Pie Eater ran down the alleyways. He knew where Snoddy was, and didn't want his best friend to make a fool of himself. Too soft - he mused as he ran back into the street. In front of a building - that looked like apartments - he walked casually inside. Didn't want to make himself look out of place or anything. Pie stared up the stairs a few feet away to see Snoddy climbing up them.
"Snoddy!" Pie trekked up beside him.
Snoddy rolled his eyes. "Pie, whatcha doin' heah?" he asked, knowing good and well why.
"Y'know, you're gonna make yourself look as crazy as Joe does."
"Now, look heah!" Snoddy stepped forward making Pie trip down a step. He looked a little taken aback from the former's very rare outburst. "I'm doin' this because for some reason, I believe the kid! I don't know why. I just do. Now I'm gonna go up there and talk tp Denton and see wha' we can get done."
There was an awkward silence between the two. Pie had found the laces on his shoes very interesting at the moment. If Snoddy was going to go on a suicide mission, why not join him? "Can I help too?" Snoddy was about to yell again when it kicked in what Pie Eater had said. He nodded with an amused, but small grin. They proceeded up the stairs to Denton's apartment.
Every since the strike, all the guys had learned where they could find the star reporter; just in case they needed help or a hide out from the bulls. Snoddy took a deep breathe and knocked. A minute later, they were greeted by Mr. Bryan Denton.
"Hello boys. What can I do for you?" he asked, inviting them in. The two newsies stepped inside. Snoddy's eyes were caught by the girl near the kitchen. Denton noticed the 'staring'. "I don't believe you've met my niece, Emma."
"Good day, ma'am" Snoddy muttered shyly.
"Heya Miss Emma" Pie Eater gave a more aggressive than passive greeting. But with a friendly smile and nod, of course.
Emma gave a little wave and smile then disappeared into another room. They could hear a slight giggle. Snoddy and Pie sat down on the off-white couch. "Now what can I for you?"
"Uh…" Snoddy didn't know exactly how to explain this. "Y'see Denton, there's this new kid at the lodgin' house. And he is claimin' that he's Pulitzer. He don't know how he became a boy again, but he won't stop saying that he is Pulitzer himself. Wha's weird is, is that this kid appeared the same time Pulitzer went in a coma." He took a deep breathe from talking so fast.
Denton stared at the rug on the floor, scratching his chin. "That is a problem." Denton thought for a moment. "What do you boys want my help for? I don't know how to go about this odd case."
"Well, we really don't know. I just wanna help this kid, because I actually believe he's tellin' the truth."
Denton was lost in thought for a few more minutes. Pie was sitting there, getting a little fidgety. Snoddy was trying to think, but his eyes keep shifting in the direction Emma had gone off in. Pie finally stood up, abruptly.
"Denton, do you think you can get a picture of Pulitzer from when he was a boy?" Pie asked. His idea stuck.
"Pie, that's a great idea 'cause Joe said that's wha' he looked like when he was a kid!" Snoddy jumped up as well.
"It'll be hard boys, but I can probably do it." They shook hands, and then the newsies left. Snoddy had to take one last glance where Emma had gone. Now she reappeared for one last smile. Pie pulled Snoddy out the door.
"This is great!" Snoddy shouted excitedly. "Let's go tell Joe. This'll make his day much better."
*********************
Joe peered up at the building. "Why are we here?" he asked, not taking his eyes off the sign.
"You say you're Pulitzer, right?" Joe nodded, absently. "Then I wanna show you a different side of the newsies; one you probably don't see. Come with me." Shoe lead the way into the door. She bid 'hello' to the lady sitting at the desk, and explained that Joe was harmless. After about five minutes of arguing, Joe followed Shoe down a hallway. They stopped.
"Now what?" Joe said, impatiently.
"Y'know, you ask too many questions. Just take a look."
Joe turned to what the room in front of them was holding. There, sat about a dozen teenage girls. All they're attention was caught by the newcomer, and they looked at him. Joe stared back, not knowing what to think…how to react…what to do next. He felt a little push.
"Go talk to 'em" Shoe implied. She pushed him again. Joe obeyed, stepping in the room. "Heya goils, this is Joe. He's new 'round heah. Make him feel welcome."
Slight grins ran across their faces. Some of the girls came over to talk to Joe. They told him about life on the street and how it was to be a newsgirl. After a while, he broke away from them when Shoe came back from wherever she had gone. She brought him to the roof of the house.
Joe seemed happy and all right till everyone but Shoe was out of sight. He fell to his knees with his face in his hand and sobbed.
"Joe, it's okay. It's okay, kid. You don't have to cry." Shoe patted his back, trying to comfort him.
"No, it's not okay!" He lifted his head back up with tears streaming down his reddened cheeks. "What was I thinking? Why was I being so cruel?!" He smashed his fist on the roof floor.
"Watch it! You're gonna hurt yourself!" Shoe stopped him from hitting the roof again. Joe jerked his arm away from her grip.
"IT DOESN'T MATTER!!" The look at the expression on Shoe's face was sobering. Pure horror. Joe bit his lip…he was doing what he didn't want to do again. He sucked back the tears, regaining sanity. "Sorry." Scooting against the roof wall, he sighed in frustration. "You know what I realized a little while ago?"
Shoe scrunch her nose and sat down next to him. "What is that, Joe?"
Joe wiped his nose with his sleeve. "How disgusting of a person I am."
Was she suppose to agree or disagree? Oh well, be honest indirectly. "It takes a lot to admit that."
"I…I never realized what I was doing." He gritted his teeth in anger. "How could that be!"
"I don't know."
Joe stared at Shoe in the eye. "I looked into those girls' eyes, and their faces, and just looked at them…and I saw my daughters' faces. That's all I could see! Why didn't I ever see this before while the newsies were striking? Then I thought, what if it were my own children out there on the streets? What if they were the ones who was living day by day not knowing whether they'd have a dime to their name. I realized that and it pierced me in the heart like a knife. How could I be so cruel?"
Shoe was nearly in tears. "You were blinded by power, Joe." Joe nodded in agreement. "Now that you know wha' you was doin', whatcha gonna do about it?"
Joe held back another sob. "I have to fix this mess…now."
"Snoddy!" Pie trekked up beside him.
Snoddy rolled his eyes. "Pie, whatcha doin' heah?" he asked, knowing good and well why.
"Y'know, you're gonna make yourself look as crazy as Joe does."
"Now, look heah!" Snoddy stepped forward making Pie trip down a step. He looked a little taken aback from the former's very rare outburst. "I'm doin' this because for some reason, I believe the kid! I don't know why. I just do. Now I'm gonna go up there and talk tp Denton and see wha' we can get done."
There was an awkward silence between the two. Pie had found the laces on his shoes very interesting at the moment. If Snoddy was going to go on a suicide mission, why not join him? "Can I help too?" Snoddy was about to yell again when it kicked in what Pie Eater had said. He nodded with an amused, but small grin. They proceeded up the stairs to Denton's apartment.
Every since the strike, all the guys had learned where they could find the star reporter; just in case they needed help or a hide out from the bulls. Snoddy took a deep breathe and knocked. A minute later, they were greeted by Mr. Bryan Denton.
"Hello boys. What can I do for you?" he asked, inviting them in. The two newsies stepped inside. Snoddy's eyes were caught by the girl near the kitchen. Denton noticed the 'staring'. "I don't believe you've met my niece, Emma."
"Good day, ma'am" Snoddy muttered shyly.
"Heya Miss Emma" Pie Eater gave a more aggressive than passive greeting. But with a friendly smile and nod, of course.
Emma gave a little wave and smile then disappeared into another room. They could hear a slight giggle. Snoddy and Pie sat down on the off-white couch. "Now what can I for you?"
"Uh…" Snoddy didn't know exactly how to explain this. "Y'see Denton, there's this new kid at the lodgin' house. And he is claimin' that he's Pulitzer. He don't know how he became a boy again, but he won't stop saying that he is Pulitzer himself. Wha's weird is, is that this kid appeared the same time Pulitzer went in a coma." He took a deep breathe from talking so fast.
Denton stared at the rug on the floor, scratching his chin. "That is a problem." Denton thought for a moment. "What do you boys want my help for? I don't know how to go about this odd case."
"Well, we really don't know. I just wanna help this kid, because I actually believe he's tellin' the truth."
Denton was lost in thought for a few more minutes. Pie was sitting there, getting a little fidgety. Snoddy was trying to think, but his eyes keep shifting in the direction Emma had gone off in. Pie finally stood up, abruptly.
"Denton, do you think you can get a picture of Pulitzer from when he was a boy?" Pie asked. His idea stuck.
"Pie, that's a great idea 'cause Joe said that's wha' he looked like when he was a kid!" Snoddy jumped up as well.
"It'll be hard boys, but I can probably do it." They shook hands, and then the newsies left. Snoddy had to take one last glance where Emma had gone. Now she reappeared for one last smile. Pie pulled Snoddy out the door.
"This is great!" Snoddy shouted excitedly. "Let's go tell Joe. This'll make his day much better."
*********************
Joe peered up at the building. "Why are we here?" he asked, not taking his eyes off the sign.
"You say you're Pulitzer, right?" Joe nodded, absently. "Then I wanna show you a different side of the newsies; one you probably don't see. Come with me." Shoe lead the way into the door. She bid 'hello' to the lady sitting at the desk, and explained that Joe was harmless. After about five minutes of arguing, Joe followed Shoe down a hallway. They stopped.
"Now what?" Joe said, impatiently.
"Y'know, you ask too many questions. Just take a look."
Joe turned to what the room in front of them was holding. There, sat about a dozen teenage girls. All they're attention was caught by the newcomer, and they looked at him. Joe stared back, not knowing what to think…how to react…what to do next. He felt a little push.
"Go talk to 'em" Shoe implied. She pushed him again. Joe obeyed, stepping in the room. "Heya goils, this is Joe. He's new 'round heah. Make him feel welcome."
Slight grins ran across their faces. Some of the girls came over to talk to Joe. They told him about life on the street and how it was to be a newsgirl. After a while, he broke away from them when Shoe came back from wherever she had gone. She brought him to the roof of the house.
Joe seemed happy and all right till everyone but Shoe was out of sight. He fell to his knees with his face in his hand and sobbed.
"Joe, it's okay. It's okay, kid. You don't have to cry." Shoe patted his back, trying to comfort him.
"No, it's not okay!" He lifted his head back up with tears streaming down his reddened cheeks. "What was I thinking? Why was I being so cruel?!" He smashed his fist on the roof floor.
"Watch it! You're gonna hurt yourself!" Shoe stopped him from hitting the roof again. Joe jerked his arm away from her grip.
"IT DOESN'T MATTER!!" The look at the expression on Shoe's face was sobering. Pure horror. Joe bit his lip…he was doing what he didn't want to do again. He sucked back the tears, regaining sanity. "Sorry." Scooting against the roof wall, he sighed in frustration. "You know what I realized a little while ago?"
Shoe scrunch her nose and sat down next to him. "What is that, Joe?"
Joe wiped his nose with his sleeve. "How disgusting of a person I am."
Was she suppose to agree or disagree? Oh well, be honest indirectly. "It takes a lot to admit that."
"I…I never realized what I was doing." He gritted his teeth in anger. "How could that be!"
"I don't know."
Joe stared at Shoe in the eye. "I looked into those girls' eyes, and their faces, and just looked at them…and I saw my daughters' faces. That's all I could see! Why didn't I ever see this before while the newsies were striking? Then I thought, what if it were my own children out there on the streets? What if they were the ones who was living day by day not knowing whether they'd have a dime to their name. I realized that and it pierced me in the heart like a knife. How could I be so cruel?"
Shoe was nearly in tears. "You were blinded by power, Joe." Joe nodded in agreement. "Now that you know wha' you was doin', whatcha gonna do about it?"
Joe held back another sob. "I have to fix this mess…now."