Chapter Seven
Spot stayed up late into the night. Long after the rest of the newsies were sound asleep, he was sitting in his room. Raindrop wasn't back yet either. Finally, to avoid risking falling asleep and missing her, he crept to her bunk and waited there for her. When she finally returned it was near three. She froze when she saw the dark shape on her bunk. He stood up and put his hand over her mouth. Then he took her into his room and lit a few candles. They looked at each other for a long moment.
"Where were ya?" Spot finally asked.
"What difference does it make?" she asked. Spot raised an eyebrow.
"Cause I was woiried 'bout ya. An' I wanna tawk ta ya." Raindrop looked at him.
"Ya got any sparah clothes I kin weah? Mine 'r wet, I was in da rivah. An' I won' find me uddahs wit'out a light in der." Spot thought for a moment.
"Dese 'r da only clothes Is'e got right now." He pulled off his suspenders, unbuttened his shirt, and handed it to her. "Dat's da best I kin do," he said. She nodded.
"T'anks." Spot waited just outside the door until she changed and let him back in. She climbed onto her old bunk and wrapped the blanket around her, shivering. He sat down next to her.
"Raindrop, why on Oith were ya in da rivah? Don' ya know dat goin' swimmin' dis late in da yeah kin kill ya?" She frowned.
"I didn' ezactly go in on poipuse." Spot sighed.
"Why don' ya jist tell me where ya been all ev'nin'." She nodded.
"Awright. Aftah Tricks, Mush, Blink, and I came back from dinnah we moved me stuff ta da uddah room, an' den I left ta go on a walk fer awhile. I ended up at me folk's graves, an' den Bev arrived too. We went back ta 'er apar'ment an' had a real long talk. She tried ta convince me ta stay dere wit her. Quite bein' a newsie and marry some goose she'd found for me somewheah. I told 'er I wasn' int'rested. We had a fight an' I left. I was walkin' near da docks when suddenly someone ran inta me, an' I fell in. Dey was gone by da time I got back out, so I came back."
"Why didn' ya stay wit Beverly? Pro'ly be bettah off wit 'er." Raindrop looked at him and tears filled her eyes.
"Cause I love ya, ya fool. I nevah could jist leave ya like dat. Don' really mattah how you feel 'bout it, cause I'd stay anyhow." Spot closed his eyes for a minute. Finally he opened them again.
"I was really angry when you said…you know." Raindrop nodded.
"I know," she whispered. "Ev'rytime ya looked at me, all I could see was hoit. It felt ya was twistin' a knife inside me, 'r sumpt'in'."
"Dat's how I felt," Spot said, "Only a thousand times woise, when you said ya didn' wanna be part of me poisonal life." A tear slipped down Raindrop's cheek. Spot leaned over and wiped it away.
"I don' know what ta do," said Raindrop, "I said I was sawry, an' I'll say it again a thousand times ovah. I don' know what I kin do ta make it up ta ya." Spot looked at her.
"I don't eiddah. Der's not much ya kin do once ya hoit someone like dat."
"Nothing?" she whispered, her face ashen. "Spot, I know wha I said was 'orrible, but…but…"
"But when yer really loved by Spot Conlon it takes a lot moah ta git riddah 'im," he finished. Raindrop looked at him in surprise.
"You're shivering," he commented. He pulled her over to him and wrapped his arms around her. "Dat 'elp?" he asked softly. She nodded and laid her head down on his shoulder. "I got sumpt'in' fer ya, ya know," Spot said after awhile. Raindrop turned and looked at him.
"Yeah?" Spot pulled a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to her. She unfolded it, and lying inside was a silver ring. She looked at it in complete shock.
"Ya remembah da uddah day, ya were tawkin' 'bout how most goils yer age 'r gettin' married an' all," Spot started explaining. Raindrop shot him a quick look, but didn't say anything. "An' so I t'ought I'd git ya sumpt'in'. Not, not ta propose 'r nuthin', jist…" he finished helplessly. Raindrop picked up the ring and began looking it over. "It's jist silver, nothing fancy on it, but der, der on da inside it's got our names," he said. Spot took her hand and pointed it out to her.
"Lissa and Ben," Raindrop read softly. Spot pulled a chain out of his pocket as well.
"Heah," he said, "Ya don' want no one seein' dat ring on ya an' decidin' ta take it. You'se kin wheah it 'round yer neck on dis." She gave him the ring, and Spot put it on the chain. Raindrop turned around again and he fastened it around her neck. Raindrop leaned back against him again and fingered the ring. She looked up and him and smiled. Spot leaned down and kissed her.
"Ya know I love ya." Raindrop smiled.
"Ya know I feel da same way." He started kissing her until she started giggling and couldn't stop laughing. She closed her eyes and sighed happily.
"You know," Spot said, "it's nearly time ta git up."
"Mmm…" Raindrop said softly. She leaned closer to him, and he put one arm around her, and ran in fingers lightly through her hair with the other hand. She was nearly asleep when he started a song she could barely hear.
"Good night, baby, sleep tight me love…may God watch ovah you'se from above. Tamorrah I'se woikin', what would I do? I'd be lost an' lonely if not fer you'se. So close yer eyes…yer alright…fer now…" Suddenly he stopped.
"That's sucha poitty song…" Raindrop said. "Don't stop."
"Don't remembah da rest," Spot said. "Me mothah sang dat ta me 'n' Corrine when we was liddle." Soon Raindrop was fast asleep, and Spot wasn't far behind. He thought about climbing up to his bunk, but fell asleep without getting up.
Tricks pounded on Spot's bedroom door. Raindrop wasn't in her bed, and it didn't look like she had been all night. He didn't know where she was, but she was apt to be in trouble. A groggy voice muttered something intelligible and Tricks opened the door. Raindrop and Spot were sprawled on the bottom bunk, looking like they would rather die than be bothered.
"Eh…" Raindrop groaned. Tricks looked at them.
"I ah…I wanted ta…well, Raindrop wasn' out der, an' we didn' know wheah she was, an' den ya weren' up yet an' didn' know if you'se ovahslept 'r what." Spot sat up and squinted at Tricks.
"Came in last night. Ain't sellin' taday." He fell back on the bunk and closed his eyes. Tricks backed out of the room and shut the room. There were only two newsies left in the large bunk room.
"Well?" asked Kid Blink. Tricks shrugged.
"All Spot said was dat Raindrop came in last night an' dat dey weren' sellin' taday. I dunno, but dey shoah looked like crap." Mush raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah?" Tricks nodded.
"Yeah. I'd be su'prised if eiddah one of dem got any sleep last night. Busy makin' up I'd guess. But den I dunno."
"Hope so," Kid Blink said.
Most of the Brooklyn newsies were sprawled on the pier when he came. Five or six of the biggest and toughest newsies surrounded him and another was sent to Spot.
"Kelly's heah," Deer announced. Spot nodded.
"Bring 'im ovah heah." Newsies began drifting nearer to the piles of crates Spot and Raindrop were on, interested in what was going to happen.
"Heya Spot," Jack said when he arrived. Spot stared him down.
"What d'ya want?" he asked shortly. Jack swallowed. What he had thought was going to be easy was obviously not.
"Yeah, kin I tawk ta Mush, 'n' Race, 'n' Blink, 'n' Raindrop?" he asked nervously.
"No." It took a minute for what Spot had said to register in Jack's mind.
"What?" Spot frowned even more.
"I said no. Race isn't heah ta been seen, an' ya ain't tawkin' ta da rest of dem alone. If it's dat impoahtant ya kin tawk ta dem heah." Jack nodded slowly.
"Awright." He looked around unitl he had found Mush, Kid Blink, and Raindrop. "Well, ah, yeah. I'se been tawkin' ta da uddah guys, an' we want ya ta come back." Mush and Blink looked at each other and grinned.
"Sounds great!" Jack grinned back at them. Then he turned to Raindrop. "When're ya ready ta go."
"I'm not," she said flatly. Everyone instantly looked at Spot, Raindrop, and Jack. Jack looked at her like she was crazy. Raindrop was expressionless. And Spot smirked at Jack.
"Why?" Jack asked her in amazment. Raindrop shrugged.
"It ain't sumpt'in' I'se int'rested in tawkin' ta you'se 'bout."
"Man Raindrop, I know what I said ta you'se wasn' nice, but I didn' t'ink it hoit ya dat much."
"Dis has nuttin' ta do wit you kickin' us out. Not much, 'least." Jack looked back and forth between Raindrop and Spot, and nodded slowly.
"Ya shoah?"
"Quite," Raindrop said cooly. He nodded.
"Awright den." He looked at Mush and Blink. "Ya ready ta go?"
"I jist gotta git me stuff from da Lodgin' House," Kid Blink said.
"Me too," Mush echoed.