Disclaimer: Agh, awful things. I do not own the newsies ::sobs:: I really wish I did. Do you think Disney loans them out for parties? I don't own the song either. That would be Savage Garden's 'Crash and Burn.' I really like their album lately. I have a few more fics planned for their songs.
Broken Glass
Chapter Two
By Hotshot
A/N: I honestly never planned to write another chapter. It would just be a little one shot because I needed something to relieve some stress and just to write something. I will also warn you in advance: This chapter will contain slash. And SaL, I know you're gonna hate me for it but… well ::shrugs:: I hope you all enjoy this. By the way the beginning of this chapter is from David's point of view.
I hated him for what he did. I am not the sort of person to hold grudges but I swore to myself that I would hate Jack Kelly or Francis Sullivan, or whoever he was until the day I died. It's so hard to go against human nature though. As soon as I saw him running into that alley I knew I would forgive him. He hurt the Delancy's whereas I couldn't even land a decent punch. I wonder how I'm going to survive as a newsie if I can't even fight. Before he even spoke I forgave him, but I didn't need to act like it.
"What, you couldn't stay away?" I sneered.
"I guess I can't be somthin' I ain't," he responded.
"A scab."
"Naw, smart."
Had we been in another situation I might have laughed. Things were often like that in my life. I had to forgive him, I don't know why but it was something I had to do. We retreated to the apartment on Sarah's urging. I honestly wonder how I'm related to that girl sometimes. She made us read Denton's article. I didn't believe what I'd heard, but had to admit it was worth the chance of rejection to ask for his help.
The planning went well. Jack knew just where to find a press to print our banner. As we walked down I could barely imagine anyone working there, much less living there. There were so many people to seek revenge on for their parts in this. Jack uncovering brought me back to our current situation the old press.
"All right, a blatant press." Denton was grinning form ear to ear.
"Will it work?" I asked. I was the only one willing to be pessimistic, but someone needed to take up the role.
"It better; we have a deadline."
The work was a slow tedious process until we started to actually get going. We worked through the night at almost a neck breaking speed. All right so I'm exaggerating a bit but we were working pretty quickly to get it done. Les had run to catch a few of the boys, and brought them back to start circulating. Swifty was going to Brooklyn with some copies and Racetrack and Boots were fetching the rest of the boys. Denton and Sarah were going to convince a man to lend them a newspaper cart. I guess Denton figured Sarah could use her feminine ways or something like that. Jack and me finally got to sit down and talk. I joined him on the stairs with a side. He'd been silent for a while, since our work ended, so I took the first step.
"Jack?"
He looked up at me with a sad look in his eyes. "I'm sorry Dave," he whispered.
I almost shuddered, "Jack, just do me one favor. I don't care about the lies. Let's start over. Tell me about yourself, about your past?"
He looked at me, "You really want to know?"
"Yes."
He took a long drag on his cigarette.
When you feel all alone
And the world has turned it's back on you
Give me a moment please to tame your wild wild heart
I know you feel like the walls are closing in on you
It's hard to find relief and people can be so cold
When darkness is upon your door and you feel like you can't take anymore
"I'm all alone in this world Dave," he said. "Sure I have the newsies, but after we leave how many of them are going to recognize me or stop me on the streets."
He went on. The entire world had been turning it's back on him since he was a kid. His mother had died of a disease when he was barely ten, and his father turned to alcohol. I'd heard the story before, and I'd seen Jack's scars. He'd changed from his new suit back to his old clothes in front of all of us. The marks across his shoulders were definitely from a belt. Just when things got better for Jack they'd tried to take him away, his father had gone to jail. He lost everything. Then he found it again in the newsies. For a while anyway. Now Pulitzer was trying to take it all away, and almost succeeding.
He'd finally gotten caught, fenced in by people and things he knew. He had to do something with his life. He was the kind of person that would be ruined if contained. Locking him up would surely mean death. Smart men, men like David, and unfortunately Pulitzer knew that. Pulitzer had given him the one way out. He could go beck to his old life and stay trapped within those walls forever, in a box that was slowly shrinking, or he could be free.
No one moment with the newsies had helped him as of late. They all hated him for sure and were only acting as they were to win their strike. Once it was over his life would be as well. Since the whole thing started Jack had been under the most pressure. He was there leader; her had to have all the answers. Not a single moment of relief had come to him since the whole thing started. And the people, if he slipped up they would, and had, turned on him.
He admitted to David then that Pulitzer's help had only made it worse. His box was smaller than ever, and lonelier. It was one from which there was no escape. He'd tried to kill himself the night before. Someone, he hoped one of his boys had shattered the window upstairs. He showed David the small cuts on his wrists from the attempt. They were scratched and crudely bandaged. The scratches may have left scars but they were not enough to inflict damage. "But I couldn't even do that right." He cried, "I couldn't even kill myself to get rid of all this pain."
Let me be the one you call
If you jump I'll break your fall
Lift you up and fly away with you into the night
If you need to fall apart
I can mend a broken heart
If you need to crash then crash and burn
You're not alone
"I'm here for you Jack," David said. "You may not think I am but I'm here for you, and so are all the other guys." Tears were almost flowing down Jack's cheeks. The leader tried to hold them back be wasn't succeeding. David wrapped an arm around Jacks shoulder and shushed him. "You'll get through this. We'll fix it. How about I tell you my story?"
Jack nodded that that would be good.
When you feel all alone
And a loyal friend is hard to find
You're caught in a one way street
With the monsters in your head
When hopes and dreams are far away and
You feel like you can't face they day
He was gay. Everyone at his school knew it; that was why he wasn't very eager to go back. He'd been harassed there his entire life, or at least as long as he could remember. There were those few friends. They didn't care what he was, but they never lasted long. They always moved on to someone new, like a child does to a new toy. They found someone better. They joined the others and became his tormentors.
Society told him exactly what to do. Ignore it, ignore everything he was feeling. He was trapped even now that it was gone. All of it was gone; all the people and taunting faces. The words were still there. It seemed like a monster was screaming inside his head whenever he dared to think in that way. All of them back to haunt him.
He still worked. His parents wanted him to be a lawyer. It wasn't what he wanted. He had his own hopes and dreams. To be a doctor, to find someone he cared about. Everything was out of reach for it. He could still see himself as a little child trying to reach the hat a bully held just out of the reach of his hands. It was how he felt about this strike too. It was a metaphor to his life. He needed to win and prove he could do it. His dreams were all too far out of reach for his own good.
Since it had all started he had forced himself to face the day. It became more impossible every morning with the new challenges. He'd almost refused to get up that morning.
Let me be the one you call
If you jump I'll break your fall
Lift you up and fly away with you into the night
If you need to fall apart
I can mend a broken heart
If you need to crash then crash and burn
You're not alone
It was Jack's turn to comfort his friend. There were other newsies like David. None really talked about it but it was accepted. David was a part of the family in Manhattan, the having no friends part of his life was long over, and they wouldn't leave as long as he didn't give them a reason. He was going to accomplish something worthwhile in his life, even if it was only leading a strike. Hell, he'd talked the Spot Conlon into joining with Manhattan on his second day as a newsie.
Because there has always been heartache and pain
And when it's over you'll breathe again
You'll breath again
Jack wiped away a tear that was making its way down David's cheek. "It's gonna be all right David. We'll make it through the tough stuff. We always do."
David
looked at his friend. His heart was
hammering in his chest and his breathing became labored in a sense. He tried to stop trembling to no avail. His arm had dropped from Jack's shoulder to
wipe away the tears as they started.
Now it was Jack's arm around his shoulder. He wanted to speak but found his voice trapped in his
throat.
When you feel all alone
And the world has turned its back on you
Give me a moment please
To tame your wild wild heart
Jack
leaned forward and with all the tenderness in the world kissed him. The voices that had been echoing in David's
head, the taunts of cruel classmates, stopped.
It was over. His suffering was
over and done with. He was too shocked
to do anything for a moment, thinking he was dreaming. He leaned into Jack, trying to get the full
effect of the kiss. It was the most wonderful moment of his life.
Let me be the one you call
If you jump I'll break your fall
Lift you up and fly away with you into the night
If you need to fall apart
I can mend a broken heart
If you need to crash then crash and burn
You're not alone
The others came back soon enough. Jack and David were waiting for them. The Manhattan newsies wore enthusiastic smiles on their face. Denton and Sarah had the carriage. No one would know what had happened in that room for quite a while, but the two would not deny it had happened. Papers were handed out. The boys ran in different directions to find the sweatshop kids who were already hard at work. Some stayed to load up Denton's wagon before they left. After Denton had crawled out through the window Jack turned quickly to David.
"This might be my last day with you guys. I'll be in solitary for months if the bulls catch me. Let's make it count." He said.
David kissed him shortly and swiftly on the lips. "We will," he whispered, "I promise. And I'll make sure we win if it's the last thing I do."
The grins plastered on the two's faces would have melted your heart if you saw them right then. It was one of indescribable happiness and a knowing of one's self that guaranteed anyone that the two had found what they were looking for.
