Chapter 9:
The carriage pulled to a stop outside the Brooklyn LH on a rainy night. A young man jumped out, his hat pulled low over his face. He paid the cabbie and walked back to the door. "Come on, sweetheart," he said, reaching for the woman inside. Once she was safely in his arms she rested her head on his shoulder as he carried her inside. He ignored the questions coming from the main room, carrying her up the stairs and into the bunkroom. He tucked her into one of the lower bunks and sat on the edge of the bed as sounds of pounding feet could be heard on the stairs.
A young girl ran into the room and threw herself on the bed, "What are you doing here? Why didn't you stop and talk to us? And why are you in bed so early?" she asked, bouncing on the bed.
"Because we're very tired. We had a long trip." Spot ruffled Jecca's hair.
"But it's still early!"
"But we're still tired. Don't worry.... we'll talk later, okay?"
"Alright," Jecca whined.
He smiled. "We may be here a few days, so why don't you and I go sell together in the morning?"
She smiled brightly. "All right! Woohoo!" Jumping up, she trotted from the room.
"Are you feeling any better Rae?" Blank asked.
"I wouldn't have come back here if I didn't," she replied with a yawn.
"You get some sleep. I'll try to fend off any questions." he said, leaving the room.
She laughed a little. "They're great, you know that?" she told Spot.
"Yeah. He's right though. You need to get some sleep."
Wrinkling her nose, she finally nodded. "I better get well soon... I'm tired of this sleeping day in and day out..."
He tucked the blanket tighter around her. "I want you better too. I don't like seeing you sick."
"I would hope you wouldn't," she teased.
He kissed the tip of her nose, "Go to sleep, Mrs. Conlon."
"Yes sir... Nurse Conlon." She smiled, curled up on her side, and closed her eyes
He snickered and bent down to kiss her cheek. "I'm going down to pay Hades for our bunks," he whispered, "but then I'm coming right back, and I want you asleep when I get back."
"I'll try... but no guarantees."
Spot walked downstairs and handed Hades a couple of coins. "Those are for our bunks."
She flitted her hands at him. "Nah, tonight's on the house. You let Blank and Shadow hide out with you two free of charge." She shrugged. "'S the least we can do."
He took her hands and placed the money in them. "Don't argue with me. I'll just win." he said, turning and heading back up the stairs.
"Yeah right Conlon!" she yelled good-naturedly.
"Goodnight, Hades!" he called over his shoulder.
"See ya in the morning, Conlon."
He returned to the room he and Rae were staying in and leaned over her sleeping form. "You asleep?"
"Yes," she whispered.
He smiled with a small laugh and kissed her forehead. "Good. Goodnight then."
"Spot?"
"Hmm?" He kicked off his shoes and climbed into bed with a yawn.
"Will you hold me?"
"Of course, don't I always?" With a smile, he slipped his arms around her waist. "Now go. To. Sleep."
With a yawn she closed her eyes and was asleep a moment later. Kissing her forehead, Spot closed his eyes and finally allowed himself to sleep as well.
~*~
Rae woke first the next morning and lay in bed, hoping that her stomach would settle. Several minutes later, Spot awoke. "Morning... how are you feeling?" was the first thing he said. Her reply was to jump up and make a dash for the bathroom. He sighed worriedly and followed her. "I'll go for Trent, okay?"
She shook her head a couple of times, "Please don't leave me."
"Would you rather me take you to him then?" he asked, pulling her to a stand gently.
"Maybe this afternoon. I just don't feel up to leaving this room right now." she said, resting her head on his shoulder.
Thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-THUMP!
Spot turned with a start. "Oh... I think that would be Jecca..."
Sure enough, just moments later, Jecca poked her head into the room. "Ready to go you guys?"
"I'll let you know in a minute. And KNOCK next time."
"Why?"
"Because it's the polite thing to do."
"All right, all right... Gee, you were never this picky before..." She slid out of the room.
"I was never married before!" he yelled after her. Rae gave a small smile. He led her back over to the bed. "I'm taking you to see Trent right after lunch. No arguing."
She nodded. "If I'm not throwing everything up by then."
"You refused to eat last night and you haven't had anything today. You don't have anything left to throw up."
"Mm... but somehow I still manage." She smiled a little. "Go... Jecca's probably gonna bust the door down waiting for you to sell with her."
He kissed her forehead. "Please get some rest."
She smiled. "Trust me, I will be.... It's all I ever get."
"Come on Spot!" Jecca yelled from downstairs. "If we don't hurry there won't be any papes left!"
"Coming, I'm coming!" Spot yelled back. Squeezing Rae's hand, he said, "Be back soon. Love you."
She settled herself back into the bed and sighed.
Spot gave Jecca a smile as she huffed in annoyance, seized his arm, and dragged him out the door. "Boy, you sure are slow today. When are you and Rae coming back to Brooklyn?"
"We'll come back to visit when we can, Jecca. But we have a house of our own now."
"But... how do you sell papes?"
"We don't."
"You don't?" She stared at him blankly. "Then what do you do?"
"Nothing right now."
"But..." She gaped. "Don't you have like.... a million people living with you?"
He laughed slightly, "There are six...no eight people living with us."
"Like I said, a million! How do you all live if you don't do nothin'?"
"Well...when Rae and I first found the house we found a bunch of money just laying around..." He scratched his head, "I guess we'll have to give that back to Nick and Noelle."
Stopping in her tracks, she stared at him some more. "You just found money LYING AROUND?!"
"Well, it was in a desk drawer...but the house had been deserted for years."
"Wow... just... just... wow..."
He laughed. "Are we going to sell our papers or not?"
"Oh... right." Jecca nodded. "Wow... money... just... there!... Wow..."
"If you hold your mouth open any longer the flies will buzz right in."
She snapped her mouth closed. "How come you live with so many people? Do you run a new lodging house now?"
"Not really. You remember Ann and Andy right?"
She nodded.
"Well...Rae and I have adopted them, and a little baby."
"Wow... but..." She counted on her fingers. "That doesn't make eight. That makes three."
"Chris and Julie are staying with us until they find their father. And Blank and Shadow's sister Molly is staying with us too."
"Shadow has ANOTHER unknown family member? Wow.... Weirder and weirder things keep happening to y'all- 30 papes please."
"One hundred," Spot said, throwing the money for both of them on the counter.
Grabbing her papers, she headed away with Spot at her heels. "I have a new selling spot... it's way better than the old one... I can usually sell all of these by the time I have to get the evening editions now."
"Then lead the way."
Grinning, she tramped ahead. With a slight smile he followed her.
"Why did you and Rae come back to Brooklyn if you have a house?" Jecca asked later as they sold their papers.
"Well, Rae needed some time to herself, well, without taking care of the kids, anyway... we both did. So Nick and Noelle are watching the kids for us, and we thought a trip here would be nice, to see everyone again."
"Who are Nick and Noelle?"
"They are the two people who used to own the house we live in..."
"Did they give it to you?"
"Sort of..." Spot replied.
"Sort of? Does that mean you stole it? You stole a HOUSE?!"
"No we didn't steal it. We needed a place to live and the house was empty so we just moved in."
"And they just LET you keep it?" She arched a brow skeptically. "No one in New York'd ever do that."
"There's something different about Nick and Noelle...I just can't figure it out."
"They're nice?" she snorted.
Spot nodded, "They offered to watch the other kids so that Rae and I could get some rest."
Jecca sighed. "Bring them here... maybe they'll buy a bunch of my papes."
He laughed and messed her hair. She wrinkled her nose and tried to straighten her hair when he was done. About an hour or so later, they were returning home. Jecca skipped on ahead, happy that she had sold her quota early.
Once they entered the lodging house Spot ran up the stairs, "Rae?"
She stirred awake, only lightly dozing. "What?" she muttered, slightly grumpy.
"Get up, I'm taking you to see Trent."
She mumbled incoherent phrases and sat up, yawning. "Okay..."
He grabbed her boots and knelt down in front of her, "Here, slip your feet in."
She did as told, yawning again, and climbed to her feet. "Let's go then."
He slipped his arm around her waist, "Come on."
They left the house amid questions from other newsies, such as "Where are you going?", "Leaving so soon?" and "Can I go too?"
Blank stepped in front of the door. "They have something that they need to take care of...Alone!"
~*~
"Get out, Spot!"
"But Trent..."
"You're not letting me DO anything! Just get out and let me finish examining her. You can ask all your questions later! When I'm done!" He pushed Spot out the door.
"But-"
"Zip it."
"But I-"
"Ah."
"You-"
"Nope."
"I-"
Click. The door closed.
Spot growled in frustration. The door opened again and Trent stuck his head out. "Why don't you go take a walk. The fresh air will do you good." Click. The door closed again.
Cramming his hands into his pockets, Spot stalked off. Rae was his WIFE! How could Trent just kick him out like that? Wasn't he allowed to be concerned?
He walked for more than half an hour, not really paying any attention to where his feet carried him. He stopped suddenly and stared at the building across the street. Or rather, what was left of it.
Horrible memories suddenly plagued his mind, jumbling up so quickly, it seemed as if one was trying to outdo the other to overwhelm him. The burning pain as the metal cut into his flesh...the frightened screams of the children as he herded them out the door...the horrified gasps of doctors and nurses at the hospital when they saw him... Not to mention the news the doctors told him- he'd never heal quite right... Then the gossip that followed... the shame and ugliness he felt...
One memory seemed to come back more than the others...Rae's gentle kiss the day she had left him to return to Brooklyn, intent on marrying another. She'd seen through the web of scars to see him... the REAL him, not the mask he wore for his boys, not the muted anger he hid behind after the explosion... One of the firemen who had pulled him from the building had said that it was a miracle that he had made it out alive. But he didn't consider that to be his miracle. His miracle was across Brooklyn being examined by a doctor and he could possibly lose her. And Dr. Trent wouldn't even let him stay with her!
He felt a gentle hand on his shoulder. With a start, he whirled around and saw Rae standing behind him. He pulled her into his arms and held her tight. "What did he say?"
She gave him a small smile. "Well... there was a reason for me to be sick all the time... and I'm not dying."
"What else did he say?"
"That the doctors that took care of you after the explosion are kooks and are wrong."
He lifted his brow curiously. "What... what do you mean?"
"I'm pregnant, Spot."
"You... You're WHAT?!"
"I'm going to have a baby."
He just stared at her, slack-jawed for a moment, then he grabbed her into a tight hug and kissed her, whooping so loud that passersby paused to stare.
She pulled back slightly, "Behave, Spot Conlon."
He beamed, eyes shining. "How can you expect me to behave?! This is the best news we could have ever received!"
She rested her head on his chest, laughing.
Hades ran up to them, "What are you two doing way over here on 34th Street?" she asked.
Spot looked at the burnt out shell of the factory and then back down at Rae. He grinned, "Just discussing our little miracle."
THE END!!!
Another one is finished!!! Thank you all for sticking with us this far and we hope that you will continue on with us to the next story: "The Kringle House: I'll Be Home For Christmas". We don't have a teaser for this fic, but we do have a summary.......
When a child is murdered in Pleasant Valley, the people in the town immediately blame "The Beast" When Spot is forced to leave town or face a lynching mob, he promises his family that he will return before Christmas. Will he be able to return in time? Will he be back home in time for another major event?