Jack looked around nervously from the bench he was sitting on. Seven girls stood around him grinning from ear to ear. Jack giggled nervously as he began to squirm around , It wasn't the attention that was creeping him out it was the fact that they just stood there and grinned at him like he was a piece of meat. After a good ten minutes the girls began to come out of it.
"So." Slingshot asked sitting down next to Jack. "What do ya wanna do?"
"I can think of a few things." Laces giggled from the back
"Is that all you think about?" Stress asked giggling at the reaction Laces comment got from Jack.
Jack shrugged his shoulders. "What's fun to do? In this century I mean."
"Oh I know!" Peaches yelled.
The others looked at her with some doubt before asking the question that would seal all their fates. "What's that?" Busy Body asked
"We can go explore New York!" Peaches said all to proudly.
"Yeah!" Jack said standing up. "I wanna see how its changed!"
The other girls were really in no position to argue, If that's what Jack wanted to do then by golly they where gonna do it.
"Great…..So um Where do we wanna go first?" Azure asked uncertainly.
"Oh how about Times square!" Pinkie suggested enthusiastically.
"Hey dat sounds interesting." Jack said adjusting his Cowboy hat.
Jack and the girls walked down the busy street. Each of the girls took turns watching Jack who began wondering away if he saw something that interested him.
One particular store caught his attention just enough to make everyone in the group stop.
"Hey what's dat?" Jack asked as he pointed to the mechanical bull through the glass of the window.
"Um….it's a mechanical bull. Jerks around and stuff just like the real ones do only if ya fall off there's padding and you won't be trampled into the dirt breaking many ,many bones." Busy Body said quietly hoping Jack would except it and move on.
"I wanna try it." Jack said with a look of determination plastered on his face.
"Um well…" Stress stuttered desperately trying to think up an excuse for him not to.
"You don't have any money!" Slingshot yelled.
"Says here first rides free." Jack said pointing to a sign on the door.
"Dammit." Laces swore under her breath as Jack pulled her into the store after him.
The guy at the counter smirked at the group as they entered and ran a comb through his greasy black hair.
"Heya kiddies."
Jack walked up to the counter and looked at the guy.
"Yer sign says first rides free. It true?"
The man smiled reveling yellow teeth that only years of smoking could bring to a person.
"Yup, you man enough?"
Jack smirked at the man. "Im more of a man than you'll evah be."
Many of the girls could be heard in the background trying to stifle their laughter, while the man whose ego had just been brought down a notch or two glared at Jack.
"Get on."
Jack smirked and got on the mechanical bull holding on to the rope with one hand.
The Man at the desk turned to a panel and turned it on. The Bull started out slow at first. Then the man pushed a leaver up and took a hold of the joystick and began to jerk it around fiercely. This caused the mechanical bull to begin jerking round sharply, many of the girls thought that if Jack let go, he might be thrown though the window. But to everyone's surprise and the operators dismay Jack managed to stay on the bull. Soon the clock on the wall hit zero and the man behind the desk stopped the bull. Jack hopped off with a huge grin on his face. "That was fun! Hey thanks mister!"
The man said nothing, he just glared , as the group left the store.
The group spent most of the way talking about the guy in the store and how pissed he was Jack stayed on the whole time. Jack was thrilled with all the attention he was getting and wished that this would happen more often.
Suddenly out of the blue Pinkie stopped " Oh my God its Carson! "
At this all the girls turned around and looked where Pinkie's gaze was locked.
"Who?" Jack asked
Peaches turned around. " That would be Carson Daley, he hosts 'Total Request Live' a show on TV."
"TV?"
"Its like the flickers only in a small box that fits in your home." Peaches explained.
"Oh. So dis guys famous?"
"Yeah sort of."
"Uh he's comin this way."
Peaches did a double take sure enough Carson was walking towards them.
Peaches expected him to walk right by, So needless to say she was shocked when he stopped in front of Jack.
"Hey Buddy. Ya mind if we talk to you second?" Carson asked
"Look whatever it is I didn't do it!"
Carson laughed. "Nah man you aren't in trouble. We just want to ask you some things."
Jack shifted around nervously. "Um ok. Go fer it."
"Alright. So um where are you from man."
Jack shrugged "1899."
"Ok…" Carson said looking at Jack funny "So you a reenacted or something?"
Jack looked to Peaches and Laces with a questioning look. They both shook their head no.
Jack turned back to Carson. "Um no."
"Ok so what's with the outfit then?"
"What's wrong with my outfit?!" Jack asked not liking this conversation at all.
"Nothing, Nothing," Carson said "If you don't mind looking like a weirdo…I mean geeze Iv seen homeless guys dress more ……….."
Carson didn't get much farther before Jack punched him sending him to the ground.
"Jack. We should go now." Slingshot said pulling his arm.
"Yeah Jack we need to leave NOW." Azure added.
"Why?" Jack asked, he really wanted to beat on this Carson guy some more for insulting his taste in cloths.
Stress sighed and did the only thing she could think to do to get Jack to move his cute ass. "Cheese it! Its da bulls!"
Jack didn't need to be told twice and took off like a rabbit down the street followed by seven girls, MTV security, and two New York City cops.
_~_~_~_ Meanwhile still in the Blush Mobil. _~_~_~_~_
Muffins and Blush sat in Blush's car brainstorming.
"We could harness the power of cheeseburgers!" Muffins said perking up some.
"Nope, we tried that the last time we drained the cities power. Remember how we where banned from every burger joint in the city?" Blush said as she slumped down in the front seat.
"Oh yeah what are we gonna do harness the energy from hundreds of Duracell Batteries?" Blush said sarcastically.
"Hey that's not such a bad idea! Blush said sitting up in the car seat.
"Oh yeah where are we gonna find hundreds of batteries?" Muffins asked kinda alarmed with the thought that Blush may have lost it.
"There's an old Duracell battery factory just outside the city with tons of batteries!" Blush squealed as she started the car.
"How do you know?" Muffins asked wondering how exactly her friend knew this.
Blush just smirked mysteriously. "I have my ways."
And off they go……..
_~_~_~_~_~ Back to Jack and our girls_~_~_~_~_~_~
A couple of blocks and three or four alleyways later our group found themselves hiding out in an abandoned apartment building
"Are they still after us?" Jack asked trying to catch his breath
"No. I think we lost em two alleys back." Azure said crawling down from her perch by a partially boarded up window.
Soon giggles could be heard from the far corner of the room.
"Is she ok?" Jack asked Busy body pointing to Pinkie who was now rolling on the ground laughing.
Busy Body looked at her with confusion, then with worry. "She's cracked."
Stress looked over at the Pinkie. "It was bound to happen to one of us sooner or later. To bad to I thought it would be me for sure."
Jack looked at the girl again. "Is dis cause I beat up dat Carson guy?"
"and on live TV to!" Pinkie giggled some more .
At that everyone had a good laugh. Even Jack who didn't have a clue what live TV was. A few moments of silence followed and then a few more and a few more until……
"I cant take it anymore someone say something!" Laces yelled over the deafening silence.
"So that's what they call a family mudder, daughter, father ,son, I guess that everythin' you heard about is true. So you aint got any family well who said you needed one..arnt you glad nobodies waiting up for you." Sling shot sang.
" When I dream on my own, Im alone but I aint lonely. For a dreamer night the only time of day. When the cities finally sleepin all my thought begin to stray and Im on the train that's bound for Santa Fe…" Busy Body sang as she joined Sling.
"and Im free like the wind like Im gunna live forever it's a feelin time can never take away. All I needs a few more dollars and Im outa here to stay. Dreams come true yes they do in Santa Fe." Pinkie joined in.
Jack sat back in amazement as the girls began singing his song. Pretty soon he couldn't help himself and stood up and joined them. So now everyone was singing.
" Where does it say you gotta live and die here ? Where does it say a guy cant catch a break? Why should you only take what your given ? Why should you spend your whole life livin trapped where there aint no future even at seventeen breakin' your back for someone else's sake? If the life don't seem to suite ya how bout a change of scene, far from the lousy head lines and dead lines in between."
Then everyone broke out into the dance routine all at the same time like in those really kick ass musicals.
" Santa Fe are you there ? Do you swear you wont forget me? If I found ya would ya let me come and stay? I aint getting any younger and before my dying day, I want space not just air let em laugh in my face I don't care! Save a place I'll be there….So that what they call a family aint you glad you aint that way? Aren't you glad you got a dream called Santa Fe."
Jack looked at all the girls and flashed them a smile. "You now my song!"
"We love all the songs." Stress laughed.
"Do ya know King of New York?" Jack asked.
The girls grinned at each other. "A pair of new shoes with matching laces…."
Jack face radiated extreme pride before joining in.
Next chapter: Specs.
Muffins and Blush are off to the Duracell factory outside of town.