BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND! Your reviews brough me back to life! I am sorry for my abscence. Please stick with me, dear readers. We'll get this story finished (eventually).

Disclaimer: I have no delusions about owning or holding rights over Newsies; you shouldn't either. Don't sue. Believe me, I have nothing you would want.
Also, any pop culture references...guess what? Don't own those either. Actually...anything that you may have heard of and/or recognized in this story is owned by someone who isn't me.

Warning:Updates may (and probably will be) slow.
Also, I haven't written in quite awhile. Hopefully i'll get back into the full swing of things. Until then, I'm sorry if this chapter isn't up to my usual standards.
This contains SLASH, in other words same sex couples. If this doesn't appeal to you, you shouldn't be here. It also contains drug use, violence, sexual situations, and may contain a(n OC) death. This story is marked for mature readers only, please treat it as such.

Pairings: Will be switching around quite a bit. If you have any preferences please let me know. They probably won't end up together unless I already planned for it to happen, but I can put in a couple flings for you if you ask nice enough

Beta'ed By: Unfortunately, after 2 years of absence, I've lost contact with my beta's. So, unfortunately, this one was edited by me. Sorry if it's not up to standards.

Summary of Chapter 18 (because at this point I'm sure you've forgotten):

-David pleads with Bumlets to try and get along with Specs
-David tries to find out what's going on with Itey and Skittery from Bumlets, but Bumlets refuses to tell him anything
-Jack realizes that he's been staying with a gang
-Itey and Skittery continue to annoy Mush and Blink about their relationship
-Skittery gets overly pissed at Blink and makes a dramatic exit
-Spot confesses to Slingshot that he wants Jack to join the gang
-Specs fails to meet Bumlets at the convenience store as was promised because he's too busy hanging out with Specs
-Bumlets and Swifty go out to a coffee shop together
-Sarah convinces her parents to let Bumlets come over the next day to help baby sit
-Spot suddenly realizes he has a crush on Racetrack, and he is forced to discuss it with Slingshot
-Specs apologizes to Dutchy about ditching him back in ninth grade
-Specs and Dutchy run into Swifty and Bumlets in the coffee shop
-Bumlets complains about Dutchy, and Dutchy leaves feeling hurt

And now, without further ado, I present chapter 19!

Getting Back Together Again
XIV: It's Just Getting More Bleak

Specs pulled up to Dutchy's house, and parked his car along the curb. He took a minute to wonder if he could get away with honking instead of going all the way to the door. He was the one doing the favor, after all. It wasn't fair if he had to put too much work into it. On the other hand, he remembered Dutchy's parents, and they would definitely not appreciate a car horn this early in the morning.

Sighing, he climbed out of his car as he cursed his too-nice nature. Dutchy definitely owed him a big one for doing all this work so early in the morning. He even had to wake up half an hour earlier so he could get here on time.

"You're complaining to yourself, aren't you?" Dutchy asked as he stepped outside, and made sure to lock the door behind him. "You get this little tic in your jaw whenever you do."

"Earliness is not my thing. Why did I have to come pick you up again?" Specs asked, starting back to his car as the tic in his jaw still attempted Morse Code. "Why can't someone else do it?"

"You scared away all my someone elses. Well … that, and they're too wrapped up in their own thing." Dutchy shrugged and looked at his shoes as he followed behind Specs. "Things are just so weird right now; I don't really feel like dealing with any of them … especially Bumlets."

Specs smiled brightly as he hopped into his car. "Good for you. They treat you like complete trash, and, in all honesty, it really disgusts me that you continue to put up with it."

"They don't treat me like trash." Dutchy climbed more slowly into the car. "And I don't think I should have left like that yesterday. I'm the one that stood him up; he had a right to be angry."

Specs started his car, and pulled off the curb. "He was complaining to Swifty about you while you were right there. He constantly treats you like crap. He insults your intelligence. I don't understand how you even put up with him. He's such an ass."

"He says the same thing about you. I don't understand why you two can't give each other a chance. It's not fair trying to make me choose sides."

"I don't understand why you're having such a hard time with everything. Do you enjoy being treated like crap? Is that why you hang out with your asshole friends? That's not at all healthy."

"Can we stop talking about my friends now? I've already told you that I don't want you criticizing them."

"I thought we took care of all that! You didn't want me saying anything about them because they stuck with you when I didn't, right? But I apologized, so we're all on even footing now. Problem solved."

"I accepted your apology, I didn't say I was choosing you over my old friends. I forgave you, yes, but I'm not about to forget what you did to me."

"What? So you don't really forgive me? Then why the hell did I have to apologize?"

"God! Never mind! Just forget I ever said anything!"

"Well … fine, Mr. Grouchy-Pants."

Slingshot took a sip of his coffee before venturing into his boss's room. Right away he found what he was expecting: Spot oversleeping. Oddly enough, however, Jack wasn't on the couch as he had previously expected. In fact, the boy didn't seem to be in the room at all. Not really caring all that much about Jack, Slingshot simply shrugged it off and focused on the whole point of coming in here in the first place.

He made his way over to his boss's bed. Instead of waking him, as was intended, Slingshot took the time to simply watch. A lot of people looked angelic and peaceful as they slept; Spot was not one of them. His arms were at awkward angles, his face was smashed up against his pillow, and he seemed to be trying to learn how much drool his pillow could absorb.

Slingshot smiled a bit. The sight may have been far from angelic or peaceful, but it was still has cute as singing bunnies. He cocked his head to the side a bit, still continuing to look down at his boss. He wondered if he usually found drool cute, or if it was because he was in love.

He blinked and replayed the thought in his mind. Pft, 'in love'? He shook his head slightly. When did he get so sappy? It was such an absurd thought.

Brushing off his thoughts he focused back in on the matter at hand.

'Matter at hand' … what a weird phrase. If you thought of matter as mass, then …

Slingshot shook his head again before taking another sip of his coffee. He really shouldn't have been allowed to think in the mornings.

"Spot." He crouched down so he was face to face with his boss and started poking him in the forehead. "Oh, dearest darling of mine, time to wake up." He tried his best to hold in a growl as the only response Spot had was to drool a bit more. Slingshot poked him a bit harder. "Hey! Snookums! Time to get the fuck up."

"'Snookums'?" Spot mumbled in a voice hoarse from sleep.

"Oh, Poodle!" Slingshot pretended to gush. "I didn't know you were into pet names! And you're so good at picking them out, too! I'm definitely a 'Snookums'. Oh, Pudding-Pop, you know me so well."

"You better hope this is just some really fucked up nightmare," Spot muttered, "because if it isn't I'm going break every single one of your fingers. It's too fucking early for one of your weird moods, and I don't want to deal with you."

Slingshot forced on a pout, and put a hand over his heart. "Ouch, sir. And you aren't even kind enough to give your lover a good morning kiss. What kind of a man are you?"

"A man that doesn't act like a girl," Spot answered, still not sounding very awake. He rolled over a bit and let his head take refuge underneath the pillow. It took him about two seconds to throw the pillow to the floor. "Why the hell is my pillow wet and cold?" He sat up in his bed and glared at Slingshot as if it was his fault.

Slingshot calmly took another sip of his coffee before answering. "Don't blame me; I'm not the one who drooled all over it."

Spot rubbed one of his eyes in the hopes of becoming more awake. "Why the hell are you here anyway? It's too early for sex."

"The great Spot is too tired for sex?" Slingshot smirked. "Did I tire you out last night? Or could it be that after I left you spent the rest of the night making yourself pant over Ra-"

Spot picked his cold, wet pillow off the floor and threw it at his second-in-command's head. "I'm taking a shower," he grumbled before quickly shutting himself up in his bathroom.

"Don't let yourself think about Racetrack! You'll make yourself even later!" Slingshot yelled before he turned around to leave. He was suddenly met with Stealth standing right in front of him and just staring. His hand flew to his chest as he jumped. "Jesus 'Tap Dancing' Christ! Wear a fucking bell."

Stealth blinked once, then continued to star.

"Spot's gone off to take a shower. Take your staring over there, okay? Shoo."

Stealth stared expressionlessly at Slingshot a bit more before passing him and entering the bathroom with no hesitation.

"Morning, baby brother," Sarah greeted flippantly to David as she sat down at the kitchen table to eat breakfast with the rest of the family.

"Good morning," David replied back a bit more enthusiastically.

Mr. and Mrs. Jacobs exchanged glances of surprise. Their children hardly ever talked to each other unless they had to, and it had been that way for quite awhile now. They shrugged slightly at each other before smiling a bit, holding a silent conversation all to themselves. 'Did you know about this?' 'No. Did you?' 'Of course not.' 'Teenagers … what can you do?' 'Indeed.'

"You two remember that you have to baby sit your brother today, right?" Mrs. Jacobs asked when the silent conversation with her husband was over.

"Yes, Mother," Sarah and David replied in the same monotone.

"Now, we have to leave at six thirty, so, Sarah, make sure you're home by then," their mother continued.

"I know, Mom."

"Now, I'm not sure when we'll be getting home, but I suspect it'll be around ten or eleven. I want Les to go to bed at his normal bedtime, which is-"

"Eight o'clock sharp," Sarah and David finished, both rolling their eyes.

"We know when Les's bedtime is," Sarah explained. "We've only been babysitting him since he was two. Stop worrying; we know what we're doing."

"And Bumlets is the only friend I want to see over here," their father said sternly, ignoring his daughter's reply for the most part. "You break that rule, and you no longer have that privilege, understood? If Les complains about him, or he trashes the house I don't ever want him coming back."

"Yes, Daddy," Sarah agreed quietly, her sarcasm greatly subdued as she looked at the floor.

"The emergency numbers are on the fridge," Mrs. Jacobs said. "Oh, and make sure your brother doesn't eat-"

"… Any chocolate," Sarah finished. "And we'll promise to make sure to fix him a good dinner. Don't worry so much."

"I'm a mother; it's my job to worry."

Sarah sighed. "It's no big deal. I know how to take care of my baby brothers. You guys should give me a little more credit."

Mr. and Mrs. Jacobs glanced at each other, having another silent conversation. 'Did she really just indirectly admit that she takes care of David?' 'I think she did.' 'Is there something going on that we don't know about?' 'Isn't there always?' 'You think it could be drugs?' 'Sarah? I trust that she wouldn't do that.' 'Still, that girl doesn't make any sense.' 'She is a teenager.' 'Indeed.'

Outside a car honked its horn, causing Sarah to jump out of her seat. "That's my ride," she announced before running towards the front door. "I promise to be home before you leave, okay? Stop worrying so much."

Spot turned off the shower and flung back the curtains to see Stealth staring at him. He tensed slightly at the surprise, but quickly calmed down. He ruffled his hair, shaking water all over the place. "Get me that towel."

Stealth looked around the bathroom until his eyes landed on a crumbled towel on the floor. He picked it up, not all that surprised to find it still damp from the last shower Spot took, and handed it over.

Spot tied the towel around his waist and sat on the edge of the tub.

Stealth looked around again before sitting on the floor and hugging his knees. He stared at the floor for about a minute. "You shouldn't do it."

Spot put his elbows on his knees and hunched over, not saying anything.

"You should try to be a little nicer," Stealth continued, still looking at the floor.

"Stop being so fucking cryptic. Who the hell are you talking about?"

Stealth's eyes snapped up to Spot's, and he slowly blinked a few times. "I didn't think I needed to tell you. Isn't he always on your mind now?"

Spot narrowed his eyes, but refrained from saying anything. He was already late, and talking would just delay the conversation even farther.

Stealth looked back down and started drawing invisible circles on the tile with his middle finger. "You don't have to be so secretive about it," he eventually said. "I know you, and so does the silence. You can be honest with us."

"Racetrack."

Stealth nodded. "Things have already started to move. You can't stop it now."

Spot narrowed his eyes even more. "Something bad is going to happen."

Stealth nodded again, still drawing circles. "I'm sorry."

"I should have known," Spot scoffed. "Life's been too easy lately."

"It's going to be hard for you."

"Obviously. Give me some information that I can use."

Stealth tightly bit his bottom lip and shook his head. "I'm sorry. I can't. If I do the silence won't talk to me again. It says it's something you have to go through. I'm sorry."

Spot sat quietly for a minute, expressionless as he watched Stealth fidget. He lifted himself up from the edge of the tub and smirked. "Don't worry so much. I haven't died yet, and I've been through a lot of shit."

Stealth looked up at his boss. "This is worse."

Spor quirked an eyebrow as he held on to his smirk. "Always liked a good challenge."

Stealth pushed himself up from the floor. He walked to the door, but paused as his hand rested on the knob. "You shouldn't take this so lightly. I can't see the end of this one," he said quietly before opening the door.

Spot's eyes widened and he quickly shoved the door back into place, trapping Stealth in the bathroom with him. "You can't see the end? What the hell does that mean?"

Stealth rested his forehead on the door. "I can't … I don't know what's going to happen at the end of it. I see the next few days, but after that … it's just an ominous feeling. The last time that happened …"

"The last time that happened my brother died," Spot finished before snorting. "So you think it's my turn now or something? That was a long time ago. You still didn't know what was going on with that power of yours. It doesn't mean anything."

Stealth shrunk down to the floor and held his head. "But it also happened when my parents died, and then again when my brother got killed. It only happens when someone close to me is going to die, and you're the only person close to me. If … if it doesn't mean that, then it means the silence is leaving me all alone, and I … If I had to pick between the two … I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. If I had to choose I'd pick-"

Spot put his foot on Stealth's back and pushed him into the door. "I'm going to pretend like I didn't just hear that. I'm not going to die anytime soon, so you shouldn't worry. If it is the silence leaving you I'll just lock you in a closet until it comes back."

Stealth tensed at the threat before jerkily nodded his head.

"Good. Now that that's all straightened out get the fuck out. I need to change, and your face is starting to make me sick."

"Don't you want to go smoke with your other friends?"

"Mm." Itey looked at the ground. "Not really. I'd rather avoid Skittery for as long as I can. I feel kind of stupid … thinking that we could still be friends after everything that happened."

"But … I thought … didn't we already talk about this? I know you can't go back to how you were, but you can probably become something different, can't you? You don't have to throw everything away."

"I guess the possibility is there and everything, but" – Itey sighed – "I don't think I really have enough strength and determination to actually work towards the goal. It probably sounds really girly of me, but it's all just a bit too painful."

Mush nodded his head. "It makes perfect sense. I wouldn't really want to do it either, but doesn't Skittery's friendship mean more to you than that? I don't really have much room to talk, I guess, since I've never been in your situation. Still, losing a boyfriend may be painful, but isn't losing a best friend just as bad? If you had a chance to save at least one, why wouldn't you take it?"

Itey smiled sadly as he continued looking down at his shoes. "Maybe I'm just cowardly. I don't think there's a very good chance of keeping either, and … and I don't think that I could handle putting myself out there again. It really sucks that I'm the one that has to do all the work all the time. It gets tiring, ya know? He was the one that made the first move, but ever since then I feel like I've been the one pushing us along. If he doesn't care enough to chase after me every once in awhile then maybe it's not worth it."

"So you're testing him? Isn't that a little deceitful? And to depend on him for the entire future of your friendship …"

"It's a bad idea. I know that. At this point I'm just too tired to really give a damn. Skittery's driving me crazy, and I'd rather him do the work for once. If he doesn't, then he's not serious enough about me, is he?"

"Isn't that … "

"It's stupid and petty and I'll probably hate myself for it later. I know all of that. It's awful, but I really can't stop myself from wanting him to suffer." Itey looked at the ground as he ran a hand through his hair. "It's all so fucked up and complicated. I suddenly find myself wanting to do something terrible to Skitts. Words can't even describe how much I want him to suffer. Whenever I picture myself doing something to him though, I always end up wanting to hold him and trying to make it better. It's making me hate myself, and I don't even know if it's because I want to kill him or hold him."

"I'm sorry," Mush replied quietly. "I knew it was hard for you, but I guess I didn't really think it was this bad. It'd be nice if you two could be friends again. You shouldn't try to force yourself into it, though. If you push yourself to like him again, then it's not really friendship anyway, is it?"

Itey chuckled softly, finally looking up. "Aren't you supposed to be more naive than this? I imagined you saying something like 'friendship can win over anything' or 'you and Skittery were made to be best friends; everything will work itself out.'"

Mush rubbed the back of his head and smiled. "I was never that bad, was I? You're exaggerating."

"I am not. You were totally like that," Itey replied, smiling back. "What happened to make you realize the world wasn't all hearts and rainbows?"

"Well … I don't really know." Mush scrunched his eyebrows together, looking up and off to the side as he thought seriously about it. "I have started watching the news."

Itey grinned. "I'm glad you're around, Mushie. I'm really starting to like you again," he declared before leaning forward and quickly kissing Mush on the lips.

Mush's eyes widened, and his face turned bright red. He stood completely still as he just stared in shock at his friend.

Itey tried his best to hold back a smile while he quivered with suppressed laughter. It took only a few seconds before it became too much work to keep it in, and he burst out laughing. "Oh … oh God," he gasped, holding his stomach as he doubled over. "You … you should see your face right now. Oh man. I wish I had a camera. I can't believe you're blushing so bad over such an innocent kiss. You're acting like it's your first one or something."

Mush's eyes rushed to the ground as he blushed even harder.

Itey abruptly stopped laughing, and his eyes widened. He crouched down a bit so he could look his friend in the eye. "No way! It really was? You're a seventeen year old kid, and no one's ever kissed you before?"

"Well … you just did." Mush averted his eyes again as his blush increased in intensity yet again.

Itey smirked and crossed his arms. "And you should be overwhelmingly grateful to get a first kiss from someone as handsome as me. Where's my 'thank you', huh? Come on. Let's hear it."

"Itey!" Blink interrupted as he came running over. "Hey, listen, I need to talk to you about Skittery."

Itey's smile dropped as soon as he heard the name. "What happened?" He quickly clutched his head. "Argh! Never mind! Don't tell me. I don't give a damn about him. I'm going to class," he said angrily before stomping off towards his first period class.

Blink quietly watched him go before turning to look at Mush. "Why are people getting so mad at me all of the sudden? Am I doing something wrong?"

"Itey's just going through a tough time right now," Mush tried to explain. "It was probably a bad idea to bring up Skittery. Don't worry about it too much; I'm sure he just needs some time to cool off. Why'd you need to talk to him about Skittery? Did something happen?"

"I have no idea. He just blew up at me for no reason yesterday and ran off. Maybe people going through hard break ups just hate me."

"I'm sure Skittery's going through a tough time too; be patient with him. Let him cool off, and then talk to him. It's probably all some misunderstanding."

Jack sat in his first period Biology class thinking through his living situation. It was probably a danger living with Sean, but he didn't really have anywhere else to go. He had too much pride to go back to Bumlets and the others. Swifty wasn't speaking to him ever since he had ditched him for the football players. He didn't have any relatives he could stay with. Who was left?

What the hell happened to all his friends? Didn't he have tons of them just last week?

Unfortunately, it seemed as if Sean was his only option. It was far from the best, but the fact that his only other option was sleeping in the street made Sean's place look a lot better.

"Hey, Jack," Sarah greeted as she sat down next to him. "Why so deep in thought? The class hasn't even started yet. … Not that I actually think you're deep in thought because of Biology; I know you better than that."

Jack grinned. "Ah, it's nothing important. So, what's up? You sneaking off school grounds with us for lunch?"

"Ah … you know, I still haven't really decided. I want to, but I promised my History teacher I'd meet up with her at lunch to go over a test that I failed. I could skip out on her, but it's likely that she'll go looking for me. I don't want the entire football team in trouble just because I'm not smart enough to-" Sarah scratched the back of her head. "I am going about this entirely wrong. I'm actually here as David's older sister, not as your friend."

Jack laughed. "You mean that little dweeb actually sent his sister over here to … what? Scold me on not doing my best on that stupid French project? I can't believe you're going along with this."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "I'm not 'going along with it'. I asked David about what was going on with his French project, and he told me. That's all. The fact that I came over here is all my idea."

"So you came to scold me on behalf of David? What bullshit. You were just telling me how much of a nerd he was the other day. What's with the change of heart?"

Sarah sighed as she crossed her arms. "He's going through a lot right now, and as his older sister it's my job to help him however I can. Plus, I mean, he's a pretty cool kid once you actually start talking to him. Who would have thought it, right?"

"Whatever. It doesn't matter what you say. I'm not helping him with that stupid French project. He was the one stupid enough to challenge me; it's not my fault if he starts regretting it."

"You don't actually think that I care about my brother's grades, do you?" Sarah rolled her eyes. "Please. I hope he fails his project. Not only would my parents not bother me about grades for a while, but he also might actually learn to loosen up a bit. No, grades aren't the problem. It's the fact that you treat him like shit that ticks me off. Stop insulting him every chance you get."

Jack smirked. "Tch. What is this? Are you trying to threaten me or something? It's a nice job … really."

"Fuck you, Jack. David used to be your friend, remember? You may not like him anymore, but you do owe it to him to be civil. He's done a lot for you, you know. You're such a-"

"Sarah Jacobs?" the Biology teacher interrupted. "You don't belong in this class. It's probably hard for you to believe, but you did actually pass this last year. You don't need to come back."

Sarah smiled and looked at the floor, trying her best to look embarrassed even though she knew exactly what she had been doing. She grabbed her books and stood up from her seat. "Sorry, sir. My mistake. I must have gotten the room numbers wrong."

"He already said 'yes'?" Bumlets asked with wide eyes. He was sitting in English, waiting for the bell signaling second period to ring.

"Yep." Swifty smiled. "I called him as soon as I got home yesterday. He's pretty excited about the extra help. He wants you to come in tomorrow for an official interview. Don't worry too much about that, though; it's just a formality. He'll probably put you to work as soon as the interview is over, too, so make sure you don't have anything to do. I have his office number if you have to reschedule."

"Tomorrow's fine for me, but … I don't really know about Dutchy. I haven't even gotten a chance to talk to him about the job yet; I think he's been avoiding me."

Swifty shrugged. "Makes sense. You did say some pretty mean things about him."

"Fuck you," Bumlets replied with a smile. "You were right there with me, so don't act like you're innocent."

"Hey, you said it was your fault."

"Yeah, and I remember you saying the exact same thing."

"So you seriously didn't get a chance to apologize?" Swifty asked, dropping his smile.

"Mm. I waited by the wall we usually smoke at forever. I even missed the beginning of first period. No one showed up."

"Ah … man. Things sure are getting messed up, huh?"

"What the fuck is this shit about?" Skittery interrupted as soon as he saw them. "When the fuck did you two start hanging out?"

"Yesterday," Swifty answered with an easy shrug. "I bribed him into it."

"Well, now you've had your fun, so get lost."

"Skittery, Jesus, would it kill you to be nice for once in your life?" Bumlets said. "We're just talking; you don't have to act like such a dick about it."

"Know what? Fuck you. And fuck you, too," Skittery replied, first looking at Bumlets and then at Swifty. "Fuck you both. Coming to school was such a fucking bad idea. I'm leaving," he said before turning around and heading right back out the door.

"Wait, you retard! What the hell's your problem?" Bumlets called after him, standing from his seat but not going after him.

"You should probably go after him," Swifty quietly advised. "I can tell the teacher you're in the nurse's office if you want me to."

"Thanks," Bumlets replied with a quick smile before taking off after his friend.

Skittery sat on the ground next to wall he normally smoked at; cursing the fact that he didn't have a car.

"Shouldn't have even fucking come to this fucking school today," he grumbled to himself. "Had to ask my fucking mother for a ride, and now she'll fucking be griping about it for fucking days. And for what? Everybody's fucking left."

"Talking to yourself?" Spot asked, coming around the corner. "Or are you just schizophrenic?"

"Fuck you."

"What the hell crawled up your ass?" Spot asked calmly before sitting down next to him and lighting up a cigarette.

"I have fucking awful friends, that's what."

Spot took a hit of nicotine. "This is about your friends finding other people to hang out with? Hmph. I can't believe you're this pathetic."

"Fuck you."

Spot stayed quiet and continued smoking his cigarette.

Skittery watched him for a while, leaning back against the wall. He started feeling awkward when Sean stared back, so he switched his gaze to the parking lot. His eyes brightened when he saw Sean's motorcycle. "Hey, you've got that motorcycle, right? How about giving me a ride out of here?"

"No."

"What? Why the fuck not? Come on. I'll even give you money for gas if you're too much of a tight wad with your cash."

Spot put out his cigarette and stood up. "I just don't want to spend any time with you."

Skittery glared at him before looking down and pouting. "Fine. Whatever. I don't need a fucking ride from you anyway."

Spot sighed and crouched down. "If you're really as fed up with everything as you're making it seem then you can always move to Brooklyn and take a job under me."

"Are you hitting on me right now?" Skittery asked, scrunching his eyebrows together

Spot rolled his eyes as he stood up again. "Don't act stupid. Think about my offer. Just know what you're getting into before you agree." He started to walk away, but Skittery interrupted him.

"I'll do it."

Spot turned around, his slightly raised eyebrows the only thing giving away his shock at such a quick answer. "Alright. Come on," he ordered, walking towards his motorcycle.

"What? No lecture at the quick answer?" Skittery asked, following behind him. "No questions about my reasons behind it? Is it really that easy?"

"I'm not around to look after you and correct all the wrong choices you make. And I wouldn't have asked you if I didn't already know your reasons. You hate your parents and your friends are abandoning you."

"Oh … well. A man who doesn't ask questions; I like that."

"And I looked for him all of third period and I couldn't find him. God damn, I don't know what the hell his problem is," Bumlets ranted about Skittery.

"I don't know," David answered quietly. "I can kind of understand it. He just broke up with his boyfriend and probably best friend, and now all of a sudden that connection is gone. He planned on relying on his other two best friends, but they've gone off with new friends. He's probably feeling really abandoned right now."

Bumlets tugged at his hair and sighed in annoyance. "I am so tired of all this shit. Since when did everyone become so fucking melodramatic?"

"I can try to talk to him today if you want. Do you think that'll help?"

"Maybe. I don't know. Who cares? I'm so done with all this shit. It's all so fucking annoying."

David frowned. "I can't believe that you don't care enough about Skittery to watch out for him. I know it's hard sometimes, and people never appreciate it as much as they should, but if you can somehow help the situation you should. He is your friend, isn't he?"

"It's so hard to deal with everything though," Bumlets admitted. "Skittery and Dutchy are too much to handle at the same time."

"Dutchy? What's there to deal with with him? I thought things were going well."

"They were for the first day." Bumlets laid his forehead on his palm. "We had a fight yesterday."

"About?"

"He heard me talking shit about him and went ballistic," Bumlets answered. "But that was after he stood me up for Specs."

David scrunched his face up. "What was he doing with Specs?"

"Hell if I know. This whole god damn relationship shit was a fucking bad idea. Dutchy just seems to have become more insane."

David laid his hand on Bumlets' shoulder. "Maybe you should break it off before it gets even worse? I think you need to try to minimize the drama in your life as much as you can. Didn't you already say that nothing's good going to come out of whatever it is you and Dutchy are doing? Well, the sooner you cut it off the less painful it'll be."

Bumlets pinched the bridge of his nose. "I know that, but …"

"Come on, Bumlets." David withdrew his hand. "I was under the impression that you weren't a wuss."

"That's a funny thing for you to say." Bumlets glared.

David rolled his eyes and sighed. "Look, I know this is hard, but you have to be the one that fixes things. No one's going to be able to do it for you. I know you don't want to hear it, but if you let things go on like they are then you might very well lose your friends."

Bumlets lowered his eyes and looked at the ground for a few seconds. "You're right, of course. I'll talk to Dutchy, and I'll go find Skittery."

"That's the spirit." David smiled and slapped him on the back. "Never give up."

Itey walked into the lunchroom lacking the normal spring in his step. Time seemed to drag on forever without Skittery by his side to distract him from how boring life was. What the fuck had he been thinking uttering the l-word. When had he become an idiot?

He looked towards his normal table to see only Specs and Dutchy. God, he could not sit there. No way could he deal with those two idiots right now. Dutchy's stupid crushes were just plain annoying without Skittery around.

His eyes roamed around for another place to sit. He glanced over all the people who were unimportant to him until he finally saw Mush and Blink at their own small table. They were sitting across from each other, silently eating their food. He walked over to them without hesitation.

"Yo. Mind if a pop a squat?"

Blink and Mush both looked up from their lunch trays at the same time.

"Of course not," Mush answered first. "How's your day been going so far?"

"Pretty god damn lousy," Itey answered, taking a seat on Blink's side of the table. "How about yourselves?"

"Pretty much the same," Blink replied, thinking about Skittery.

Mush shrugged. "I've had better."

"Glad to know I'm not the only one feeling like hell today. Maybe it's the alignment of the planets or some shit," Itey suggested. "Things have been so fucked up lately. We all need to let loose and drink or something, you know what I mean?"

"I don't really drink," Mush replied.

"Me neither," Blink said.

Itey leaned forward in his seat. "You guys don't drink? Why the fucking hell not? Have you ever tried it before?"

Blink looked up as he thought. "Once or twice."

"My parents let me have a glass of wine whenever we have family get togethers," Mush replied. "Does that count?"

Itey sighed. "No, that doesn't count. Man, you guys are pathetic. How can you be high school juniors but not have experience drinking? You know we're going to have to do something about that, don't you?"

Mush gave Blink a worried look before turning back to Itey. "I'm not so sure about that. Can't we get in trouble for drinking underage? I don't mind waiting."

"Waiting!" Itey's eyes widened as he tried to control the sound of his voice. "What do ya mean, wait? Wait four more years before you learn what being drunk feels like? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard. You have to practice now, so you'll be good when you can finally do it legally."

Mush continued looking worried. "I'm sorry. I'd love to hang out ... whenever you're available, but this doesn't seem like a good idea." He looked at Blink. "What do you think?"

Blink shrugged. "I wouldn't mind trying it in all honesty. Once or twice before we're twenty-one isn't going to hurt us at all, right? And I'd like to see what all the huff is about."

"That's the spirit!" Itey explained, slapping Blink on the back. "So it's decided then! This weekend we'll have the coolest drinking party that you guys are capable of! It'll be a night to remember!"

... And just the thing to get his mind off of Skittery.

David sat down in French class before the bell rang, getting prepared to do no work yet again. This slacker thing was a lot harder than it looked. If only he had homework from another class to do. Or a test to study for. Or a book to read. Anything would be better than staring off into space.

"I saw your big sis today," Jack announced before sitting down next to David. "We had a pretty interesting conversation." He leaned closer to his French partner. "There anything you think you might want to tell me?"

David looked up at him with a confused look on his face. "What are you talking about, Jack? You've got something to tell me?"

Jack threw his chair back to rest on its two back legs. He laced his fingers on the back of his head and leaned back. "Yeah," he replied nonchalantly, "I got something to tell ya." He snapped his chair back to fours legs and pointed at David. "You're a High school cliche. ... The biggest nerd in school ... so caught up in books he doesn't know what the hell is going on around him. But at least I still held a tiny amount of respect for you. Guys who go crying to their sisters though ... are just fucking cowards. What? You want me to drop it that bad? You wanna pass this stupid project that much? How much more of a pussy could you get?"

Davids face was heating up as he shot up from his chair. "Now see here, you! I'm no coward! And I'm thinking at this point I would rather have you fail than me pass. You're an ungrateful brat. You're a lazy asshole, not only content with, but expecting a free ride. You're an immature child who'll do anything to win an argument, even if it means jeprodizing your future. Were those words all small enough for you? Do I need to repeat it slower for you? I want you to fail this class, Jack. I wanna see your whole, clear-cut future you planned out for yourself go up in smoke."

David knew it was harsh. He knew he had taken it too far, but damn it! He worked hard for his grades, and Jack was trying to ruin all the work he had put into this class. It was irritating. Not too mention, Jack probably would fail this class. And he was probably going to fail five more. But for some reason, for some miracle, he would be a senior next year. The school's honor system had completely gone to hell.

Jack looked pissed as he rose from his seat."What the fuck did you just say to me, you fucking fag?"

"Oh, so I do need to dumb it down for you."

Their teacher walked in before David could get himself punched. "Quiet everyone! Let's all sit down and start gettting to work on those projects!"

David and Jack both sat down.

Jack leaned over to whisper to him. "So, you think you've got some balls, huh? You sure you want to do this? Cause you haven't seen me do shit yet."

David whispered back, "Fear is all in the unknown. Pretend all you want, but you can't do shit to me."

Bumlets sat on the steps coming down from the side of the school. People usually didn't come around this way between classes. It wasn't around anything; there was no point.

It was here that he sat to think about Dutchy and the huge mistake he'd made. What the hell had he been thinking, anyway? He wasn't gay. He certainly had never thought about his friend like that. And this whole, stupid plan he had gotten sucked into ...

When the fuck did he become this stupid? What kind of idiot put himself into that type of predicament?

"Ugh. What I wouldn't do to go back just a mere twenty-four hours."

"And what would you do with that?" Specs asked, walking around the corner.

"There's a reason no one likes you, you creepy pedophile pervert. Get the fuck outta here. What makes you think I won't beat you to a bloody pulp right now?"

Specs' eyes widened. "Whoa. Well, someone's certainly touchy today, aren't they? Dutchy still refusing to forgive you? Looks like the kid's finally standing up for himself. Good for him. You certainly don't deserve him, that's for sure."

Bumlets narrowed his eyes. He was supposed to be nice to this guy? How could he ever agree to such an impossible task? "And you somehow feel any of this business is yours ... why, again?"

Specs rolled his eyes and chuckled. "Oh, Bumlets, must you be so stupid and niave? Dutchy and I are friends. I'm here to protect him from uncaring assholes like you."

"And if I'm not around exactly who is it that's going to protect Dutchy from idiotic asshole motherfuckers like you?"

Specs gritted his teeth. "What a dirty fucking mouth you have. Dutchy will never stay with someone like you. Filthy cunt fags don't deserve him."

Bunlets finally stood up from his step. "You're starting to really tick me off, Four Eyes. You want another black eye? Or maybe something broken this time? Rupturing something seems like a pretty good plan."

Specs raised up both hands, dropping all his anger. "Whoa, dude. That's a little too intense now, don'tcha think? I am Dutchy's friend, after all. Your boyfriend would get mad if you did something to me. And I would tell him too!"

Bumlets started popping knuckles. "You certainly don't do yourself any favors, do you? Dutchy isn't your friend, you idiot. He's just the only one too nice to blow you off. I'm sure he wants to. I'm sure you regrets agreeing to your invitations as soon as he gets there. Unfortunately he's just too damn nice to do anything but smile. Nobody likes you! Then or now. So do yourself a favor, and just leave us all the fuck alone."

In the very back of his head Bumlets hoped that David would forgive him.

"So, headquarters, aye?" Skittery asked, jumping off the motorcycle and removing his helmet. He looked at the huge crumbling building right in front of them. "Looks like that heap of trash is going to tumble right on top of me."

Spot threw a leg over the motorcycle and slipped off. He nodded his head toward the building. "That heap of trash is the place you will be staying. I'll give you a week to change your mind and run back home to your parents. Wait more than a week and the penalty for leaving is death." Spot turned to look at his newest recruit. "Welcome home." He smirked before heading towards the rotting building.

"Ah, home, sweet home," Skittery replied. "Where ya been all my life, you rotting, crumbling, probably-should-be-condemned building? I feel so complete now. It's like fucking magic."

Spot forced himself not to let out the growl that was trying to escape. "Keep it up, and I'll make sure you go down with the next building that they condemn and try to bring down."

"Isn't that what you're doing right now?"

Spot grabbed Skittery by the shirt collar and lifted him off the ground, despite being the smaller of the two boys. "I like ya, Skitts. I actually do, but don't forget for one second that that isn't rights to a special pass. If I fail to see the value in you that you are here to give, or you give me no effort, or if I, for some reason, suspect there's a chance of foul play ... I will not, for one second, hesitate to shoot you dead in the chest. No last words."

Skittery couldn't stop his eyes from widening. "I swear I was kidding. I appreciate the place to stay and everything. And I won't let you down, sir." Skitts saluted, probably sarcastically, but Spot couldn't be sure. "Swear it."

"Good," Spot replied, finally putting Skittery back on his own two feet. "No more insults. At me, my building, or my city. You'll be staying in the basement." Spot began walking toward th crumbling building.

"What?" Skittery exclaimed, following Spot. "You can't be serious! You can't be that evil of a bastard. Please say it ain't so."

Spot shrugged unsympathetically. "Newbies all bunk in the basement. If you don't like the arrangement you can leave. Just make sure it's within the week. Quitting becomes a much bigger deal after that."

Skittery hung his head as he slowly descended some stairs after Spot. "Ah, man. I thought you said you liked me. Don'tcha waanna be friends?"

Spot snorted, but chose not to say anything as he walked farther down into the basement.

"It's dark, and dank, and cold down here," Skittery complained. "And I can barely see a foot in front of my face. And I've already run into three cobwebs while walking behind you. I feel like useless storage being down here."

"You are useless storage," Spot replied, " ... for now anyway." He finally got to even flooring. He took a few steps forward and pulled a thin chain hanging from the ceiling. The whole floor filled with a dim light.

"It looked better when it was pitch black."

Cement floors sat under them, drywall surrounded them, and above them instead of ceiling were rafters. Lining all the walls were bunk beds, what looked like maybe twenty in all. They were all held together by rotting wood. The mattresses were all stained a brown color, and most seemed to have stuffing leaking out of them. Other than that there was nothing in the big room.

"No sheets, no bathroom ... just beds" Skittery noted. "Whatcha got here, Spot, is a prison cell. No, wait, it's worse than a prison cell, because at least a prison cell has a bathroom in it."

Spot rolled his eyes. "Quit being so melodramatic. The bathrooms are on the first floor, as well as the laundry room where you can pick up your sheets."

Skitty looked around. "You know, oddly enough, that doesn't seem to make this conversation any better. Perhaps some carpeting and posters? Maybe a television? You have cable in this piece of shit building?"

Spot narrowed his eyes. He was getting pretty tired of his empire being called a piece of shit. "Cable and internet," he replied. "As long as you have the right equipment to utilize it, anyway. You want something? You buy it. I'm not your fucking parent."

"I feel so welcome," Skittery said as Spot turned around and started walking up the stairs. "And so gosh darn comfortable. I never knew someone could be this nice of a host," he continued sarcastically.

He sighed as he heard his prison door close. "This or home?" he wondered aloud to himself. "Which is the better of the two evils? And when does it become a good idea to off myself?"

He sighed again as he started looking for the cleanest mattress. He at least had to spend one night here. He'd feel more than foolish if he ran out this soon.

Bumlets looked around as he took his seat in eighth period. No Skittery. No Itey. No Dutchy. Huh. Well, they had about ... Bumlets looked at the clock. ... One minute before the bell rang. Honestly, Bumlets would probably be happier with the fact that they had all decided to cut last period. He could use a break.

"Hey!" Dutchy greeted as he walked through the door and took a seat. "How ya? I'm having such an unbelievable day!" He looked at Bumlets. "No thanks to you, of course. At least I still have Specs."

'Specs is an asshole,' Bumlets wanted to say right off the bat, but he remembered that he promised David he would try to be nice. Which meant he couldn't just write Specs off as an asshole anymore. God damn it. "Don't be like that, Dutchy," he said out loud. "I know it was mean, but I was just venting. And guess what. I got us jobs!"

"Oh boy!" Dutchy replied with mock excitement. "That makes everything better. I totally forgive you now for talking trash about me to Swifty."

Bumlets scrunched his eyebrows together. "Dutchy ... I apologized already, alright? You can fucking drop it now."

Dutchy's mouth dropped before snapping closed again. " '... Fucking drop it'? Really, Bumlets? '... Fucking drop it'! He shot up from his chair, feeling like he finally had the courage to tell his friend off.

"Alright!" the teacher said, walking into the classroom. "Let's try not to scream so loud everyone hears it out in the hallway." He gave the class a wide smile. "Now shall we begin? Everyone turn to page fifty-six."

"How dare you fucking tell me to drop it," Dutchy whispered to Bumlets after he sat back down. "How would you feel if you walked in on your boyfriend bitching about you to another man?"

"I'm not your boyfriend, Dutchy," Bumlets whispered back. "It's a sham, remember? A part of another one of your fucked up plans. How you managed to rope me into it I'll never know."

"You cock-sucking son of a bitch," Dutchy swore. "Boyfriend or friend, you still shouldn't have been talking about me like that. Especially not to Swifty. He's like a complete stranger now."

"Better him than Specs," Bumlets retorted. "Swifty's the one who got us jobs. What the hell has Specs done for you besides be an asshole?"

"I'll tell you what he hasn't done," Dutchy answered, his voice getting louder with every word. "He hasn't talked shit about me to anyone who'll listen."

"It wasn't like that!" Bumlets shouted.

"Whoa," the teacher interrupted calmly. "I could've sworn I said not to yell loud enough for everyone in the hall to hear it. I'm pretty sure that's what I said."

Dutchy paid no heed. He stood up from his seat once again. "I'm so fucking tired of being everyone's bitch! Yours! Skittery's! Itey's! You guys don't appreciate me worth a shit. Well fine! That's fine! Just replace me with Swifty, and you won't have to listen to my annoying ass or my stupid plans ever again! But there's no way in hell I'm just going to sit here and listen to it!" He screamed before marching out of class.

"So, as I was saying," the teacher continued, seeming unfazed as the classroom door slammed shut, "research shows that people are programmed to conform. Put simplistically, it's a 'monkey see monkey do' situation. In other words ... "

Bumlets sighed and buried his face in his arms. Well, at least he didn't have to worry about breaking up with anyone.

"Itey!" David said when he saw the boy walking through the halls. "Shouldn't you be in class right now?"

"Shouldn't you be in class right now?" Itey shot back instantly. "You're the one who's supposed to be the good student."

"They made me take Study Hall this period. Otherwise I'd have too many credits, and I'd have to graduate early," David explained.

"And that would be a bad thing because ..."

"Because I want another year to decide what college to go. It's a very big decision, and it requires an immense amount of thought," David replied. "And what about you? You cutting?"

Itey shrugged. "Not like anyone's surprised. My last period's dumb as fuck anyway. I didn't feel like dealing with the shit today. School's stupid as fuck as it is."

David narrowed his eyes slightly. He happened to like school. But he let it drop. There was no sense in creating a useless argument. "So how have you been lately, Itey? It seems like things have been a little tense for you."

"Huh?" Itey asked, scratching the back of his head. He hadn't been expecting that question. "Well, yea, maybe I have been under a little bit of stress. Life of a teenager." He shrugged.

David drew his eyebrows together. He hadn't thought Itey would just come right out with everything, but he had been expecting at least something. "What's the matter? You don't trust me anymore? I know we haven't really talked in awhile, but I still know you aren't just suffering from teenage angst. You can talk to me, Itey. I promise to keep it between us. I'm here to listen. Honestly. That's all I want to do. I know we haven't been really good friends for awhile, but-"

"You're rambling, Davy," Itey pointed out. He sighed and rubbed his forehead. "It's complicated, you know what I mean? I don't even know where to start. I can't sort anything out."

"Well, you can start with something simple," David suggested. "Why are you cutting class?"

"I told you-"

"I mean the real reason," David continued. "You're a good student, Itey. I know you don't cut just because you feel like being a delinquent."

"Yes," Itey protested, "I do. You haven't seen me in years, David. Just because you knew me once doesn't mean you know me now. So stop acting like it, okay?"

David stared at him. Yes, he had been expecting a little bit of resistance. Of course Itey wouldn't come out with everything all at once without even offering an excuse or two. No, he had not been expecting to get attacked for showing concern. "So you're really stressed out then?"

"Yes," Itey replied, sighing and plopping down in the middle of the hallway. He held his head in his hands. "Life fucking sucks, you know it? I fucking hate all this shit."

David put his hand on Itey's back before sitting down next to him in the hall. "You know, in times like these, I heard it's supposed to help to talk about it.'

Itey sighed. He really didn't want to talk about it. He had talked about it enough. Now it was time for it to go away. The thoughts kept racing around in his head. They were getting to be too overwhelming. He just wanted to forget about it already. "Skittery and I broke up," he finally released. "And he's being a big, ole son of a bitch."

"Oh, Itey, I'm so sorry."

"Dutchy's using Bumlets to be gay," he continued, undeterred. "Everyone keeps bothering me and annoying me. My sister's a bitch. My parent's are retards. Sean's a gang leader. And he'll probably have me killed-"

"What?"

"And the more I think about it, the less I seem to care."

"What did you say? Sean's a ... a what now? He's a gang leader? How? Where? When?"

"Shit," Itey swore, smacking himself in the forehead. "I guess I shouldn't have told you that, huh? Now he'll probably be out to kill you, too."

"You're joking," David accused. "You can't be serious."

"Nope, I totally am. You know that scary, ominous Brooklyn gang leader? The one who takes no prisioners and whose very voice strikes fear into the hearts of thousands? Well, that little midget's him."

"I don't believe it."

Itey shrugged. "Me either. Let's go call him a liar to his face," he suggested, starting to get up from the floor.

David's eyes widened. "No! We can't do that!" He grabbed Itey's arm and pulled him back down.

Itey smirked. "So you do believe me then?"

David sighed. He had forgotten what a headache Itey could give him if he wanted to. "Yes, I suppose I do. Now, stop messing with me. I'm trying to help here."

"Help how, Davy? There's nothing you can do. Skittery hates me. Sean's going to kill me. And now he's going to kill you, too. My family sucks. My friends suck. My life sucks. And maybe Sean'll be doing me a favor by offing me."

"Itey! Don't talk like that. This is just a small bump in the road. All we have to do is get past this, and everything will be good as new," David said with a smile.

Itey stared at him for awhile. "Are you an idiot, Davy?" he finally asked. "Seriously. Did something happen to your brain since the last time I talked to you? 'This is just a small bump in the road'? '... A small bum in the road'? No. That is completely and utterly stupid. This isn't just a small bump. This is my life ending. Good riddance I say."

"Itey. Please don't talk like that. Everything will be okay."

"Bullshit it will. Maybe once Sean finally puts me out of my misery."

"Now that's enough," David demanded. "I very much agree that this a situation to complain about. But there's complaining, and then there's whining. Fucking toughen up and deal with it."

Itey looked at him with an open mouth. "You liking your new balls then?"

David laughed. "They're very comfortable. I think I'm going to keep them."

Itey smirked and nodded. "They look good on you."

David smiled back. "Why, thank you."

To Be Continued ...

So? Worth the wait? I find myself a little rusty, but I'm hoping my writing didn't suffer.

Please Review! It's what brought me back in the first place!