"Winter's Freezin'..."
...In Which Squirt Takes a Chance.
Manhattan, Winter 1894
After Squirt's realization, she had to work hard to keep herself from acting any differently around Crutchie. The last thing she wanted was to lose her friend, but he seemed as cheerful and oblivious as always, thankfully.
Christmas for the Newsies rarely involved any kind of gift exchange—they could barely afford to eat, after all—but it was at least the one day of the year that they didn't have to go out and sell, so the boys (and Squirt) generally stayed inside, joked around, and made harmless trouble. That year was no different but by that evening, things had begun to wind down as energy waned and a long day's selling the next day loomed.
Still, in an effort to prolong the games, a series of dares had been given, received, and acted upon, to general amusement. Just as Squirt had made up her mind to turn in for the day, Race turned to her. "Hey Squirt, I dares you to..."
She rolled her eyes, waiting. Suffice it to say that Race's dares had been decidedly vague and unimaginative the whole night.
"...to take a chance."
The others all began to scoff and tease the eleven-year-old asking him what he'd even meant by that, when Squirt stood, feigning nonchalance. "Well, I'm gonna take a chance I don't die in my sleep. Good night."
Truth be told, she knew Crutchie was following her to upstairs, also heading to bed—neither had slept well the night before, and were still two of the earliest risers in the lodge house. Once they were upstairs and away from the prying eyes of the other boys, Squirt mustered her quickly fleeing courage, turned on her heel to face Crutchie, and kissed him.
The blonde boy was still standing, stunned, as the dark-haired girl pulled back and bolted into the bathroom, muttering about 'stupid dares' the whole time. He could muster no reply, couldn't even figure out what he was thinking at that moment—if he was at all.
Numbly, he drifted out and up to the little hideaway Jack had created on the roof years before, staring up at the winter stars, ignoring the bitter wind. He didn't really know what to make of that moment, but finally decided that was her response to Race's dare, but she'd decided not to embarrass either of them in front of the others.
I'm sure Squirt didn't mean anytin' by it, he assured himself, not entirely sure why the thought was disappointing to him.
So, yeah. The first Squirt/Crutchie kiss. My explanation for the ending is this: I want Squirt to be aware of her feelings before the strike, but I don't want the two of them together quite yet. (After all, I never make it that easy for my characters). Still, I figured it would be cute if they were still practically kids for their first kiss, and I figured a dare would be the best framing device.
As always, if you saw something you liked, or something you think I can fix/improve on for next time, don't hesitate to leave a review and let me know!