Newsiesettes - Chapter 10

"Lisa?! Is that you? What are you doing in here?" Lisa heard a familiar chipper voice.

Lisa opened her eyes to be staring straight into the face of her former nurse, Yvette. "I, um...got lost. I was looking for the stuffed bear a friend gave to me while I was in the hospital, but...I couldn't find the room." She said quickly and gave a sheepish smile.

"Oh? Well, come right this way, yes we found it and we were going to contact you this morning. Were you in there all night? The door was locked..." Yvette's voice faded off and she gave Lisa a strange look.

Lisa laughed nervously. "Clumsy me. I locked myself in..."

"From the inside?"

"Well, yes. I...yes." She stuttered, following Yvette down the hall. They turned into the ever-familiar hospital room Lisa was in, just a day ago. Yvette turned to a small closet and opened the door. She pulled out a small honey-colored bear with a red ribbon around its neck and handed it to Lisa.

"Here you are."

Lisa smiled and hugged the bear. "Thank you so much, Yvette."

Yvette smiled and led Lisa back to the lobby. "Do you feel alright?" She asked, noticing how hard it was for Lisa to walk without limping.

"Yes, I'm fine."

Yvette frowned and gave her a look that made Lisa want to spill out the complete awful story, but she kept it inside. Lisa walked through the door Yvette held open for her and thanked her again. Then she started her walk home.

***

Glitz and I were pacing the floor of our room with David, Spot, Jack and Blink yelling for us to please sit and clam down.

"We **can't!" the two of us chorused.

David stood up and sighed. "Listen, Lisa's a smart girl, she has some street smarts, at least and she knows how to take care of herself. I'm sure wherever she is-"

"Or whatever she's doing..." Jack interrupted.

"Or whatever she's doing," he added, "she's fine."

Glitz threw Jack a "look". "Whatever she's doing? Is that supposed to make us feel better?"

Jack chuckled. "Sorry. You knew what I meant."

"Guys, David's right. I'm sure she's alright. I mean, let's look on the bright side..." my voice trailed off, "David?"

"Yes?" he answered.

"What's the bright side?"

Everyone sighed and Glitz, David and I slumped into chairs.

After another ten minutes of discussing possible situations, we heard the front door open. All six of us jumped up and tried to squeeze through the door together. Realizing we would never get downstairs this way, I yelled for everyone to stop. Everyone did and I grinned at Glitz. "Ladies first!" I shouted and both of us ran through the door and down the stairs leaving the guys standing at the doorway upstairs, confused. A few seconds later we could hear them falling over each other to get down the flight of stairs.

"Lisa!" Glitz shrieked when she saw her sister in the doorway.

"Hey Gracie-girl." Lisa said with a faint smile and no enthusiasm.

"Lise!" Glitz hissed, "You promised you'd never use that around other people!" She said wide-eyed.

Lisa gave another pitiful smile. "Sorry." The rest of us giggled and shook our heads.

"Lisa, what's wrong? You been cryin'?" Blink asked.

"No...no, I'm fine. Just tired. Honest." She said throwing on a fake smile when she saw none of us believed her.

"Well, if no one else will be straight-forward, I will. Where the hell were you last night?" Jack said bluntly, breaking the ice.

It got suddenly very quiet. "I was at the hospital." Lisa said just barely audible.

"Okay, what were you doing there?"

I frowned. "...Alright. Well, I suggest we all go to bed and we'll talk in the morning." After a few hesitant nods from the rest of the group we all trudged upstairs. I fell onto my bed and sleep got the best of me.

The next morning I got up to Jack shaking me so hard I thought my body parts were gonna fly off. "Glam!! GLAM GET UP! GET UP NOW!" he shouted at me.

"WHAT?!" I said, sitting straight up in my bed, "What is it?"

"Get up!" Jack said forcefully.

I sighed, laid back down, and turned over. "Ohh, you get up." I grumbled.

Jack thought for a moment, and I could tell I'd confused him. "Wait..." he said with a start, "I am up! Now it's your turn. Come on, girl up and at 'em, carryin the banner...let's go, rise and shine."

"ENOUGH...with the happy phrases..." I waited a moment, "Please...Thank you." I finished after I knew he had stopped.

Jack laughed as I practically tripped over myself getting up. "Go away, Jack." I said once I was up and walking around.

"Nope." He said, defiantly shaking his head. "You'll turn around and go straight back to bed the moment I walk out this door. Instead, I'll stand here and wait for you to go wash up and we'll walk downstairs together."

"How quaint..." I said rolling my eyes. He knew me too well.

After 15 minutes of running around the washroom connected to the girl's bedroom, I finally finished getting ready. I suddenly remembered how special a day it was for me - it was my 16th birthday! I put on my best dress, a beautiful, v-necked, emerald green satin dress that brought out the best of me- my eyes and hair.

As I walked out of the bathroom, Jack was counting the money out of his pockets he'd been saving. "How much do you have?"

He sighed and kept counting. "1.11...1.12...Not enough."

"For Santa Fe?"

"A dollar-fifteen, a dollar-sixteen..." he counted aloud and nodded, still not looking up at me.

"Jack, I know how bad you want to go. I'll loan you the money, you can pay me back, later, that doesn't matter. I want you to be happy."

This made him look up. "You'd do...wow...look at you!" I smiled at him, and he said, surprised, "Your going to work like that?"

"Of course not! I'm taking a day off. Do you know what today is? My birthday!" I said, not allowing him time to answer.

"Your birthday? I had no idea!" He kissed my cheek, "Happy Birthday!"

"Aww, thanks!" I said hugging him, "Now," I said pulling away from him, "Let's go."

"Well..." Jack said hesitantly, "Okay, but I suggest you go down the fire escape. Come on, let's go onto the roof and go down that way. You won't have to crawl out a window."

"But Jack! No one will see me that way!" I said, vainly admiring myself, the dress and the way it fit and aged my 16-year-old body by at least 5 years in the best of ways, in the full-length mirror hanging on the back of the bedroom door.

"That's the point. Emily, you look...absolutely breathtaking in that dress." He said, stepping very close to me. I turned to him.

I smiled and looked up at him. His face was only inches away from mine. I couldn't believe how dumb I'd been for the past 3 years. "Jack Kelly," I addressed him, "You are one amazing person." But even so I couldn't do this to Spot…or to myself.

*****

"Jack Kelly," She paused, collecting her thoughts, "You are one amazing person."

Emily turned her face from me and moved from in front of the door to her bed. I stared at her, then followed her and sat next to her. She was so beautiful, I couldn't believe how dumb I'd been for the past 3 years. I reached for her hands, but they weren't there. Instead they were running up my arms and then her hands became laced around my neck. I threw my arms around her and pushed her to the bed and gave her the most intense kiss I'd ever given to any girl.

*****

I stared back at Jack. He really was amazing, inside and out, I'd meant every word of it, but the way he looked at me...it was as if he searched my eyes to see if I was being completely honest with him. I pulled my arms around his neck and he pushed me down onto the bed. Then he gave me the most passionate kiss. The kiss held so much power and so much feeling. I pulled away from him. "Jack..." I breathed, my head at his shoulder, "We really shouldn't..." but my voice trailed off. My heart wasn't into what I was saying. I looked in his eyes and realized the longing I'd had for him for forever.

"I've wanted you and dreamed of this for so long." He said, breathlessly reading my mind.

I simply nodded, and he knew I felt the same way as he eagerly fooled with the buttons on the back of my dress.

*****

Emily stared at me and I knew I didn't need to question if she meant what she said. She seemed so vulnerable and innocent lying there, staring at me. But I also saw another side of her, the side that begged me to relieve her of her innocence and so, who was I to argue?