Disclaimer: I own the match used to 'spark' this story! HAHA! I made a pun! (But seriously now, Race owns the match. Disney owns Race. Oh yeah, they own everyone else too! Damn bastards!)
S/N- *Waves* Hiya! Thanks for coming to read my latest fic! Now, before I start, I would just like to warn you that I have a horrible record of finishing what I begin. The fact that I actually finished Il Salto di Honor (*PLUG*PLUG*PLUG*) is absolutely amazing. I'm going to try my hardest, but please don't hurt me if I don't end up finishing it until next Maytember…
Now, I would like to shout out to the wonderful people who reviewed the last chapter of ISDH:
Kate
Cruncharoo (Ark! I can't spell! Sorry bout that!)
Blinks-Tiger
Christy
Aura
Falco Conlon
Sphinx
Duchess
Rumor
studentnumber24601 (Wow! Thanks for putting me under favorite authors!)
Misprint (Did you see the epilogue? From your review it looked like you thought Chappie 7 was the last one…)
Keza
Now: On with the show!
Feel The Burn
"Five minutes until lights out!" Kloppman's voice sounded clearly in the bunkroom from his room downstairs.
"But I'se not tired!" Eight year old Red (named for his fiery mop of curls) whined.
"Me eithah!" The rest of the younger newsies chimed in.
Jack sighed, "Mush, youah on, Buddy." With his almost childlike personality, Mush was the only one who could get all the kids to listen to him. He was a lifesaver at times like these.
While Mush was rounding up the kiddies and the rest of the newsies were getting ready for bed, Race pulled out his latest favorite cigar. It was a Havana- stolen straight from the pocket of a rich man in a fancy suit. Racetrack didn't feel guilty- the man probably had hundreds more stashed in his mansion.
With nimble fingers, Race struck the match and held it a little away from the cigar's end. It caught and Race inhaled deeply, sighing with satisfaction. This little taste of heaven was more than worth almost getting caught. He leaned back, reclining against the thin pillow. It didn't get much better than this.
"It probably ain't healt'y ta do dat b'foah you'se go ta bed." A voice warned above him.
Race cracked an eye open to see Specs standing over him. "Eh, whadda you'se know, Specs?"
"Moah den you'se do. You'se getting' ashes awl in youah bed, dat can't be too good foah ya ta sleep on."
Racetrack just shrugged and went back to the bliss that this wonderful piece of tobacco was giving him.
~~~
Race wasn't sure what time it was when he woke up, all he knew was that he still had many precious hours of sleep before he had to wake up and sell. It only took him a moment before he realized what had woken him up.
Whew… It's really hot in here… He thought. The lodging house felt like a furnace! That was strange, it was winter; normally it was beyond freezing. Eh- I ain't gonna complain if I get a little warmth. And with that thought, he went back to sleep.
~~~
Loud, frightened yells and coughs woke Race for the second time that night. He opened his eyes to see every other newsie in the place running around frantically looking for an exit. What was going on?
"Race! Come on! We's gotta get outta heah!" Blink pulled him to his feet and practically pushed him out the window, following closely behind. Racetrack landed with a soft thump on the cobblestones outside.
"Ow! Blink!" He glared at the newsie when he too had landed. "What was dat foah?"
Blink looked at him incredulously. "Race, look around ya! Look at da lodgin' house!"
Taking a quick glance around his surroundings, he saw that every newsie that lived in the lodging house plus Kloppman was currently outside and staring at the building. He felt his heart drop down into his stomach when he saw the petrified looks on their faces. Even Jack's.
Slowly, he turned around to look at his homes. His eyes widened in shock as he saw the entire lodging house engulfed in flames. His mouth dropped open as he watched in shock as the flames grew bigger and bigger and the building eventually crumbled to the ground, now nothing more than a pile of rubble and the charred black skeleton which threatened to fall at any moment. Everyone was silent.
Jack was the first to speak. "Is everyone out okay? Tell me right now if ya don't see someone." Everyone looked around, but no one said anything. Jack and most of the older newsies sighed with relief. "Thank God," Jack muttered.
"W-what happened?" Red asked. His normally tanned skin was pasty white and he was shaking violently.
Again, everyone was silent. No one could guess how the fire had started and had become so big so quickly; no one except Specs, who caught Race's eye questioningly.
Race shook his head, there was no way… was there? No, he had finished the cigar and had put it out on the plastic plate next to his bed, just like every night…Or had he? For the life of him, he couldn't remember even finishing the cigar. Was it possible that he had fallen asleep smoking? Was it his fault that he and his friends were now homeless?
Jack looked at Kloppman who looked back at him helplessly. "Well, we's should staht figuahin' out what we's is goin' ta do now."
He had started the fire. All this was because of him. Shit.
~~~
Well… At least I didn't kill anyone in this one! Not yet at least…
REVIEW!!! The review button seems to have come down with another illness, which is worse than the other one he had! He can ONLY be cured by reviews, so gimme some! PUH-LEASSSSEEEE!!!