Last chapter of Day 1 (September 15)!

Review Responses:

AndrewKeenanBolgerFan: Crutchie... is not okay... Cool! Glad you thought that me traumatizing a beloved character was a good idea. (I fully agree. It was a very good idea.) I'm sorry about killing your heart for the 800th time!

I gotta say, the first half of this chapter is really satisfying. If I got to pick one of my chapters to live in, it would be this one.

Have fun!

Chapter 18- Jack

Wednesday, September 15, 1999, 7:10 p.m.

The sun was setting. Jack, for the moment, had access to the only quiet spot in the city. Everything was coming alive in the streets down below, but up here, in the open air that still had a hint of summer to it, Jack was beyond all that. It was almost like being on a higher plane of existence. Nothing could touch him here. Neither his worries about college, his doubts about the future, nor his concerns about Crutchie existed in this moment. He wasn't even preoccupied by the wave of anxiety that had come from his encounter with Snyder an hour ago. There was only Jack and the city he hated.

The rooftop door flew open, loudly announcing the arrival of the other boys.

Race proclaimed, "Look who we got up!" as Crutchie stepped up behind him.

"Also, Finchy's here," said Albert, coming onto the roof along with the guy in question.

"Mr. Wah finally kicked ya outta his apartment, then?" Jack asked, referencing Finch's living situation, which until this evening had been with Sniper above her father's laundromat.

"Naw, he kicked me out weeks ago," Finch said, "when he found out I'm s'posed ta be livin' wit my mom. This is jus' him finally figurin' out I overstayed my welcome."

"Yeah, only ya were neva' welcome," Albert teased.

"Eff you."

"Maybe he would've let ya stay if ya weren't startin' ta get all lovey-dovey with Snipes," Race stuck a cigarette between his teeth as he nudged Finch playfully.

"Why did I even come here?" Finch tried to leave, but Albert grabbed the neck of his shirt and tugged him back.

"Whoa there. Ya ain't allowed ta leave, Finchy. We's celebratin'."

"Henry's mom is about ta get back custody," Specs declared as he entered the "penthouse", carrying two six-packs of soda.

Elmer and Henry followed behind him; Henry had a badly constructed party hat made from somebody's math homework taped haphazardly onto his hair. Jack figured the hat had been Elmer's doing.

"Tada..." Henry waved his hands awkwardly, a sheepish grin on his face.

"Yeah, look at that, he found 'er afta' all dis time," Albert quipped. Specs lobbed a full can of soda at him. It narrowly missed Albert's ear and landed just short of the roof's edge. Any farther and some unfortunate person on the sidewalk below would have ended up with a concussion. Instead, it was the pop can that got dented.

"That's amazing, Henry," Jack congratulated.

"I guess," Henry shrugged, sitting cross-legged on the ground. "Nothin's been confirmed yet, though. I don't wanna jinx it."

"It's going to be fine," Elmer said, handing his best friend a soda. "Everything'll work out for you. I can feel it."

"I wish you'd stop saying that."

Jack stood, grabbed two drinks, tossed one to Crutchie. "How's about we take da focus off a' Henry? We got otha' things ta celebrate." He popped the tab on his can and raised it to make a toast. "To our last first day eva'."

Specs copied him. "To our last first day. Ever." He let out a long breath and took a drink.

"To Crutchie," proposed Elmer, "and his first day as a teddy bear." Everyone stared at him as he swallowed a large gulp of pop. "That's our mascot, guys. You know, Teddy Roosevelt, teddy bear?"

"I think it's just a normal bear, Elmer," said Crutchie. There was laughter in his eyes, which Jack was pleased to see, given the terrified state his friend had arrived home in.

"You've only been going there one day, how would you know?"

"'Cause he ain't an idiot, that's how," Henry told him. Elmer stuck out his tongue and Henry returned the action.

"To me, an' how well I'mma sleep tonight afta' drinkin' this," Race announced, raising two soda cans and attempting to drink out of both of them at the same time. Predictably, that didn't work.

"To how well I ain't gonna sleep tonight," Albert crushed the empty can he had just chugged.

With a sigh, Finch raised his own pop. "To my sanity, which I ain't gonna have afta' spendin' the night here."

Crutchie's toast was, "To Jack and Santa Fe."

Jack pulled the younger boy closer to him and ruffled his hair. The sky grew darker. In the empty space on the roof, Albert and Finch started a pirouette competition, which was frowned upon by Specs and encouraged by Henry and Elmer. Crutchie laid his head against Jack's arm. After a while, Race sat down on Jack's other side.

As the sky's light faded completely, Racer began losing consciousness. To keep himself awake, he started singing, though the way he was positioned muffled it into Jack's shoulder. "'Close your eyes, come with me-'"

Jack picked up the tune. "'Where it's clean and green and pretty…'"

"'An' they went an' made a city, outta clay,'" the two of them finished in unison.

Jack's father had originally made up that song, and when Race first came to The Refuge, Jack had taught it to his new friend. Since then, it had become theirs.

"'Why the minute thatch ya get there, folks'll walk right up an' say, welcome home son, welcome home to Santa Fe…'"

"Aw, shut up about Santa Fe already," Crutchie mumbled sleepily.

All the stars in New Mexico couldn't beat this moment, Jack thought. If he could stay here, in this exact scene, for the rest of his life, he wouldn't mind being in New York. If only he could stop everything from changing, tuck himself away in this one pleasant minute of his life, then he would be happy. Happiness was hard to come by, especially for someone like him, and Jack had a dreadful feeling that his entire life was going to change soon.

The rooftop door was pushed open in a slow, calm fashion as Mr. Kloppmann came up the steps. He beckoned Henry, who looked around at the group.

"This is it," the boy got to his feet, a nervous half-smile on his face.

"You got this, Henry," Elmer encouraged, as if his friend were in control of the situation.

"It's gonna go well," reassured Specs.

Henry nodded, holding up crossed fingers before disappearing beyond the door. A split second after it closed behind him, Finch and Albert bounded over. While Finch knelt down and tried to listen through the keyhole, Albert spread his entire body flat on the ground and attempted to hear what was being said through the minuscule space separating the door from the stone roof.

"Can ya hear anythin'?" Race yawned.

"Naw, it's hard ta understand," Finch reported. "Think they went down the stairs."

"C'mon, speak up!" Albert pleaded with the people who couldn't see him. "We wanna know what's goin' on!"

FInch shushed him. "Shh, Al, they're sayin' words!"

"What else would they be sayin'?"

"Shh!" Finch waited for a moment. "Dammit. All I can hear is Henry. He's sayin'... 'okay'. And, 'okay' again. And again." He pulled his ear away from the keyhole. "He don't sound happy, 'sfar as I can tell."

"I'm sure it's fine," Elmer said, "he's not a very happy person in general, that's all."

Albert slid away from the door. "Move it, Finchy, he's comin' back up."

Finch was able to scramble backwards just in time, before Henry flung the door open. Specs eyed him for a moment, waiting for him to speak. Jack did the same, trying to judge the younger boy's mood.

"So?" Elmer asked, stepping forward, "What's the word on your mom?"

Henry swallowed, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "She had one more hearin' tonight."

"And?"

"An' she didn't even bother ta show up." The pain in his voice became clear.

"Oh, Henry," said Specs, rising and walking towards his friend. "I'm so-"

Henry's hands flew out of the pockets of his jeans as he lifted his arms, palms facing upwards. He turned slightly from side to side, imploring of the group, "I mean, how hard is it ta make one appointment?" His eyes filled with tears, and he pressed his lips together. "How hard is it!" He screamed the phrase this time, punching the door frame.

Afterwards, while everyone else looked on with concern, he rested his forehead against the metal, eyes screwed shut. When Henry's shoulders started shaking, Jack shifted Race and Crutchie off of him so he could stand up and go to Henry's side.

Nodding to the other boys, he gave the order, "You guys clear outta here. Henry an' I'll take in da penthouse."

At these words, Henry sprung away from the door, spinning to face Jack. There were angry tears streaming down his face. "Don't act like you care!"

Jack took a step back. "What?"

"You've neva' given a damn about me! Everyone knows Racer an' Crutchie are your favorites! In all the years we've lived together, you've neva' once taken time outta your day ta ask how I'm doing!"

"Henry, I-"

"I'm not jus' some side character in your life story! An' I am not going to stand here explainin' my own pitiful backstory so's you can make yourself feel better."

Jack was taken aback by this outburst. Henry didn't wait for him to make excuses; he stormed back down the stairs. Unsure what to do, Jack looked to the others for assistance. Specs got halfway through suggesting that he let Henry cool off for a bit before Jack made up his mind and chased after the younger boy.

When Jack caught up, Henry was in the kitchen, pulling sandwich ingredients out of the cupboards. He glared at Jack, pulled two slices of bread out of the package, and slapped them onto a plate. "Sorry, did I bruise your ego?"

"I was only tryin' ta help."

"I don't need your help." Henry angrily spread mayonnaise onto both slices of bread. "'Specially since you've neva' offered it before." He placed some pieces of lettuce on the sandwich halves.

"I didn't know-"

"Ya didn't ask. 'Cause ya only care about Race." As he said this, Henry piled slices of ham, cheese, and tomato onto his sandwich.

"That's not it, I jus' figured none a' youse were goin' through the same amount a' crap as I-"

Henry slammed his palm on the counter, making the plate and mayonnaise jar rattle. "Why the hell d'you think we live here?"

"I- I know Specs' parents kicked him out."

"But you neva' bothered ta ask why, didja?"

Jack's face fell. He combed his hair with one hand. "You're right, I never thought even about askin' him why."

Obviously expecting Jack's response to be "no", Henry started his pre-planned tirade. "See, this is what I'm tired of! Ya can't even admit when you're-"

"I said, you're right."

Henry stopped. Waiting for Jack to continue, he stuck both halves of the sandwich together.

"I was so busy thinkin' 'bout my own issues that I didn't even ask 'bout the rest a' youse. An' I'm sorry, particularly ta you." Sentence finished, Jack anticipated Henry making an apology as well. When that didn't happen, he kept talking. "But, uh, we could talk now, if ya want. An' there's still this whole school year for bonding, or whateva'."

"Ya think one apology is gonna magically make everythin' okay?"

"Yes?"

"Of course ya do. Typical Jack Kelly."

"What're ya sayin'?"

"I'm sayin', you're wrong. You don't even live here anymore, an' no amount of apologies is gonna fix what I'm going through." Henry held up the sandwich, took a bite, and mumbled through it, "Do me a favor, an' continue ta leave me alone. You're leavin' the city at the end of the year anyway."

For a third time, Henry walked away, and this time, Jack didn't follow after.

Poor Henry. This chapter doesn't do a lot for the story, it's just characters hanging out and discussing living situations and such. But I love it.

This argument with Henry also kicks off all the newsie drama coming up, so get ready for that.

What was your favorite piece of this chapter? Mine was Henry making a sandwich while arguing with Jack. That, and Jack and Race singing. 'Cause yeah.

Please tell me your favorite part in your review!