."
When she was done, Snoddy looked at her and said, "Well, I suppose that I know what you think it means, and I'm quite tempted to think the same... I just hope that we're both wrong..."