AN: Thank you all so much for your kind words. I appreciate the reviews I received! I hope you all enjoy the next chapter.
The Pessimist's Tree - Chapter 2
"The true meaning of life is to plant trees under whose shade you do not expect to sit"
- Nelson Henderson 1860
The sun began to leak through the windows of the lodging house alerting of a change from night to day. Skittery was up as soon as the first beam made its way through. He normally wasn't one to wake so easily but today would be his first day back on the job. It had been an agonizing four weeks since his debacle in the park. After his third day in the seclusion he thought for sure he would kill himself. The shear boredom he felt from being cooped up had made him bitter (more than usual.) He was sure he had offended at least every newsie in the Manhattan Lodging House at least once...not to mention Kloppman. He was ready to move again and be out in the daylight.
He waited impatiently on the stoop of the lodging house as the other newsies began to make their way out onto the streets. He wasn't waiting for anyone in particular but something wouldn't let him go off alone. He knew that some of the fear from the day he was mugged was still lingering. He hoped for his sake that it would erase itself soon. He walked by himself amongst the crowd of newsies. That was how it was usually though. He walked amongst them but never with them. He was friends with them but he tried to remain as unemotionally attached to them as possible. There was no point in getting close to something that you would eventually lose and to Skittery it was a fact that you always lost those that you were close too.
He reluctantly went off on his own. He had wanted desperately to tell both Mush and Blink yes when they had offered to sell with him but he wouldn't let himself. He headed off to his part of Central Park. He felt the apprehension build in him as he neared the area he had been mugged. He pushed the fear aside and began calling out the headlines.
By midday he had most of his papes sold. He normally would have headed off to Tibby's to meet the other newsies but he didn't feel much like socializing. He rested on a bench staring off at the different varieties of people who made their way through the park. He tried to remain alert. Every sound seemed to make his heart beat faster. The sounds were getting to him as flashes of the day he was beat and mugged began to fog his vision. He put his head in his hands trying to push away the nauseating feeling that was pulsing through him. When he felt a hand on his back he instinctively grabbed it and twisted it. He heard a small scream that brought him back into reality. He shook his head for a moment as he starred at the face of the woman whose wrist he still held in his hand.
"You…I mean I'm sorry" He let go off her quickly. He watched as she began to rub her wrist with her hand. "I didn't mean too…are you hurt?"
"It's okay - I will be fine. Are you alright though?" She asked with a look full of concern.
Skittery felt a sudden sense of guilt wash over him as he saw red fingerprints form around the girls wrist. He looked back up at her.
"Yeah I'm okay."
"I'm glad to see you have healed up nicely. I worried about you." The girl said casually as she slid on to the bench and motioned for Skittery to do the same. He felt extremely uncomfortable but it only took one glance at her wrist before he felt obligated to stay and chat with her for awhile.
"Um yeah… it took me awhile though. Thanks for helping me that day." He said as he pulled himself next to her.
"No problem." She said with a smile.
Skittery studied her. This was the girl he had been having non stop dreams about for the last month and now she was right in front of him. She was wearing simple clothing nothing like the lace number she was wearing in the dream. Her dull, brown skirt covered a pair of well worn boots. Her white shirt was no longer fresh and new but looked as if it had been washed often. He looked back up at her face. Small wavy ringlets circled around her head but he could see that the mass of her auburn hair was pulled into a messy bun. Her pale skin was as he had remembered it in the dream. Her freckles traced the rose color of her cheeks. He knew that he was staring and that she knew it but he didn't stop. He was intrigued by her. He moved onto her eyes. That was the only part of his dream that he couldn't remember. Were they brown or were they blue? He had wondered that often. His breath was taken away when he realized that they were neither. In fact they were a shade he had never seen before.
"You have beautiful eyes." He suddenly blurted out. He started to blush and then mentally beat himself up for being attracted to the beauty that sat next to him.
"Thanks. I'm told they come from my mother." She said with another smile.
"I haven't ever seen anyone with violet eyes before." He said still staring intently at them. They were captivating. He knew then that his dreams hadn't been wrong she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. This only made him more uncomfortable. It wasn't that he wasn't attracted to women…he was. He had just always had managed talk himself out of acting upon his attraction. She was different somehow. She mesmerized him and he felt a sort of warmth that seemed to emanate from her. He wanted to be around her. He wanted to talk to her. He wanted to tell her why he freaked out a few moments ago and most of all he wanted to be able to feel her touch. He wanted to hold her hand. He wanted to kiss her.
He stood up suddenly letting his reason get control of him again.
"Well I gotta go… papers to sell and stuff…ya know. I um, am sorry again about your wrist…I'm sorry I didn't get your name." He said quickly. He mentally smacked himself again. He didn't want to know her name. He didn't want know anymore about her. The less he knew the better.
"Charlotte and you are?" She said holding her good hand out with a smile.
"Josiah Alexander Adams but, um most people call me Skittery. It's my newsie nickname." Now he was really beating himself up. Had he really just blurted out his full name to a girl he hardly knew? What was wrong with him?
"Well Skittery I hope to see you around." She smiled. Skittery felt his knees start to weaken. Why did she always have to flash her gorgeous smile?
He watched as she walked away. He felt a sudden emptiness fill him as her warmth disappeared. He had never felt like this before. He shook his head and started to work on selling the rest of his papers.
He was distracted by thoughts of her. He kept picturing her. He saw her striking eyes and beautiful smile. He replayed their conversation. He felt like a fool each time he did. She had said very little. He had kept the conversation going but only after he had stared at her for what seemed like hours. She probably thought he was a pervert or something.
He tried pushing the thoughts away as he made his way back to the lodging house. What did he care what she thought of him. "You're not going to fall in love. Listen to yourself. Fall in love. You have seen the girl twice and you are all ready talking about falling in love. Pull yourself together." He reminded himself out loud.
"You okay there Skittery?" Jack asked as he walked up the lodging house steps behind the boy who had been talking to himself.
Skittery jumped but nodded and pulled himself into the building.
Jack glanced down at the other newsies who were behind him. He sent them a silent glance.
"So what's eating him?" Mush asked as they all sat on the stoop of the lodging house.
"Don't ask stupid questions. You know we know as much as you do." Jack said rolling his eyes.
"What did you decide to take Skittery's place as grump for the night?" Race asked sarcastically. Jack sent him a warning glance.
Crutchy sensed the impending doom Race faced and cut in. "Maybe he had trouble getting back out on the streets today."
"Maybe he has girl problems like Blink." Mush said jokingly. Blink punched his best friend in the arm.
"Nah it ain't in Skittery's nature to care about others so he wouldn't have a girl." Race said it sarcastically but they all sensed the seriousness in his tone.
They piled into the lodging house wondering what was wrong with their friend. They all knew that was all that they could do. Race was right. It wasn't in Skittery's nature to care about others and it wasn't in his nature to share his feelings with others.
Many of them had known each other for years. They had shared stories about their pasts. They knew each others real names but Skittery had always remained a mystery. He didn't share his past and he definitely didn't share his name. Most of the newsies had settled on the fact that their friend's past and name would remain ambiguous though they all hoped that someday somebody would be able to solve the mystery that was Skittery.
AN: Alright there it is the next chapter…I hope you all enjoyed it. Please Please Please review! I am begging you to press the little button in the bottom left hand of this window. I really want to know what you guys think - especially since this is the first time I have written a Skittery fic. Please let me know! Thanks for reading - Emily
New AN:While you are here I also have another favor to ask. I have a poll on my profile page regarding my next fanfic and which newsie you all want to read about so please stop by and take it. Thanks again -Emily