When we got up on the bunk, I lay down on my side, and he lay down on his side so he was facing me, so we could talk.
"You like me?" I said smiling closing my eyes for a brief moment.
"Yes. How could I not?" He said stroking my hair. Just then, life seemed like it was going to be alright. I felt safe with Skittery. I trusted him, and I don't trust a lot of people. (Take oh, say, my father for instance.)
"So, what do we do now?" I asked. I didn't really know how things like this worked back in 1899.
"Well, you could be me goil." He said.
"Of course." I said smiling, and Skittery leaned in and kissed me. We lay on his bunk until late that night talking, until we fell asleep. (After all, why should I have to sleep on the floor… right?) I woke up that night at I'm guessing around 3 am, (remember no digital clocks…damn!) Skittery wasn't next to me anymore. I sat up looking for him on the floor or on another bunk. No sign of him. Just then, I heard someone walking back from the washroom.
"Hey, what are ya doin up?" He asked getting back onto his bunk.
"I woke up, and you weren't there, and I got worried." I said laying back down. Skittery pulled the covers right up to our necks. I was all nice and toasty. (And hey, I was next to Skittery, so that made me 10 times warmer.)
"Are ya going to sell with me tomorrow?" He asked bringing me closer to him.
"Of course, why wouldn't I?" I said.
"I don't know I was just making sure." He finished.
"BOOTS Skittery, RACETRACK, GET UP, CARRIN DA BANNER." Kloppman yelled at 7:00.
"Ah, no, need more sleep." I said rolling into Skittery's chest.
"Come on, we gotta get up." Skittery said.
"I know." I said sitting up. Skittery was stroking my back and hair. We got up, and walked into the washroom. I cleaned up a bit (as best I could for being asleep) and got dressed. I waited around the corner, where Skittery was going to meet me. When he got there, he had 30 extra papes.
"Ah, trusting me with a little more today eh?" I said.
"I figure I can raise it a bit every day." He replied with a smirk.
We sold all his papes in record time, and we went back to that same rock as yesterday. We sat down (the same as yesterday) and we talked for a while.
"So, you'll never hide anything from me right?" Skittery asked after about an hour of small talk.
"I promise I won't, but then perhaps I should tell you something right now." I said. I turned towards him, and held his hands.
"Is something the matter?" He asked.
"No, but what I'm about to tell you, you might not believe." I said.
"Just tell me."
"Ok, well remember the first night we were here, and someone asked where we were from."
"Yeah, ya said you were from right here, but you had no place to go. I was really confused by that part." Skittery said.
"Well, Step – Doll face and I are from the future. 2002 to be exact, and my house is where Tibby's is." I said. Skittery's jaw dropped.
"Wait. You're from the future?" He said astounded.
"Yeah, I told you it was unbelievable." I said.
"No, you know what, I believe you." Skittery said.
"Really?" I asked excited.
"Yeah. But who's step?" He asked.
"Oh, well Charity and Doll face aren't our real names either." I said.
"Well, the news just keeps on coming." Skittery said. "What are they?"
"My real name is Alison, but I like people calling me Ali, and Doll face's real name is Stephanie." I said.
"Wow, good thing I asked, otherwise there would have been a lot of secrets." Skittery said.
"Well, even though you said that you believed me, I can prove it to you. I'll take you to the future with me." I said excited. You can check it out for a day, and then we can come back.
"Really? You can? Oh that would be swell." Skittery said happily. We left to go find Stephanie and Race (obviously they were together.) When we found them, I stole Stephanie away from Race.
"Steph, ya know that website that you found the time travel stuff on?" I asked.
"Yeah, what about it?" She asked.
"Did it say how to go back?" I asked.
"Yeah, it has to be storming, 10:30 at night, and you have to say '2002, Manhattan, home'. Then you should be there, but it also said that if you have to go back with the same amount of people you went with." She finished.
"That's perfect." I said.
"Why?" She asked.
"Because I told Skittery that we were from the future, and I'm going to take him there to prove it to him." I said.
"Wow, may be I should tell Race huh?" She said.
"If you want. What is the deal with you and Race anyways?" I asked.
"That's for me to know and you to find out." She said.
"Wow, that's got to be the oldest one in the book." I said.
"What book?" Race asked walking towards us.
"It's just an expression." I said.
"Stephanie, are you from the future?" Race asked. "Because Skittery just told me that Charity told him you two were from the future." He finished.
"Um, well yeah I am. And I can go back if you want me to, but I don't want to go back." Stephanie said.
"Of course I don't want ya to go back." He said.
"Skittery, does it look like a storm is forming?" I asked.
"Yeah, it kinda does." He said looking up at the sky.
"Good, then we go back tonight at 10:30." I said. "Race, could I borrow your pocket watch?"
"Sure thing." Race said. Sure enough, that night it was a terrible storm. Race's pocket watch came in real handy, considering there were no digital clocks back then. When 10:30 cam around, Skittery and I held hands.
"2002, Manhattan, home." We both said in unison. When I opened my eyes, I was home again in my room.
"Skittery, I'd like to welcome you to 2002." I said hugging him.
"It worked! This is amazing." He said standing up.
"Shhh, my father is probably sleeping." I said.
"Wow, this is so great. What's that?" He asked pointing to my stereo.
"Oh, that's a stereo, it plays CD's (I held up a CD) watch." I said turning on my CD player, and guess what just happened to be in there. That's right; you guessed it, my newsies soundtrack. I played Carrin Da Banner.
When Skittery's line came on he was shocked.
"Hey, that sounds just like me." He said amazed.
"Well, that's because it is you." I said.
"What?" He asked. He obviously wasn't going to understand this, so I just put on Newsies (the movie) and he watched in amazement.
"But I don't remember doing any of that. How is it possible?" He asked.
"Nothing's impossible. I can't really explain it." I said. We ended up sleeping on my bed, and fell asleep in each others arms. The next morning, my father came busting into my room, screaming my name.
"ALISON! Where's my gin?" My father shouted as he entered my room, this woke me and Skittery up. Something told me my father wasn't too thrilled when he saw Skittery in my bed, with me. "Who the hell is this?" He shouted. "I'm not going to have a daughter who's a little whore, you got it." He finished. He grabbed me by the arm, and dragged me out into the hallway.
"Daddy, I'm sorry." I pleaded.
"Sorry isn't allowed, remember." He said breathing on me. His breath smelled like vodka, I could tell he had been drinking half the morning. "Get the stupid boy out of your room right now." My father yelled. Skittery heard this, and ran out of my room and stood in front of me just as my father was going to hit me.
"Nobody treats her like that. Nobody!" Skittery said.
"You better get out of my house boy, and you, you little slut, your out too. Get your stuff and get out." My father yelled.
"Good, I didn't want to be here anyways!" I yelled back. This must have pissed him off, because he tried to hit me again, but Skittery was there, so he didn't get very far.
"Skittery, lets go. Go back in my room." I said. When we were back in my room, I gathered a few things, and we left my house.
"Where are we going to go?" Skittery asked.
"Well, you like Central Park don't you. I wonder if that rock is still there." I said a little shaken up.
"Ali, come here." He said, and he hugged me for the longest time. At this, I realized the only time in my entire life that I felt safe was with Skittery.