"What! Youse tink Ise not good enough ta beat yer precious Snake?" She recoiled as if I had slapped her, and I immediately regretted what I had said.
"No, I don't actually. If it were a fist fight or you used your slingshot, you might win. If you could actually use your left arm, you might win. But this is going to be a knife fight, Spot, and you can't beat him. Even if your shoulder was healed I don't think you could beat him."
"Youse really tink he's dat good?" She turned her face up to me, hair more down than up. Her jaw was set.
"With a knife? The best I ever fought, and you can bet he'll use a knife, even if you don't." She softened, "Please don't do this." I reached a hand up to stroke her cheek, to my surprise she leaned into my touch.
"Ise don' 'ave a choice, Rawnie." She knew I would never ask one of my boys to fight for me. I was both to proud and to unwilling to see any of them die for that.
"I do." she breathed. It took me a moment to realize what she meant.
"No." I wouldn't let her.
"Yes." she sounded so finale, "You won't ask your boys, but your girl's willing to go. I suggest you take the offer." Did she just call herself my girl? "Spot, I'm the only one who has any real chance at beating him."
"Youse ain't gonna take no fer an answer are youse?" I managed to laugh a little, but my attempt at lightening the mood fell flat.
"I told you a long time ago that I could take care of myself."
"Ise rememba."
"Now I've got a lot more to take care of."
"Ise can take care of meself too youse know." She smirked, but it was much sadder than I would have liked.
"Cocky, who ever said I was referring to you?" She slid a hand to the back of my neck and pulled me into a short, but to long in the coming, kiss. I buried my hands in the curls of her hair, but to soon, she pulled away. "Don't let Rev tell them until we're gone." she whispered before rushing past me and up the stairs to her room. She was right, I would tell Rev and have him wait to tell the rest. They would only try to stop her, talk her out of it. I should be stopping her.
I finally knew what Rev meant when he said he couldn't choose between the newsies and Pint because Pint would always come fist. I had never understood before, the newsies were my life, are my life. I just need a reason to live it. I paced the floor, I had to believe that Red, my Red, my Rawnie, would be here tomorrow morning. I made myself believe it. Any other option was unacceptable.
"Youse ready?" I knocked on her door, she hadn't come out since this morning. She stepped out dressed the way she had been the fist day she came here. A cap covered her hair, and though I couldn't see her knife, I knew it was there.
"Did you explain things to Rev?"
"Yeah, he don't like it none, but he won't tell dem anyting till wese gone."
"Good, good." she sounded distracted.
"Youse all righ'?" it was a stupid question, of course she wasn't all right.
"Yes, of course." not that she would ever admit it, "I guess I just expected you to try and stop me."
"Youse sayin' it would woik, because den by all means, Ise'll try." She shook her head.
"No, it wouldn't work." she smiled grimly, "Shall we go then?"
"Yeah." We slipped out her window, no need for questions from the boys that we couldn't answer. She stayed a couple steps behind me as we walked to Harlem. Neither of us said anything, even when there was so much to be said. Every minute or so I looked back at her just to make sure she was still there. Her face was blank, there was no telling what thoughts were running through her head.
I stopped when we reached the warehouse. A glow of light shone in the windows and voices could be heard through the walls. Given that it would only get louder, it was smart to choose a building so far from anyone that could be disturbed. Or anyone who might be available for help. I shoved the thought out of my mind.
"Are we here?" Red's voice broke my wandering.
"Wese heah. Listen, Red, before wese go in," I dug around in my pocked before finding the small switchblade, "dis was Mouthe, er, Frankie's. He left it heah when he went back ta youse." I pressed it into her hand. "A second knife."
"Thank you." she bent and tucked the knife into her shoe. Out of the blue, she wrapped her arms around me in a hug. I returned it, grateful that she wasn't completely shut off to me. "I'm scared, Spot." she whispered.
"Me too, Rawnie." I whispered back, "Me too." We stood there like that for all most a minute before I pulled away, "Wese should go in." I led her into the warehouse, thankfully Jack was the fist person I saw.
"Hey, Spot."
"Hey, Jack."
"Hey, Jack." Red said behind me. Jack looked at her, then at me, then back at her before finally coming back to me, daggers in his eyes.
"Youse lettin' Red fight?" he said, leave it to Kelley to be concerned about her welfare at a time like this.
"I'm a big girl, Cowboy. Spot didn't really have much of a say in the matter."
"So, hes didn' ask youse ta fight fer him or notin'?" Jack asked her. She managed to laugh.
"No, he didn't."
"Den, Ise suppose," Jack stared at her in disbelief, "Ise suppose der isn't a problem."
"Did youse bring Race or Davey wit youse?" I asked him, looking around to see if I had missed them.
"Na. Ise don' need Race makin' bets heah, an' dis isn't David's fight. Ise alone."
"Youse know Race wouldn' do day, an' Davey wouldn' care if youse was fightin' nuns."
"Ise just needed a excuse." That, I could buy. Jack didn't want his boys to see him fail anymore than I did.
"So when is everything supposed to start?" Red asked.
"Now that you're here, now."