A/N: For kitchenerpaige, who requested an update soon, and for everyone else who kindly reviewed the last chapter. Thanks, y'all, for the encouragement and motivation to keep up with this! ;) I truly appreciate your feedback.

Chapter 4

"Abby! Come on, we'll be late for school!" Sadie called for the third time that morning. She glanced impatiently at the clock on the wall. It wasn't that she particularly cared about missing a few minutes of class, but their schoolmaster punished tardiness, and, while Sadie generally didn't mind being the center of attention, that was not the kind of attention she enjoyed.

Miriam Becker, who was sitting by the window darning a hole in a sock, gave her daughter a slightly disapproving frown. "Sadie, please just walk over to your sister's room and tell her what you need to say. It's rude to yell."

Sadie, trying to hide her exasperation, was about to comply, when her little sister appeared. "Let's go," Sadie said, tucking her arm around her lunch pail and slate and extending her free hand to Abigail. The girls bid farewell to their mother, then made their way downstairs to the street, which was already busy with people milling about on their morning business.

"Sadie, slow down!" Abby protested as her older sister nearly dragged her along. "We aren't going to be that late!"

"Sorry, Abby, but I'd rather not chance it," Sadie murmured, but she did slow her pace, suddenly distracted by a commotion brewing in the square several yards away. It appeared to be a confrontation between a few of the newsboys waiting in line for their papers at the distribution center of the New York World. As Sadie slowed to a stop, she watched as a one of the taller figures shoved a small boy to the ground, inciting yells of protest from the onlookers. Peering closer, Sadie recognized the face of the offender, who was currently nose-to-nose with an irate, well-built newsie who had pushed his way to the front and was now standing protectively over the fallen boy.

This wasn't a confrontation between newsboys, then, she corrected herself. It was a tussle between the newsboys and a familiar pair of trouble-making brothers.

"Sadie...isn't that Oscar? And Morris?" Abby asked, confirming her suspicions.

"Yes," Sadie answered grimly. Taking her younger sister firmly by the shoulders, she began steering her down the street. "Come on," she said. "Whatever this is, we don't want to get mixed up in it."

Later that morning, Sadie rested her chin in her hand, trying not to stare out of the window as her mind wandered from her school book. It was nearly time for noon recess, and she always found it particularly hard to focus during this time of day, when the tantalizing promise of near (if temporal) freedom was calling.

Idly surveying her classmates from her seat near the back of the schoolhouse, she observed their varying degrees of restlessness as they too waited impatiently for recess to be called. A few of the younger pupils fidgeted uncomfortably, while others shot surreptitious glances at the clock hanging above the blackboard. Even some of the older students showed visible signs of agitation, though most of them hid it better. There was one, however, who didn't seem to be affected in the slightest. Sitting a few rows in front of Sadie, David was bent studiously over his book.

She wondered how he was adjusting. The Jacobs brothers had only been attending school for a about a week, and while Les had quickly made friends with Abby and several other children his age, David seemed to keep to himself, whether from shyness or simply from preference, she couldn't tell.

Chewing her lip thoughtfully, Sadie stared out of the window, her eyes fixating on the blue strip of cloudless sky that rose above Manhattan's many buildings. Perhaps she should invite David to eat lunch with her today. She wasn't sure what he did during their hour-long recess; some pupils went home, but she'd noticed Les eating with her sister and a handful of other children, so David must have been around. Most of the older students, Sadie and her friends among them, usually walked down the street to the park to eat their lunches. She felt a little badly that she hadn't thought to ask David to go along with them.

I'm trying, Papa. I really am.

Sadie sighed.

"Miss Becker, if you would kindly stop staring out of the window and bring your attention back to your book, I'd be obliged," came the dry and none-too-amused voice of her schoolmaster.

Jumping a bit at the reprimand, Sadie blushed slightly as several pupils, including David, turned to stare at her. She ducked her head, embarrassed that she'd been caught daydreaming. "Yes, sir," she answered, quickly training her eyes on her book.

Just as she'd managed to re-focus her mind on the lesson, recess was called, and the schoolroom came alive with activity, students hurriedly organizing their belongings and filing out the door, eager for their break. Sadie closed her book, set it atop her slate in the corner of her desk, and grabbed her lunch pail, walking over to Margaret, who was already waiting at the door.

"Megs, you and the others can go along without me," Sadie said. "I'll catch you at the park."

Her friend gave her a curious look. "Is everything all right?"

Sadie nodded. "I'm just going to see if David wants to join us."

"The new boy?" Margaret sounded doubtful. "He seems so reserved."

Sadie privately agreed, but only said, jokingly, "Perhaps. But I'm almost willing to bet that there's a talker underneath that quiet exterior."

Margaret laughed. "Good thing you're not a betting girl, then!" She reached out her hand for Sadie's lunch pail. "I'll take this for you. Good luck," she said, still sounding skeptical. Sadie nodded her thanks, then turned to look for David.

He was already on his way towards the door, his book tucked under his arm, and what looked like a paper-wrapped sandwich in his hand. Catching sight of her, he nodded briefly in acknowledgement, and was about to pass by, when Sadie fell into step beside him.

"Hi, David," she said brightly. "Mind if I walk with you for a bit?"

David glanced at her in surprise. "I'm not really headed anywhere," he answered, "but, no...I don't mind." His tone conveyed rather the opposite, but Sadie forged ahead.

"I just thought that maybe you'd want to join some of us for lunch," she offered, as they exited the school room. "We usually go down the street to the park. There's a nice lawn that's good for picnics, and we play the most amusing games..." Seeing that her neighbor did not appear at all interested, she quickly changed her tactic, adding in a conspiratorial voice, "and sometimes, if no one's watching, a few of us even climb the trees!"

"That sounds dangerous," David remarked, looking a little perturbed.

Sadie secretly congratulated herself on having drawn him out. "It's great fun," she assured him. Now this she could work with.

David regarded her seriously. "After what happened last time, with the paint...don't you think you should be a little more concerned about falling?" he asked.

Sadie saw her opening. "Not if you'll be there to catch me!"

Her pertness had its desired effect.

"If - if I'll- " David stumbled over his words, flustered.

Taking advantage of his momentary disorientation, Sadie pressed her case. "Come on, David," she coaxed gently. "Just give it a try. I promise, it will be fun. And I'll even refrain from climbing anything remotely dangerous for the next few weeks if it will get you to say 'yes.'" Giving him her most cajoling smile, she watched as he rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably, clearly torn.

"That's a promise?" he finally asked, still sounding hesitant.

Sadie nodded. "You have my word." Before David could change his mind, she motioned down the street, saying eagerly, "Come on, let's catch up with the others." As she hurried towards the park with her reluctant neighbor in tow, Sadie allowed herself a small smile.

Victory was sweet.

Les clambered up the stairs to the Jacobs' apartment as David trailed after him, carrying their slates and school books. He was relieved to be back home again, as it had been an unexpectedly taxing day, but as he took the stairs two at a time, he found himself filled with an odd sense of satisfaction.

Being back in school for the past week or so had brought about a comforting normalcy. David had always enjoyed learning, and he was happy to find himself back among books and blackboards, getting a chance to exercise his mind and to read to his heart's content. It was a familiar setting with predictable, clear-cut expectations and few surprises, and he reveled in it. The morning lessons passed by quickly as he pored over his book, and then he would take a short walk outside to eat his lunch during the hour-long break before eagerly resuming his study when class was called back to session. The last several days had passed by in this pleasant manner, and David had felt settled and content (if perhaps a bit solitary).

But today, his routine had been interrupted, and he had found himself unexpectedly (if amiably) accosted by Sadie Becker, who, for some unknown reason, had gotten it into her head to convince him to accompany her to the park for lunch with the rest of her friends.

David's first impulse had been to decline the invitation. He had been looking forward to finding a quiet place to read and eat his lunch, and didn't relish the thought of spending his free time with a group of rambunctious (if well-meaning) peers. But, having changed schools several times over the course of his seventeen years of life, he knew that first impressions had a way of sticking. If he wanted to make friends at this new school, he knew that he would have to make an effort, and Sadie was making things even easier by inviting him in.

And then, of course, there had been the additional matter of her rather...unconventional persuasion.

So he had said yes.

To his surprise, it hadn't turned out as badly as he'd expected. Sadie's friends were a rather boisterous lot, and he found himself often feeling out of place amongst their spirited conversations and frequent jokes, but they were a good-natured bunch, and they welcomed him into their group without ceremony. Eventually realizing that he preferred to listen rather than talk after a few failed attempts to draw him out, they had respectfully let him be. (They would have, perhaps, completely forgotten that he was there, had Sadie not subtly included him in the conversation in ways that acknowledged his presence but did not single him out for a response. He wasn't exactly sure how she managed to do this, but he was grateful to her for it).

And so, David had lost his hour of reading time, but he had gained a group of friendly acquaintances who could, perhaps with time, become friends. And to his surprise, this prospect was the source of the strange satisfaction he felt as he climbed the stairs at the end of a long but rewarding day.

"What are you smiling about?" Les demanded as he waited for his brother to catch up.

"Oh, nothing, Les," David replied. He hadn't even noticed the small grin that had crept onto his face as he'd mused. Reaching the landing, he began fishing in his pocket for the key to the apartment, as he and Les made their way down the hallway.

David unlocked the door and pushed it open, letting Les go in first but nearly stumbling over him as the younger boy stopped abruptly a few feet beyond the threshold. David's eyes scanned the apartment, trying to figure out what had caused Les' sudden immobility, and then he saw his mother, and his heart sank, fear quickly replacing the short-lived contentment that he had been feeling only moments before.

Esther Jacobs was sitting at the kitchen table, her face in her hands, nearly shaking as she attempted to control her emotions. David hurried over to her. "Mom, what's wrong?" he asked, alarmed.

His mother looked up, first at him, and then at Les, tears streaming down her face. David took her hand, squeezing it gently, as Les, recovering his ability to move, ran over to his mother and threw his arms around her as she struggled to compose herself.

"It's all right, Mom," David said as soothingly as he could. "It's all right...we're here."

Seeming to draw strength from her sons' presence, Esther gradually regained some of her composure. She dried her eyes on the handkerchief David silently offered, giving him a grateful look, then wrapped her arms around Les, resting her cheek atop her younger son's head.

"What's wrong, Mom?" Les asked, his voice small and scared.

Esther gave a watery sigh, then straightened up, looking both of her sons in the eye. "Les, David…" Her voice wavered. "It's your father."

A/N: Poor Mr. and Mrs. Jacobs...and poor Davey - his fledgling routine is about to be upended once again ("Where does it say a guy can't catch a break?" The writer's notes, that's where).

As always, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this chapter! (Anyone have predictions on how the Beckers and the Delanceys are connected? Predictions on whether or not Davey will ever get his feet under him enough to form an articulate response to Sadie's teasing? (Don't worry - he will!))

Thanks for reading, and please do let me know what you thought! :)