Author's Note: Well, here it is. The next chapter. This one isn't as good as the last one, but then that's my point of view. We've hit the climax, now we're working our way down. *smiles* Anyway, the long awaited and anticipated semi-final chapter. How will it end? Well, you won't find out in this chapter, but it will leave you hanging. This is dedicated to everyone who was constantly on my butt a week ago telling me I had to post this chapter. I heard you loud and clear guys! And this week, I can promise you one more chapter of this to be up before Friday! Happy reading!
Selling Territory
Two weeks, three one-night stands, and two girlfriends later, Spot found himself sitting at the center of the Brooklyn bridge watching people pass by on their usual daily schedules. The past two weeks had left a sour taste in Spot's mouth. He couldn't understand what was going on in his head. Every time he was with another girl, he kept seeing Spit Fire's face. He wasn't thrilled to hear that she never wanted to see him again, but he was doing his best to live up to his end of that bargain. Unfortunately, to make matters worse, Spot had recently received information that Spit Fire had been seen selling papers in Brooklyn, taking over a few of the Brooklyn newsies selling spots. He heard this very verbally and directly from Chance, who's selling territory was completely taken over by Spit Fire. Since Chance's previous orders were not to get in her way, he had to walk to the other side of Brooklyn to find a new place.
So now, Spot was sitting in the middle of the bridge, waiting to see if he could catch Spit Fire crossing over to his side of the world. If he found her, she would promptly be sent back to Jack, even if he had to take her there himself. Tipping his hat forward blocking the blinding sun from his eyes, he sat watching the bottoms of people's feet. He hadn't sold any papers yet this morning, but he had a feeling that the Manhattan newsie issue was of greater importance. Just as he sat there thinking about how some day he would be rich and would be able to officially buy Brooklyn, he heard two familiar voices off in the crowds of people.
"I still can't believe yous doin' this Fire. If he finds you..."
"He's not gonna find me Random. I know all his sellin' spots. Why do you think I took over Chance's? Spot is nowhere near Chance during the day. Besides, I make more out here in Brooklyn. I'd almost rather live out here but you got a sad excuse for a leader."
"Yeah, yous been sayin' that for the past two weeks. Yous haven't tawked `bout nuthin' but him for the past two weeks. You know he ain't that bad Fire. I dunno what he done to you, but it can't be that bad. Besides, whatevah he did, you let'im do it. Ain't I right? Like it or not, it happened cause you allowed it to."
The girls walked right by Spot not even noticing him. He stood up slowly and followed them, straining to hear every portion of their conversation, but lost most of it in the crowd.
"But you don't even know what happened Random. You can't say that."
Random laughed and shook her head, "Can't I? Alright...look at me and tell me whatevah he did, you din't let jus' happen to yous."
There was a pause. Spit Fire knew Random was right. Fire had let herself be taken complete control of by Spot, which scared her. But what scared her more is that she missed it.
"He's a guy Spit Fire. They's good at pullin' things. I ain't blamin' you for actin' like this cause I can't stand the guy nietha, but you gotta think of the circumstances heyah. He's been pretty heartless towards goirls in the past, always thinkin' bout goirls he can nevah have...but tell me one guy who ain't got goirls on his mind all the time. You jus' can't git upset ovah it, it's what boys do."
"What about Blade?" Spit Fire nudged her.
Random shook her head, "No, no not evan him. Caught'im yestaday wid his arm around some newsgoirl from the Battery."
"What? Blade wouldn't do that..."
Random nodded, "Well, it was Sketches, so I din't mind. She's got a guy down there in da Battery. Blade and'er are good friends. But it got me a slight jealous. Turns out, as soon as he saw me he dropped his arm and bought me a flower. Seems Sketch has been havin' a hard time down in the Battery. But did you know, Spot's out there protectin'em? They got a deal wid Brooklyn for protection against the rival gangs down there. As long as Sketches is the leadah down in the Battery, no one wid the exception of the Bronx is close enough to take ovah Brooklyn. And Sketches ain't that poweful. The Battery is full of goirls."
Spit Fire smirked, "Spot's protecting the Battery?"
Random nodded as they reached the edge of the bridge, and took a few steps into Brooklyn.
"Wow. He ain't that heartless then is he?" Spit Fire folded her arms and looked around, "That's a surprise. Yous got some mouth on you Random."
Random stopped walking and stood in front of Spit Fire smiling. She was about to comment but saw a familiar figure standing not ten feet behind Spit Fire smiling right back at Random. Her smile quickly faded along with Spit Fire's.
"What's wrong Random?"
Random looked at Spit Fire and then past her to Spot. Spot motioned for her to leave and Random nodded.
"Nuthin'. Jus' prolly said some things I shouldn'ta. Good luck sellin' today."
As Random left, Spit Fire folded her arms confused and then turned around to see Spot Conlon standing right behind her smiling smugly.
"What you doin' in Brooklyn Fire?" He asked lightly.
"None of your business Conlon." She started off into Brooklyn.
Spot walked after her and grabbed her arm, "Like hell this ain't my business. Yous in Brooklyn.."
"Get your hands off of me!" Spit Fire yelled and pulled back.
"Don't you evah walk away from me. What are you doin' in Brooklyn? I swore to you that if you stay outta Brooklyn I'd nevah botha yous." He stared at her hard, trying to get something out of her.
His eyes focused on hers, trying to force a reaction. Just being this close to her again made his heart race. Spit Fire looked right back at Spot, refusing to look down and fall to his intimidation methods.
"You gonna answer me? Yous tryin' to git yurself soaked? You can't sell in Brooklyn."
She pushed past Spot, "I'll do what I want Conlon."
Spot sighed and walked after her again. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to face him. She tried to take her wrist back, but he held on stubbornly.
"Where are yous goin'?"
"To the DO. Where do you think I'm going?"
"Well, if the DO in Manhattan is what yur tawkin' bout, yous goin' the wrong way. Now git back to Manhattan."
"I'm not leaving Conlon."
"Yous got a problem wid authority Fire, and yous goin' back to Manhattan if Ise gotta carry you meself."
"I don't have an authority problem and you don't have authority. You have an ego, there's a difference Spot. Now I'm selling in Brooklyn."
Spot rolled his eyes and bent down, lifting her off her feet, throwing her over his shoulder, "Yous goin' back to Manhattan."
Spit Fire yelled, "Spot!"
"And then Ise gonna make Jack keep you undah supervision. You listen to him."
She pounded Spot's back with her fists, "Put me DOWN!"
Spot pinched the back of her knee, "Quit it! That hoits...Ise takin' you back to Jack, yous his problem, not mine."
"Ow! Hey," She frowned and stopped hitting him, "I'm a problem? Is that all I am to you?"
"What kinda question is that? I ain't the one sayin' I nevah wanna see you again. This is yur fault. What you doin' in Brooklyn anyway?"
They started across the bridge but all Spit Fire was looking at was the heels of Spot's feet and his backside. She smiled to herself slightly. This wasn't how she had planned her day at all, but it was an intersting turn of events.
"I was out shopping in Brooklyn, what do you think I was doing?" She shot at him sarcastically, "Selling papers."
"You can't do that. Foirst, yous don't live in Brooklyn, and second yous takin' ovah me boys' selling spots. They take priority ovah yous."
"So if I found my own spot I could sell here?" She smirked.
"No, cause yous live in Manhattan and yous got an attitude problem that I don't wanna deal wid." Spot grumbled as they reached the middle of the bridge. He set her down on her feet, "All right. Ise trustin' yous can walk back to Manhattan on yur own. If I find yous in Brooklyn again, Ise goin' aftah Jack this time and I'll make shoah yous kicked outta the Manhattan LH."
"Why are you being like this?" Spit Fire brushed herself off and glared at him, "And you think I have an attitude problem."
"Why? Yous askin' me why I got an attitude problem against yous? Because two weeks ago you nevah wanted to see me again. Two weeks ago if you coulda hit me hardah you woulda. Two weeks ago..."
"Things change." She blurted out.
Selling Territory
Two weeks, three one-night stands, and two girlfriends later, Spot found himself sitting at the center of the Brooklyn bridge watching people pass by on their usual daily schedules. The past two weeks had left a sour taste in Spot's mouth. He couldn't understand what was going on in his head. Every time he was with another girl, he kept seeing Spit Fire's face. He wasn't thrilled to hear that she never wanted to see him again, but he was doing his best to live up to his end of that bargain. Unfortunately, to make matters worse, Spot had recently received information that Spit Fire had been seen selling papers in Brooklyn, taking over a few of the Brooklyn newsies selling spots. He heard this very verbally and directly from Chance, who's selling territory was completely taken over by Spit Fire. Since Chance's previous orders were not to get in her way, he had to walk to the other side of Brooklyn to find a new place.
So now, Spot was sitting in the middle of the bridge, waiting to see if he could catch Spit Fire crossing over to his side of the world. If he found her, she would promptly be sent back to Jack, even if he had to take her there himself. Tipping his hat forward blocking the blinding sun from his eyes, he sat watching the bottoms of people's feet. He hadn't sold any papers yet this morning, but he had a feeling that the Manhattan newsie issue was of greater importance. Just as he sat there thinking about how some day he would be rich and would be able to officially buy Brooklyn, he heard two familiar voices off in the crowds of people.
"I still can't believe yous doin' this Fire. If he finds you..."
"He's not gonna find me Random. I know all his sellin' spots. Why do you think I took over Chance's? Spot is nowhere near Chance during the day. Besides, I make more out here in Brooklyn. I'd almost rather live out here but you got a sad excuse for a leader."
"Yeah, yous been sayin' that for the past two weeks. Yous haven't tawked `bout nuthin' but him for the past two weeks. You know he ain't that bad Fire. I dunno what he done to you, but it can't be that bad. Besides, whatevah he did, you let'im do it. Ain't I right? Like it or not, it happened cause you allowed it to."
The girls walked right by Spot not even noticing him. He stood up slowly and followed them, straining to hear every portion of their conversation, but lost most of it in the crowd.
"But you don't even know what happened Random. You can't say that."
Random laughed and shook her head, "Can't I? Alright...look at me and tell me whatevah he did, you din't let jus' happen to yous."
There was a pause. Spit Fire knew Random was right. Fire had let herself be taken complete control of by Spot, which scared her. But what scared her more is that she missed it.
"He's a guy Spit Fire. They's good at pullin' things. I ain't blamin' you for actin' like this cause I can't stand the guy nietha, but you gotta think of the circumstances heyah. He's been pretty heartless towards goirls in the past, always thinkin' bout goirls he can nevah have...but tell me one guy who ain't got goirls on his mind all the time. You jus' can't git upset ovah it, it's what boys do."
"What about Blade?" Spit Fire nudged her.
Random shook her head, "No, no not evan him. Caught'im yestaday wid his arm around some newsgoirl from the Battery."
"What? Blade wouldn't do that..."
Random nodded, "Well, it was Sketches, so I din't mind. She's got a guy down there in da Battery. Blade and'er are good friends. But it got me a slight jealous. Turns out, as soon as he saw me he dropped his arm and bought me a flower. Seems Sketch has been havin' a hard time down in the Battery. But did you know, Spot's out there protectin'em? They got a deal wid Brooklyn for protection against the rival gangs down there. As long as Sketches is the leadah down in the Battery, no one wid the exception of the Bronx is close enough to take ovah Brooklyn. And Sketches ain't that poweful. The Battery is full of goirls."
Spit Fire smirked, "Spot's protecting the Battery?"
Random nodded as they reached the edge of the bridge, and took a few steps into Brooklyn.
"Wow. He ain't that heartless then is he?" Spit Fire folded her arms and looked around, "That's a surprise. Yous got some mouth on you Random."
Random stopped walking and stood in front of Spit Fire smiling. She was about to comment but saw a familiar figure standing not ten feet behind Spit Fire smiling right back at Random. Her smile quickly faded along with Spit Fire's.
"What's wrong Random?"
Random looked at Spit Fire and then past her to Spot. Spot motioned for her to leave and Random nodded.
"Nuthin'. Jus' prolly said some things I shouldn'ta. Good luck sellin' today."
As Random left, Spit Fire folded her arms confused and then turned around to see Spot Conlon standing right behind her smiling smugly.
"What you doin' in Brooklyn Fire?" He asked lightly.
"None of your business Conlon." She started off into Brooklyn.
Spot walked after her and grabbed her arm, "Like hell this ain't my business. Yous in Brooklyn.."
"Get your hands off of me!" Spit Fire yelled and pulled back.
"Don't you evah walk away from me. What are you doin' in Brooklyn? I swore to you that if you stay outta Brooklyn I'd nevah botha yous." He stared at her hard, trying to get something out of her.
His eyes focused on hers, trying to force a reaction. Just being this close to her again made his heart race. Spit Fire looked right back at Spot, refusing to look down and fall to his intimidation methods.
"You gonna answer me? Yous tryin' to git yurself soaked? You can't sell in Brooklyn."
She pushed past Spot, "I'll do what I want Conlon."
Spot sighed and walked after her again. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to face him. She tried to take her wrist back, but he held on stubbornly.
"Where are yous goin'?"
"To the DO. Where do you think I'm going?"
"Well, if the DO in Manhattan is what yur tawkin' bout, yous goin' the wrong way. Now git back to Manhattan."
"I'm not leaving Conlon."
"Yous got a problem wid authority Fire, and yous goin' back to Manhattan if Ise gotta carry you meself."
"I don't have an authority problem and you don't have authority. You have an ego, there's a difference Spot. Now I'm selling in Brooklyn."
Spot rolled his eyes and bent down, lifting her off her feet, throwing her over his shoulder, "Yous goin' back to Manhattan."
Spit Fire yelled, "Spot!"
"And then Ise gonna make Jack keep you undah supervision. You listen to him."
She pounded Spot's back with her fists, "Put me DOWN!"
Spot pinched the back of her knee, "Quit it! That hoits...Ise takin' you back to Jack, yous his problem, not mine."
"Ow! Hey," She frowned and stopped hitting him, "I'm a problem? Is that all I am to you?"
"What kinda question is that? I ain't the one sayin' I nevah wanna see you again. This is yur fault. What you doin' in Brooklyn anyway?"
They started across the bridge but all Spit Fire was looking at was the heels of Spot's feet and his backside. She smiled to herself slightly. This wasn't how she had planned her day at all, but it was an intersting turn of events.
"I was out shopping in Brooklyn, what do you think I was doing?" She shot at him sarcastically, "Selling papers."
"You can't do that. Foirst, yous don't live in Brooklyn, and second yous takin' ovah me boys' selling spots. They take priority ovah yous."
"So if I found my own spot I could sell here?" She smirked.
"No, cause yous live in Manhattan and yous got an attitude problem that I don't wanna deal wid." Spot grumbled as they reached the middle of the bridge. He set her down on her feet, "All right. Ise trustin' yous can walk back to Manhattan on yur own. If I find yous in Brooklyn again, Ise goin' aftah Jack this time and I'll make shoah yous kicked outta the Manhattan LH."
"Why are you being like this?" Spit Fire brushed herself off and glared at him, "And you think I have an attitude problem."
"Why? Yous askin' me why I got an attitude problem against yous? Because two weeks ago you nevah wanted to see me again. Two weeks ago if you coulda hit me hardah you woulda. Two weeks ago..."
"Things change." She blurted out.