A/N: I've gotten a couple of reviews about the whole "pre-marital sex"
issue and here's the deal.. I don't support pre-martial sex and I am in
fact against it. I don't have a problem with people that do it, but I never
will. However, I needed a good conflict on the smaller scale to accompany
the somewhat less mentioned big plot (the whole Chant extravaganza). And
there hasn't been any since she got pregnant and there won't be for the
rest of the story. Just clearing that up.
Now, on with the story:
"Michael?" I asked, praying that using his real name would remind him of a better time before he ran away. I guess in that sense it was also a sort of guilt trap, it showed that I wouldn't be in this situation because we'd both be safe at home instead of wandering the streets of New York selling papes. "You in there?"
"Go away!" he shouted gruffly.
Well, so much for the sympathy angle. "Dammit, Spot! Get your lazy ass out here and face me! You've got the upper hand; I'm with child for goodness sakes! What am I gonna do to you? Get out here!"
"I don' need dis from ya. Ya betrayed me, ya did some stupid shit, ya disobeyed me oidahs ta leave an' nevah set foot neah me again, an' ya jus' all-around misbehavin'. You'se me sistah an' therefore you'se me charge an' ya need ta listen ta what I say," he grunted.
I was shocked at his views. "You say you didn't belong in that hoity-toity lifestyle, but you sure bought into the whole men being the masters view, didn't you? You honestly think that David is this controlling of Sarah? No! I mean, at least she was allowed to go out with Jack without getting your approval. C'mon, what is wrong with you?" I shouted at through the door, my voice full of every emotion I was feeling at that moment.
"I don' wanna heah dis no moah. Get outta Brooklyn, an' don' ya be comin' back, ya heah?" he said. And that was it. He had dismissed me without even opening a door.
I heard scurrying feet behind me and I turned to see who it was. I came face to face with Slider when I spun around. She looked confused and torn. I interpreted her glance and answered, "You can stay, you love him and he loves you. I'm not going to stand between the great American love story."
"Thank you," she whispered before disappearing behind the door where Spot was sitting.
"Race, let's go," I said softly, tired from the tirade. I allowed myself to once again melt into his arms as we walked, but I didn't really draw strength from him this time. Rather I felt inadequate and useless. "Am I really that horrible?" I asked.
"Of course not," he said. "You'se poifect."
"I love you."
~*~*~*~ Six Months Later ~*~*~*~
"Race, you need to be out selling, not hanging around here. I've got Fingers around here to watch out and Shade for if I ever need another person. You need to be out there earning some money," I told Racetrack one day as he sat on the bunk beside me.
"You'se due in two weeks, what if da baby comes early?" he said frantically.
I laughed as I shifted myself into a more comfortable position. "I just stopped selling yesterday, you can keep working. You need to be out, its not good for your nerves to be in here all day."
"Why are ya tellin' me 'bout ma noives? Dat's somethin' only I should know, ain't it? But if ya insist.." He sighed and stood up, grabbing his newsboy cap. "I'll go sell. But if something happens, you'se gonna nevah heah da end of it from me. All righ'?"
"All right," I told him. "What are the chances of the baby coming two weeks early anyway?"
"Ya nevah know," he said as he leaned down and kissed my forehead. With that he walked out of the door to sell the morning papers with the boys.
Fingers walked over from where she had been sitting across the room. "So, me an' Shark is gonna switch off bein' ya supervisah?" she questioned.
"That's the plan, Stan," I said.
"I'se goin' ta get meself some watah, ya alright for da moment?" Fingers asked. I nodded, and she began walking downstairs and into the makeshift kitchen where she could get some drinking water.
Less than a minute later I heard footsteps coming back up the stairs. "Back already?" I asked Fingers.
"Nah," I heard Spot's voice say. "Is it still all righ' for me ta come in heah?"
At first I felt all the anger from our confrontations and his abandonment of me rushing up to greet me, but when I saw his face at the door and realized that he truly was sorry, I could only feel love. "It's all right."
He came and sat down on my bed. "I came ta tell ya," he started. I could tell he was about to apologize, and I suddenly realized I didn't need to hear it.
"Don't bother, I know what you want to say," I told him. "And you don't need to, its really my own fault, and I didn't listen to you."
He looked straight into my eyes with an open frankness that only a brother and sister can achieve. "I'm glad ya did, I was wrong. Racetrack ain't exactly ditchin' ya for havin' his child or anythin'."
"I know," I said, smiling slightly. "Not that we're truly sure it's his."
"Don' mattah, he'll treat it like it is. He's a good guy, Higgins, he really is."
At that moment, Fingers returned to the bunkroom from getting herself her water. "Is everythin' all righ' in heah?"
"Yeah, it's fine," I answered. "You staying around 'Hattan, Spot?" I asked.
"Unfortunately, dat ain't an option wit' all da shit goin' down wit' Chant. But I needed ta say what I said, an' I'se bettah be goin'. Love ya, 'Lex." With that he turned on his heel and began walking out the door. Before he left, however, he said, "Oh, an' 'Lex? Call me Michael, will ya, I'se ya bruddah before I'se a newsie, ya know."
"Of course, Michael."
All that day Fingers sat there with me, before I finally grew bored. "Fingers, can you get me out of here? I can't stay cooped up all day but Race would freak if he knew I left. Can you?"
"I can sneak ya out an' we can go sellin', but if da boys come I'll tell 'em we was runnin' an errand ta get ya somethin'. Sound good?" Fingers offered.
"Thanks so much, I owe you one," I gushed as I hugged her. I pulled off the oversized nightshift and quickly slipped into the pair of pants that a man at Medda's had offered me when I was last there. As it were, I had confronted Medda to ask her about the job hoax, and she admitted that her regular never canceled but still offered me a position if I wanted. I decided to decline, not wanting to be a burden on anyone other than myself. As I was buttoning my shirt over my massive belly I had to smile.
Fingers noticed the grin. "Three weeks, eh? Dat's pretty soon."
"I know," I told her. I knew things would be more difficult after the baby was born, but at the moment I was enjoying knowing that there was something growing inside of me. And now Spot - excuse me, Michael - had forgiven me and begged my forgiveness instead, and it was making me completely ecstatic. That combined with getting out of the room.. it was almost too much.
"You'se very hormonal right now, ya know. I would be careful what ya do when ya like dis," Fingers warned in a fake motherly tone.
"Shut up," I told her. "Now we are actually going to go sell, aren't we?"
"Of course we are," she said, though she was nervously eyeing my stomach.
I sighed. "I ain't gonna pop, you know. And if I do, it's not your fault, it's my own. We were just running errands, remember."
"Yeah, yeah, I remembah. Ya realize we'se gonna get intah loads of trouble if we'se caught, right?" Fingers said.
"You can probably see Smith," I told her, noticing her face brightening. "He started selling around here, Michael told me. He volunteered to be on the lookout in case I need my brother, though I think it had more to do with you. He should be on the edge of the bridge, its tougher territory."
"How's the bridge toughah than anywheah else?" Fingers asked. "An' how ya know moah stuff den I do an' I'se been heah for four yeahs."
"'Cause you never stop to look around. The bridge is toughest because people have already bought their papers on the Brooklyn end if they're coming towards you. Also, how many people cross the bridge that haven't already been in the city long enough to have spotted another paperboy? That's just how it works."
"Of coise, I knew dat. I jus' wanted ta see if you did," she said, somewhat confused. Trying to change the subject she added, "Now let's jus' go sell."
"Of course," I said and started down the stairs after her. A moment later a bit of fresh air hit my face and I was (in the words of the acclaimed Jack Kelly) "Free, like the wind, like I'm gonna live forever. It's a feeling time can never take away.."
"We'se headin' down ta da Bridge, right?" Fingers said, trying to sound casual.
I grinned. "Of course, let's go see your lover-boy." Fingers whacked me on the head jokingly. "You know, you shouldn't do that to a pregnant woman," I scolded.
"Yeah, well, ya ain't a woman. You'se jus' annudah child havin' a child."
"You really think of me that way?" I asked. In my time with the newsies I had truly began to value their opinions about me. "You really think I'm just a child that got knocked up?"
"Of coise not, you'se me friend an' I ain't gonna think less of ya for havin' a child." Somewhat under her breath she muttered, "I'se jus' glad ya got Racetrack on ya side still, knowin' it may not be his kid."
"Only time will tell," I said, sounding much wiser than I probably was.
By that time we had reached the Bridge, and I could see Smith looking at us. "Fingahs? Spark? What are ya doin' heah? You'se supposed ta be back at da lodgin' house."
"I couldn't stand it," I told him. "But this can be our little secret right?" I said in a mock seductive tone.
Fingers stepped in. "Alrigh', dat's me job, not yours. An' what exactly is sexy 'bout a pregnant woman anyway?"
"I'm sexy whether I'm pregnant or not," I joked. Smith looked at me and then at his girlfriend and laughed. Fingers was evidently so much sexier than me at the time, even though Smith and I had had quite a time of flirting when I was still in Brooklyn those nine or so months previous. "See what you're missing?" I said laughing.
"Oh, how sad," Smith said. "The baby been kickin' lately?" he asked.
"Yeah, plenty. I'll let you know if she does while I'm here."
"Alrigh'."
And so the three of us settled in for a somewhat normal day of hanging out and selling papers. All the while I couldn't keep from smiling my head off despite their sarcastic remarks.
This was happiness.
A/N: Whoa, happy chapter! Go me! Sorry this took so long, I had soo much work to do this week you wouldn't believe it. Thanks a million for all my reviews, I got a whole lot. Keep it up!
Shoutouts (lots of 'em too):
Soaker: I know, Spot and Sli are great together. I wrote a story about them once. It was pretty fun. Haha. Yeah, well, I guess this answers the whole thing about Spot. He's not all bad, took him a while though. Yes, yes, sweet Racetrack * smiles *
Mouth: I didn't leave you hanging this time.. go me. Well, maybe I did. I guess you never know what happens next, I'm planning something exciting. * evil grin * Yep, yep, you've always wanted a flying desk set.
Plaid Pajamas: Yeah, I left you blind for a while. So sorry! I just had sooo much homework. Wait, I forgot the new review jig. * does the new reviewer jig * Okay, very dizzy now. LOL. Nice adjectives, by the way.
Drama-Queen: Whoa, I'm being ridiculously nice now aren't I? But everything is righted for the moment, including Spot.
Sweets: Yeah, well, my update took a while too. Sorry about that. Anyway, here's more and more is on the way.
AngelFish: * new reviewer jig * I always love getting new reviewers, it makes me feel I'm doing something right. Hope you keep reading!!
Sprite: You do review, don't you? I should give you a prize. * hands Sprite a plaque that says "Most Common Reviewing of SparkHiggins' Stories" * there you go.
Reffy: Haha. Now the baby is really showing. Not really much evident suspense in this chapter sadly. I didn't know how to add any. Haha, yeah, well, aren't we all in weird moods sometimes?
AJ: * new reviewer jig * Whoa, you're my third new reviewer in just this chapter. Cool! Yeah, Race is very, very cute.
Viper: No! I love the newsies, that's why I torture them. Haha. Anyway, about the sex thing, I know you've already read my above author's note, so I hope that explains it.
Okay, I have to go eat dinner. Read and enjoy!!
Now, on with the story:
"Michael?" I asked, praying that using his real name would remind him of a better time before he ran away. I guess in that sense it was also a sort of guilt trap, it showed that I wouldn't be in this situation because we'd both be safe at home instead of wandering the streets of New York selling papes. "You in there?"
"Go away!" he shouted gruffly.
Well, so much for the sympathy angle. "Dammit, Spot! Get your lazy ass out here and face me! You've got the upper hand; I'm with child for goodness sakes! What am I gonna do to you? Get out here!"
"I don' need dis from ya. Ya betrayed me, ya did some stupid shit, ya disobeyed me oidahs ta leave an' nevah set foot neah me again, an' ya jus' all-around misbehavin'. You'se me sistah an' therefore you'se me charge an' ya need ta listen ta what I say," he grunted.
I was shocked at his views. "You say you didn't belong in that hoity-toity lifestyle, but you sure bought into the whole men being the masters view, didn't you? You honestly think that David is this controlling of Sarah? No! I mean, at least she was allowed to go out with Jack without getting your approval. C'mon, what is wrong with you?" I shouted at through the door, my voice full of every emotion I was feeling at that moment.
"I don' wanna heah dis no moah. Get outta Brooklyn, an' don' ya be comin' back, ya heah?" he said. And that was it. He had dismissed me without even opening a door.
I heard scurrying feet behind me and I turned to see who it was. I came face to face with Slider when I spun around. She looked confused and torn. I interpreted her glance and answered, "You can stay, you love him and he loves you. I'm not going to stand between the great American love story."
"Thank you," she whispered before disappearing behind the door where Spot was sitting.
"Race, let's go," I said softly, tired from the tirade. I allowed myself to once again melt into his arms as we walked, but I didn't really draw strength from him this time. Rather I felt inadequate and useless. "Am I really that horrible?" I asked.
"Of course not," he said. "You'se poifect."
"I love you."
~*~*~*~ Six Months Later ~*~*~*~
"Race, you need to be out selling, not hanging around here. I've got Fingers around here to watch out and Shade for if I ever need another person. You need to be out there earning some money," I told Racetrack one day as he sat on the bunk beside me.
"You'se due in two weeks, what if da baby comes early?" he said frantically.
I laughed as I shifted myself into a more comfortable position. "I just stopped selling yesterday, you can keep working. You need to be out, its not good for your nerves to be in here all day."
"Why are ya tellin' me 'bout ma noives? Dat's somethin' only I should know, ain't it? But if ya insist.." He sighed and stood up, grabbing his newsboy cap. "I'll go sell. But if something happens, you'se gonna nevah heah da end of it from me. All righ'?"
"All right," I told him. "What are the chances of the baby coming two weeks early anyway?"
"Ya nevah know," he said as he leaned down and kissed my forehead. With that he walked out of the door to sell the morning papers with the boys.
Fingers walked over from where she had been sitting across the room. "So, me an' Shark is gonna switch off bein' ya supervisah?" she questioned.
"That's the plan, Stan," I said.
"I'se goin' ta get meself some watah, ya alright for da moment?" Fingers asked. I nodded, and she began walking downstairs and into the makeshift kitchen where she could get some drinking water.
Less than a minute later I heard footsteps coming back up the stairs. "Back already?" I asked Fingers.
"Nah," I heard Spot's voice say. "Is it still all righ' for me ta come in heah?"
At first I felt all the anger from our confrontations and his abandonment of me rushing up to greet me, but when I saw his face at the door and realized that he truly was sorry, I could only feel love. "It's all right."
He came and sat down on my bed. "I came ta tell ya," he started. I could tell he was about to apologize, and I suddenly realized I didn't need to hear it.
"Don't bother, I know what you want to say," I told him. "And you don't need to, its really my own fault, and I didn't listen to you."
He looked straight into my eyes with an open frankness that only a brother and sister can achieve. "I'm glad ya did, I was wrong. Racetrack ain't exactly ditchin' ya for havin' his child or anythin'."
"I know," I said, smiling slightly. "Not that we're truly sure it's his."
"Don' mattah, he'll treat it like it is. He's a good guy, Higgins, he really is."
At that moment, Fingers returned to the bunkroom from getting herself her water. "Is everythin' all righ' in heah?"
"Yeah, it's fine," I answered. "You staying around 'Hattan, Spot?" I asked.
"Unfortunately, dat ain't an option wit' all da shit goin' down wit' Chant. But I needed ta say what I said, an' I'se bettah be goin'. Love ya, 'Lex." With that he turned on his heel and began walking out the door. Before he left, however, he said, "Oh, an' 'Lex? Call me Michael, will ya, I'se ya bruddah before I'se a newsie, ya know."
"Of course, Michael."
All that day Fingers sat there with me, before I finally grew bored. "Fingers, can you get me out of here? I can't stay cooped up all day but Race would freak if he knew I left. Can you?"
"I can sneak ya out an' we can go sellin', but if da boys come I'll tell 'em we was runnin' an errand ta get ya somethin'. Sound good?" Fingers offered.
"Thanks so much, I owe you one," I gushed as I hugged her. I pulled off the oversized nightshift and quickly slipped into the pair of pants that a man at Medda's had offered me when I was last there. As it were, I had confronted Medda to ask her about the job hoax, and she admitted that her regular never canceled but still offered me a position if I wanted. I decided to decline, not wanting to be a burden on anyone other than myself. As I was buttoning my shirt over my massive belly I had to smile.
Fingers noticed the grin. "Three weeks, eh? Dat's pretty soon."
"I know," I told her. I knew things would be more difficult after the baby was born, but at the moment I was enjoying knowing that there was something growing inside of me. And now Spot - excuse me, Michael - had forgiven me and begged my forgiveness instead, and it was making me completely ecstatic. That combined with getting out of the room.. it was almost too much.
"You'se very hormonal right now, ya know. I would be careful what ya do when ya like dis," Fingers warned in a fake motherly tone.
"Shut up," I told her. "Now we are actually going to go sell, aren't we?"
"Of course we are," she said, though she was nervously eyeing my stomach.
I sighed. "I ain't gonna pop, you know. And if I do, it's not your fault, it's my own. We were just running errands, remember."
"Yeah, yeah, I remembah. Ya realize we'se gonna get intah loads of trouble if we'se caught, right?" Fingers said.
"You can probably see Smith," I told her, noticing her face brightening. "He started selling around here, Michael told me. He volunteered to be on the lookout in case I need my brother, though I think it had more to do with you. He should be on the edge of the bridge, its tougher territory."
"How's the bridge toughah than anywheah else?" Fingers asked. "An' how ya know moah stuff den I do an' I'se been heah for four yeahs."
"'Cause you never stop to look around. The bridge is toughest because people have already bought their papers on the Brooklyn end if they're coming towards you. Also, how many people cross the bridge that haven't already been in the city long enough to have spotted another paperboy? That's just how it works."
"Of coise, I knew dat. I jus' wanted ta see if you did," she said, somewhat confused. Trying to change the subject she added, "Now let's jus' go sell."
"Of course," I said and started down the stairs after her. A moment later a bit of fresh air hit my face and I was (in the words of the acclaimed Jack Kelly) "Free, like the wind, like I'm gonna live forever. It's a feeling time can never take away.."
"We'se headin' down ta da Bridge, right?" Fingers said, trying to sound casual.
I grinned. "Of course, let's go see your lover-boy." Fingers whacked me on the head jokingly. "You know, you shouldn't do that to a pregnant woman," I scolded.
"Yeah, well, ya ain't a woman. You'se jus' annudah child havin' a child."
"You really think of me that way?" I asked. In my time with the newsies I had truly began to value their opinions about me. "You really think I'm just a child that got knocked up?"
"Of coise not, you'se me friend an' I ain't gonna think less of ya for havin' a child." Somewhat under her breath she muttered, "I'se jus' glad ya got Racetrack on ya side still, knowin' it may not be his kid."
"Only time will tell," I said, sounding much wiser than I probably was.
By that time we had reached the Bridge, and I could see Smith looking at us. "Fingahs? Spark? What are ya doin' heah? You'se supposed ta be back at da lodgin' house."
"I couldn't stand it," I told him. "But this can be our little secret right?" I said in a mock seductive tone.
Fingers stepped in. "Alrigh', dat's me job, not yours. An' what exactly is sexy 'bout a pregnant woman anyway?"
"I'm sexy whether I'm pregnant or not," I joked. Smith looked at me and then at his girlfriend and laughed. Fingers was evidently so much sexier than me at the time, even though Smith and I had had quite a time of flirting when I was still in Brooklyn those nine or so months previous. "See what you're missing?" I said laughing.
"Oh, how sad," Smith said. "The baby been kickin' lately?" he asked.
"Yeah, plenty. I'll let you know if she does while I'm here."
"Alrigh'."
And so the three of us settled in for a somewhat normal day of hanging out and selling papers. All the while I couldn't keep from smiling my head off despite their sarcastic remarks.
This was happiness.
A/N: Whoa, happy chapter! Go me! Sorry this took so long, I had soo much work to do this week you wouldn't believe it. Thanks a million for all my reviews, I got a whole lot. Keep it up!
Shoutouts (lots of 'em too):
Soaker: I know, Spot and Sli are great together. I wrote a story about them once. It was pretty fun. Haha. Yeah, well, I guess this answers the whole thing about Spot. He's not all bad, took him a while though. Yes, yes, sweet Racetrack * smiles *
Mouth: I didn't leave you hanging this time.. go me. Well, maybe I did. I guess you never know what happens next, I'm planning something exciting. * evil grin * Yep, yep, you've always wanted a flying desk set.
Plaid Pajamas: Yeah, I left you blind for a while. So sorry! I just had sooo much homework. Wait, I forgot the new review jig. * does the new reviewer jig * Okay, very dizzy now. LOL. Nice adjectives, by the way.
Drama-Queen: Whoa, I'm being ridiculously nice now aren't I? But everything is righted for the moment, including Spot.
Sweets: Yeah, well, my update took a while too. Sorry about that. Anyway, here's more and more is on the way.
AngelFish: * new reviewer jig * I always love getting new reviewers, it makes me feel I'm doing something right. Hope you keep reading!!
Sprite: You do review, don't you? I should give you a prize. * hands Sprite a plaque that says "Most Common Reviewing of SparkHiggins' Stories" * there you go.
Reffy: Haha. Now the baby is really showing. Not really much evident suspense in this chapter sadly. I didn't know how to add any. Haha, yeah, well, aren't we all in weird moods sometimes?
AJ: * new reviewer jig * Whoa, you're my third new reviewer in just this chapter. Cool! Yeah, Race is very, very cute.
Viper: No! I love the newsies, that's why I torture them. Haha. Anyway, about the sex thing, I know you've already read my above author's note, so I hope that explains it.
Okay, I have to go eat dinner. Read and enjoy!!